Adjudicators

William Angliss

William Angliss is a Graduate Research Assistant pursuing a degree in World Percussion Performance at Oakland University. He teaches private lessons in Drum Set, Latin hand percussion, Snare Drum technique, Intermediate Tabla, and hand percussion techniques, and specializes in music and rhythms from around the world. He has won multiple awards and scholarships for performing, including Oakland University’s MaTilDa award for both original and contemporary compositions behind the Gyil, and is pictured performing for Oakland University’s Go For The Gold event representing the Music and World Percussion departments. He has traveled to Ghana to perform research on the improvisatory nature of the Gyil and perform it in the United States, taught by Gyil masters such as Tijan Dorwuna and Jerome Balsab.

William is the President of the World Music Organization at Oakland University, promoting cultural awareness and outreach by using music cultures from around the world as a means of fostering connection across cultural barriers.

He regularly performs on Drum Set and Latin Percussion with Steel Pan players and Jazz combos, and plays solo improvised multi-percussion for the modern dance classes at Oakland University, using a mixture of Western and World influences to creatively free improvise. He is also a member of a Creative Jazz group, and has extensive experience free improvising on a number of different percussion instruments.
He has performed at venues such as The Percussive Arts Society International Convention with Grammy-award-winning artists such as Haruna Walusimbi, The Strand Theatre in Pontiac, MI, Jazz Clubs such as Cliff Bells, and regularly performs at Oakland University in multiple different ensembles.

He is also the Graduate Assistant in Performance Outreach, developing and fostering connections with communities through organizations such as Accent Pontiac teaching in-school programs and providing inventory and instrument maintenance.

Justin Lamb

Justin Lamb is an active performer, educator, composer, and arranger based in the metro-Detroit area and currently serves as the Visiting Assistant Professor of Music and Director of Percussion Studies at Oakland University. Before moving to the Detroit area, Justin held various teaching roles with the Eastman School of Music (NY), the Eastman Community Music School (NY), James F. Byrnes High School (SC), Lakeside High School (GA), and League Academy (SC).

Committed to contemporary music and performance, Justin has premiered several new works for percussion by composers Paul Lansky, John Psathas, Michael Burritt, Baljinder Sekhon, Ivan Trevino, and more. Recently, Justin led a consortium to commission composer and multi-instrumentalist Connor Shafran. Connor’s new work What I Know is a unique intersection of contemporary percussion theatre utilizing unique components of music technology. Justin recently gave the premiere of this work in April 2023. Available on all major streaming platforms, Justin can be heard performing on The John Psathas Percussion Project, Vol. 1 and will be reuniting with the ensemble this Fall to perform at PASIC 2024. Justin also serves as the Principal Percussionist of the Oakland Symphony Orchestra, performs regularly in orchestras, theatre pits, and chamber concert halls with his percussion duo partner Emma Gierszal.

Passionate for teaching younger percussionists, Justin has taught extensively at middle and high schools in South Carolina and New York, including James F. Byrnes High School, League Academy, and the Eastman Community Music School. Additionally, outside of his work as a concert artist, Justin has also performed with the World Champion Carolina Crown Drum & Bugle Corps and continues to remain active in the marching arts as an clinician, percussion arranger, and adjudicator. Moreover, in his free time, Justin enjoys arranging and composing in a variety of settings. His popular solo marimba arrangement of Misty by Erroll Garner has been performed all around the world and is available for purchase at Tapspace publications.

Dr. Justin Lamb holds MM and DMA degrees from the Eastman School of Music­, where he was awarded the prestigious Performer’s Certificate, the Milton Schlesinger Percussion Prize, and the Arts Leadership Certificate. He received his Bachelor’s Degree from Furman University. His teachers have included Michael Burritt, James Ross, Chip Ross, Rich Thompson, Dr. Omar Carmenates, and Justin Watt. Justin is a proud Tapspace artist and Malletech performing artist.

www.jlambmusic.com

Tenita “Bestseller” Johnson

Transforming pain into purpose is a gift that authorpreneur, speaker and book coach,
Tenita “Bestseller” Johnson gives to everyone she encounters. She is a warrior of words with a
fierce passion for guiding authors to expand their brand by showing them how to earn multiple
streams of income from just ONE book. As the author of 18 books, seven of which have been
Amazon bestsellers, she is living proof that sharing your story leads to your destiny.

Familiar with rising from numerous fires and coming out unscathed, Tenita has
triumphed over suicidal thoughts, depression, low self-esteem, marital storms and blended family
woes. She has also endured miscarriages and the still birth of twins the day after she married her
husband. Each of these tragedies has added indelible layers to her resilience. With more than 25
years in journalism, writing and editing, she has a knack for creating narratives that are authentic
and raw, yet endearingly relatable. She is a vessel with the ability to change lives and impact the
world, thus she is a proud “book bully,” who relentlessly urges others to, “Write the book and get
paid for the pain!”

When Tenita speaks, people listen with their ears as well as their hearts and souls because
her transparency transcends pretense. She is a bold beacon of hope who inspires others to seek
their highest peak. One of her proudest and defining moments was her appearance on Kirk
Franklin’s Praise Sirius XM channel.

As the founder and CEO of So It Is Written Publishing, she has helped hundreds of
authors birth their books in record time. The 12-year-old company excels as a one stop shop for
the complete book process from conception to completion, not just editing. The editorial guru
successfully helps people to pen books that will boost their brand, accelerate their paydays and
bust open doors of endless opportunities. So It Is Written won The Sunrise Pinnacle Award for
Diversity Company of the Year, in 2020, from the Rochester Regional Chamber of Commerce in
Rochester, Michigan. For six years, Tenita hosted the Red Ink Conference in Atlanta, Detroit,
Charlotte and Chicago. Over 600 attendees received invaluable information from industry
leaders on how to write, edit, market and publish their next bestseller.

