A native of Oakland, CA, violinist Aaron Requiro has been an active performer and teacher around Northern California, as well as the Midwest. He is currently a member of the Phoenix Symphony.  Mr. Requiro is former assistant principal second violin of the Elgin symphony, and has performed with the Grant Park Festival Orchestra, as well as Citymusic Cleveland, and the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra. As a chamber musician, he was a member of the Vinca Quartet as well as the Kashii String Quartet and has concertized around the U.S. and Europe, as well as winning silver medal at the Fischoff Chamber Music competition with the Kashii SQ and 2nd prize at Chamber Music Yellowsprings competition as a member of both quartets. Aaron is currently in the Baumer String Quartet and is Co-Director of the Monterey Chamber Music Workshop. He received his M.M. in violin performance at the Cleveland Institute of Music, where he was a student of David Updegraff, and worked extensively with Peter Salaff and the Cavani String Quartet. Mr. Requiro received his B.M. in violin performance from the University of California, Santa Cruz, as a student of Roy Malan, where he was an Eltinge Family scholar, a Dean’s Award recipient, and a member of the resident string quartet. As a DAAD scholar, he studied with the Vogler Quartet in Germany at the Hochschule fur Musik in Stuttgart and as a member of the Kashii String Quartet, he served on faculty at the Innsbrook Music Festival. In March 2006, the Quartet recorded Aaron Jay Kernis's quintet 100 Greatest Dance Hits, with guitarist David Tanenbaum.

Having already performed as soloist with the Houston Symphony and the Boston Pops, cellist Alexander Hersh has quickly established himself as one of the most exciting and versatile talents of his generation. He has received top prizes at competitions worldwide including the: 2020 Salon de Virtuosi Career Grant, Astral Artists National Auditions, National Federation of Music Clubs Biennial Young Artists Competition, New York International Artists Association Competition, Friends of the Minnesota Orchestra, Ima Hogg, Schadt, Luminarts, Hellam, Boston Pops/New England Conservatory Competition, Jefferson Symphony International Young Artists Competition, Society of American Musicians, and the Fischoff National Chamber Music competition. A passionate chamber musician, Hersh serves as co-Artistic Director of NEXUS Chamber Music and has performed at music festivals worldwide including: Marlboro, Caramoor, Ravinia Steans Music Institute, Music@Menlo, I-M-S Prussia Cove, Perlman Music Program Chamber Music Workshop, Amsterdam Cello Biennial, Kneisel Hall, Lucerne, and the New York String Orchestra Seminar. Raised in Chicago, Alexander Hersh began playing the cello at the age of 5. He received his B.M. and M.M. from New England Conservatory where he graduated with academic honors. Hersh was a recipient of the Frank Huntington Beebe fund for studies in Berlin during the 2017 - 2018 academic year where he studied with Nicolas Altstaedt at the Hanns Eisler Hochschule for Musik Berlin. His previous teachers have included Laurence Lesser, Hans Jørgen Jensen, Kim Kashkashian, and Paul Katz. He plays a G.B. Rogeri cello on generous loan from a sponsor through Darnton & Hersh Fine Violins in Chicago, IL.

Currently based in Atlanta, Georgia, Alice Hong is an international award-winner both as a violinist and composer. She was featured on CBC’s 2018 edition of “30 Hot Classical Musicians Under 30” and has appeared as a composer-performer for the Atlanta Symphony’s Conversation of Note series with Robert Spano. Ms. Hong has toured with Lincoln Center Stage, with which she has performed in 28 countries, and has performed with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Buffalo Philharmonic and The Atlanta Opera, among others. As an avid chamber musician, Alice has performed alongside esteemed musicians such as James Ehnes, Frans Helmerson, Mihaela Martin, Jonathan Crow, New Orford String Quartet, and Barry Shiffman, among others. Her performances have been featured on CBC Radio, WABE 90.1 Atlanta and WSMR 89.9 Tampa. Alice earned her Doctorate of Musical Arts at the University of Toronto under the private tutelage of Jonathan Crow, as well as degrees from Rice University's Shepherd School of Music as a Dorothy R. Starling Foundation Scholar studying with Cho-Liang Lin and the Cleveland Institute of Music with David Updegraff.

Pianist Alin Melik-Adamyan is a prize-winning collaborative artist, soloist, recitalist, and chamber musician. She holds a Doctorate in Keyboard Collaborative Arts from USC and is the Music Director of American Contemporary Ballet in Los Angeles. Praised with a “sensitivity unique in the piano world” (The Musical Gourmet), Dr. Melik-Adamyan has won numerous competitions and scholarships including the YMF/ASCAP Leiber & Stoller Scholarship, first prize at the Los Angeles Liszt International Competition, and first prize at the William Grant Still Young Artists Competition. She has also appeared as a soloist with various orchestras throughout California. An avid collaborative pianist, Dr. Melik-Adamyan has performed with the Los Angeles Master Chorale in Walt Disney Concert Hall, with LA Phil Concertmaster Martin Chalifour, LA Phil Principal Clarinet Boris Allakhverdyan, cellist Coleman Itzkoff as the Amicus Duo, cellist Taeguk Mun, and many others. Her collaborative work has given her the opportunity to work with world-renowned musicians including Ralph Kirshbaum, Pamela Frank, Jeffrey Kahane, and Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Charles Wuorinen. Most recently, she was one of the pianists invited to take part in the 2020 Piatigorsky International Cello Festival.

Basel-based Israeli Flutist Anat Nazarathy is an avid and active performer of music from a wide range of periods and styles. She is a member of Meitar Ensemble, Israel's foremost ensemble specialized in contemporary music, and is also an enthusiastic performer of early music on historical instruments. Anat holds a Master's degree in performance from the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts in the class of Prof. Pirmin Grehl, and a specialized Masters degree in performance of early music form the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis, class of Mark Hantaï. She completed her bachelor's degree at the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance in the class of Prof. Yossi Arnheim.

Andrè Emmanoel Prouty (b. 1992) is an extremely versatile and accomplished Tenor and Bass Trombonist, and active performer of music from a broad range of periods and styles. As an active freelance musician, he has performed with many of Colorado’s top classical and jazz ensembles, including Colorado Symphony Orchestra, Boulder Philharmonic, Greeley Philharmonic, Metropolitan Jazz Orchestra, Ultraphonic Big Band, and more. Andre has also held positions within the New World Symphony and Chicago Civic Orchestra, and has performed alongside internationally renowned artists such as Yo-Yo Ma, Renee Fleming, Alan Gilbert, and others. An avid and accomplished chamber musician, Andre is a member of the Denver based ‘Classical Brass Quintet’ and is a founding member of ‘The ENQ’ Trombone Quartet - grand prize winners of the 2018 International Trombone Quartet Competition – as well as an alumni of the award winning Northwestern Trombone Choir. In addition to his prolific performing experience, Andre is also an impassioned educator and brass pedagogue. Andre has established private low brass studios based in Denver, Aurora, and Aspen, CO, as well as, most recently, Houston, TX. Andre holds a Bachelor in Music from The Juilliard School, a Masters in Music from Northwestern University, and most recently, an Artist Diploma from the University of Denver.

Swedish cellist Antonio Hallongren has been praised in national and international media for his "unusually beautiful and expressive playing." After graduating from the Juilliard School, Antonio enjoys a a diverse career as soloist, chamber & orchestra musician. Highlights of the past season include, among others, soloist debut at Carnegie Hall and chamber music performances at Lincoln Center as well as invitations to prestigious festivals such as Music@Menlo in California and the Kronberg Festival in Germany. He was also appointed the Artist-in-Residence by the Montgomery Symphony Orchestra season 2016-2017. As chamber musician, Antonio has collaborated with some of the world's most respected artists such as Michael Amory, Miguel Da Silva, Robert McDonald, Staffan Scheja, and Philip Setzer & Eugene Drucker from the Emerson String Quartet. As principal cellist of the Juilliard Orchestra and the Swedish National Youth Orchestra, he has collaborated with conductors such as Bernard Haitink, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Alan Gilbert, Itzhak Perlman and Ginandrea Noseda. Continuously looking for ways to share his love of chamber music, he is the co-founder and Artistic Director of Lövstabruks Kammarmusikfestival, founded in 2013. Since 2018 Antonio is a permanent member of the National Orchestra of Sweden.

Born and raised in New York, cellist Ari Evan recently finished his fellowship at Ensemble Connect—a prestigious two-year residency at Carnegie Hall that combines first-class performance opportunities with community engagement and entrepreneurship projects. Prior to Ensemble Connect, Ari studied Timothy Eddy at the Juilliard School, where he received his master’s degree in 2017. A versatile chamber musician, Ari has performed with renowned artists including Shmuel Ashkenasi, Colin Carr, Miriam Fried, Gary Hoffman, Hsin-Yun Huang, Ani Kavafian, Itzhak Perlman. Robert McDonald, current/former members of the Cleveland Quartet, Artemis Quartet, as well as members of the Berlin Philharmoniker, New York Philharmonic, and Met Opera Orchestra. His festival appearances include the Krzyzowa Music Festival, Ravinia, IMS Prussia Cove, the Perlman Music Program, the Olympic Music Festival, and many others. Passionate about community engagement and teaching, Ari is the founder of the Forest Hills Chamber Music Series, striving to promote Jewish music and bringing classical music to the community he grew up in. Since September 2020, he is an Artist in Residence in the cello section of the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel, under the tutelage of Gary Hoffman.

Classical violist and North Carolina native, Aria Cheregosha made her debut in Carnegie Hall at the age of 13 and was the youngest semi-finalist in the 2012 Viola Congress Competition. Aria continued her musical studies at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston under world-renowned violist and pedagogue Kim Kashkashian and under Roger Tapping at The Juilliard School. She has also worked with acclaimed artists such as Misha Armory, Atar Arad, Carol Rodland, Lawerence Lesser, Martha Katz, and Michael Tree. Aria’s playing has been heavily influenced by her passion for collaboration and while at the New England Conservatory she studied chamber music, as a member of the former Ivani Quartet, under the guidance of Paul Katz and the Cleveland Quartet. The Ivani Quartet was awarded 1st prize at the Plowman Chamber Music Competition, was the fellowship quartet at Bowdoin Music Festival in 2017, and won 3rd prize at the prestigious Fischoff Chamber Music Competition. In addition to Aria’s extensive work with The Cleveland Quartet, she has also studied chamber music under The Shanghai, Ying, Juilliard, Brentano, Borromeo, and Jupiter Quartets. Professionally, Aria has performed with the North Carolina Symphony, The Boston Philharmonic Orchestra, and members of Far Cry.

Ariana Nelson, a Seattle and Houston based cellist, is the newest member of the Carpe Diem String Quartet. She also is a member of Houston Grand Opera Orchestra, and a co-founder of the Seattle-based group the Pacific Crest Trio. She frequently performs with other ensembles in the Houston area, including the Houston Symphony, Houston Ballet, and is a core member of the new music collective Loop38. Ariana teaches cello as an adjunct faculty member at Texas Southern University, and is a coach for AFA’s Chamber Music Academy. She is an avid proponent of new music and loves experimenting with different styles, including improvisation and folk music. Her eclectic tastes have led her to appearances at Jazz at Lincoln Center, performances for patients recovering in Mount Sinai Hospital’s transplant ward, and a performance with the Silk Road Ensemble at Tanglewood. In 2015 Ariana was invited to perform in a small chamber orchestra to accompany Yo-Yo Ma as part of the Kennedy Center Honors event. Ariana has received many honors as a soloist, most recently winning third prize at the 2016 Eisemann Young Artists Competition in Dallas, TX. Ariana received her Master of Music degree at the Juilliard School in May 2017 where she studied with Darrett Adkins. She completed her Bachelor of Music degree at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, where she graduated cum laude in May 2015.

