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Soprano Sarah Bach is possessed with a voice of "sparkling tone", "very fine legato" and "excellent coloratura technique" and is said to "communicate beautifully and convincingly". She has sung internationally appearing throughout England, Wales and British Columbia, Canada. In the U.S., Miss Bach has performed in venues throughout Boston including the Hynes Convention Center, the Evening Interlude Series at St. John’s Evangelist Church near the State House (Boston, MA), Boston University's Seminar in the Arts, and areas of New England and Southern California. In addition, Miss Bach has been a frequent guest artist of the West Parish Organ Recital Series appearing with national and international concert organists.
Miss Bach was a semi-finalist for the professional track division of the Boston NATS 2008 Song Festival and a 2008 NATSAA Regional Finalist of New England. In 2008, Miss Bach was named a Stern Fellow to participate and perform in Songfest, an international program for pianists and singers held in Malibu, CA. In June 2009, she received a scholarship to attend the Theatre of Art Song program as part of the Vancouver International Song Institute, which included master classes and concerts throughout the Vancouver, BC area. Her repertoire ranges from oratorio and opera to art song, chamber music and new song. She premiered composer Elisabeth Mehl Greene's song "Dizia" in 2007 and continues to perform new songs of other composers. Her love for art song is her passion.
Miss Bach is a candidate for the Master of Music degree in Voice at The Longy School of Music in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Voice Performance from the University of Massachusetts. During her undergraduate studies, she was honored with a music award in performance from the College of the Visual and Performing Arts at the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth. She also received vocal and music education training from The Hartt School of Music at the University of Hartford in West Hartford, CT and The Crane School of Music at the State University of New York at Potsdam.
Miss Bach is a student of D'Anna Fortunato, and her principal teachers have included Karyl Ryczek, Celina Moore and Ruthann Ryan Hellfach. |
| Violinist Maria Benotti founded Music at Eden’s Edge, the North Shore's own resident chamber music ensemble, in 1982. As Artistic Director, she has shaped its programs and artistic vision while performing for 25 seasons. Active in Boston's vibrant musical scene, she is a member of the faculty of the New England Conservatory Preparatory School, where she has been teaching violin, chamber music, and Sonata Duo class since 1977. She has taught a course in string pedagogy in the NEC School for Continuing Education.
Ms. Benotti performs frequently with the Handel & Haydn Society Orchestra on period violin, and as concertmaster and chamber performer on modern violin with the St. John’s Concert Series in Beverly Farms. She is a founding member of the Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra of Boston.
She has appeared in numerous recitals and chamber concerts throughout New England, including a Jordan Hall solo recital, the Enchanted Circle Series at Jordan Hall, the Yellow Barn Chamber Music Festival, the Monadnock Festival, and the Music at Noon Series at Northeastern University and has recorded for Friedrich von Huene and composer Howard Rovics.
A graduate of Oberlin College and New England Conservatory of Music, Ms. Benotti studied with Eric Rosenblith, Dorothy DeLay, Masuko Ushioda, and Valeria Kuchment. Her chamber music studies included such master teachers as Leonard Shure, Josef Gingold, Donald Weilerstein, David Wells, and Michael Schnitzler, with whom she studied while a special student at the Hochschule für Musik in Vienna, Austria. |
| Mark Berger attended Boston University as a Trustee Scholar where he studied violin with Roman Totenberg and viola with Steven Ansell. Mr. Berger has performed in numerous summer festivals including the Kneisel Hall Chamber Music Festival and Tanglewood. A strong advocate of new music, Mr. Berger has been a returning member of the New Fromm Players, an ensemble in residence at the Tanglewood Music Center devoted entirely to the performance of contemporary works. Mr. Berger is a highly active violist and violinist in the Boston area and has performed with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Boston Modern Orchestra Project, Boston Lyric Opera, ALEA III Contemporary Music Ensemble, New World Symphony, and the Vermont and Albany Symphonies. As a composer, Mr. Berger received his master’s degree Boston University where he studied with Lukas Foss and Theodore Antoniou. Mr. Berger’s compositions have been heard internationally in Moscow and St. Petersburg, Russia, Athens, Greece, and San Jose, Costa Rica. His music has been performed by ensembles such as ALEA III, the Harvard Group for Contemporary Music, New Music Brandeis, the Hellenic Group for Contemporary Music (Athens), and Studio New Music (in residence at the Moscow Conservatory). Mr. Berger is on the faculty of Middlesex Community College in Bedford, MA and is currently a PhD candidate at Brandeis University where he studies with David Rakowski. |
| Orlando Cela holds a BM from DePauw University, a Masters degree in Flute Performance from New England Conservatory, a double Masters degree in Choral and Wind Ensemble Conducting from NEC, and additional studies at the Hochschule fur die Musik aus Wien in Vienna. Orlando’s primary teachers include Paula Robison, Anne Reynolds, Tamara Brooks and Barbara Gisler-Haase. He has taught at summer programs at the South Shore Conservatory and SUNY Fredonia, and has performed in locales such as Great Britain, Austria, the Czech Republic and his native Venezuela. Orlando has conducted ensembles ranging from the New England Conservatory Contemporary Ensemble to the Vineyard Sinfonietta, and was Assistant Conductor of the Newton Symphony Orchestra. Currently he is the music director of the Willow Flute Ensemble, the Yamawaki Chamber Orchestra and Orchestra Manager of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum Chamber Orchestra. He was also a flutist with the Serenata Chamber Musicians, the Xanthos Ensemble, and currently performs with the Anemoi Quintet. Orlando teaches flute at the College of the Holy Cross, and used to be faculty at All Newton Music School, Carlisle Public Schools, and Brookline Music School. |
Neil Fairbairn studied bassoon in Boston and London. A freelance musician in Britain for twenty years, he toured regularly with the London Opera Group and the Phoenix Wind Quintet. He also worked extensively with the Royal National Theater, accompanying productions on British, European, and North American Tours.
