Prometheus Bios
Paul Crabb, Prometheus Artistic Director and Conductor
Paul Crabb is Artistic Director of the professional vocal ensemble, PROMETHEUS and Professor Emeritus at the University of Missouri where served as Director of Choral Activities and Chair of Graduate Choral Conducting. His ensembles have sung at state, regional and national conventions, and traveled extensively in Asia, Europe, and Australia. Crabb has served as assistant conductor at the Russian-American symposium at the Moscow Conservatory and as a visiting professor in England, Austria,Italy, Sweden,Taiwan, and Poland. He was the first American Visiting Choral Professor at the Liszt Academy of Music (Budapest), and first American lecturer at the Choral Department at the University of Vienna’s Universität für Musik und Darstellende Kunst. Since 2010 Crabb has served as a faculty member at Laudate Dominum and REJOICE in Vienna. As an orchestral conductor, Crabb was resident conductor for the Dante Music and Arts Festival in Nagoya, Japan, and regularly conducted at the Conservatory of Domenico Cimarosa in Italy.
Crabb’s travels facilitated opportunities for his ensembles. In December 2017, he organized seminars and performances for graduate students in Italy, culminating at the newly restored Gesualdo Castle. His sabbatical semester conducting/lecturing in Sweden resulted in collaborative concerts for the University Singers in Malmö, Lund, Piteå, Stockholm and Tallinn, Estonia in May 2018. In 2019 conducted again in Vienna, before additional conducting workshops in Slovenia and Italy. Regretfully, the pandemic resulted in canceled lectures and tours scheduled for Inner Mongolia and Cuba in 2022 and 2023. In May of 2025, he led PROMETHEUS on a tour in Vienna, Austria, performing in exclusive venues with the Austrian choir, Momentum. Crabb will lecture and conduct as a Fulbright Program Specialist and Visiting Professor at Anton Bruckner University in Linz, Austria this coming Fall.
Crabb’s teaching awards include: Allen Teaching Award (Truman State University), the Missouri Professor of the Year, and William T. Kemper Fellowship for Teaching Excellence
Emily Edgington Andrews, Prometheus Assistant Conductor
Emily Edgington Andrews is a dynamic force in Columbia’s musical landscape, dedicated to nurturing artistic excellence across all levels of musical development. As Director of Choral Activities at Columbia College, she leads the choral program, teaches core music courses, and spearheads music department recruitment initiatives.
Edgington Andrews has served as Artistic Director of Choral Arts Alliance of Missouri (CAAM) since 2013, when she also founded Columbia Youth Choirs, expanding access to choral education throughout the region. Her artistic leadership extends to her role as Assistant Conductor of Prometheus: An American Vocal Consort. For nearly two decades, she has directed the music program at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Columbia, where she conducts a thriving mixed ensemble of volunteer and professional musicians.
She has been recognized for her significant contributions to the arts and education in Columbia. In 2018, she was honored with Columbia’s Inaugural Progress for the Arts award, celebrating her vision of using music as a vehicle for positive social change, representation, and building bridges between diverse communities. Her work with CAAM exemplifies her commitment to inclusivity, accessibility, and excellence in music education. Most recently, in 2024, Andrews received the Dean’s Award for Excellence in Service at Columbia College, further affirming her dedication to enriching countless lives through the arts.
A sought-after clinician and adjudicator, she maintains active membership in the American Choral Directors Association, Missouri Choral Directors Association, and National Association for Music Education. She holds degrees from Truman State University (B.A., M.A.) and the University of Missouri (M.M.). Emily is a Ph.D. candidate in Music Education at the University of Missouri. Her research interests include investigating gender disparity in collegiate and professional choral ensembles and creating inclusive classroom spaces.
An enthusiastic collaborator, Andrews actively engages with Columbia’s vibrant arts community. Her approach to artistic programming spans from the obvious to the outside-the-box, consistently seeking fresh ways to connect audiences with diverse artistic experiences.