Conductor Benjamin Manis joined the Houston Grand Opera as Resident Conductor in September, 2019. In May of 2019 he completed his Master of Music degree at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, where he studied with Larry Rachleff. Ben has served as cover conductor for the St. Louis and Dallas Symphonies, working with conductors David Robertson and Stéphane Denève, and was winner of the 2019 Solti Foundation US Career Assistance Award. Ben returned to the Aspen Music Festival for the third consecutive summer in 2019, and will appear in Aspen again next summer as the winner of the Aspen Conducting Prize. Before moving to Houston, he studied cello and conducting at the Colburn School, where he conducted outreach concerts in public schools across Los Angeles and performed Lutoslawski’s Cello Concerto as soloist with conductor Robert Spano.

Admired for his “suppleness and beauty of tone” (Allan Kozinn, Portland Press Herald) Bixby Kennedy is one of the most versatile clarinetists of his generation. He has performed concerti with the Minnesota Orchestra, Houston Symphony, New Haven Symphony Orchestra, Bloomington Sinfonietta, and Indiana University Symphony. As a chamber musician, Bixby has performed throughout the US and Europe in venues including Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall, The Kennedy Center, Marlboro Music Festival, Music from Angel Fire, and Caramoor. He is the clarinetist for the “explosive” New York City-based chamber ensemble Frisson. As an orchestral musician, Bixby currently holds titles as the Associate Principal Clarinetist of the New Haven and Albany Symphony Orchestras, as well as Principal Clarinetist of Symphony in C. He has appeared as a guest artist with the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra and Orpheus Chamber Orchestra. A former member of Carnegie Hall’s Ensemble Connect, he works as a teaching artist throughout the United States. Bixby has held professorships at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and Vanderbilt University’s Blair School of Music and was the grand prize winner 2019 Musician’s Club of New York Koussitvitsky Award. He loves traveling, trying new foods, laughing, hiking, and playing tennis.

With a growing reputation for passionate and powerful performances, Korean-American violinist Brian Hong is forging a career as a soloist and chamber musician. Known for his commanding stage presence, palette of sonic colors, and honest interpretations, Mr. Hong has performed with such orchestras as the Juilliard Orchestra, Fairfax Symphony, American Youth Philharmonic, Chesapeake Orchestra, US Army Orchestra, National Philharmonic, and the Springfield Symphony. A dedicated chamber musician, Mr. Hong’s festival credits include Marlboro, Yellow Barn, Bowdoin International Music Festival, Music Academy of the West, the Taos School of Music, Kneisel Hall, and the Perlman Music Program, as well as NEXUS Chamber Music Chicago, of which he is co-Artistic Director. Audiences and experts in the field have taken notice of Mr. Hong’s musicianship: on the competition front, he has won top prizes in several major US competitions, including first prizes in the Hellam National Young Artist’s Competition and the Juilliard School Concerto Competition. A native of Fairfax Station, Virginia, Mr. Hong is a graduate of Juilliard’s Artist Diploma program under the guidance of Laurie Smukler and Catherine Cho. As a Fellow of Carnegie Hall’s Ensemble Connect (2018-2020), he performed in a variety of venues in New York City and abroad, as well as maintaining a two-year teaching-artist partnership with Celia Cruz High School for Music in the Bronx. Mr. Hong also holds a Master’s degree from the Juilliard School, where he studied under Laurie Smukler and Li Lin and was awarded a prestigious Kovner Fellowship. Mr. Hong earned his Bachelor’s degree under Donald Weilerstein from the New England Conservatory of Music, where he was a member of three different honors ensembles and studied both classic and contemporary quartet repertoire with mentors including Laurence Lesser, Kim Kashkashian, Donald Weilerstein, and Lucy Chapman.

Praised by the Boston Globe as a “fearlessly expressive” soloist with a “finely honed tone,” Byron Hitchcock is quickly building a multi-faceted career as a solo, chamber, and orchestral musician. His “brilliant” and “uninhibited” playing has won him prizes in numerous competitions, including the Hudson Valley Philharmonic String Competition, Jefferson Symphony Young Artists’ Competition, and the Boston Modern Orchestra Project Concerto Competition. As an orchestral musician, Byron has performed with such varied and esteemed artists as Andrea Bocelli, Itzhak Perlman, Jake Shimabukuro, Yo-Yo Ma, Semyon Bychkov, and Bramwell Tovey. He has served as Concertmaster of many orchestras, including the Brazilian Symphony Orchestra, the Manhattan Symphonie Orchestra, and the Spoleto USA Festival Orchestra, and now enjoys playing with a variety of orchestras across America. Byron earned his Bachelor’s degree from the Cleveland Institute of Music under David Updegraff, a Master’s degree from the New England Conservatory under Lucy Chapman, and an Artist Diploma from SUNY Purchase under the tutelage of Laurie Smukler. He has spent summers at the Cleveland Orchestra’s Blossom Music Festival, at Kneisel Hall, “the cradle of chamber music teaching in America,” on faculty at the Kinhaven Music School in Vermont, and now enjoys working with the Colorado Music Festival Orchestra.

Originally born in Taipei, Taiwan, Catherine Chen joined the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra as Principal Bassoon, holding the Muriel C. and John D. Silbar Family Bassoon Chair in 2017 at the age of 24. Prior to her appointment with the Milwaukee Symphony, she won the Associate Principal Bassoon position with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra at the age of 22 and worked for one and a half seasons. While in her senior year studying at the Curtis Institute of Music, she held the Principal Bassoon position with the Harrisburg Symphony Orchestra. Chen has performed with numerous orchestras across the country including The Philadelphia Orchestra, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, National Symphony, and more. As a soloist, Chen appears regularly with the Milwaukee Symphony and is recognized for her “elegant, buttery tone“ (The Shepherd Express). Chen’s Mozart concerto performances with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra was described as “full of color and nuance…the cadenzas, which she had written, revealed some technically pristine, wonderfully musical playing”. During her summers, Chen has participated at prestigious music festivals such as Marlboro Music School and Festival, Tanglewood Music Center, Music from Angel Fire Festival by invitation of violinist Ida Kavafian, North Shore Chamber Music Festival by invitation of violinist Vadim Gluzman, Music Academy of the West, Castleton Music Festival, Pacific Music Festival, National Orchestral Institute, Britt Music & Arts Festival Orchestra, and Lakes Area Music Festival. She started her bassoon education under the tutelage of Joyce Kelley, former Principal Bassoon of the New York City Opera, and went on to study with Marc Goldberg, former Associate Principal Bassoon of the New York Philharmonic, at the Pre-College Division of The Juilliard School. Catherine later received her Bachelor of Music from the Curtis Institute of Music, where she studied with Daniel Matsukawa, Principal Bassoon of the Philadelphia Orchestra.

Violinist Chandler Yu has established herself as a multifaceted artist through her work with the intersectional and idiosyncratic. Classically trained, she has given solo recitals in Austria and throughout the US, and her performances in the past decade with festivals and orchestra tours have taken her around the world. With an interest in cross genres and contemporary classical music, she has worked with the ensemble Wild Up in 2015. She also more recently premiered electronic chamber works in collaboration with the Sibelius Academy and Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival. As a firm believer in creating positive change, Chandler joined the LA Phil’s first hackathon in 2017 where she worked with engineers to devise proposals that escort classical music outside concert halls. Shortly after, she and her quartet colleagues were awarded Rice University’s Richter Grant. Their program of Mozart and jazz was admitted into the greater Houston regions, reaching a kaleidoscope of communities. Her desire to understand diverse groups and build cross cultural bridges inspired her to become involved with the non-profit organizations Street Symphony and UN Women LA in 2018. She curated a series of grass roots chamber concerts in Skid Row and Chino Hills, showcasing female empowerment to promote gender equity awareness. She also co-produced and premiered an experimental chamber opera based on Sylvia Townsend Warner’s feminist classic, Lolly Willowes. In the past year, Chandler has arranged, recorded, and produced tracks with creatives for television and music therapy purposes. During the pandemic, songwriting and sound collage sparked her imagination. She was invited to work with a friend and producer to create tracks that traverse acoustic and synthetic sound worlds, starting her on a path towards her own EP. Chandler is currently based in Los Angeles and in addition to music, she takes photos and writes poetry.

Hailing from Northport, New York, violist Charles Galante is a dedicated soloist, chamber and orchestral musician. Mr. Galante has collaborated in concert with The Silk Road Ensemble, Colin Carr, Frans Helmerson, Charles Neidich, Elmar Oliviera and James Dunham. He has had performances broadcast live on WSMR and WQXR Young Artist Showcase. His festival appearances include Ravinia, Lucerne, Spoleto, Miesbach, Taos, Four Seasons, Kneisel Hall, Sarasota, The Heifetz Institute and the Tanglewood Music Center, where he was the recipient of the 2017 Maurice Schwarz prize. Mr. Galante has been principal of the Yale Philharmonia, Juilliard Orchestra, the New York String Orchestra Seminar and the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra. He currently serves as a guest musician with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, Noree Chamber Soloists, Ensemble Connect and the Jupiter Chamber Players. Mr. Galante received his Bachelor degree from the Juilliard School where he studied with Heidi Castleman and Misha Amory. Currently, he is a graduate student at the Yale School of Music under Ettore Causa.

Charlie Rosmarin is a percussion fellow at the New World Symphony, in Miami Beach. A Boston native, he has performed in Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, England, Germany, the Czech Republic, Scotland, the Berkshires, Santa Barbara, Breckenridge, Aspen and Charleston. Highlight performances include concerts at the BBC Proms, Gewandhaus Hall in Leipzig and concerts with the New York Philharmonic. Charlie has spent summers with the Tanglewood Music Center, National Repertory Orchestra, Music Academy of the West, Spoleto Music Festival, Texas Music Festival, National Orchestral Institute and Aspen Music Festival. The New York Times wrote, “Charles Rosmarin handled herculean labors heroically,” in reviewing his performance of Peter Maxwell Davies’ De Assumptione Beatae Mariae Virginis. He performed Russell Peck’s triple concerto The Glory and the Grandeur with the National Repertory Orchestra in 2018. He also plays percussion in a period-performance context, performing with New York's Trinity Wall Street Baroque Ensemble, Clarion Orchestra, Yale Schola Cantorum, New Vintage Baroque and Juilliard's historical performance program, Juilliard415. Charlie received a bachelor of music degree from The Juilliard School and a master of music degree from New England Conservatory. He was pursuing a professional studies certificate at the Colburn School before arriving at the New World Symphony. In his free time, he reads avidly and enjoys long-distance running.

