Meet Our Orchestra

VIOLIN I

  • Laura Hamilton

    Concertmaster, Violin I

  • Masha Andreini

    Assistant Concertmaster, Violin I

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Biographies

  • Laura Hamilton was Principal Associate Concertmaster for the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, where she led hundreds of performances over 33 years. She was concertmaster for many of the MET's popular “Live in HD” videocasts, including Carmen, Parsifal, Turandot, Faust, Salome, and Madama Butterfly. Previously a member of the Chicago Symphony, she appeared there as concerto soloist with Maestro Georg Solti. Since 2020 Laura has been the Interim Artistic Director for the summer festival Classical Tahoe in Nevada, where she is also Concertmaster. She also teaches and performs at Festival Napa Valley, and previously played in the Marlboro, Manchester, and Bard Music Festivals, in summer festivals in Norway and Greece, and on the Met Chamber Ensemble series at Carnegie Hall. She appeared as guest concertmaster with the Seattle Symphony, the American Symphony Orchestra, the Welsh National Opera, and the Adelaide Symphony in Australia. In 2014, while on leave from the MET, Laura served for one season as concertmaster at the Sydney Opera House. Born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, Laura is a graduate of Manhattan School of Music, where she held the Nathan Milstein Scholarship. She teaches violin and chamber music at New York University.

    Laura first performed with CityMusic in May 2019 as guest concertmaster for Verdi's Requiem to commemorate Yom ha-Sho’ah.

  • Born and raised in Moscow, Russia, violinist Masha Andreini studied at Moscow Central Special Music School and the Moscow Conservatory. In 1990, she received a full scholarship to study with Almita and Roland Vamos at the University of Minnesota. During her studies, she won several concerto competitions and participated in the Paganini Competition in Genoa, Italy and the Bach Competition in Germany.

    Andreini has concertized across Russia, Europe, and the United States as a soloist and chamber musician. She has performed with prominent orchestras as both a soloist and an orchestra member, including the Gorky Symphony in Russia, Orquesta de Julian Orbon in Spain, and the Moscow Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra..

    Andreini joined CityMusic Cleveland in 2006, and is the orchestra’s Assistant Concertmaster.

  • Chamber music being a first love, violinist Susan Britton is happy to have joined City Music in 2017. Currently, she also plays with the BlueWater Chamber Orchestra, Akron Symphony and Cleveland Chamber Symphony. Formerly she has been a member of red ( an orchestra), Trinity Chamber Orchestra, Ohio Chamber Orchestra, Cleveland Opera and Ballet and the Canton Symphony.

    Further afield she has performed at the Chiesa della Pieta in Venice Italy and the Basilica of Sant’Eufemia in Grado Italy with the Free Stamp Quartet as well as recording modern works for violin and piano in Udine Italy.

    Chamber music has brought her to festivals including Taos, Norfolk, Adirondack, Grand Cayman Island and the Castle Festival in Heidelberg Germany.

    Ms. Britton has performed as a soloist with the Wooster Symphony and the Trinity Chamber Orchestra, also offering recitals at Plymouth Church’s Herr Chapel. She has played numerous concerts featuring works for piano trio at Trinity Cathedral.

    Her studies include degrees from the Eastman School of Music, University of Michigan and the Cleveland Institute under the guidance of teachers Zvi Zeitlin, Camilla Wickes, Donald Weilerstein and Peter Salaff.

    Although Susan has found a home in the musical landscape of Cleveland, the forests and lakes of her native Upper Peninsula of Michigan are forever her source of inspiration.

  • Bruno Lunkes joined City Music Cleveland in 2022.

    A native of Brazil, he holds a Bachelor of Music degree from the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, where he studied with Hella Frank and Fredi Gerling, and both a Master of Music and a Doctor of Musical Arts degrees from Texas Tech University, where he was a teaching assistant to Annie Chalex Boyle.

    While still an undergraduate student, Bruno won a full time position with the Caxias do Sul Symphony in Brazil, while also performing regularly with the Theatro São Pedro Chamber Orchestra and the Unisinos Anchieta Orchestra. In the US, he has performed with the symphonies of Akron, Firelands, Mansfield, Lubbock, Amarillo, West Texas, Big Spring, the ballets of Lubbock, Midland, and San Angelo, the Lubbock Chamber Orchestra, and with Chamber Music Amarillo.

    As a soloist, he has performed the works of Mozart, Bach, and others in Texas, Colorado, Ohio, and Brazil. Festival appearances include the Oregon Bach Festival as student of the Berwick Academy, Sewanee Summer Music Festival as a teaching fellow, and Hot Springs Music Festival as concertmaster of the festival orchestra.

    An avid chamber musician, Dr. Lunkes has performed works ranging from the Renaissance to the present day in Georgia, Tennessee, Arkansas, Texas, New Mexico, Ohio, Oregon, and has been coached by members of the Vermeer, Axelrod, Arianna, and Marian Anderson string quartets.

    In 2022, Bruno joins the prestigious Historical Performance Practice program at Case Western

    Reserve University in Cleveland, where he will be studying baroque violin with Dr. Julie Andrijeski and harpsichord with Dr. Peter Bennett.

    Bruno’s recordings have been released by the Sony Classical, OSESP Digital, and UCS labels.

  • Biography to be added soon.

  • Konrad Kowal is a Chicago born Polish-American violinist. He currently studies at the Cleveland Institute of Music (CIM) with Dr. Olga Kaler and Professor Malcolm Lowe, working towards a Doctor of Musical Arts Degree.

    Konrad serves as the concertmaster of the Canton Symphony Orchestra and the Lexington Bach Festival Orchestra. He also performs with the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, the Columbus Symphony Orchestra, and CityMusic Cleveland. He has previously served as concertmaster of the DePaul Symphony Orchestra, Chautauqua Music Festival Symphony Orchestra, Cleveland Opera, and the CIM Orchestra, working with conductors such as Cliff Colnot, Timothy Muffitt, and Carlos Kalmar among others.

    As a soloist, Konrad was a winner of the Park Ridge Civic Orchestra Scholarship Competition, received honorable mention in the DePaul Concerto Competition, and was a semi-finalist in the Kosciuszko Foundation Wieniawski Competition. He has had lessons and masterclasses with world-renowned artists such as Ilya Kaler, Robert Chen, Konstanty Andrzej Kulka, and Yo-Yo Ma among others and regularly performs solo and chamber music recitals in Chicago and Cleveland.

    2022-23 Season highlights include performing as concertmaster of the CIM Orchestra at Severance Hall, performing Scheherazade with the Canton Symphony Orchestra, and a Recital Tour of Texas.

    In addition to performance, Konrad is a dedicated teacher, who has taught privately since 2014, and since 2019 has been the teaching assistant of Dr. Olga Kaler.

    Konrad plays on a violin made by Joseph Curtin.

  • Born in Houston to a musical family, Cher Liu started her piano studies at age three with her mother, and violin studies at age six. Under the guidance of Fredell Lack, she decided to pursue music as a career at the Cleveland Institute of Music, where she received her two Bachelors’ and Masters’ of Music degrees in violin and piano performance. Her past teachers and mentors have included violinists Ilya Kaler, Ivan Zenaty, Joan Kwuon, Fredell Lack, and Yongchun Li, and pianists Daniel Shapiro, Yigong Shen, Dr. Andrew Parr, Nancy Chin, and Rong Cindy Tan. She has also played for artists Paul Kantor, Michael Frischenschlager, Jinjoo Cho, Dami Kim, Kevork Mardirossian, Kikuei Ikeda and Joela Jones.

    An avid chamber musician, Cher has participated in masterclasses with members of the Emerson String Quartet, Danish String Quartet, and Ehnes Quartet. Former chamber music mentors include Si-Yan Li, Annie Fullard, Mari Sato and Eric Wong of the Cavani String Quartet and Peter Salaff of the Cleveland Quartet. In 2019, she was invited to play for the Cleveland branch of Music for Food with her quartet. She also participated as a fellow at Musikiwest Chamber Music Festival and Centrum Chamber Music Festival. Sheis a performer at Opus 216, an ensemble in Cleveland, Ohio.

    Recent awards include second prize at the MTNA Young Artist Strings Contest (2021), the JCCAA Scholarship (2017), and first prize at the TMTA Instrumental Competition (2016), and the Dorothy Kelley Competition Scholarship (2015). She made her orchestral debut with the Fort Bend Symphony Orchestra playing Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 9 in 2011 and with the Houston Civic Symphony playing Prokofiev’s Violin Concerto No. 2 in 2014.

  • Biography to be added soon.

  • Hadar Zaidel was born in Tel Aviv, Israel. She is pursuing her Master of Music degree in Violin Performance at the Cleveland Institute of Music under the tutelage of Prof. Ilya Kaler. Zaidel has recently earned her Bachelor of Music degree in Violin Performance at the Buchmann-Mehta School of Music (BMSM), Tel Aviv University, under the tutelage of Prof. Hagai Shaham. Zaidel has completed her obligatory service at the Israel Defense Force as a Musician of Excellence (2018-2020). Previously, she has studied the violin with Ms. Nava Milo and Mr. Nitai Zori at the Israel Conservatory of Music, Tel Aviv, and is a graduate of the Music Department at the Thelma-Yellin High School of Arts, Giv’ataim.

