Crown Jewels
Ring in the New Year with a dazzling musical celebration designed to inspire, uplift, and launch audiences into 2026 with energy and imagination. Led by Resident Conductor Jacobsen Woollen, the concert displays the vibrant works of Chen Yi, Stravinsky, and Mozart—each work exploring the thrill of leaving the old behind and stepping boldly into what’s next.
The evening opens with Chen Yi’s Shuo, meaning “to initiate,” a vivid musical journey through the beginnings of each month in the lunar calendar followed by Stravinsky’s Pulcinella, a witty, colorful score that reimagines the past through a modern lens. Written in the wake of World War I, the work embodies the spirit of reinvention, blending nostalgia with innovation.
At the heart of the concert is Mozart’s radiant Coronation Mass, featuring the Springfield Choral Society and four acclaimed soloists: soprano Elena Negruţă, mezzo-soprano Aubrey Hawkinson, tenor Adam Miller, and bass Troy Castle.
Composed in 1779, the Coronation Mass marks a defining moment in Mozart’s life as he stepped away from court patronage to forge his own path as one of history’s first freelance composers. “There’s this exhilaration of jumping into the unknown and starting something anew,” says Woollen. “It’s the perfect message for a January concert.”
Jacobsen Woollen, Resident Conductor | Springfield Choral Society
Featuring Elena Negruţă, Soprano; Aubrey Hawkinson, Mezzo-Soprano; Adam Miller, Tenor; and Troy Castle, Bass
Program: Chen Yi Shuo – Stravinsky Pulcinella Suite - Mozart Coronation Mass
Join us after the concert for Coda Conversations, a special post-concert discussion with Resident Conductor Jacobsen Woollen.
Listen LIVE! Engage Your Mind.
General Admission: $30
Students (Age 24 & Under): $10
Jacobsen Woollen is a conductor, cellist, and tenor residing in Springfield, Illinois, where he serves as Resident Conductor of the Illinois Symphony Orchestra, Conductor of the Illinois Symphony Youth Orchestra, Music Director of the Springfield Choral Society, and Conductor of the UIS Orchestra.
Jacobsen is also active in the opera world, having served as Assistant Conductor at Atlanta Opera, Detroit Opera, and Opera Theatre of St. Louis, where he led several workshops for new works, including Terence Blanchard’s Fire Shut Up In My Bones.
An Indiana native, Jacobsen returned to the Midwest after spending six years in Vienna, Austria, where he completed a Post-Graduate Diploma in orchestral conducting under the tutelage of Prof. Mark Stringer at the Universität für Musik und Darstellende Kunst, conducted professional ensembles including the Polska Filharmonia Baltycka and Ensemble Ultreia, served as assistant conductor of the Vienna Opera Festival, and led the Schlosschor Hadersfeld.
Jacobsen also maintains an active career as a tenor: as a member of the Grammy-winning Arnold Schoenberg Choir, Jacobsen participated in opera productions at Theater an der Wien, as well as concerts in Europe’s most renowned venues, including Vienna’s Musikverein and Hamburg’s Elbphilharmonie.
Prior to his European sojourn, Jacobsen completed a Master’s Degree in Orchestral Conducting from the University of Michigan under the guidance of Kenneth Kiesler. During this time, he was active in the Ann Arbor musical community as well, serving as founder and director of Paradigm Shift Chamber Orchestra, music director of the Ann Arbor Camerata, and assistant conductor of the Michigan Life Sciences Orchestra.
As a cellist, Jacobsen was a student of Susan Moses in the Indiana University String Academy and later completed a Bachelor’s Degree with Richard Aaron at the University of Michigan. He has appeared as a soloist with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, Bloomington Symphony Orchestra, Musical Arts Youth Orchestra, and Voces Novae Chamber Choir. As a chamber musician, he has had the pleasure of collaborating with Joshua Bell, Jaime Laredo, Soovin Kim, and many others. From 2013-16, Jacobsen was cellist and artistic curator with the new-music sextet Latitude 49, and he continues to serve on their Board of Directors.
