STAFF
WILL LOPES
Founder / Managing Artistic Director / Conductor
Will Lopes holds a Master’s Degree in Music (Conducting) from the University of Northern Iowa, a Bachelor's Degree in Sacred Music from Brazil’s Northern Baptist Theological Seminary and a Diploma in Piano Performance and Music Theory from the Music Conservatory of the FS State University, also located in Brazil.
As a jazz/pop singer, Lopes had the opportunity to perform in venues like the Dakota Jazz Club-MN and other jazz festivals in the United States and in Brazil. He also has worked in several studio recordings, as a soloist, backup singer and vocal coach/arranger, recording jingles for companies like Coca-Cola and Levi’s Jeans. His unique versatility has allowed him to enjoy a wide range of opportunities including traveling on a U.S. national tour as a soloist with the GMA Dove Award-winning group, the Continental Singers.
As a classical musician, Lopes has also performed in venues ranging from Orchestra Hall in Minneapolis to the Covent Garden Theatre in London. While living in Minnesota, Lopes was a section leader for the MN Chorale (official choir for the MN Orchestra) and appeared in operas such as Don Giovanni, Carmen and Rosenkavalier.
Lopes has worked as adjunct professor at the University of Northwestern (St. Paul, MN), Palm Beach Atlantic University and is currently the Director Vocal Music at Iowa Central Community College (Fort Dodge, IA). He has been inducted into Iowa Central Community College Hall of Fame as a distinguished alumnus. Lopes is an active clinician, guest conductor and vocal coach and has led seminars and workshops throughout the USA and Brazil.
Lopes is a published arranger/composer and his pieces can be found under the catalogs of Hal Leonard, Hinshaw Music, and Schirmer Music. Recently, he published under his own publishing company, Lopes Publications, his Brazilian-style liturgical mass "Gloria" and has premiered his first children's musical "The Bee Attitudes."
Lopes is a member of ACDA (American Choral Directors Association), NATS (National Association of Teachers of Singing), NAfME (National Association of Music Education), MTNA (Music Teachers National Association and ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers).
For additional info, please visit: www.willopesmusic.com
SHELLY BOTTORFF
Assistant Director / Accompanist
Shelly Bottorff graduated from the University of South Dakota with a degree in Music Education. Shelly has completed graduate work toward her Master's Degree and holds a certificate of Coach Accompaniment through the University of Minnesota.
Shelly has studied piano for 36 years and has been behind the keys for several productions including Annie, The Music Man, Oklahoma, Fiddler on the Roof, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Oklahoma, The Addam's Family, Peter Pan, Mary Poppins, Songs for a New World, and local Cabarets, to name a few. Locally, she has been an accompanist for a variety of community groups such as Sonshine Singers, St. Ed's Chamber Choir, Fort Dodge Senior High musical, Comedia Musica Players, Stage Door Productions and Manson Junior and Senior High Schools.
Shelly is a traveling accompanist and musical director for the Broadway Dreams, – an international program that seeks to empower aspiring young artists through performing arts training, with a focus on the acting, voice, and dance disciplines. Broadway Dreams has taken Shelly to Aspen, Atlanta, Omaha, New York City, Los Angeles and Philadelphia.
Shelly currently serves as the Executive Director of the Fort Dodge Fine Arts Associations, is a member of ACDA (American Choral Directors Association), NAfME (National Association of Music Education) and collaborates with Art of the Rural, PlaceBase Productions and Iowa Arts Council.
For additional information regarding the Fort Dodge Fine Arts Association, please viist: www.fdfineartsassociation.org