    Zaidel has extensive chamber music and orchestral experience. She has been a member of the Gertler Quartet - the representative quartet of the BMSM and is a graduate of various programs of the Jerusalem Music Centre (2013-2018). These include the Young Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, serving as their concertmaster; the David Goldman Program for Outstanding Young Musicians, the Huberman Program and the Ilona Feher Violin Program. Hadar has been broadcasted on radio for the Kol Hamusika station (Israel’s national classical music broadcast station) on several occasions with the Gertler Quartet as well as with chamber music ensembles as part of the David Goldman Program.

    Zaidel’s solo experience includes solo performances with the Tel Aviv Soloist Ensemble under the baton of Barak Tal (2018); the Thelma Yellin Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Guy Feder (2018); and the “Goppisberger Musikfestival und Akademie” festival’s orchestra in Zurich, Switzerland, under the baton of Jonas Alber (2013).

    Zaidel is an active participant of the prestigious Perlman Music Program since 2016 and has participated at the Keshet Eilon Strings Mastercourse (2023, 2022), ISAmasterclass festival (2023, 2019) and the Morningside Music Bridge festival (2018). During aforementioned festivals and in additional collaborations, Zaidel has performed and collaborated with violinist Hagai Shaham and cellists Hillel Zori, Zvi Plesser and Michal Korman.

    Zaidel has participated in masterclasses with world-known violinists, artists and pedagogues, including Itzhak Perlman, Midori, Miriam Fried, Shmuel Ashkenazy, Grigory Kalinovsky, Irina Svetlova, Dora Schwarzberg, Noah Bendix-Balgley, Vadim Gluzman, Daniel Heifetz, Catherine Cho and Li Lin.

    Since 2021 Zaidel is an active member of Musethica, a program organizing performances for diverse audiences in the community, focusing on “audiences with special needs, who are excluded from society and from experiencing music directly” (Musethica’s website). Through the program Zaidel collaborates with Israel’s most prominent professional musicians.

    Zaidel is a recipient of the America-Israel Cultural Foundation (AICF) scholarships since 2013, and is playing on a violin generously loaned by the AICF. Zaidel’s additional awards include the 3rd prizes at both the Strings Competition and the Chamber Music Competition at the Buchmann-Mehta School of Music, May 2022; the Leah and Itzhak Lewin scholarship, June 2018; the 2nd prize at the annual competition of the Israel Conservatory of Music, June 2015; and the 3rd prize at the Israel National Competition, Raanana, March 2013.

  • Biography to be added soon.

VIOLIN II

  • Grace Kawamura Stubbart

    Violin II

  • Guillermo Salas-Suárez

    Violin II

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Biographies

  • Grace Kawamura Stubbart is a violinist and educator of the Metro-Atlanta area. Prior to her studies with Andrew Jennings at the University of Michigan’s Masters program, she completed her undergraduate studies under the tutelage of Helen Hwaya Kim at Kennesaw State University.

    Grace has performed with orchestras such as the Atlanta Opera Orchestra, Georgia Symphony Orchestra, Hawai’i Symphony Orchestra, and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, and currently holds the Assistant Principal Second Violin chair of CityMusic Cleveland Chamber Orchestra. A strong advocate for new music, Grace has premiered and performed many works of composers from the Metro-Detroit and Atlanta areas.

    Grace is currently the Middle School Orchestra Director and private violin instructor of the Lovett School in Atlanta, GA. In her spare time, she enjoys going to the yoga studio and spending time at the stables learning the equestrian sport of dressage. She also loves exploring new restaurants in town and spending time with her husband, timpanist/percussionist Michael Stubbart, and their two bunnies (Mochi and Nori), Great Pyrenees dog (Andre), and cat (Evelyn).

  • Costa Rican Baroque violinist Guillermo Salas-Suárez made his directorial debut with the Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra in 2021. In demand as a period player, he has performed with the Atlanta, Lyra, and Austin Baroque Orchestras, Apollo’s Fire, Bourbon Baroque, and The Newberry Consort. He has been a member of CityMusic Cleveland since 2018, and currently leads its Baroque chamber ensemble.

    Guillermo has collaborated and trained with Malcolm Bilson, Paolo Pandolfo, Jaap ten Linden, Barthold Kuijken, Bruce Dickey, and the late Jeanne Lamon at the early music festivals in Boston, Bloomington (US), Urbino (Italy), Daroca (Spain), Saintes (France), and the Stuttgart Bachwoche (Germany). Guillermo has also shared the stage with conductors and soloists Manfred Honeck, Robert Spano, Yefim Bronfman, Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Midori, Lang Lang, and Renée Fleming, in venues such as the Aspen Music Festival, Severance Hall, the Sala São Paulo (Brazil), and the National Theatres of Costa Rica, Panama, Nicaragua, and Honduras.

    As a scholar on the music from 18th-century Spain and Mexico, Guillermo has presented his research at Boston, Indiana, and Oregon Universities, Early Music America, and Universidad Nacional (Costa Rica). He holds a Doctorate of Musical Arts in Historical Performance from Case Western Reserve University, where he studied with Dr. Julie Andrijeski.

  • A Connecticut born violinist, Shreya Sachdev began her studies at the Hartt School of Music, and now holds degrees from both the Oberlin Conservatory and the Cleveland Institute of Music, under the guidance of teachers David Bowlin and Stephen Rose.

    She currently enjoys an active orchestral, chamber, and freelance career all over Ohio, where she regularly performs with the BlueWater Chamber Orchestra, Canton Symphony, and is now joining CityMusic Cleveland Orchestra starting 2023. She’s also more recently played with the Erie Philharmonic, Buffalo Philharmonic, ProMusica Chamber Orchestra, Symphoria, Akron Symphony, Firelands Symphony, Cleveland Opera Theatre Orchestra, and formerly the Suburban Symphony Orchestra, where she served as Principal Second Violin during their 2016-2017 season.

    Prior to making a home in Cleveland, she’s had the pleasure of sharing the stage with conductors and soloists Robert Spano, Vasily Petrenko, Yefim Bronfman, Garrick Ohlsson, Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Jane Glover, Lawrence Power, Conrad Tao, and Leonard Slatkin, amongst others as a fellowship student at the Aspen Music Festival and School.

    She also has a passion for social work; her work with the nonprofit organization Concerts for Hope has led to performances in several rehabilitation centers for drug and alcohol addiction, schools, homeless shelters, and prisons throughout the country, including Sing Sing Correctional Facility in September 2023.

  • Erick Ramos began his musical studies at the age of 11. At the age of 12 he began with the violin within the El Sistema Program. Later he joined the Monagas Youth and Children’s Orchestras and the Maturín Chamber Orchestra. Erick studied violin and chamber music with Maestro Dr. César Suárez and received lessons with some of the most important teachers of the Latin American Violin Academy in the Barquisimeto. In 2015, he entered the Simón Bolívar Conservatory to study with maestro Efraín Lara, in the city of Caracas while performing with the José Tadeo Monagas Symphony Orchestra. In the same year, he embarked on a Tour to the island of Santa Lucia, in the Caribbean, with the Maturín Chamber Orchestra, also carrying out pedagogical activities with the students of the Saint Lucia School of Music.

    Since the end of 2016, he has lived in the city of Lima, Peru, and since then, Erick has been a member of the Bicentennial National Youth Symphony Orchestra. In Peru, he has been a violin instructor for the Orquestando educational program, as well as music academies and organizations dedicated to cultural development. In 2018, he entered the upper section of the National University of Music of Peru, in which he has participated in various violin recitals, masterclasses, and chamber music.

    Erick has participated in important international festivals such as: The 14th and 15th FEMUSC of 2019 and 2020 (Brazil), Projeto Serioso with the masters Richard Young (Vermeer Quartet) and Richard Roberts (Orchester Symphonique de Montréal), International Festival of Música Guaranda 2019 (Ecuador-Colombia), as well as its Online edition of 2020, the 50th Campos do Jordão International Music Festival of 2019 (Brazil) and the VI Gramado in Concert of 2020 (Brazil). In these festivals he has received classes and shared the stage with great world-class artists, such as: Leon Spierer (Berliner Philharmoniker), Alex Klein and Clara Takarabe (Chicago Symphony Orchestra), Giancarlo Guerrero (Nashville Symphony Orchestra), Charles Stegeman (Duquesne University ), Cármelo de los Santos (University of New Mexico), Claudio Cruz (Orquestra Jovem do Estado de São Paulo), teacher and pedagogue Elisa Fukuda, among others.

    Erick is currently a student of Maestro Samuel Vargas and he continues his pedagogical training as a teacher in the Mentors Program and artistic development by supporting the “Hojas Blancas” social project, both run by the Samuel Vargas International Music Foundation.

  • Biography to be added soon.

