Ryan Murray, Principal Pops Conductor

Ryan Murray

Principal Pops Conductor

American conductor Ryan Murray has found steady acclaim as a compelling, dynamic and unflappable presence on the podium. Ryan is currently Principal Pops Conductor for the Modesto Symphony, Music Director of the Auburn Symphony, and Artistic Director of Music in the Mountains. An award-winning opera conductor, Ryan spent his early career working as an assistant conductor and répétiteur, and is currently the Music Director of Opera Modesto. He has served as an assistant conductor at the Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera, is the past Music Director of Fresno Grand Opera, and previously worked as a staff conductor for the Bay Area Summer Opera Theater Institute (BASOTI) and The Opera Academy of California in San Francisco. Effortlessly moving between genres, Ryan currently enjoys a wide range of performance genres & platforms, including traditional orchestral and operatic repertoire, pops performances, movies in concert, and a notable emphasis on contemporary American operatic works.

Ryan was the winner of the Vienna Philharmonic’s prestigious Ansbacher Fellowship for Young Conductors, and spent the summer in residence alongside the Vienna Philharmonic at the 2014 Salzburg Festival. Ryan was also awarded second place in the 2019 American Prize for Professional Orchestral Conducting for his work with the Modesto Symphony, and has garnered national recognition for his dynamic, compelling performances of contemporary opera as the winner of the 2017 American Prize in Opera Conducting for his highly lauded production of A Streetcar Named Desire. He was a 2016 semi-finalist for the Ernst Bacon Memorial Award for the Performance of American Music for his production of Jake Heggie's Dead Man Walking.

A charismatic pops conductor, Ryan has worked with prominent artists such as Storm Large of Pink Martini, SuperDiamond and the phenomenal symphonic tribute to David Bowie. He was recently engaged to step-in at the last minute as assistant and cover conductor for Andrea Bocelli's Believe Tour with the Sacramento Philharmonic where he conducted rehearsals to acclaim. He has led some of the top vocalists from Broadway and beyond, including Ben Crawford (Broadway's The Phantom of the Opera), Ashley Brown (Broadway's Mary Poppins), and Alli Mauzey (Glinda from Wicked), as well as some of today's top young jazz vocalists including Tony DeSare and James Tormé. With an enthusiasm for film scores, Ryan enjoys the unique challenges of conducting movies in concert and was recently added the the Disney & ICM Approved Conductors list. Recent and upcoming performances include Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, Pixar Animation Studios' Pixar in Concert, Star Wars: A New Hope and Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back.

Ryan holds degrees, summa cum laude, in Bassoon Performance and Voice Performance from California State University, Sacramento and also holds a master’s degree, with distinction, in Music Business from the Berklee College of Music where he studied with industry professionals to develop tools for success in the modern music industry, including new technology, policy, law and finance. Ryan has a strong commitment to education and currently serves as the Director of Symphony Orchestra & Opera at California State University, Sacramento, and as the conductor for the Sacramento Youth Symphony's premier orchestra. Driven by a lifelong passion for learning, Ryan has attended conducting masterclasses and seminars around the world. Ryan recently conducted the Romanian Chamber Orchestra in concert and was one of just eight conductors worldwide to be invited to the Musiikin aika Summer Festival Masterclass in Finland led by Susanna Mälkki. He has previously attended the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music's Conductors Workshop; the contemporary music symposium led by Alan Gilbert featuring the New York Philharmonic; the Aurora Chamber Festival in Sweden, where he studied under Maestro Kurt Masur; the Lucerne Festival Academy’s Conducting Masterclass in Switzerland; and the Eastman School of Music’s Summer Conducting Institute. Widely praised for his tireless work ethic, natural poise, and impassioned, inspired performances, Ryan continues to connect deeply with orchestras and audiences alike, and has proven to be a formidable presence on the podium.

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Upcoming Concerts

Alexander Korsantia, piano

Alexander Korsantia is one of the leading pianists of our time. A “major artist” (Miami Herald) and a “quiet maverick” (Daily Telegraph), Alexander Korsantia has been praised for a “piano technique where difficulties simply do not exist” (Calgary Sun).

