Our Staff | luminayouthchoirs

Deah McReynolds

Artistic Director

Director, Stele & Voci de Lumina

Deah McReynolds holds a Master of Music degree in Choral Conducting and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music Education from the University of South Florida. She is the Artistic Director of Lumina Youth Choirs, a diverse program that includes five choirs for boys and girls in grades 2 through early college. These choirs perform locally, nationally, and internationally at choral festivals, concerts, and competitions. Deah conducts Lumina Stele and Voci de Lumina. In 2018, she led the combined Lumina Youth Choirs in their debut performance at Carnegie Hall in New York City. In 2025, under her direction, Lumina Stele earned its first Golden Diploma at the European Choir Games in Aarhus, Denmark.

Mrs. McReynolds is an active adjudicator and clinician who regularly works with choirs, ensembles, and solo musicians at the elementary, middle, and high school levels across Florida. Most recently, she served as the conductor for the 2023 Manasota Middle School Honor Choir, the 2024 OCPS Middle School Honor Choir, and the 2025 Duval County Elementary Honor Choir.

In addition to her work with young singers, she has served as an Outreach and Education Conductor for the Master Chorale of Tampa Bay, providing in-class workshops and formal concert experiences to over 1,000 elementary students in Hillsborough and Pinellas counties each year. Additionally, she prepared MCTB ensembles for performances of "Amadeus," "Final Fantasy - Distant Worlds," and "The Legend of Zelda: Symphony of the Goddesses" with the Florida Orchestra, as well as the Florida premiere performance of "The Ethics" with violinist and composer Ittai Shapira.

While attending the University of South Florida (USF), she conducted the USF Chamber Singers, Collegium, and Collegiate choirs.

She is also an adjunct Artist Faculty member at The University of Tampa, teaching Studio Voice, and recently conducted the University Treble Chorus. Deah has had the pleasure of singing with celebrated Broadway performers Kristin Chenoweth, Susan Egan, Allie Mauzey, and Kyle Dean Massey. She was a featured soloist with The Florida Orchestra, performing in "Video Games RePlay" and twice in their educational outreach concerts, "The Orchestra Sings." As a long-time member of The Master Chorale of Tampa Bay, she has enjoyed singing as a soloist and with various ensembles throughout the Tampa Bay area for over 30 years.

Kyla Knauer

Director, Aurora

kknauer@luminayouthchoirs.net

Mrs. Kyla Knauer is a graduate from the University of Central Arkansas with a Bachelor’s degree in Music Education. Kyla has been the conductor of Lumina Aurora since 2014. Under her direction, Lumina Aurora has shared the stage with The Florida Orchestra, performed at numerous community events in the Tampa Bay area, and her choir has been invited to perform with touring artists, including Kenny Rogers and Barry Manilow.

As an educator for Hillsborough County Public Schools, Mrs. Knauer teaches at Turner Bartels K8 School in Tampa, where she instructs elementary general music and conducts the elementary ensembles Bengal Singers and Bengal Beat. Additionally, she is the director of the middle school choruses, Coro della Tigre and Voce della Tigre.

Mrs. Knauer is regularly invited as a clinician for festival choruses across the state and has adjudicated for Solo and Ensemble. She is known for her vocal workshops for elementary and middle school students, as well as developing and presenting professional development courses for her elementary music colleagues.

In 2013, she was named Teacher of the Year at Lanier Elementary and then again at Turner Bartels K8 School in 2022, and was further nominated as a Hillsborough County Teacher of the Year Finalist in 2013.

Mrs. Knauer continues to share her love of music and song with her students every day!

“Those who wish to sing, always find a song.”

Judy Williams

Director, Amiaza

jwilliams@luminayouthchoirs.net

Judy Williams has a degree in Music Education from the University of South Florida and a Masters in Educational Leadership from Saint Leo University. She has been teaching both elementary and secondary music in Hillsborough County since 2002 and currently serves as the Assistant Principal, Curriculum at Davidsen Middle School.

Judy has sung with the USF Chamber Singers, the Master Chorale of Tampa Bay, and the St. Lawrence Chorale. She is an active member of the American Choral Directors Association, the National Association for Music Education, the Florida Vocal Association, and the Florida Orchestra Association. She enjoys helping young people appreciate and understand the music in their lives, as well as molding a well-rounded education.

Brian NeSmith

Director, Serata

Brian NeSmith has been the Choral Director at East Bay High School in Gibsonton, Florida, since graduating from college in 1999. He holds a Bachelor of Music from Jacksonville State University and a Master of Music in Choral Conducting from the University of South Florida.

He directs five choirs at East Bay: a tenor-bass choir, a treble choir, an advanced treble choir, a contemporary a cappella ensemble, and a show/chamber choir. His groups consistently earn Superior ratings at Florida Vocal Association Music Performance Assessments.

He has served as both the Coordinator and Chairperson of District 7 of the FVA twice. He is a Board-Approved Adjudicator, serving FVA in that role in several districts. In Hillsborough County, he has served on semester exam writing committees and helped to develop the curriculum map for choral music. He has also served as the Chairperson for both the High School Women’s and High School Mixed All-County Choirs, as well as the Overall Chairperson for the Hillsborough All-County Choirs.

As an AP Reader, he is part of the team that scores the AP Music Theory Examination, serving as a Table Leader for two years. He has served as a teacher at the Hillsborough County Secondary Music Council Gebhardt Leadership Camps.

He was the conductor of the 2016 Pasco All-County High School Mixed Chorus. Mr. NeSmith was also selected as East Bay High School’s Teacher of the Year for 2015-16. In 2016, he founded the South Shore Community Chorus. In 2019, he received the Unsung Hero Award from the Florida Chapter of the American Choral Directors Association. He also received the 2019 Safe and Sound Hillsborough Kevin Beckner Community Builder Award. In 2023, he was named Fine Arts & World Languages Department Head at East Bay. In 2024, he coordinated the HCPS Summer Choral Camps. In 2025, he conducted the Manatee County SSAA Honor Chorus. He has also received the 2025 FMEA Service Award.

He is married to Shealeen NeSmith, also an educator, and between them, they have five children: Savannah, Joshua, Talor, Luke, and Laurel, all of whom have sung in the choirs at East Bay.

Phil McReynolds

Accompanist

Phil McReynolds received his Master of Music in Piano Pedagogy from the University of South Florida. Phil has also accompanied the Elementary All-County Chorus for the Hillsborough County Fine Arts Festival for seven years. Phil has performed extensively in the Tampa Bay Area, including playing with national touring casts of the musicals "The Radio City Music Hall Revue" and "Evita". Currently, he is employed as an Elementary Music Specialist at Stowers Elementary in Lithia, Florida, and enjoys being a member of the Cypress Creek Jazz Band.