Chelsea Hyojung Kim, born in Seoul, South Korea, joined the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra’s 1st violin section in 2019 after completing her Masters degree at Rice University Shepherd School of Music under the tutelage of Kathleen Winkler with the Dorothy Richard Starling Foundation Scholarship. Before coming to Baltimore, she has been a frequent substitute at the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Houston Symphony Orchestra and New World Symphony. Chelsea earned her Bachelors at The Juilliard School with Li Lin under the Juilliard Lester Lanin Scholarship and H. & E. Kivekas Scholarship. Her past teachers include Donald Weilerstein and Peter Rovit. In 2009, she garnered 1 st prize in the Wellesley Symphony Orchestra Concerto Competition and debuted with them. She has won other numerous competitions, including first place in Tuscaloosa String Quartet Society Scholarship Competition and second place in the Lois Pickard Scholarship National Competition. In 2013, she was chosen as one of the Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist from From the Top, and performed on the live show on NPR. An avid chamber musician, Chelsea has collaborated with distinguished artists such as Edward Aaron, The Takács Quartet, Timothy Pitts, James Dunham, and Benjamin Kamins. She has appeared at venues including Carnegie Weill Hall, Weiner Musikverein, Boston Symphony Hall, David Geffen Hall, and Alice Tully Hall. She has performed in masterclasses given by Joshua Bell, Stefan Milenkovich, Soovin Kim, and Philip Setzer. She has been awarded fellowships to participate summers in Music Academy of the West, Pacific Music Festival, Spoleto Festival USA, Aspen Music Festival, Endless Mountain Music Festival, Boston University Tanglewood Institute, and Yellow Barn Young Artist Program where she served concertmaster and principal positions, and performed under conductors such as Valery Gergiev, Gustavo Dudamel, Stephen Deneve, Jun Markl, Elim Chan, Paul Haas, and Ankush Bahl.

Described by the Toronto Concert Review as “exuding a depth of artistry and sublime musical sensitivity” and noted by the Dallas Morning News for his “rhetorical grandeur, romantic warmth, and surefire technique,” pianist Christopher Goodpasture has a growing reputation as a recitalist, chamber musician and orchestral soloist. Winner of Astral Artists 2019 National Auditions in Philadelphia, Christopher regularly performs in concert venues throughout North America, including the Kennedy Center (Washington D.C.), Benaroya Hall (Seattle), Koerner Hall (Toronto), Alice Tully Hall, Merkin Hall, Weill Recital Hall (New York), Bing Concert Hall (San Francisco), and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Recent orchestral performances include Saint-Saëns 2nd Concerto with the Dallas Chamber Symphony, Rachmaninov 2nd Concerto and Grieg Concerto with the Oakville Symphony, as well as appearances with the Sioux City Symphony, Northumberland Orchestra, and Acadiana Symphony Orchestra. Forthcoming performances include Mozart Concerto No. 12 with the Chamber Orchestra of New York and concert works of Gershwin with the Northumberland Orchestra, and the Riverside Symphonia. Christopher is top prize-winner of international competitions across the country including the Washington International Piano Competition, Seattle International Piano Competition, Iowa International Piano Competition, Dallas International Piano Competition, and Serge and Olga Koussevitzky Competition for Pianists in New York. Christopher holds graduate degrees from Yale University and The Juilliard School, where his teachers included Hung-Kuan Chen, Peter Frankl, Jerome Lowenthal and Christopher Elton. He received his Bachelor of Music from the University of Southern California and an Artist Diploma from the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto, studying with Stewart Gordon and John Perry. He is an alumnus of the New York-based Ensemble Connect (formerly Ensemble ACJW), a fellowship program of Carnegie Hall, the Juilliard School and the Weill Institute, emphasizing audience engagement, teaching and performing chamber music.

South African native Dr. Cobus du Toit is praised for technical facility that makes everything look easy (Opus Colorado) and rich tone that is especially impressive (Herald Tribune). Cobus is an avid soloist, chamber musician, and pedagogue on the faculty at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and has performed in Russia, South Africa, Taiwan, Japan, Germany, and France as a soloist. Mr. du Toit’s creative work has been featured in a year-long exhibition at the Massachusetts Museum of Modern Art with artists Carly Simon, James Tayler, and Natasha Bedingfield. His humanitarian impetus is evident in the #WeBringFlowers project, a set of 5 socially conscious commissions that confront societal violence in a non-political manner. In addition to being a prize winner at over a dozen competitions, including the 1st UNISA Southern African National Competition for Woodwinds and Brass, and the Byron Hester Competition, Cobus is also the principal flute of the Boulder Chamber Orchestra. Recent recordings include the complete flute oeuvre by French composer Jacques Castérède on the Naxos label. Cobus received his MM and DMA from CU Boulder and a BM from the University of Pretoria. His principal teachers include John Hinch and Christina Jennings.

Darren Lin is a percussionist, educator, and conductor based in Arlington, Virginia where he is currently a percussionist in the “President’s Own” United States Marine Band. Lin is an active orchestral player, having worked with the Buffalo Philharmonic, New World Symphony, and New Haven Symphony, and has worked with conductors such as Valery Gergiev, Michael Tilson Thomas, and Andris Nelsons. He is equally at home playing contemporary music, being a member of the NakedEye Ensemble and the founder and leader of [sunflower]. He has worked closely with composers Steve Reich and John Luther Adams, and has premiered works by Dave Hollinden, Molly Joyce, Angelica Negron, and Randall Woolf. Darren is also an active educator, having taught at all levels and ages. He holds degrees from the University of Michigan, the Eastman School of Music, and the New England Conservatory.

Mr. McDonald currently plays principal trumpet with the Cheyenne Symphony Orchestra and the Boulder Chamber Orchestra, and also holds tenured positions with the Fort Collins Symphony Orchestra, the Greeley Philharmonic, and the Colorado Ballet Orchestra. As an active freelance musician in the Denver/Boulder area, Derek frequently substitutes with the Colorado Symphony Orchestra, the Boulder Philharmonic, and the Colorado Springs Philharmonic. Mr. McDonald also performs annually at the International Ballet Festival held in Vail, Colorado. Before moving to Colorado, Derek served as associate principal trumpet of the Pennsylvania Centre Orchestra, and second trumpet of the Penn’s Woods Festival Orchestra.

Diverse Concert Artists are musicians committed to changing the face of classical and crossover music through diversity. They have collaborated with major artists including Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, Miley Cyrus, Mark Ronson, Solange, Tony Bennett and Bebe Rexha, and have performed on the stages of Carnegie Hall, Radio City Music Hall, Kennedy Center, Royal Opera House of Muscat, Merkin Hall, Alice Tully Hall, the Plaza, on Broadway in Jagged Little Pill, and many more. Their repertoire includes standard classical works to the latest tunes on the top of the charts.

Doori Na, a San Francisco native, took up violin at the age of four and began his studies with Li Lin at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. In the fall of 2018, he made his debut with The San Francisco Symphony performing Bach’s Double Violin Concerto with Itzhak Perlman and Michael Tilson Thomas. Currently living in New York City, Mr. Na plays with numerous ensembles around the city. He has played with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra with tours in the US, Japan, and Europe performing in venues such as Carnegie Hall in New York and the Musiverien in Vienna. Mr. Na is also a member of Argento Chamber Ensemble performing works of living composers such as Georg Friedrich Haas, Beat Furrer, Tristan Murail, and many more. New Chamber Ballet is where you can find Mr. Na regularly performing solo works for dance and he has been a part of the company since 2013. Recent tours include performing in Lake Tahoe, Germany, and Guatemala.He has collaborated with members of the Juilliard String Quartet, Orion String Quartet, New York Philharmonic, Metropolitan Opera and has been fortunate to tour with Itzhak Perlman at venues such as the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Mr. Na attended the Juilliard School with the Dorothy Starling and Dorothy Delay scholarships and holds a Bachelor’s and Master’s Degree where he studied under Itzhak Perlman, Catherine Cho, and Donald Weilerstein. He was concertmaster of the Juilliard Orchestra and was fortunate to play on a Guadagnini and Vuillaume violin from the Juilliard School’s prestigious violin collection.

Violist Drew Alexander Forde, known online as ThatViolaKid, has a reputation not only as an accomplished performer but also as one of classical music’s most recognizable online brands. Profiled in outlets like Thrillist , WNYC, the Detroit Free Press, and Strings Magazine, he was named “one of the titans of Classical Music Instagram” by National Sawdust Log and was called “the future of our field” by Sphinx Organization president Afa Dworkin. As the co-host of the Faking Notes Podcast, alongside Juilliard friend Trevor Bumgarner, he interviews the next generation of up and coming artists with the hopes of growing a community of entrepreneurial artists around the world. Also highly sought after in popular music, Forde has shared the stage with A-List stars like Alicia Keys, Ariana Grande, JoJo, Roddy Ricch, Camila Cabello, among others. In addition to earning recording credits with the late Mac Miller on The Divine Feminine, Drew recorded for John Legend’s Grammy-Nominated album, Bigger Love, Kota The Friend’s album, Everything, and HBO’s popular horror-thriller, Lovecraft Country.

Edvard Pogossian (cello) a second year master’s student at Royal College of Music with Richard Lester. He is studying at the RCM as an Amaryllis Fleming Foundation Scholar. He is also in his second year studying as Artist in Residence at the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel with Gary Hoffman. He is a graduate of the Juilliard School studying with Natasha Brofsky. As the recent winner of the Juilliard Concerto Competition, Edvard performed the Tchaikovsky Rococo Variations at David Geffen Hall in New York and at the Harris Theater in Chicago with the Juilliard Orchestra under the direction of Itzhak Perlman. The Chicago Tribune praised Edvard’s performance for his “astonishing musical and technical maturity,” as well as his “winning lightness of touch to everything he played, combined with a velvety tone.” In the summer of 2016 he performed the Rococo Variations with the Boston Pops in Symphony Hall on the annual “Armenian Night at the Pops” concert. He was also the winner of the inaugural Los Angeles Philharmonic Young Artists Competition, giving him the honor to play the Saint-Saens Cello Concerto with the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra in Walt Disney Hall. Edvard’s other notable performances include appearances at Carnegie Hall, Zipper Hall, and on NPR’s From the Top radio show. He has also performed as a soloist with the New Mexico Philharmonic for their Protege Series. Edvard is a long time participant of the Apple Hill Chamber Music Festival in New Hampshire, and has also attended Yellow Barn, Perlman Music Program’s Chamber Music Workshop, Kneisel Hall, and most recently the Marlboro Festival, where he will be through 2022. He has studied in Los Angeles with Paul Cohen and Rick Mooney, and later spent two years studying with Ronald Leonard at the Colburn Young Artists Academy. Dedicated to chamber music, Edvard is a founding member of the Zelda Piano Quartet, a group formerly a part of the Juilliard Honors Chamber Music Program. He represented the Juilliard School at various high profile occasions, including a performance for the First Lady of China, and was also invited to a residency in Sao Paulo, performing and coaching kids enrolled in the Guri music program. He also served as solo-principal cello on the joint Juilliard/Sibelius Academy tour in 2017, conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen. Edvard was a proud recipient of a Kovner Fellowship through his four years at the Juilliard School.

Northern Minnesota native Eric Haugen has had a passion for playing the cello since the age of 3. Eric’s
diverse musical experiences include performing internationally as the cellist of the Ajax Quartet (2016-
19), recording as a member of pop/folk band Bareland on debut EP, Home (2018), and debuting dozens of
new works by contemporary composers as a part of Pendulum New Music concert series, Boulder
Altitude Directive, and Fresh Inc Festival. Most recently Haugen was performing as a cellist for Lincoln
Center Stage, through Holland America Cruise Line in 13 countries across the globe. He has studied
extensively with renowned pedagogues including Richard Aaron, David Requiro, the Takács Quartet,
Jupiter Quartet, and Pacifica Quartet.

