2018/2019 Musicians
MEGAN HOLLAND
Originally from Albuquerque, Megan Holland began studying the violin at age four with Susan Kempter, nationally renowned pedagogue, author and Suzuki teacher trainer. She later studied privately with Leonard Felberg, former Professor of Violin at the University of New Mexico, concertmaster of the Santa Fe Symphony and violinist of the Seraphin Trio. She has received Suzuki teacher training from Susan Kempter. She received a Bachelor of Music from the Cleveland Institute of Music studying with David Updegraff, head of the Violin Department. She received a Master of Music degree and an Advanced Studies diploma under the tutelage of Robert Lipsett at the University of Southern California.
Megan has performed throughout the United States, Mexico, Canada, Germany and the Netherlands. Reviewers have characterized her performances as "poised" and "powerful". She held the position of Principal Second Violin in the Charleston Symphony Orchestra and member of the CSO String Quartet since 2001. In addition to her duties as Principal Second Violin, she also performed as soloist with the CSO on several occasions. She has given critically acclaimed solo and chamber music performances in the Piccolo Spoleto Chamber Music Spotlight Series. She also has been a member of the Breckenridge Music Festival Orchestra, a summer orchestral and chamber music festival under the baton of Gerhardt Zimmermann, since 2002. In 2003 she performed as soloist with that orchestra. She has performed in the Breckenridge Music Festival's Winter Concert Series since it's inception in 2002. She has also appeared as soloist with the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra and the Albuquerque Philharmonic.
Currently, Megan is co-director of the Strings program at The Montessori Elementary School. She is an active performer in the Albuquerque and Santa Fe area. She performs regularly with Chatter, the Albuquerque Chamber Soloists and Santa Fe Pro-Musica.
Megan has performed throughout the United States, Mexico, Canada, Germany and the Netherlands. Reviewers have characterized her performances as "poised" and "powerful". She held the position of Principal Second Violin in the Charleston Symphony Orchestra and member of the CSO String Quartet since 2001. In addition to her duties as Principal Second Violin, she also performed as soloist with the CSO on several occasions. She has given critically acclaimed solo and chamber music performances in the Piccolo Spoleto Chamber Music Spotlight Series. She also has been a member of the Breckenridge Music Festival Orchestra, a summer orchestral and chamber music festival under the baton of Gerhardt Zimmermann, since 2002. In 2003 she performed as soloist with that orchestra. She has performed in the Breckenridge Music Festival's Winter Concert Series since it's inception in 2002. She has also appeared as soloist with the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra and the Albuquerque Philharmonic.
Currently, Megan is co-director of the Strings program at The Montessori Elementary School. She is an active performer in the Albuquerque and Santa Fe area. She performs regularly with Chatter, the Albuquerque Chamber Soloists and Santa Fe Pro-Musica.
JAMES HOLLAND
James Holland began his cello studies at age 9 in his hometown of Pensacola, FL. He earned degrees in cello performance from the University of Alabama and the Eastman School of Music, after which he became a member of the New World Symphony in Miami Beach under the direction of Michael Tilson Thomas. In 1996, James was appointed Principal Cellist of the Charleston (SC) Symphony Orchestra, a position he held for 11 years. In 2007, James and his wife, violinist Megan Holland, relocated to Albuquerque, NM. In 2014, James became president and artistic director of Albuquerque Chamber Soloists. As a chamber musician, he has performed with Chatter, the Placitas Artists Series, the Taos Chamber Music Series, and Chamber Music Amarillo, among others. James is Principal Cellist of Santa Fe Pro Musica and a member of the SFPM Baroque Ensemble. He has also been a member of the Santa Fe Symphony since 2007. James spends his summers as Principal Cellist of the Breckenridge Music Festival, a position he has held since 1998. His recording activities include an award-winning live concert recording of the music of Duke Ellington with jazz legends Eddie Daniels and Roger Kellaway, and a recording for Smithsonian Folkways with the oud virtuoso Rahim AlHaj. James also maintains a large and active private cello teaching studio and directs orchestras at The Montessori Elementary and Middle School.