In the field of music publishing, Neil was associate editor of The Music Makers, a biographical encyclopedia of musicians. He also co-authored Royal Collection, an anthology of music composed by members of the British royal family.
Neil currently lives in Belmont, Massachusetts, where he is a freelance bassoonist and writer. He plays with the wind quintet Solar Winds and teaches bassoon and chamber music at Phillips Andover Academy. |
| Cellist Sarah Freiberg is a member of the Handel and Haydn Society, Boston Baroque and the Freeman/Freiberg Duo. She has performed with the New York Collegium, Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra (San Francisco), Portland Baroque (Oregon), Seattle Baroque, the Boston Early Music Festival and Arion (Montreal). As a corresponding editor for STRINGS magazine, she has contributed numerous articles to that publication. Sarah has edited the six cello sonatas of Guerini for both PRB Productions and Broude Brothers, and recorded them and Laurenti sonatas for Centaur. She teaches in the early music program at Boston University as well as at the Powers Music School in Belmont. Sarah received her D.M.A. and M.M. degrees from S.U.N.Y. at Stony Brook, and holds degrees from the San Francisco Conservatory, Brown University (in American Civilization) and the Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria. Ms. Freiberg can be heard on numerous recordings, including as soloist in Mozart's Concertone. |
| Colleen enjoys an active and varied performance career on both modern and baroque cello as well as viola da gamba. She began her cello studies at the age of 5 in St. Catherine's Ontario and continued her pre-college studies in the Preparatory Department of the Eastman School of Music. She completed her B. M. in cello performance at the Cleveland Institute of Music and a M. M. in cello performance from Boston University. Colleen participated in many summer festivals such as the Aspen Music Festival and the Quartet Program. Colleen currently performs with Boston Baroque, Orchestra of Indian Hill, Handel and Haydn Society. L'Academie, Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra of Boston, and other freelance ensembles in the Boston area. Colleen's past performances include the Columbus Symphony, Erie Philharmonic, Canton Symphony and the Washington Bach Consort. Colleen is an active instructor of both cello and chamber music and currently teaches at the Concord Conservatory of Music. Previous teaching appointments include the New England Conservatory Preparatory Department, Powers Music School, Greater Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra and The Cleveland Institute of Music Preparatory Department. Colleen can be heard on the Telarc label. |
| Julia McKenzie, violinist, is an alumna of the New England Conservatory, the Aspen Music School, and the University of California, Irvine. She performs with numerous Boston ensembles including Boston Baroque, the Handel and Haydn Society, Cantata Singers, Emmanuel Music, Foundling Baroque Orchestra and Women's Advocacy Project, and the multi-media group "Melodic Vision" with the Riverview Chamber Players. As a specialist in historical performance practice, she has performed in early music festivals in Germany, Mexico, Indianapolis, and Boston, and has traveled internationally on tour with Boston Baroque. Also a consultant of fine violins, she is employed by Johnson String Instrument and acquires instruments and bows from all over the world for string players nationwide. A dedicated teacher, Ms. McKenzie coaches students in the Greater Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra and is on the faculty of the New England Conservatory Preparatory School where she teaches privately and conducts workshops in Baroque performance practice. She has recorded for the Telarc, Meridien, Arabesque and Titanic record labels. |