Beyond her books, her versatility shines in multiple areas, including her role as the
executive producer of the hit stage play, When the Smoke Clears, which was based on her book,
When the Smoke Clears: A Phoenix Rises. The play ran in 2017 and 2018 to sold-out audiences
in downtown Detroit. She also served as the editorial director for Career Mastered Magazine and
Hope for Women Magazine. Currently, she is the national president of The Aspiring Writers
Association of America, a writers’ organization that works with writers worldwide to pen their
next literary masterpiece.
Tenita’s passion for delivering bestselling books is matched only by her devotion to
helping women and men heal from the drama, trauma and baggage of sexual abuse. Her 2021
anthology, HUSH: Breaking the Cycle of Silence Around Sexual Abuse, features eight women who lost their innocence and identity to life-altering trauma. She is a huge advocate and
mouthpiece for those who have been sexually abused as she empowers them to release their pain
instead of suffering in silence.
Her future plans include the release of HUSH II, producing her short film What Happens
in This House, and completing the script for her feature film When the Smoke Clears. As a
catalyst for positive change, she is a woman who has learned to live an intentional life of purpose
while unapologetically fulfilling her God-driven assignments.

For booking or speaking engagements, email [email protected] or visit www.tenitajohnson.com.

Meryl Ann Butler

Meryl Ann Butler is Managing Editor of OpEdNews where her 800+ articles have had over three million views. She is also the author of hundreds of articles in print media and two traditionally published books. She has edited dozens of books and articles for other authors, including for award-winning journalist, inventor, software architect, connector, and visionary, Rob Kall, who notes, “She’s the best editor I’ve ever had and she enabled me to not just write a better book grammatically, but to also take the message and vision of the book to the next level.”

Wendy Bachman

Wendy Bachman holds Performance and Pedagogy ARCT diplomas from The Royal Conservatory of Music, a Bachelor of Music Degree from the University of British Columbia and a Master’s Degree in Piano Pedagogy and Performance from Westminster Choir College. Her teachers include Edward Parker, Harold Zabrack, Frances Clark, and Louise Goss. Over the past forty years, Mrs. Bachman has taught in conservatories in Princeton, Minneapolis, Vancouver, and Seattle. In 1990 she was selected to teach and perform at the National Conference on Piano Pedagogy in Chicago. Most recently, Mrs. Bachman taught at The Pennsylvania State University and currently has a private studio in Boalsburg, PA. As a specialist examiner with twenty-nine years of experience, Mrs. Bachman adjudicates for the Royal Conservatory of Music and also serves as a US Representative for the RCM Certificate Program. Wendy has judged numerous music festivals including the Kiwanis International and the Burnaby Clef. Wendy also currently serves as President Elect for the Pennsylvania Music Teachers Association

Connor Chee

Navajo pianist and composer Connor Chee is known for combining his classical piano training with his Native American heritage. Chee made his Carnegie Hall debut at the age of 12 after winning a gold medal in the World Piano Competition. A graduate of the Eastman School of Music and the University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music, Chee’s solo piano music is inspired by traditional Navajo chants and songs.

Chee has released 4 studio albums of original pieces and piano transcriptions of Navajo music. The Navajo Piano won Best Instrumental Recording at the 16th Annual Native American Music Awards, and his piece “Beginnings” won Best New Age Song. Chee’s 2020 release, Scenes from Dinétah, features piano pieces written about elements of Navajo life and culture. It was accompanied by the release of several music videos filmed on the reservation, directed by Navajo filmmaker Michael Etcitty Jr.

Chee’s most recent release, The Navajo Piano (Revisited), features new recordings of his original 15 compositions from 2014, as well as recordings of the traditional songs they were based on. Also included are 3 new transcriptions for harp featuring Angelica Hairston and Johanna Wienholts.

Dr. Tristan McKay

Tristan McKay is a pianist, educator, and scholar based in Detroit, Michigan. Celebrated for his “dramatic” and “assertive” playing (New York Times), he has premiered dozens of new solo and chamber works at iconic New York venues including Carnegie Hall, The Apollo Theater, The Chamber Music Society at Lincoln Center, Roulette, The Stone, The Kitchen, Spectrum, National Sawdust, Symphony Space, The Museum of the Moving Image, and The DiMenna Center for Classical Music; national venues including Pittsburgh Opera and Bowerbird (Pennsylvania), Avaloch Farm Music Institute (New Hampshire), and RedLine Contemporary Art (Colorado); and international venues including Powerhouse, The Box (Brisbane, Australia) and Soundscape Festival in Maccagno (Italy).

Tristan has over 20 years of teaching experience and currently runs a thriving virtual piano studio for students of all ages. His prize-winning students have been awarded 2 Regional Gold Medals from the Royal Conservatory of Music as well as outstanding marks from local competitions and festivals. Tristan is also on faculty at the State University of New York at New Paltz where he has taught courses in music theory, piano performance, music history, and music criticism. He has conducted workshops, performances, and lectures as a guest artist at notable institutions such as Columbia University, New York University, The University of Chicago, Denver School of the Arts, Denison University, Berea College, Nova University (Lisbon, Portugal), and Queensland Conservatorium (Brisbane, Australia).

Equally dedicated to writing about the music of our time, Tristan published a monograph on contemporary music notations entitled The Semiotics of Open Notations: Ambiguity as Opportunity (Cambridge University Press) and has contributed articles on aesthetics and performance to peer-reviewed journals such as The American Journal of Semiotics, NOTES: Quarterly Journal of the Music Library Association, and Semiotics 2018: Resilience in an Age of Relation. As a contributing writer for the Seattle Symphony for the past two seasons, he has written program notes and feature articles for internationally acclaimed pianists including Sir Stephen Hough, Emanuel Ax, Bruce Liu, Joe Hisaishi, and Yulianna Avdeeva. He is also a contributing writer at I CARE IF YOU LISTEN, an award-winning hub for living music creators.

