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Voices of Concinnity is a 12-voice ensemble of dedicated, seasoned choral artists from diverse backgrounds who strive to cultivate the art of chamber ensemble singing in Connecticut. Our mission is to connect with the community through exquisitely crafted, living choral music that fosters inclusion with innovative and collaborative programming, explores representation in choral music, and ensures affordable access to quality performances and programs for all. Concinnity performs choral music from the Renaissance to the Contemporary and is dedicated to fulfilling our mission, even in the midst of the pandemic.

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We are so grateful to the Western Carolina University Percussion Ensemble for putting together this benefit concert to support Lift Music Fund. Please enjoy these recently commissioned works through the "EVERYBODY HITS" project!

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Courtney Daglis began her studies at age six and has enjoyed playing the violin since the early 1990s. In her formative years Mrs. Daglis participated in various honorary orchestras and summer programs. While earning her bachelor’s degree at Emory University, Mrs. Daglis served as assistant principal second violin with the Emory Symphony Orchestra. In her performances with the symphony Mrs. Daglis has had the opportunity to be featured in a PBS special as well as to play at New York's Lincoln Center.

Courtney is deeply indebted to her wonderful teachers, including Lisa Yancich, member of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Oliver Steiner, a twenty-year faculty member of the Eastman School of Music, and various members of the Vega String Quartet, an internationally known quartet in residence at Emory University. 

Mrs. Daglis recently completed a master’s degree in violin performance at the University of Georgia. Her instructors and mentors include Levon Ambartsumian, Shakhida Azimkhodjaeva, and Valerie Gardner. She has performed in orchestras throughout the southeast including the cities of Augusta, Greenville, and Asheville among others.

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J. Andrés Ballesteros (b. 1991) is a composer, educator, and noted speaker based in Cambridge, MA. A polystylist, his works are centered in the classical music vernacular but include a variety of musical styles, from Latin music to electronics and theatre.

A Latino 30 Under 30 honoree and recipient of awards from the Asia/America Music Institute and Harvard University, among others, Andrés is regularly commissioned to create collaborative projects that engage with youth and community organizations in creating original works around social issues they face.

Andrés has been recognized for his leadership in working to expand the representation and performance of works by historically-underrepresented composers and was invited to speak at the National Conference for the League of American Orchestras in 2018 and 2019 on this important cause. In 2017, he led a team of musicians and community leaders working directly with the Boston Symphony on diversifying their programming, leading to a significant change in the BSO’s approach the very next season. He has continued this work as the Executive Director of Eureka Ensemble, an innovative musical group focused on creating social impact through music; and elsewhere through talks and consulting.

Andrés excels in creating works for a wide range of ensembles and genres and has been commissioned by several groups, such as Talea Ensemble, Juventas New Music, and the Callithumpian Consort to the Greensboro Youth Chorus, the Brattle Street Chamber Players, and the Mozart Society Orchestra. He has also written for several short films and a documentary (which have screened at festivals in New York, Boston, Chicago, and Providence, RI) and for other media such as podcasts, e-books, and apps. Previously, he taught music history, ethnomusicology, music theory, and creative writing at Boston Arts Academy. 

Andrés received his B.A. in Music from Harvard University, where he studied with Chaya Czernowin, Hans Tutschku, Edgar Barroso, and Trevor Bača. He is deeply thankful for all of them. Prior to his studies at Harvard, he started composing with Jack Jarrett in North Carolina. He has also studied at the European American Musical Alliance in Paris, France; at the highSCORE festival in the Milanese suburb of Pavia, Italy; and at the Harvard Summer Composition Institute in Concord and Cambridge, MA.

In his free time, Andrés volunteers in local musical and social initiatives, such as Boston Hope Music (2020-21), a platform providing hope and healing through music for those at the frontlines of the COVID-19 Pandemic, including healthcare workers and patients. He also sings in a local community chorus and has taken leadership roles through Scouts BSA and as a faculty dean’s aide at Adams House in Harvard College.

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AARI - Actionable Anti-Racism and Inclusion at University of Georgia's Hugh Hodgson School of Music

We are a diverse group of students focused on listening, amplifying, and facilitating. We believe that thoughtful communities of belonging are important for all the spaces we inhabit. We acknowledge the School of Music's ongoing diversity efforts and recognize the power of the arts in creating the communities of belonging we seek. We also acknowledge that our school is part of larger institutions built on racism, and that our actionable anti-racism is necessary to truly make change.