Erik Andrusyak is the Principal Oboe of the Elgin Symphony, beginning in the 2019-2020 season. He comes to Elgin from the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, a training program under the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, where he is a principal member from 2017-2020. Mr Andrusyak is a frequent substitute and guest musician with renowned ensembles such as the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Chicago Philharmonic, the Geoffrey Ballet Orchestra, and the New World Symphony. He has attended several prestigious music festivals, including the Pacific Music Festival and the Music Academy of the West, where he has had the privilege of working with renowned conductors including Valery Gergiev, Christoph von Dohnányi, Osmo Vänskä, Larry Rachleff, Alan Gilbert, Ken-David Masur and Rafael Payare. Erik is originally from Russia and has recently completed his studies with Alex Klein, former Principal Oboe of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, at DePaul University. Other teachers include Eugene Izotov, Scott Hostetler, Joseph Claude, and Grace Hong.

New Zealand-born violinist Geneva Lewis has forged a path uniquely her own as a musician of consummate artistry whose performances speak from and to the heart. Hailed by conductor Nic McGegan as “a name to watch,” Geneva’s recent string of accolades include the Grand Prize at the 2020 Concert Artists Guild Victor Elmaleh Competition, First Prize at the 2019 NEC Concerto Competition, as well as being named a Finalist at the 2018 Naumburg Competition and a Performance Today Young Artist in Residence. After her stellar debut at age 11 with the Pasadena Symphony, Geneva has gone on to perform with such orchestras as Symphony NH, Diablo Symphony Orchestra, Culver City Symphony, Sierra Summer Festival Orchestra, Brentwood Westwood Symphony Orchestra, Antelope Valley Symphony Orchestra, and the Pasadena Pops. She has worked with a number of notable conductors, including Nic McGegan, Edwin Outwater, and Enrico Lopez-Yañez. While Geneva’s claim to chamber music fame came early on as a member of the renowned Lewis Family Trio with her siblings Nathan (piano) and Rochelle (cello), she has since gone on to become the violinist of the Callisto Trio, Artist-in-Residence at the Da Camera Society in Los Angeles. Callisto was the recipient of the Bronze Medal at the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition (senior division) as the youngest group to ever compete in the finals. In fall 2019, they were invited on the Masters on Tour series of the International Holland Music Sessions and performed at the celebrated Het Concertgebouw Amsterdam. ​Geneva is currently in the Artist Diploma program as the recipient of the Charlotte F. Rabb Presidential Scholarship at the New England Conservatory studying with Miriam Fried. Past summers have taken her to the Ravinia Steans Institute, Perlman Music Program’s Chamber Workshop, International Holland Music Sessions, Taos School of Music and the Heifetz International Music Institute. She is also a regular participant of the Marlboro Music Festival and will be returning in 2021. Geneva is performing on a violin by Zosimo Bergonzi of Cremona, c. 1770 courtesy of Guarneri Hall NFP and Darnton & Hersh Fine Violins, Chicago.

Award-winning Russian-American violinist Igor Pikayzen is confidently establishing himself as one of the most prodigious and in-demand soloists of his generation. Praised on four continents by critics and audiences alike for his “astounding technical ability” and a “majestically lush tone”, Igor Pikayzen “surely is at a forefront of a major musical career” (Moscow Times). Grandson of the legendary Soviet violinist Viktor Pikayzen, Igor was born in Moscow, Russia. After receiving his Bachelor's Degree from Juilliard, as well as a Master's Degree and Artist Diploma from the Yale School of Music, he was the recipient of the coveted Enhanced Chancellor Fellowship while working on his DMA at the CUNY Graduate Center where he was also on the faculty of Brooklyn Conservatory. Pikayzen is the 1st prize winner of the 2015 Edition of the International Violin Competition Luis Sigall in Viña del Mar, Chile as well as the Wronski International Violin Competition in Warsaw, in addition to being a silver medalist at the Szeryng and Kloster-Schöntal international violin competitions. A native of Moscow, Mr. Pikayzen shares his time between New York, Denver and Westport, CT, where he launched an annual summer music festival, Edelio. In 2019 he was announced as the new Professor of Violin at the Lamont School of Music at the University of Denver.

Described by one pretty important radio guy as “not classical…but not not classical” (David Srebnik, SiriusXM Classical Producer), Invoke continues to successfully dodge even the most valiant attempts at genre classification. The multi-instrumental band’s other ‘not-nots’ encompass traditions from across America, including bluegrass, Appalachian fiddle tunes, jazz, and minimalism. Invoke weaves all of these styles together to create truly individual music, written by and for the group. 2018 was a banner year for the band, winning First Prize at the M-Prize International Chamber Arts competition in Ann Arbor, MI (Open Category), as well as First Prize in the Coltman Competition in Austin, TX, and most recently, the Concert Artists Guild Victor Elmaleh Competition in New York, where they were named “New Music/New Places” Ensemble. Invoke was the Young Professional String Quartet in Residence at the University of Texas from 2016 to 2018, and the group has previously been selected to participate in the Emerging String Quartet Program at Stanford, as Artists in Residence at Strathmore, and as the Emerging Young Artist Quartet at Interlochen. Invoke has shared the stage with some of the most acclaimed ensembles in the country, ranging from the Ensō Quartet to the U.S. Army Field Band, and has also appeared with musicians in greatly varying genres – from chamber rock powerhouse San Fermin to DC beatboxer/rapper/spoons virtuoso Christylez Bacon. Invoke’s 2015 debut release Souls in the Mud, and their 2018 follow-up Furious Creek, both feature original works composed by and for the group, and the quartet has also performed and recorded numerous world premieres. Invoke believes in championing diverse American voices, including their ongoing commissioning project American Postcards, which asks composers to pick a time and place in American history and tell its story through Invoke’s unique artistry.

Founded in Ann Arbor in 2016, the Ivalas Quartet is composed of violinists Reuben Kebede and Anita Dumar, violist Aimée McAnulty and cellist Pedro Sánchez. Currently the quartet serves as the Graduate Quartet in residence at the University of Colorado Boulder, where they study under the renowned Takács Quartet. Ivalas has performed with artists such as the Calidore String Quartet, Imani Winds, Danielle Belen, David Ying, and Patricia Terry-Ross. In January 2020 they had their Carnegie Hall debut when they participated as a young artist at the 2020 APAP conference in NYC. The quartet has also been heard on WRCJ 90.9 FM’s Classical Brunch series and appeared at the inaugural Detroit Music Weekend. Maintaining their commitment to community engagement, Ivalas has also represented the Sphinx Organization playing for students in Flint and the Metro Detroit area. The quartet has been awarded first prize in the 2019 WDAV Young Artists Chamber Music Competition as well as first prize in the 2018 Briggs Chamber Music Competition and was named a semifinalist group at both the M-Prize competition and Concert Artists Guild competition in New York. Ivalas has been a fellowship quartet at festivals such as the Aspen Music Festival and School, Bowdoin International Music Festival, Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival, Colorado Music Festival, Crested Butte Music Festival and the Anchorage Chamber Music Festival. Ivalas has been coached by members of the Emerson, Pacifica, American, Escher, Calidore, Brentano, St. Lawrence, Ying, Turtle Island and Jupiter string quartets, as well as Paul Katz, Jeffrey Zeigler, Mikhail Kopelman, Kirsten Docter, Richard Aaron, Danielle Belen, Stephen Shipps, Meta Weiss, Erika Eckert, Andrew Jennings and Kathryn Votapek.

Horn player Jason Friedman welcomes and engages audiences with sensitive musicianship and an insightful perspective, shaped by his diverse experiences outside music. The recipient of the Bachelor of Music degree and a business minor from The University of Colorado Boulder, he is also a graduate of Juilliard and teaching artist. As a Morse Fellow, Jason taught interactive music lessons of diverse topics including music business and electronic music. Jason performed as guest associate principal horn player with the Orquesta Sinfónica del Estado de México for their 2020 season. Heard in performances with the New York City Ballet orchestra, Lion King on Broadway, the Colorado Symphony, and the New World Symphony, Jason is also an audio and video technician.

Violinist Jeremías Sergiani-Velazquez has performed classical, contemporary, and tango music around the world. As soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral performer, he has been heard in 16 countries across four continents,. He is currently a member of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, and recently won the principal second violin audition at the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. Previously, he served with Chicago’s Grant Park Symphony, as guest concertmaster with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, and with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, with whom he toured Carnegie Hall, Germany, and Canada. Outside orchestra, he is a founding member of both the Frisson Ensemble and the GRAMMY® winning Pedro Giraudo Tango Quartet. He has also performed alongside violinist Midori in quartet tours of Japan and Nepal. Born in Córdoba, Argentina, Jeremías earned his high school diploma at 15, an accomplishment made in order to focus on his studies with vaunted violinist Fernando Hasaj. He owes much of his great fortune to the violinist Miriam Fried who, upon their meeting at a music festival in Brazil, encouraged a young Jeremías to study with her at the New England Conservatory. He later attended The Juilliard School and the Manhattan School of Music where he studied with Ronald Copes, Glenn Dicterow, Lisa Kim, and Sylvia Rosenberg. He lives with his girlfriend, the flutist Katherine “katieflute” Althen, and their Havanese puppy Miguel in New York City.

Percussionist Joseph Bricker (b. 1997, Evanston, IL) is a Fellow with the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, a program of the Negaunee Music Institute at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. In addition to the Civic Orchestra, he has performed with the Metropolitan Opera, Houston Symphony, New World Symphony, the Berlin Philharmonic Wind Quintet and several others. In the summers, he has been awarded fellowships with the Verbier Festival Orchestra, Tanglewood Music Center, Pacific Music Festival, and the Aspen Music Festival. Joe can be heard on a 2017 advertisement for Taylormade-Adidas with Tiger Woods. He is currently studying at DePaul University with Cynthia Yeh, and has previously studied at the Juilliard School under Greg Zuber.

Joe Desotelle (b. 1995, Buffalo, NY) is a multifaceted percussionist currently residing in Cleveland, OH. From an early age, orchestral playing has been a focus of Joe’s. His drive for excellence in this discipline has led him to some of the most storied stages including David Geffen and Carnegie Hall. Joe has played in concert with The London Symphony Orchestra, The Houston Symphony and The Kansas City Symphony. In the summers, he has received fellowships to Spoleto Festival USA, Tanglewood Music Center and was a Keston MAX fellow at the Music Academy of the West in 2018. As an educator, Joe spent three years as a counselor and chamber music coach at the Juilliard Summer Percussion Seminar. He also maintains a studio of private students and began teaching virtual seminars for high school percussionists during the COVID -19 pandemic. Joe holds an undergraduate degree from The Juilliard School and a Master’s degree from Rice University. His primary instructors were Daniel Druckman of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra and Matthew Strauss of the Houston Symphony.

Joseph Howe is a cellist based in Boulder, Colorado, where he maintains an active performing career. Mr. Howe is the principal cellist of the Boulder Chamber Orchestra, with whom he recently appeared as a concerto soloist, and the assistant principal cellist of the Greeley Philharmonic. ​He has also recently performed with the New World Symphony, the Colorado Springs Philharmonic, and the Boulder Philharmonic. As a baroque cellist, he performs with Boulder Bach Festival’s period instrument ensemble. Other recent festival appearances as an orchestral and chamber musician include National Repertory Orchestra, Colorado Music Festival Orchestra, and American Bach Soloists Academy. Joseph holds degrees from University of Oregon, where he studied with Steven Pologe, and University of Colorado at Boulder, where he studied with Judith Glyde.