DAVID FELBERG
Violinist David Felberg is Associate Concertmaster of the New Mexico Philharmonic, Concertmaster of the Santa Fe Symphony Orchestra and has appeared as concerto soloist with the New Mexico Symphony, Santa Fe Symphony, Palo Alto Philharmonic, Albuquerque Philharmonic, and the Balcones Orchestra in Austin, TX. The Albuquerque native has also performed solo recitals in Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Los Alamos, Clovis, Portales, and as a chamber musician with the Albuquerque Chamber Soloists, Chatter, Santa Fe New Music, and Serenata of Santa Fe. In the spring of 2005, he made his New York recital debut in Merkin Hall.
Felberg is the Co-Music Director of Chatter, an innovative Sunday morning series highlighting music and poetry that has been featured on NPR and in the Los Angeles Times. The multi-faceted musician is also Music Director of the Albuquerque Philharmonic, assistant conductor of the University of New Mexico Symphony Orchestra, and founder and conductor of Chatter, a chamber ensemble dedicated to performing 20th and 21st century chamber orchestra repertoire.
Felberg received a Bachelor of Arts degree in history from the University of Arizona and a Master of Music in instrumental conducting from the University of New Mexico. He has also taken advanced string quartet studies at the University of Colorado at Boulder and attended the prestigious American Academy of Conducting at the Aspen Music Festival, where he worked with maestros David Zinman and Murray Sidlin, and with renowned conducting pedagogue Jorma Panula.
Felberg is the Co-Music Director of Chatter, an innovative Sunday morning series highlighting music and poetry that has been featured on NPR and in the Los Angeles Times. The multi-faceted musician is also Music Director of the Albuquerque Philharmonic, assistant conductor of the University of New Mexico Symphony Orchestra, and founder and conductor of Chatter, a chamber ensemble dedicated to performing 20th and 21st century chamber orchestra repertoire.
Felberg received a Bachelor of Arts degree in history from the University of Arizona and a Master of Music in instrumental conducting from the University of New Mexico. He has also taken advanced string quartet studies at the University of Colorado at Boulder and attended the prestigious American Academy of Conducting at the Aspen Music Festival, where he worked with maestros David Zinman and Murray Sidlin, and with renowned conducting pedagogue Jorma Panula.
KIMBERLY FREDENBURGH
Kimberly Fredenburgh is Associate Professor of Viola at the University of New Mexico where she teaches private viola students, classes in orchestral audition preparation and chamber music ensembles. Ms. Fredenburgh has served as assistant principal viola of the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra for the past 10 years.. She performs regularly with the Santa Fe Opera Orchestra and appears as principal viola with the Santa Fe Pro Musica Orchestra. She was previously associate principal viola of the Phoenix Symphony Orchestra and also taught on the faculty at Arizona State University
Ms. Fredenburgh was a co-principal violist with the New World Symphony under Michael Tilson Thomas and has appeared in Carnegie Hall with Sir Georg Solti conducting. She has been featured as a concerto soloist with orchestras such as the Phoenix Symphony and the New Mexico Symphony. She has taught master classes and performed in recitals across the US as well as in Brazil, Mexico, Canada, Portugal, Spain, Italy and Monaco. Ms. Fredenburgh has delivered pedagogical papers at several National ASTA conferences and has also performed at the 2008 International Viola Congress.
Ms. Fredenburgh was a co-principal violist with the New World Symphony under Michael Tilson Thomas and has appeared in Carnegie Hall with Sir Georg Solti conducting. She has been featured as a concerto soloist with orchestras such as the Phoenix Symphony and the New Mexico Symphony. She has taught master classes and performed in recitals across the US as well as in Brazil, Mexico, Canada, Portugal, Spain, Italy and Monaco. Ms. Fredenburgh has delivered pedagogical papers at several National ASTA conferences and has also performed at the 2008 International Viola Congress.
TZU-FENG LIU
Pianist Tzu-Feng Liu works as a solo pianist and collaborative artist, and has performed in many different settings, including vocal, chamber, orchestral and solo concerts in both Taiwan and the U.S. She received her Doctoral of Musical Arts degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2008.
Tzu-Feng’s past awards include first prize at the 1997 Taipei Senior division piano competition, second place at the 1998 Taiwan Senior division piano competition and finalist in the Taiwan Symphony Young Artist debut, as well as the YAMAHA young artist debut in 1999.