  • Theo Bockhorst is a junior at the Cleveland Institute of Music where he studies with Jamie Laredo and Malcolm Lowe. A St. Louis native, he has played as soloist with more than seven orchestras in the St. Louis area, most notably with the St. Louis Symphony during their 2017 season opener. He equally enjoys playing in orchestra, playing frequently with the Canton Symphony and serving as Assistant Concertmaster of the Akron Symphony for the 2022-23 season. Aside from music, Theo enjoys playing soccer and baseball, learning about geography, and most of all, competitive birdwatching.

  • Born and raised in Louisiana, violinist Erina Buchholz is currently pursuing a Performer’s Diploma at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music with Professor Kevork Mardirossian. She earned her Bachelor of Music in violin performance from IU in 2022 as a Herman B Wells Scholar.

    Erina has performed as a soloist with the Gulf Coast Steinway Society Orchestra (Mobile, AL), the Acadiana Symphony (Lafayette, LA), and the Louisiana Youth Orchestra (Baton Rouge, LA).

    Prior to being appointed Concertmaster of the Terre Haute Symphony, Erina served as Principal Second Violin of the THSO for the 2021-2022 and 2022-20223 seasons. In addition to her leadership with the THSO, Erina also serves as assistant concertmaster of the Columbus Indiana Philharmonic and section violinist with the Owensboro Symphony. She was previously a member of the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra.

    Erina holds prizes from the Music Teachers’ National Association Competition, Gulf Coast Steinway Society Competition, and New Orleans ChamberFest. She has performed in masterclasses for many world-famous violin soloists, including Midori, Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, and Mauricio Fuks among many others.

    An avid chamber musician, Erina has greatly benefitted from coachings with members of the Pacifica, Brooklyn Rider, and Harlem quartets, duo526 (Kerry DuWors and Futaba Niekawa), and many others. She has participated in the Bowdoin International Music Festival, Madeline Island Chamber Music, Domaine Forget, Orford Music, International Violin Akademie Saar, and the Ferme de Villefavard Summer Music Academy.

    Erina enjoys yoga (especially hot yoga), reading, and traveling to Japan to visit family – she is a dual citizen of Japan and the United States.

  • Biography to be added soon.

VIOLA

  • Margaret Snyder

    Viola

  • Jonathan Bagg

    Viola

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Biographies

  • Violist Maggie Snyder is Professor of Viola at the University of Georgia, Principal Violist of the Chamber Orchestra of New York, with whom she records for Naxos, and is on the Artist-Faculty of the Brevard Music Festival. She has performed solo recitals, chamber music, concertos and as an orchestral musician throughout the United States and abroad in such halls as the Kennedy and Kauffman Centers, all 3 halls at Carnegie Hall, Merkin Hall, Spivey Hall, and the Seoul Arts Center, and in Greece, Korea, and Russia. She was a semi-finalist of the 2001 Primrose International Viola Competition, made her recital debut in Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall with her sister duo, Allemagnetti in 2009. The group was called a "winning pair" with a "highly promising debut" by the New York Concert Review. She has performed chamber music with members of the Cleveland, Parker, Tokyo, and Jupiter Quartets, Jonathan Carney, David Coucheron, the Aspen String Trio, Jon Manassee, Ivo Van der Werff, Itamar Zorman, Peter Frankl and Orli Shaham, among others.

    She has released four solo recordings since 2012 on the Arabesque Label and one collaborative recording with Michael Heald (violin), and Timothy Lovelace (piano) on Parma. All of her recordings feature world premiere works commissioned from Thomas Pasatieri, Garrett Byrnes, Kamran Ince, and Libby Larsen, and her most recent creative research focuses solely on the promotion of women composers. Her latest recording, released summer of 2023, Womens Writes is a celebration of the 2020 Centennial of Women’s Voting Rights through the commissioning of works for solo viola by American women. Commissions included on that recording are by Gabriela Lena Frank, Gity Razaz, Kirsten Volness, and Virginia Samuel.

    In 2024 she will record her 6th album featuring past, present, and future works by women for viola, including new works by Mary Kouyoumdjian, and Tessa Lark, and a yet-to-be-determined award winner from her international call for scores. She has given masterclasses, clinics, performances, and lecture recitals at universities and music schools throughout the country and abroad, and has served on the faculties of West Virginia University, Ohio University, and the University of Alabama. She was the recipient of the 2018 University of Georgia’s Creative Research Medal in the Humanities and Arts and winner of the 2023 Sandy Beaver Teaching Award at the University of Georgia. Her recordings are available on all regular streaming platforms and more info can be found at here.

  • Jonathan Bagg joined CityMusic as principal violist in 2015. He is Professor and Department Chair at Duke University and is violist with Duke’s Ciompi String Quartet, with whom he has appeared in hundreds of concerts around the world. Bagg is founding Director of Electric Earth Concerts in New Hampshire. As EEC’s artistic director, and as Monadnock Music’s director (2006-2011) he enjoys creating original collaborative works with composers, authors, poets, and choreographers.

    Recently Bagg has performed at the Portland Chamber Music Festival and the Sebago-Long Lake festival in Maine, and he has appeared at the Great Lakes Festival, the Eastern, Highlands-Cashiers, Mohawk Trail and Castle Hill festivals. He has performed with the Boston Symphony and as assistant principal in the Handel and Haydn Society of Boston.

    Bagg’s 2013 solo CD on the Albany label, titled “Elation,” brings together several works he commissioned, including works by Duke colleagues Stephen Jaffe and Scott Lindroth. Other solo discs contain music for viola and piano by Robert and Clara Schumann, and by the Viennese composer Robert Fuchs. Contemporary solo music by Robert Ward, Arthur Levering, Malcolm Peyton, and Donald Wheelock are on Bridge, Albany, Centaur and Gasparo Records.

  • Born in Lafayette, Louisiana, Patrick Prejean first started his studies at age 8 at the Acadiana Conservatory. Prejean recalls about his beginnings saying, “My mother was against me playing the viola initially. Her exact words were: Black people don’t play that instrument.” It was the spark needed to prove a point for him.

    Since then, he has gone on to graduate from Interlochen Arts Academy and has won orchestral positions with Lake Charles Symphony Orchestra, Firelands Symphony Orchestra, and Acadiana Symphony Orchestra as their youngest member at age 18. In 2014, he moved to study at the Cleveland Institute of Music under Stanley Konopka. It was here that his interest in composition started to take root and subsequently his “String Quintet” was premiered at the request of former 2nd violinist of the Cleveland Quartet, Peter Salaff. Since then, he has gone on to win the call for scores submission from PARMA Recordings for his "Violin Sonata" and tie for 3rd place in the Kings Peak International Competition.

    Prejean plans to continue his pursuit of an orchestral position with a major orchestra and performing and composing contemporary music.

  • Recently graduating with a Master’s degree in viola performance from the Cleveland Institute of Music and winner of Baldwin Wallace University's 2020 Lauria Concerto Competition, Colin Henley is a rising violist who aims to achieve excellence in his craft. Colin has had the opportunity to work with some of the premiere musicians in the United States, performing in masterclasses/workshops with Robert Vernon, Masumi Rostad, Lynne Ramsey, Stanley Konopka, Mark Jackobs, Phillip Ying, and Takako Masame, and more.

    During his study at Baldwin Wallace University, Colin was featured at the annual Viola day Masterclass. He has also had an enriching chamber music experience playing with dozens of chamber groups in his career, including being selected through audition to play Shostakovich's Piano Quintet with the resident chamber group of Baldwin Wallace Elysian. Throughout his summers he has studied at the Zodiac, Miami Classical, and Green Mountain Chamber Music Festivals.

    Colin has held principal positions in the Mansfield Symphony Youth and Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestras, as well as the Baldwin Wallace Symphony Orchestra. Off of the stage Colin also teaches violin and viola lessons privately, through the Westlake Music Academy, and the Aurora School of Music. He is also an enthusiastic collaborator with other freelance and amateur musicians. Colin won the 2022 CityMusic Cleveland Diversity Fellowship.

  • Dominick Douglas, a native of North Carolina, is a violist who has performed across the United States, Europe and South America. His performing experience has led him to venues such as Carnegie Hall, Symphony Hall in Boston, Het Concertgebouw, and the Musikverein in Vienna, among others.

    As a chamber musician, he has performed alongside many esteemed artists, such as members of the Cleveland, Ying, Cavani, and Borromeo String Quartets. Also, he has participated in festivals such as Bowdoin International Music Festival, the Heifetz Institute, Green Mountain Chamber Music Festival, and Brevard Music Center Institute. His primary mentors include Helen Callus, Milena Pajaro-van de Stadt, Cathay Basrak, and Kim Kashkashian and he holds degrees from Northwestern University, the New England Conservatory of Music and the University of North Carolina School of the Arts.

    He is currently pursuing a diploma at the Cleveland Institute of Music as a student of Wesley Collins and Robert Vernon.

