Keyboards at Christmas: A Magical Holiday Music Experience
Join us for a Christmas concert filled with joyful holiday music the whole family will enjoy.
About Keyboards at Christmas
Meet our musicians
Our program features 6 professional pianists, 3 Houston Grand Opera performers, and 1 performer from the Bay Area Chorus (and Nassau Bay local), along with other surprise performances.
Jennifer Figge
Jennifer Figge fondly remembers her first piano teacher. In the small town of Hemphill Texas, Jennifer began studying piano at the age of six with her teacher Mrs Horne. Today, Jennifer is the choral accompanist and church organist for Gloria Dei Lutheran Church in Nassau Bay Texas. She has always had a strong musical influence in her family. She remembers accompanying events and choirs as a teenager while her mother directed the groups.
Jennifer earned a BBA in general business while simultaneously taking piano classes at The University of Texas. She continued her studies at Southern Methodist University becoming a paralegal and her love for the piano kept her busy accompanying for churches. Jennifer not only works with Gloria Dei Lutheran, she also partners with numerous high school choirs, vocal and instrumental soloists, and musical production companies around the greater Houston area.
Jennifer and her husband Alan live in League City and have 2 daughters, Lauren and Paige. One of her favorite Christmas past-times is playing piano duets with friends. She is excited to be a part of Keyboards at Christmas, which allows her to serve her community and spend time with her talented friends
at the piano.
Cindy Hunter
Cindy Hunter brings her successful career and natural talent to our Keyboards at Christmas team of artists. She has performed on the piano since third grade and her degrees in Music Education and Choral Conducting prepared her to work with middle and high school choirs all over the United States. She has enjoyed over 25 years as Musical Director and Orchestra Conductor producing musicals and winning numerous awards with her choirs.
Currently Cindy is Organist/Pianist at Pearland First United Methodist church and a collaborative pianist for several greater-Houston area school districts. In her spare time she loves spending time with family, especially her 5 grandchildren. During the Christmas season Cindy loves to watch the joy and wonder in her grandchildren’s eyes when they gaze at Christmas decorations.
Sheila Keyes
Sheila Keyes began playing the piano by ear as soon as she could climb onto the piano bench and started her formal study of the instrument at age five. Her teacher required her students to sight read and transpose as part of her curriculum, which at the time, Sheila thought was pointless She is so incredibly grateful to have those skill now By age twelve, Sheila was playing for her church. She loves to sing, and she was selected for the top choirs in junior high ad high school, but she spent most of that time at the piano accompanying those choirs She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management from the University of Utah on a full-ride Presidential Scholarship. Sheila has fifty years of collaborative experiences playing for numerous school, church, and community choirs; musical theater productions; and a multitude of vocal and instrumental soloists. She loves to travel, take long walks with her husband, and prefers to read a book over watching tv. Sheila and her husband Brian have four wonderful children and are doing their best to spoil their three delightful grandchildren.
Christmas at the Keyes home always involves singing Christmas carols around the piano and watching classic Christmas movies together. The baking of Christmas treats to give to friends and neighbors is a fun way for the Keyes to share the joy of the season.
Jaime Rocha
Jaime Rocha and her husband are residents of Nassau Bay, where she owns and manages a private piano studio. She grew up listening to her dad play the piano by ear, and the love of music was planted in her heart. She began taking lessons at age 10 and continued on to College and Seminary studying music. She has been teaching piano for over 25 years and her students consistently win state music titles and awards.
Jaime is a lifelong Texas A&M Aggie, she began performing in Keyboards for Christmas in Aggieland before moving to Nassau Bay.
She has been planning for years to bring this beautiful music event to Nassau Bay and she is excited to be a part of this new tradition.
One of her favorite parts of Christmas is spending time with loved ones, neighbors and friends. Cooking a meal together, helping a neighbor, or listening to a child sing a favorite carol makes Christmas meaningful to her.