Tristan is a graduate of New York University (PhD, BM) and Manhattan School of Music (MM), where he studied with Marilyn Nonken, Anthony de Mare, and Christopher Oldfather. www.tristanmckay.com

Dr. Christopher Harding

Pianist Christopher Harding maintains a flourishing international performance career, generating acclaim and impressing audiences and critics alike with his substantive interpretations and pianistic mastery. He has given frequent solo, concerto, and chamber music performances in venues as far-flung as the Kennedy Center and Phillips Collection in Washington, D.C.; Suntory Hall in Tokyo; the National Theater Concert Hall in Taipei; the Jack Singer Concert Hall in Calgary; and halls and festival appearances in Newfoundland, Israel, Romania, and China. His concerto performances have included concerts with the National Symphony and the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestras, the San Angelo and Santa Barbara Symphonies, and the Tokyo City Philharmonic, working with such conductors as Andrew Sewell, Eric Zhou, Taijiro Iimori, Gisele Ben-Dor, Fabio Marchetti, Randall Craig Fleisher, John DeMain, Ron Spiegelman, Daniel Alcott, and Darryl One, among others. His chamber music and duo collaborations have included internationally renowned artists such as clarinetist Karl Leister, flautist Andras Adorjan, and members of the St. Lawrence and Ying String Quartets, in addition to frequent projects with his distinguished faculty colleagues at the University of Michigan. He has recorded solo and chamber music CDs for the Equilibrium and Brevard Classics labels. He has additionally edited and published critical editions and recordings of works by Claude Debussy (Children’s Corner, Arabesques, and shorter works) and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Viennese Sonatinas) for the Schirmer Performance Editions published by Hal Leonard. Read more

Julia Siciliano

Award-winning concert pianist, Julia Siciliano has been heralded as a musician with “fabulous creative power” by the Bonn General Anzeiger. Ms. Siciliano has become a well-respected and anticipated rising talent on the world stage, being invited as a solo artist by manyprestigious orchestras, and festivals, most recently with the Orquestra Sinfónica de la Region de Murcia for the MurciArt Music Festival. A winner of many local and international piano competitions, Julia has won top prizes at the Sicily International Piano Competition, Heida Hermanns International Competition, Iowa Piano Competition, and MTNA National Competition. A highly active chamber musician, Julia has been invited to perform on concert series and festivals with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra Chamber Players, the Euskadiko Orchestra’s “Miramon Matinees”, Donostia Musika series at Teatro Victoria Eugenia in San Sebastián, Spain, and the La Verdi chamber music series in Teatro Gerolamo di Milano. She has given recitals with Metropolitan Opera stars Amanda Pabyan, Eric Owens, and Marina Domashenko, and internationally acclaimed instrumentalists Hayoung Choi, Simone Lamsma, and Alexei Ogrintchouk. Most notably, Julia performed the complete “accompanied sonatas” of Beethoven in the year 2020 at the Teatro Victoria Eugenia in Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain, and in various venues throughout the United States, France, and Sweden.

Julia has an active performing career in both solo and chamber music capacities across stages in North America, Central America, Europe and Asia. She has performed multiple times live on Chicago radio station WFMT, Detroit’s historic Scarab Club, Cincinnati Music Hall, the Bulgarian Consulate in New York City, Teatro Nacional of Gautemala, MalmöLive in Malmö,

Sweden, Teatro Victoria Eugenia in San Sebastián, Spain, Palazzo Biscari in Catania, Italy, Teatro Gerolamo in Milan, Italy, Parvis de l’église Notre-Dame d’Espérance in Cannes, Deutsche Telekom Headquarters in Bonn, Clairmont Hall in Tel Aviv, Rachmaninov Hall in Moscow, and Kioi Hall in Tokyo.

Her debut solo album “Dream Catchers”, a two disc album featuring small scale works by Beethoven, Schumann, Schubert, Ravel and Debussy, released in 2016 to great acclaim. Fanfare Magazine declared “this release has merit as a career milestone” and leaves “no doubt about the devotion and seriousness of Siciliano’s approach to music.” Gramophone Magazine praised her “fine technique and natural musicality” pinpointing her “masterful delicacy, harmonic motion, and timing” in Debussy’s Images II.

Siciliano holds degrees from the Eastman School of Music, where she studied with Nelita True, and the University of Michigan, where she studied with Logan Skelton.

Dr. Jason Branham

Dr. Jason Branham holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, where he also earned his Master of Music degree. He completed undergraduate work at Eastern Michigan University, graduating Magna cum Laude with degrees in music performance and economics. Jason has directed ensembles of all ages, primarily serving congregations in Michigan and Minnesota. Jason has taught piano students of all ages and recently worked as General Manager of Lake Superior Chamber Orchestra. Currently, Jason is the Director of Music at University Presbyterian Church in Rochester Hills, MI. He is also active as a musician on the musical theater scene throughout Oakland County.

Bret Hoag

Bret Hoag is a Special Lecturer of classical and jazz guitar at Oakland University. A regular solo performer, Bret specializes in performance of new music; he has premiered works by many composers, including P.Q. Phan, Anthony Lanman, Rafael Hernandez, Mitsuhito Ogino, Terry Herald, Brian Hulse, and John Hall.

Aside from solo engagements, Bret frequently performs in chamber settings. Most recently, collaborators have included Jeffery Zook, flutist; Lori Newman, flutist; George Stoffan, clarinetist; Drake Dantzler, tenor; Kelly Holst, soprano; and Davis Brooks, violinist.

At Oakland University, Bret directs the Oakland University Guitar Ensemble, teaches all levels of guitar classes for non-majors, and recruits and maintains an active studio of guitar majors. In addition to teaching courses intended for guitar majors (including Guitar Pedagogy and Guitar Literature), Bret also teaches online sections of MUS200, History of Rock and Roll.

Bret earned a bachelor’s degree in guitar performance from Oberlin Conservatory, and a master’s degree in guitar performance from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music. Prior to his appointment at Oakland University, Bret held a full-time position at Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis (IUPUI), where he was coordinator of guitar and directed the IUPUI Guitar Ensemble, in addition to holding a position as applied instructor of guitar at the University of Indianapolis.