Joshua Halpern, cello, is an accomplished chamber musician who has collaborated with artists including Itzhak Perlman, Jonathan Biss, Roberto Díaz, Viviane Hagner, and Kim Kashkashian, and attended music festivals including the Ravinia Steans Institute, the Perlman Chamber Music Workshop, the New York String Orchestra Seminar, the Taos School of Music, La Jolla Summerfest, and Krzyzowa Music. During the 2019 season he served as guest principal cello of the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, including on tours to Germany, Taiwan, and China, and in 2020 he served as guest cellist with the Rolston Quartet. Mr. Halpern completed graduate studies at The Curtis Institute in Philadelphia, where he performed throughout the United States, Europe and Latin America with Curtis On Tour, and was principal cello of the Curtis Symphony Orchestra during the 2016/17 season. At Curtis he studied with Carter Brey and Peter Wiley. As an undergraduate at the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University, Mr. Halpern studied with Desmond Hoebig and won the Rice Concerto Competition.

Violinist and violist Joshua Ulrich has performed internationally as soloist, recitalist, and chamber musician. His growing artistic reputation is supported by having collaborated with such esteemed artists as James Tocco, Awadagin Pratt, and Anton Nel. He was educated at the Juilliard School and the College-Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati. Joshua has just completed a post-graduate degree at the University of Colorado-Boulder, where he and the Altius Quartet were the Fellowship String Quartet-in-Residence working with the Takács Quartet.

Jules Pegram (b.1991) strives to compose music elegant in its construction and meticulously well-crafted, full of shimmering color, boundless energy, and an unbridled lyricism that makes it refreshingly direct. His works have been performed by the New World Symphony, the Cabrillo Festival Orchestra, the American Composers Orchestra, Symphony in C, the Naples Philharmonic, and the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, among others, and have been recorded by the Hollywood Studio Symphony at Warner Bros. Studios and 20th Century Fox Studios in Los Angeles. Film work includes collaborations dating back to his years at USC to work for the Traverse City Film Festival and participation in both the ASCAP Film Scoring Workshop in Los Angeles with Richard Bellis and the inaugural Los Angeles Film Conducting Intensive with David Newman and Angel Velez. Pegram received the ASCAP Foundation Harold Arlen Film & TV Award, presented each summer to an outstanding writer who has participated in the ASCAP Film Scoring Workshop. Pegram earned Doctorate and Master's degrees in Composition from the University of Michigan (2018, 2015) after receiving the Bachelor of Music in Composition from the University of Southern California (2013), studying with multiple GRAMMY Award-winner Michael Daugherty, Oscar nominee Bruce Broughton, Erica Muhl, and Morten Lauridsen, among others. Pegram lives in Los Angeles, where he can just as easily be found catching a screening at the ArcLight-Hollywood or a concert at Disney Hall as he can cruising the freeways in search of the ultimate taco.

Taiwanese violinist Kai-Wei Chen, praised by ToledOvations as a violinist with “grace and artistry,” is a versatile musician and an enthusiastic music educator. As a performer, she has performed with Lincoln Center Stage (a resident piano quintet on Holland America cruise ship lines in partnership with Lincoln Center) and has participated in many orchestras including Civic Orchestra of Chicago, Illinois Symphony Orchestra, and Quad City Symphony Orchestra. She has worked with renowned musicians such as Yoyo Ma, Leonidas Kavakos, Gil Shaham, Vadim Repin, Sarah Chang, Jan Mráček, Riccardo Muti, Christoph Eschenbach, Emmanuel Krivine, and Bramwell Tovey. Interested in a wide range of music, Kai-Wei enjoys playing different genres of music, such as contemporary, jazz improvisations, and pop music, in various venues in order to attract audiences from different background and interest. She holds a cognate on jazz performance and had performed in bars and The Horseshoe Casino (IN). She had recorded albums for Taiwanese TV series and Taiwanese pop singers and had been the featured soloist at the International Workshop on Computer Music and Audio Technology. Kai-Wei received her Bachelor’s degree from the National Taiwan Normal University, a Master’s degree from Bowling Green State University with Graduate String Quartet Assistantship, and a Doctorate degree at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign studying under Stefan Milenkovich.

Clarinetist Kellan Toohey maintains a varied career which includes recitals and solo appearances, chamber music, teaching, and orchestral playing. He holds a DMA from the University of Colorado and his teachers include Daniel Silver, Bil Jackson, Jon Manasse, and Yehuda Gilad. An active orchestral player, Dr. Toohey currently holds the positions of Principal clarinetist in the Boulder Chamber Orchestra and Fort Collins Symphony, and Associate Principal Clarinetist in the Wyoming Symphony and Cheyenne Symphony Orchestra. He has performed across the US, Europe, and in Asia, and recently recorded his first solo cd, entitled Scenes from Home, premiere recordings of new music by Colorado composers. Kellan has received numerous awards, including winning 2nd Prize in the International Clarinet Association's Young Artist Competition (2013 Assisi, Italy), 1st Prize and audience choice award in the University of Colorado Ekstrand Graduate Performance competition, 1st Prize in the University of Northern Colorado Concerto competition and Angie Southard Performance Competition, and was also the winner of the Colorado College Summer Festival and Greeley Chamber Orchestra concerto competitions. In November 2016 he made his recital debut at Carnegie Hall's Weill Hall in New York City. In addition to his performing and teaching work, Kellan enjoys active involvement in his church, composing music, reading, hiking, and spending time outdoors.

Ms. Bentley is currently the Fourth Horn of the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra. She received her Master of Music degree in Horn Performance under the tutelage of Professor Michael Thornton at the University of Colorado Boulder College of Music. Her Bachelor of Music degree was earned cum laude from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, where she studied with Randy Gardner and Elizabeth Freimuth. She has had additional studies with John Zirbel, of the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal. She has made orchestral appearances with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Louisville Orchestra, Colorado Symphony Orchestra, and New World Symphony among others as well as having performed on the soundtracks of several major video games and motion pictures. With playing lauded by ArtsKnoxville as “impressive” and “lovely”, she is also the Second Horn of the Chattanooga Symphony and Opera during the 2019-2021 seasons.

Kelvin Ng’s international solo competition began at the age of 13, when he was awarded First Runner-Up in the 2008 Association des Bassistes et Contrebassistes de France. In 2016 and 2018, he received First Prize at the Eastman School Double Bass Competition and Second Prize at the First Maggini Zhongshan International Bass Competition. He has performed with musicians from Berlin and Vienna philharmonics, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Metropolitan Opera, and has worked with chamber groups such as Brentano Quartet, Hong Kong New Music Ensemble, the NOVA ensemble, among many others. He also performed with the Xiamen Philharmonic Orchestra as a guest principal bass. Kelvin has worked under the batons of such world-renowned conductors as Valery Gergiev, Christoph Eschenbach, Peter Oundjian, Marin Alsop. In the summers, he has been awarded fellowships with Pacific Music Festival (2017 and 2019), RoundTop Festival Institute and Sarasota Music Festival. Born and raised in Hong Kong, he earned his bachelor degree in double bass performance and performer’s certificate at the Eastman School of Music, and later pursued his master degree at Yale School of Music. His major teachers include James VanDemark and Donald Palma, a founding member of the prestigious Orpheus Chamber Orchestra. He was awarded the George Wellington Miles Fellowship and full scholarship from Hong Kong Jockey Club Music and Dance Fund in support of his education.

Kenichi Furuya is an award-winning bassoonist and founding member of the Pacific Quintet, a multinational wind quintet based at the Zurich University of the Arts. Furuya won first prize at the 2019 Muri Competition in Switzerland and the Pacific Quintet won the second prize at the 2019 Carl Nielsen Chamber Music Competition in Denmark. As a member of the Karajan Academy of the Berlin Philharmonic, Furuya performs regularly with the Berlin Philharmonic, and participated in the world-renowned orchestra’s 2019 tour of Japan. He holds a degree from the Tokyo University of the Arts where he studied with Prof. Mayumi Ito, Prof.Toshitsugu Inoue, and Prof.Koji Okazak. Mr. Furuya currently resides in Zurich, Switzerland where he studies with Prof. Stefan Schweigert, Matthias Racz, and Prof. Martin Spangenberg with the help of a Swiss Government Scholarship, the Kiefer Hablitzel Stiftung and a YAMAHA Music Scholarship.

Lauren Spaulding, a Texas native, received her BM and MM in Viola performance, working under the tutelage of Professor Peter Slowik at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music and Geraldine Walther of the Takács Quartet. As a soloist, Spaulding has worked with many notable performers including Kim Kashkashian, Noboki Imai, Antoine Tamestit, Lawerence Powers, Victoria Chiang, Pinchas Zukerman, Carol Rodland, James Dunham, Yizhak Schotten, and Midori Gotō. Currently, Spaulding co-heads the Denver chapter of ‘Music for Food’ with Kim Kashkashian, is a member of Meredith Monk’s contemporary performance ensemble, works regularly with the Colorado Symphony and holds the titled position of Assistant Principal of the Cheyenne Symphony, the Assistant Principal of the Fort Collins’ Symphony, the Assistant Principal of Pro Musica Chamber Orchestra, the Assistant Principal of the Boulder Chamber Orchestra, and the Principal Violist and Festival Artist for the annual Colorado MahlerFest.

Joining the historic Steinway Artist roster in 2019, American pianist, Dr. Leann Osterkamp (He), has performed at Caramoor, the Kennedy Center, The Baryshnikov Center, Carnegie’s Weill Hall, Steinway Hall, Bellco Theater, Merkin Hall, and as a featured soloist with the Colorado Symphony Orchestra in Boettcher Concert Hall. The NY Times has described her as bringing “descriptive color” to her performances. The LA Times describes her as a “strong” collaborator with “the desired flashiness.”

A native of San Francisco, twenty-five year old oboist Liam Boisset has already performed in many of the world’s great concert halls. Recently he served as guest Principal Oboe with the Los Angeles Philharmonic – including two international tours – as well as the Metropolitan Opera, the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, the Nashville Symphony, and the Calgary Philharmonic. Mr. Boisset also regularly performs in supporting roles with the New York Philharmonic, the Philadelphia Orchestra, and the San Francisco Symphony.In the past, Mr. Boisset has appeared as a concerto soloist with the Las Vegas Philharmonic and the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra. Every summer, Mr. Boisset looks forward to teaching and performing alongside Elaine Douvas at Hidden Valley Music Seminars in Carmel, California. He was also a featured teacher and performer in the inaugural season of the Juilliard Summer Winds festival this past summer. He has been awarded fellowships at the Aspen Music Festival and School, and the Tanglewood Music Center, and was recently a featured guest artist at ChamberFest Cleveland. Mr. Boisset studied with Elaine Douvas at the Juilliard School and Eugene Izotov at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Liam Boisset proudly performs on a Howarth XL Cocobolo VT.

