Victoria Fraser, soprano
Born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska, soprano Victoria Fraser holds degrees from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, University of Notre Dame, and University of Limerick in Ireland. Victoria has performed as a soloist and chorister in Europe and North America, notably with Il Coro del Duomo in Florence, Italy; the Vocalensemble Frankfurt Dom, in Frankfurt, Germany; Vox Humana in Texas; True Concord in Arizona; the Berwick Chamber Chorus at the Oregon Bach Festival; and the Bachkantaten-Akademie in Thuringia, Germany. Her most recent appearance with CBS was in last season’s performances of the St. John Passion.
She has sung under the direction of Masaaki Suzuki, Helmut Rilling, Matthew Halls, John Nelson, and Jeffrey Thomas. Passionate about interdisciplinary performance, Victoria produces and performs concerts which re-contextualize classical music through visual art, dance, and technology. Also a composer, Victoria's compositions were recently featured at the Hot Air Music Festival and last year’s Concert of Compassion. Born to a mountaineer father, Victoria loves to ski, rock climb, mountain bike, hike, SCUBA dive, and row.
Caroline Jou Armitage, soprano
Proud CBS chorister from 2011-2017, soprano Caroline Jou Armitage is known to Bay Area audiences for her “absolutely beautiful” performances sung with “pitch-perfect clarity and affecting intensity” (San Francisco Classical Voice). As a frequent soloist with the California Bach Society, she has performed Handel’s Dixit Dominus, Bach’s Cantatas BWV 21 and 198, Bach’s Mass in G Major, Bach’s Mass in A Major, and most recently in last season’s Venetian Vespers concerts.
A multi-instrumentalist, Caroline made her harpsichord debut at the 2022 Berkeley Festival and Exhibition, playing repertoire from Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier. The same festival found her debuting on the Baroque violin with the Albany Consort and singing excerpts of Rameau’s Les Surprises de L’Amour with tenor Brian Thorsett. On November 9, she performs the Bach Double Violin Concerto accompanied by the Berkeley Baroque Strings, directed by Kati Kyme.
Caroline currently studies voice with Karen Clark, harpsichord with Tamara Loring, and Baroque violin with David Wilson. She is also the soprano soloist and section leader at St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church in Belvedere, under the direction of Jonathan Dimmock.
Adam Cole, baritone
The grandson of a lifelong church musician and a Michigan native, baritone Adam Cole studied as an organist with Robert H. Murphy at Interlochen Arts Academy and Paula Pugh Romanaux at Kalamazoo College before turning his focus to voice.
An eleven-year American Guild of Musical Artists member of the San Francisco Symphony Chorus and currently in his seventeenth year with the Grace Cathedral Choir of Men and Boys, Adam has sung, toured, and/or recorded professionally with the SF Symphony, American Bach Soloists, Philharmonia Baroque, Cappella SF, Grace Cathedral, California Bach Society, and SF Renaissance Voices; and has appeared as soloist, section leader, and chorister with many other current and former Bay Area concert and liturgical ensembles over the past three decades. When not rehearsing or performing, Adam enjoys exploring the California hills and mountains, and creating solo and virtual choir recordings of his favorite Renaissance polyphony and pop songs.
Roco Córdova, baritone
Born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, baritone Roco Córdova is a vocalist, composer, producer, and improviser, with a B.Mus. in Composition from the Puerto Rico Conservatory of Music and an M.A. in Composition from Mills College. They study voice with CBS director and countertenor Paul Flight, and have participated in vocal advancement workshops with Meredith Monk. Roco recently soloed with CBS in last season’s performances of the St. John Passion.
Voice is at the core of Roco’s compositions, which incorporate techniques like throat singing, overtone singing, falsetto, yodeling, and vocal clicks and pops into live performances. Their music has been described as "slow-boiling, apparently timeless" with "an odd momentum of its own" (The Washington Post).
As a touring vocalist and improviser with the Art Ensemble of Chicago, Roco has performed in venues including the Pritzker Pavilion in Chicago; SESC Pompéia in São Paulo, and the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. A selection of their work can be found at: https://linktr.ee/rococordova.
Noah Strick, concertmaster
Violinist Noah Strick has appeared in performances throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, China, and South America, and can be seen regularly in a variety of performance venues throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. Critics have described his playing as “keen” and “suave.” Noah has performed at numerous summer festivals, including the Mostly Mozart Festival at Lincoln Center, Tanglewood, the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, Caramoor, and the American Bach Soloists' Festival & Academy. He was concertmaster for the recent CBS performances of the St. John Passion.
As a baroque violinist, Mr. Strick most frequently performs with Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra and American Bach Soloists, and has appeared as a soloist with both ensembles. He is a member of the California Symphony, and formerly served as Associate Concertmaster for Berkeley Symphony. Noah holds degrees from Oberlin Conservatory and the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. His principal teachers include Kyung Sun Lee, Marilyn McDonald, and Bettina Mussumeli. When he’s not working, he spends his time cycling in Marin County or inside on Zwift if the weather is inclement.