In 2003, she was the winner of the concerto competition at the University of Illinois. Her 2010 concert highlights include solo performances at Keller Hall, (Albuquerque, NM), Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall (New York, NY) and the Embassy of the Republic of Poland (Washington, DC). Besides her solo engagements, Dr. Liu is also devoted to new music performance.
She was the co- winner of the UIUC “21st Century Piano Commission” award in 2007. Ms. Liu has been invited to perform in several festivals including the Electronic Music Midwest Festival (EMM, Kansas City), CHASM Festival (Tallahassee, FL), Society for Electroacoustic Music in the United States (Salt Lake City, UT) along with John Donald Robb Composer’s Symposium Concerts in 2008 and 2010. She currently resides in Albuquerque,NM.
Tzu-Feng’s past awards include first prize at the 1997 Taipei Senior division piano competition, second place at the 1998 Taiwan Senior division piano competition and finalist in the Taiwan Symphony Young Artist debut, as well as the YAMAHA young artist debut in 1999.
In 2003, she was the winner of the concerto competition at the University of Illinois. Her 2010 concert highlights include solo performances at Keller Hall, (Albuquerque, NM), Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall (New York, NY) and the Embassy of the Republic of Poland (Washington, DC). Besides her solo engagements, Dr. Liu is also devoted to new music performance.
She was the co- winner of the UIUC “21st Century Piano Commission” award in 2007. Ms. Liu has been invited to perform in several festivals including the Electronic Music Midwest Festival (EMM, Kansas City), CHASM Festival (Tallahassee, FL), Society for Electroacoustic Music in the United States (Salt Lake City, UT) along with John Donald Robb Composer’s Symposium Concerts in 2008 and 2010. She currently resides in Albuquerque,NM.
JOEL BECKTELL
Cellist Joel Becktell has performed, taught, and lectured throughout North and Central America and Europe. He has been a member of the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, the Nichols Quartet, the Harrington String Quartet, and the Moveable Feast chamber ensemble. He has served as Principal Cellist of the Austin Symphony Orchestra and the Santa Fe Pro Musica and is Assistant Principal cellist of the Santa Fe Symphony. Joel appears frequently on Baroque and modern cello and violoncello piccolo as soloist and with ensembles throughout North America. He is a founding member of REVEL, a chamber ensemble performing an exceptionally wide-ranging repertoire (www.revelmusic.com), and of The Analog Cello Company, an ensemble dedicated to original and arranged works for multiple cellos. He is also a founding member of Movable Sol and the baroque ensemble BWV, both of which perform a popular, intimate concert series in New Mexico. Joel has appeared as soloist with the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra and the Santa Fe Symphony. He has recorded for Marquis Classics, Revel Records, Parma, and Blue Griffin Records labels. His latest CD, Bach’s Solo Cello Suites, Volume I, featuring two complete recordings of the first three Bach Suites (one on modern cello, one on a period baroque cello) was released in 2014.
Joel is a graduate of the Cleveland Institute of Music, where he received his Bachelor and Master of Music degrees with honors. His teachers include Anne Cole, Alan Harris, and Stephen Geber. A dedicated teacher and coach, Joel teaches privately and at various festivals and master classes. He has also written on pedagogical and luthiery topics for Strings Magazine.
Joel is a graduate of the Cleveland Institute of Music, where he received his Bachelor and Master of Music degrees with honors. His teachers include Anne Cole, Alan Harris, and Stephen Geber. A dedicated teacher and coach, Joel teaches privately and at various festivals and master classes. He has also written on pedagogical and luthiery topics for Strings Magazine.
ROBYN JULYAN.
Robyn Julyan has performed as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral musician throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, Germany, Denmark, Norway, and Singapore. Robyn has been on the string faculty at Regis University in Denver since 2011.
In 2016, Robyn joined the faculty of Orvieto Musica as director of the Intensive Strings Program. She will again head to Italy for more chamber music in 2017.
Robyn is originally from Albuquerque, NM, where she began playing the violin at age three with renowned Suzuki pedagogue Susan Kempter. She later continued her studies with Leonard Felberg, then professor of violin at the University of New Mexico and a founding member of the Seraphin Trio.
