Page 184 - CJJanuary2026

2026 ACDA Western Region Conference March 4-7, 2026 San Jose, California

Performing Choirs

Ensign Singers Faith Community Lutheran Church
Kantori

The Ensign Singers is a community chamber en-
semble specializing in the performance of sacred Kantori at Faith Community Lutheran Church,
choral repertoire. Founded in 2019, the choir initially located in Las Vegas, Nevada, is a church choir that
performed primarily for community religious events provides traditional music for weekly Sunday and mid-
before beginning a series of summer seasons in 2021. week worship services and special occasions in Faith’s
Each summer, the choir highlights a choral masterwork Chapel of the Resurrection. Its singers range in age
paired with contemporary compositions and arrange- from eighteen to seventy. The choir has been honored
ments. Previous seasons have included large-scale works to serve two English cathedral residencies in recent
by Bach, Rachmaninoff, Vivaldi, and Rheinberger, years, with performances at St. Paul’s London, Kings
with new music by Carlos Cordero, Reena Esmail, Josu College, Oxford, Sydney Sussex College, Cambridge,
Elberdin, and others. The choir also performs new Ely Cathedral, and Bath Abbey.
works and arrangements by local composers.
Joseph Svendsen is cantor at Faith Com-
David Kime is currently pursuing grad- munity Lutheran Church in Summerlin,
uate studies in choral conducting at Nevada, where he leads the church’s
Brigham Young University, where he as- traditional music program. He serves as
sists the university’s ensembles and sings director of choral studies and associate
baritone with the BYU Singers. Since professor of music at the University of Nevada, Las Ve-
founding the Ensign Singers in 2019, he has led the gas, where he conducts the UNLV Singers and teaches
community chamber ensemble in performances that graduate coursework in choral literature and conduct-
combine sacred choral masterworks with gems of con- ing. Svendsen is also the artistic director of the Las Ve-
temporary repertoire. He also conducts for A Voice for gas Master Singers, a ninety-voice volunteer ensemble.
Good and is the assistant director of the Utah Valley He is active as a clinician and guest conductor for fes-
Interfaith Choir. He also competed in the 2024 Ghe- tivals, honor choirs, and workshops. He has present-
orghe Dima International Music Competition, choral ed, performed, and published with several professional
conducting section. With a bachelor’s degree in piano music education, choral, and church music organiza-
and organ, he frequently performs in university, profes- tions. He holds a DMA from Texas Tech University, an
sional, and church settings. MME from the University of Illinois, and a BA from
Luther College.

182 CHORAL JOURNAL January 2026 Volume 66 Number 5