Mixed Choral Ensemble from San Antonio, TX, United States.

SAVAE (San Antonio Vocal Arts Ensemble) is a unique ancient world music ensemble that accompanies ancient vocal music on a diverse collection of early and traditional instruments from the Middle East, Europe, and North and South America.

The group made its debut in 1989 at San Antonio's historic San Fernando Cathedral, presenting Latin American music from the colonial period. In the years that have followed SAVAE has made five recordings, and been heard on the soundtrack of a major Hollywood release, on television documentaries, and on National Public Radio broadcasts. SAVAE has toured throughout the United States: from New York to Seattle, and from Baton Rouge to Milwaukee. The International Baroque Festival of Bolivia presented SAVAE in its Misiones Chiquitos- series, marking the ensemble's foreign debut.

With its home in the United States' most colorful Latino city, it is no surprise that SAVAE made its mark with unique recordings of ancient music from Latin America, including the Billboard magazine-charting Guadalupe: Virgen de los Indios. SAVAE's inventive approach to the fusion of pre-Colombian and European musical elements won the ensemble an invitation to record Academy Award-winning composer Todd Boekelheide's original score for the award-winning documentary, Discovering Dominga.

SAVAE's recording of ancient Middle Eastern music, Ancient Echoes, features the ensemble's exploration of music and dialects from the Holy Land. It was World Library Publications' (SAVAE's record label) number-one seller for two consecutive years, and received rave reviews for its inspiring blend of scholarly research and creative flair. Director Ridley Scott included a track from that recording in his 2005 feature film, The Kingdom of Heaven.

The ensemble's Artistic Director, Christopher Moroney, has created groundbreaking new compositions and arrangements for SAVAEdelving deeply into the history and culture of the music he prepares for the group to perform and record. He has travelled to Mexico, Peru, Bolivia, and Palestine/Israel to conduct research. His exciting reconstruction of Aztec ceremonial music won Moroney a commission to compose a piece for The Sport of Life and Death, a traveling museum exhibition of Pre-Colombian artifacts related to Aztec culture. Musicologist Theodore Burg called Moroney's work on Ancient Echoes "well-researched, well-recorded musical journey...with an intriguing, timeless effect." World Library Publications publishes Moroney's compositions and arrangements for SAVAE.

SAVAE has been featured on national radio shows including NPR's Performance Today, Sound & Spirit, Latino USA, The Savvy Traveler, and Weekend Edition. Angela Mariani has twice featured the ensemble in hour-long specials on her early music program Harmonia. Producer John Dilberto travelled to San Antonio to record a "Livingroom Concert" for his public radio show, and SAVAE recorded an encore appearance for his Echoes program at Indre Studio in Philadelphia. Reports about SAVAE and it's spirited approach to early world music have appeared in major daily papers including The Los Angeles Times, Dallas Morning News, Kansas City Star, Houston Chronicle, Chicago Sun Timesand via API ans other wire servicesto cities far and wide.

The members of the San Antonio Vocal Arts Ensemble are: * Kathy Mayer - soprano, wind instruments, harp, bowed instruments * Tanya Moczygemba - mezzo-soprano, percussion * Covita Moroney - (founder and manager) alto, plucked instruments, percussion * Christopher Moroney - (artistic director) bass/baritone, wind instruments, percussion * Jody Noblett - baritone, wind instruments, percussion * Lee P'Pool - tenor, percussion * Sonya Yamin - soprano, percussion.