Jonathan Edwards

Jonathan Edwards is a lecturer of guitar and songwriting at the University of Michigan’s School of Music, Theatre & Dance. He has created and developed curricula within the Class Guitar Program including beginning and intermediate level courses in both popular styles and traditional classical guitar technique. Jonathan brings a multifaceted pedagogical approach to his teaching, building a diverse selection of guitar repertoire, fostering artistry and musicianship, and developing improvisation, composition and arrangement skill sets with his students. He also leads the Songwriting Workshop course within the Performing Arts and Technology program where he works with students to bridge traditional songwriting concepts with a modern approach to recording and production. Jonathan also serves as the advisor to the Classical Guitar Society student organization on campus.

In addition to Jonathan’s work at The University of Michigan, he now runs the guitar program and leads the jazz combo and music therapy guitar skills classes at Eastern Michigan University. He has maintained a schedule of private teaching for over 15 years working with students of all ages interested in a wide range of music genres.

Jonathan’s career as an educator, performer and songwriter extends across many areas of guitar style from classical to rock and regularly sees him giving workshops and recitals, performing with the Ann Arbor based jazz group Big Fun- a tribute group to Miles Davis’ electric period, and releasing albums of original pop music. Previous projects have been voted “Underground Artist of the Year” by Spin Magazine, and songs he wrote or co-wrote have been featured on major television networks such as ABC, MTV and on Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim. He has produced myriad recordings and often supplies guitar and bass guitar contributions to fellow artists’ projects.

He attended Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music for classical guitar performance, studying with internationally acclaimed guitarists Ernesto Bitetti and Petar Jankovic. He also studied extensively with Dr. Nelson Amos at Eastern Michigan University and holds Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees in Guitar Performance from EMU.

Dr. Brad DeRoche

Brad DeRoche is an active concert artist, appearing as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral soloist. His repertoire spans from Renaissance lute works to modern works by living composers. Throughout his career, he has been drawn to dramatic, lyrical, and virtuosic music; with the works of Bach and Spanish composers ever present in his concert programs. He has recently become a recording artist for the Centaur Records label, with “Serenata Espanola: Spanish Guitar Classics” as his first release.
He is a graduate of the prestigious Eastman School of Music where holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Classical Guitar Performance, where he studied under Nicholas Goluses. In addition to his degrees, he participated in many masterclasses with prominent concert guitarists including David Russell, Raphaëlla Smits, Paul Galbraith, Fabio Zanon, Denis Azabagic, Scott Tennant, and many others.

He has premiered several new works including a solo composition written for him by Prix de Rome prizewinner Vincent Frohne. He has performed, taught, or presented seminars at the Eastman Guitar Festival, the Interlochen Guitar Festival, the Las Vegas Guitar Festival, the Alexandria Guitar Festival, the Cleveland International Guitar Festival, the Michigan Classical Guitar Workshop, and others.

As an educator, Dr. DeRoche teaches guitar, guitar ensemble, music history, and music theory courses. He is chair of the music department at Delta College and has directed the guitar programs at Central Michigan University, Saginaw Valley State University, and the Interlochen Arts Academy, Arts Camp, and Adult Arts Camps. In 2017 he won the Bergstein Award for Teaching Excellence, the highest award given to a faculty member at Delta College, and in 2020 won the Barstow-Frevel Award for Scholarly Achievement. In addition to his collegiate teaching, he has adjudicated various music competitions including the James Stroud Classical Guitar Competition in Cleveland, OH.

Dr. DeRoche has enjoyed a wide variety of activities in his professional life. In addition to being a performer and educator, he and his brother owned and operated the successful online retail business “Strings By Mail.” In 2015 he wrote a music appreciation textbook titled “An Introduction to Art Music” published by Kendall-Hunt. He currently directs a concert series at Delta College called the “Allegro Series” which has presented some of the world’s finest musicians in its 25-year history. He is a founding member of the Mid-Michigan Classical Guitar Society, and gives many presentations on scholarly topics related to music history, guitar performance and technique, performance anxiety, and other related subjects. Dr. DeRoche currently serves on the board of trustees for the Guitar Foundation of America, an organization that promotes the classical guitar nationally and internationally. Dr. DeRoche is passionate about the classical guitar and has dedicated himself to the beauty and artistry of this fine instrument and its repertoire.
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Jenifer DeBellis

Jenifer DeBellis, M.F.A., is author of Warrior Sister, Cut Yourself Free from Your Assault (Library Tales Publishing, 2021), Blood Sisters (Main Street Rag, 2018), and New Wilderness (Cornerstone Press, 2023). She edits Pink Panther Magazine and directs aRIFT Warrior Project and Detroit Writers’ Guild (501c3). She’s featured in Psychology Today and Seattle’s My Independence Report and her writing appears in CALYX, the Good Men Project, Literary Orphans, Solstice, and other fine journals. A former Meadow Brook Writing Project fellow, JDB facilitates workshops for Oakland University’s MBWP Writing Camps as well as teaches writing and literature for Saginaw Valley State University.
Read more here

Ruta Vaivade

Ruta Vaivade is one of the most versatile pianists of her generation. She studied with Professor Teofils Bikis at the Latvian Academy of Music. She was the recipient of several scholarships which, in 2002, enabled her to complete her studies, culminating in a double

Master’s degree from the Prague Academy of Music, under Professor Peter Toperczer, and from Conservatorium of Amsterdam, under Professors Rudolf Jansen and Frans van Ruth. She also attended masterclasses given by Lazar Berman, Nelly Akopjan, Eugen Indjič, Karl-Heinz Kammerling, José Ribera, Dawn Upshaw, Udo Reineman, Graham Johnson and others.

