Instructors
Hale & Harmony studio is made up of three dedicated musicians and longtime friends who met during their undergraduate time at Eastern Connecticut State University. Ms. Gillespie, Potter, and McElroy have shared a vision for opening a cooperative-style studio, and are thrilled to begin this journey together. Each instructor has years of experience teaching private music, and are passionate about bringing classical voice and piano to the Eastern CT region. Apart from teaching private lessons, they are also active soloists and ensemble performers locally. More information on each instructor's credentials can be found in their biographies included below.
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Emily
Emily Gillespie, soprano, is a recent graduate of Westminster Choir College earning a Master’s Degree in Vocal Pedagogy in the classical track. She is an alumna of Eastern Connecticut State University, having studied under vocal instructor Dr. Emily Riggs and vocal coach and piano instructor Dr. David Ballena, earning a BA in Music with a concentration in Voice Performance. With Eastern’s Opera Workshop, she has performed the roles of Susanna and Cherubino in scenes from Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro, and the full roles of Belinda in Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas, and most notably Gretel in Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel. Aside from her operatic roles, Emily has performed as a soloist in Eastern Concert Chorale’s rendition of Handel’s Messiah (2021) and Vivaldi’s Gloria (2020), and also appeared as a soloist in the Second Sunday Concert Series for the First Congregational Church of Glastonbury, CT. Emily was the recipient of the Dr. David and Martha Yutzey Scholarship in music and academic excellence, and was invited to perform in Eastern’s Honors Recital in Fall 2021 and Spring 2022. Currently, Emily is the soprano section leader at Center Church in Hartford, and a member of the Voce Concert Choir. With nearly ten years of teaching experience, she continues to offer private lessons in voice and piano for all ages and levels of experience.
Sarah
Sarah Potter is a Soprano from Columbia, Connecticut. She studied at Eastern Connecticut State University and earned a BA in Music with a concentration in Vocal Performance and a BA in Theater, with a concentration in Acting. She studied voice with Dr. Emily Riggs and piano with Dr. David Ballena. She then studied at Longy School of Music of Bard College where she earned a MM for Vocal Studies under the guidance of Anne Azéma. She was a part of Chamber Singers and Concert Chorale for all four years of her ECSU journey. She also participated with Longy’s Madrigal Singers. She has over ten years of performance experience and has participated as both an ensemble member and featured soloist. Some of those ensembles include Josh Groban’s “Bridges” Tour, “Opera Viva” an opera Intensive in Verona, Italy, Handel's Messiah with the ECSU Concert Chorale, and Hansel and Gretel (Dew Fairy). She is currently a new member of the Voce Concert Choir based in Hartford.
Sierra
Sierra McElroy (she/they) is a versatile soprano based in Lebanon, Connecticut. A previous student of Eastern Connecticut State University, Sierra studied piano under Dr. David Ballena and voice under Dr. Emily Riggs and performed in a variety of opera scenes and full productions
during her studies. Her operatic roles include Pernille in The Beautiful Bridegroom, Papagena in The Magic Flute, and the Forest Spirit in Hansel and Gretel. Sierra has been recognized in several competitions, notably earning third place in the Musical Theater category at the NATS Voice Competition. She also broadened her training through the Opera Viva! intensive in Verona, Italy, where she studied with several renowned professionals. Currently, Sierra performs as a soprano with the professional chamber choir Voce out of West Hartford, serves as the soprano section leader and choral scholar at St. John’s Episcopal
Church in West Hartford, and is a section leader for the Hartford Chorale. She also teaches voice and piano at Summit Music Center in Manchester.
An active member of the Hartford musical community, Sierra has appeared as a guest soloist with the Hartford Symphony Orchestra and is well versed in classical, musical theater, and choral repertoire. She welcomes all ages and levels of experience.