| Lynn Nowels, cellist, performs in Boston with groups including The Cantata Singers & Ensemble, Emmanuel Music, & Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra. She was a founding member of the Artemis String Quartet which specialized in the quartets of Shostakovich. She is a graduate of the University of Washington School of Music where she studied cello & chamber music with Eva Heinitz, Denes Zsigmondy, & Donald McInnes. She was awarded a fellowship to the Blossom Festival Chamber Music School where she worked with Josef Gingold & Leonard Rose. Recent appearances include concerts in Nebraska with the Emmanuel Trio and in Maine with Winsor Music. She looks forward to returning to the International Musical Arts Institute this July. Ms. Nowels has taught at Wheaton College and the Lexington Waldorf School and has recorded for the CRI label. |
| Mr. Sponseller has appeared throughout Europe and North America with critical acclaim as a soloist, conductor, and chamber musician. Winner of the American Bach Soloists Competition (1998) and the Jurow International Harpsichord Competition (2002), he holds the distinction of being a two-time prizewinner at the Festival of Flanders International Harpsichord Competition (Bruges), as well as taking prizes in Montreal and Kalamazoo. His recitals, which favor the French “clavecinists” and English virginal repertoire, have been heard at the Smithsonian Institution, Saint Cecilia’s Hall, Alliance Francaise and at festivals such as Boston, Berkeley, and Edinburgh. Following his return to the US in 1999, Mr. Sponseller has performed and recorded frequently with the Handel and Haydn Society, Smithsonian Chamber Players, American Bach Soloists, New York Collegium, and Apollo’s Fire. Michael Sponseller performs in partnership with leading artists in both instrumental and vocal mediums, and performs with numerous chamber ensembles such as La Luna, Aradia, and Rhetoric. In addition to holding degrees from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music and the Royal Conservatory of Music in The Hague, Mr. Sponseller was a teacher of harpsichord at the Baldwin Wallace Conservatory of Music and has been on staff at Boston University. Mr. Sponseller's passionate interest in 17th and 18th century opera led to making his conducting debut in 2000 with Dido and Aeneas of Henry Purcell. Since then he has performed and been assistant conductor in a wide range of repertoire, including Castor et Pollux, Ariodante, Amadigi, Alcina, Cephale et Procris, and Les Arts Florissants. In 2000, he became a research assistant at the Centre de Musique Baroque de Versailles, working with Lisa Goode Crawford on the operas of Joseph Nicolas Pancrace Royer (1705-1755). This work culminated in 2002 in the modern-day premiere of Royer’s Le Pouvoir de la Amour with the New York Baroque Dance Company, Oberlin College, and the Centre de Musique Baroque de Versailles, which received recognition and praise from the New York Times, Wall Street Journal and Opera News. Mr. Sponseller can also be heard on several recordings from Electra, Vanguard Classics, Naxos, Delos and Centaur. Since 2002, he has be part of the famed Bach cantata cycle at Emmanuel Church in Boston, in which has performed nearly 50 cantatas. With that ensemble, he also also performed in Peter Sellars' stagings of Bach cantatas for the late Lorraine Hunt Lieberson on tour in 2005, and Mark Morris' production of Handel's L'Allegro, Il Moderato, e Il Penseroso. In 2006, Mr.Sponseller was named Lorraine Hunt Lieberson Fellow by Emmanuel Music, in recognition of his achievements as emerging young artist. |
Daniel Stepner has performed and recorded a wide range of music on period and contemporary instruments. He has been first violinist of the Lydian String Quartet, in residence at Brandeis University, for 21 years; he is also a founding member of the Boston Museum Trio, resident at the Museum of Fine Arts; he serves as concertmaster of the Handel and Haydn Society, Artistic Director of the Aston Magna Festival, a summer series in the Berkshires; and is a Preceptor in Music at Harvard University, where he team-teaches a course in chamber music with Robert Levin. For six years, he played as assistant concertmaster and frequent soloist with the Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century, based in Holland. He plays frequent recitals in the Boston area.
