Board, Faculty and Staff

Mairee Pantzer joined Children’s Chorus of Maryland in 2004 as Assistant Artistic Director and Teacher, and was then named Artistic Director after a national search in 2006. Upon receiving her Bachelor of Music in Voice Performance from Wheaton College Conservatory of Music in Chicago, Ms. Pantzer served for four years as the Music Educator for the Chicago Mennonite Learning Center. Enrolling in graduate courses in the summer of 2002, she received introductory classes in Dalcroze, Orff and Kodály methodology from DePaul University School of Music in Chicago. She has served as an adjudicator for Baltimore County Choral Assessments, conducted choral festivals, and given music workshops both locally and nationally. Ms. Pantzer completed Level I & II Kodály studies at the American Kodály Institute and finished Kodály Level III coursework at James Madison University. With studies at University of St. Thomas well underway, she will graduate with a Master of Music Education in Choral Conducting. A member of ACDA and OAKE, she also serves as a clinician and Member at Large for Maryland’s Kodály Chapter (MUSIK). She is in her second year serving as a Panelist for the Maryland State Arts Council. Mairee (pronounced "Mary") plays the flute and the piano, and enjoys reading and travel.

Betty Bertaux is the founder of the Children's Chorus of Maryland for which she was Artistic Director for its first eleven years and again from 1999 - 2006. Regarded as an authority on vocal and music development in children, in the summer of 2001 she was awarded an honorary degree of Doctor of Music Education from Vandercook College of Music, Chicago, for her contribution to the field of choral music education. Dr. Bertaux also holds the degree of Master of Music with Kodály Emphasis from Holy Names College, Oakland, the degree of Master of Music in Composition from the Shepherd School of Music, Rice University, Houston, and a Certificate of Study with Dr. Edwin E. Gordon in Music Learning Theory from Temple University, Philadelphia. A former faculty member of Peabody Conservatory and Holy Names College, she has just completed her twentieth year as a member of Vandercook College of Music's summer MECA faculty. Professionally active for 40 years, Dr. Bertaux has worked with music students of all ages and, along with her continued interest in working with young singers, is currently active in teacher training. She is also internationally established and frequently commissioned as a composer and arranger of music for treble choirs. Her music is published by Alliance Music Publishers, Houston, TX and she is editor of the Betty Bertaux Choral Series published by Boosey & Hawkes, New York. Having trained and conducted children's choirs of all skill levels, she is widely experienced as a guest conductor and choral adjudicator. Her successful career has been built on the belief that a children's choral director can guide young singers toward a life enriched by music through an instructive, artistic and joyful singing experience.

Patricia McKewen Amato’s extensive operatic experience includes duties as conductor, coach, and accompanist at the AIMS Institute in Graz, Austria, Brevard Music Festival, Aspen Music Festival, Peabody Institute, and the Young Victorian Theatre. She served as assistant music director of the Baltimore Opera Company and music director of its touring company; music director/conductor for Annapolis Opera, Maryland Lyric Opera, Brevard Music Festival, Opera Americana, Washington Savoyards, Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University, and Rep Stage; and assistant conductor/chorus master for Washington Summer Opera. A versatile pianist, Ms. Amato frequently performs with the Children’s Chorus of Maryland, Annapolis Opera, Annapolis Chorale, Baltimore Choral Arts, Baltimore Symphony, Maryland Symphony, Baltimore Opera, Prince George’s Opera and Philharmonic, and Metropolitan Opera regional competitions. Ms. McKewen Amato is a first place winner in the Houston Chamber Music Society Competition; recently performing The Carnival of the Animals with the Maryland Symphony Orchestra, and Carmina Burana with the Baltimore Choral Arts. She made her Lincoln Center conducting debut in 1999 in an all-Charles Loeffler program, subsequently recorded on Koch International. Ms. McKewen Amato is a coach/accompanist for the voice division at Towson University, the American Institute of Musical Studies in Graz Austria, and the Children’s Chorus of Maryland. She holds a BM from the Catholic University of America (magna cum laude), a MM from the University of Houston (magna cum laude), and certificates in lieder, opera, and chamber music from The American Institute of Musical Studies, in Graz, Austria.