Ruta won second prize at the Mozart Competition for Young Musicians in Latvia in 1993. She also won the second prize as soloist and first prize as accompanist at the Youth Festival Competition in Braunschweig, Germany in 1991.

Her performances were broadcast on Radio Free Europe, Czech Radio Vltava, Dutch radio Classic FM and cable channel 23 in Canada.

Currently Ruta enjoys a flourishing and versatile career. Since her first concerto appearance at the age of 14 Ruta has performed many times as a concerto soloist with several orchestras and has given many solo and chamber music recitals. She has a particular affinity for chamber music, and in this regard Ruta has appeared in a number of highly successful international collaborations. She has performed in many countries, including Latvia, Czech Republic, Germany, Finland, The Netherlands, Belgium, Japan, Slovak Republic, USA and Canada.

Her concert repertory is wide-ranging and includes works by Latvian, Czech, Dutch, Russian, French, Austrian, German, Hungarian, American and Canadian composers. She has given a number of World Premieres.

Ruta, with ease, adapts well to all performance abilities: she accompanies opera singers, plays chamber music and even works as an orchestral musician. Her previous orchestra projects includes “Les Miserables”, “Passion”, “Beauty and the Beast”, “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat” and “Rembrandt”.

Ruta Vaivade currently divides her time between both solo and chamber appearances, accompaniment, orchestral work and teaching.

She is an founder and owner of successful music studio in Oakville, Ontario, Canada.

In coolaboration with soprano Natalja Jakovleva she released a CD featuring 20 songs of S. Rachmaninoff.

In collaboration with Trio dell’Aria she released a CD “ Memories of places past”.
Read more here.

Katherines Huyghe

Katherines Huyghe a native of Rochester Hills, Michigan, began her undergraduate vocal career at Albion College in Albion, Michigan. She was the recipient of the Katherine Westbrook Scholarship, Albion’s most prestigious music scholarship. Katherine was the soprano soloist for Joseph Haydn’s, Mass in Time of War, also known as Paukenmesse. She sang the soprano solos in Mozart’s Requiem K. 626 for the concert choir. She also appeared inthe operettas Trail by Jury as the Plaintiff, Angelina, and The Pirates of Penzance (Kate).

Katherine furthered her vocal studies in New York City, singing with The New York Treble Singers professional choir, where she studied with the director, Virginia Davidson.

Katherine earned a Masters of Music at Bowling Green State University, where she studied vocal performance with Dr. Jane Schoonmaker Rodgers. Katherine reprised her role as the Plaintiff in Trial by Jury and appeared in BGSU’sopera I Quattro rusteghi. She was also featured in thenationally known Classical Singer Magazine in January 2009. After graduation, Katherine studied voice with Martha Sheil of The University of Michigan. Katherine spent a summer in San Francisco at the Bay Area Summer Opera Training Institute, where she studied such roles as Alice Ford (Falstaff), Donna Anna (Don Giovanni) and Female Chorus (The Rape of Lucretia).

Recently, Katherine has been busy in the world of musical theater, playing such roles as Francesca (The Bridges of Madison County), Lois Lane/Bianca (Kiss Me, Kate), and Widow Corney (Oliver) to name a few. She played a real estate agent in a national Quicken Loans commercial that aired on HGTV. She also does voiceovers for commercials throughout the country. When Katherine is not performing, she teaches voice and piano lessons in her studio in Rochester, in which of her students have gone on to pursue successful music and acting careers. To ensure that her students receive the best music education possible, Katherine is furthering her studies in vocal pedagogy and voice science by studying with famous vocal pedagogueJeanie LoVertri through Somatic Voiceworks.

Dia Frid

She was born in Mumbai, India and grew up in Calcutta, but received her theatrical training both in London, England and in Toronto.
For seven years, her company, Fanfare Productions ran the successful seasonal musical, MR SCROOGE (cast alumni of which are members of the Shaw and Stratford ensembles) and she now runs FRIDKIDS, a company that mounts her stage adaptations of children’s classical literature .
In addition to directing these adaptations, Ms. Frid has directed over 100 plays and is also in great demand as an acting coach. Her 25 years of personal coaching and teaching include stints at the University of Toronto’s Erindale campus, Sheridan University, Ryerson University, Canadian Indigenous Theatre, ,as well as various schools in Oakville, Burlington and Hamilton.
Dia’s first love is acting and in this past year alone, she played 9 different characters. She has lost count of how many plays she has acted in since the age of 10 (the beginning of her career , now a few – ahem – decades ago! ) Some of her favourite roles have been in the classics (Jaques in AS YOU LIKE IT, for example) but also in brand new plays, like Hamiltonian Arts Award Winner, Radha Menon’s RUKMINI’S GOLD.

Ms. Frid is also a successful playwright and dramaturge. Her play, co-written with Ron Cameron-Lewis, SIX WAR YEARS was chosen to celebrate Ryerson Theatre school’s fiftieth anniversary and she continues to dedicate her career to bring the Page to the Stage on a regular basis!

Terry Herald

Terry Herald’s professional career has been spent exploring a breadth of musical idioms, from Renaissance through Contemporary, composing for a wide range of genres including chamber, choral, orchestral, and new music, while incorporating jazz and world music influences in his works. He has served as music director for guitarist Earl Klugh, jazz clarinetist Wendell Harrison, and Canadian flutist Alexander Zonjic. His career as a composer began in film scoring and has evolved to include orchestral and concert commissions.

After earning Bachelor and Master Degrees in Music Theory from Wayne State University, Herald joined the faculty of Wayne State in 1978, teaching a variety of courses including music theory, arranging and orchestration. He is currently on staff at Oakland University in Rochester Michigan where he engineers all sound recordings in Varner Recital Hall as well as coordinating the Bachelor of Music Technology degree program, while teaching courses in the history of film music, music technology, and maintaining a private studio of film composition students.