  • French-born violist Yael Senamaud was a member of the Chamber Orchestra of Paris and Palau De Les Artes Reina Sofia Opera in Valencia, Spain, and has performed with the Orchestra of Paris and the National Opera. An avid chamber musician, she was a founding member of the Alizes Quartet and the Trio Interlude (flute, viola, and harp). An abiding interest in different styles of music led Yael to perform contemporary music with the Ensemble Intercontemporain under the baton of Pierre Boulez. She is a graduate of the Conservatoire National de Paris and Peabody Institute, where her teachers included Bruno Pasquier and Paul Coletti.

    In pursuing her desire to expand in repertoire and style, Yael studied the Baroque violin with Patrick Bismuth and has been performing on the baroque violin, viola, and viola d’amore since. After moving to the United States, Yael served as Principal viola of the Kentucky Symphony Orchestra and has played with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, ProMusica Chamber Orchestra, CityMusic Cleveland.

    As a Baroque player, Yael has performed in various ensembles including Bourbon Baroque, Indianapolis Baroque, and Apollo’s Fire.

  • Biography to be added soon.

  • Biography to be added soon.

CELLO

  • Megan Yip

    Cello

  • Jeff Singler

    Cello

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Biographies

  • Megan Yip, a native of Portland, OR, made her solo orchestral debut at age 14 with the Oregon Sinfonietta. She also soloed with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and has continued to perform internationally and throughout the United States in venues such as Alice Tully Hall, Jordan Hall, David Geffen Hall, Kaufman Music Center, Helsinki Music Center, and Berwaldhallen Concert Hall.

    She currently teaches undergraduates at the University of Michigan and is on faculty at Michigan Youth Performing Arts Pre-College Program. She previously taught undergraduates at Yale University and recently led a masterclass at Elly Bašić School of Music in Zagreb, Croatia. She also served as faculty at Indiana Summer String Academy and New England Conservatory’s Summer Orchestral Institute.

    Megan was a member of the Grammy-nominated ensemble, Yale Cellos, featured in NPR’s “From the Top,” and is guest artist with the Versoi Ensemble, a collective of American and Finnish artists who collaborate in chamber music as agents of cultural diplomacy. Her passion for chamber music began at an early age; she grew up playing piano trios with her two older siblings, remaining active until 2012, and has since been coached by members of the Talich, Juilliard, Doric, Ying, Shanghai, Brentano, Pacifica, and Escher Quartets. Her appearances in music festivals include Yellow Barn, Prussia Cove, Musique de Chambre à Giverny, and Thy Chamber Music.

    Megan has served as a principal cellist of CityMusic Cleveland Chamber Orchestra, Orchester der Freiburg Musikhochschule, Yale Philharmonia, New Haven Chamber Orchestra, and The Juilliard Orchestra, and also plays in Ann Arbor Symphony and Detroit Opera. She's worked with conductors such as Esa-Pekka Salonen, Alan Gilbert, Gerard Schwarz, Markus Stenz, and Ludovic Morlot.

    In 2021, Megan received a Fulbright Award to Freiburg, Germany for an independent research grant studying the 12 Sacher pieces for solo cello. She holds degrees from Yale School of Music and The Juilliard School, and her former teachers include Jean-Guihen Queyras, Richard Aaron, and Paul Watkins. She is currently pursuing her Doctor of Musical Arts at the University of Michigan. She loves hiking alone at sunrise, discovering and performing new styles of music, and frequents happy hours.

  • Jeff Singler is a professional cellist and educator based out of Cleveland. Mr. Singler teaches privately, and at The Music Settlement. He has served as cello faculty at Youngstown State University and Ohio University, and is in demand as a teacher, music coach, and lecturer across Northeast Ohio. Mr. Singler performs regularly with the Erie Philharmonic, Columbus Symphony, Lake Effect Piano Trio, Prism jazz ensemble, and as principal cellist of Ashland Symphony and Warren Philharmonic.

    Mr. Singler was formerly Principal Cellist of the Ohio Valley Symphony, and has performed with the Blossom Festival Orchestra, Blue Water Chamber Orchestra, Akron Symphony, Canton Symphony, West Virginia Symphony, and Youngstown Symphony, where he has filled in as Principal cellist. He has also been Acting Principal Cello in Erie, and frequently fills in as Principal or Assistant Principal in that orchestra.

    Mr. Singler is an active recitalist and chamber musician, including guest artist recitals for First Night Canfield, the Bratenahl Chamber Music Series, the Youngstown State University Fine and Performing Arts Series, the Cain Park Concert series, and the Local 4 Music Performance Fund. He has also been featured as a guest soloist with the Ashtabula Orchestra, The Summit Choral Society, the Butler Choral Society, The Salem Youth Chorus, the Canton Comic Opera Company, the Dana Symphony at Youngstown State University, and the Erie Philharmonic.

    Mr. Singler has collaborated in chamber music performance with many renowned musicians, including Annie Fullard of the Cavani Quartet, John Root of the Juilliard School of Music, Liz DeMio of the Cleveland Institute of Music, and others. His solo and chamber music performances have been broadcast over WYSU in Youngstown, WQED in Pittsburgh, and WQLN in Erie, PA. Several performances are available on YouTube as well.

    In the popular vein, Mr. Singler has recorded with the Sony label, been part of the Final Fantasy Tour Orchestra, and has performed in concert with Amy Grant, Jordan Smith, and as principal cello for Clay Aiken, and Michael W. Smith.

    As an educator, Mr. Singler is on faculty at the Music Settlement, and also teaches cello and chamber music privately in the Cleveland area. He has been cello faculty at Youngstown State University and Ohio University. He gives frequent master classes, lectures, performances and coachings to middle school, high school, and collegiate level individual students and groups in Ohio and Western Pennsylvania, and has presented his clinic on cello tone and technique at the OMEA Convention. His private students have achieved success as principal cellists and senior soloists at their schools, have been members of All-Region and All-State Orchestras, Contemporary Youth Orchestra, and The Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra. Students have gone on to successful careers in diverse fields, including music education, therapy, recording, and performance.

    Mr. Singler holds degrees from Youngstown State University and the Cleveland Institute of Music, and has taken part in the Aspen Music Festival and the Bowdoin Music Festival where he was performing and teaching assistant to Peter Howard. His most influential teachers have included Michael Gelfand, Alan Harris, Mark Schroeder, Peter Howard, Richard Weiss, and Bryan Dumm. He plays both a Czech cello of unknown maker circa 1850, and a cello by Lawrence Wilke made in 2000. His bows are a 1999/2022 bow by John Norwood Lee, and a bow by John Dodd, circa 1810.

  • Cellist Jane Leggiero is a native Clevelander and a candidate in the DMA program in Historical Performance Practice at Case Western Reserve University. She received her undergraduate degree in music from Oberlin College and did her master’s work at Boston University in Historical Performance and Musicology.

    Jane has worked as a freelancer for many years as a modern and baroque cellist as well as playing viola da gamba. She was a member of the Governor’s Musick, the ensemble in residence at Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia, where she enjoyed the opportunity to share music with people visiting from all over the world.

    As an educator, she has worked privately with cello and viol students of all ages, as a coach for a variety of amateur ensembles, and has served on faculty at the Texas Toot and the Armstrong Community Music School. Jane is thrilled to be joining CityMusic for her first season.

  • Macarena Sánchez is an award-winning cellist from Spain. She graduated with honors in cello performance by the Professional Conservatory of Music in Madrid and holds degrees in Romantic cello from The Superior Conservatory of Music of Castilla y León and in Baroque cello from The Royal Music Conservatory in Madrid. In 2009 she was recognized for her outstanding performance at the Community of Madrid Music Performance Competition.

    Over the course of her musical career, she has received Master Classes by renowned cellists as Maria Kliegel (Cologne), Peter Bruns (Leipzig), Roel Dieltiens (Zurich), Marc Coppey (Paris) and Jaap ter Linden (The Hague) among others.

    Macarena has offered many baroque concerts and workshops in Germany, Italy and Spain. She has collaborated on several performance projects with Transbaroque Ensemble, Freiburg Baroque Orchestra, Community of Madrid Symphony Orchestra and Camerata Musicalis Symphony Orchestra, to name a few, and was awarded first prize at the FEMUBA Baroque Festival Competition with her Ensemble, “La Rejouissance”. Solo performances include the Vivaldi Cello Concerto RV418 with the Royal Conservatory of Music in Madrid Baroque Orchestra in 2017.

    Macarena moved recently to Georgia, where she intends to continue her career as a musician and where she collaborates with Amethyst Baroque Ensemble and the Georgia Symphony Orchestra.

DOUBLE BASS

  • Joel Negus

    Double Bass

  • Tracy Rowell

    Double Bass

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Biographies

  • Joel Negus is a composer, producer, and multi-instrumentalist proudly living in Cleveland, OH. With a background in many genres, including jazz, indie/folk, and metal, Joel chose to pursue a degree in Double Bass performance. He completed his undergraduate studies at the Cleveland Institute of Music in 2011.

    Between 2011-2015, Joel founded and operated the Cleveland Music Collaborative, employing classical and jazz musicians in Northeast Ohio to teach and perform, as well as invest in their creative projects. In 2016, Joel began regularly playing with CityMusic. In 2019, Joel began to focus on composition, viewing the home studio as his instrument. This shift combined his passion for sound and recording with his technical ability as a performer.