In recent seasons Mr. Korsantia performed with the Stuttgart Philharmonic, Boston Philharmonic and Xiamen Philharmonic, Israel Symphony and Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra. With The Far Cry Chamber Group he played Galina Ustvolskaya's Piano Concerto in Boston und Tblisi.

Ever since winning the First Prize and Gold Medal at the Artur Rubinstein Piano Master Competition and the First Prize at the Sydney International Piano Competition, Korsantia’s career has taken him to many of the world’s major concert halls, collaborating with renowned conductors such as Christoph Eschenbach, Gianandrea Noseda, Valery Gergiev, and Paavo Järvi, with such orchestras as the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, The City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Mariinsky Orchestra, Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale della RAI in Turin, Cincinnati Symphony, and Israel Philharmonic Orchestra.

Alexander Korsantia is a frequent guest in many of the world's leading concert series including in Warsaw, Boston, Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Vancouver, Calgary, San Francisco, Lodz, St. Petersburg, and Blaibach and at major international festivals in Tanglewood and Verbier. A passionate chamber musician, he has collaborated with other leading soloists such as Vadim Repin, Miriam Fried, Kim Kashkashian, Sergei Nakariakov and the Stradivari Quartet.

His award-winning recordings include works by Beethoven, Prokofiev, Rachmaninoff, and Copland. In 2020 his recording of Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 was released to great critical acclaim (with Stuttgart Philharmonic under Dan Ettinger, at German label Hänssler). His solo piano transcription of Ravel’s La valse was published by Sikorski.

Born in Tbilisi, Alexander Korsantia began his musical studies at an early age with his mother, and later became a pupil of Tengiz Amiredjibi, Georgia’s foremost piano instructor. In 1992, he joined the famed piano studio of Alexander Toradze at Indiana University in South Bend, USA. In 1999, then-President Eduard Shevardnadze awarded him the Order of Honor. Mr. Korsantia is a recipient of the Golden Wing award (2015) and Georgia’s National State Prize (1997). Korsantia resides in Boston where he is a Professor of Piano at the New England Conservatory.

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Website: http://alexanderkorsantia.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KorsantiaAlexander

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alexanderkorsantia/

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Upcoming Performances

Daniel R. Afonso Jr., Chorus Director

Daniel R. Afonso Jr. has served as conductor of the Modesto Symphony Orchestra Chorus since its foundation in 2001 and has prepared several choral works with the ensemble. He is also Coordinator of Vocal and Choral Studies at California State University, Stanislaus. Afonso received a B.M.E. degree from the Universidade do Rio de Janeiro (UNI -Rio), a M.M. degree in Choral Conducting from the University of Missouri-Kansas City, and a D.M.A. degree in Choral Conducting and Pedagogy from the University of Iowa. Dr. Afonso is originally from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and has studied conducting with Carlos Alberto Figueiredo, Cees Rotteveel, Eph Ehly, and William Hatcher.

Dr. Afonso has performed with choral groups in Brazil, U.S., and Europe, and has previously taught music at the Conservatório Brasileiro de Música, Universidade do Rio de Janeiro (UNI-Rio), and Doane College, Nebraska. In 1988, he won the first prize and the best performance of Villa-Lobos work award at the Concurso Villa-Lobos de Canto Coral, a national choral competition sponsored by the Museu de Arte Moderna do Rio de Janeiro. Dr. Afonso is strongly committed to the performance of new music and has commissioned and premiered many new choral works in the last few years, including several of his own works as well as works by young composition students.  He had his New York debut in 2012, conducting Mozart’s Requiem with members of the MSO Chorus and students from CSU Stanislaus at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts.

He is also a composer, arranger, and editor of choral music and has choral works published by earthsongs, Colla Voce, and Alliance Music Publications. He served as composer-in-residence with the San Francisco Choral Artists during their 2014-2015 season and has also written works for the Los Angeles Children’s Choir, the Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles, and other ensembles in the US and abroad. He has written innumerous arrangements for the Modesto Symphony Orchestra, including a new version of The Star-Spangled Banner for chorus and orchestra, recently premiered at the opening concert for the 2015-16 concert season. Dr. Afonso is widely recognized for his research and performance of Brazilian choral music and continues to frequently present workshops and lectures about the Latin American choral repertoire.