SINGERS
Joshua Chism, Tenor
Joshua Chism is an Associate Professor and the Director of Choral Activities at Oklahoma Baptist University in Shawnee, OK. There Joshua advises music students; teaches private voice, Diction, and Vocal Pedagogy courses; and conducts the University Chorale, Bisonette Glee Club, Golden Bison Vocal Jazz Choir, and the OBU Community Chorale. Joshua is also the Conductor and Artistic Director for Chorale Coeur d’Alene, a 130-voice regional choral arts society based in Idaho. Founded in 2001, Chorale CdA’s mission is to promote excellence in choral artistry, engage the local community through creative collaboration initiatives, and support music education through targeted programming. He also serves as the Minister of Music at Meadowood Baptist Church where he conducts the adult worship choir and orchestra. He has served as director and minister of music in churches since Fall 2012.
Joshua holds a PhD in Music Education with an emphasis in Conducting and Choral Pedagogy from the University of Oklahoma in Norman (2022). He earned an MM in Choral Conducting from the University of Missouri–Columbia, graduating in 2019. Joshua holds Bachelor of Music Education degree and a Bachelor of Music Composition degree from Missouri State University in Springfield, where he graduated Summa Cum Laude in 2010. Additionally, he holds Kodály Level I, II, and III certification.
His research interests include the impact of service-learning internships, music assessment, MUED curriculum content, and community music. Joshua has recently presented research at the Collegiate Musicological Society, NAfME, ACDA, and SMTE conferences. In his spare time, Joshua likes to compose, travel, garden, eat sushi, and play board games. Joshua, his wife Natalie, and their young children (Jacob and Hannah) reside in Shawnee, OK. In May 2026, Joshua is proud to make his conducting debut at Carnegie Hall.
Katherine Crawford, Mezzo-Soprano
Katherine (Katie) Crawford holds a Master of Music degree in Vocal Performance from the Conservatory of Music and Dance at the University of Missouri–Kansas City and a Bachelor of Music degree in Vocal Performance from St. Olaf College, where she sang in the St. Olaf Choir under the direction of Dr. Anton Armstrong. She serves as an alto section leader in the Trinity Choir at Grace and Holy Trinity Cathedral, KCMO, and is a member of the Missouri Choral Artists, the Astra Ensemble, and the GRAMMY®️ Award–winning Kansas City Chorale
Rachel Field, Soprano
A Native of Kansas City, soprano Rachel Field (she/her) is a vocalist with a “flexible, expressive sound” and a stage and voice actor praised as “both a skillful comic and appropriately terrifying”. Rachel completed her Bachelor’s of Music at Wichita State University, where she performed the principal role in the North American premiere of The Path to Heaven, an ambitious new opera by Adam Gorb. As a solo singer, she was a featured soprano soloist in Brahms’ Ein Deutsches Requiem and Handel’s Dixit Dominus, and the two-time winner of the Barbara Rondelli Classical Voice Competition. She currently sings with the Grammy Award-winning Kansas City Chorale and when she is off-stage she has a professional career in business and enjoys volunteering for local government.
Frank Fleschner, Tenor
Tenor Frank Fleschner is an accomplished choral musician having just began his twenty first season with the Grammy Award-winning Kansas City Chorale. His tenure with the Chorale has afforded him the opportunity to work closely with and debut works by several prominent composers such as Mark Hayes, René Clausen, and Eric Whitacre. As a soloist, Frank has appeared in Handel’s Messiah, Bach’s Johannes-Passion (Evangelist), Mendelssohn’s Elijah and is the featured tenor soloist on the Kansas City Chorale’s Grammy Award-winning recording of Rachmaninoff’s All Night Vigil. Frank graduated from Truman State University and currently resides in Kansas City with his wife, Lindsey, and sings at Asbury United Methodist Church in Prairie Village, KS.
Patrick Graham, Baritone
Baritone Patrick Graham has been praised for his “vocal strength and beautiful tone, as well as his “striking performance.” Patrick has performed as a soloist or principal artist with Opera Columbus, Eastman Philharmonic, the University of Missouri Choral Union, Seagle Music Festival, Ad Astra Musical Festival, KC VITAs, Eastman Collegium Musicum (under the direction of Grammy-award winner Paul O’Dette), Voices Chamber Choir, and the Eastman Opera Theater. Patrick has degrees from the Eastman School of Music and the University of Missouri. He lives in Kansas City with his wife Becca and son Wesley, where he is a member of the Grammy-award winning Kansas City Chorale, sings with the Choir at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Brookside, maintains a small private voice studio, and works as a stage and music director in the Kansas City theatre scene.
