Curated and Hosted by Stone Room Concerts Founder David Holiday

Hill Center is thrilled to launch its new concert series this year in partnership with Stone Room Concerts
and its founder, David Holiday.

Rochelle Rice is a singer, songwriter, and newly minted podcast host. Walking a fine line between jazz and folk, award-winning singer-songwriter, Rice lives in between the cracks of hard and fast genre rules. As a singer steeped in the music of artists like Lizz Wright, Joni Mitchell, and Carmen McRae, Rice’s sound leans heavily on solid lyrics, jazz-influenced harmony, and soaring vocals. Rochelle’s versatility and unique skills as a singer, composer, and clinician have allowed her the opportunity to work with some of the industry’s most acclaimed musicians, including touring and performing as a member of the internationally renowned a cappella ensemble, Sweet Honey In The Rock®, and performing with Grammy-award winning rock music icon, Melissa Etheridge.

Dedicated to social justice and presenting music that transforms and heals, Rochelle has performed at protests, social justice rallies, and most notably, in honor of the work of Congressman John Lewis. Through her work as a Music Education and Social Justice Advocate, she has been invited to present her interactive and intergenerational programming both nationally and internationally as a guest teaching artist and clinician. Rochelle was also invited to sing the part of “Ruby Bridges” in the Washington, DC debut of internationally acclaimed award-winning composer, Darrell Grant’s, Step by Step: The Ruby Bridges Suite and in 2018 was awarded the Bernard/Ebb Songwriting Award. Rochelle continues to perform and record, and was named one of the NextLOOK Artists in Residence for the 2021-2022 season. During the residency, Rochelle created her latest work, the Tell Her This Project, a podcast, visual art, and live music experience that features the stories, guidance, and wisdom of women in various stages of life. Rochelle lives with her husband and daughter in Washington, DC.

There’s an ethereal journey that pianist Janelle Gill brings listeners on that transcends
the boundaries of jazz. Through her work of self exploration as it exists in music, she has tapped into a vein of fluidity that heals with sound. Born and raised in Washington, D.C. Janelle is a graduate of Duke Ellington School of the Arts and attended Howard University. Her unique musical expression has brought her towork closely with musicians such as Delfeyo Marsalis, Oliver Lake, David Murray, The Blackbyrds, Maurice Hines’ in his Tappin’ Through Life as well as local artists including Marshall Keys, Nasar Abadey, and KrisFunn. Some of the venues she has been in concert at include the Kennedy Center, The Library of Congress, DC Jazz Festival, North Sea Jazz Festival, Montreux Jazz Festival, and Baku Jazz Festival. As Janelle continues to be a student of life and welcomes new experiences, she recently expanded her titles to musical director for the production of Toni Morrison’s Desdemona, which debuted at the Source Theater. She remains a musical educator to everyone of all walks of life.

About David Holiday: David Holiday — a lifelong music aficionado who in his youth performed with the Grammy-winning Texas Boys Choir and numerous youth orchestras and ensembles — founded Stone Room Concerts together with his wife in 2012 to bring  intimate, high-quality performances by local, national and international independent musicians to the DMV area.

He has hosted more than 200 shows over the past decade in homes, churches and other eclectic venues, including for several years at Bikenetic , a full service bicycle shop in Falls Church. Stone Room Concerts also serves as the fiscal agent for  Niñas Arriba , a charitable project of Latin Grammy-nominee Gina Chavez and their wife Jodi Granado, which they set up to support the college education of young women in El Salvador and Central America.  In keeping with his long standing professional involvement with Central America, Holiday is part of a team supporting the Maya Kaqchikel musician Sara Curruchich.  In 2023, he had the privilege of serving as tour manager for Curruchich’s first-ever US tour, including major venues and festivals in New York, California, Colorado and Illinois.