Suzannah Bauer Norris teaches K-8 general music at Our Lady of Hope/St. Luke's School and pre-K-8 at St. Rose of Lima School. She has also taught in the Early Childhood Division of the Peabody Preparatory. As a child, Mrs. Norris was a student and chorister of Children's Chorus of Maryland. Because of her experiences at CCM, she chose to pursue a career in music education. She attended Eastern University in St. David's, Pennsylvania, graduating in 2004 with a Bachelor's degree in vocal performance. After graduation, Mrs. Norris became interested in early childhood music. She received training as a Music Together® teacher and now runs her own Music Together center. Suzannah also has a strong interest in writing. She is a published author and Senior Editor of Square Halo Books. This summer she received her third level Kodály certification and is one year away from completing her Master's of Education with Kodály Emphasis at Loyola College in Maryland.

Katie Cole is employed by Carroll County Public Schools where she teaches elementary general vocal music and chorus for students K-5th grade. In addition to her full-time teaching duties, she is an Early Childhood Instructor for the Carroll County String Project, Carroll County's newest non-profit Community Music School. Katie received her Bachelor's of Music Education and K-12 Vocal and Instrumental Certification from Towson University and received a Masters of Music Education with Kodály Emphasis from The Hartt School of Music. Katie has been a presenter at workshops for MUSIK and for the Washington Chapter of ECMMA on topics involving the young child's singing voice, and her students have been selected to be in the OAKE Children's Choir. She enjoys performing with the Frederick Flute Choir as well as doing occasional solo work on her flute. Recently, she was part of the World's Largest Flute Ensemble (1,989 flutists, a new Guinness World Record) under the direction of Sir James Galway at the 2009 National Flute Convention in New York City.

Lyndsay Davies has been teaching Vocal Music in the Harford County Public School system for eight years. She currently teaches Kindergarten, 1st, and 2nd grade general music as well as 4th and 5th grade chorus at Norrisville Elementary School in White Hall, Maryland. In addition to her public school teaching, she instructs private piano students in her home studio.

Mrs. Davies is an avid musician herself, having studied the piano from her earliest years in elementary school throughout her college career at Grove City College, Pennsylvania. Since relocating to Harford County nine years ago, she has played the piano/keyboard with various small ensembles for weddings and special occasions throughout the area. She also studied the trombone throughout high school and college and continues to refine her playing with the Bel Air Community Band in Bel Air, Maryland.

As a Kindermusik® instructor, Mrs. Davies has also taught several early childhood music classes at the Joyful Sounds School of Music in Harford County. She is currently working towards the Master of Education in Kodály Music degree from the American Kodály Institute at Loyola College in Maryland. As of August 2009, she has successfully completed Levels I, II, and III at AKI which has enabled her to become a certified Kodály music educator!

Emily Hines has been teaching general music for 21 years. Her first two years were in Hartford, CT where she taught in the public schools, observed Master Kodaly teachers, and earned her Kodály Certification. The last 19 years she has taught Pre-School - 5th grade for Montgomery County Public Schools. She has an undergraduate degree from The College of William and Mary in Virginia, and a Master of Music Education from Virginia Commonwealth University.

Lauren McDougle teaches K-5 general music at the top rated elementary school in Charles County, William B. Wade Elementary. She also teaches beginner and intermediate piano and clarinet in her private studio. In the summer of 2004, she received her Level I Orff-Schulwerk Certification from the Eastman School of Music, under the tutelage of Jim Solomon. Ms. McDougle graduated from Bowling Green State University in Ohio with a Bachelors in Music Education. While she began her studies in clarinet, her desire to work with young children led her to study voice privately. This summer, she completed her second year of a Masters in Education of Kodály Music Education at Loyola College in Maryland. Lauren has ambitions to continue her education proceeding the completion of her Masters degree, and has considered teaching at the collegiate level in the future. In her free time, she enjoys traveling.