Ernest Harrison, Tenor
Dr. Ernest Harrison is a poet, musician, and teacher, committed to and specializing in the intersection of music and social justice. He is a proud graduate of Tuskegee University (Bachelor’s in English Liberal Arts, 2010), Auburn University (Bachelor’s in Vocal Performance, 2014), and University of Missouri (Master’s in Choral Conducting, 2016), with voice and choral mentorship from Drs. Rosephanye and William Powell and Dr. R. Paul Crabb. Ernest concluded his Doctoral studies in Choral Music at the University of Southern California in 2023, where he studied under Dr. Jo-Michael Scheibe, Dr. Nick Strimple, Dr. Tram Sparks, and Dr. Cristian Grases.
Ernest has been the Music Director and Head of Education and Outreach of the Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles since 2019. Having previously taught at the University of Southern California, Pepperdine University, and Loyola Marymount University, in 2023 Ernest accepted a position as an assistant professor of Ethnomusicology at Cal state Polytechnic Pomona. Ernest became a member of the international Grammy Award winning choral ensemble, Conspirare, in 2019. He was an associate conductor for the Grammy Award-winning National Children’s Chorus (2017-2022) and conductor of the Pasadena Conservatory of Music’s Cantare Chamber Choir (2019-2022). As professor, conductor, and community leader, Ernest leans on his unique knowledge of Music of the African Diaspora, including spirituals, gospel, R&B, Jazz, blues, rock & roll, and hip hop, and his dedication to the intersections of music making, community building, and activism to advocate for equity and inclusion in choral classroom, on the concert stage, and in the world. No matter the setting, his capacity to love guides his leadership and his music making.
Christine Jarquio, Mezzo-Soprano
For two decades, Christine Jarquio (she/her) has been a vibrant and essential voice in the Columbia music community. Her influence is felt everywhere—from the conductor’s podium to the piano, and from the professional stage to the classroom. At Columbia Independent School, she is the Director of Upper School Choirs as well as the Director of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging. Christine thoughtfully blends these roles, using music as a powerful vehicle to share diverse lived experiences and foster a more compassionate world. Her commitment to excellence is clear: her select treble chorus, Camerata, has been honored with an invitation to perform at the 2026 Missouri Music Educators Association conference. Christine lives by the philosophy that music educators should be active musicians. Singing with Prometheus since its second season is a yearly highlight. She also pours her energy into making choral music more accessible, co-founding and leading as the Executive Director of Vox Nova (www.voxnovacomo.org), a professional choral ensemble dedicated to providing free high-quality performances and experiences for the community. Never one to stay stagnant, Christine is currently pursuing a Doctor of Philosophy in Music Education with a Choral Conducting emphasis at the University of Missouri. To relax and recharge, she loves running on Columbia’s beautiful trails and exploring the world through travel and food with her husband, Jay.
Lindsey Lang, Soprano
Soprano Lindsey Lang is noted for her bold interpretations of early music with a “tone [of] pure, radiant sunshine.” She has appeared as a soloist with modern and period orchestras nation-wide and has sung in main-stage events for early music festivals in Berkley, Bloomington, New Brunswick, New York, and Quito, Ecuador. She frequently performs locally as a guest artist with the Bach Aria Soloists and the Kansas City Baroque Consortium. Lindsey is also an avid choral singer, and in addition to singing with Prometheus, she currently sings with the Kansas City Chorale under the direction of Charles Bruffy, with whom she has recorded several commercial albums, won two Best Choral Album Grammys, and is a featured soloist on the Grammy-winning CD “Life and Breath.” Lindsey graduated with a Master’s Degree in Choral Conducting from the University of Missouri in 2008 and then studied for two years at the Early Music Institute at Indiana University. She currently resides in Kansas City with her singer husband and fellow Promethean Frank and is the Music Director at Asbury United Methodist Church and maintains an active performing career.
Gabe Lewis-O’Connor, Bass
Gabe Lewis-O’Connor balances a busy schedule as conductor, professional soloist and choral performer, daily meditator, amateur woodworker, avid baker, father, and husband. Striving to bring humor, authenticity and emotion to all these passions is a lifelong pursuit. Prior to his masters and doctoral studies in conducting at the University of Missouri-Kansas City Gabe sang for four years with the professional vocal ensemble Chanticleer, which crystalized his belief that relationships are the core of powerful music-making. Gabe is the artistic director of the Lawrence Children’s Choir and Associate Director of Choral Studies at the University of Kansas. Gabe hails from Lawrence, Kansas, where he now lives with his wife Lauren, their sporty son Eamon and fierce daughter Celia.