She received her Bachelors of Music from the Peabody Conservatory, where she studied with Tokyo Quartet first violinist Martin Beaver and Herbert Greenberg, former concertmaster of the Baltimore Symphony. She received her Masters of Music in violin performance from the Cleveland Institute of Music, where she studied with David Updegraff, violin department head. In 2003 she was awarded a fellowship to help Singapore start its first conservatory, the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory, and to play with the Singapore Symphony.
As a dedicated educator, Robyn received apprenticeship Suzuki training under her former mentor, Susan Kempter. She maintains a private studio of students ranging from very young beginners through those preparing for college auditions.
Her students have been accepted into the top orchestras of organizations such as the Colorado All State Orchestra, Western States Honor Orchestra, the Lamont Summer Music Academy, the Denver Young Artists Orchestra, and the International Music Academy, Pilsen.
An active chamber musician, Robyn has been a featured performer in concert series and festivals around the country and abroad, including the Albuquerque Chamber Soloists, Denver Eclectic Concerts, Piccolo Spoleto Spotlight Series, Charleston Chamber Players, Charleston House Concerts, and Breckenridge Music Festival’s Winter Concert Series. She participated in the Domaine Forget festival in Quebec in 2000 and 2001, and was a member of the National Repertory Orchestra in Breckenridge, Colorado from 2002 to 2003.
Robyn has held positions with the Colorado Symphony, the Charleston Symphony, the Sarasota Opera, and was the Assistant Concertmaster of the Colorado Springs Philharmonic. She performs regularly with the Colorado Symphony, Opera Colorado, and the Colorado Music Festival.
She has been a member of the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music since 2008, and spends two weeks every August in Santa Cruz, CA slaving over challenging music for the satisfaction of bringing the very newest classical music to life!
Robyn lives in SE Denver with her husband, Benjamin Tomkins. They share their home with their cat, Molly, and their dog, Amelia.
In 2016, Robyn joined the faculty of Orvieto Musica as director of the Intensive Strings Program. She will again head to Italy for more chamber music in 2017.
Robyn is originally from Albuquerque, NM, where she began playing the violin at age three with renowned Suzuki pedagogue Susan Kempter. She later continued her studies with Leonard Felberg, then professor of violin at the University of New Mexico and a founding member of the Seraphin Trio.
She received her Bachelors of Music from the Peabody Conservatory, where she studied with Tokyo Quartet first violinist Martin Beaver and Herbert Greenberg, former concertmaster of the Baltimore Symphony. She received her Masters of Music in violin performance from the Cleveland Institute of Music, where she studied with David Updegraff, violin department head. In 2003 she was awarded a fellowship to help Singapore start its first conservatory, the Yong Siew Toh Conservatory, and to play with the Singapore Symphony.
As a dedicated educator, Robyn received apprenticeship Suzuki training under her former mentor, Susan Kempter. She maintains a private studio of students ranging from very young beginners through those preparing for college auditions.
Her students have been accepted into the top orchestras of organizations such as the Colorado All State Orchestra, Western States Honor Orchestra, the Lamont Summer Music Academy, the Denver Young Artists Orchestra, and the International Music Academy, Pilsen.
An active chamber musician, Robyn has been a featured performer in concert series and festivals around the country and abroad, including the Albuquerque Chamber Soloists, Denver Eclectic Concerts, Piccolo Spoleto Spotlight Series, Charleston Chamber Players, Charleston House Concerts, and Breckenridge Music Festival’s Winter Concert Series. She participated in the Domaine Forget festival in Quebec in 2000 and 2001, and was a member of the National Repertory Orchestra in Breckenridge, Colorado from 2002 to 2003.
Robyn has held positions with the Colorado Symphony, the Charleston Symphony, the Sarasota Opera, and was the Assistant Concertmaster of the Colorado Springs Philharmonic. She performs regularly with the Colorado Symphony, Opera Colorado, and the Colorado Music Festival.
She has been a member of the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music since 2008, and spends two weeks every August in Santa Cruz, CA slaving over challenging music for the satisfaction of bringing the very newest classical music to life!
Robyn lives in SE Denver with her husband, Benjamin Tomkins. They share their home with their cat, Molly, and their dog, Amelia.