Tasha Maglocci is an elementary choral/general music teacher at both Hollifield Station and Ilchester Elementary Schools in Howard County, Maryland and has taught for eighteen years. Ms. Maglocci has achieved a B.S. in Music Education from Indiana University of Pennsylvania and a Master of Music in Flute Performance at Indiana University in Bloomington, Illinois. One of the American Kodály Institute's early graduates, Ms. Maglocci has presented workshops in elementary music to teachers in Baltimore, Anne Arundel, and Howard Counties, served on numerous curriculum-writing committees, and mentored many teaching interns. Mrs. Maglocci has been a featured Maryland Gazette’s Top Teacher and has been nominated for both the North Arundel Chamber of Commerce Teaching Award and the Anne Arundel County’s Teacher of the Year Award. She continues to freelance on flute in the Baltimore-Washington metropolitan area and performs regularly with the Keystone Winds in Indiana, Pennsylvania. She has an active flute studio and, under her tutelage, her students have achieved Superior ratings at County and State Solo and Ensemble Festivals, principal chair in All County Band, and All State Band positions.

Jennifer Jordan Miller has been a CCM faculty for eight years. She received her childhood music training at Children’s Chorus of Maryland, beginning at the age of six and graduating at the age of sixteen. She subsequently attended Towson University where she received her degree of Bachelor of Science in Music Education, with concentration in voice. Ms. Miller also holds a masters of music in music education from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Her full time teaching position is at Loyola Blakefield High school where she has served for the past nine years not only as Director of Choral Activities for the middle and upper school, but also as Music Director and Conductor for the school’s outstanding annual musical productions. Her high school choirs there have received superior ratings at national festivals in New York, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. Ms. Miller holds Kodály Certification from The American Kodály Institute at Loyola College in Maryland. She is a member of the Maryland Music Educator’s Association, the American Choral Director’s Association, and the VoiceCare Network.

Mrs. Miller is currently on sabbatical.

Lauren Noullet has been teaching in the vocal/general music classroom for 5 years. Upon moving to the area from western Pennsylvania, she began teaching at Jeffers Hill Elementary School in Howard County. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Music Education from Valley Forge Christian College. As of summer 2009, she received her certification from the American Kodály Institute and in the summer of 2010, she will complete her Masters of Education Degree in Kodály Music Education from Loyola University. When not in the classroom, Lauren can be found working with musicians at her church, Bethel Assembly in Jessup, MD, where she directs the Worship Arts ministry. Choir directing, band leading, and production direction are some of the areas that keep her busy. She also enjoys assisting her husband in pastoring the youth ministry. Ms. Noullet resides in Howard County with her husband, Chris, and their beloved terrier/daschund mix, Macy.

Ramona Galey joined the Children's Chorus of Maryland in 2000. Ms. Galey holds a Master of Music degree in Orchestral Performance from Rice University and a Bachelor of Music Education from Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University. She also holds a Certificate in Project Management and a Masters Certificate in Leadership in Nonprofit Management, in addition to many courses, workshops and seminars in accounting, business law, systems analysis, nonprofit development, marketing and grant-writing. As a professional musician, Ms. Galey performed as Principal Trumpet with the Boise Philharmonic and Second Trumpet with the Women’s Philharmonic, as well as numerous chamber brass groups in Maryland and California.

