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John Moir, voice
John-Scott Moir [basso] is Director of Choirs and Voice at Bluefield College (M.Mus. Eastman, DMA, Shenandoah). Dr. Moir has always been both a vocal Soloist and Choral Director. He has long worked in Lutheran, Catholic, Methodist, and Episcopal settings as Cantor and Choir Director over the course of his career. Before coming to Virginia, Dr. Moir formed and was Founding Artistic Director for a decade with the Twin Cities semi-professional chorus, CORO! – a ‘stand-alone opera chorus’ whose varied and innovative programs all in original languages spanned the gamut. Programs included selections such as: Wagner and the German Romantics (Rienzi, Walküre, Dutchman), a Viennese ‘Opernball’ (Strauss, Léhar, Suppé), an all-English Opera Celebration (Gilbert & Sullivan, Argento, & Britten), as well as a Slavic Tapestry (Moniuszko, Tchaikovsky, Smetana, Dvorak, and Mussorgsky). John also did CORO! recital programs of forgotten vocal gems (Lehmann’s ‘In a Persian Garden’). CORO! joined forces on a number of occasions performing with Minnesota Sinfonia and Dakota Valley Symphony. CORO! served as chorus for local productions of Zauberflöte and I Puritani, and joined with the MacPhail Center for the Arts’ chorus (Sonomento) for a series of concerts during the Verdi Bicentennial year.
Prior to coming to Virginia, Dr. Moir began his career as a solo singer in Southern California. For fifteen seasons, he with the San Diego Opera as chorister and comprimario in over 60 productions; via outreach programs for the company; and was a member of the San Diego Opera Center under Tito Capobianco. John sang with such stars as Beverly Sills, Joan Sutherland, Sherrill Milnes, and Aprile Millo during that time. He was also soloist for seven years with San Diego’s Temple Beth Israel synagogue, regularly singing for Shabbat services, Bar/Bat Mitzvahs, and High Holy Days. Concurrently, John-Scott became a founding member of the San Diego Gilbert and Sullivan Society (SDG&S - later ‘San Diego Comic Opera’) doing lead roles and acting as occasional Chorus Master. With SDG&S, he was fortunate to have worked with three D’Oyly Carte veterans, who praised his large voice and ‘impeccable comic timing,’ in roles spanning the G&S canon.
While in his native state of Minnesota, John appeared as soloist with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, Dakota Valley Symphony, Minnesota Center Chorale, Lyra Consort, spanning works from Bach and Haydn to Verdi. Dr. Moir has also been soloist with Opera Pacific, Pacific Chamber Opera, Santa Barbara Civic Opera, Akron Opera, as a Guest Artist with Opera Lucca (Italy). John also sang with: Roger Wagner Chorale, Eastman Chorale, San Diego Master Chorale, Minnesota Orchestra, St. Kate’s Oratorio Society, Opera 101, Anoka Opera, and numerous community theaters, most recently as King Arthur/Camelot; R.F. Simpson/Singing in the Rain; and Henry Higgins/My Fair Lady.
Dr. Moir began to focus his energies as a Choral Director soon after obtaining his Master’s degree. His pedagogical background, love of music, and gift for encouraging chorus members to ‘sing as an ensemble of soloists’ has enabled him to obtain a ‘full, free sound’ from choruses, across the country. John-Scott has been interviewed for Iowa Public Television, Minnesota Public Radio, and West Virginia Public Radio. He lives in Bluefield, WV with his family, all of whom are musicians.