Claudia Beroukhim
David Stanley
Melvin Robinson
Ayako Pederson-Takeda
Karena Washington
Grace Gelpi
Chieh (Joyce) Yun
Caitlin Santos
Rayvon Love
Ivan Baquerizo

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Cole Dziedzic is a singer/songwriter from Albany, GA, whose genre exists somewhere between rock, pop, and folk music. He is a music student at the University of Georgia where he studies vocal performance under Dr. Stephanie Tingler and sings with the Hodgson Singers under Dr. Dan Bara. Aside from songwriting and popular music performance, Cole is an actor and vocalist in the worlds of musical theatre, operetta, and opera. He recently released his own original songs, so be sure to follow Cole’s social media platforms (Facebook & Instagram) as well as his music pages on Bandcamp and SoundCloud!

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An Oxford, Ohio native, bassoonist Emily Prochaska enjoys an active career as a performer and educator. Emily’s performances across the U.S. and abroad include appearances at the Interlochen Arts Academy, the Grand Ole Opry, the University of Michigan, the Madeline Island Chamber Music Festival, the Queen City Chamber Orchestra, throughout Germany with Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp, and in Vianden, Luxembourg at the Vianden International Chamber Music Festival. Her solo appearances include concerti performances at the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music as a winner of the 2015 Young Artists Competition, at Bowling Green State University as a 2018 Double Reed Solo Competition winner, and at Miami University as a winner of the 2019 Undergraduate Artists Competition.

Emily maintains an active bassoon studio, and has previously worked as a bassoon instructor for the West Chester Academy of Music in West Chester, OH. Her students frequently win positions in district and state honors ensembles. Emily also instructs middle school and high school students in bassoon, chamber music, and reed making at the Bocal Majority and Operation O.B.O.E. summer camps.

Emily is currently pursuing a Masters in Music Performance degree at the University of Georgia Hugh Hodgson School of Music, where she will graduate in 2021. In 2019, she graduated summa cum laude from Miami University with bachelor’s degrees in Music Performance and Arts Management. Emily's primary teachers include Amy Pollard, Ryan Reynolds, Christin Schillinger, and Rachael Young. 

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Farayi Malek is a jazz and contemporary vocalist, composer, arranger and educator currently residing in Eugene, Oregon. She received her bachelor’s degree in Contemporary Improvisation from New England Conservatory of Music in 2017 where she studied with vocalist and composer, Dominique Eade. Upon completion, she continued on to receive a master’s degree in Contemporary Performance at the Berklee Global Jazz Institute in 2018, under the tutelage of world-renowned pianist and composer, Danilo Perez. Farayi’s teachers at the Global Jazz Institute and Berklee included Grammy Award winning artists, Terri Lyne Carrington, John Patitucci, Joe Lovano, Peter Eldridge of the New York Voices, and more. 

In January of 2018, Farayi was a Berklee Global Jazz Ambassador at the Panama Jazz Festival where she was a performer and instructor of workshops. In May 2018, she was invited to perform in Novosibirsk, Russia with Berklee’s New Spirit Quintet under the direction of the Dean of the Performance Division at Berklee, Ron Savage. In January 2019, Farayi returned to the Panama Jazz Festival as vocalist of Danilo Perez’s Global Messengers, with whom she now tours worldwide. She completed her Post-Master’s Fellowship at the Berklee Global Jazz Institute in June of 2019 and, shortly thereafter, was invited to perform with the Ron Savage Trio at the Mindel Summer Jazz Festival in Sao Vicente, Cape Verde. 

In addition to her performance ventures, Farayi Malek is a passionate music educator. In January of 2020, she founded Allegro Virtual Preparatory Instruction, an online learning platform that strives to provide students with the highest possible level of preparation for the study of music in higher education in order to maximize admittance, scholarship funding, and foundational skills for success and heightened creativity. In addition to her online program, an instructor of voice, piano and composition at Eugene Piano Academy, located in Eugene, Oregon.

