Renee Macdonald, 23, has called Kalamazoo home until now. A graduate of Loy Norrix High School and Western Michigan University, her pursuit of classical singing hasn't always been easy, but she found strong advocates in teachers Marie Kerstetter, Fred Sang, and Elizabeth Cowan, among others. They advised her to keep working to master her instrument - a powerful, sometimes unruly soprano/alto voice that is ideal for dramatic operatic roles, and is expected to fully mature in her early thirties.
On Sunday, Ms. Macdonald will present a free song recital at First Congregational Church in downtown Kalamazoo, at 2 pm, featuring music of a variety of favorite composers, including Leonard Bernstein, Johannes Brahms, Richard Strauss, and Christoph Gluck. It's a farewell to Kalamazoo, as she makes the transition to graduate studies at Wichita State University.
