Sherrill Milnes
Co-Founder, President
Sherrill Milnes is universally acclaimed as the foremost operatic baritone of his generation. With his powerful voice, commanding stage presence and rugged handsomeness, he received the kind of adulation that is usually reserved for tenors. He sang over 650 performances at the Met, where he was honored with sixteen new productions, seven opening nights, and ten national telecasts. As a leading artist in all of the world’s great opera houses, Mr. Milnes performed and recorded with the likes of Domingo, Pavarotti, Sutherland, Sills, Horne, Price, and Tebaldi. He is the winner of three Grammy Awards, and the most recorded American singer of his time. In 2008 he received the Opera News Award for Distinguished Achievement.
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Born on January 10, 1935 in Downers Grove, Illinois, Sherrill Milnes made his critically acclaimed debut at the Metropolitan Opera on December 22, 1965 as Valentin in Faust, an auspicious night that also featured the Met debut of Montserrat Caballé. He was launched to stardom, however, in 1968, when his riveting performance as Miller in Verdi’s Luisa Miller literally stopped the show at the Met and immediately made him the dominant baritone of his time. Throughout his remarkable career, Mr. Milnes showed an affinity for Verdi, whose works formed the cornerstone of a repertoire of some 70 roles. His autobiography, American Aria: Encore, is available from Amadeus Press.
Driven by his dedication to make the vocal arts vibrant, vital and entertaining in today’s world, Mr. Milnes continues to give masterclasses, judge competitions, and mentor new generations of singers. With his wife, Maria Zouves, he co-founded and runs the Sherrill Milnes VOICE Programs: VOICExperience Foundation and the Savannah VOICE Festival, which provide training and performance opportunities for aspiring young artists while fostering new audiences for the arts.
Maria Zouves
Co-Founder, President
Maria Zouves is an educator, director, producer and writer. She is President of the Sherrill Milnes VOICE Programs − VOICExperience Foundation and the Savannah VOICE Festival – which she co-founded with her husband, Sherrill Milnes, to provide training for aspiring young artists and foster new audiences for the vocal arts. The Greek-American soprano has sung leading roles in the regional U.S., made her Carnegie Hall debut in 1997, and has recorded under the VAI label. While Maria directs most of the concerts in the VOICE Programs and co-directed the new SVF opera commission, Ching’s Alice Ryley: A Savannah Ghost Story, she most recently directed Mozart’s Don Giovanni at the Estates Theatre in Prague, where the work first premiered and co-directed Le nozze de Figaro with Sherrill Milnes in Prague and Salzburg with Prague Summer Nights. She was recently seen in the title role of the premiere of Ching’s Anna Hunter: The Spirit of Savannah.
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Ms. Zouves has directed, taught, and produced events all around the world, having worked with the International Vocal Arts Institute (IVAI) in Montreal and Puerto Rico, the International Institute of Vocal Arts (IIVA) in Chiari, Italy, and at the Savonlinna Opera Festival in Finland. From 2007 to 2011, she served as Vice President and Associate General Director of Opera Tampa, the resident opera company of the Straz Center for the Performing Arts. She has taught workshops at Southern Illinois University, Drake University and served as interim opera director at Northwestern University. A sought after clinician, particularly in career development, she has also aided young singers as a career liaison through her former feature, “A Conversation with…” in Classical Singer magazine.
Ms. Zouves has sung leading roles with the Baltimore Opera, Florentine Opera, Memphis Opera, New Jersey State Opera, Orlando Opera, and the Pittsburgh Opera. The Stuttgarter Zeitung praised her “beautiful, lyric voice” and “a not to be surpassed ‘piano’ in the high register.” Opera News has described her voice as “creamy.” This Greek-American soprano shows great versatility in opera, on concert stages, and in crossover repertoire, with a specialty in classical and popular Greek music.
Andrew Bisantz
Artistic Director and Principal Conductor
Conductor Andrew Bisantz has received critical acclaim from Opera News, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Miami Herald, The Toronto Globe and Mail, The Boston Globe, and The Buffalo News. His long career includes more than 90 productions for opera companies and major educational programs throughout the U.S. Recent notable productions include his Central City Opera debut conducting Puccini’s La fanciulla del West, as well as conducting the world premiere of Michael Ching’s A Royal Feast for the Savannah VOICE Festival.
He has appeared with such notable artists as Santiago Ballerini, Jon Burton, Sarah Coburn, Michael Fabiano, Elizabeth Futral, Jill and Jake Gardner, Joelle Harvey, Kelly Kaduce, Lisette Oropesa, Emily Pulley, Mark Rucker, Nadine Sierra, and Kara Shay Thompson, among many wonderful collaborations over his career. Mr. Bisantz has been part of The Sherrill Milnes’s VOICE programs since 2007, and in addition to his teaching and coaching, has conducted Alice Ryley and Anna Hunter, La bohème, Carmen, Dialogues of the Carmelites, Don Giovanni, Le Nozze di Figaro, and will return in his new role as Artistic Director of the Savannah VOICE Festival this summer to lead Die Zauberflöte.
