2012 Bios

• The Bahá'í Faith became my passion in 1964 after hearing about it from a classmate in a music theory class at San Francisco State College where I was majoring in double bass. I never completed my degree in music, but I have taken many college music classes over the years, having sung in large choirs and smaller chamber choirs. I have studied voice at various times along the way.

I was drafted to direct a Bahá'í choir in the early 1970s called The New Dawn Singers since I was the only one they could find at that time who had any experience at all with directing (I had actually conducted my high school choir in a performance). That choir morphed into a successful road show called The Welcome Change, which performed all over California and Nevada giving the Bahá'í message through the music interspersed with commentaries on the history and teachings by the choir members. (Ron Lyles sang in the choir and also soloed with us. He became a Bahá'í at that time.) We had few choral arrangements back then, so I wrote them myself using Seals & Crofts songs, England Dan and John Ford Coley songs, and other Bahá'í-related music.

As a bass player with local symphonies, playing in the Bahá'í World Congress Orchestra was my most thrilling gig ever. After the World Congress, another choir was started in the San Francisco Bay Area, which I directed for five years. I sang in the Voices of Bahá in Slovakia in 2000 and was one of the choir directors for the Carnegie Hall concert in 2002. I sang in the chorus of the late Russ Garcia's recording of The Unquenchable Flame, an opera about Táhirih. I toured with the Bahá'í Gospel Choir in Western Europe in 2004 and also sang with the Third Annual Bahá'í Choir Festival at the Bahá'í Temple in 2009 (where I met Zak Mortensen in person for the first time after working on this project of developing Bahá'í music for group singing for five years!).

I'm currently singing in the Townsend Opera Players Chorus, having performed in Porgy & Bess, Showboat, The Magic Flute, H.M.S. Pinafore, Gounod's Romeo and Juliet, and Madama Butterfly. I'm also in the Modesto Symphony Chorus, having performed many great oratorios and directed this choir in the National Anthem before the All-Star baseball game last summer. I'm now in preparation for the Mozart Requiem with the symphony chorus and The Mikado and Carmen with the opera. ~ Wendy Scott, 2011

• Music has always been such a strong motivator as well as a source for peace of mind throughout my life. Growing up in the Baptist Church vocal traditions, influenced by Motown and the Beatles, and playing acoustic guitar since junior high school, music has allowed me to perform across the country with highlights being The Cellar Door in Washington DC, the Monterey Pop Festival, Carnegie Hall and as one of the featured soloists with the Bahá'í Gospel Choir in 2002, and at the United Nations Golden Anniversary Celebration at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco.

I was introduced to the Bahá'í Faith by way of Seals & Crofts while driving thru the Foot Hills of Virginia during the 70s when the song, Year of Sunday came on the radio, and I thought Finally, something that makes sense. Shortly afterwards, I was relocated by the company I worked for, Reynolds Metals, to the Bay Area where I continued to investigate the Faith and eventually became a Bahá'í while singing with a choir directed by Wendy Scott called the Welcome Change in the early 70s.

I married, had children, and played in various groups while being hired for studio sessions at Bayshore Studios, Music Annex, Monterey Sounds, and The Plant in Sausalito. In the early 90s, we moved to the San Joaquin Valley so I could work towards earning a Bachelor degree in Music Therapy at The University of the Pacific in Stockton while still continuing to work in the Bay Area for The Teen Inspiration Foundation (created by Bonnie Tempesta of La Tempesta Biscotti) as Musical Director at MUST (Music In Schools Today) as Musical Director/Instructor/Music Therapy Intern.

Presently, I work fulltime as a counselor with at-risk youth by utilizing music therapy techniques, and I continue to freelance as a professional musician when hired to perform for private and corporate functions, studio vocals, and rhythm guitar. I have been truly blessed to work in my calling while raising three beautiful children with my understanding, loving, and supportive wife/partner, Carol. ~ Ron Lyles, 2011

• Music has always been a great part of my life since my earliest memories. I began playing the piano as soon as I could reach the keyboard, and with my grandparents’ encouragement, music has moved my life, just as it figured into theirs. Most importantly, they impressed upon me that God would bless what I did if I did it for Him.

One of His blessings to me is the knack of hearing a melody, having it stick with me, and to put words to that same melody (with my own chord and rhythm variations). I started writing and arranging music in my youth, and those early experiences were supplemented by activities in church, at school, and out in the community. In high school, the opportunity to take all sorts of music classes came up, and I grabbed it: band, orchestra, and various choirs.

One aspect of music that caught my fascination and imagination the most came when I had the rare opportunity to take music theory classes. I was like a kid in the candy store - those classes opened my eyes to a world behind the music I never knew existed! Those classes prepared me well for what I encountered at the undergrad level, where I went on to complete a major in composition. I completed a master’s degree in theological studies at the Candler School of Theology (Emory University) combined with a secondary track in Comparative Religions, with an emphasis in worship traditions and programs. I went on to complete the Ph.D. in Education specializing in Post-Secondary and Adult Education. As an continuing effort to increase and improve my skills and knowledge, I recently completed a course sponsored by the Julliard School of Music in jazz arranging. ~ Zak Mortensen, 2011