Staff

Richard Owen
Chief Executive Officer

Maestro Richard Owen, native New Yorker, is a conductor, organist, pianist, singer and educator. Owen has been music director of various organizations in the U.S. and has enjoyed an international career which has brought him to the foremost venues of Europe, South America and New York City (Carnegie Hall, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, St. John the Divine & Lincoln Center). Owen started piano at age five and soon began singing at the famed Metropolitan Opera, NYC Opera, and Sante Fe Opera. Under the baton of James Levine, Owen was a boy soloist and sang alongside luminaries such as Luciano Pavarotti, Renata Scotto and Placido Domingo. As Music Director of Camerata New York Orchestra, Owen has collaborated with film star, Alec Baldwin, dancers from Alvin Ailey, as well as soloists from the Metropolitan Opera, Saturday Night Live and the New York Philharmonic. Owen has directed vocal ensembles for Netflix (Queen’s Gambit) as well as the film ‘Worth’ (starring Michael Keaton), and has appeared in the TV series ‘Succession’. Owen has extensive experience working with notable modern composers such as Paul Moravec, Michael Torke (World Premiere) and Judge Richard Owen (his father and Federal Judge in the Southern District of NY). Judge Owen’s opera “Rain” received its world premiere at Lincoln Center, under Mo. Owen’s baton, was recorded on Albany Records, and featured his wife, Kate, as principal cellist and his mother, Lynn, former Metropolitan Opera soprano. Maestro Owen was invited by Kurt Masur to conduct the New York Philharmonic in a “Reading” and later became a cover conductor there for Sir Colin Davis and Charles Dutoit. He was also a conductor for several seasons at the Deutsche Oper am Rhein (Düsseldorf, Germany). Owen was on the staff of Columbia University (Glee Club Music Director), Western Connecticut State University and was adjunct professor at St. John’s University (NYC). Mr. Owen has been featured in the New York Times, Forbes, Opera News, Newsday and on New York classical radio stations WQXR and WMNR as well as on Polish, Serbian and Mexican Radio and Television and SiriusXM. Owen graduated from Dartmouth College (BA in Government and Philosophy), received his Master’s in accompanying from the Manhattan School of Music and continued post-graduate studies at the renowned University for Music and Performing Arts in Vienna, Austria. Owen is married to Kate Owen, professor of music, cellist, organist & soprano, and they reside in Brewster NY and have three sons.

Aryanna E. Ramos
Operations Manager

Aryanna E. Ramos is currently the Operations Manager at Highbridge Voices. She joined the team in October 2019 at the beginning of her career in the non-profit field.  Her “do what it takes” attitude, willingness to learn, and ability to wear multiple hats have helped her grow and flourish. Aryanna supervises the daily administrative and support operations of Highbridge Voices. She has excellent communication and organizational skills and is well-versed in departmental procedures. Her goal is to actively discover new ways to do the job more efficiently and make sure that the daily functions of the organization are successful. Her favorite thing about Highbridge Voices is being a part of a wonderful team whose mission is to inspire excellence in the students who participate in the program. Aryanna has a bachelor’s in business with a concentration in non-profit management from Southern New Hampshire University and is currently in school for her master’s in organizational leadership.

Michelle Trinidad
Conductor / Musical Instructor

Michelle Trinidad, originally from the South Side of Tucson, Arizona, is now a grammy-nominated, sought after Music Educator, Conductor, Music Curriculum Developer, Vocalist and Music Education Consultant. Currently the Director of Music at Sacred Heart School in the Highbridge part of Bronx, NY. She is also the founder of Divinity Series Music which names an Affordable Summer Music Clinic and Private Studio of Voice, String and Piano students. Ms. Trinidad holds two bachelor degrees from Northern Arizona University in Vocal Performance and Choral Education with a minor in English. She holds a Master’s degree in Music Education: Choral from Florida State University and she is currently embarking on her PhD in Music Education from Columbia University. She is in her 10th year as a passionate, forward thinking music educator; her high performing students earning donations, accolades and seats in the top performing arts high schools in New York. Music Excellence is rooted in her professional performing experiences since her arrival in New York City. She performs with the New York Philharmonic Chorus, The Unsung Collective, Voices of Harlem, Voices of A New: Voices of Ascension, Dessoff Choirs, the Cathedral Choir at Abyssinian Baptist Church, Marble Collegiate Choir and Cecilia Chorus of New York. Along with her resume in performance, Ms. Trinidad arranges and composes music for developmental choirs and string orchestra- all inspired by her students past and present. Ms Trinidad will continue keeping in sight the marginalized demographic of students often overlooked, yet full of talent.

Antonio Del Valle 
Associate Conductor/Accompanist 

Antonio Del Valle (he/they) is a genre-bending composer, producer, and music director from Queens, New York. Trained at the Professional Performing Arts School in Manhattan, they went on to receive their Bachelor’s of Fine Arts in Musical Theater with an emphasis in Songwriting at the Boston Conservatory at Berklee College of Music. Their most recent experience includes working as a pianist for the Broadway Sitzprobe Experience of Dreamgirls at Lincoln Center, conducted by Seth Rudetsky. Antonio served as the music director for CROWNS by Regina Taylor in New Jersey to celebrate Black History Month, and continues to work as an educator and pianist at Highbridge Voices in the Bronx. They are currently on staff at Artistree Performing Arts in Westchester, where they continue their work as a music director and private voice instructor. Antonio also worked as composer and arranger for Midsummer Sounds, an intimate concert of new work at the Bed-Stuy Art House in Brooklyn. Antonio produced an original EP titled “Up All Night,” and worked briefly as an audio engineer at Plug Studios in the Bronx. For their original work titled “Something Strange,” an exploration of their gender identity, Antonio was awarded the Berklee Songwriter’s Award in 2020. Antonio is currently part of the BMI 2024 Lehman Engel Workshop as a lyricist. As an Afro-Puerto Rican, Antonio is passionate about creating music that highlights the rich musical culture of the Caribbean, and preserving the legacy of West African culture across the diaspora. They write music that explores the depths of their consciousness, and surfaces anew.

Jeansel Lantigua 
Program Aide

Michael Ruiz
Program Aide