Valerie A. Higgs
ProfessionalMembership
Valerie is the principal pianist of the Tango Reo Quintet (2018), led by vocalist Claudia Gargiulo, and the DC Community Tango Orchestra (2013), formerly known as the Tango Mercurio Community Orchestra. Valerie was the principal pianist for the Da Capo Tango Quintet (2017-2022) with whom she has performed at the Loco! Tango with Flavor Marathon in Boston, MA (2018 & 2022) and various milongas in the DC Metro area—most notably in concert with Ramiro Boero in August 2022.
Valerie has been a Music Director for over two decades and has music directed in New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, and South Jersey with such theaters as the Walnut Street Theatre, the Ritz Theatre Company, and the TADA! Youth Theater Company.
She was chosen by DC Theater Arts as “Best of 2012 Musical Direction” for Quotidian Theatre's production of James Joyce's The Dead; nominated by the Washington Area Theatre Community Honors (WATCH) for “Outstanding Musical Director” for Kensington Art Theatre's 2011 production of Jekyll & Hyde; and was nominated by Broadway World for Best Music Direction for Ovation Theatre’s production of Les Misérables in 2022.
She was music director for the 1996 Philadelphia world premiere of The Three Willies, a work produced by Temple University and conceived by late jazz violinist and composer, Leroy Jenkins, in collaboration with multimedia performance artist/poet Homer Jackson, and choreographer/dancer Rennie Harris.
Since she was 15, Valerie has been a pianist (and sometime organist) for various churches in South Jersey, Chicago, and the Washington, DC; most notably: Haddonfield United Methodist Church (New Jersey), under the direction of John Wilson, and Chicago’s Metropolitan Missionary Baptist Church, under the direction of Mattie Robertson. Valerie was the music director for the Church in Bethesda from 2013-2015 and has been the music director for the Bethesda United Church of Christ since February 2022.
Valerie accompanies vocalists and instrumentalists for local auditions and competitions, such as National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) vocal competition, the Young Artists Award Competition in Gaithersburg (Maryland), and the Maryland State Solo & Ensemble Festival, among others. She also sings with the professional Christmas caroling group, The Philosopher’s Tones, and teaches piano.
Valerie has been a Music Director for over two decades and has music directed in New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, and South Jersey with such theaters as the Walnut Street Theatre, the Ritz Theatre Company, and the TADA! Youth Theater Company.
She was chosen by DC Theater Arts as “Best of 2012 Musical Direction” for Quotidian Theatre's production of James Joyce's The Dead; nominated by the Washington Area Theatre Community Honors (WATCH) for “Outstanding Musical Director” for Kensington Art Theatre's 2011 production of Jekyll & Hyde; and was nominated by Broadway World for Best Music Direction for Ovation Theatre’s production of Les Misérables in 2022.
She was music director for the 1996 Philadelphia world premiere of The Three Willies, a work produced by Temple University and conceived by late jazz violinist and composer, Leroy Jenkins, in collaboration with multimedia performance artist/poet Homer Jackson, and choreographer/dancer Rennie Harris.
Since she was 15, Valerie has been a pianist (and sometime organist) for various churches in South Jersey, Chicago, and the Washington, DC; most notably: Haddonfield United Methodist Church (New Jersey), under the direction of John Wilson, and Chicago’s Metropolitan Missionary Baptist Church, under the direction of Mattie Robertson. Valerie was the music director for the Church in Bethesda from 2013-2015 and has been the music director for the Bethesda United Church of Christ since February 2022.
Valerie accompanies vocalists and instrumentalists for local auditions and competitions, such as National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) vocal competition, the Young Artists Award Competition in Gaithersburg (Maryland), and the Maryland State Solo & Ensemble Festival, among others. She also sings with the professional Christmas caroling group, The Philosopher’s Tones, and teaches piano.