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Daniel Cho is a Korean-American conductor and violinist from San Francisco, California. He began his journey as a conductor at the age of sixteen, when he was selected as Assistant Conductor of the Napa Valley Youth Symphony, in which he also served as concertmaster. Daniel continued his music education with a Bachelor’s Degree in Violin Performance at New England Conservatory in Boston, MA and upon its completion in 2016, began his Master’s Degree in Conducting at the same institution in 2017. In 2018, Daniel was selected as a Conducting Fellow by the Vienna Summer Music Festival, studying with Maestros Christian Schulz, Wolfgang Scheidt, and Simeon Pironkoff and was chosen for an engagement with Ensemble PHACE, a Vienna-based contemporary ensemble. During the same year, he attended the International Conducting Institute Czech Republic Workshop in Kroměříž, Czech Republic, studying with Maestros Tomas Netopil, Neil Varon, and Tsung Yeh and led the Bohuslav Martinu Philharmonic in a performance at the Archbishop’s Palace.

In 2019, Daniel was appointed as Conducting Fellow of the Eugene Symphony, as well as Assistant Conductor of the Oregon Mozart Players and Eugene Opera, all based in Eugene, Oregon. In addition to his professional work, Daniel studies Orchestral Conducting as a Graduate Employee at the University of Oregon School of Music and Dance under the tutelage of Dr. David Jacobs. In 2020, Daniel launched a podcast that he hosts and produces called Con Fuoco. The objective of the podcast is to discuss the current state of the field of classical music and where it is headed in the future. Guests of the show have included violinist Alexi Kenney, Principal Trombone of the Boston Symphony Toby Oft, President and Artistic Director of the Sphinx Organization Afa Dworkin, and acclaimed composer Jessie Montgomery.

When not making music, Daniel enjoys reading books, watching movies and TV shows, and walking with his red golden retriever, Lucy.

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Heralded as “highly virtuosic” (The Saxophonist) and “a saxophonist in command of his instrument, with no shortage of hues in his playing” (Dr. Bob Fuson II), saxophonist Nicholas May is sought after as a highly expressive, intuitive performer that is quickly garnering attention for his compelling programs comprising transcriptions of works written originally for the violin that have been described as “Incredible, bringing to life some of the best music that has ever been written” (Maestro Hughes, Arapahoe Philharmonic). Since his solo debut at the age of sixteen with the Lincoln Symphony Orchestra, May’s career has taken him throughout the United States, Singapore, Germany, Sweden, and Denmark appearing recurrently as a guest artist and recitalist.

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William Ruff is a violist, violinist, and mandolinist based in Athens, Georgia. Focusing on the multi-genre capabilities of his instruments, he has performed with various jazz, bluegrass, rock, and funk ensembles throughout Georgia. Will is the mandolinist and manager of his main artistic project, The Family Recipe, which has performed at major venues such as the Georgia Theatre, 40 Watt Club, the Masquerade, and Aisle 5. The ensemble recently released their debut album “Roads,” half of which was composed by Will. He is also a consistently gigging classical musician, performing at churches, weddings, and a variety of formal events throughout Georgia.

As a private music teacher, Will teaches over 20 students from various ages and musical backgrounds. He takes great interest in learning new pedagogical methods and strives to bring a variety of genre influences and unique technical approaches to help his students become the most well rounded musicians they can be.

Will is currently on a personal journey to expand the harmonic and melodic capabilities of the mandolin in jazz, and generally re-contextualize the instrument in modern music. To do so, he continues his jazz education privately with Atlanta-based guitarist Ben Weatherford.

Will graduated in the class of 2020 from the University of Georgia with an undergraduate degree in music performance and a minor in jazz performance, Summa Cum Laude. His primary teachers were Professor Maggie Snyder and Dave D’Angelo. In his spare time, Will enjoys skateboarding, biking, and taking care of his plants and two cats, Rubin and Luna.

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Jordi Lara is a cellist and bassist currently residing in Athens, GA where he is completing his bachelor's degree in Cello Performance with a minor in Jazz Studies at UGA's Hugh Hodgson School of Music. While his musical training has been heavily classically influenced, Jordi's primary focus outside of classical repertoire is working with peers throughout the Athens and Atlanta area in creating original music in a variety of ensembles, ranging from indie rock to jazz, bluegrass, and other improvisation-based genres. He is currently in the process of recording albums with two of these projects (Afternoon Raccoons and Canary Affair) and has been featured in a variety of studio sessions on cello and bass in nearly all of Athens' professional recording studios, tracing alongside artists such as Faye Webster.

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J.P. Brien-Slack is a violinist and violin instructor currently based in his native Chattanooga, Tennessee. An avid chamber and orchestral musician, he has performed in the violin sections of the Chattanooga Symphony, the Huntsville Symphony, the Louisville Orchestra, and Orchestra Kentucky Bowling Green. Additionally, he has served as Concertmaster for the University of Louisville Symphony Orchestra and the University of Georgia Symphony Orchestra. 

