Nick Lowe

Nick first started cantoring in fourth grade at St. Bernadette Church in Cleveland, OH and hasn’t stopped since. From his high school years at St. Ignatius Loyola in Cleveland to The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. to St. Ignatius here in NYC (and a ton of weddings around the country along the way), Nick has loved leading congregations in song. When Nick isn’t singing here at Ignatius he’s editing Spider-Man comics and chasing his three crazy kids with his amazing wife Emily.

Heather Petrie

Hailed as “a true contralto, with a big, deep, resonant projection that can fill a hall,” (New London Day) Heather Petrie is a familiar voice at St Ignatius Loyola.  She was the 2019 second prize winner in the Lyndon Woodside Oratorio Competition and will make her Carnegie Hall debut this December as the Alto soloist in Handel’s Messiah with the Oratorio Society of New York.  She has appeared with Voices of Ascension, the American Symphony Orchestra, the NY Philharmonic, and Musica Sacra. In addition to numerous roles, she has been a member of the opera chorus at Bard Summerscape, the Princeton Festival, New York City Opera, and the Metropolitan Opera Extra Chorus.  Heather is a founding member of the critically acclaimed, eight-voice treble group Etherea Vocal Ensemble, and is prominently featured on both of their recordings, released by Delos.  Recently, she and other members of the St Ignatius Choir formed an early music quartet called Caladrius, and gave their first concert this summer. She holds degrees from Bard College and SUNY Purchase Conservatory.  More information can be found at www.heatherpetriecontralto.com   

Liz Picker

Liz Picker, Mezzo/Contralto, is a seasoned operatic and choral performer appearing regularly throughout the U.S. as a soloist and ensemble singer. A graduate of Yale University where she was a member of Schola Cantorum under the baton of Simon Carrington of the King’s Singer’s, Liz has sung in opera and concert series with New York City Opera, Santa Fe Opera, Musica Sacra, The New York Philharmonic, Bach Vespers at Holy Trinity, Berkshire Bach society, The New York Gilbert and Sullivan Players, Bard Summerscape and Music Festival, among many others. Liz frequently joins other esteemed New York church choirs, including those at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, St. Bartholomew’s Church, and Temple Emmanuel. She can be heard on numerous studio recordings and in TV and film productions, most recently in City on a Hill with Kevin Bacon, PBS’s Now Hear This, and The Tefila Project with Israeli singer-songwriter David Broza.

Devony Smith

Recognized for her “sensual” and “strong” voice (New York Times), mezzo-soprano DevonySmith demonstrates versatility across operatic and concert repertoire. Devony has several recent role debuts including Cherubino in Le nozze di Figaro, Hansel in Hansel and Gretel, and the title role in La Cenerentola with Opera Modesto, Rosina in Il barbiere di Siviglia with New York City Opera, the Rooster The Cunning Little Vixen with Opera Theater Freiburg, Sesto in Clemenza di Tito with Bronx Opera, and Dido in Dido and Aeneas at Teatro Communale di Narni. 

Devony frequently collaborates with composers, most recently premiering Grammy Award-winning Jennifer Higdon’s Little River Songs and Benjamin P. Wenzelberg’s chamber work Any of Those Decembers, along with Eve Beglarian’s song cycle Farther from the Heart. She also premiered the role of the Designer in Luna Pearl Woolf’s staged oratorio Number Our Days at the Perelman Performing Arts Center with the choir of Trinity Wall Street. Devony has a long-standing relationship with Pulitzer Prize finalist Kate Soper’s Here Be Sirens, which she has toured in three different seasons, including a performance at National Sawdust. She will also sing the role of the Lover on the cast album of Soper’s second opera, Romance of the Rose. Additionally, she recently toured with the Albany Symphony, performing five world premieres across New York State, including a work by Grammy-nominated composer Clarice Assad.

A champion of concert repertoire, Devony has performed as a featured recitalist with Caramoor Center for the Arts, Carnegie Hall City Wide, Ravinia Steans Music Institute, and Songfest where she also was the recipient of a Sorel Fellowship. Devony recently made her Carnegie Hall debut as the alto soloist in Dan Forrest’s Jubilate Deo with Manhattan Concert Production and was the alto soloist in both Vivaldi’s Gloria and Durante’s Magnificat at Carnegie with MidAmerica Productions. Also at Carnegie Hall, she participated in the prestigious Song Continues Workshop with Marilyn Horne, Renée Fleming, and Graham Johnson.

Matt Robbins

Matt Robbins’s route to choral singing is circuitous. After coming to New York to study and perform as a jazz pianist, Matt found a niche in working as a piano/vocalist in several bands, touring and appearing in clubs and on festival stages throughout the northeast. Simultaneously, he pursued private vocal studies, and found a welcoming home in choral music, where he has been a sought-after ensemble singer, working with the New York based new music ensemble Choral Chameleon, and the Empire City Men’s Chorus, among others. Matt holds a Masters of Music in Jazz Piano performance from the Manhattan School of Music.

Kameron Ghanavati

Kameron began his musical studies at the age of 5 in the sleepy seaside town of Ocean City, NJ and quickly found his passion through music.  After years of intense study and dedication, Kameron has made it a mission of his to utilize his musical tools as a vehicle for his artistry and to find ways to be more innovative and creative in our ever-changing world.

