Clayton G. William to Perform MESSIAH with Southeast Queens Ecumenical Community Chorale

Emerging artist, Clayton G. Williams will sing the Baritone Solo in an upcoming performance of Handel's Messiah with the Southeast Queens Ecumenical Community Chorale this holiday season.

Mr. Williams will be in New York to perform in the Messiah between performances of his US recital tour of Souls of the Soil, a recital series in collaboration with mezzo-soprano, Erica Papillion-Posey. After enjoying a sold-out summer European tour, the program, which highlights an eclectic array of American music, was extended to include performances throughout the United States through 2014.

Under the baton of Alejandro Guzman, Handel's beloved Christmas oratorio will be presented on Friday, December 12, 2014 at 7:30pm at St. Matthews African Methodist Episcopal Community Church located at 20311 Hollis Avenue, Jamaica, NY 11412. The performance is free and open to the public.

"I am very excited to perform in the Messiah again." Mr. Williams exclaimed, "Handel's exquisite oratorio is a timeless classic, a masterpiece that has become a universal standard for the holiday season."

After closing out the year with his performance in Handel's Messiah and in Souls of the Soil, 2015 promises to be a busy year for Clayton G. Williams. He is scheduled to perform the iconic role of Escamillo in Bizet's Carmen with Golden Rose Opera Works in March and later in the year will also present a concert featuring the world premiere of spiritual arrangements by Stacy Gibbs.

A complete list of Clayton G. William's events follows, and additional information may be found atwww.claytongwilliams.com.

Rising young artist, Clayton G. Williams, a New York based baritone performing in opera, musical theatre, concert and recital is ready to return to his roots of gospel and African-American spirituals. Williams is scheduled to perform in a 2015 concert, which will feature the world premiere of spiritual arrangements by Stacy Gibbs, soon to be published in a collection of African American Spirituals for the solo voice.

On the opera stage, Williams' most recent operatic role was Porgy in Gershwin's Porgy and Bess at the Siena Summer Music Festival. Other roles include Bartolo and Count Almaviva in Le Nozze di Figaro, Papageno in Die Zauberflöte, and Bunthrone in Gilbert & Sullivan's Patience. Selected to perform two opera festivals in Siena, Williams performed several concerts throughout Siena, Italy.

Equally at home as a soloist in both concert and recital, Williams' credits include the Baritone Soloist in Handel'sMessiah, Bizet's Agnus Dei, Mozart's Missa Brevis in C, K. 220 and performing in the chorus of Faure's Requiem in 2010 at Carnegie Hall.

This summer, Williams performed in a European recital tour, Souls of the Soil, in collaboration with mezzo-soprano, Erica Papillion-Posey. The overwhelming popularity of the program, which highlights an eclectic array of American music, compelled the duo to schedule additional performances throughout Colorado, Louisiana, Michigan, and New York throughout 2014.

As a versatile musician, Williams is also a talented musical theatre performer most recently featured as Jorell in an Irving Berlin revue entitled Coming to America at the Manhattan School of Music Summer Voice Festival. Other credits includeBroadway Babies, which was comprised of scenes from Gershwin's Shall We Dance, and Musilda, a parody of the musical based on Ronald Dahl's beloved book.

Williams has been recognized with the Emerging Talent Award in the Lotte Lenya Competition and was also a recipient of the Brazeal W. Dennard Scholarship, Thurgood Marshall College Fund Scholarship, and a regional winner of the NBA Gold-Standard Scholarship during its inaugural year, and is a member of the Mu Beta Chapter of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity of America, Inc.

A Detroit native, Williams attended the Detroit School of the Fine and Performing Arts and earned a Bachelor of the Arts in Music from Winston-Salem State University. Williams holds a Master of Music from Manhattan School of Music. He currently studies with Dr. Gregory Hopkins.

Learn more about Clayton G. Williams at: www.claytongwilliams.com.

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