Richard Colla, Opus Handbell Ensemble Artistic Director

Richard J. Colla is artistic director and conductor of the Opus Handbell Ensemble, a post he has held since 1995. He is on the faculty at Modesto Junior College where he teaches Introduction to American Popular Music. Over the years, Richard has taught a variety of courses and has directed all the choral groups. In 2020, Richard retired from his position as Minister of Music and Worship at Trinity United Presbyterian Church in Modesto where he had directed a variety of vocal and instrumental ensembles since 1990.

Richard has also served as a member of the voice faculty at California State University, Stanislaus, and is an active adjudicator and lecturer. He has presented lectures on a variety of topics including vocal technique and literature, choral literature and methods, as well as handbell techniques. He and his wife, Ginger, also conduct joint workshops in vocal techniques.

Richard has been active as a bass-baritone soloist and has appeared extensively in recital, oratorio and opera performances. Richard served a four-year term (1993-1997) as the California State Chair for Repertoire and Standards of Music in Worship for The American Choral Director’s Assoc. (ACDA). He has also published articles in The NATS Journal for the National Association of Teachers of Singing, The Cantate California for the American Choral Director’s Assoc., and The Journal for the Choral Conductor’s Guild. Richard received his Bachelor of Music degree with honors from the University of Nebraska, Lincoln in vocal performance, and his Master of Music degree at the University of Illinois in choral conducting.

Richard and his wife, Ginger, were honored as the recipients of the 2007 Excellence in Arts Awards for Music by the Stanislaus Arts Council. Richard’s choir at Trinity (Koinonia Choir) was invited to participate in a performance of John Rutter’s Requiem in New York’s famous Carnegie Hall in 2005 with the composer conducting. The Choir and Opus Handbell Ensemble toured to England where they performed Handbell and Choir concerts in June (2008). Richard has also taken his choir on tours to Italy in 2012 and Austria in 2015.

Opus Handbell Ensemble

Opus Handbell Ensemble, Inc., a non-profit organization, has been a group of aspiring musicians in Modesto since 1992. They are currently 13 ringers strong, and have been under the artistic direction of Richard J. Colla since 1995. With over 140 combined years of ringing experience, they perform on five octaves of Malmark handbells, four-plus octaves of Malmark tone chimes and occasionally, a selection of Whitechapel handbells.

Handbells are a unique instrument requiring precision eye-hand coordination, music reading ability and a willingness to work as a team. Repertoire for this art form ranges from classical Bach to Heavy Metal and Rock 'n' Roll. Opus is known throughout the handbell community for reflecting, in bronze, the artistic interpretation of the director. They bring musicality and depth to a performance beyond the expectations of the listening and viewing audience.

Opus has spearheaded the art of handbell ringing in the Central Valley with themed concerts throughout the year. Opus has also hosted and conducted local workshops to raise the level of awareness of handbell ringing in the Modesto community. One of their greatest joys has been to take this artistic medium into the music mainstream through local schools by broadening the dreams of students who have never seen or heard a handbell choir.

Opus has played on the Community Concert Series in Porterville, four years on the Manteca Kindred Arts Council Concert Series and three years on the Sonora St. James’ Concert Series. They also played on two occasions for the Evensong Series in Lodi. These fine musicians have attended festivals and workshops from Riverside to the Bay Area. They were a featured choir to ring at Pinnacle 2000 in Las Vegas, and the Handbell Musicians of America Area Twelve Conference at Belmont in 2006. In June of 2008, Opus joined the Trinity United Koinonia Choir in Coventry, England for an International Choir Festival tour.

Opus has been the host ensemble along with seven other handbell groups for the Modesto Salvation Army Bells of Blessing benefit concert since 2010. For the first time, by an audition process, Opus was chosen to be the featured Showcase Ensemble for the Handbell Musicians of America Area Twelve Bell Odyssey Conference held at UC Davis, in June of 2010. They were honored again in 2016, as a Showcase Ensemble for Area Twelve Handbell Hop Conference held in Modesto.

Opus was featured on the Modesto Symphony Orchestra Holiday Pops Concert at the Gallo Center in 2007, 2008 and 2010. They were also featured guest musicians at the Modesto Symphony’s Candlelight Concert held at St. Stanislaus Catholic Church in 2009 through the present. In 2012 Opus presented a handbell drama/concert as part of the Arts Education Program of the Gallo Center for the Arts and paired it with an evening public concert through 2016. The Gallo Center contracted Opus again in 2018, as part of their holiday programs.