A committed performer of works by living composers, recent solo and chamber performances have included works by composers such as Michael Torke (Corner in Manhattan), Joan Tower (String Force, Amazon, and Rain Waves), Steve Reich (Violin Phase), and Bent Sorensen (Pantomime-Papillons). 

During his time as a graduate student at the University of Georgia, he also worked in the studio with various artists in the Athens music scene, most notably in the string ensemble featured in Kishi Bashi’s 2019 album Omoiyari. 

J.P. has a DMA in violin performance from the University of Georgia and a Master’s in violin performance from the University of Louisville. His primary instructors have been Michael Heald, J. Patrick Rafferty, Brittany MacWilliams, and his beloved first teacher, the late Stephen Panchaud. 

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Percussionist Reed Puleo dedicates himself to performing contemporary classics and collaborating with others to bring new works to life. He has performed at the Lucerne Festival, Bang on a Can Summer Festival, at Celebrity Series of Boston Stave Sessions, with the Nieuw Ensemble at Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ (Amsterdam, NL), musicians of the Silkroad Ensemble, and Mantra Percussion at National Sawdust (Brooklyn, NY). Recent collaborations include those with Michele Mazzini (bass clarinet), and Lara Lewison's in her 'Virtual Dollhouse.' Reed is currently pursuing a Master of Music at the University of Michigan, and holds a Bachelor of Music from Boston Conservatory at Berklee. He also studied for one year at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam.

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Critically recognized as “an accomplished violin soloist,” (CVNC) Maitreyi Muralidharan is an east coast based musician and an avid orchestral and chamber performer, holding a Bachelor's Degree from the Peabody Institute of Music under the tutelage of Herbert Greenberg and a Master’s Degree from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts under the tutelage of Kevin Lawrence. Maitreyi was raised in North Carolina, serving as concertmaster of various groups including the NC Youth Sinfonietta and Triangle Youth Philharmonic, and has attended the Green Mountain Chamber Music Festival, Aspen Music Festival, Summit Music Festival, PRISMA, and Brevard Music Festival. Maitreyi has also served as concertmaster of the Peabody Symphony Orchestra, Peabody Chamber Orchestra, UNCSA Symphony Orchestra, and was a member of the UNCSA Chrysalis Chamber Music Institute for two years. An equally passionate chamber musician, Maitreyi has performed in groups on both the national and international stage. Outside of being an orchestral and chamber musician, Maitreyi enjoys working with and advising new music ensembles as well as working with violinists with injuries.

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Award-winning American pianist Timothy Jones has established himself as a versatile talent who possesses an abundance of creative and artistic energy. With an extensive repertoire, a unique touch, and a creative tonal palette, Timothy performs with the passion and drive of an artist completely committed to his craft.

Timothy has performed in venues worldwide, including: Lincoln Center (NYC), the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University (Baltimore), Academy of Music in Krakow (Poland), and Zipper Hall (Los Angeles), amongst others. He has been invited to study and perform at many international music festivals: Aspen Music Festival and School, Chautauqua Institute, Bowdoin International Music Festival, and Virtuoso e Belcanto Festival. He has performed in masterclasses for Richard Goode, Leon Fleisher, Boris Berman, the Dover Quartet (chamber music), and Frederica von Stade (vocal piano).

On top of his performance credentials, Timothy is sought-after as an educator. In addition to teaching privately, he currently serves on the faculty of Sonata and Sonatina Piano Camps. With the onset of the pandemic, he has adapted to the virtual space and uses such platforms as Zoom and Skype to offer lessons and performances to a diverse and global audience. 

Currently Timothy is pursuing a Master of Music degree at the University of Texas at Austin studying with Anton Nel. He is the recipient of the Joe and Teresa R. Long Piano Scholarship.

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Keith Alcius, originally from Naples, Florida, began playing the tuba in the sixth grade. He holds a Bachelor of Music in Tuba Performance from Baldwin Wallace University and a Master of Music in Tuba Performance from New England Conservatory. His career has included performing with Akron Symphony Orchestra, Hot Tamale Brass Band and Pearland Chamber Orchestra. He was a finalist in the Leonard Falcone International Tuba and Euphonium Festival. He has been an associate member of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago and a part of the Miami Music Festival. 

