Clinicians
Professor Rebecca Duren is Director of Choral Activities at Agnes Scott College, where she directs The Collegiate Chorale, Sotto Voce, and teaches applied voice lessons. Previously, Ms. Duren directed the Women's Chorus and applied voice lessons at The University of South Florida, and at the middle and high school levels at Darlington School, The Lovett School, and Holy Innocents Episcopal School. Ms. Duren has an extensive background as a professional vocalist, having been described as singing with "a clear, bright soprano" voice, in the New York Times. Ms. Duren has appeared numerous times with Miami-based choral ensemble Seraphic Fire, American Opera Theater, Atlanta-based choral ensemble Kinnara, and Musica Nova in Dallas, as well as making solo appearances with Miami Orchestra, Miami Baroque, The Firebird Orchestra, and The Grand Tour Orchestra, in New York City. Ms. Duren appears on the Grammy Award winning recording "Far in the Heavens: Choral Music of Stephen Paulus," with True Concord, and on two Grammy Nominated recordings, "A Seraphic Fire Christmas," and "Brahms: Ein Deutsches Requiem." Upcoming performances include Seraphic Fire's 20th Anniversary Concert in Miami, and 6 concerts with Kinnara in the Atlanta area. Ms. Duren has a Bachelors of Music in Voice Performance from The University of North Texas, a Master's of Music in Voice Performance from Peabody Conservatory, and a Master's of Music in Choral Conducting from The University of South Florida.
A high honors graduate in music from the University of Windsor (Ontario, Canada), Dawn-Marie boasts many awards, including Jamaica’s 2002 Edna Manley Award for Excellence in Classical Performance, a JAMI (Jamaican Music Industry Award) for Best Vocal Performer in Classical Music, prize winner in the prestigious Johann Sebastian Bach competition in Leipzig, Germany, a scholarship in Spanish music to Santiago de Compostela in Spain and was a finalist in the International Song Competition in Brazil. As one of Jamaica’s premier classical performers, Dawn-Marie enjoyed engagements in Jamaica with the National Chorale and Orchestra of Jamaica, Jamaica School of Music, Jamaica Musical Theatre Company and the Virtue-James Studio. As a now-native Atlantan, she has performed extensively with The Atlanta Opera for 13 years, singing more than ten roles, under the baton of former Artistic Director William Fred Scott. Also in Atlanta, she has performed solo engagements with the Grammy Award-winning Atlanta Symphony Orchestra during their acclaimed summer series at Chastain Park, the Atlanta Bach Choir, the Cobb Symphony Orchestra and at Georgia State University. She is president of The Carilanta Players, a theatre group that performs pieces by Caribbean and American writers. Additionally, Dawn-Marie has performed in various special events throughout the Western hemisphere, including Jamaica, the United States and Canada. Currently she tours with musicians Sam Hagan and Mac Framton in An American Portrait.
Dr. Kwon has been teaching piano and composition at Agnes Scott since 2002. She is the collaborative pianist for the Collegiate Chorale and accompanies vocal and instrumental students. She received her Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Piano Performance with a minor in Organ Performance from the Hugh Hodgson School of Music at the University of Georgia. She has been serving as an organist & pianis at churches in Atlanta area since 1994 and has been accompanying the Choral Guild of Atlanta for 20 years. She has received the John Henry Dorminy Piano Scholarship and the University of Georgia School of Music Concerto Competition Award. Dr. Kwon holds her American Guild of Organists Associate certificate.