Susan Taylor Mills

Voice part: Soprano

Birthplace: Texas

Education/Vocal Training: Bachelor Degree in Music, Vocal Production, Chapman University; Master of Education Degree, Grand Canyon University

Voice Teachers: Helen McComas, Vladimir Shustroff, Gabriel Reoyo

Do you make your living as a musician? Yes

Where else do you gig/teach/conduct/sing/perform? Teach music and drama at St. Cyril of Jerusalem Catholic School, Encino, CA to Kindergarten through 8th grade. 340+ students!; Soprano soloist/section leader and guitar mass director at St. Cyril of Jerusalem Catholic Church, Encino, CA; Soprano soloist/section leader at Glendale City Adventist Church, Glendale, CA; Soprano section leader/octet member for Temple Israel of Hollywood, Hollywood, CA

What else do you do as a “day job”? I also teach for an online university as a reading and writing specialist.

Where else do you sing NOW?: St. Cyril of Jerusalem Catholic Church, Encino; Glendale City Church; Temple Israel of Hollywood

Recordings/TV/Film: The Seeker, Sum of All Fears, A.I., Wild, Wild West, Deep Blue Sea, Heartbreakers, Murphy Brown, Double-Stuff Oreos

Favorite choral work: Brahms Requiem and Duruflé Requiem are tied.

A defining moment or favorite onstage experience: Singing the oratorio Voices of Light by Richard Einhorn, which was performed accompanying the 1928 silent film, The Passion of Joan of Arc as a live soundtrack and commentary. The libretto was taken from the diary of Joan of Arc and the writings of female mystics and saints. We toured with the LA Mozart Orchestra and Anonymous Four, performing this profound, shattering experience all over the Midwestern US. It literally changed my life.

What are you listening to these days? When I hit “shuffle” on the ol’ iPod, I get: Dave Brubeck’s Jazz Impressions of Japan, Paul Pew, Dougie Maclean’s Riof album, Joni Mitchell, Donald Fagan, Debussy, Fauré, Ravel’s string quartet, Beausoleil, and the soundtracks to Thunderball, Out of Africa, and Amelie, to name a few.

Anything you’d like to add about yourself? I love singing choral music. I love it more than singing by myself. I believe that choral music goes a long way toward erasing ego and boosting spirit in one’s life. Give me a seat in the soprano section over a seat in front of the orchestra any day of the week. I am the Anti-Diva!