For more information contact Opus’ booking coordinator Lisa Traughber at 209-527-2214 or visit our website at opushandbell.org

Johanna Borenstein, principal flute

Johanna Borenstein is an active orchestral and studio musician in Los Angeles and Principal Flute of the Modesto Symphony. She frequently plays with LA Opera, Pasadena Symphony, Pacific Symphony, Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, Santa Barbara Symphony and Long Beach Symphony. As a studio musician she has been on movies such as Star Wars IX, Call of the Wild, The Mandalorian, Spies in Disguise, The Grinch, The Greatest Showman, Family Guy among many others. Johanna holds degrees from The Hartt School of Music, San Francisco Conservatory and The Colburn School. She has studied with John Wion, Tim Day and Jim Walker. Since the pandemic Johanna has started a small business making one of a kind Suncatchers, her store Crystal Dracorium is on Etsy. 

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LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johanna-borenstein-69257a15

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Performances

David Granger, principal bassoon

David Granger currently resides in the San Francisco Bay area where he works as a freelance musician performing in orchestras throughout northern California. He currently holds positions as principal bassoonist of the Sacramento Philharmonic Orchestra, the Modesto Symphony Orchestra, the Fremont Symphony. and is a member of the Oakland East Bay Symphony and Marin Symphony.

In 1982, Mr. Granger began teaching at the University of California, Davis, and in 1985, became coordinator of the music department’s student chamber music program, a position he held until 2011. He joined the faculty of the University of California, Berkeley, in 2000. He has also taught at the University of the Pacific in Stockton, California, where he performed with the Pacific Arts Woodwind Quintet, and at California State University-Stanislaus.

Born in Shawnee Mission, Kansas, Mr. Granger began studies at the age of 8 on clarinet. His clarinet teacher, Michael Spielman, principal bassoonist of the Kansas City Philharmonic, encouraged his talented student to switch to bassoon at the age of 13.

After studying two years at the University of Kansas with Austin Ledwith, Mr. Granger received his Bachelor of Music in 1973 and his Master of Music in 1975 from the Manhattan School of Music in New York City. His teachers included Harold Goltzer of the New York Philharmonic, Elias Carmen, formerly of the NBC Symphony under Toscanini, and Stephen Maxym of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. In 1974 he won the school’s annual concerto competition and performed the Weber Concerto in F Major with the Manhattan School of Music Orchestra. From 1973 to 1977, Mr. Granger was a member of the prestigious National Orchestral Association, a training orchestra for young professionals that regularly performed in Carnegie Hall.

From 1975 to 1981, Mr. Granger worked in the busy freelance world of New York City, performing with a number of that city's famous orchestras as well as pursuing an active chamber music career. He was a founding member of the Manhattan Woodwind Quintet, resident quintet at the C. W. Post Center of Long Island University and winner of the 1978 Artists International Competition. The ensemble made its Carnegie Recital Hall debut in 1979. In 1981, Mr. Granger commuted to Florida to play principal bassoon in the West Palm Beach Symphony Orchestra.

Mr. Granger was principal bassoonist of the Sacramento Symphony from 1981 until its bankruptcy in 1996. Mr. Granger was a strong advocate of symphonic music while in Sacramento. When the Sacramento Symphony first ceased operations in December 1992, Mr. Granger, with other musicians and dedicated music lovers, created the Sacramento Philharmonic Orchestra, a musician managed symphony (no association with the current organization with this name.) As President of the Philharmonic, he helped keep the symphony musicians performing for Sacramento audiences through the spring of 1993. With the revival of the Sacramento Symphony in 1993. Mr. Granger served as Secretary of the Board of Directors, and continued his active role as coordinator of the Sacramento Symphony’s very successful 1995 and 1996 World View Music Festivals.

Mr. Granger attended Indiana University's Early Music Institute and received a Performers Diploma in Baroque bassoon in 2004. In 2005, he founded Passamezzo Moderno, a period ensemble that performs the music of three centuries, from 1530 to 1830, and specializes in the virtuoso instrumental music of the 17th century.