His recorded repertoire includes sonatas of Bach, Vivaldi, Buxtehude and Telemann, and Marais; chamber music of Mozart, Schubert, Brahms, William Schuman, Vincent Persichetti, Lee Hyla, Peter Child, Martin Boykan Yehudi Wyner, and John Harbison; and the complete violin sonatas of Charles Ives, with pianist John Kirkpatrick. He has also conducted recordings of Handel’s The Triumph of Time and Truth and Monteverdi’s Orfeo (on Centaur). Mr. Stepner studied with Steven Staryk in Chicago, Nadia Boulanger at Fontainebleau, France; and Broadus Erle at Yale, where he earned a Doctor of Musical Arts degree. |
| Pianist Naoko Sugiyama, a native of Japan, is active as a soloist and chamber musician throughout Japan and around the Boston area. In 2005, she won second prize in the Krenek Competition in the Virginia Waring International Piano Competition (formerly the Joanna Hodges International Piano Competition, Palm Desert, CA). She has appeared with the Boston Chamber Music Society, Bargemusic (New York), the Chestnut Hill Concerts (Madison, CT), and worked with world-renowned musicians such as Murray Perahia, Menahem Pressler, and Jacques Zoon. Ms. Sugiyama has been heard at Jordan Hall, Goethe Institute (Boston), Suntory Hall (Tokyo), and on WGBH-FM Boston. She is the winner of the New England Conservatory Honors Auditions and the Longy Orchestra Soloists Competition and has won the All Japan Student Music Competition several times. After serving as an associate performance pianist, she has been a member of the faculty at Bowdoin International Music Festival since 2001. Ms. Sugiyama holds a Bachelor of Music degree from the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music (Tokyo Geidai), a Graduate Performance Diploma from the Longy School of Music, and a Master of Music degree and Graduate Diploma with Distinction in Performance from New England Conservatory. She has studied with Randall Hodgkinson, Martin Canin, Mieko Harimoto, and Ayako Kanazawa. She is an adjunct faculty member at the Boston Arts Academy and recently joined the Preparatory and Continuing Studies Piano faculty at Longy School of Music. |
A composer of growing reputation, John H. Wallace has studied with Lukas Foss, Charles Fussell, Alan Stout, Raymond Wilding-White and Darleen Cowles-Mitchell. He received his doctoral degree from Boston University (Composition), master’s degree from Northwestern University (Composition) and bachelor’s degree from DePaul University (Composition/French Horn Performance). He is currently an Assistant Professor in the College of Fine Arts–School of Music at Boston University, where he is also Director of Undergraduate Studies and Coordinator of On-Line Theory.
An active member of the Chicago Composers’ Consortium from 1996–2004, he chaired that organization from 1996-98. As chair, he was interviewed for the premiere edition of the American Music Center’s webzine, NewMusicBox. In addition to his current activities at Boston University, he has taught at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, DePaul University and the Greater Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra, and guest lectured at the Mary Pappert School of Music at Duquesne University, The Boston Conservatory and Middlesex Community College.
His music had been performed by a diverse collection of performers and organizations such as Alea III, the Tanglewood Institute, New Music DePaul, Arcadian Winds, the Chicago Chamber Music Collective, The Riverway Trio, Pinotage, singers Penelope Bitzas, Krista River, Gary Durham and Julia Bentley, pianists Sheila Kibbe and Kurt Westerberg, harpist Barbara Poeschl-Edrich, and members of the Boston, Chicago and Philadelphia symphony orchestras. In Europe, his Piano Quintet received a series of performances by the renowned Vilnius String Quartet and Lithuanian-American pianist, Rokas Zubovas. His Symphonia for large orchestra was one of three works selected for the Chicago Civic Orchestra’s 1990 Illinois Composer’s Reading Sessions, coordinated by then Chicago Symphony Orchestra Composer-in-Residence, John Corigliano, and conducted by Michael Morgan.
As a horn player, he has performed with various ensembles, including the Park Forest Orchestra, Waukegan Symphony, Lake Shore Brass Quintet, Bristol Renaissance Faire, and Disney’s All-American College Marching Band. Additional notable performances include the first inauguration of Chicago Mayor Harold Washington, and performances for Illinois Governor James R. Thompson and President Ronald Reagan.
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Ray Brown joined the staff of WGBH Radio in 2009 and is often heard hosting classical music programs as well as the local portion of Morning Edition. He was the afternoon host on classical station WCRB in Boston 1994-2008. Ray has narrated live performances with many area orchestras, including the Boston Pops, the Boston Classical Orchestra, and the Boston Ballet Orchestra as well as Music at Eden’s Edge.
As a commercial narrator, Ray has voiced presentations for Colgate-Palmolive, HasbroToys, McDonald's, and the US Coast Guard. He serves as a regular off-camera voice for Boston's WBZ-TV and narrates Simon & Schuster's Pimsleur Language Programs. Ray also produces and hosts the Ray Brown's Talkin' Birds radio program, heard Sunday mornings on stations in Massachusetts and Rhode Island and via podcast on iTunes and at talkinbirds.com.
Among his broadcast achievements, Ray has been a top 5 national finalist in Air Personality of the Year competitions from Billboard Magazine and the National Association of Broadcasters; his “Back Seat Governor” radio promotion was featured in a Time Magazine photo story; he has received a National Association of Auto Dealers “Chassie” Award for radio commercial performance; and his novelty record, “Get Preppy (the Preppy Song),” was played on radio stations in major markets including Boston, Cleveland, St. Louis, and Detroit. |
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