Japanese Pianist Madoka Asari is an experienced collaborator with wide variety of repertoires performing throughout the U.S. and Japan, The renowned artists with whom Madoka has collaborated include Geraldine Walther from Takács Quartet, Caleb Hudson from Canadian Brass, and Hsing-ay Hsu. Besides the performing career, Madoka also worked as a faculty in Collaborative Piano at Colorado State University and an interim staff pianist at University of Colorado at Boulder. As a soloist, Madoka has appeared with Littleton Symphony Orchestra, Philharmonia of Greater Kansas City, Lamont Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra Haruka (Sapporo, Japan), and has performed at Carnegie’s Weil Recital Hall in 2010. Previous fellowships, assistantships and awards have included Music Academy of the West (2017), Aspen Music Festival and School (2016), Associate Instructor for Music Theory at Indiana University (M.M., 2012-14), the Sarah C. Morrison Award for Excellence in Piano and 1st Prize in Solo Honor’s Competition from University of Denver (B.M.). Her teachers and coaches have included Steven Mayer, Evelyne Brancart, Shigeo Neriki, Rebecca Penneys, Rita Sloan and Jonathan Feldman.

Matt Richards is currently the principal percussionist of the Missouri Symphony and a percussionist with the Midland-Odessa Symphony and Chorale. He has also performed with the Houston Symphony, Fort Worth Symphony, San Antonio Symphony, New World Symphony, Fort Wayne Philharmonic, Abilene Philharmonic, Big Spring Symphony, San Juan Symphony, Kaleidoscope Chamber Orchestra, Thousand Oaks Philharmonic, and the Downey Symphony. Matt completed a graduate certificate in percussion performance at the USC Thornton School of Music, studying under Jim Babor and Joe Pereira of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. In addition, he holds a Master’s degree from California State University, Northridge and a Bachelor’s from the University of California Santa Barbara. Matt was also an instrumental fellow of the National Orchestral Institute, Orchestra of the Americas, and Marrowstone music festival. You can hear Matt on the Naxos recording “American Classics” released in 2016. Matt has over ten years of teaching experience, ranging from middle school through college, with 4 years of experience in Texas Schools. He has had countless students make region bands, and much success in the All-state competition. His teaching style is known for its energetic and fun approach.

A native of Brisbane, Australia, pianist Maxwell Foster started studying the piano at the age of three. Maxwell has made numerous appearances at Hammer Hall, the Sydney Opera House, the Perth Concert Hall, and the Queensland Performing Arts Centre, and has performed at such international venues as Carnegie Hall and Wigmore Hall. After moving to Melbourne at the age of twelve, Maxwell attended the Australian National Academy of Music under the guidance of Rita Reichman. During his time in Melbourne, Maxwell became a staple amongst the classical music community, winning the Young Performer of the Year award and regularly appearing in the concert seasons of every major Orchestra in Australia. Maxwell has gained his Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees at the Juilliard School, and his Master of Musical Arts degree at Yale University. Maxwell is now pursuing his Doctorate of Musical Arts degree at the Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins under the guidance of Yong-hi Moon.

Michel Taddei leads a varied career as performer, educator, and administrator. He is Principal Bassist of the San Francisco Chamber Orchestra, the Berkeley Symphony, the Fremont Symphony, the Pacific Chamber Orchestra, Symphony Napa Valley, and the Mendocino Music Festival, and is Assistant Principal Bass of the California Symphony. Other groups with which he has performed include the San Francisco Symphony, the New Century Chamber Orchestra, the Russian National Orchestra, and he works frequently with recording orchestras at Skywalker Sound. Chamber music is a passion for Michel -- a founding member of the Left Coast Chamber Ensemble, he has performed with groups including the Bella Trio, Empyrean Ensemble, Earplay, Quartet San Francisco, Musica Marin, Ensemble SF, the San Francisco Contemporary Music Players, the Del Sol and Saint Lawrence String Quartet, and at festivals including Aspen, Tanglewood, Valley of the Moon (on period instruments), Moab, the Musical Days at Forest Hill, French music festivals at Rive-de-Gier and Caves du Roussillon, and the Festival des sept Chapelles in Brittany. He has also performed with Yo Yo Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble on multiple tours in the USA and in Central Asia. Michel studied bass with Homer Mensch at the Juilliard School, and is a graduate of Columbia University, where he was a John Jay National Scholar. He served as Principal Bass of the Orchestre de l’Opéra National de Lyon, where he played for over seven seasons, touring widely and making numerous recordings on labels including Decca, EMI, Erato, Nonesuch, Philips, and Virgin Classics.

Natalie Gaynor joined the Houston Grand Opera and Houston Ballet Orchestras in March 2017 as Principal Second Violin. Natalie performs frequently with the Houston Symphony and has also played with the San Diego Symphony, San Antonio Symphony, and New World Symphony. She's a member of the first violin section at Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music, collaborating with living composers to perform world premieres and new classical works. She has earned fellowships to music festivals throughout the world including the Aspen Music Festival, Music Academy of the West, Pacific Music Festival in Japan, New York String Orchestra Seminar, and Sarasota Music Festival. During her master’s degree at Rice University, she served as concertmaster of the Shepherd School Opera and Chamber orchestras. As a member of the Maroon Belles String Quartet, she has been invited multiple summers to participate in the Strings Music Festival in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, engaging in community outreach and educational performances as well as collaborating with musicians from the Cleveland Orchestra, Chicago Symphony, and the Metropolitan Opera. Natalie performs in a wide variety of settings throughout the Houston area including COVID-friendly neighborhood/porch concerts, solo and collaborative recitals, weddings and special events, Harmony in the Air at Houston Hobby Airport, and recording studio projects. Born and raised in Arlington Heights, Illinois, Natalie began her violin studies at age six, and piano lessons a year later. She began her undergraduate degree at the Cleveland Institute of Music and transferred to Rice University to follow her teacher, renowned violin pedagogue Paul Kantor. Natalie earned Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, and also completed a Minor in Business at the Jones Graduate School of Business.

Cellist Nathan Chan made his musical debut at age three conducting the San Jose Chamber Orchestra. He has performed as a soloist with the San Francisco Symphony, The Royal Philharmonic, and the Albany Symphony, among others. Mr. Chan was named a 2012 Davidson Fellow for his project entitled "The Importance of Passion” and was awarded a $25,000 scholarship as part of this prestigious honor. While in New York City, he made his debut in Avery Fisher Hall (now David Geffen Hall) playing Haydn's Cello Concerto in C Major and with the Juilliard Orchestra performing Strauss' Don Quixote as the winner of the 2013 Juilliard Cello Concerto Competition, led by Maestro Leonard Slatkin. In 2015, Mr. Chan won the Aspen Low Strings Concerto Competition playing Haydn’s Cello Concerto in D Major and was a recipient of the 2016 Samuel Mayes Memorial Cello Award at Tanglewood. Chan was a chosen artist for Fondation Louis Vuitton Classe de Excellence du Violoncelle with renowned cellist Gautier Capuçon. A man of many interests, Mr. Chan earned his Bachelor’s degree in economics from Columbia University and has a growing internet presence with over 87 million views (@nathanchancello). He studied with Richard Aaron at The Juilliard School, where he earned his Masters of Music. He is currently Assistant Principal Cello of the Seattle Symphony. (Picture Credit Mike Grittani)

"Cellist Nicholas Mariscal is the newly-appointed Assistant Principal Cellist of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra. He has appeared as guest principal cellist with the Trondheim Symphony Orchestra on their 2019 South Korean tour, and has performed as principal cello of the Fjord Cadenza Festival orchestra in Ålesund, Norway. A recent alumnus of the New World Symphony in Miami, Mariscal is a winner of the orchestra’s concerto competition, performing Khachaturian’s Concerto-Rhapsody for cello and orchestra. In 2018, he made his professional concerto debut performing the same work with the Tucson Symphony Orchestra. Additionally, he is a top prize winner in the Sphinx, Edith Knox, and Indiana University Latin American Music Center competitions. As an ardent performer of new and lesser-known music, Mariscal has been involved in dozens of premieres of new works, and has performed extensively as a member of the Aspen
Contemporary Ensemble, the Indiana University New Music Ensemble, and USC’s Thornton EDGE ensemble. Following his Aspen performance of Tan Dun’s Elegy: Snow in June for cello and percussion ensemble, The Aspen Times wrote, “Mariscal seemed born to play Dun’s soulful, endlessly inventive and expressive music. With rock-solid technique and undeniable star quality, Mariscal seemed less a student getting a break than a bona fide artist.” A passionate proponent of Latin American music, he has recorded rarely-heard music for unaccompanied cello by 20th and 21st century composers including Osvaldo Golijov, Alberto Ginastera, and Paul Desenne, and is a frequent programmer and performer of music from Latin America. Also an avid chamber musician, Mariscal has performed with esteemed artists such as Midori Goto, Jorja Fleezanis, Tamás Varga, Atar Arad, and Paul Kantor. Mariscal received his Bachelor of Music degree from Indiana University under the tutelage of Eric Kim, and received a Master of Music degree and a Graduate Certificate from the University of Southern California, where he studied with David Geringas and Ralph Kirshbaum."

Hailed by the Washington Post as a performer with "no-fail agility," Nick Montopoli is one of the most versatile musicians in the Austin area, with composition, performance, and session experience over a wide range of genres and instruments. Nick is a founding member of Invoke, a folk-infused quartet whose repertoire features original compositions by the group and works by exciting young American composers. Invoke won First Prize at the 2018 M-Prize and Coltman competitions, and at the 2015 Savvy Musician in ACTION competition. The group has been selected as Young Professional String Quartet in Residence at the University of Texas and Artists in Residence at Strathmore, and has held residency positions at institutions around the country. As a composer, Nick’s work includes both concert and media music. His compositions with Invoke have been featured as NPR’s “Best of SXSW”, and include several live re-scorings of classic films. He records, arranges, and produces from his home studio in Austin, where he has collaborated on hundreds of recordings with artists from over 30 countries. Nick won First Prize winner in the 2020 California Independent Film Festival score competition, and also works in the studio of acclaimed composer Graham Reynolds, where he participated on scores for feature films and releases for major networks including Netflix and the BBC. Nick’s performances, compositions, and arrangements can also be heard on records by Chris Brown, Ruut, Marian McLaughlin, and more. He holds an Artist Diploma from the University of Texas, and a BM and MM from the University of Maryland.

Noah Kay joined the Colorado Springs Philharmonic as its principal oboist in 2017. He has toured and performed with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra in Germany; the Czech Republic; Washington, D.C.; and Warsaw, Poland, where they recorded an album of Mendelssohn’s piano concerti with soloist Jan Lisiecki on the Deutsche Grammophon label. Most recently, he joined the group for a premiere of a new arrangement of Tchaikovsky’s The Seasons at Carnegie Hall. Mr. Kay has also performed with the Colorado Symphony, Princeton Symphony, ProMusica Columbus, and Symphoria. He appeared as a fellow of the National Repertory Orchestra in Breckenridge, Colorado in the summer of 2018. Other summer festivals include the Manchester Music Festival, Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, Sarasota Music Festival, and Cape May Music Festival.