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Performances

Katy Juneau, viola

Katy Juneau is Principal Viola of the Fremont Symphony, Lamplighter’s Theatre Orchestra and West Edge Opera Festival.  Katy is a member of Modesto Symphony & California Symphony. She also plays with Oakland Symphony, Santa Rosa Symphony, Marin Symphony, & Sacramento Philharmonic on a regular basis.

Katy’s most exciting passion project these days is being a member of the FSQ string quartet. In 2018 the Fremont Symphony & Quartet won a Zellerbach family foundation grant for their Lost Voices program. She also enjoys playing with Contra Costa Musical Theatre, and the Island Opera Company. Katy plays chamber music with various smaller ensembles throughout the Bay Area. Since 2013 she has volunteered as a coordinator and player for chamber music programs at Oakland Heights Pacifica Senior Living. Katy has fun playing a variety of musical genres and has been in backup groups accompanying all sorts from Wynton Marsalis, Peidmont Community Church, KISS, Bonnie Raitt, Synchronicity Strings, Kevin Spacey, Storm Large, and Josh Groban to playing in the World Classic Baseball Orchestra on the field at AT&T Park. Katy graduated from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.

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Performances

Adam Wolf, horn

As a freelance hornist in Los Angeles, Adam Wolf has had a variety of opportunities, including chamber music, orchestral playing, recording work, contemporary music, and solo appearances.

Adam has recorded and performed with many artists and composers, including Miley Cyrus, Will.I.Am, Pete Townsend, Billy Idol, John Debney, Arturo Sandoval, Mark Isham, Jeff Russo, Pinar Toprak, and many more.

As an orchestral player, Adam has had the privilege to perform with the San Diego Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Omaha Symphony, and Long Beach Symphony to name a few. He is also Principal Horn of the Redlands Symphony and Third Horn of the Modesto Symphony. In addition to performing, Adam is an accomplished composer whom’s music has been performed on five continents. He is commissioned regularly for concert music and is also the hornist, composer, and founder of Rock Horn Project- a multi-genre fusion band.

In 2017 Adam joined the faculty at the University of Redlands where he serves at the Artist Teacher of Horn and maintains a thriving studio. He is a Performing Artist for Conn-Selmer, and has a Bachelors of Fine Arts in Composition and Performance from California Institute of the Arts.

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YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCC9W1p5Ux_OovNo3htPqtZA/featured
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/adam.wolf.horn/?hl=en
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/adamwolf777
Pathways (Podcast): https://pathways.libsyn.com/

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Performances

Denis Harper, oboe

Denis Harper has consistently been praised for his performances as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestra player. A recipient of a Hewlett Foundation Fellowship and the Marian Anderson Young Artist award, he made his New York recital debut in Weill Recital Hall, Carnegie Hall to enthusiastic acclaim by The New York Times. “Mr. Harper has a clean, tapered, and exquisitely lovely tone… his phrasing is elegant and he can float a tune with the best of them.”

He has been Principal Oboe of the Modesto Symphony since 1991.

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Performances

Stephen Hough, piano

“The most perfect piano playing conceivable.”

— The Guardian

“A virtuoso who begins where others leave off”

— Washington Post

Combining a distinguished career as a pianist with those of composer and writer, Stephen Hough is regarded as a Renaissance man of his time. The first classical pianist to be awarded a MacArthur Fellowship and a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE), his mastery of the instrument as well as an individual and inquisitive mind has earned him a multitude of prestigious awards and a longstanding international following.

Since taking first prize at the 1983 Naumburg Competition in New York, Mr. Hough has performed with the world’s major orchestras and given recitals at the most prestigious concert halls. His recent and upcoming North American engagements include performances with the New York and Los Angeles Philharmonics, Cleveland and Minnesota Orchestras, and the San Francisco, Montreal, St. Louis, Cincinnati, National, Pittsburgh, Atlanta, Dallas and Detroit symphonies among many others; recitals in New York at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center and the 92nd St. Y, the Kennedy Center and in Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Toronto; and festival appearances at Aspen, Blossom, the Hollywood Bowl, Mostly Mozart, Ravinia and Tanglewood. Internationally, he appears with orchestras and in recital in major music centers such as London, Paris, Amsterdam, Berlin, Helsinki, Zurich, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Beijing, Singapore, Shanghai, Sydney and Melbourne.

