Lux Aeterna: Carols by Candlelight
Young Women’s Chorus of San Francisco
Matthew Otto, Artistic & Executive Director
Molly Langr, harp
Dara Phung, piano
The Young Women’s Chorus of San Francisco, joined by Molly Langr on harp, performs the California premieres of Lux Aeterna by Oliva Sparkhall (UK) and Ushās – Goddess of Dawn and Priestess by Shruthi Rajasekar (USA). The program also features beloved holiday favorites and festive works for choir and harp celebrating the themes of light, dawn, and hope, including the timeless Silent Night.
The Young Women’s Chorus (YWC) is the premier ensemble of the Young Women’s Choral Projects of San Francisco, led by Artistic & Executive Director, Dr. Matthew Otto. YWC is composed of singers ages 12-18 and has been praised for its beauty of sound, stellar musicianship, and dynamic programming. Performing repertoire from early music to contemporary music selections, YWC has won many competitive, national awards including the American Prize in Choral Performance; the Margaret Hillis Award for Choral Excellence, the Dale Warland Singers Commission Award from Chorus America and American Composers Forum; and the ASCAP Adventurous Programming Award. YWC has performed with the London Philharmonia Orchestra, the San Francisco Symphony, the Santa Rosa Symphony, and graced stages from Carnegie Hall to acclaimed venues in South Africa, France, Argentina, Canada, New Zealand, and Puerto Rico.
“Refined and beautifully controlled singing” – American Record Guide
“Spine-tingling performance!” – San Francisco Chronicle
“They sound like angels.” – 48 Hills
Dr. Matthew Otto is an award-winning Canadian conductor, educator, and arts leader whose work is distinguished by a commitment to artistic excellence, innovative programming, and transformative choral education. Based in San Francisco, on the unceded ancestral homeland of the Ramaytush Ohlone peoples, he serves as Artistic & Executive Director of the Young Women’s Choral Projects of San Francisco (YWCP). Under his leadership, YWCP has expanded its artistic reach through collaborations with SFDanceWorks, the San Francisco Symphony, Santa Rosa Symphony, Club Fugazzi, San Francisco Botanical Garden, Saint Joseph Art Society, composer Mason Bates, and choreographer Rena Butler. He has also championed the music of women composers, cross-cultural artistic exchange, and opportunities for young singers to engage with diverse musical traditions. Under his direction, the organization’s premier ensemble, the Young Women’s Chorus of San Francisco, has been praised for its “unearthly singing” and “spine-tingling live performance.”
Prior to his appointment in San Francisco, Dr. Otto held senior artistic and educational leadership positions with the internationally acclaimed Toronto Children’s Chorus from 2010 to 2023, including Associate Artistic Director, Director of Education, and Interim Artistic Director. In 2013, he co-founded the Toronto Youth Choir, leading collaborations with The King’s Singers, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Toronto Mendelssohn Choir, musica intima, and Missouri State University Chorale, including performances at Carnegie Hall. As a lecturer at the University of Toronto, he taught conducting and choral music education and directed the Soprano–Alto Chamber Choir. A dedicated advocate for the choral arts, he served as President of Choirs Ontario, a board member of Choral Canada, and a founding member of the Bridge Choral Collective. In 2016, he co-organized and served on the faculty of Chorus America’s Choral Management Institute.
Dr. Otto has prepared choruses for internationally renowned conductors including Helmuth Rilling, Peter Oundjian, Masaaki Suzuki, Donald Runnicles, Nicholas McGegan, Bramwell Tovey, and Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos. His international conducting engagements and tours have taken him throughout Europe, Australia and New Zealand, the Caribbean, and North America, including Ireland, Italy, Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, Russia, Australia, New Zealand, and Puerto Rico, with appearances at America Cantat 8 in the Bahamas and the World Symposium on Choral Music in Barcelona. He holds a Bachelor of Music in Composition, a Master of Music in Conducting, and a Ph.D. in Music Education from the University of Toronto. His doctoral dissertation, Let the Music Win! Towards a Reimagined Choral Pedagogy, employed a phenomenological case study to explore the lived experiences of young singers, advocating for a reimagined approach to choral education that places choristers’ perspectives, artistic agency, and musical and personal development at the center of the learning experience.
Molly Langr is a freelance harpist who performs frequently with the San Francisco Symphony, the San Francisco Ballet, the Utah Symphony, and the Boise Philharmonic Orchestra. Molly holds a bachelor’s degree from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and a master’s degree from the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University.
Dara Phung is a San Francisco-based pianist and music director. She has served as collaborative pianist for the San Francisco Bach Choir since 2022 and the Young Women’s Choral Projects of San Francisco since 2024, accompanying its intermediate and advanced ensembles in rehearsals, performances, and international tours to Canada, New Zealand, and Puerto Rico. Previously, Dara played for the Vocal Jazz Ensemble at Burlingame High School and the choirs at San Mateo High School. In addition to her work as a collaborative pianist, Dara serves as Music Director at Noe Valley Church and performs regularly with Teatro Mistral’s Opera Cocktails at Martuni’s in San Francisco. Dara holds a Bachelor of Arts in Music from the University of Southern California, where she studied with Kevin Fitz-Gerald.
