LINDA L. TEDFORD
Artistic Director, Founder, and Conductor
Linda L. Tedford is the Artistic Director, Founder and Conductor of the award-winning Susquehanna Chorale, established in 1981. She is responsible for the creation of the Chorale’s Educational Outreach Program, which reaches hundreds of local student singers annually. She is Professor Emeritus at Messiah College, Grantham, PA, where she served as Director of Choral Activities. Choirs under her direction have performed with the Harrisburg Symphony Orchestra and throughout Europe. Ms,. Tedford is a frequent guest conductor and clinician.
DANIEL L. DORTY
Pianist/Organist, Susquehanna Chorale
Daniel L. Dorty is Director of Music and Organist at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish in Mechanicsburg. He attended Messiah College in Grantham, Pennsylvania, where he majored in organ performance. Mr. Dorty also maintains a private studio, teaching organ, piano, and voice in Shippensburg, Pa., and he frequently serves as accompanist both at Messiah College and in the surrounding community. His private teachers have included Linda L. Tedford, Helen-Louise Wagner, Philip Shuman, Randall Williams, and Shawn Gingrich. Mr. Dorty is a member of the American Guild of Organists and the American Choral Directors Association.
JUDITH A. SHEPLER
Conductor, Susquehanna Children's Chorale
Judith A. Shepler holds a Bachelor of Music Education degree from Messiah College. She has pursued additional study at Westminster Choir College as well as with prominent conductors in the field of children’s choral music, including Jean Ashworth Bartle, Betty Bertaux, Joan Gregoryk, Christine Jordanoff, Helen Kemp, and Henry Leck. Ms. Shepler plays a vital role in the Chorale’s Educational Outreach Program by conducting the Susquehanna Children’s Chorale for children in grades 4 through 8. She also directs the Susquehanna Preparatory Choir, a training choir for students in the third grade.
Ms. Shepler recently retired from the Central Dauphin School District, where she taught elementary vocal music for 35 years and conducted the fourth and fifth grade choruses. Ms. Shepler is a charter member of the Susquehanna Chorale and has been a member and featured soloist with the Chamber Singers of Harrisburg and the Harrisburg Singers. Ms. Shepler maintains active membership in the American Choral Directors Association, Music Educators National Conference, and the Pennsylvania Music Educators Association.
ALAN L. HAIR
Pianist, Susquehanna Children's Chorale
Alan L. Hair has been a member of the Susquehanna Chorale since 1984 and has served as pianist for the Children’s Chorale since its inception in 1994. He is the tenor section leader for the Susquehanna Chorale and serves as a member of the Chorale’s Grants Committee. Mr. Hair received his Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration/Management from Elizabethtown College, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music/Organ Concentration, as a student of Dr. Carl Shull. Mr. Hair is Director of Music Ministries at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church in Hershey and is a member of the American Guild of Organists and the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians. Mr. Hair works full-time as Employment Program Coordinator for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
DRU A. DEITCH
Conductor, Susquehanna Youth Chorale
Dru Deitch is the choral director and general music teacher at Eagle View Middle School in the Cumberland Valley School District. She also conducts the Eagle View Middle School Select Choir and is the director and producer of Eagle View’s spring musicals, the most recent being a production of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast.
Mrs. Deitch graduated summa cum laude from Messiah College with a Bachelor of Science in Music Education with a concentration in voice. While at Messiah College, Mrs. Deitch was a member of the Concert Choir and Chamber Singers under the direction of Linda Tedford. She performed with the Messiah choirs throughout Pennsylvania and New England, and toured with the Concert Choir in Italy. She is also a former singer with the Susquehanna Chorale. Mrs. Deitch is an active member of her church worship team and maintains a private voice studio for students of all ages. She is an active member of the Pennsylvania Music Educators Association and has participated in and assisted several music festivals, including Middle School Song Fest.
MITCHELL C. SENSENIG
Conductor, Susquehanna Young Women's Chorale
Pianist, Susquehanna Youth Chorale
Mitchell Sensenig attended Mansfield University where he studied voice with Dr. Todd Ranney, piano with Dr. Nancy Boston, and conducting with Dr. Peggy Dettwiler. He has performed both internationally and on some of the nation’s most renowned stages including the Overture Center (Madison, WI) and Carnegie Hall (NYC). He has won his division of the National Association for Teachers of Singing (NATS) vocal solo competition, and has participated in American Choral Director’s Association (ACDA) conducting masterclasses both by audition and invitation.
Mr. Sensenig, Director of Music and Organist at the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Our Saviour in Harrisburg, is in demand as a singer, collaborative pianist, and music/vocal director in Central Pennsylvania. He is the resident Music Director for Theatre Harrisburg’s seasonal cabaret program and annual Arts Awards Gala. He also regularly music directs and plays keys for Theatre Harrisburg’s mainstage season in addition to other local community, high school, and college productions. Mr. Sensenig is active with the Susquehanna Chorale where he is bass section leader and Vice President on the Board of Directors. He is the conductor of the Susquehanna Young Women’s Chorale, pianist for the Susquehanna Youth Chorale, and Assistant Director of the Ephrata High School Marching Unit (a founding member of the Lancaster County Marching Band Coalition).
MATTHEW M. TOPPING
Pianist, Susquehanna Young Women's Chorale
Bio coming soon.