Andrea Warren
Andrea Warren is not a stranger to the stage. Her performance skills and talent has enhanced her career of teaching, accompaniment, competition judge, and fellow professional musician in the Houston area. She enjoys her time as a collaborative pianist and teacher. She maintains an active role in Bay Area Music Teachers Association and Texas Music Teachers Association where she enjoys friendships with other members. Her fellow piano teachers say her ability to tackle difficult music and help new teachers feel welcome allows students and groups reach greater success in their musical career.
Currently she is an accompanist at San Jacinto College, and works with the Note-ables, a nonprofit community choir. Every weekend you will find her at Taylor Lake Christian Church and Bay Harbour United Methodist Church, where she serves her community by accompanying for services and groups. Andrea loves Zumba anytime of the year and at Christmas time one of her favorite parts of the season is how all the christmas lights sparkle and make everything magical.
Esther Wright
Esther Wright has been playing the piano since she was six years old and is now eighteen. While in Texas, Esther consistently earned All-State awards in the Piano Performance and Concerto Series, achieving some of the highest marks from judges across the nation. With a heart for classical music and a true love for the piano, she is the oldest of six children. Esther ad her family relocated to the beautiful state of North Carolina last year. Currently, she is attending college, working part-time, and teaching young pianists in her home while preparing for the upcoming Christmas concert.
Before moving, she taught piano for three years at JC Piano Studio under the mentorship of Jaime Rocha. While working alongside Jaime, Esther helped create and prepare for Keyboards at Christmas, an event that celebrates holiday music and showcases various musical instruments. We are thrilled that she can join us for the second annual Keyboards at Christmas.
Her favorite holiday activities include listening to Christmas music and celebrating Christ’s birth with immediate and extended family.
Julia Gallagher
Julia Gallagher is a lifelong choral singer and Nassau Bay resident. From elementary school performances, her vocal talent has grown with experience. In High School she sang with Clear Lake High School’s Symphonic Chorale, TMEA, and in private voice study. She received choral scholarship at Trinity University where she toured Germany and Austria—her most memorable performance was delivered at Cologne Cathedral. She has performed in local musicals over the years and has enjoyed her time with The Bay Area Chorus of Greater Houston since 2016.
Outside of her musical interests, Julia works in healthcare. She has been an active member of the Clear Lake Community for 8 years through the Clear Lake Area Chamber of Commerce, Rotary, Toastmasters, and more. She and her husband, Abe, are raising two girls. She loves cooking, traveling, boat life, and adventures with family and friends in Nassau Bay and beyond.
One of her favorite times at Christmas is spending a late night curled up on her couch, her family puppy asleep beside her with the Christmas tree lights glittering and enjoying the crackling of a fireplace. Knowing all her family is sleeping peacefully, she enjoys the solitude and quiet of the evening.
Julie and Austin Hoeltzel
Julie and Austin Hoeltzel have been singing in the Houston Grand Opera Chorus for over 10 years. They met studying vocal performance at the University of Houston in 2014. Their talents have taken them to work with Houston Grand Opera, Opera in the Heights, Chapelwood United Methodist, the Bay Area Chorus, the Gilbert and Sullivan Society, and the Houston Symphony Chorus. Austin currently teaches elementary music in Pasadena ISD and leads worship at Height Presbyterian. Julie is currently studying for her DMA in Music Edcuation at the University of Houston, and leads modern worship at First United Methodist Missouri City.
Their favorite thing about Christmas is eating frozen pizza and watching movies together with their chihuahuas and cat on Christmas morning
Our Grand Pianos
At Keyboards at Christmas, we feature three magnificent Steinway grand pianos that create the perfect ambiance for our holiday performances. These beautiful instruments are the centerpiece of our Christmas music experience.
Thank you, Steinway Hall Dallas, for sponsoring our event.
THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS!
Join Our Growing Family of Sponsors!
We’re grateful for the generous support of our current sponsors who help make Keyboards at Christmas possible! This free, family-friendly concert brings the community together to celebrate the season with beautiful, high-quality live music—and we’re just getting started.
By becoming a sponsor, you’ll help us continue offering this unique holiday experience to people of all ages, while inspiring the next generation through the power of live performance.
Scan the QR code to view sponsorship levels and join us in making this season unforgettable. Your support matters!