Orlando Bass, born in 1994, is a Franco-British pianist, harpsichord player, composer and improviser. He holds master's degrees in solo piano (R. Muraro) and chamber music (I. Golan), compositional techniques (under F. Waksman, J.-B. Courtois, T. Escaich and A. Mabit), and piano accompaniment (J.- F. Neuburger and E. Guiomar), from the Paris CNSM. In recent years he has obtained prizes in a number of International competitions; these include the Grand-Prix at the Paris CFRPM Festival-Competition for Modern Piano Repertoire (April 2016), first prize at Les Virtuoses du Cœur (March 2016) and winner of the Bologna Harpsichord Competition (Italy) run by the Paola Bernardi Foundation (November 2015). As a composer, his catalogue mainly includes instrumental chamber music, works for solo piano and two operas - to which should be added regular live improvisations to silent films. On a musicological front, he has particularly championed the work of French composer, engraver and painter Michel Ciry through on-going recordings and analytical research papers. Whether as a soloist or chamber player, Orlando Bass is a keen interpreter of modern and contemporary music and has given numerous first performances of new works. Among his recordings are: 4 CDs of transcriptions for 2 harpsichords with fellow harpsichordist Mireille Podeur for Maguelone publishing company, a CD of 20th and 21st century Preludes and Fugues for solo piano with indéSens, and a CD of world premieres for solo piano with DUX. He is since June 2019 a laureate of the Banque Populaire foundation.

Phoebe Gardner is a violinist and violin teacher based in Sydney, Australia, where she is also an Emerging Artist with the Australian Chamber Orchestra for 2020/21. In December 2019, Phoebe graduated with a Bachelor of Music in Violin Performance from The Juilliard School, where she studied with Itzhak Perlman and Catherine Cho, and was supported by the Dorothy DeLay Violin Scholarship. Phoebe has performed as a soloist and chamber musician throughout the United States, Britain, Norway, Germany, Israel and Australia. She has won prizes in several national competitions in the U.S. and Australia, and has attended and been awarded fellowships to summer festivals throughout the U.S. and Europe, including the Perlman Music Program Summer Music School and Chamber Music Workshop, Conservatoire américain de Fontainebleau, Aspen Music Festival and School and Valdres Sommersymfoni. Throughout her time at The Juilliard School, Phoebe was privileged to work with wonderful conductors including Alan Gilbert, Pablo Heras-Casado and Michael Tilson Thomas, and to be coached in chamber music with members of the Juilliard String Quartet. She was also invited to perform in masterclasses for the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Centre and musicians of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra.

Violinist Rachel Koblyakov performs regularly as both soloist and chamber musician throughout Europe and abroad, appearing in various halls, among them are the Printemps des Arts Festival of Monte-Carlo, Monaco, the ElbPhilharmonie Hamburg, the Philharmonie de Paris, Lucerne Festival and various stages across the US. At age 12 she gave her solo debut with the Central Illinois Youth Orchestra, and has since performed as soloist with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio-France under the baton of Pierre-Andrè Valade, among others. An avid supporter of the music of today, she has had the fortune to work closely with a number of composers, including Wolfgang Rihm, Matthias Pintscher, Stefano Gervasoni and Samuel Andreyev, and as guest with various new music ensembles, including Ensemble Modern and Ensemble Intercontemporain. As soloist and first violinist of the Ukho Ensemble Kyiv she has given countless premieres of works by various composers, including the recording of four discs. She holds Bachelor's and Master's degrees from The Juilliard School of Music, New York, on full scholarship with Ronald Copes, an Artist Diploma from the Conservatoire Supérieur National de Musique de Paris, and has studied on full scholarship with Igor Volochine at the Ecole Normale de Musique - Salle Cortot. Passionate about collaboration between the arts, she has curated and performed various programs, and is founder of the kobweb. She can be heard in duo-collaboration with pianist Orlando Bass on a CD for Triton. Her upcoming solo debut CD is due for release in 2021. PC Michael Webber

Russell Houston, praised by the Dallas Morning News for his “intrinsically musical [playing],” is quickly establishing himself as a well rounded musician. Mr. Houston has performed as soloist with orchestras including the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Greater Dallas Youth Orchestra, and Plano Symphony Orchestra, among others. He has won numerous prizes and awards including top prizes at the Sorantin International Competition, Lynn Harrell Concerto Competition, and the Northwestern University Chamber Music Competition. As a member of the Balourdet String Quartet, he received the second prize in the 2019 Carl Nielsen International Chamber Music Competition in Copenhagen, Denmark. The quartet has performed at the Amelia Island Chamber Music Festival as well as the Aspen Center for Advanced Quartet Studies. His festival appearances have included the Taos School of Music, Piatigorsky International Cello Festival, Aspen Music Festival, Pyongchang Music Festival, Kneisel Hall, Sarasota Music Festival, New York String Orchestra Seminar, Orford Academy, and the NAC Young Artist Program in Ottawa, Canada. Russell has had the privilege of playing for prominent artists and pedagogues including Timothy Eddy, David Geringas, Frans Helmerson, Ralph Kirshbaum, Ronald Leonard, Laurence Lesser, Johannes Moser, Daniel Müller-Schott, Wolfgang Emanuel Schmidt, Janos Starker, and Jian Wang. Russell currently studies with Paul Katz in the Professional String Quartet Program. Houston holds degrees from the Colburn Conservatory, Northwestern University, and Rice University. His primary teachers were Clive Greensmith, Hans Jensen, and Brinton Smith.

A native of Cincinnati, Ohio, Ryan Donohue began his musical studies at the age of three at the encouragement of his mother, a professional violist. He attended high school at Cincinnati's School for Creative and Performing Arts, received his bachelor’s degree in cello performance from the University of Cincinnati: College-Conservatory of Music, and has participated in renowned music festivals, such as the Pacific Music Festival, Opera in the Ozarks, the Kent/Blossom Music Festival - a partnership with the Cleveland Orchestra – and the Green Mountain Chamber Music Festival. From 2018-2020, Mr. Donohue served as the Montgomery Symphony Orchestra's Artist in Residence; he has also performed with the Blue Ash/Montgomery Symphony Orchestra, the Charleston Symphony, and the Alabama Symphony Orchestra, among many other groups.

Japanese-American violinist Ryo Usami has appeared around the world as a versatile musician. He has performed violin and viola alongside members of the Brentano Quartet, Orion Quartet, Philadelphia Orchestra, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and the Berlin Philharmonic, and has appeared in masterclasses led by Gil Shaham, Johnny Gandelsman, Rainer Kuchl, Gordon Nikolic, and Stephan Picard. Ryo is currently a member of “The President’s Own” US Marine Band in Washington DC and regularly performs at the White House and other important government venues. He simultaneously serves as principal second violin of the Santa Barbara Symphony. Prior to joining the Marine Band, Ryo had performed with the San Diego Symphony, Pacific Symphony, Hollywood Studio Orchestra, Boston Pops Orchestra, Charleston Symphony, and Harrisburg Symphony. He also participated in the Colorado (Boulder), Orchestra of the Americas, Dali, Pacific (Japan), and Aurora (Sweden) Music Festivals. Ryo received a Master of Music degree from the New England Conservatory and a Bachelor of Music degree from the Peabody Conservatory. Notable instructors and mentors include Ayano Ninomiya, Violaine Melancon, Simeon Simeonov, and Akiko Hirose Silver.

A native of Arizona, Samuel Park started playing the violin at 5 years old and made his solo debut with the Phoenix Symphony Orchestra at the age of 15. An enthusiastic and devoted chamber musician, Samuel has collaborated with notable artists such as Gil Shaham, David and Phillip Ying, Desmond Hoebig, and Brinton Smith. He most recently performed in a chamber music recital at the Mendelssohn-Haus in Leipzig and Händel-Haus Halle in Germany, and was featured in performances at the Toronto Music Festival with members from the Escher and New Orford String Quartets. Samuel also participated in Juilliard’s 2015 Chamberfest and in George Perle’s Centennial Celebration at the New York Public Library with Perle’s Quartet No. 2. Currently, he is a core member of the Kinetic Ensemble in Houston. In addition to having a passion for chamber music, Samuel served as concertmaster and held principal roles for numerous orchestras, including the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra, the Rice University Shepherd School Symphony Orchestra, the Cleveland Institute of Music Orchestra, and the Juilliard Opera Orchestra. He also participated in several prestigious orchestra festivals, such as the New York String Orchestra Seminar, Music Academy of the West, Pacific Music Festival, and the Tanglewood Music Center. In recent years, Samuel has been fully committed to teaching. He maintained a private studio in Arizona, taught middle and high school students at the Cleveland School for the Arts, and spent time teaching at the Daegu International School in Korea. Currently, he holds an adjunct faculty position at the Lone Star College in Houston. Samuel holds degrees from the Juilliard School and the Cleveland Institute of Music. He is currently a doctoral student at Rice University under the guidance of Paul Kantor. Other primary teachers include Joel Smirnoff, Joan Kwuon, Catherine Cho, and Jonathan Swartz. He plays on an 1828 Johannes Francesco Pressenda violin and a Giovanni Lucchi bow, on generous loan from the Maestro Foundation.

Sebastian Zinca has conducted the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Lahti Symphony Orchestra, the Tapiola Sinfonietta, the Jyväskylä Sinfonia, the North Czeck Philharmonic, and the Bohuslav Martinů Philharmonic. In 2019, he made his opera debut in Helsinki with a production of Handel’s Alcina. He won the President’s Prize at the 2018 European Music Academy, and in 2019 was a conducting fellow at the Aspen Music Festival. He is currently finishing his studies at the Sibelius Academy as a student of Sakari Oramo He earned his bachelor’s degree in double bass at the Juilliard School.

Sergio Carleo, a Venezuelan-born violinist residing in Miami, FL. He made his solo debut in Venezuela, where he performed Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 3 accompanied by the Simon Bolivar Orchestra and under the baton of maestro Gustavo Dudamel. Mr. Carleo has been awarded first price at the Maurice Hasson national violin competition and is the Grand Prix winner of the LISMA foundation international music competition. He has been a pupil of some of the most prominent professors in the classical music world such as Jose Francisco del Castillo, Albert Markov, Daniel Phillips, Aaron Rosand and Elmar Oliveira. He has also participated in several master classes with world-renowned artists such as Glenn Dicterow, Salvatore Accardo, Claudio Abbado, Shlomo Mintz, Ivry Gitlis, among others. As an orchestral musician, Mr. Carleo has served as a concertmaster of the Bard College Conservatory Orchestra in New York City, Concertmaster of the Lynn University Philharmonia in Florida, has played as a section member of the Grant Park Symphony Orchestra in Chicago, and he currently is a fellow in the New World Symphony in Miami Beach, FL.

Tanner Menees is a young violist rising in the U.S. chamber music scene. Mr. Menees has collaborated in chamber music performances with artists such as Martin Beaver, Denis Bouriakov, Miriam Fried, Clive Greensmith, Lynn Harrell, Frans Helmerson, Gary Hoffman, Hsin-Yun Huang, Kim Kashkashian, Laurence Lesser, Joseph Lin, Daniel Phillips, Marcy Rosen, Peter Stumpf, Mitsuko Uchida, Donald Weilerstein, and Peter Wiley. In the summers he has performed at festivals such as the Marlboro Music Festival, Ravinia’s Steans Music Institute, Chamberfest Cleveland, Menuhin Festival String Academy, Edinburgh Music Festival, Juilliard String Quartet Seminar, and McGill International String Quartet Academy. Mr. Menees earned his Bachelor of Music degree and Artist Diploma studying with Paul Coletti at the Colburn School and earned his Master of Music degree with Kim Kashkashian at the New England Conservatory. He is continuing his studies with Nobuko Imai at the Escuela Superior de Musica Reina Sofia in Madrid.