BENJAMIN TOMKINS
Bio coming soon.
NICOLLE MANIACI
Nicolle Maniaci was born in Long Island, New York and moved out to New Mexico with her parents in 1974. She grew up in the Albuquerque Youth Symphony Program while studying violin with Kathie Jarrett and received her music degree from the University of New Mexico, studying with Mr. Leonard Felberg. She spent all of her summers studying the violin at various festivals around the country, but wanted to keep Albuquerque her home. She was a sectional coach for the Albuquerque Youth Symphony for eighteen years before retiring after the birth of her daughter. Currently, Nicolle is the director of the string program at Bosque School and personnel manager of the Santa Fe Symphony Orchestra and Chorus. Nicolle was a member of the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra First Violin Section for 11 years and is now a first violinist with the New Mexico Philharmonic. She is Principal Second Violinist of the Santa Fe Symphony Orchestra and is a founding a member of the Eleganza String Quartet and Chamisa Chamber Players. She also enjoys performing with the Taos Chamber Music Festival, Chatter, Orchestra of the Duke, Santa Fe New Music, and Opera Southwest. Nicolle Maniaci makes her home here in Albuquerque with her loving husband, John Witiuk and two children, Joseph and Juliana.
DEBRA AYERS
DEBRA AYERS performs internationally as a recitalist with instrumentalists, singers and chamber music ensembles. Co-founder of Montage Music Society, Debra also performs with Abiquiu Chamber Music Festival, Albuquerque Chamber Soloists, Serenata of Santa Fe, Sunday Chatter, Taos Chamber Music Group, Taos Trio and Santa Fe Desert Chorale. She has enjoyed collaborations with Aspen Music Festival Chamber Players; American, Apple Hill, La Catrina and Vega string quartets; Aspen Santa Fe Ballet, Ballet Pro Musica’s Chamber Ballet, Breckenridge Music Festival, the International Piatti Cello Festival and at Denver’s annual JAAMM Festival. A proponent of contemporary music, premieres include works by Ofer Ben-Amots, William Bolcom, Paul Elwood, Jeff Harrington, Andrew List, Daniel Schnyder, Ronald Strauss and Yehudi Wyner. Debra and cellist Marc Moskovitz presented the North American premiere of the rediscovered Zemlinsky Cello Sonata at the Library of Congress in Washington, DC. An alumna of the University of Southern California and the University of Wisconsin, her teachers include Gwendolyn Koldofsky, Jean Barr, André-Michel Schub, Brooks Smith, Martin Katz, and John Barrows. Debra can be heard on a number of critically- acclaimed recordings, including “STARRY NIGHT Project…music based on visual art” (MSR) and Music of Ernst Krenek with soprano Ilana Davidson. Her newest recordings (music by Ofer Ben-Amots) are in the Milken Archive.
CARMELO DE LO SANTOS
Brazilian-born violinist Cármelo de los Santos enjoys an exciting career as a soloist, chamber musician, and pedagogue. From his extensive concerto appearances to his recent performances of the 24 Caprices by Paganini, his virtuosity and musical commitment captivate audiences worldwide.
At the age of sixteen Cármelo gained celebrity status in Brazil by winning its most prestigious music competition, the Eldorado Prize, in São Paulo. Since then he has been a guest soloist with more than 40 orchestras, including the New World Symphony, Santa Fe Pro-Musica, the Santa Fe, and New Mexico Symphonies, the Montevideo Philarmonic, Orchestra Musica d’Oltreoceano (Rome), and the major orchestras in Brazil. Cármelo has collaborated with renowned conductors Michael Tilson Thomas, Alejandro Posada, Jean-Jaques Werner, Guillermo Figueroa, Eric Shumsky, Rodolfo Saglimbeni, Yeruham Scharovsky, Jorge Pérez-Gómez, Roberto Tibiriçá, and Jean Reis, among others.
In 2002 Cármelo made his New York debut as soloist and conductor in the Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall with the ARCO Chamber Orchestra.
Cármelo has won prizes in several international competitions, including the first prize at the 4th Júlio Cardona International String Competition (Portugal), first prize at the Music Teachers National Association (MTNA) Collegiate Artist Competition (USA), and second prize in the Young Artist International Competition (Argentina).
