Ludwig van Beethoven, one of my all time favorite composers said, “art…can raise men to the divine.” I believe that is what this work has done for me personally, and demonstrates the power of music in my own life. Lamb of God is a declaration of my beliefs and a message of hope for a confused world.

When I first attended Lamb of God years ago at Symphony Hall in Salt Lake City, I was transformed by the music and message. Words cannot adequately describe what I felt as I watched the production unfold. I was moved to tears and left the concert a changed person. I knew my mission was to perform and present inspiring fine art which edifies and lifts the soul- art that transforms us into better people who can make the world better because of our influence. In short, I knew I needed to bring this majestic compositional work to St. George and I wanted my family and friends to experience what I had felt.

We are honored to share this production with you and feel deeply indebted to the musicians, choir members, soloists, narrators, technical crew and all who are involved in this concert. Thank you to our donors, sponsors and patrons for making the work of the Southwest Symphony possible. You are “instrumental” to our success.

Music has the power to unite, heal, strengthen and inspire us perhaps in a way nothing else can. Tonight I hope you will feel the power of the music and the message and, leave the concert, like me, changed.

With gratitude.

Now in his sixth year with the Southwest Symphony, Maestro Darger is honored to continue to work with this amazing group of musicians and be part of this community. Under his leadership the symphony has continued to take on even more difficult repertoire each year and has risen to the challenge. The orchestra performs very diverse repertoire, from the masterworks of Beethoven to the hits of Billy Joel, and in April 2021 the orchestra recorded a special for national TV with Marie Osmond.

Darger is a passionate conductor and musician and strives to achieve expressive performances that captivate and energize audiences. He began his journey with conducting when he was sixteen years old after being asked to assist with the All City Children’s Orchestra. He continued to study conducting while pursuing a degree in Violin Performance, studying with Dr. Robert Baldwin and conducting the Lincoln Youth Symphony. He went on to earn a master’s degree in orchestral conducting from the University of Iowa. There he studied with William LaRue Jones and conducted both the Philharmonic Orchestra and the UI String Orchestra while performing with Orchestra Iowa and the Dubuque Symphony Orchestra. He completed further studies with Michael Jinbo at the Pierre Monteux School for Conductors before moving to Texas, where he joined the Valley Symphony Orchestra and conducted the South Texas Youth Symphony.  

Lieto Voices! was created in 2003 and has added a unique perspective to the local  choral music scene in St. George and the surrounding area. Award-winning educator Robert Reimer is the Director for Lieto Voices! 

Mr. Reimer grew up in the Seattle, Washington area and attended Brigham Young University.  In 1993 he graduated and began working for the Washington County School District at Dixie High School.  He completed a master’s degree from Southern Utah University in Education with a certification in ESL. 

Robert Bromley has performed in a myriad of productions over the years including the portrayal of at least ten prophets including the apostle Peter in Savior of the World at the Conference Center Theater. Not to think him too righteous, he has also portrayed the devil, and a few other nefarious characters. Rob believes that the bad guy in any production has to be equal to the collective good in the rest of the cast, otherwise there is nothing to conquer. Rob believes, “You can’t have a wimpy bad guy and still have a good production.” 

Jamison (BJ) Cox, a dentist in St George, is a life-long performer and musician. He has performed and soloed with the BYU Singers, the Deseret Chamber Singers, the Lexington Chamber Chorale, and currently sings with the St George Chamber Singers. He also co-conducts the St George Children’s Choir with his wife, Rachel, and loves making music with their four children at home. His favorite musical theater stage credits include Into the Woods (Baker), Secret Garden (Archibald), Guys and Dolls (Nicely). BJ is thrilled to once again join with the Southwest Symphony to perform this beautiful, moving piece.

Rachel Robertson Cox holds a master’s degree in Vocal Performance from Brigham Young University and completed post-graduate studies at the AIMS Institute in Graz, Austria. As a vocalist, Rachel has toured and performed throughout the U.S., Western Europe and South Africa. In addition to classical performances, Rachel is a musical theater actress with recent performances at Tuacahn, Kayenta Center for the Arts, Hurricane Valley and St George Musical Theater. Recent stage credits include: The King and I (Anna), Brigadoon (Fiona), Secret Garden (Lily), South Pacific (Nellie) and Bright Star (Alice). Rachel is the conductor of the St George Children’s Choir, co-founder and president of the St George Chamber Singers and maintains a private vocal studio. She is married to tenor BJ Cox and together they have four children. They are thrilled and grateful to be celebrating Easter by reprising their favorite roles in this powerful production.

Tennile Coello, soprano, has always been known for her beautiful singing voice. She began her collegiate vocal studies at Dixie State College where she found a passion for singing opera and musical theater. She continued on to earn a Bachelor degree in Vocal Performance from Utah State and later completed a Masters degree in Vocal Performance at BYU. Although Tennile has primarily performed in her home state with the Southwest Symphony, Utah Festival Opera, St. George Opera, and Hale Center Theater, she has also performed in Washington DC, Italy, and England. Tennile is currently a resident of Hurricane, Utah, where she and her husband live with their 3 children. She enjoys teaching voice lessons in her home and putting on concerts in the St. George Tabernacle. She is honored to have the opportunity to testify of the Savior as Mary Magdalene in this incredible work. 

Bryndon Hatch is excited to debut as Judas in the Lamb of God. He has been singing his whole life, performing in roles such as Captain von Trapp in the Sound of Music and Bernardo in West Side Story. Bryndon obtained a music minor in vocal performance at the University of Utah and performed with the University of Utah Singers as they won the European Grand Prix for Choral Singing in 2006. Bryndon sings with his wife, Ann, in the St. George Chamber Singers. Bryndon practices as a physician in St. George and loves to spend time with his wife and 4 children. 