    Having worked on a number of licensing projects for television and film, most of Joel's compositional work is focused on the intersection of acoustic and electronically-produced sounds. You'll regularly find him hiring (and celebrating!) Cleveland musicians for his own creative projects, as well producing for others. Joel also serves as the worship pastor at City Church in Coventry Village.

  • Tracy Rowell is on the faculty of the Oberlin Conservatory and the Cleveland Institute of Music. An active performer on modern and historical bass, Tracy is the former Assistant Principal Bass of the National Arts Centre Orchestra, a major Canadian ensemble. Currently the principal bassist of Citymusic Cleveland Chamber Orchestra, she also performs with Apollo’s Fire, Cleveland’s Baroque Orchestra. A founding member of the Pantheon Ensemble, Tracy has also performed with groups such as the Cavani, St. Lawrence, Pacifica, Jasper, Jupiter and Parker Quartets.

    Serving on the Board of Directors for the International Society of Bassists as Education Chair, Ms. Rowell co-directed the Young Bassists Program at ISB Convention 2019 and for the 2021 virtual ISB YB. She led the fundraising effort in 2019 to create the George Wellington and George Vance Scholarship Fund for young bassists. Tracy is a founding member of the Project for All Gender Equality (PAGE).

    Ms. Rowell performs and teaches at summer programs such as Bassworks Maryland, Kansas City Bass Workshop, Milt Hinton Institute, Bass Club (UK), and the Rochester Bass Retreat. She was a faculty member at George Vance’s Summer Bass Workshops. Ms. Rowell regularly presents masterclasses at institutions such as The Colburn School, USC, Northwestern University, and Peabody Conservatory.

    In 2016, Tracy received a grant from Oberlin, to continue her studies in Paris with the acclaimed virtuoso, Francois Rabbath. She received her MMus from Boston University, where she studied with Edwin Barker. She received her BMus from Rice University, as a student of Paul Ellison.

  • Biography to be added soon.

  • Originally from Chicago, Steven received his Master of Music from the Cleveland Institute of Music in the studio of Scott Dixon. Before that, he studied Music Education at Belmont University and received his Bachelor of Music, studying bass with Craig Nelson. Other notable teachers include Charles Paul, Tracy Rowell, and Kevin Jablonski, as well as chamber coaches Jaap ter Linden and Tracy Silverman. Steven has played with numerous ensembles around Northeast Ohio including the Firelands Symphony, Mansfield Symphony, Baldwin Wallace Opera, and the Youngstown State University Faculty Chamber Ensemble. He also appeared on the soundtracks to video games Anthem and Destiny 2, and the movie The Professor and the Madman, all recorded at Oceanway Studio in Nashville.

  • Amanda Tavani earned her bachelor’s degree in Music Education from the University of Colorado in Boulder where she studied with Paul Erhard. She went on to earn a Master's degree in double bass performance at Cleveland State University under the tutelage of Cleveland Orchestra members Derek Zadinsky and Charles Carleton. Continued education includes training in the Suzuki method for double bass. In 2019, Mrs. Tavani studied with François Rabbath and Paul Ellison at the Canadian festival Domaine Forget. Other festival appearances include Marrowstone Music Festival, the Aspen Music Festival, and MasterWorks Festival, where she has served as double bass faculty.

    Passionate about increasing the excellence of the next generation of young bassists, Mrs. Tavani maintains an active private studio for ages four through adult, and is on faculty at Cleveland State University. In addition to teaching the bass, she stays actively involved in public school orchestra programs as a tutor and sectional coach for all string instruments.

    Mrs. Tavani plays principal bass with the Snowbelt Symphony and subs with groups around Cleveland. After a performance of Saint-Saëns’ “Carnival of the Animals” with the Cleveland Philharmonic, Cleveland Classical commented about her playing that “Principal Bass Amanda Tavani... aptly captured [her] own musical characters.” She has also performed with the gypsy jazz group, “Hot Club of Akron”.

    When not performing and teaching, Mrs. Tavani enjoys time with her husband and two young boys.

FLUTE

  • Laura Gilbert

    Flute

  • Kimberly Zaleski

    Flute

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Biographies

  • Laura Gilbert, flutist, has appeared around the world as chamber musician, soloist, recitalist and guest lecturer. In 2012, with principal violist Jonathan Bagg, she founded Electric Earth Concerts, a year-round music festival based in Peterborough, New Hampshire. During her tenure as co-artistic director of Monadnock Music (2006-2011), she created award-winning programming, receiving major foundation support from the NEA, Argosy, Getty, Goelet, and many other organizations.

    Laura has been principal flutist with Cleveland CityMusic for the past four seasons. In addition to founding and performing with Auréole, a flute, viola and harp trio, Ms. Gilbert has appeared with Musicians from Marlboro, Alexander Schneider’s Brandenburg Ensemble, the Borromeo, Brentano, Saint Lawrence, and Ciompi String Quartets, Chamber Music at the 92nd Street “Y”, Saint Luke’s Ensemble, The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, The New York Philharmonic and Speculum Musicae. Ms. Gilbert also performs frequently in a duo with the Greek guitarist Antigoni Goni. As advocates of folk-inspired classical music, the Gilbert-Goni Duo has commissioned numerous new works, many of which are included on their debut solo disc “From the New Village,” on Koch International Classics.

    Ms. Gilbert’s extensive discography includes a Grammy award for Dawn Upshaw’s “Girl with the Orange Lips”, two solo recordings on Koch International: The Flute Music of Serge Prokofiev, and the Flute Music of Toru Takemitsu. Auréole Trio has released twelve discs on Koch International, the first of which was short-listed for several Grammys. Auréole is responsible for 50-plus original compositions and arrangement, many of which appear on their recordings

    Ms. Gilbert has been a grant review panelist for The National Endowment for the Arts, Chamber Music America, Meet the Composer and the National Flute Association. She has served on the faculties of Peabody Conservatory, Mannes College of Music, Harid Conservatory, Purchase College, The Aaron Copland School at Queens College, Bowdoin Summer Music Festival, and Saint Ann’s School in Brooklyn.

    Ms. Gilbert studied with Samuel Baron, Julius Baker and Thomas Nyfenger, and attended Sarah Lawrence College, and received Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from New England Conservatory and Juilliard, and her Doctorate from SUNY Stony Brook. She currently live in New York City and is on the faculties of Mannes College of Music and Saint Ann’s School.

  • A native of Garrison, New York, flutist Kimberly Zaleski has dedicated her career to performing, composing and teaching music. An active promoter of chamber music, she is the Touring Flutist with “David Arkenstone and Friends,” a five-piece band that performs music throughout the United States composed by five-time Grammy-nominated composer, David Arkenstone. She is a member of the North Coast Winds, Cleveland's Premier Woodwind Quintet and is also the Co-Founder of the flute, cello, and percussion trio, IN2ATIVE, known for their engaging performances of original compositions. Kimberly is a Performing and Teaching Artist on the Roster of the Center for Arts-Inspired Learning Agency.

    Ms. Zaleski is the Principal Flutist of the Firelands Symphony Orchestra and Second Flutist with the CityMusic Cleveland Chamber Orchestra and has performed with The Cleveland Orchestra, Blossom Festival Band, The Cleveland Pops Orchestra, Akron Symphony, Toledo Symphony, Erie Philharmonic, New World Symphony, and Canton Symphony. She is a substitute musician for The Pittsburgh Opera, Columbus Symphony, and West Virginia Symphony. Ms. Zaleski was a finalist of both Astral Artists Musical Agency and Carnegie Hall’s Ensemble ACJW Program at The Juilliard School. She holds the distinction of being the first piccoloist on the nationally broadcast radio show, "From the Top."

    Ms. Zaleski was a student of Renee Siebert, the former Second Flutist of The New York Philharmonic throughout her high school years. In addition, she studied at the Juilliard School under the instruction of Bradley Garner before pursuing her Bachelor's at the Peabody Institute of The Johns Hopkins University as a student of renowned soloist, Marina Piccinini. She is a graduate of the Cleveland Institute of Music where she received her Master’s Degree as a student of Joshua Smith, Principal Flutist of the Cleveland Orchestra.

    In addition to her performance career, she holds the title of Adjunct Professor of Flute at The College of Wooster, and Assistant Lecturer of Flute at The University of Akron, and has given performances and masterclasses at Arizona State University and Penn State University.

  • Biography to be added soon.

OBOE

  • Mary Kausek-Muse

    Oboe

  • Virginia Kao

    Oboe

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Biographies

  • Mary Kausek Muse is an active performer and educator. She is the Principal Oboist of the unconducted chamber ensemble CityMusic Cleveland, and she has made multiple appearances with the Buffalo Philharmonic, the Fort Worth Symphony, the Cleveland Orchestra, and the Jalisco Philharmonia.

