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Our Fall 2024 Board:
President
Joshua Maynard
Joshua Carter (JC) Maynard is a composer and conductor from Colorado Springs, CO, who specializes in bringing passion for choral and chamber music to a new generation of musicians. Currently studying a Bachelor of Music Composition at the University of Boulder Colorado with Dr. Carter Pann, Maynard never allows himself to be confined to one artistic box — instead, blending genres and disparate sources of inspiration in all his works.
In addition to producing many awarded compositions for mediums like choir and orchestra to electronics and jazz combos, Maynard is the founder and conductor of the Renova New Music Ensemble — CU Boulder’s premier contemporary choral group. Prioritizing collaboration and musician ownership in all his projects, Maynard has conducted and had pieces performed by groups such as the Colorado Vocal Arts Ensemble, the University of Wyoming Bel Canto Choir, the CU Boulder Chamber Singers, Lírios String Quartet, the Denver Playground Ensemble, the Eklund Opera, and more.
As well as his time as a composer, conductor, and vocalist — having performed on stages from Buell Theater to Carnegie Hall — Maynard has experience as a producer and recording technician, an audio editor and mixing engineer, a private lesson instructor, a musical theater performer, and an ensemble administrator. He firmly believes that student-led enthusiasm begets musical excellence, and musical excellence inspires personal discovery.
Music Director
Blake Clawson
Blake Clawson is a composer, performer, conductor, and educator from the Pacific Northwest. His music weaves contemporary classical, jazz, and folk influences into colorful and expressive pieces that captivate listeners. He draws inspiration from poetry and nature, and while choral works on the pensive and Arcadian poems of Sara Teasdale are central to his output, he also writes chamber works that range from scintillating and groovy to introspective and serene.
Blake serves as the music director of Renova New Music Ensemble, University of Colorado Boulder’s student-run new music choir. He is currently pursuing a dual Master’s in Music Composition and Choral Conducting at the University of Colorado, Boulder. Blake has studied composition with Annika Socolofsky, Carter Pann, and Brent Edstrom, as well as choral conducting with Karen Grylls and Marc Hafso. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Music Composition from Whitworth University and has studied at the University of Auckland.
Executive Officer
Merryn Madison​
Merryn Madison is a choral performer from Chicago, IL. She is currently studying Integrative Physiology and Business at the University of Colorado, Boulder. In high school, Merryn performed in her school’s Chamber Choir and participated in voice lessons. Seeking new opportunities and exploring what the choral music world has to offer in Boulder, Merryn joined Renova New Music Ensemble in Spring of 2024. This will be her first term as Renova’s Executive Officer.
Secretary
Payton Keeler
Payton Keeler is a vocal performer from Boulder, Colorado. She is currently pursuing a pre-med track with a double major in Molecular, Cellular, Developmental Biology (MCDB) and Classics (ancient civilization studies) along with a Public Health Certificate.
Payton began performing from the age of four and has sung in many diverse repertoires, genres, and vocal parts ranging from tenor to soprano. She has been in over 30 musicals, sang in her high school's Chamber, Concert, and Bella Voce choirs, played Alto and Bari saxophone throughout school, sang in an a cappella club at CU, organized and performed in a benefit concert for a sustainable non-profit in the Dominican Republic, and has been in various community choirs. Payton has also performed at Dazzle Denver, along with international choirs at Carnegie Hall in New York and Musikverein in Vienna. She strongly believes that there is a spectacular magic in bringing a community together through music and looks forward to keep performing with Renova New Music Ensemble.
Payton is excited to be a part of Renova's Fall 2024 Board with her first term as Secretary while she studies abroad in Scotland.
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