Crista Berryessa,
Artistic Director

Crista Berryessa has always found a particular interest in how music relates to society, its peoples, their values and beliefs. Her leadership is driven by her desire to have not just a personal experience with music, but to provide memorable experiences for her singers and audience. 

Her education began locally at Cabrillo College where she entered the music program as a flute major. She became fascinated with singing through her musicianship classes and wanted to understand more about the human voice and its potential. She quickly became an assistant to Cheryl Anderson and the Cabrillo Youth Chorus where she implemented the music theory program for young singers.

During her studies at San Jose State University she conducted under the tutelage of three powerful female directors, Elena Sharkova, Dr Charlene Archibeque, and Dr Amanda Quist. She was assistant for Ms Sharkova at the Symphony Silicon Valley Chorale and Cantabile Youth Singers. She prepared and assisted the Cantabile Youth Chorus for their participation at Laulupidu in Tallinn, Estonia in 2009. Crista stayed in Tallinn to study for one semester at the Academy of Music and Dance. She learned the structure of Estonian runic song from the late and brilliant Veljo Tormis, studied conducting with Hirvo Surva and Tõnu Kaljuste (founder of the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir) and focused on vocal technique with the choir’s lead Soprano, Kaia Urb. 

Crista returned to California to complete her Master of Music degree in Choral Conducting at Cal State Los Angeles under the tutelage of Donald Brinegar. It was there that her education was greatly broadened.

The pedagogy took musical analysis out of traditional theoretical relationships to look closer at the natural patterns of sound and related everything to harmonic structure. Crista returned home to begin a Doctorate of Music Degree at UC Berkeley, but life had another plan. She gave birth to her first son Odin in 2015, and welcomed her second son, Sage in 2016. Rather than chase academia while balancing her family life, she decided to focus her musical endeavors more concisely and locally. She founded the Redwood Chamber Choir in 2016, and  joined as lead Soprano for Voices of Silicon Valley Chorale. VOSV is a small ensemble of young professional singers that focuses on contemporary and commissioned works. 

Crista is honored to be the next artistic director of Pacific Voices. The energy of the group feels like a serendipitous match for her and she looks forward greatly to what their alchemy together will bring.  Her conjunction with Pacific Voices at this time is a beautiful reminder that Crista continues to be in service for the great art and science of organized sound.
 

Marina Thomas, Accompanist

Marina Kandieva-Thomas was born in Alushta, Crimea. She started to play piano at the age of 6 and attended the Alushta Music School for 8 years. She then attended the Peter I. Tchaikovsky college in  Crimea and the Music Conservatory of Odessa, one of the oldest conservatories in Ukraine. She received the highest diploma in Chamber Music, Accompaniment, and Music Education. After Conservatory, she worked as a piano teacher, accompanist and creator and director of the Musical Children's Theater

In December, 2014, Marina moved to California and married John "Tuba" Thomas. She had her first performance in Santa Cruz with the Santa Cruz City Band in January 2015. 

She is an organist, pianist and a piano teacher at Watsonville First Methodist Church.

Since 2015 Marina has appeared in concerts with the Ensemble Monterey Chamber Orchestra, Espressivo, Arioso Singers, Santa Cruz Opera Project, the Organ Kaleidophone concerts, and the Cabrillo Youth Choir, Dolce Suono Ensemble. She also performs as  the regular accompanist of  Children's Christian Musical Theater as well as Cabrillo's Cantiamo and Symphonic Choirs.