    Mary Kausek Muse’s playing has been described as "stunningly beautiful" and "gorgeous" and as having "great flair and expression" by ClevelandClassical.com’s Robert Rollin. Mary is the principal oboist of Citymusic Cleveland and has performed with over fifteen professional orchestras throughout the US and the world. She has performed several seasons as the Principal Oboist of the Cleveland Orchestra’s Blossom Festival Band. This summer she has been invited to perform on oboe and English horn for six weeks in Logan, Utah with the Utah Festival Orchestra.

    Mary was the guest principal oboist for the Fort Worth Symphony and the Pittsburgh Opera, and she has made several guest appearances with the Cleveland Orchestra and the Buffalo Philharmonic. Mrs. Muse is as comfortable on the English horn as she is on the oboe; she has performed as the solo English horn with the Pittsburgh Opera, The Boston Symphony at Tanglewood, the Jalisco Philharmonia, and the Fort Worth Symphony.

    As the Fernand Gillet Fellow at the Tanglewood Music Center, Mary performed 7 world premieres in celebration of the TMC’s 75th year, including works by John Williams and Bright Sheng. Other summer engagements include performances with the National Repertory Orchestra and the Breckenridge Music Festival Orchestra. She has performed across Japan with members of the Philadelphia Orchestra, Chicago Symphony, and Vienna Philharmonic as a member of the Pacific Music Festival Orchestra. Mary recently performed with the Hollywood Film Music Orchestra on tour in Nanjing, China as well as joined the Jalisco Philharmonia on its international tour in Guadalajara, Mexico, and across the US.

    Mary Kausek Muse has earned degrees at the University of Texas at Austin and Cleveland Institute of Music, where she studied with Rebecca Henderson and Frank Rosenwein. Her English horn playing has been highly influenced by her mentor and friend, Robert Walters. Mary has worked with such notable conductors as Fabio Luisi, Ludovic Morlot, Andris Nelsons, Michael Stern, Stephan Deneve, and Michael Tilson Thomas.

    Ms. Kausek is passionate about sharing the artistic capabilities of the oboe not only through performance but also through education. She is an enthusiastic and devoted educator to the next generation of young oboists, and her students have earned positions in the Interlochen Summer Arts Camp, the Boston University at Tanglewood Institute, the Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra, the Ohio All-State Orchestra, the Ohio All-State Band, the Akron Youth Symphony, the Contemporary Youth Orchestra, the Cleveland Youth Wind Symphony, and the Northeast Ohio Youth Orchestra.

    Mary enjoys spending time with her husband and her two French Bulldogs, Wolfgang and Clara. When not on stage, you will likely find Mary in the air, as she enjoys exploring the aerial arts on fabrics, hoops, and flying trapeze. You can follow her adventures on Instagram @theflyingoboist.

  • A native of New Jersey, Virginia Kao is a dedicated orchestral and chamber musician. She has enjoyed performing in traditional and contemporary ensembles around the country, such as the CIM New Music Ensemble, Haddonfield Symphony (now Symphony in C), Camerata Notturna, Symphony Parnassus, Philharmonic of Southern New Jersey, Mozart and Friends Opera Festival, and the Viva Vivaldi All Girls Orchestra. She has performed as a soloist with Camerata Notturna as well as participated in the Kent Blossom, Domaine Forget, and Hidden Valley music festivals.

    Virginia is currently pursuing a Professional Studies Diploma in oboe performance at the Cleveland Institute of Music under the tutelage of Jeffrey Rathbun, Assistant Principal Oboe of The Cleveland Orchestra. Virginia earned her Artist Diploma from CIM, Master of Music degree from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and Bachelor of Arts degree cum laude from Princeton University. Her major teachers include Russell deLuna, Mingjia Liu, Christopher Gaudi, and Louis Rosenblatt.

    Between her undergraduate and graduate studies, Virginia worked as an intellectual property paralegal at law firms and Fortune 100 companies in New York City for over a decade. When not making reeds, Virginia enjoys exploring the outdoors with her husband and two dogs.

  • Adrian Gonzalez, a native of Boynton Beach FL., has been performing oboe and English Horn in the Greater Cleveland area since 2019. He actively performs with the Youngstown Symphony, the Cleveland Opera, the Cleveland Pops, the Wheeling Symphony, the Battle Creek Symphony, and the Billings Symphony. Adrian Currently holds the position of Principal oboe with the Mansfield Symphony and the Snow Belt Symphony. Adrian has also performed with The Cleveland Orchestra, The New World Symphony, and The Palm Beach Symphony.

    Beyond orchestral performance, Adrian has also performed extensively in Chamber Music. He has been a member of the “Cleveland Wind Trio” since 2019. This group has played in music festivals and an extensive variety of venues throughout Ohio. Adrian performs regularly with a non-for-profit organization “Stars@intheclassics.” This organization puts together musicians in Cleveland and produces a chamber concert series. Adrian finished his master's degree in 2020 from the Cleveland Institute of Music under the instruction of Frank Rosenwein and Jeffrey Rathbun. During this time, Adrian also attended Kent Blossom Music Festival, where he performed chamber music with members of the Cleveland orchestra.

    Adrian has also attended the Brevard Music Festival and Eastern Music Festival. Adrian received his Bachelor’s in Oboe Performance in 2018 at Florida State University and studied under Dr. Eric Ohlsson.

CLARINET

  • Daniel Gilbert

    Clarinet

  • Ellen Breakfield-Glick

    Clarinet

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Biographies

  • Clarinetist Daniel Gilbert joined the faculty at the University of Michigan as Associate Professor of Clarinet in 2007. Previously, he held the position of Second Clarinet in the Cleveland Orchestra from 1995 to 2007. A native of New York City, Mr. Gilbert received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Yale University and both a Master of Music degree and Professional Studies Certificate from The Juilliard School. Prior to joining the Cleveland Orchestra, Mr. Gilbert was an active freelancer in New York City, appearing regularly with groups including: The Metropolitan Opera, American Ballet Theater, New Jersey Symphony, Solisti New York, the Stamford Symphony and the New Haven Symphony, where he played principal clarinet from 1992 to 1995. Mr. Gilbert was a member of the Quintet of the Americas in 1994-1995. The group toured throughout the United States and was in residence at Northwestern University.

    An active soloist and chamber musician, Mr. Gilbert has appeared at the Classical Tahoe festival, Aspen Music Festival, Maui Chamber Music Festival, St. Barth’s Music Festival, Music on the Hill, Rhode Island and Cape Cod Music Festival, among others. He has appeared as soloist with orchestras that include the Cleveland Orchestra, Classical Tahoe orchestra, Reno Chamber orchestra, City Music Cleveland Cleveland Heights Chamber orchestra, the Suburban Symphony Orchestra, the New Haven Symphony, Solisti New York and the Aspen Mozart Orchestra.

    Mr. Gilbert is an artist/clinician for Backun Musical, Canada and Vandoren companies. He is featured as a soloist and clinician throughout the US, Canada and Europe and his recitals and classes have received critical acclaim. Aside from his position at the University of Michigan, he also serves on the faculty of Case Western Reserve University. In addition, Mr. Gilbert holds the position of principal clarinet of the chamber orchestra, CityMusic Cleveland, Principal clarinet of the Classical Tahoe festival, the Napa Festival Orchestra and second clarinet of the All Star orchestra that is currently recording its third season for PBS. He formerly served on the faculties at the State University of New York at Stony Brook and Oberlin Conservatory of Music. His teachers have included David Weber, Robert Marcellus, Stanley Hasty, Richard Waller, Burt Hara and Judith Kalin-Freeman. Mr. Gilbert plays exclusively on Backun and Vandoren products.

  • Ellen Breakfield-Glick joined the faculty at Western Michigan University School of Music as Assistant Professor of clarinet in Fall 2019. At WMU, she teaches applied clarinet, coaches chamber music and performs with the Western Woodwind Quintet and the Western Winds. Praised for her “skill and poise” and “lovely” playing (Cleveland Plain Dealer), she maintains a versatile career as an educator, orchestral clarinetist and chamber musician.

    Prior to her appointment at WMU, Dr. Breakfield-Glick served on the faculty at Cleveland State University from 2013-2019. She won the 2016 CSU Golden Apple teaching award, given to faculty members for excellence in teaching and outstanding contributions to the CSU community. During the summer, Dr. Breakfield-Glick is the Guest Faculty Director at the University of Michigan’s MPulse Clarinet Institute and Woodwind Instructor at the South Carolina Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities.

    An active orchestral musician, Ellen has played second clarinet with CityMusic Cleveland Chamber Orchestra since 2012. In addition, she frequently appears with the Louisville Orchestra and the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra.

    A performer interested in inclusive and innovative programming, she is the clarinetist with Music in the American Wild (MAW), a chamber ensemble formed to commission works performed in outdoor spaces. The group has performed extensively throughout the country, in partnership with the US National Park Service. MAW has received awards and grants from organizations including the NEA, New Music USA and Chamber Music America. They released their first album with ArtistShare in 2018. Their next project, supported by a CMA Classical Commissioning Grant, will take them to Hawai’i in February, 2020 to celebrate Hawai’ian composers, culture and conservation of the islands.