Cellist Taylor Skiff received his Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 2013 and his Master of Music degree from The Juilliard School in 2015. Taylor’s past cello teachers include Timothy Eddy, Parry Karp, and Uri Vardi. He has also received instruction from cellists Eric Bartlett, Alban Gerhardt, Ralph Kirshbaum, Ronald Leonard, Amit Peled, and Peter Wiley. Taylor has been a featured soloist with multiple orchestras, including the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra and the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, performing Ludwig van Beethoven’s Triple Concerto, Ernest Bloch’s Schelomo, Antonín Dvořák’s Cello Concerto, and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Variations on a Rococo Theme.

Theo Van Dyck is a trumpet artist and teacher based in New York City. He enjoys a versatile performing career and has performed internationally as a soloist, chamber musician, and jazz artist. Theo has commissioned and recorded several new works for trumpet including Pulitzer Prize winner Du Yun’s GRAMMY-nominated recording, Air Glow. Theo holds degrees in trumpet performance from The Juilliard School and Yale University. Recently, Theo has performed with numerous ensembles, including: International Contemporary Ensemble, San Antonio Symphony, S.E.M. Ensemble, MOD Brass, New York Chamber Players Orchestra, and Binghamton Philharmonic. As an educator, he has many years of private teaching experience, has presented outreach events to hundreds of students across the country, and has led masterclasses at schools including The Juilliard School and The Shanghai Conservatory. Theo is a member of the The Brass Project, “A sextet focused on diverse styles and audiences” - Musical America.

Tia Allen has performed at Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall, Radio City Music Hall, Madison Square Garden, Metropolitan Museum, Royal Opera House of Muscat, and the Teatro Nacional in Santo Domingo. As a freelance artist in New York City she has performed with Tony Bennett, Lady Gaga, The Eagles, Anderson Paak, Nas, Mark Ronson, Miley Cyrus, Cynthia Erivo, Shobean, Halsey, Kygo, Dua Lipa, Michael Bolton, Frank Ocean, Bebe Winans, Seal, and Cee-Lo to name a few. Broadway performances include My Fair Lady (Lincoln Center theatre), Spongebob Squarepants (Palace theatre), An American in Paris (Palace theatre), and On the Town(Lyric theatre). She has made televised performances on the Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Law and Order: SVU, Saturday Night Live, Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, The Today Show, Good Morning America, and The Wendy Williams Show as well as several appearances in major blockbuster films. Per request of Lorin Maazel she performed as principal violist at his Castleton Music Festival. Tia Began playing the viola under the tutelage of Alice Young, and Miles Hoffman in her hometown of Columbia, Maryland. She is a two time Geraldine Gee Competition winner from University of Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music where she received her BM and MM in performance. After completing her studies in Cincinnati with Masao Kawasaki and Dr. Catharine Lees, she moved to New York City where she studied with Karen Dreyfus at Manhattan School of Music and received a Professional Studies certificate in Performance, and a Professional Graduate Diploma in the Orchestral Performance Program. With a passion for chamber music she is the founder, director, and violist of Diverse Concert Artists with contracted performances at the Kennedy Center and BAM featuring Bryce Dessner’s Triptych (Eyes of One on Another). In addition, she performs with the Harlem Chamber players and the MUNY Program. As educator she teaches with the Harlem School for the Arts and has held an educational chamber music residency at the University of Iowa with Harlem Symphony Chamber Players and University of Massachusets, Lowell with Quatuor Mahogony.

Toby Chan was appointed Co-principal Bassoon of the Hong Kong Philharmonic (HK Phil) in 2016. As an active orchestral musician, he has performed with orchestras including the New York Philharmonic, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Cleveland Orchestra and the BBC national orchestra of Welsh. He has worked under the batons of world renowned conductors including Michael Tilson Thomas, Andris Nelsons, Charles Dutoit, Lorin Maazel, Fabio Luisi, to name a few. In summer of 2015 and 2016, he was an orchestra fellow at the Tanglewood Music Festival. He was also a member of the Asian Youth Orchestra in 2010 and 2011. In 2014, Chan was invited to perform with The Hong Kong Obsession at the International Double Reed Conference in New York. From 2011 to 2014, he held the vice-chairman position of Hong Kong bassoon ensemble The Bassoonion, and gave numerous ensemble concerts aimed at promoting the bassoon to the public. He was a winner of The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (HKAPA) Concerto Trial 2011 and performed the Vanhal's Concerto for Two Bassoons with HKAPA's Academy Symphony Orchestra. He was chosen as one of the "2012 Young Music Makers" by the Radio Television of Hong Kong (RTHK) and recorded an album, radio and television programmes with RTHK. After receiving the Bachelors of Music degree from the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (HKAPA), Chan pursued his Master of Music degree at the Juilliard School in New York, under Ms. Judith LeClair, the Principal Bassoon of the New York Philharmonic. He was awarded the Bernard van Zuiden Music Fund Scholarship and the Juilliard Scholarship in support of his education. Currently, Chan is also a chamber music faculty in the Academy.

Praised for his “sensitive” playing by the Santa Barbara Independent, violinist Tom Yaron has performed in various constellations in North America, Europe, and Asia as concertmaster of the Moritzburg Festival Orchestra in Germany, Pacific Music Festival in Japan, and the Sarasota Festival Orchestra. He holds a bachelor’s degree from The University of California, Santa Barbara, a master’s degree from the Juilliard School and an Artist Diploma in String Quartet Studies from the University of Colorado. Yaron was a founding member of the Ajax Quartet which served as the graduate string quartet in residence at the University of Colorado, Boulder. He performs with the Boulder Bach Festival, Boulder Chamber Orchestra, and Lincoln Center Stage (Holland America Line), and is a substitute violinist with the New World Symphony in Miami.

Fresh off hitting the No.1 spot on the Australian iTunes Classical charts (2018, 2017, 2016), and becoming the first Australian-Vietnamese to ever in history enter the US iTunes Classical Charts in 2017, concert pianist and composer Van-Anh Nguyen has become a worldwide sensation and in-demand artist, leading an intense touring career across the globe and is the newest Artist addition to the Universal Music/Decca Records family. She has won several awards and prizes during her piano studies across Australia, having taken out the Kawai Piano Award (Australia) and the Audience Prize in the 13th Sommerklavierfest, Bad-Bertrich (Germany) and won the 2011 Excellence in Youth Awards for Arts & Culture, NSW. She currently has 7 albums released on all major digital music outlets. 2016 saw her complete a successful 15-city concert tour through China performing at sold out venues such as the Forbidden City Concert Hall and the Shanghai Oriental Arts Centre. features in L’Officiel Magazine, Elle Magazine Vietnam and Harpers Bazaar Magazine as a music icon and has hosted her own TV show on Discovery Channel Asia. She currently resides between Sydney and Los Angeles. Her bubbly personality and emotive playing has graced the stages Australia including the Sydney Opera House, City Recital Hall, Segerstrom Center of the Arts (California USA), Jones Hall (Houston, Texas) and many more.

Violinist William Shaub was appointed Concertmaster of the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra in May of 2017. Since his concerto debut with the Canton Symphony Orchestra at age 12 he has captivated audiences as a soloist, in recitals, and from the concertmaster chair. The winner of an inaugural Academy Fellowship with the New York Philharmonic and a graduate of the Juilliard School, he has been praised in the press as “a wonderful ambassador for music” (Cleveland Classical) and for performances "full of passion and energy, exquisitely rendered with refined details that escape one in recordings". He made his recital debut in New York as one of ten "Exceptional Young Artists" at the 2013 Starling-DeLay Symposium at Juilliard. William Shaub's solo appearances include recent performances with the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra, the Canton Symphony Orchestra, the Suburban Symphony Orchestra, and in venues such as Carnegie Hall's Weill Hall, Severance Hall in Cleveland, and Sanders Theatre at Harvard. He made his concerto debut with the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra in 2019 under the baton of conductor Mei-Ann Chen, performing Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto. In addition to performing as substitute with the New York Philharmonic, he has served as guest Leader of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (U.K.) and as concertmaster of festival orchestras, including Spoleto and the Music Academy of the West. He performs on a violin made by Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume, from 1865.

Praised for “her technical quality, beauty of sound, and above all, the projection of an uncommon musical sensibility" (El Norte, Monterrey), Violinist Yezu Elizabeth Woo made her debut at Carnegie Hall at age 16, where she became the youngest performer to play all 24 of Niccolo Paganini’s Caprices for solo violin. Yezu has been invited to perform at the Lincoln Center, United Nations (NY), the Smetana Hall (Prague), Musikverein (Vienna), Alte Oper (Frankfurt), and Kölner Philharmonie, and has recorded for EMI Classics and MOOK Sound. She was the artistic director and co-founder of Shattered Glass, a NYC string ensemble, which debuted to great acclaim in 2012. Winner of the Korean national award, "Outstanding International Musician of the Year" by the Arts Critics Association, as well as "Artist of the Year'' by the Gangwon Foundation, Yezu was appointed as Honorary Ambassador of the City of Chuncheon, where she is currently serving as the the Artistic Director of New York in Chuncheon Music Festival. Her commitment to Korean traditional and new music has led her to performances at the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) ‘ART FESTA’ as part of the ongoing peace process between the two Koreas, as well as seeing collaborations with the KBS Korean Traditional Orchestra. Born in Freiburg, Germany, Yezu moved to the U.S. from South Korea at age 10 to study with Albert Markov. She received her B.M. Degree from the Manhattan School of Music, M.M. Degree at The Juilliard School, and Performance Certificate from Bard Conservatory. She is currently pursuing her Doctorate Degree at the Stony Brook University. Her principal teachers include Albert Markov, Catherine Cho, Laurie Smukler, Arnaud Sussmann and the members of the Emerson Quartet. Yezu is a recipient of Fulbright Scholarship (‘19-20) in Germany, where she was a member of the Ensemble Modern Academy, Frankfurt, and a researcher at the Isang-Yun-Haus in Berlin. She is currently based in Berlin, Germany.

Yumi Hwang-Williams made her debut at the age of fifteen as a soloist with the Philadelphia Orchestra, six years afer emigrating from South Korea. A graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music, she is known today both for her stylish performances of the classics and her commitment to the works of present-day composers. STRINGS magazine calls her ‘a modern Prometheus’ who has ‘emerged as a fery champion of contemporary classical music.’ Her interpretations of concertos by Tomas Adès, Aaron Jay Kernis, Michael Daugherty, and Christopher Rouse have earned critical acclaim as well as enthusiastic approval from the composers. Yumi is a frequent soloist with the Colorado Symphony and has soloed with other major orchestras both in the U.S. and abroad, including the Cincinnati Symphony , the Indianapolis Symphony, Sinfonieorchester Basel (Switzerland), and the Bruckner Orchester Linz (Austria), in collaboration with conductors Marin Alsop, Dennis Russell Davies, Hans Graf, Paavo Järvi, and Peter Oundjian. An avid chamber musician, she has performed with Gary Graffman, Ida Kavafan, Jeffrey Kahane, Christopher O’Riley, Jon Kimura Parker, and Andrew Litton. Since 2000 Yumi has been Concertmaster of the Colorado Symphony. She was Concertmaster of the Cabrillo Festival Orchestra for twelve years and Guest Concertmaster for the National Arts Centre Orchestra, Ottawa, at the invitation of Music Director Pinchas Zukerman. She’s a frequent guest frst violinist with the Philadelphia Orchestra and a faculty member at Denver University’s Lamont School of Music.