Cármelo’s commitment to young musicians brings him to music festivals and master classes throughout the world. In his native Brazil, he enjoys working with at-risk students from social programs similar to Venezuela’s famous El Sistema.
Cármelo holds a Bachelor’s degree from Rio Grande do Sul Federal University, Brazil, a Master’s degree from the Manhattan School of Music, and a Doctoral degree from the University of Georgia. His teachers were Fredi Gerling, Marcello Guerchfeld, Sylvia Rosenberg, and Levon Ambartsumian. As a student, he performed in master classes and had consultations with Isaac Stern, Boris Belkin, Eugene Fodor, and Shlomo Mintz, and numerous others.
Cármelo’s 2009 CD release, Sonatas Brasileiras, presents sonatas by Villa-Lobos, Guarnieri, and Santoro (UFRGS Label) and received that year’s Açorianos Prize (Brazil) for best Classical CD, along with the year’s Best Classical Performer prize. The CD “Magic Hour” with REVEL – works for piano trio by Beethoven, Piazzolla, and Kenji Bunch, plus original arrangements by the group – was released in 2012 and can be purchased at www.revelmusic.org.
Two CDs are scheduled for release in 2013: “Brazilian Violin Showpieces” – short pieces for violin and piano by Brazilian composers, with pianist Ney Fialkow; and “French Composers,” with the Sonata for Violin and Piano by Debussy, and Ernest Chausson’s Concerto for Violin, Piano, and String Quartet, recorded live at the 2012 Bonneville Chamber Music Festival.
Highlights of Cármelo’s 2013 calendar are the DVD recording of the 24 Caprices by Paganini, and an invitation to judge the 1st Art Center Tokyo International Violin Competition in Kobe, Japan.
Cármelo is an Associate Professor of Violin at the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, where he lives with his wife Eugenia and son Arthur. He plays on a Carl Becker violin, 1929.
At the age of sixteen Cármelo gained celebrity status in Brazil by winning its most prestigious music competition, the Eldorado Prize, in São Paulo. Since then he has been a guest soloist with more than 40 orchestras, including the New World Symphony, Santa Fe Pro-Musica, the Santa Fe, and New Mexico Symphonies, the Montevideo Philarmonic, Orchestra Musica d’Oltreoceano (Rome), and the major orchestras in Brazil. Cármelo has collaborated with renowned conductors Michael Tilson Thomas, Alejandro Posada, Jean-Jaques Werner, Guillermo Figueroa, Eric Shumsky, Rodolfo Saglimbeni, Yeruham Scharovsky, Jorge Pérez-Gómez, Roberto Tibiriçá, and Jean Reis, among others.
In 2002 Cármelo made his New York debut as soloist and conductor in the Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall with the ARCO Chamber Orchestra.
Cármelo has won prizes in several international competitions, including the first prize at the 4th Júlio Cardona International String Competition (Portugal), first prize at the Music Teachers National Association (MTNA) Collegiate Artist Competition (USA), and second prize in the Young Artist International Competition (Argentina).
Cármelo’s commitment to young musicians brings him to music festivals and master classes throughout the world. In his native Brazil, he enjoys working with at-risk students from social programs similar to Venezuela’s famous El Sistema.
Cármelo holds a Bachelor’s degree from Rio Grande do Sul Federal University, Brazil, a Master’s degree from the Manhattan School of Music, and a Doctoral degree from the University of Georgia. His teachers were Fredi Gerling, Marcello Guerchfeld, Sylvia Rosenberg, and Levon Ambartsumian. As a student, he performed in master classes and had consultations with Isaac Stern, Boris Belkin, Eugene Fodor, and Shlomo Mintz, and numerous others.
Cármelo’s 2009 CD release, Sonatas Brasileiras, presents sonatas by Villa-Lobos, Guarnieri, and Santoro (UFRGS Label) and received that year’s Açorianos Prize (Brazil) for best Classical CD, along with the year’s Best Classical Performer prize. The CD “Magic Hour” with REVEL – works for piano trio by Beethoven, Piazzolla, and Kenji Bunch, plus original arrangements by the group – was released in 2012 and can be purchased at www.revelmusic.org.