Anna Mandina, Soprano
Hailed as a “true Puccini Lyric Soprano” by Opera News, Italian-American soprano, Anna Mandina, has been making a name for herself in the opera world for the past decade. Anna recently performed the role of Countess Almaviva in Le nozze di Figaro and Susannah Polk in Susannah with Opera Fort Collins. Anna has often worked with Sarasota Opera, making her mainstage debut in 2019 singing 13 performances of Liù in the company’s Diamond Anniversary production of Turandot. Anna was hailed as “impressive” and “heart-rending” as Liù by Opera News, having conveyed “all that is sweet and good with a robust soprano voice that can float a high B-flat as she sung of Calaf’s smile.” Throughout her career, Anna has regularly performed with Opera Maine, Opera Company of Middlebury, Sarasota Opera, Opera Fort Collins, and Landlocked Opera.
Anna holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Vocal Performance from the University of Missouri-Columbia, and a Master of Music degree in Opera Performance from The Boston Conservatory.
Recently, Anna has had wonderful career opportunities in her college hometown of Columbia, Missouri. In October 2024, she made her debut with the Choral Arts Alliance of Missouri and the Columbia Chorale as the soprano soloist in Haydn’s The Creation under the baton of R. Paul Crabb. Since January 2025, Anna has served as the Adjunct Instructor of Voice at the MU School of Music. For more information, visit annamandinasoprano.com.
Alyssa Nance, Soprano
Alyssa Nance has been recognized for her “unbridled dexterity” (Kansas City Star) and “marvelous, soaring tone” (KC Metropolis). Her operatic highlights include Tink Enraught in The Last American Hammer (Opera Grand Rapids), Gretel in Hänsel und Gretel (Opera Omaha), the Littler Daughter in Proving Up (Ad Astra Music Festival), Jemmy in Guillaume Tell (Wichita Grand Opera), Pamina in Die Zauberflöte (South Dakota Symphony), and Musetta in La bohème (Opera180).
As a concert soloist, she has performed major works such as Vaughan Williams’ A Sea Symphony, Mozart’s Requiem, Poulenc’s Gloria, Brahms’ Ein deutsches Requiem, Handel’s Messiah, Haydn’s Lord Nelson Mass, and Vivaldi’s Gloria. A versatile choral artist, Alyssa sings with ensembles including The Crossing, Spire Chamber Ensemble, and the Missouri Choral Artists.
Alyssa was a district winner and Upper Midwest regional finalist in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Music from Augustana University and a Master of Music in Voice from the University of Missouri–Kansas City Conservatory of Music and Dance.
For more information, visit alyssanance.com.
Jeremy Padalino (Wagner), Bass
Jeremy Padalino (Wagner) is a promising and engaging music educator, currently pursuing a PhD in Choral Conducting at the University of Oklahoma. Padalino has been serving as the Director of Choral Activities at Missouri Valley College, preparing choirs as well as teaching several curricular courses. Padalino works individually with students in his private voice studio, Lufner Studio, on repertoire in a myriad of styles. Padalino has established himself as a talented conductor, educator, and performer around Missouri. These accolades, in conjunction with his focused work ethic, led to Padalino being named the Director of Music Ministry at several churches, most recently beginning at Bethel Baptist Church in September 2024. Padalino currently performs in two professional chamber ensembles, Vox Nova and Prometheus: An American Vocal Consort. Both groups perform annually. Recently, Padalino was named Talking Horse Productions’ first season-long music director, coming off a successful world premiere of Now is the Time in May 2024.
Christina Ray, Mezzo-Soprano
Praised for her “velvety mezzo” (OperaWire), Christina Ray is equally at home on the operatic, concert, and musical theatre stages. Ms. Ray has sung professionally with Utah Festival Opera and Musical Theatre, Lyric Opera of Kansas City, Overland Park Orchestra, The Missouri Symphony, Lawrence Opera Theatre, Opera Kansas, and Manhattan Concert Productions. In 2016 she was a recipient of an Encouragement Award at the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, in the Little Rock, AR district. As an active choral singer, Ms. Ray is a current member of Vox Nova and Prometheus.