In his 18 seasons with Eugene Opera — nine as Artistic Director and Conductor — Bisantz has led productions exploring a wide range of repertoire, honoring the traditional operatic canon as well as embracing new works, including the company premieres of Nixon in China, Dead Man Walking, La fanciulla del West, Eugene Onegin, Little Women, María de Buenos Aires, As One, little match girl passion, Lucy, Dark Sisters, and will lead Three Decembers this coming May. He recently conducted Opera is Instrumental!, a now-annual collaborative program with the Eugene-Springfield Youth Orchestras, teaching the young musicians about the art of collaboration in opera.
In September of 2023, Bisantz joined the faculty of Boston Conservatory at Berklee as Principal Opera Conductor, coach for the Opera Studio, and Professor of Conducting. This year, he conducts Marius Constant / Claude Debussy’s Impressions de Pélleas and the academic premiere and premiere recording of Laura Kaminsky and Crystal Manich’s Time To Act in collaboration with National Sawdust on the Bright Shiny Things label.
Other productions include The Turn of the Screw, Tosca, Madama Butterfly, and Greek for Boston Lyric Opera, Patience and Le portrait de Manon for Glimmerglass Opera (the latter broadcast on NPR’s World of Opera), La traviata and La fanciulla del West for Virginia Opera, and Macbeth, Madama Butterfly, Sweeney Todd, and The Turn of the Screw for Opera Tampa.
He has also appeared with Northwestern University Opera, Opera McGill, Opera Omaha, Opera San José, Shreveport Opera, the Savannah Music Festival, Wolf Trap Opera, and the Brevard Music Festival. He has led concerts with the Buffalo and Rochester Philharmonics, the Boston Landmarks Orchestra, the Orquestra Sinfónica do Porto, the Western New York Chamber Orchestra, and the Virginia Symphony.
He has conducted 10 productions for Florida Grand Opera, including the world orchestral premiere of Daron Hagen’s New York Stories, which was selected as one of the Top 10 Musical Events in South Florida in 2021 by South Florida Classical Review.
Torlef Borsting
Executive Director
Torlef A. Borsting is an accomplished arts administrator and performer with extensive experience in opera leadership and community engagement. He currently serves as Development Director with First Coast Opera in St. Augustine, Florida, where he oversees donor relations, sponsorship initiatives, and strategic fundraising efforts to advance the company’s mission.
Prior to this role, Mr. Borsting was General Director of North Bay Opera in Fairfield, California, where he guided both the artistic and administrative growth of the company. Dedicated to nurturing the next generation of artists and audiences, he is an Advisory Board Member for the Flagler College Department of Creative Arts and an At-Large Board Member with Volusia Community Arts, where he is leading the creation of the Volusia Community Arts Society, a new volunteer and support network for the organization.
Active in civic life, Torlef is also a proud member of the Downtown Rotary Club of DeLand, Florida, where he contributes his leadership and advocacy for the arts to the broader community.
Torlef is married to soprano Cass Panuska (also a VOICE programs alum), and together they are raising two quickly sprouting boys. Tresler, 13, and Charlie, 10, are both heavily involved in the arts and made their operatic debuts as supernumeraries in Wagner’s ring cycle this past summer in Brattleboro, VT.
Administrative Staff
Lani Winskye hails from St. Petersburg, Florida. She holds a BA in Theatre Arts from the University of South Florida. Mrs. Winskye was the founding Company Manager of Hat Trick Theatre Productions, where she served for over eight years before moving to attain her MFA in Theatre for Young Audiences at the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa. Her joint passions for arts education, stage management and arts administration led her to find her home with The Milnes VOICE Programs in 2014, first as a production manager, and now as VP of Operations (and sometime Stage Manager). Mrs. Winskye has stage managed in a variety of live performance genres and venues, and taught all areas of theatre and arts management to students across the US. Favorite stage management experiences include Noises Off, Waiting for Godot, Alice Ryley: A Savannah Ghost Story and Anna Hunter: The Spirit of Savannah. Additionally, she serves the arts community as a Life Coach, having completed her advanced certification in 2022.
Chad Sonka is establishing himself as a versatile American baritone, teacher, and director. Most recently, he directed and sang the role of Alidoro the world premiere of A Royal Feast by Michael Ching, a sequel to Rossini's La Cenerentola, with the Savannah VOICE Festival. He has performed as the baritone soloist in Vaughan Williams’ Dona Nobis Pacem at Carnegie Hall with Iowa State University and Mahler’s Kindertotenlieder with Oneota Valley Community Orchestra. Previous performing credits: Tosca (Scarpia – cover) with Central City Opera; Gianni Schicchi (Marco) with Savannah Music Festival; Man of La Mancha (Don Quixote) and Carmen (Dancaïro) with Cedar Rapids Opera Theatre; The Mother of Us All (Virgil T.), The Rape of Lucretia (Junius), Faust (Wagner), Elijah (Elijah) with Manhattan School of Music; and Amahl and the Night Visitors (King Melchior) with Nevada Opera. He was the first-place winner of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions – Iowa District in 2017. Chad is an active voice teacher and director and currently serves on voice faculty at Iowa State University. Directing credits include multiple scenes programs, Cendrillon (Viardot), Hansel and Gretel (Humperdinck), and The Little Prince (Portman).
