FPCO Choral Artists
Charlie Harris
Charlie Harris was born and raised in South Florida. His formal music training began in kindergarten, under the direction of Mrs. Carol Bartholf. In the third grade he was accepted into the Singing Sons Boychoir of Florida. Charlie was a regular soloist and toured with the boychoir for six years. At age 9 he starred in Mennotti's "Amahl, and The Night Visitors".
After the boychoir, Charlie focused his musical studies on his love of percussion. He marched four years with Mcarthur High School's Mustang marching band. While in high school he played drums and sang back-up vocals in his own rock band. Charlie's percussion studies included all styles of drumset, orchestral percussion, and world music.
During his studies at Broward Community College, Charlie began vocal training with Dick Crawford. Mr. Crawford helped form the foundations of Charlie's unique voice. While at BCC Charlie performed in a variety of vocal ensembles, including: BCC's choir, Opera Workshop, and the Seahawk Singers ( a small vocal jazz/ and broadway review group)
Charlie's personal walk with the Lord began in the summer of 1988. He's been blessed to be a member of First Presbyterian's Christian Artists Program since 2005. Charlie also enjoys being a full-time cast member of Disney's elite vocal ensemble, The Voices of Liberty.
Franklin Jennings
Franklin Jennings is a product of the Orlando area. He was born at O.R.M.C. on Orange Avenue and attended day care at the First Presbyterian Church until he went to pre-school. He was first exposed to singing in 1993 as a member of the Winter Park High School Concert Choir with Trey Jacobs. Franklin continued in the Concert Choir until he enrolled at Stetson University. Franklin graduated from Stetson in 2000 with Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education. While at Stetson, he studied music education with Dr. Bobby Adams, trombone with Mr. David Schmidt, and voice with Mrs. Mollie Rich. Franklin played bass trombone in the Stetson Symphonic Band for four years and sang in the Stetson Concert Choir for three years.
After graduation from Stetson, Franklin served as the Director of Bands at Discovery Middle School in east Orange County. Under his direction, the program grew from 250 students to over 400 and all band classes consistently earned Superior ratings at Music Performance Assessments. In 2002/2003, the Discovery Middle School Music Department received the FMEA Secondary School Enrollment Award which is given annually to schools whose music course offerings reach more than 35% of the total school population.
In 2003, Franklin moved to Milwaukee to enroll in the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee for graduate studies in instrumental conducting with Thomas Dvorak. While at U.W.M., Franklin conducted the three collegiate ensembles, two high school honor ensembles, and played trombone in the Wind Ensemble. In 2005, Franklin graduated with his Master’s Degree and moved back to Orlando.
Upon his return, Franklin served as a band director at Gotha Middle School and University High School. In 2008, Franklin conducted the University Symphonic Band to its first Superior rating in four years and the only Superior rating earned by a second band from any high school. Legislative budget cuts resulted in Franklin moving to his current position as the Director of Bands at Freedom High School. Franklin serves as the director of the marching band, the two concert bands, jazz ensemble, and percussion ensemble.
Franklin lives in the Vista Lakes area of Orlando with his wife Hannah (also a band director but not a singer) in their new home. Franklin remains active as a guest clinician and adjudicator for band programs across Florida.
Kate Snyder
Kate Snyder received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre from Shenandoah University in Winchester, VA. While at Shenandoah she performed the roles of Rosabella in The Most Happy Fella, Johanna in Sweeney Todd and Lizzie Borden in Lizbeth, An opera in one act. Kate has been part of many regional theatre productions including West Side Story, Anything Goes, State Fair and Into the Woods. She also debuted at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. with the Cantus Singers.
She has been a member and soloist in various collegiate and church ensembles including, Soprano Soloist for part one of Handel’s Messiah for the Hilton Head Community Chorus and Soprano Soloist in Schubert’s Magnificat for the Hilton Head Choral Society.
Kate is currently in her second year with the premier a cappella group Voices of Liberty in Disney’s Epcot.
Mike Fitzgerald
After finishing his degree at the University of Miami, during which he performed considerable oratorio and sacred music as the tenor soloist at the First United Methodist Church of Coral Gables, as well as opera, pop and jazz, garnering a citation for excellence in musicianship from the National Association for Jazz Educators for the latter, Mike spent several years touring nationally as a soloist with choral great Fred Waring's Pennsylvanians, performing at Lincoln Center, Kennedy Center, Carnegie Hall and President Reagan's first inaugural celebration.
