“Singing gives me a natural high. And it is cheaper than therapy! Charlie is a brilliant director; she brings fun and positivity to every session, plus cool song choices. I have met fantastic people and made lifelong friends.”
– MATILDA BROOKER, RETAIL ASSISTANT
CHARLIE ADAMS
Founding Director
Charlie is on a mission to bring choir to the world—one laugh, one voice, one song at a time. (Emphasis on the laugh.) A vivacious, London-born, classically trained singer, certified voice teacher & vocal coach*, choir master and creative entrepreneur, she began her journey with a degree from the Liverpool Institute of Performing arts (where she graduated with 1st-class honors, which, as Brits know, is a big deal). She has crisscrossed the pond and conquered musical challenges up and down the scale, from producing grassroots community arts projects to large-scale singing events. Over a nearly 20-year career, she has performed at the Glastonbury Festival, sung alongside Brian Eno, Ringo Starr and the Zombies, conducted a 50-person choir at Madison Square Garden, and partnered with NYC’s Center for Arts Education.
Her proudest achievement, though, was the 2012 founding of New York Choir Project (originally Urban Choir Project), where her passion for music continues to be a force for education, well-being and change—and a chance to harmonize her way through life.
MEGAN ALLEN
Assistant Director
Megan is a musical chameleon, from a cappella to musical theater to piano and guitar—but don’t ask her to brag. (We’ll do that for her.) With a B.S. in Contemporary Music Studies and M.S. in Music Therapy from SUNY New Paltz, she moved on to local music director gigs (the 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, for one) and stage roles in Pippin, Into the Woods, and A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.
While by day she is a mild-mannered HR & operations manager for start-ups, her real passion is NYCP, where after four years of taking on greater and greater responsibility, she became assistant director and a partner in the organization.
CHRISTIN MARKS
Creative Director
Christin is one of the pillars of NYCP (and not simply because the only thing sweeter than her demeanor is her voice). She came to NYC as a lifelong singer—in musical theater, alt rock bands, etc.—looking for an outlet, and found it in NYCP, where she’s now a creative director, choral arranger, minority partner, and sometime guitar accompanist.
It sprang from years of honing her voice (in multiple senses of the word). First, via education: classical training throughout high school; a music minor at the University of New Hampshire, where she got her B.A. in Communications; and a post-grad certificate in Media Production from Emerson College. Later came years of experience: as a DJ and promotions coordinator for alt-rock station WFNX in Boston, helping promote artists like The Strokes, Modest Mouse and Bloc Party; and, currently, in her role as a news anchor, writer and producer for iHeart Media/NBC News Radio. (A music-engineer boyfriend doesn’t hurt either.)
SARAH MUCHO
Musical Consultant
The newest member of our dream team, Sarah genuinely is a dream. (No kidding, we couldn’t make her up.) She’s an award-winning vocalist, songwriter and cabaret artist who has fronted multiple NYC rock bands, released eight studio albums, performed hundreds of shows in the tri-states, plus Europe, and…well, we’re exhausted just trying to keep up with her. If that weren’t enough, she also plays several percussion instruments, harmonica, and guitar, although until NYCP, she never really considered herself a guitarist. (She says we’ve created a monster, but the only thing really fierce about her is her talent.)
After just three cycles with Sarah, we were thrilled to perform one of her originals, Summer Solstice, with her lyrical voice leading the way. And if we make her sound too good to be believed, go hear her for yourself. Her latest band is an alt-folk-rock project called…well…“Mucho.”
JACLYN GREEN-STOCK
Events & Marketing Manager
New York Choir Project’s media go-to and guru, Jaclyn has her finger on the pulse of music and marketing opportunities alike. Boundlessly energetic and engaging, she’s also the driving force behind our artistic collaborations with musicians and bands like Bandits on the Run, Elizabeth and the Catapult, and Julia Easterlin.
It’s a role she was made for, combining her extensive development training with an intense passion for music. (Seriously, Mercury Lounge should give her an attendance award.) It was at Clark University—where she got her undergrad degree in International Development and Social Change and her Master’s in Community Development and Planning—that she first embraced her own love of singing, in a campus a cappella group. Later, as a freelance PR consultant, she worked with independent musicians including Small Dream Ada and Katie Mullins. NYCP was a logical next step—and a complete labor of love.
GAYLE GADDIS
Associate Brand & Copy Director
Gayle is by no means a professional singer. But she is a professional writer, so in addition to lending her sometimes-first-soprano to NYCP harmonies, she has figuratively helped the choirs find their voice. (And loved every minute of it.)
A copywriter and branding specialist for the last 25+ years (yes, a quarter of a century, but she holds up well), she began with a B.A. in English from Williams College and parlayed it into positions at McGraw-Hill, the VIA Group design agency and Aveda, all the while honing her writing, conceptual, analysis, and playing-well-with-others skills. Since 2006, she has been freelancing full-time for clients of every size and virtually every stripe—web and digital, print, creative strategy, naming, you name it for the likes of UnitedHealth Group, Martha Stewart Omnimedia, BBC World News, Johnson & Johnson and Erno Laszlo. (Just to name-drop a few.)
