Mackenzie
Laun
Schedule
Upcoming Engagements
Description
First Baptist Church of Clemson's 1st Annual Masterworks Concert, Born of Breath and Light, will be held on October 25th, 2025! Our choral selection for this year is Ola Gjeilo's "Sunrise Mass," a cinematic setting of the Mass text that is sure to excite and inspire! In addition, tenor Cody Laun and soprano Mackenzie Laun of Denver, CO, will be singing Gerald Finzi's "Dies Natalis" and Antonio Vivaldi's "Laudate pueri, Dominum," respectively. Accompanied by an 18-piece string orchestra and organ, this afternoon of sacred vocal and choral music is sure to be a magnificent time of worship to the glory of God.
Mackenzie Laun
Soloist
Dates
Description
Composed for the 6th Sunday after Trinity, BWV 9 (It is our salvation come here to us) is based on a hymn by Martin Luther’s Protestant co-founder Paul Speratus. It begins with a bright, light chorale fantasia featuring flute, oboe, strings, continuo, and chorus.
The cantata is then framed by three recitatives that comprise a miniature sermon on our fallen nature and the uplifting promise of redemption and renewal. Between these are two arias that serve as vignettes on the journey of our fall and rise. It concludes with a warm, resonant chorale in E major, offering reassurance and hope.
Mackenzie Laun
Soprano Soloist
Dates
Description
Handel’s beloved Messiah returns to CBE this December, highlighting the holiday season with a complete performance of this brilliant and inspiring masterwork. Composed in 1741, its Dublin premiere began a remarkable ascent as one of the great pillars of classical music in the hearts and minds of audiences worldwide.
Messiah’s endurance is rooted in a message that transcends its formal context: “Comfort ye, comfort ye my people.” Handel’s dramatic orchestration, exquisite Baroque counterpoint, and evocative word painting breathe drama and intimacy into the unfolding narrative of Christ, culminating with a promise of new life, redemption, and enduring hope.
Mackenzie Laun
Chorus
Dates
Description
Composed in 1724, the St. John Passion is a grand and turbulent work produced at the height of Bach’s creative and expressive powers. The foreboding restlessness and tension in the opening chorus propel us into the inner world of John the Evangelist and his dramatic witness of betrayal, torment, and transfiguration in the gospel narrative.
Unlike the St. Matthew Passion’s broad themes, St. John explores our personal experience of suffering, anguish, fear, loss, and the enduring sustenance of hope. Amid it all, Bach’s glorious orchestration, counterpoint, and harmonic language sharpen each exquisite moment, from the severe to the sublime.
Mackenzie Laun
Chorister
Dates
Description
Composed for the second Sunday before Lent, BWV 18 begins with a brooding sinfonia that sets the stage for a reflection on falling rain and snow and the new growth it will eventually bring. Undoubtedly, Bach’s parishioners were beginning to anticipate the upcoming seasonal fasting, and this cantata reminds them that this period of sacrifice will bear spiritual fruit.
The opening key of g minor gives way to the warm central recitativo and chorus in E-flat major, transporting the listener from grey earthly concerns to heavenly bliss. The final chorale serves as a prayer for steadfastness throughout the season.
Mackenzie Laun
Soprano Soloist
Dates
Biography
Mackenzie Laun is a versatile performer based in Denver, CO. She is currently a second-year masters student at the University of Denver, under the tutelage of Cathy Kasch. In the upcoming season, Mackenzie is excited make her soloist debut with the Colorado Bach Ensemble on Cantatas 9 and 18. She will perform Vivaldi’s Laudate Pueri, Dominum in the inaugural Masterworks Concert Series at the First Baptist Church of Clemson, and will be featured in Lamont Opera Theatre’s productions of Handel’s Semele and Strauss’s Die Fledermaus. She is also looking forward to presenting her graduate recital in the coming months. A touring artist with Central City Opera, Mackenzie will return to the role of Juliette in CCO’s outreach show, Chiaroscuro, highlighting the struggles of current-day teenagers and relating them to the classic operatic cannon.
In the 2024-2025 season, Mackenzie won a Certificate of Merit in the Denver Lyric Opera Guild competition and second place in the Art Song Colorado recital competition. She covered Madame Silberklang in Mozart’s Die Schauspieldirektor with Lamont Opera Theatre and sang the role of Nella in Gianni Schicchi with both Lamont Opera Theatre and Boulder Opera Company. Mackenzie also sang scenes from Bizet’s Les pêcheurs des perles and Offenbach’s Les contes d’Hoffmann as a featured performer in Lamont Opera’s Winter Showcase. She was an emerging artist with Jennifer Rowley’s Aria Bootcamp in August of 2025.
Mackenzie’s other professional credits include Lola in Gallantry, Geraldine in A Hand of Bridge, and Pousette in Manon with Boulder Opera Company; as well as Sarah in The Ballad of Baby Doe with Loveland Opera Theater. Mackenzie frequently solos with St. Martin’s Chamber Choir and South Sub Church in Denver, and is sought after for her versatility as a chorister and soloist. A personal and professional highlight was her performance in the chorus for Bravo!Vail’s La bohème under the baton of The Metropolitan Opera’s Yannick Nézét-Séguin. In 2024, she won seventh place in the Denver Lyric Opera Guild Competition.
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