Cabaret, club dates and cruise ships filled out his time during and after graduate school. In 1984, Mike moved to Orlando to join Walt Disney World's "Voices of Liberty," with whom he sang at President Reagan's second inaugural parade held at EPCOT Center and at the White House Christmas party in 1985. Since then, he has premiered roles in, stage-managed, or produced the music for theme park and dinner shows and has soloed with everything from a 50's-style doo wop group to the Rollins College Christmas Vespers. He even squeezed in a holiday tour with the Mantovani Orchestra! For 16 years, he has recorded for Shawnee Press Music Publishers with the GlorySound Singers as well as doing various commercial recording sessions.
Mike came to First Presbyterian Church of Orlando, Florida is the spring of 2001.
Teresa Atwell
Teresa Atwell is well known throughout the music/theater community in Central Florida. She has sung on many recording projects and convention shows heard world-wide for such clients as McDonalds, Tupperware, Panama Jack, Burdines, Walt Disney World and Warner Brothers. She has appeared on stage or music directed numerous theater shows including "Sound of Music," "Wizard of Oz," "The Music Man," "South Pacific," "Oliver," "Carousel," "Pirates of Penzance," and others.
Teresa is very active in the music department at First Presbyterian Church of Orlando, FL as a vocalist, pianist and keyboardist.
Meredith Hollowell
Meredith Hollowell was born and raised in Columbia, SC, where she began singing in church and school choirs at a very young age. After moving to GA in the 5th grade, Meredith became involved with marching band, symphonic band, and choral programs throughout middle and high school. Through these programs she had many opportunities to perform, including singing in Carnegie Hall as part of the Georgia Youth Choral. She is a graduate of Berry College in Rome, GA, where she studied voice under operatic bass soloist, actor, and screenplay writer Harry Musselwhite, and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music and Vocal Performance. While at Berry, she had the opportunity to be the featured soprano soloist at the Georgia Music Educators National Convention singing Donizetti’s Daughter of the Regiment. She was a member of the Concert Choir, The Berry Singers, and played the roles of Louise in “Carousel” and the title role in Samuel Barab’s production of “Little Red Riding Hood”. She has also performed with the Rome Symphony Orchestra, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Chattanooga Opera, and as part of a Concert Tour that included performances in Salzburg, Vienna, and Prague.
Since moving to Orlando with her husband, Brett, in 2004, Meredith has performed as a seasonal cast member with the Voices of Liberty. She has been a member of Vocals Incorporated since 2009, performing at special events and with their holiday ensemble, The Dickens Carolers. Meredith was a featured soprano soloist in a presentation of Handle’s Messiah at the Basilica of the National Shrine of Mary Queen of the Universe in 2010, where she also sings regularly as a cantor. Meredith has maintained a private lesson studio at the Avalon School of Music since 2005, where she teaches voice, clarinet, piano, and Kindermusik. She also serves as a choral clinician for the Osceola County School System and is currently pursuing her Florida Educator’s Certification. Meredith is excited to begin teaching Musikgarten at FPCO in the fall.
Meredith joined the FPCO choir in 2011. She loves being a part of a choir that is not only musically inspiring and challenging, but fosters her continued spiritual growth as part of a warm and loving church family.
Todd Long
Todd Allen Long received a B.S. in Music Education (Choral Emphasis from Penn State University. Since graduation, Todd has performed and taught all over the world. He has worked as a vocal and piano coach, music director, stage director, singer, actor and dancer. Todd has performed and directed for such companies as the Victorian Lyric Opera Company, Washington Savoyards, Fiddlehead Theatre Company, Sudbury Savoyards, Pittsburgh Savoyards, Orlando Opera, Mad Cow Theatre Company and The Winter Park Playhouse. Somewhat of a Gilbert & Sullivan aficionado, Todd has performed almost all the major baritone leads in almost all the operas in the canon. Favorite musical theatre roles include Billy Crocker in “Anything Goes,” Dick in “Dames at Sea,” and Cornelius Hackl in “Hello, Dolly!” Todd was previously a section leader at Bethesda Presbyterian in Bethesda, Maryland and a soloist with St. Luke’s Episcopal in Mt. Lebanon, Pennsylvania and St. Paul’s Episcopal in Dedham, Massachusetts. He is the proud father of one daughter, Katie, and currently works for Disney, Universal, Sea World, The Winter Park Playhouse and anyone else who will hire him. Todd feels completely blessed to be part of the FPCO family.