Lora Johnston has been performing all her life.  Her early work in choral music provided opportunities to work in many musical forms, including traditional African music with Dr. Kathleen Armstrong, gospel with Richard Smallwood, jazz with Stan Seale and Nancy Crowl, and choral direction with Dr. Doreen Rao, Dr. Lee R. Kesselman, and David L. Brunner. She has been a featured soloist in the Tabernacle on Temple Square, and in several international music symposiums. She is studying Vocal Performance at Dixie State University. She is eternally grateful for the support of her wonderful family, husband and three young children.

Chris Leonard is a celebrated and sought-after tenor here in Southern Utah. A lifetime singer, he has been singing since his younger days and has performed with many high achieving groups. He graduated from Dixie State University with a Bachelor of Science in Music Education and studied voice under Dr. Ken Peterson. He sang in many DSU sponsored concerts, including the opera scene performances of Turandot and Carmen, where he sang Nessun Dorma and The Flower Song. He enjoys composing, quartet singing, and teaching choir in the Washington County School District.

Suzanne Wood Lewis graduated summa cum laude from Southern Utah University in 2007 with a degree in music and elementary education, with an emphasis in vocal performance and French horn. She went on to teach in a wide variety of capacities and to diverse populations, which included the band and choir director of Hurricane High School and the music coordinator at Star Preparatory Academy in Michigan.  Although now a proud mother of four amazing children, she has never left music behind.  She was the musical director of SGMT’s production of Freaky Friday in 2018 and a current member of Lieto Voices!. Suzanne is honored for this opportunity to not only share her love of music, but also her testimony of our Risen Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Andrew Powell is a long-time resident of St George.  He is married to Jann Madsen Powell.  They are the parents of three wonderful children, Ben, Katie and Anna.  Andy is a foot and ankle surgeon here in St George. He graduated from BYU in vocal performance and sings regularly with his church choir. He has soloed in a Southwest Symphony production of Handel’s Messiah, performed with St. George Musical theatre and sung for two seasons with Lieto Choir. Andy is humbled and honored to sing the role of Thomas in this production of The Lamb of God. Andy would like to express special thanks to Alyce Gardner for the opportunity to sing such meaningful music and to his wife and family for their encouragement and support.

Chrissy Rogers has over 34 years of experience as a professional singer, private voice instructor, and performance coach. She graduated from ASU with a bachelor’s degree in Music and was selected to sing the National Anthem at her graduation. Chrissy had the honor of performing in the original choir on the CD recording of Lamb of God as well as the premier performance with Rob Gardner. Some other favorite performances include Soprano Soloist in The Messiah, Mary the Mother in The Lamb of God, Marian in The Music Man, The Witch in Into The Woods, Marmee in Little Women, and Muriel in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. Chrissy is the owner of CCR Vocal Studio where she teaches locally as well as online to students all over the globe. 

Amanda Scott grew up performing here in Southern Utah in theatre and classical music. As a teen, she took up songwriting and released a self-written album with Deseret Book called Letters—songs written about her now husband of 16 years, Shaye. In college she sang in BYU Women’s Chorus and also studied under Ken Peterson. Amanda performed as the vocal artist in a The Piano Guys music video “Rolling in the Deep” in 2011. She earned her PhD in English Literature at UNLV and has taught college English for 14 years. Her favorite place to sing now is learning jazz standards at home on her piano. One of her greatest hopes is that her three kids—Emmeline, Hudson, and Desmond—always find inspiration in the arts. 

Dr. Bryce Weber is a Baritone who lives in Saint George with his wife, Jennifer, and son, Orion. He hails from the Midwest with degrees from UNL (Go Big Red!) and Iowa (Go Hawks!) He teaches a few amazing students at DSU and rides his bikes around as much as he can. 

The idea to write a work focusing on the Atonement of Jesus Christ had been in the back of my mind for several years. In fact, over the years I made more than a few attempts at starting the project, only to abandon it again, inevitably daunted by the enormity of the responsibility to write something worthy of the subject matter. At last I realized that, no matter how confident I would ever become in my abilities as a composer, I would likely never feel equal to the project. So in late 2009, I finally began in earnest to write. I couldn’t have imagined how difficult the process would become, or how much of me it would require. Writing “Lamb of God” has been the most intensely agonizing and consuming work I have ever undertaken. But, in retrospect, that’s how I suppose it must be.

My thought was to tell the story of the last days of the life of Jesus Christ through the experiences of those who witnessed them–those He knew and loved- Peter, John, Thomas, Mary and Martha of Bethany, Mary Magdalene, and His mother Mary. It was most interesting to me to see what their decisions, their actions and their interactions with Him teach us about the Savior Himself. And it was important to me that Hope shine through even the darkest moments. I decided early on that I didn’t want any actor or singer to portray or represent the Savior in this piece, mostly because I think it’s extremely difficult to do so in an effective way. I chose instead to represent His voice with the solo cello. I also felt that, where the choir sang in moments of underscore, I wanted them to sing in Aramaic–the language the Savior and his contemporaries would have spoken. I have to confess that the reason for that was mostly that English just didn’t seem to evoke the power and emotion I was looking for, whereas the guttural and consonant-laden sounds of Aramaic did so beautifully. There are many more decisions I made that I’ll leave you to discover for yourself.

I hope that this work will help bring to life for you the events depicted from the final days of the Savior’s life, and even more, how “in all these things, we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us.”