Meet the Gala Concert Guest Artists
We are incredibly honored to introduce the EMU/SVBF Gala Concert: ARISE! guest artists, Izaiah Montaque Harris and Tina Hashemi. They will both be featured in the world premiere performance of the Overcoming Suite, an interdisciplinary work combing classic jazz standards and tap-dance. The story at the center of the suite focuses around the Protagonist, portrayed by Izaiah, as he seeks to find happiness. His achievement of this goal ultimately comes by overcoming isolation and reconnecting to his love of Community, personified by Tina.
In addition to his performance in the Gala Concert, Izaiah will perform programs for over 1,000 K-8th grade students throughout the Harrisonburg and Rockingham County school system in conjunction with the Kennedy Center sponsored arts education non-profit, Any Given Child – Shenandoah Valley, which is dedicated to making the arts accessible to students throughout the region.
Tina will also be leading a Jazz Voice Masterclass for the EMU Music Department students on November 7 at 12:10pm in the Recital Hall of Lehman Auditorium. This masterclass is open to public and admission is free.
Izaiah Montaque Harris
Izaiah Montaque Harris is a tap dancer, jazz singer, and musical theater performer who has been passionately entertaining on stage since as long as he can remember. His recent highlights include the first national tour of the Broadway musical Funny Girl as Eddie Ryan, Ayodele Casel’s “Artists At The Center” at NY City Center, starring as Dorian in Kaleidoscope Entertainment’s “The Lady Valentina’s Emporium of Success”, a summer residency tap/irish dancing RIVERDANCE, tap dancing and singing with the JC Hopkins Biggish Band, tap dancing with Music From the Sole’s shows Works in Progress and I Didn’t Come to Stay, performing as Male Ensemble in The Tap Dance Kid at New York City Center, performing the role of Demetrius in Midsummer A SHAKESPEARIENCE, becoming an alumni of the 2021 Jacob’s Pillow Tap Ensemble Intensive, and entertaining as the Tap Mathematician in After Midnight' on Norwegian Cruise Line’s Escape. Izaiah was awarded “Outstanding Actor” at the 2018 Black Theater Alliance Awards and won “Best Ensemble” at the 2019 Jeff Awards. Izaiah studied at Columbia in Chicago and is a company member in the MADD Rhythms tap dance company.
Tina Hashemi
Tina Hashemi is a gifted jazz singer who performs regularly with her own band throughout Virginia at a variety of venues. She is a graduate of the University of Virginia, where she studied jazz vocal performance under Stephanie Nakasian and John D’earth. She also studied, separately, with Danielle Wertz. Tina's pure, unaffected tone, her sense of swing, and her creativity as an improviser with big ears and stores of imagination has made her a favorite with some of the most advanced musicians in the Virginia/D.C. area. Paul Langosch, who played with Tony Bennett for decades, Daniel Clarke, who was KD Lang’s pianist, and tenor saxophonist Charles Owens are now colleagues and fans of the sweet sensibility she brings to classic jazz standards and the Great American Songbook. In 2024, Tina was awarded 3rd place in the international Ella Fitzgerald Jazz Vocal Competition, judged by the New York Voices.
Tina is in the process of recording a new album with some old and newfound musical friends. Her growth as an emerging artist continues as she explores her own unique voice in jazz music.