    Ellen received a Bachelor of Music Degree and Arts Leadership Program Certificate from the Eastman School of Music and Master of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts Degrees from the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre and Dance.

BASSOON

  • Sue Barber

    Bassoon

  • Hans Fronberg

    Bassoon

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Biographies

  • Bassoonist Sue Barber serves as professor at James Madison University School of Music and is a member of the faculty quintet The Bluestone Winds. Sue joined the artist/teaching faculty of the Brevard Music Festival in 2004 and serves as associate principal bassoon of the festival orchestra in Brevard, North Carolina. An active freelance bassoonist regionally, Sue performs regularly with Opera on the James, The Roanoke Symphony, and Opera Roanoke. She has performed and presented master classes throughout the North America, Europe, South America, and Asia. She was also appointed as visiting professor at The Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University, teaching applied bassoon and presenting master classes during the 2012 and 2014-15 academic years. Conference performances include International Double Reed Society Conventions, The Virginia Music Educator’s Annual Conference, The Midwest Band and Orchestra Clinic in Chicago, IL, The International Alliance for Women in Music's Annual Concert of Chamber Music by Women at the National Museum of Women in the Arts in Washington, DC, and The National Flute Association Conventions in Washington, DC and New York, New York.

    As an orchestral musician, Sue has performed with many of the leading artists of our time at The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Carnegie Hall, and Lincoln Center. She held the positions of assistant principal bassoon of the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra, principal bassoon of the Natchez Opera, and principal bassoon of the Acadiana Symphony Orchestra and she has held the principal bassoon positions with The Hartford Symphony Orchestra, The Connecticut Opera, and The Sarasota Opera.

    Internationally she served as assistant principal bassoon of Orquesta Sinfonica de Galicia (Spain). She was also a regular performer with the New Haven Symphony, Rhode Island Philharmonic, New World Symphony, Florida West Coast Symphony Orchestra (Sarasota), Santa Fe Chamber Orchestra, and participated in the National Repertory Orchestra Festival, and the Banff and Sarasota Chamber Music Festivals.

  • Hans Fronberg is a 1st year Masters student at the Cleveland Institute of Music studying with Barrick Stees, Assistant Principal Bassoon of the Cleveland Orchestra. He completed his undergrad at CIM studying with John Clouser, Principal Bassoon of the Cleveland Orchestra He was a musician at the 2023 Round Top Music Festival. His chamber ensemble performed The Octet for Wind Instruments by Igor Stravinsky winning first place in the 2023 Round Top Chamber Music Competition. He has also attended the Domaine Forget music program in Summer of 2019. Past performances include concerts with the Billings Symphony, Cleveland Pops Orchestra, and Youngstown Symphony Orchestra.

  • Lauren Henning is a bassoonist originally from Western New York, and is currently a freelance musician in the Cleveland, Ohio area. In 2021 she participated in the Meg Quigley Vivaldi Competition and Symposium where she was named one of ten finalists in the competition. Again as a soloist, Ms. Henning was named a winner of The Fredonia School of Music Concerto Competition in 2020 after being named a finalist in the prior competition. Also in 2020, she was awarded the coveted Performer’s Certificate from The Fredonia School of Music based on judged recital performances.

    As an orchestral musician, she is currently an active substitute in Western New York, Erie, Pennsylvania, and Cleveland, Ohio.

    She has performed with the Erie Philharmonic, Cleveland Pops Orchestra, Youngstown Symphony and Ashland Symphony, to name a few. Contributing to her orchestral experience, Ms. Henning was selected as a participant in The Cleveland Institute of Music Bassoon Audition Intensive (2020) where she was one of twelve students invited to play in the master classes that covered major orchestral bassoon excerpts. She received her undergraduate degree in Music Education and Bassoon Performance from The State University of New York at Fredonia in 2021 where she studied with Laura Koepke.

    Currently, Ms. Henning is pursuing her Masters Degree in Bassoon Performance from The Cleveland Institute of Music while studying with Barrick Stees. During the summer season you can find her working at Chautauqua Institution as a member of the Music and Audio/Visual Production crew, where she enjoys working with the members of the orchestra, guest artists, and music festival students.

HORN

  • Briana Pepilascov-Childers

    Horn

  • AJ Bernal

    Horn

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Biographies

  • Briana Pepilascov-Childers maintains a private studio and performing calendar in the Tri-State area. Dr. Pepilascov-Childers is the Principal Horn for the CityMusic Cleveland Chamber orchestra, and has performed with many different orchestras, including the Miami Valley Symphony Orchestra, Anderson Symphony Orchestra, Yellow Springs Orchestra, and is a regular substitute Principal Horn for the Lexington Philharmonic.

    She has been a collaborator in multiple projects, including the Broadway Podcast Network's The Flame – A Podcast Musical, and as an article co-author of Positive Outlooks on Performances published in the Horn Call magazine (expected Summer 2023).

    She has served as the instructor of horn for the Summer Arts Academy at Morehead State, and as an adjudicator for the 13th District Solo and Ensemble for the Sycamore Community Schools. Dr. Pepilascov-Childers continues to have many of her pre-college private students place highly in local Honor Band and All-State auditions, and Central Kentucky Youth Orchestra.

    Dr. Pepilascov-Childers finished her Doctorate of Musical Arts from the University of Kentucky in May 2023. She received her Master of Music Performance degree from Miami University (Oxford), her Bachelor of Music from Wright State University, and her Associate of Music from Sinclair Community College. Her primary teachers include Dr. Margaret Tung, Tom Sherwood, Aaron Brant, Jonas Thoms, Sean Vore, Renee Parcell, and Molly Norcross.

    When Briana is not teaching, practicing, or performing, she enjoys the outdoors with her dogs and partner and loves the Cincinnati Bengals. Who Dey!

    Briana offers private lesson instruction to beginning and intermediate players. To contact her for more information on lessons, please fill out a contact form.

  • AJ Bernal is an avid horn player and educator. Since 2013, AJ has maintained private horn and brass studios in the states of Kentucky, Illinois, and Indiana. He is highly sought after as a private instructor; his students have received superlative ratings at their respective state solo and ensemble festivals. AJ is currently expanding his teaching credentials as a Part-Time Instructor at the University of Kentucky, working alongside his mentor Dr. Margaret Tung. Previously, AJ had the opportunity to teach undergraduate music theory at Southern Illinois University Carbondale.

    As a performer, AJ is an active freelancer. He currently gigs around the Lexington, KY area, and has recently began performing with the Southern Illinois Symphony Orchestra. Additionally, he has performed with many chamber groups, including the Wildcat Winds (Lexington, KY) and the Victory Brass Choir (Lexington, KY). AJ has also been a member of the Southern Illinois Music Festival (Carbondale, IL) since the summer of 2020, where he has held the role of Operations and Personnel Manager since 2021.

    AJ is a doctoral candidate at the University of Kentucky, where he has been awarded the Lyman T. Johnson Diversity Fellowship to continue his education. AJ holds a Master of Music from Southern Illinois University Carbondale and a Bachelor of Music Education from Indiana State University (Terre Haute). His teachers include Dr. Margaret Tung, Jennifer Presar, Dr. Brian Kilp, and Donna Briggs.

TRUMPET

  • Riley Conley

    Trumpet

  • Amanda Bekeny

    Trumpet

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Biographies

  • Riley Conley joined the CityMusic Cleveland Chamber Orchestra as principal trumpet in 2022, and is the Instructor of Trumpet at Denison University. A native of Pennsylvania, he earned a Bachelor of Music degree at Baldwin Wallace University and a Master of Music degree at The Colburn School. His primary teachers are Jack Sutte and James Wilt.

    Mr. Conley has frequently performed throughout Ohio with the Akron Symphony, Canton Symphony, Youngstown Symphony, Firelands Symphony, Mansfield Symphony, Ashland Symphony, the Cincinnati Opera, and most recently made his international debut in Anguilla as principal trumpet with the World Doctors Orchestra. He has been fortunate to work with esteemed conductors Esa-Pekka Salonen, Rossen Milanov, Rafael Payare, Robert Spano, and Patrick Summers.

    Summer engagements include performing with the Lake Tahoe Music Festival Orchestra, as well as fellowships at the Aspen Music Festival, the National Music Festival, the Chosen Vale International Trumpet Seminar, the Detroit Symphony Brass Institute, the Cincinnati Symphony Brass Institute, and the Pierre Monteux School. His additional former teachers include Raymond Mase, Kevin Cobb, Micah Wilkinson, John Brndiar, and Robert Dolwick.

    Riley Conley is a Vincent Bach Performing Artist.

  • Amanda Bekeny discovered her passion for orchestral and chamber music as a young trumpet student of her longtime mentor and friend, composer Dr. Jack Gallagher. After attending The College of Wooster, Dr. Bekeny spent years of intense study in trumpet, orchestral performance, and chamber music. She holds a Master’s degree in Trumpet Performance from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she was a student of John Aley and Alan Campbell and was a member of the renowned Wisconsin Brass Quintet. She earned her Doctor of Musical Arts Degree in Trumpet Performance from The Ohio State University, where, as a student of Timothy Leasure, she was awarded the A. Peter Costanza Award for the most Distinguished DMA Document. After completing her graduate degrees, she focused her studies on chamber music at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music as a student of David Burkhart and member of the acclaimed New Music Ensemble.