As an educator, Keith has taught masterclasses and adjudicated competitions in the middle and high school levels throughout Greater Houston. He is a spirited advocate of music education who enjoys providing one-on-one and group lessons to local communities. Currently, he maintains a virtual low brass studio that is accessible for all low brass students at the junior high and high school levels in the United States. Students will learn the fundamentals of brass playing and how to prepare for auditions, competitions and recitals under his guidance.  

He is forever indebted to his teachers: Stephanie Frye-Clark, Ken Heinlein, Mike Roylance and Yasuhito Sugiyama.

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Nick Biagini is a Boston based performer, educator, and composer/arranger. He is an active member of The Jeremy Turgeon Quintet, The BOSS Band, The Nick Biagini Quartet/Septet, The West Saxophone Quartet, Half-Astronaut, the funk-fusion group Ballads, and has performed alongside such greats as Steve Wilson, Glen David Andrews, Nichelle Mungo, Chico Pinhiero, Charmaine Neville, and Mitch Chakour. Nick earned his bachelor’s degree in Jazz and African American Musics from the University of Massachusetts Amherst 2018. At UMass Amherst he received two Student Downbeat Awards for his work with Jazz Ensemble 1, and his performance in Chris Foe’s graduate recital. Nick’s classical saxophone quartet, The West Quartet, are two-time state champions of the MTNA chamber music competition. During his time at UMass he studied privately with Jeff Holmes, Tom Giampietro, Felipe Salles, Jonathan Hulting-Cohen, Joe D’Aleo, and Carl Clements. Nick is a faculty member of the Jazz/Rock/Pop and Woodwind departments at The South Shore Conservatory. Nick is currently working on his masters degree in jazz performance at The New England Conservatory.

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In 2013, Massachusetts native Sean Britt became the first guitarist in the Brubeck Institute fellowship program at University of the Pacific. He was a member of the Brubeck Institute Jazz Quintet (BIJQ), which Downbeat Magazine named the best undergraduate jazz combo in their Student Awards Poll in 2016. While in the BIJQ he performed with visiting artists including Christian McBride, Stefon Harris, and Chris and Darius Brubeck among others. Britt transferred to The New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music in New York City where he received his BFA in Jazz Studies. He went on to receive a Master of Music degree from the Manhattan School of Music, class of 2019.

Sean currently resides in New York City where he composes, performs and teaches privately.

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Miguel Posadas, a native of Austin, TX, is a bassoonist and educator based in Pittsburgh, PA. As an orchestral player, Miguel has performed with the Rock Hill Symphony, Baton Rouge Symphony, and Athens Master Chorale, among many others. Miguel is passionate about chamber music and a founding member of The Highland Trio, made up of himself and Louisiana State University flute and clarinet colleagues. They competed at the 2nd annual New Orleans Chamber Music Festival and placed second, winning an opportunity to work with The Imani Winds. In 2018, Miguel was the recipient of the Osborne Fellowship, an award intended to support students who are deemed to be underrepresented in their respective disciplines. As a person of color, Miguel strives to add more diversity in the freelancing scene as well as in the music he performs. Miguel holds a Master in Music from the University of Georgia and a Bachelor in Music Education from Louisiana State University. His primary teachers include Amy Pollard, Darrel Hale, and Laura McIntyre.  

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Garrett McCloskey is a burgeoning arts administrator and seasoned oboist residing in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Garrett believes that the arts play a unique, important role in the health of communities and aims to advance the sector in the most efficient and effective way possible. During his transition from performer to administrator over the past three years, he has held managerial and internship positions at the University of Georgia Performing Arts Center Box Office, National Music Festival, Pittsburgh Opera, and Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. Garrett was an active musician in Athens, Georgia studying under Dr. Reid Messich before choosing to pursue arts management full time. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Music degree from the University of Georgia and is currently earning his Master of Arts Management degree at Carnegie Mellon University’s Heinz College of Information Systems and Public Policy in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Garrett is a native of Charlotte, North Carolina, and has lived in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania since 2019.

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Prism Percussion explores the expressive colors of percussive sounds utilizing non-standard instruments and seeks to champion works by Black, Indigenious, People of Color, Women, and Queer composers. The San Francisco based percussion duo was founded in 2018 by Divesh Karamchandani and Elizabeth Hall. Their presence on stage is "both musically and visually stunning" affirms Jessica Balik of San Francisco Classical Voice. Karamchandani and Hall's mutual passion for percussion chamber music and collaborating with composers and other musicians led them to create this duo. They enjoy fostering the creation of new works and have commissioned several pieces for the duo as well as having collaborated on many commission consortiums. 