Herald’s accomplishments include commissions for the Detroit Symphony’s Civic Orchestra, the theme for the Lexington Bach Festival, Warren Symphony’s 40th anniversary, the Metropolitan Youth Symphony, and Fantasie on Danny Boy for five antiphonal flute choirs in honor of Sir James Galway. His film scores include Air Force One, the Planes and the Presidents,Journey to Justice and The First Rosa. His wworks for television productions include CBS Sports, ABC’s NFL Monday Night Football, the 1994 Winter Olympics, NBC’s Dateline, the Award Winning PBS series, Bob’s Jobs, and Nickelodeon’s Mr. Wizard’s Teacher to Teacher series.

Dr. Joel Schoenhals

Joel Schoenhals has been Professor of Piano at Eastern Michigan University since 2001.

Schoenhals is a prolific recording artist. His discography of solo and chamber music includes the music of Bach, Chopin, Bartok, Schubert, Schumann, Rachmaninoff, Liszt, Gouvy, Mozart, Bruch, DeFour and Chee.
Between 2012 and 2018, Schoenhals performed the complete cycle of Beethoven’s 32 piano sonatas, the complete keyboard Partitas of Bach, and the complete character works of Brahms. Live and unedited video recordings of his performances can be found on YouTube. He is currently commissioning and performing the piano works of Navajo composer Connor Chee.
Schoenhals holds a Master of Music, Doctoral of Musical Arts, and Performer’s Certificate from the Eastman School of Music. He earned his undergraduate degree in piano performance at Vanderbilt University. Over the past decade he has held guest professorships at Nanchang University and Central China Normal University in China.

Natasha Finlay

Twice a gold medalist and ARCT recipient in piano pedagogy and piano performance at the Royal Conservatory of Music, Natasha Frid Finlay is an examiner for the RCM. She holds her Masters degree from the Conservatoire de Paris. Natasha runs a bilingual French-English piano studio in Toronto which partners with the Regent Park School of Music, funding over 5,000 classes to date. She is guest faculty at The Phil and Eli Taylor Performance Academy, training musicians to perform Baroque dances. In addition to adjudicating for music festivals online and in person, Natasha is an organizer of the Canadian Contemporary Showcase festival in Toronto. With a parallel career in dance, Natasha is a dance notator and pre-show speaker for The National Ballet of Canada. She also tutors for the Royal Academy of Dance’s Certificate of Ballet Teaching Studies. More information.

Jane Watson

Originally from Ottawa, Fiona Jane Wood is a Toronto based pianist who is in demand both as a solo and collaborative artist. Ms. Wood champions both the standard and contemporary repertoire and has premiered several solo and chamber works across Canada. She holds an ARCT from the Royal Conservatory of Music, and was awarded several scholarships in her post -secondary education. Ms. Wood holds a Bachelor in Piano Performance from McGill University, the Advanced certificate in Performance from the University of Toronto and a Masters in Performance and Pedagogy from the Glenn Gould School (through Thompson Rivers University). Ms Wood has studied at the Banff School of Fine Arts, the Orford Arts Centre and the Adamant School. Principal teachers include Sandra Webster, Tom Plaunt and Marietta Orlov.

Ms. Wood has performed in master classes for celebrated musicians that include André Laplante, Angela Hewitt, Jane Coop, John Perry and Marc Durand. She has recently given recitals at the McMichael Gallery of Ontario, Gallery 345, The Canadian Music Centre, the Richard Bradshaw Ampitheatre at the Canadian Opera Company, the Tenri Cultrual Institute of New York, and the Arts and Letters club of Toronto. She was recently a contributor and advisor to the 2022 piano syllabus for the Celebration Series of the Royal Conservatory of Music.

Ms. Wood combines her love of performing with teaching and is a member of the college of examiners for the Royal Conservatory of Music. She is also a frequent adjudicator across North America in all levels of piano. She is on faculty at the Oscar Peter School of the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto.

Gavin Tessier

Gavin Tessier is a Toronto-based vocalist focused on Musical Theatre, Jazz, Pop and Golden age styles, as well as western piano improvisation. He has performed in over 30 productions, including appearing on stage at the Stratford Festival near his hometown of Wellesley, and holds an Honor’s degree in Musical Theatre Performance from Sheridan College. As a music teacher and former support worker for neurodiverse children, Gavin is passionate about working with students of all ages and abilities, adapting their individual talents and challenges to assist them in growing and improving in ways that motivate them.

For vocalists, Gavin can help beginners find confidence in their voice using the foundations of healthy singing. He can provide appropriate repertoire, or work on songs the student chooses.
For more advanced singers, he will teach University level technique to explore many colors of the voice, and prepare audition material for professional work or school.

Gavin works with a lot of students on audition preparation, for school or professional auditions. This involves crafting a performance around a song to not only show off the students vocal capabilities, but to tell the story of the song and find a truthful and interesting interpretation of every moment. In musical theatre all singers are actors! Gavin also does this work with students working on monologues.

Drew De Four

Graduating from The University of Michigan with a degree in Music, Drew De Four has written and produced 9 Records working with music industry giants such as Phredley Brown (Bruno Mars, Katy Perry), Theo Katzman (Vulfpeck), Chris Kuffner (Ingrid Michaelson), and Adrian Passarelli (Alessia Cara, Nelly Furtado).
In the last few years, De Four wrote, composed, and produced an Indie Film called, “Duelers,” Executive Produced by Emmy-Winner Darren Criss.

Drew wrote additional music for “Trail to Oregon,” a Starkid Production with his college friend, Jeff Blim.
His entire adult life, “D4” has been a Dueling Piano Player performing over 2,000 concerts at piano bars, festivals, cruise ships, and military tours around the world.

He knows over 1,000 songs by memory, many more if lyrics are available.
Drew has been a contributing writer for 2012 Super Bowl Champion and Entrepreneur Geoff Pope’s online publication: The LCR: Left, Center, Right

Massimo Solazzo

Massimo Solazzo started learning ballet at the age of 5 and been in the industry for nearly 30 years. He is a prominent dancer who passed all the exams from Primary to Advanced 2 at the Royal Academy of Dance Examinations.