    An active performer, Dr. Bekeny is a member of CityMusic Cleveland Chamber Orchestra (since 2016), Firelands Symphony Orchestra, Diamond Brass Quintet, and co-founded the Olympic Brass Quintet. Dr. Bekeny serves as a substitute musicians with other arts organizations in Northeast Ohio such as the Akron Symphony and Cleveland Pops Orchestra.

    One of Dr. Bekeny’s passions is sharing her enthusiasm for performing and teaching with her college students at Kent State University and Cleveland State University. Additionally, Dr. Bekeny serves on the Board of the Rocky River Chamber Music Society, which is in its 64th Season of bringing world class chamber music to audiences in Northeast Ohio. She is an avid runner and enjoys exploring the outdoors with her husband and three children.

  • Biography to be added soon.

TROMBONE

  • Jason Smith

    Trombone

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Biographies

  • Jason Smith is one of Cleveland’s most versatile trombonists. He has performed with many diverse groups including Opera Cleveland, the Blossom Festival Band, Cleveland Pops Orchestra, Erie Philharmonic, Firelands Symphony and Ashland Symphony. He also has an extensive background in jazz, having performed with the Cleveland Jazz Orchestra and recorded with Sam River’s Rivbea Orchestra and the Grammy nominated Dan McMillion Groovin’ High Jazz Orchestra. He has performed at several European jazz festivals, including Montreux, Switzerland, Umbria, Italy, and Veinne, France. Jason was a finalist in the Larry Wiehe solo competition, sponsored by the International Trombone Association and a first prize winner in the Tuesday Musical Competition in Akron, OH. He was also guest soloist with Cleveland Chamber Winds, performing Jean Fracaix’s Concerto for Trombone and Winds. Jason received a Master of Music from the Cleveland Institute of Music and a Bachelor of Music in jazz performance from the University of South Florida. Currently he is teaching as an adjunct faculty member at Cleveland State University and with the Preparatory Division at the Cleveland Institute of Music.

PIANO & HARPSICHORD

  • Elizabeth DeMio

    Piano & Harpsichord

  • Tan Qin Yang

    Piano & Harpsichord

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Biographies

  • Elizabeth DeMio is well-known as a collaborative pianist, recitalist and soloist in the Cleveland area. Besides appearing in over 100 concerts annually with local aspiring musicians, she performs frequently with renowned soloists such as Triple Grammy winner Zuill Bailey, Massimo La Rosa, John Mack, Andrew Sords, Umberto Clerici, the Cavani Quartet and has appeared in tours and given master classes throughout the U.S., Korea, Mexico and the Carribean.

    In 2008 she was the pianist for two finalists in the Naumberg International Cello Competition, resulting in her Carnegie Hall debut and subsequent U.S. tour with first place winner David Requiro. She performs often as a soloist with the Trinity Cathedral Chamber Orchestra, having performed twenty Mozart concerti and the five Beethoven concerti, among many others. Donald Rosenberg of the Cleveland Plain Dealer called her "a superb interpreter of Mozart" when she appeared as soloist with the Blue Water Chamber Orchestra in 2012. She is a member of the Pantheon Ensemble which has performed for CityMusic Cleveland, bringing classical concerts to underserved areas of Northeast Ohio. Also a frequent performer for El Paso Pro Musica and Northwest Bach Festival, she recently performed the complete sonatas by Beethoven for cello and piano with cellist Zuill Bailey. She has appeared as soloist for the Orquesta Sinfonica de Veracruz and the Orquesta de la UNAM in Mexico.

    As a recording artist she can be heard on Crystal, Yaffe and Azica labels, most recently on the debut album "Cantando" and subsequent album “Sempre Espressivo” with virtuoso trombonist Massimo La Rosa, produced by multiple Grammy winner Thomas Moore. Other recent projects have been a debut album with cellist David Requiro and an album with solo and duo works by Bernard Garfield with Cleveland Orchestra principal bassoonist John Clouser. DeMio is on the collaborative piano faculty of the Cleveland Institute of Music. She is a collaborative pianist for the Stulberg International String Competition, the Sitka Cello Seminar and the John Mack Oboe Camp. She holds degrees from CIM and the University of Michigan. Her teachers have included Vitya Vronsky and Theodore Lettvin.

  • Lauded by Cleveland Classical as "an excellent soloist, a compelling performer who is equally comfortable handling long strings of notes... and singing through emotive melodies with her instrument," Dr. Tan Qin Ying was recently appointed keyboard faculty at Baldwin-Wallace Conservatory of Music. Recent performances include appearances with Red Dot Baroque, Apollo's Fire, Piano Cleveland, City Music, ORMACO Inc., the Performing Arts Series at the Cleveland Museum of Art, SEA Music Academy, and Affekt, which Tan co-directs. Tan has been performing with City Music since 2019.

    A firm believer of story-telling through music, Tan draws from a diverse pool of influences such as baroque French court dance, Indonesian gamelan music, Chinese guzheng practice, as well as community song and dance. Dr. Tan currently serves as music director at Forest Hills Presbyterian Church in Cleveland Heights and co-directs the Resonance Masters' Series near Seattle.

    When not at work, Ying loves exploring and hiking around beautiful Cleveland. She also welcomes conversations about culture, history, or how music can help to inspire change and to bring communities together.

PERCUSSION

  • Dylan Moffitt

    Percussion

  • Luke Rinderknecht

    Percussion

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Biographies

  • Multi-talented percussionist Dylan Moffitt has distinguished himself both in classical music and the world music genres. Moffitt has recently played in the percussion sections of The Cleveland Orchestra, The Blossom Festival Orchestra and Band, The Mansfield Symphony Orchestra, The Erie Philharmonic, The Pittsburgh Opera Orchestra, Wheeling Symphony Orchestra, The West Virginia Symphony Orchestra, and The Firelands Symphony Orchestra.

    In addition to orchestral playing, he also is a frequent performer and teacher of world music. In April of 2009, Moffitt made his Cleveland Orchestra solo debut performing in Osvaldo Golijov’s, Azul, featuring cellist Alisa Weilerstein. Other collaborations include performances with Simon Shaheen, Eugene Friesen, Michael Ward-Bergeman, Jamey Haddad and others. Following the successful performances of, Azul, Moffitt has been asked back to severance hall to perform on a series of post-concert events as a part of the orchestra’s “Friday at Seven” series.

    As an educator, he has assisted his teacher, Jamey Haddad, teaching classes in introductory frame drumming and world rhythms at both the Cleveland Institute of Music and at Oberlin College.

    Moffitt received his BM from the Cleveland Institute of Music and is currently pursuing his Masters Degree at the Institute under Richard Weiner and Paul Yancich of the Cleveland Orchestra. In addition to his studies at the Institute of Music, he studies world percussion with Jamey Haddad, N. Scott Robinson, Sri. Amrit N., and B. Shree Sundarkumar.

  • Luke Rinderknecht, timpanist and percussionist, began his training with Matthew Bassett and earned Bachelor's and Master's degrees from Juilliard where he studied with Greg Zuber, Gordon Gottlieb, and Daniel Druckman.

    He has performed with a variety of chamber orchestras including the Metropolis Ensemble, Alarm Will Sound, Cleveland’s baroque orchestra Apollo’s Fire, and The Knights, with whom he recorded three albums on the Sony Classical label.

    Since 2013, he has been principal timpanist and solo percussionist for CityMusic Cleveland, performing two of Avner Dorman’s double percussion concertos with Haruka Fujii and CityMusic during that time: Uzu and Muzu from Kakaruzu and Spices, Perfumes, Toxins! Luke performs chamber music with the No Exit New Music and Blue Streak Ensembles, and at Bowdoin International Music Festival every summer since 2010. At Bowdoin he also coaches chamber music, teaches percussion, and leads a seminar for pre-college students on practicing, rehearsing, auditioning, performing, and expanding their understanding of chamber music.

    Luke is on the faculty of Cleveland State University and the Cleveland Institute of Music, where he teaches percussion to pre-college students in the Academy.

  • Sammy DeLeon is one of the most recognized timbales players in Northeast Ohio and a fixture in the regional Latin Jazz scene. One of 13 children, Sammy was born in Lorain, Ohio, to parents who were not musicians. Introduced to the timbales by an older brother, he joined the drum corps at Admiral King High School and began playing professionally at age 13. After high school, he joined Cobra, a Latin rock band, before joining Orquesta Charambo and later, Impacto Nuevo. For the past decade, he has fronted his own band, Sammy DeLeon y Su Orquesta, opening for acts including El Gran Combo, Tito Rojas and Tony Vega. Sammy regularly mentors student percussionists in Latin rhythms and his band has become known as Sammy Salsa College. Cleveland loves Sammy for the joy he brings through his irresistible dance music.

  • Biography to be added soon.