Karamchandani and Hall met at the Zeltsman Marimba Festival in 2011 and bonded over their love of the marimba. Their friendship grew and their paths crossed again when they both moved to San Francisco to attend the San Francisco Conservatory of Music for their masters degrees. They performed together professionally with diverse groups and concerts including Mercury Soul, One Found Sound, The Hot Air Music Festival, Post:Ballet, Calvary Choir, Golden Gate Symphony, and Cantare Con Vivo and are looking forward to continuing their creative collaboration with other artists. 

Since their inaugural performance in 2018, Prism Percussion has performed programs showcasing new works for percussion by underrepresented composers and appeared as guest artists on several other organizations’ recitals. Prism Percussion self-produced a number of recitals at McRoskey Mattress Company in August 2018 and November 2019. The other full-length recitals were part of SF-based concert series 7th Ave Performances (November 2018 and March 2020) and 405 Shrader (April 2019). Prism Percussion was also featured as guest artists on the Elevate Ensemble concert “Low Hanging Fruit” in February 2019, the One Found Sound chamber concert in March 2019, and on pianist Adam Tendler’s recital in June 2019 which was a part of Grace Cathedral’s “Unearthed” series focusing on music that echoed themes of Jim Hodges statue, Unearthed, an up-rooted tree stump covered in bronze. Since the beginning of the pandemic, Prism Percussion has made the shift to virtual performances in an effort to continue sharing new repertoire for percussion duo.

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Lorin Green has studied music since the age of nine with concentrations in voice, violin, and flute. She graduated from John S. Davidson Fine Arts Magnet School located in Augusta, GA in 2016 with her pathway being in Music. Ms. Green has also performed with the United States Army Field Band, has attended music festivals and camps held by prestigious members of the Flute Community such as Bonita Boyd of the Eastman School of Music, and was the winner of the 2018 Sigma Alpha Iota Mary Ann Starring Memorial Award in the Woodwind or Brass Division. Ms. Green recently received her Bachelors in Flute Performance from Kennesaw State University where she sat as Principal Flute of the Symphony Orchestra and Wind Ensemble and studied Flute with Mrs. Christina Smith of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Piccolo with Mrs. Kelly Bryant of the Atlanta Opera. Ms. Green is currently pursuing her Master’s Degree in Flute Performance from the University of New Mexico where she studies with Valerie Potter of the New Mexico Symphony and is a Graduate Assistant and Fellow of the UNM School of Music.

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The Lawrenceville-Suwanee School of Music String Quartet is a group of young female chamber musicians who are dedicated to the exploration of the music produced by the four Venetian Ospedali. These famous institutions are perhaps best known for their association with violinists like Antonio Vivaldi and composers like Baldassare Galuppi. While these and other composers were employed in the Ospedali their task was to instruct the young women who were the wards of these institutions. While many of these students left their musical studies behind for the domestic realm when they entered adulthood some did not. Our goal is to explore the music of women like Regina Strinasacchi, Maddalena Laura Sirmen, and Anna Bon who pursued musical careers after their time in the Venetian Ospedali. As this was music written by and for young women, we try to maintain that tradition by forming our ensemble with (primarily) young women who might (in different circumstances...) have been members of an Ospedale themselves.

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Reykwaan is a tenor from The Bronx, New York and is a student at the Crane School of Music. His musical passions lie in opera (mainly the Bel Canto repertoire), Lied, Chanson, and works by Black, women, and LGBT+ composers.

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Jarrod Briley is an active performer, educator and clinician from North Carolina living in the Hudson Valley area of New York. He is currently the principal tubist for The Orchestra Now, a 3-year pre-professional training orchestra and master’s degree program in Annandale-on-Hudson, NY. Prior to joining TON, he was an Advanced Performance Studies student at Bard college, and previously earned a B.M in Music Performance from East Carolina University. Along with performing with orchestras such as TON and the Winston Salem Symphony, he maintains a varied schedule of chamber music and solo performances. 