In 1993 Massimo got three years full-course scholarship at the prestigious Bird College of Performing Arts in London. Over the years, he worked with famous teachers such as Frank Freeman, Lynn Wallis, Darren Parrish, Antony Croome, Susan Town, Dick O’Swamborn and few others. Beside ballet, he also ventured his studies in character, jazz, modern contemporary, tap, drama, singing, music theory, anatomy and choreography. He graduated in Ballet, Choreography and Musical Theatre in 1996 and became RAD registered teacher.
Massimo has performed numerous numbers of musicals and ballet performances with top notch production houses in the U.K. and Europe. He also has served for many important competitions and recitals as a guest dancer and choreographer.

In 2012 Massimo became RAD CBTS Tutor and Mentor (Teaching Certificate validated by Royal Academy of Dance, London) and since then he had done countless training workshops, intensive training courses and coaching in Italy, China and Switzerland.

In 2014 Massimo attended the Ailey School Certification for Horton Pedagogy and Contemporary Dance Teaching (New York, USA), working with the Ailey Teachers such as Tracy Innman, Bradley Shelver, and Elisabeth Roxas.
In 2014 Massimo became the Director of Education and Curriculum Designer of the Duncan Dance Academy New York – based in China. He trained many students and teachers in several RAD schools in Hong Kong, China, Singapore and Malaysia.

In 2018 Massimo has been nominated Examiner of the Royal Academy of Dance which added another milestone on his career.

Being a highly passionate dancer and teacher, he always place utmost pleasure in his teachings and positively encourages students to express themselves, improving strong technical skills, self- understanding and personal manner. He believes dance is a beautiful way of communication to express oneself.

Elaine Lau

Versatile as both a soloist and collaborative artist, Elaine Lau has performed as keyboardist and soloist with numerous orchestras, and broadcast on CBC Radio 2, National Public Radio (USA), and Rondo Classic (Finland). She has performed with ensembles including the Canadian Chamber Ensemble, Contact Contemporary Music, and the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony. As a solo recitalist, she has been featured on the Canadian Opera Company’s Piano Virtuoso concert series, Arts and Letters Series, the Canadian Music Centre’s On the 13th! Piano Series and at the McMichael Canadian Art Collection. Her live performances of Canadian piano repertoire can be found online at the Canadian Music Centre.

In addition to her interest in the standard literature, Elaine also regularly premieres new works for toy, solo and duo piano, and is a founding member of junctQín, an award-winning Toronto-based contemporary keyboard collective. Highlights include performances at the Open Ears Festival (Kitchener-Waterloo), the International Electro-acoustic Symposium, and the Colours of Music Festival in Barrie. As duo pianist with Joseph Ferretti, Elaine has performed across North America and recorded for Capstone Records. Recent recording releases include reTHiNK, a well-received recording of contemporary piano music for six hands (2020, Redshift Records), funded by FACTOR and the Canada Council for the Arts; Elaine is also featured on composer Alex Eddington’s album, “A Present from a Small Distant World” (2021, Redshift Records), with soprano Kristin Mueller-Heaslip.

Elaine was coach and repetiteur for the Opera Theatre of Lucca (Italy) and for several years, collaborative pianist/instructor for the Pennsylvania Governor’s School for the Arts (USA). In addition to performing, Elaine is active nationally as an adjudicator and Senior RCM Examiner, and has served as course facilitator and reviewer as well for online pedagogy courses at the Royal Conservatory. As a Senior Teacher Advisor, Elaine happily contributed to MEDA (Music Education in the Digital Age), a multi-institutional project that produced educational learning tools, including the Music Tool Suite. A member of the piano faculty at Wilfrid Laurier University since 2003, teaching studio piano and chamber music, Ms. Lau was the recipient of the Contribution to Teaching Award from the Ontario Registered Music Teachers’ Association in 2018 and has also served as keyboard faculty at the National Youth Orchestra of Canada.

Joseph Ferretti

Joseph Ferretti is active as an educator and performer. His versatile performing career as a soloist and collaborative artist has taken him throughout Canada, the USA and Europe. Some highlights include performances at the Canadian Opera Company’s Piano Virtuoso Series, NUMUS, Toronto’s Music Gallery, KW Chamber Music Society, Barrie’s Colours of Music, and many more. In addition to recital performances, Joseph performs frequently as a chamber musician, particularly as a duo pianist with Elaine Lau, and as a member of the award-winning junctQín keyboard collective with Stephanie Chua. As an ensemble pianist, he has performed with such ensembles as the Kitchener Waterloo Symphony, the Niagara Symphony, and the Talisker Players. His performing and recording has involved many wonderful collaborations with thriving composers and perfomers in Canada and abroad.

Dr. Ferretti is in demand across Canada as a festival and competition adjudicator, presenter, and an examiner for the Royal Conservatory of Music. He continues to teach studio piano in the Faculty of Music at Wilfrid Laurier University, and has held faculty and accompanying staff positions at the Pennsylvania Governor’s School for the Arts and Blue Lake Fine Arts camp.

Joseph received a Contribution to Teaching Award from the Ontario Registered Music Teachers’ Association in 2018, and enthusiastically teaches students of all levels and age groups. Activity as an educator has also led to such roles as course facilitator for online RCM Pedagogy Certificate Courses, and as a Teacher Advisor serving on MEDA project (Music Education in the Digital Age), a multi-institutional project that produced educational learning tools, including the Music Tool Suite. Dr. Ferretti obtained his Master’s and Doctoral degrees in Piano Performance from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, where he held fellowships and scholarships. His Bachelor of Music was from the University of Colorado Boulder, where he was honoured as Outstanding Junior and Outstanding Senior in the College of Music.

