La Sierra’s 76th Annual Candlelight Concert to feature noted alumni

The university’s 76th Annual Candlelight Concert will be held on Friday, Dec. 1 at 7 p.m. and on Saturday, Dec. 2 at 4 p.m. Both performances will take place at the La Sierra University Church and will showcase multiple excerpts from George Frideric Handel’s “Messiah” as well as Christmas carols.

The La Sierra University Symphony Orchestra, instrumental ensembles and university choral groups will perform with solos by León, Perez, Luna, and Lee.

Since graduating from La Sierra in 2019, León’s career has quickly advanced with high profile awards leading to performances in such iconic venues as Carnegie Hall, Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, and Victoria Hall, and appearances with some of opera’s most renowned companies such as The Metropolitan Opera, Los Angeles Opera, and Santa Fe Opera. During the 2022-2023 season, León was contracted as a member of the Domingo-Colburn-Stein Young Artist Program at the Los Angeles Opera. His latest engagements with L.A. Opera include opening the 2023-2024 season singing Don Ottavio in Mozart’s “Don Giovanni”and covering Count Almaviva in “The Barber of Seville.” Future engagements in 2024 include performances with The Santa Fe Symphony, Cologne Opera, and the Aix-en-Provence Festival.

In 2022, León won the prestigious First Prize and Don Plácido Domingo Ferrer Zarzuela Prize at Operalia. This year he won the Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition and received a Career Development Grant from the Sullivan Foundation, among other top awards. In addition, León has been featured in Opera News magazine and as “Best-Up-and-Comer” in Inland Empire magazine in 2019.

Perez is a Mexican-American mezzo-soprano from Los Angeles and a graduate of La Sierra University. She earned a professional studies diploma and Master of Music degree from Mannes School of Music at The New School in New York where she was also awarded The Presidential Scholarship.

Additional recognitions include District Winner of the Los Angeles District and an Encouragement Award Winner of the Western Region of the Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition 2022-23 season. She was also a prize winner in the IAPMT Concours International de Musique Online and the IAPMT Grand Prix. Past engagements include a Young Artist stint at Chautauqua Opera Company & Conservatory debuting in the roles of Anna Hope and Jenny Reefer in Virgil Thomson’s “The Mother of Us All,” among other roles. Most recently, Perez was a studio artist with Angels Vocal Arts Summer Opera Festival, debuting in roles from two Menotti operas.

Luna is a Los Angeles native who has received a number of accolades including as part of the award-winning vocal jazz ensemble Pacific Standard Time. He is an alumnus of the Los Angeles Children's Chorus and the Young Men's Ensemble which has toured nationally and internationally, and of the Long Beach Camerata Singers which performed in New York’s Carnegie Hall. He was also a soloist as a member of La Sierra’s vocal ensembles during a past tour of Europe performing of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s “Requiem in D minor.”

Luna has sung with the Los Robles Master Chorale performing such works as “The Messiah” and with the Los Angeles Korean-American Musicians Association and the Taiwanese Elite Chamber Chorus at their “Harmony & Friendship” concert at Walt Disney Concert Hall. He is currently a section leader for the Cathedral Choir at the First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood. As an active recording artist, he is a member of Tonality, a vocal ensemble highlighting social issues.

Lee, a soprano, oversees La Sierra’s opera program. She has held an active performance career with appearances throughout the United States, Italy, and Korea in oratorio, recital, and opera. She has received many honors and awards, including a special prize for her distinguished performance of the Italian Art Song repertoire from the Italian America Cultural Foundation. She holds a doctorate in music from Rutgers University in New Jersey where she studied under Faith Esham. Lee is passionate about introducing Korean art songs to the world. In collaboration with Jean Ahn, a composer and lecturer at the University of California, Berkeley, she published “A Collection of Korean Folksong Revisited.” Lee has served as a voice faculty member at the Montecito International Music Festival and was vice president for the Southwest Chapter of the College Music Society.

The La Sierra University Candlelight Concerts offer free general admission with priority seating available for $20 per person. For reservations and information visit music-events.lasierra.edu, email music@lasierra.edu or call 951-785-2036. The La Sierra University Church is located at 4937 Sierra Vista Ave., Riverside, Calif., 92505.