Andrea Burgoyne joined CCM's staff in 2006, after 12 years as a CCM parent and volunteer. After receiving her music degree from Towson University as a vocal performance student under Ruth Drucker, she co-taught the Early Music Ensemble at Towson U., served as assistant to the director of the Festival Chamber Players, accompanied lessons and classes at TU, and maintained a private studio of voice and piano students. She has performed with the Annapolis Opera, the Baltimore Symphony Chorus, as soloist and chorus member with the Baltimore Choral Arts Society, and on one happy occasion, under the baton of Leonard Bernstein in a performance of Mahler's "Resurrection" Symphony. More recently she has continued to teach and perform, while also working as a trust officer in the field of higher education grants. In her volunteer life she has served as board member and President of the Child Study Association of Maryland, and on the boards of the Towson University Alumni Association, Children's Chorus of Maryland, and several other organizations. She is active as a Scout leader, and is a winner of the Natalie Hoffman award for her volunteer service. 2008 marks her 30th year as Soprano soloist at St. John's Episcopal Church in Glyndon. Andrea is the mother of two children: Mirielle, a CCM graduate attending the University of Maryland, and Devon, currently in CCM's Youth Chorale. Her husband, Kenneth Goldstein, is a violinist with the BSO, and Concertmaster of the Maryland Philharmonic and Baltimore Choral Arts Society orchestras.

Betty Bertaux is the founder of the Children's Chorus of Maryland for which she was Artistic Director for its first eleven years and again from 1999 - 2006. Regarded as an authority on vocal and music development in children, in the summer of 2001 she was awarded an honorary degree of Doctor of Music Education from Vandercook College of Music, Chicago, for her contribution to the field of choral music education. Dr. Bertaux also holds the degree of Master of Music with Kodály Emphasis from Holy Names College, Oakland, the degree of Master of Music in Composition from the Shepherd School of Music, Rice University, Houston, and a Certificate of Study with Dr. Edwin E. Gordon in Music Learning Theory from Temple University, Philadelphia. A former faculty member of Peabody Conservatory and Holy Names College, she has just completed her twentieth year as a member of Vandercook College of Music's summer MECA faculty. Professionally active for 40 years, Dr. Bertaux has worked with music students of all ages and, along with her continued interest in working with young singers, is currently active in teacher training. She is also internationally established and frequently commissioned as a composer and arranger of music for treble choirs. Her music is published by Alliance Music Publishers, Houston, TX and she is editor of the Betty Bertaux Choral Series published by Boosey & Hawkes, New York. Having trained and conducted children's choirs of all skill levels, she is widely experienced as a guest conductor and choral adjudicator. Her successful career has been built on the belief that a children's choral director can guide young singers toward a life enriched by music through an instructive, artistic and joyful singing experience.

Patricia McKewen Amato’s extensive operatic experience includes duties as conductor, coach, and accompanist at the AIMS Institute in Graz, Austria, Brevard Music Festival, Aspen Music Festival, Peabody Institute, and the Young Victorian Theatre. She served as assistant music director of the Baltimore Opera Company and music director of its touring company; music director/conductor for Annapolis Opera, Maryland Lyric Opera, Brevard Music Festival, Opera Americana, Washington Savoyards, Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University, and Rep Stage; and assistant conductor/chorus master for Washington Summer Opera. A versatile pianist, Ms. Amato frequently performs with the Children’s Chorus of Maryland, Annapolis Opera, Annapolis Chorale, Baltimore Choral Arts, Baltimore Symphony, Maryland Symphony, Baltimore Opera, Prince George’s Opera and Philharmonic, and Metropolitan Opera regional competitions. Ms. McKewen Amato is a first place winner in the Houston Chamber Music Society Competition; recently performing The Carnival of the Animals with the Maryland Symphony Orchestra, and Carmina Burana with the Baltimore Choral Arts. She made her Lincoln Center conducting debut in 1999 in an all-Charles Loeffler program, subsequently recorded on Koch International. Ms. McKewen Amato is a coach/accompanist for the voice division at Towson University, the American Institute of Musical Studies in Graz Austria, and the Children’s Chorus of Maryland. She holds a BM from the Catholic University of America (magna cum laude), a MM from the University of Houston (magna cum laude), and certificates in lieder, opera, and chamber music from The American Institute of Musical Studies, in Graz, Austria.