Elena Negruţă is the 2023 winner of The American Prize in Vocal Performance – women in opera (professional division), The Friedrich and Virginia Schorr Memorial Award. Born in Moldova, Elena began singing as a folk artist, winning first place at the Golden Stork International Youth Talent Festival in Mykolaiv, Ukraine, at age 14. She studied at the Academy of Music, Theater, and Arts in Chişinău, Moldova, where she won many other national competitions and earned the only folk music scholarship in the country. When she immigrated to the US, she profoundly fell in love with opera and started to study operatic singing. She received a full scholarship to pursue her studies as a Masters in Vocal Performance at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Her repertoire spans from baroque to contemporary music. Elena's 2025 schedule included two major projects: collaborating as a guest vocalist with the dance department at Krannert of the Performing Arts and performing as a soprano soloist in Beethoven's 9th Symphony with the Rockford Symphony Orchestra.
Praised for her polished, graceful stage presence “with a lush sound… [and] a delicate sensibility” (Singerpreneur magazine), mezzo soprano Aubrey Hawkinson relocated to Decatur, IL, from Los Angeles, CA, in 2019. Her most recent performance of Madame de la Grande Bouche in the Springfield Muni Opera’s production of Beauty and the Beast was hailed as “exceptional” by The Illinois Times. Mrs. Hawkinson’s Kimmel Center debut was as a Westminster Symphonic Choir soloist in Nico Muhly’s Bright Mass with Cannons orchestral premier performed with the Philadelphia Orchestra. In addition to co-founding and producing Hawkmore Lyric Opera Company’s inaugural staged production I Capuleti e i Montecchi, she also starred as the leading role of Romeo in March 2018. In Los Angeles, Mrs. Hawkinson’s performances included an exclusive grand opening of the Pacific Visions Theater with Long Beach Opera, chorus work in Pacific Opera Project’s Carmen that was featured on PBS’s “Live at the Ford'' broadcast, and the chorus of LA Opera’s Hubble Cantata. Past roles performed include Judy (Considering Matthew Sheppard), Charlotte (Werther), Mrs. Grose (The Turn of the Screw), Romeo (I Capuletti e i Montecchi), Marta (Iolanta), First Lady & Second Lady (Die Zauberflӧte), Polly (The Threepenny Opera), Mrs. Anderson (A Little Night Music) and two seasons with the Dickens Carolers of Disneyland, CA. Mrs. Hawkinson holds a Bachelor’s Degree in vocal performance from Northern Arizona University, and a Master of Music Degree in Voice Performance and Pedagogy from Westminster Choir College. Mrs. Hawkinson is the Full Time Lecturer of Opera and Voice at Millikin University with a mission to make opera approachable, relatable, and entertaining to wide audiences.
Adam Miller earned his Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance from Millikin University. While at Millikin, he appeared as Tamino in Die Zauberflöte, the Witch in Hänsel and Gretel, and Le Chevalier in Dialogues of the Carmelites. He was a featured young artist with The Five Cities Baroque Foundation and Festival and has been a soloist for several master works with the Springfield Choral Society, including Handel’s Messiah, Bach’s Mass in B-minor and Weihnachtsoratorium, among others. Adam is an avid choral singer and sings with the Springfield Choral Society, Spero Chamber Chorale, the Capital City Men’s Chorus, and at First Presbyterian Church.
Recognized for his robust baritone voice (The Greenville News), Dr. Troy Castle’s performance output is one of breadth as well as depth and includes leading roles for the opera/musical theater stage and featured soloist in performances of numerous masterworks. He has collaborated with various regional ensembles for concert performances of selections excerpted from the operatic, musical theater, and song canons, and has performed many collaborative and solo recitals encompassing a broad range of literature. In April 2024, he performed the baritone solos in the New York City premiere of Dan Forrest’s Creation at Lincoln Center.
Troy has been nationally recognized by The American Prize in multiple years, most notably as the second-place winner of the Friedrich and Virginia Schorr “Men in Voice” competition in 2023. He was a finalist in the National Opera Association’s Carolyn Bailey/Dominick Argento competition in 2017, and his solo recital “I’m Glad I’m Not a Tenor!” was reviewed favorably by the College Music Symposium in 2022.
Troy currently resides in Decatur, IL, and serves as Professor of Music and Coordinator of Vocal Studies at Millikin University, where he was the 2024 recipient of the university’s “Faculty & Artistic Achievement Award.”