Kameron is currently a professional member of the touring ensemble, Choral Chameleon, and volunteers on the side as a Marketing Associate to help implement various Marketing and Business strategies to better the choir and help bring innovative concerts to the musical community.

He is also a returning member and singer with the professional ensemble Mastersingers of Wilmington and can be heard around the New York City area with groups like the St. Ignatius Choir and Empire City Mens Chorus.

When not performing on stage, Kameron remains active as a private voice instructor to students of all ages. His teaching philosophy is based in invoking critical thinking skills to allow students to explore and broaden their musical horizons.

In the 2019-2020 season, Kameron was selected to perform as a young artist with Opera Southwest and understudied the leading role in the recently unearthed operatic comedy “Alí Baba”.

He looks forward to performing as Agenore in “Il re Pastore” with Little Opera Theater of New York and as Guiseppe in “La Traviata” with City Lyric Opera, both in New York City.

Mr. Ghanavati’s notable roles include Ruggiero in “La Liberazione di Ruggiero” (Opera Ithaca), Nerone in “L’incoronazione di Poppea” (Eastman Opera Theater), William-King Noel in the world premiere of “The Infinite Energy of Ada Lovelace” (Opera Ithaca), Belmonte in “Die Entführung aus dem serail” (UD Opera Theater), Laurie in and Mark Adamo’s “Little Women” (UD Opera Theater).

Kameron is a recent graduate of the Eastman School of Music (2018) where he studied under Robert Swensen and is also a graduate from the University of Delaware (2016) under the tutelage of Dr. Blake Smith. While at the University of Delaware, Kameron was the co-recipient of the prestigious F. Warren James Memorial Award, which is awarded to outstanding voice majors who posses and demonstrate high artistry.

Rev. Mark Hallinan, S.J.

After having served at St. Ignatius 17 years ago when I was first ordained a priest, I have returned to join the parish staff. In those 17 years, I have served as an animator for social justice ministry for the then New York Province of the Society of Jesus, a pastor of a bi-lingual parish on Staten Island, and a pastor of two churches in Kingston, Jamaica. It is a great privilege to be back at St. Ignatius Loyola and to see the remarkable growth that the parish has experienced.

Philip Anderson

Philip Anderson is an active and busy tenor in New York City. He is a member of three early music ensembles; ARTEK, My Lord Chamberlain’s Consort, and TENET. He has been a soloist in Carnegie Hall singing Handel’s Messiah with the Masterworks Chorus and Orchestra. In 2007 he appeared on Broadway in Coram Boy. He is a frequent guest artist with Chatham Baroque, Piffaro, and The Queen’s Chamber Band. He has been a soloist with the Metropolis Ensemble, Orchestra of St. Lukes, and Sacred Music in a Sacred Space. He has toured with Mark Morris Dance Group, the Waverly Consort, and New York’s Ensemble for Early Music singing the title role in The Play of Daniel. In 2012 Philip toured the U.S. and Europe with the Philip Glass Ensemble in Einstein on the Beach. Most weekends he can be heard singing hymns at the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola, where he is the Parish cantor. His many recordings include the Grammy Award-nominated O Magnum Mysterium with The Tiffany Consort. When not singing he can be found in his vegetable garden in North Salem, NY.

Robert Reuter

Robert Reuter has served as the Associate Director of Music at the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola in New York City since 2012 and works closely with director K. Scott Warren in shaping the church’s vibrant liturgical music program and concert series, Concerts at St. Ignatius.

 Since joining the music staff in 2007, Robert has had the pleasure of working with all of the church’s professional and volunteer ensembles.  He currently directs the 50-member Parish Community Choir, which can be heard at many major liturgies, as well as the popular Christmas and spring concerts.  Past performances include Vivaldi Gloria, Bach Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme, Poulenc Gloria, and Bassi Carol Symphony.

 Robert is a member of, and occasionally conducts, the professional Choir of St. Ignatius Loyola, which offers repertoire at liturgies and concerts ranging from Gregorian chant to the latest choral masterpieces. Past conducting performances with this ensemble include Palestrina Missa Sine Nomine a 6, Poulenc Messe en sol majeur, and Brahms Ein deutsches Requiem.

 When not contributing to the musical aspects of the Concerts at St. Ignatius series, Robert enjoys being the behind-the-scenes “go-to-guy” in his position as Technical & Logistics Coordinator.  Responsibilities include crafting detailed schematics for each concert, running the lighting and sound systems, and helping to ensure an overall smooth concert experience for the musicians and audience members alike.

James Archie Worley

Tenor James Archie Worley has been a member of the professional choir at St. Ignatius Loyola since 1999. He has appeared as a soloist with the American Symphony Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic, the American Composers Orchestra, the Orchestra of St. Luke’s in the Fields, Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, the Little Orchestra Society, the Santa Fe Symphony, the Chattanooga Symphony, the Midland Symphony Orchestra, and the Brooklyn Philharmonic. He has also appeared as a soloist with numerous choral groups in New York City and across the country. He has been engaged as a cover artist by the Metropolitan Opera, and has sung roles at the Portland Opera Repertory Theatre, the Bard Music Festival, Mississippi Opera, the Pocket Opera Players, the New York City Opera VOX Festival, and with the Opera Orchestra of New York. Mr. Worley holds a Bachelor of Music Degree from the University of Georgia, a Master of Arts Degree from Hunter College of the City University of New York, and is an alumnus of the Manhattan School of Music. He is a DMA candidate in vocal performance at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York.