Cuban-American soprano Ashley Nuñez recently premiered the role of Lilian in The Eleanors with the Savannah VOICE Festival. An alumna of the Milnes VOICE Studio, Ms. Nuñez was selected as a Study Grant Artist for two consecutive summers under the mentorship of world-renowned baritone, Sherrill Milnes. Her recent engagements include being the Soprano Soloist in Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, a featured performance at the Indiana Landmarks Holly & the Ivy Concert, and débuting the role of Pamina in Die Zauberflöte with the Miami Music Festival.
Ashley’s operatic repertoire spans celebrated companies across the United States such as the Florida Grand Opera, Vero Beach Opera, Painted Sky Opera, and the San José Chamber Orchestra. Her standout roles include Manon in Massenet’s Manon, Frasquita in Bizet's Carmen, Gretel in Hansel and Gretel by Humperdinck, and Krysia in Two Remain (Out of Darkness) by Jake Heggie.
Ms. Nuñez has also distinguished herself in numerous vocal competitions earning accolades in the St. Petersburg Opera Guild Voice Competition, Nightingale Opera Theatre Competition, Music International Grand Prix, Mobile Opera Rose Competition, and the Giffin Vocal Competition. She holds a Bachelor of Music degree from Stetson University and a Master of Music degree in Vocal Performance from Louisiana State University.
Composer Jodi Goble writes text-based, character-driven music fueled by her extensive background as a vocal coach and song-specialist collaborative pianist. Her compositions have been performed across the United States and internationally and featured on National Public Radio. She won the Iowa Music Teachers Association Commission Competition in 2013 and took first prize in the National Association of Teachers of Singing Art Song Competition in 2024 for her song cycle Sea Creatures for soprano and piano. She also placed as a NATS ASCA finalist in 2008, 2017, 2020, and 2021, as the honorable mention winner in 2015, and won second prize in 2016. Her art songs are published in anthologies by New Music Shelf and North Star Music.
Ms. Goble’s recent commissions include works for Seaglass Theater, Really Spicy Opera, I, the Siren, Voices of the Pearl, the Durward Ensemble, and Laura Strickling’s GRAMMY-nominated 40x40 Project. Her works have recently been performed at the Collaborative Arts Institute of Chicago’s Spring Lieder Lounge, the ASEAN Festival of Contemporary Music, Calliope’s Call, Songfest, the National Opera Center in New York City, the Fondation des États-Unis in Paris, San Francisco Opera's Atrium Sessions, Jordan Hall, Ames Town and Gown, Omaha Under the Radar, and the Art Song Preservation Society of New York. Helen of Troy, her monodrama for mezzo-soprano and chamber instruments, was recorded and released by the Durward Ensemble on their Prophetic Revolutions album.
Ms. Goble is Full Teaching Professor in Voice at Iowa State University, the official pianist for the Simon Estes Roots and Wings Community Concert Series, and the official accompanist for the Metropolitan Opera National Council Guild Auditions in Iowa.
Savannah VOICE Festival
Board of Directors
Sherrill Milnes
Barry R. Cohen, Co-Chairperson
Toby Hollenberg, Co-Chairperson
Maria Zouves
Elliott Bardsley
Michael Ching
Daniel C. Cohen
Jane Gilchrist
Dr. Wesley Krulic
Mary Lysaught
Fred Negem
Jorge Parodi
Arlene Ratner
Dr. Garry Spector
Howard Watkins
Dr. Michael Zoller
Savannah VOICE Festival
Festival Committee
Kathie Anderson
Elliott Bardsley
Daniel C. Cohen
Michael Ching
Carolyn Donovan
Helen Downing
Lesley Francis
Timothy L. Hall
Toby Hollenberg
Dan Huffer
Dr. Wesley Krulic
Joe Marinelli
Jorge Parodi
Arlene & Allan Ratner
Claudia & David Seyle
Dr. Garry Spector
Dr. Michael & Linda Zoller
VOICE Diversity Committee
Michael Ching, composer
Daniel C. Cohen, Festival Committee Member
Denyce Graves, mezzo soprano
Paul Gutmann, VOICE Artist
Timothy L. Hall, Festival Committee & VOICE Faculty
Toby Hollenberg, Board Co-Chair
Dr. Wesley Krulic, Board Member
Marquita Lister, Faculty & Soprano
Aysha Parks, Principal, Esther F. Garrison School for the Arts
Jean Carlos Rodriguez, Festival Artist
George Shirley, tenor
Chad Sonka, Education and Outreach Director
Jonathan Walker-Van Kuren, Alumni, Faculty & Guest Artist
Howard Watkins, VOICE Faculty
Lani Winskye, Vice President of Operations
Maria Zouves, President & Co-Founder