Jarrod’s passion for education equals his passion for performing. Along with teaching his private studio lessons, he gives educational clinics and masterclasses to students of all ages, working with school band programs, regional bands, and other performing organizations. He is an active member of the marching arts community, currently serving as a brass instructor for the world class Blue Knights Drum and Bugle Corps and the Hawthorne Caballeros Drum and Bugle Corps. Along with his teaching, Jarrod serves as a design consultant for high school bands.


When he isn’t performing or teaching, Jarrod enjoys hiking in the Catskills, cheering on his Packers, and baking.

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Engaging audiences with his charismatic and moving performances, pianist Aaron Kurz enjoys a burgeoning career. Kurz has performed across three continents, in venues such as Carnegie Hall in New York, Salle Cortot in Paris, and the Palace of Peace and Harmony in Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan. He has been a prizewinner in numerous competitions, such as the New York, Los Angeles, World Piano Teachers Association, and Virginia Waring International Piano Competitions. Mr. Kurz is currently pursuing a Master of Musical Arts at the Yale School of Music, studying with Boris Berman.

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Rogelio Bonilla is a Georgia native violist and music educator who constantly seeks new challenges or places to perform. He has performed with Georgia State University, University of Georgia, Orchester Bezirkskantor, the Atlanta Sinfonia, and many local performances. He received his bachelor’s degree in music education from Georgia State University. While there, he studied in the studio of Tania Maxwell Clements. He has volunteered and coached with many local high, middle, and elementary schools. Also, he spent three months student-teaching at a Department of Defense Education Activities school in Germany with Dr. Mario Bertoluzzi. DODEA provides Pre-kindergarten through 12th grade schools, ensuring all school-aged children of military families receive a world-class education. 

He is a member of the National Association for Music Education, American String Teacher Association, and the Suzuki Association of the Americas.

Rogelio currently studies at the University of Georgia pursuing a Master of Music Performance in the studio of Maggie Snyder. He is also a private instructor with DoReMi music lessons. He is capable of teaching all string instruments and beginning-intermediate piano. 

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At a young age Logan Souther is quickly developing a reputation as an orchestra conductor and pianist of significant talent in Atlanta, Georgia. Recent highlights include debuts with The Opera Initiative of Augusta (GA), OperaNEO (San Diego) and a return to the Georgia State University Opera Theatre for performances of Puccini’s Suor Angelica/Gianni Schicchi and Bernstein’s Candide. Mr. Souther also recently made his debut with the Harrower Summer Opera Workshop conducting and coaching performances of Mozart’s Cosi fan Tutte. 

A diverse musician, Mr. Souther is a skilled interpreter of symphonic works as well. For four years Mr. Souther was the founding artistic director of The Gainesville Sinfonietta which presented high-quality performances free of charge to the north Georgia community. As a gifted entrepreneur, Mr. Souther successfully fundraised over $25,000 for the Sinfonietta. 

Mr. Souther is committed to giving back to the community through music. Mr. Souther is proud to serve the South Atlanta community as conductor and music director of the Atlanta Music Project’s orchestra. The Atlanta Music Project is an El Sistema inspired program which provides high quality music education to underserved communities and seeks to bring about social change through music. 

Mr. Souther began intensive studies in conducting at the age of sixteen with distinguished conductor Michael Palmer. Additional teachers include Carroll Freeman, David Effron and Dwight Oltman. Mr. Souther attended Georgia State University where he completed a Bachelor’s degree in piano performance (2016) and a Master’s degree in orchestral conducting (2017) as a member of a unique program which combined undergraduate and graduate coursework. He was the 2016 winner of the prestigious Theodore Presser Foundation Award which he used to fund his performance of the Erwin Stein arrangement of Mahler’s Symphony No. 4 for chamber orchestra.

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Ensemble Decipher is a modular, experimental music group that performs with vintage, contemporary, and emerging technologies. Founded in 2017 by Niloufar Nourbakhsh, Ensemble Decipher strives to redefine performer virtuosity by drawing on the technological advancements of our time in order to highlight new voices and new ways of listening. By reexamining new music and integrating technology into their performance practice, Ensemble Decipher seeks to reflect on and challenge the power structures that lace the field of electroacoustic music. Recent works commissioned by the group have mobilized anything from network technologies, accelerometers attached to rocks, boxes trained via machine learning to respond to touch, acoustic instruments, to laptops—and anything in between. This has led Ensemble Decipher to collaborate with notable composers and technologists including Mara Helmuth, Margaret Schedel, Hannah Davis, Yaz Lancaster, and Lainie Fefferman and premiere works by many others. Recent feature performances include concerts at the Society for Electro-Acoustic Music in the United States, International Computer Music Conference, New York City Electroacoustic Music Festival, Network Music Festival, and an ensemble residency at EarFest. Current members include Joseph Bohigian, Robert Cosgrove, Eric Lemmon, Chelsea Loew, Taylor Long, and Niloufar Nourbakhsh.