Nicole Perry

Nicole Perry (she/her), MFA, CLMA, CID/C, is a Certified Intimacy Director, as well as Intimacy Coordinator and dance choreographer in South Florida. Recent credits include 2 Broward County Artist Investment Grants for new dance work, and choreography and intimacy choreography for the US premiere of The Glass Piano at Theatre Lab. She also did the intimacy coordination for Arena, an award-winning short film and an episode of First Wives Club.

Nicole is a Certified Laban/Bartenieff Movement Analyst and teaches dance at the University of Miami. She is a regular contributor to DanceGeist Magazine. Nicole is the founder of Momentum Stage, a non-profit that provides professional development to dance and theatre artists and educators.

Nicole is a member of the Association of Dance Studies, th Association of Theatre Movement Educators, The National Dance Education Organization, and Stage Directors and Choreographers Society.

Kalie Hunter

Kalie Hunter Nero (she/her) is originally from Victoria, BC and is a graduate of The School of Alberta Ballet/BA program from the University of Calgary. Alongside her husband Phil Nero, she is the co-owner of Metro Movement Dance Studio and Health Clinic which is one of the longest running professional drop in studios in Canada.

She also has an extensive performance career; selected theatre credits: Donna/Tanya/Rosie Understudy in Mamma Mia (Tweed & Co Theatre,) Boylan sister in Annie, Cinderella the Panto, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (Drayton Entertainment) Robin Hood the Panto, S’narled (Capitol Theatre), Tanya Understudy in Mamma Mia, Spamalot (Stage West Calgary), Tantomile in CATS and Victoria/Bombalurina/Demeter Understudy(Panasonic/Mirvish) White Christmas (MTC,) Dirty Rotten Scoundrals and Beauty and the Beast 2x (Theatre Calgary), Beauty and the Beast 2x (Citadel Theatre) and Silverseas Cruise Lines. Selected film/tv: Nightbooks (Grizelda movement double,) Star Trek: Strange New World, Star Trek: Discovery, Tamarack, Lock&Key, Resident Evil: Welcome to Racoon City, In The Tall Grass, Shazam, Suicide Squad, 11/22/63, State Like Sleep, Pay The Ghost (Ghost Annie), Season 1 and 2 of The Strain, One Starry Night, Bang Bang Baby, Tiny Dancer, The Ron James Show andNikita. Kalie is both a dance teacher (currently teaching age 5 through seniors) and is also a sought-after adjudicator and has adjudicated from coast to coast in Canada.

Ian Parsons

Ian is a double graduate of Canada’s National Ballet School: from both the Professional Ballet Program, as well as the Teacher Training Program for Former Professional Dancers, both with distinction. He was also the recipient of the distinguished Betty Oliphant Award, which is awarded to a highly promising teacher upon graduation.

As a professional dancer, Ian has danced with The National Ballet of Canada and Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo, working with choreographers such as James Kudelka, John Neumeier, Jiri Kylian, and Jean-Christophe Maillot. He also appeared in the feature film of Les Misérables, as Hans in the Olivier Award nominated revival of Cabaret in London’s West End, and as Assistant Dance Captain/Swing in the UK/European tour of Cats, and he had the privilege of performing with the casts of both shows at the Oliver Awards 2013 at the Royal Opera House.

As a teacher, Ian has been a faculty member of Performers College (London), as well as the School of Ballet Theatre UK. He has also been a guest teacher at The London Studio Centre, The Chantry School of Contemporary and Balletic Arts, and at the famed Danceworks and Pineapple Studios in London, England.

Ian returned to Canada in 2016, and joined the Artistic Staff of Canada’s National Ballet School, teaching ballet, pas de deux, musical theatre, and rehearsing repertoire for the stage.

Drew De Four

As a singer/songwriter, Drew De Four has written and produced nine Records working with music industry giants such as Phredley Brown (Bruno Mars, Katy Perry), Theo Katzman (Vulfpeck), Chris Kuffner (Ingrid Michaelson), and Adrian Passarelli (Alessia Cara, Nelly Furtado).

Graduating from The University of Michigan with a degree in Music, Drew studied syntax with Linguistics Professor John Lawler and Creative Writing with American Poet Jaswinder Bolina.
In the last few years, De Four wrote, composed, and produced an Indie Film called, “Duelers,” Executive Produced by Emmy-Winner Darren Criss.

Drew wrote additional music for “Trail to Oregon,” a Starkid Production with his college friend Jeff Blim.
Drew has been a contributing writer for 2012 Super Bowl Champion and Entrepreneur Geoff Pope’s online publication: The LCR: Left, Center, Right.

Stephanie Maltese

Stephanie Maltese earned two B.A. degrees in English Literature and Creative Writing from the University of Michigan. During her undergraduate years, she focused on many genres written throughout history spanning from the Homeric Period through the Postmodern Period. Her literature studies from the earliest of times has taught her the foundations of writing itself. Stephanie also works as a Fiction Editor for CritiqueMatch, where she helps writers prepare their manuscripts for publishing. As part of her degree, she took part in the New England Literature Program for writers and English students.

Cody Moore

Cody Alice Moore is an artist, illustrator, and surface pattern designer based in the midwest with 16 years of experience. With a BFA in Design and Illustration, she has worked on a large variety of in-house and freelance art and design projects, including logos, magazine articles, books, patterns for wallpaper, fabric and gift wrap, wall art, greeting cards, and many different types of photo gift products. Cody discovered her current passion for surface pattern design during her five year tenure as a professional art buyer. Since 2019, she has been creating art full time for her growing collection of art, designs, patterns and prints for commercial use by retailers and manufacturers.

Meryl Ann Bulter

Meryl Ann Butler is an award-winning artist who has taught for over four decades in her own art schools as well as in other venues, including at the university level. She classically trained for seven years with Harold Stevenson, a student of Norman Rockwell. She has taught traditional realism as well as visionary art, including portrait, still life, landscape, anatomy and figure in a wide variety of media including: oils, acrylics, pastels, charcoal, Prismacolor pencils, pen and ink, and textile arts. She has authored traditionally published books and hundreds of articles on the arts.