On June 1, 2020, Stephen Hough re-opened London’s Wigmore Hall, performing the UK’s first live classical music concert in a major venue since the nationwide lockdown in March. Later in the summer he made his 29th appearance at the BBC Proms performing Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 2 with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. During the 19/20 season, he also curated a five concert Brahms series at Wigmore Hall, performing with Renaud Capucon and Steven Isserlis among others.

Mr. Hough’s extensive discography of over 60 CDs has garnered international awards including the Diapason d’Or de l’Année, several Grammy nominations, and eight Gramophone Awards including Record of the Year and the Gold Disc. Recent releases include solo piano works by Debussy, the ‘Dream Album’, a compilation of Mr. Hough’s favorite short works, and a live recording of Schumann and Dvořák’s piano concertos with Andris Nelsons and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, all for Hyperion Records. In May 2020, Mr. Hough celebrated the 250th anniversary of Beethoven’s birth with a three-disc recording cycle of the composer’s five piano concertos, recorded with Hannu Lintu and the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra for Hyperion Records. Mr. Hough has performed the Beethoven piano concertos numerous times with the world's leading orchestras throughout his 30-year career, including in recent seasons with the New York Philharmonic and St. Louis Symphony. Mr. Hough’s next recording, Vida, featuring his Vida Breve sonata and works by Chopin, Liszt, Busoni, and Bach/Gounod, is due to be released in January 2021.

As a composer, Mr. Hough has written for orchestra, choir, chamber ensemble and solo piano. He has been commissioned by Wigmore Hall, Musée du Louvre, London’s National Gallery, Westminster Abbey, Westminster Cathedral, the Genesis Foundation, Gilmore International Keyboard Festival, Indianapolis Symphony, the Walter W. Naumburg Foundation, the Cliburn Foundation and the Berlin Philharmonic Wind Quintet. His music is published by Josef Weinberger Ltd.

A noted writer, Mr. Hough has written articles for the New York Times, The Guardian, The Times (UK), The Telegraph, Evening Standard, The Tablet, Gramophone, and BBC Magazine. From 2010 until 2016 he wrote more than six hundred articles on his blog for The Telegraph, which became one of the most popular and influential forums for cultural discussion. A major anthology of essays by Mr. Hough on music, cultural, lifestyle and spiritual subjects – titled Rough Ideas: Reflections on Music and More – was published by Faber & Faber (UK) in 2019 and by Farrar, Straus and Giroux (US) in 2020. This follows his first novel, The Final Retreat, published by Sylph Editions in March 2018. Also an avid painter, Mr. Hough gave his first exhibition of nearly twenty abstract acrylic paintings in London in 2012.

Stephen Hough is an Honorary Member of the Royal Philharmonic Society, a Visiting Professor at the Royal Academy of Music, holds the International Chair of Piano Studies at the Royal Northern College of Music, and is on the faculty of The Juilliard School in New York.

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Website: http://www.stephenhough.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/houghhough/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/houghhough

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3G5zQYaRH9y6ruE4QnoITP?autoplay=true

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?playnext=1&list=PLguhthqe7dzbURZeknL3yF2KW3yArEH6P&feature=gws_kp_artist

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Upcoming Performances

Ilana Blumberg Thomas, violin

The Violin Player who Does it All...

Whether onstage at Davies Hall or playing to sold-out arena crowds, Ilana Blumberg Thomas has been at home performing for diverse audiences since she was a child. Following her solo debut with the San Francisco Symphony at age 16 for a celebration of renowned violinist Yehudi Menuhin’s historic debut, she embarked on a career that has spanned the worlds of classical and popular music, taken her across several continents and, most importantly, allowed her to share her craft with hundreds of thousands of eager concert-goers along the way.

Appreciating the vibrant variety and forward-thinking energy of the San Francisco Bay Area, Ilana currently lives in the East Bay, balancing a schedule that incorporates symphonic and classical violin concerts, chamber music and recording projects, appearances as an acoustic and electric violinist at prestigious private events, a busy teaching studio, and regular appearances as a popular violinist with an exciting array of celebrated artists. Recent past years have found her onstage supporting major acts including Andrea Bocelli, Michael Bublé, Gregory Porter, Chuck Prophet, Il Divo, Warren Haynes and Josh Groban, to name a few. With electronic duo ODESZA, she was featured in performances on NYE in San Francisco, at their inaugural music festival in Riviera Maya, Mexico, and at their tour finale shows in Stanford and Los Angeles, all of which received rave reviews and helped her satisfy her passion for electric violin music.