Two CDs are scheduled for release in 2013: “Brazilian Violin Showpieces” – short pieces for violin and piano by Brazilian composers, with pianist Ney Fialkow; and “French Composers,” with the Sonata for Violin and Piano by Debussy, and Ernest Chausson’s Concerto for Violin, Piano, and String Quartet, recorded live at the 2012 Bonneville Chamber Music Festival.
Highlights of Cármelo’s 2013 calendar are the DVD recording of the 24 Caprices by Paganini, and an invitation to judge the 1st Art Center Tokyo International Violin Competition in Kobe, Japan.
Cármelo is an Associate Professor of Violin at the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, where he lives with his wife Eugenia and son Arthur. He plays on a Carl Becker violin, 1929.
GABRIEL GORDON
Gabriel Gordon has enjoyed a varied career conducting professional, community and youth orchestras for 16 years. He made his professional conducting debut with the Orchestra of St. Peter by the Sea in 1998, and soon after formed the Chamber Orchestra at Tower Hill. Mr. Gordon has guest conducted the Santa Fe Symphony and Chatter, a Chamber Ensemble, as well as the All-State Orchestra in Oklahoma City.
As a violinist, Gabriel studied with Eugene Drucker and Jascha Brodsky, and has performed for 30 years with many orchestras such as the American Symphony, the Santa Fe Symphony, and the New Mexico Philharmonic. Mr. Gordon is a founding member of the Daponte String Quartet, and Trio Excelsior!
Gabriel served as conductor of the Albuquerque Youth Symphony since 2007, leading the orchestra in tours to Chicago, Australia, Austria, and in 2014 to Carnegie Hall in New York City. In August of 2013, The Santa Fe Opera and The Albuquerque Youth Symphony collaborated in a fully staged production of the opera Noah’s Flood by Benjamin Britten with Mr. Gordon as the conductor to wide acclaim.
As Music Director of the Albuquerque Youth Symphony Program from 2009-2014, Mr. Gordon presided over the purchase of a rehearsal facility, and a subsequent expansion that nearly doubled the ensembles in the program including choral ensembles, a guitar ensemble, a third high school orchestra, and a training ensemble for students who wish to become professional musicians.
In 2015, Mr. Gordon became Artistic Director of the NEXT Ensemble, conductor of the Davis Youth Symphony, and is also a violinist with Chamber Orchestra Ogden, as well as the New American Philharmonic.
Originally from New York City, Gabriel studied with some of the great luminaries of conducting including Kenneth Kiesler, Gustav Meier, Harold Farberman, David Gilbert, and Jonathan Strasser.
As a violinist, Gabriel studied with Eugene Drucker and Jascha Brodsky, and has performed for 30 years with many orchestras such as the American Symphony, the Santa Fe Symphony, and the New Mexico Philharmonic. Mr. Gordon is a founding member of the Daponte String Quartet, and Trio Excelsior!
Gabriel served as conductor of the Albuquerque Youth Symphony since 2007, leading the orchestra in tours to Chicago, Australia, Austria, and in 2014 to Carnegie Hall in New York City. In August of 2013, The Santa Fe Opera and The Albuquerque Youth Symphony collaborated in a fully staged production of the opera Noah’s Flood by Benjamin Britten with Mr. Gordon as the conductor to wide acclaim.
As Music Director of the Albuquerque Youth Symphony Program from 2009-2014, Mr. Gordon presided over the purchase of a rehearsal facility, and a subsequent expansion that nearly doubled the ensembles in the program including choral ensembles, a guitar ensemble, a third high school orchestra, and a training ensemble for students who wish to become professional musicians.
In 2015, Mr. Gordon became Artistic Director of the NEXT Ensemble, conductor of the Davis Youth Symphony, and is also a violinist with Chamber Orchestra Ogden, as well as the New American Philharmonic.
Originally from New York City, Gabriel studied with some of the great luminaries of conducting including Kenneth Kiesler, Gustav Meier, Harold Farberman, David Gilbert, and Jonathan Strasser.