Ms. Ray is the Founding General Director of boutique opera company, Landlocked Opera. Landlocked Opera makes opera accessible to our community by celebrating historic operas while championing new works, ideas, and artists. Believing strongly in breaking down barriers and opera stereotypes, Landlocked Opera’s motto is “Opera for All.” www.landlockedopera.org
Ms. Ray is an Assistant Professor of Voice and Co-Director of the Show-Me Opera at MU. She was recently selected for the highly competitive 2024 NATS Intern Program and recognized as a 2024 NATS Emerging Leader. In 2023 co-created Classically Untrained Voice Collective, a community of voice professionals committed to offering continuing educational opportunities in voice cross-training. Ms. Ray also serves as treasurer for Mid-MO NATS.
Catherine Sandstedt, Soprano
With a diverse background in music, coloratura soprano Catherine Sandstedt has performed in operas, musicals, oratorios, chamber works, and solo recitals. Some of her favorite performances include Poulenc’s Dialogues des Carmélites (Blanche), Debussy’s Impressions de Pelléas (Mélisande), Mozart’s Il re pastore (Elisa) and Le Nozze di Figaro (Susanna), as well as many works by Handel, some including Rinaldo (Almirena), Tu fedel? Tu costante?, Messiah (soprano soloist), and Il Trionfo del Tempo e del Disinganno (Bellezza). In addition, her passion for choral work has led her to sing in many professional ensembles, including NYC’s Marble Collegiate Choir, as well as Columbia-based groups Vox Nova and Prometheus.
Dr. Cat Sandstedt holds degrees from NY’s Stony Brook University (Doctorate of Musical Arts and Master of Music in vocal performance) where she began her studies with soprano Brenda Harris, as well as the University of Missouri-Columbia (Bachelor of Music in voice and viola performance) where she studied with Ann Harrell and Leslie Perna. Currently, Dr. Cat Sandstedt teaches at Columbia College as an Assistant Professor of Music, teaching applied voice lessons, music theory, aural skills, and other voice related courses. For more information, please visit: https://www.catherinesandstedtsoprano.com
Bryan Stenson, Tenor
Born in Tokyo, Japan, Bryan Hiroto Stenson was raised in music through his parents who worked at St. Mary’s International School. His international upbringing in music shaped his perceptions of choral singing, and he seeks to share a global perspective with the students and collaborators he works with. Intent on fostering cross-cultural communication, his research centers on Japanese choral music and folk songs.
He received the Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance from Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, WA and the Master of Music in Choral Conducting from Butler University in Indianapolis, IN. He served six years as a tenor vocalist in the U.S. Army Band “Pershing’s Own,” singing for global leaders, nationally televised events, and the public. While in the Army Band, he earned the Doctor of Musical Arts in Choral Conducting at George Mason University in Fairfax, VA.
Stenson works with a variety of ages and abilities. In addition to the U.S. Army Band “Pershing’s Own,” he has worked with the Indianapolis Symphonic Choir, the Tacoma Youth Chorus, the Children’s Chorus of Washington, Christ United Methodist Church in Plano, and Columbia College in Missouri. He currently serves as an adjunct faculty member at Florida State University where he directs the Vocal Jazz-Pop Ensemble and teaches courses in music education.
Nick Stoppel, Bass
Nick Stoppel is a multi-talented musician, excelling in a variety of arenas—from classical choral music to video game soundtracks. A native of Kansas City, he continues to contribute across the United States and around the world, both as a soloist and ensemble member. Nick has been privileged to perform as a featured soloist on illustrious stages worldwide, including the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing, Kings Place in London, the Maihama Amphitheater at Disney Tokyo, and the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts in Kansas City, Missouri. He has released two solo albums, which feature not only his mother on piano but other choral colleagues and friends. For six seasons, Nick was a member of the Kansas City Chorale. He was honored to be part of the Chorale’s recording of Rachmaninoff’s All-Night Vigil, which won the 2015 GRAMMY® Award for Best Choral Performance. While based in Kansas City, he also records and tours internationally with the Irish chorus Anúna. As a member of Anúna, his voice can be heard on multiple recording projects. He has appeared on tours throughout the United Kingdom, Ireland, Belgium, Italy, Brazil, Iceland, Japan, and China, as well as on national television and radio in the Netherlands. In addition to his musical endeavors, Nick is also an award-winning personal trainer and the owner of RiNickulous Fitness in Prairie Village, Kansas.