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Expanding on the boundaries of what an indie-folk band can be, Laura Cortese & the Dance Cards take their extensive string music background, add their knowledge of folk and roots music, and incorporate an edgy pop sensibility to create the compelling music featured on their latest album, BITTER BETTER. A stunning lesson in all the ways string instruments can be played – bowed, plucked, percussively – the album showcases Cortese and multi-instrumentalist producer Sam Kassirer (Lula Wiles, Lake Street Dive) striving to capture the most adventurous approach to each moment. The result is an album that incorporates dance-worthy foundational grooves, synth, and loops to push the boundaries of the genre. BITTER BETTER was released on JULY 17 on Compass Records and the band has been invited to support The Mountain Goats on their upcoming US tour dates.

While the album’s 11 tracks provide relief and release, they also encourage self-examination and personal discovery—the work that is necessary to sustain the energy needed to keep striving, to connect, and to continue to make our complicated world a better place. With BITTER BETTER, Laura Cortese & The Dance Cards throw out the rulebook, creating a beautifully vivid, musically unexpected canvas from their refreshingly unconventional perspective.

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Claudia Malchow is a violist currently based in Athens, Georgia. In recent years she has performed with the Baltimore-based ensemble Symphony No. 1, the Peabody Concert Orchestra, the University of Georgia Symphony Orchestra, and the Augusta Symphony in Augusta, Georgia. As a chamber musician, she formed the Athena Trio in 2018 alongside pianist Caroline Owen and clarinetist Kelly Riordan. The Athena Trio enjoys exploring music written for its unique blend of instrumentation while promoting new music and collaborating with living composers. Passionate about chamber music, she has also worked with many leading ensembles in the field including the Chiara Quartet, Arianna String Quartet, Jupiter String Quartet, the Emerson String Quartet, and the Ahn Trio—the last of which was broadcast on Iowa Public Television.

Claudia earned her bachelor’s degree in Viola Performance at the Peabody Conservatory, where she studied with viola pedagogue Victoria Chiang. She currently attends the University of Georgia where she earned her master’s degree in Viola Performance, and is now pursuing her Doctorate in Music under the instruction of Maggie Snyder.

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Sasha Ono is a freelance cellist and music educator in the New York City area where she performs and records music in various genres. Recent performances include work with Grammy Award-winning jazz musicians, NPR Tiny Desk, 8-Bit Big Band, mxmtoon, Mozart in the Jungle, Streetlight Manifesto, and Little Kruta Orchestra. Sasha has been featured as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral musician on National TV, Piccolo Spoleto Festival, Carnegie Hall, Radio City Music Hall, National Sawdust, Avery Fisher Hall (David Geffen Hall), Madison Sq. Garden as well as international performance venues. International performances include a tour of Northern Japan to raise awareness and funds for areas still heavily impacted by the tsunami and earthquakes.

As an advocate for classical music reflecting the experiences of wider communities, she founded Lotus Chamber Music Collective which focuses on performing compositions by women, BIPOC, and LGBTQIA+ composers - and recently was awarded a grant by Chamber Music America.

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A virtuoso flute player, Jovana Damnjanović, leads a versatile career as a soloist, chamber musician, and educator. As a soloist, Ms. Damnjanović was a prize winner of the Flutissimo Young Artist Competition, the San Diego Flute Guild, the Midsouth Young Artist Competition, the Raleigh Area Flute Association Young Artist competition, and the Brumby Concerto Competition.

Ms. Damnjanović is currently pursuing her DMA degree at the University of Georgia under tutelage of professor Angela Jones-Reus. A native of Serbia, Ms. Damnjanović graduated in Flute Performance Master degree from the Academy of Arts in Novi Sad with Honors of Musical Arts. Ms. Damnjanović also holds her second Master degree in Flute Performance from Georgia State University where she studied with Professor Sarah Kruser Ambrose. In 2014, Ms. Damnjanović was offered a scholarship to attend the Universität für Musik and darstellende Kunst International Summer Academy in Vienna which allowed her to study with Kersten McKall and Felix Renggli.