JASON SAH
Jason Sah is a native of Long Island, NY. He began studying the violin at age 7, most notably with Lazar Gosman. Upon acceptance to the Bachelor program at the Eastman School of Music, he studied with Oleh Krysa, Zvi Zeitlin and Catherine Tait. He changed to viola in his senior year, and soon began the Masters program at the University of Southern California as a full scholarship student of Donald McInnes. Upon graduation, he went to Europe to pursue post-graduate work with Tomas Riebl at the Salzburg Mozarteum. In 2004, he returned to the Eastman School of Music to attain a DMA in Viola Performance and Literature with George Taylor. He served as George Taylor’s Doctoral Teaching Assistant at Eastman and the University of Rochester, and during the summer at the Meadowmount School of Music and the Stowe International Music Festival.
Jason has concertized around the world as a soloist, recitalist, and orchestral player. He toured extensively as a member of the Orquesta Sinfonica Sinaloa de los Artes, and held title positions with the OSSLA Camerata and Ars Contemporaneous de Culiacan. He has also toured with the Salzburg Camerata, Salzburg Kammerphilarmonie, and Eastman Broadband. He has appeared in concert at the Cervantino International Music Festival, the Chihuahua International Music Festival, and with the Skaneateles Festival and Malaysian National Festival Orchestras.
Mr. Sah is former Professor of Violin and Chair of the Chamber Music Department at the Juan N. Corpas University in Bogota, Colombia. In that capacity, he taught chamber music, sonata class, orchestral repertoire, and full-string sectionals. He has taught viola and chamber music during the summers at the A Tempo International Music Festival, the Point CounterPoint Chamber Music Festival, the Blue Lake Performing Arts Festival, the Flatirons Summer String Academy, the St. Mary’s University Chamber Music Intensive, and the Stowe School for Strings. Jason has a special affinity for working with under-privileged children. He first started working with struggling programs in South Central LA, and later collaborated with the Seattle Youth Symphony and Seattle Chamber Music Society to help build string programs in the Greater Seattle Public School System. He has taught alongside instructors from El Sistema, and has been a guest teacher of Tocar y Luchar, the Colombian version of El Sistema.
Today Jason is Director of the Orchestral Academy at the Tuacahn High School for the Performing Arts, and Artistic Director of the Tuacahn Summer Music Sessions. He is an Artist-in-Residence at St. Mary’s University of Winona, MN, and teaches at their summer chamber music intensive. He is also viola faculty at the Sequoia Chamber Music Workshop at CA State, Humboldt, and performs with the Montecito International Music Festival.
Jason has concertized around the world as a soloist, recitalist, and orchestral player. He toured extensively as a member of the Orquesta Sinfonica Sinaloa de los Artes, and held title positions with the OSSLA Camerata and Ars Contemporaneous de Culiacan. He has also toured with the Salzburg Camerata, Salzburg Kammerphilarmonie, and Eastman Broadband. He has appeared in concert at the Cervantino International Music Festival, the Chihuahua International Music Festival, and with the Skaneateles Festival and Malaysian National Festival Orchestras.
Mr. Sah is former Professor of Violin and Chair of the Chamber Music Department at the Juan N. Corpas University in Bogota, Colombia. In that capacity, he taught chamber music, sonata class, orchestral repertoire, and full-string sectionals. He has taught viola and chamber music during the summers at the A Tempo International Music Festival, the Point CounterPoint Chamber Music Festival, the Blue Lake Performing Arts Festival, the Flatirons Summer String Academy, the St. Mary’s University Chamber Music Intensive, and the Stowe School for Strings. Jason has a special affinity for working with under-privileged children. He first started working with struggling programs in South Central LA, and later collaborated with the Seattle Youth Symphony and Seattle Chamber Music Society to help build string programs in the Greater Seattle Public School System. He has taught alongside instructors from El Sistema, and has been a guest teacher of Tocar y Luchar, the Colombian version of El Sistema.
Today Jason is Director of the Orchestral Academy at the Tuacahn High School for the Performing Arts, and Artistic Director of the Tuacahn Summer Music Sessions. He is an Artist-in-Residence at St. Mary’s University of Winona, MN, and teaches at their summer chamber music intensive. He is also viola faculty at the Sequoia Chamber Music Workshop at CA State, Humboldt, and performs with the Montecito International Music Festival.
LISA DONALD
Bio coming soon
PAUL BOWER
Bio coming soon.