On classical violin, Ilana regularly appears with area orchestras from San Jose to Sacramento, including the Oakland Symphony, Santa Rosa Symphony, Berkeley Symphony, Symphony Silicon Valley, and the Modesto Symphony, where she serves as Associate Concertmaster. Other regular collaborations include the Left Coast Chamber Ensemble, West Edge Opera, Earplay, Opera Parallele and guest appearances with many other established groups. She also treasures her role as a wedding violinist, helping innumerable couples seal their vows and celebrate their happiest of days with everything from Ed Sheeran songs to R&B hits to traditional favorites like the Pachelbel Canon. 

Before her return to her native Bay Area, Ilana lived in New York City, where she performed as a popular violinist, in renowned chamber orchestras such as Philharmonia Virtuosi, and in various Broadway productions, including Elton John’s Aida and the Tony Award-winning Producers. Her Broadway affiliations have continued on the West Coast with ‘The Unreachable Stars’, featuring Phantom of the Opera lead Jeremy Stolle, and supporting the recent SF production of Anastasia. She also has appeared at all the major American music festivals, including Aspen, Marlboro, Santa Fe Chamber Music, and Tanglewood, where she participated in recording a series of videos with Wynton Marsalis. Her other recordings can be heard on the Deutsche Grammophon, Argo, and Albany labels.

When not performing, Ilana devotes herself to nurturing her varied group of students, ranging in age from 3 to ‘not willing to admit their age’, and her two sons. Never one to do anything halfway, she balances her love of distance running with a marginally unhealthy obsession with cookbooks.

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Website: https://www.sfweddingviolinist.com/

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Upcoming Performances

Central West Ballet

About the Central West Ballet

A resident company of the Gallo Center for the Arts in Modesto, California, this exciting company of versatile dancers produces yearound performances and reaches a large population in California's Central Valley. Established in 1987 by founding Artistic Director Gretchen L. Vogelzang and by Juline Schmitz, founding Director of Juline School of Dance, the company was subsequently guided under the tenures the Artistic Directors of Karen Burns, Bill Lark and Coleen Patterson. Since 2004, Artistic Director René Daveluy and Ballet Mistress Leslie Ann Larson have led the way. Under René Daveluy's directorship, Central West Ballet has produced and furthered a growing number of full-length classics, such as Romeo and Juliet, Swan Lake, Coppelia, The Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, Giselle, popular story ballets such as Peter Pan, Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Dracula. The Company has also performed ballets by George Balanchine, Val Caniparoli and Ronn Guidi. In 2010, under the leadership of former Executive Director Cynthia Coughlin, the company branched off and moved into its own dedicated studios on Pentecost Drive, North Modesto. Additionally, the Central West Ballet Academy (established in 2014), and CWB II (a trainee company established in 2015), offers serious minded students opportunities to train with an eye toward performance. Central West Ballet believes in the importance of educational outreach to expose all factions of our community to the arts. Since 2018, Executive Director Karin Reenstierna has developped Central West Ballet's outreach programs and Academy operations to include Sensory dance classes for children on the autism spectrum, as well as performances for the deaf and hard of hearing community and special Nutcracker Sensory access performances.

Central West Ballet History

Modesto’s cultural history changed in 1987, when Mrs. Juline Schmitz, Founder of Juline • School of Dance, Mrs. Gretchen L. Vogelzang and Mrs. Debbie Bertucci took on the pioneering job of establishing a ballet company for Modesto and the greater Central Valley. Already an instant hit in the community, Juline • School of Dance was in its twelfth year of existence at the inception of Bravo! Repertory Dance Theatre, geared toward giving local dance talent opportunities for advanced training and performance experience. In a short time, this exciting dance troupe quickly established itself as a distinctive youth ballet company. From its full scale Nutcracker to other full-length ballets such as The Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella and Coppélia, the company became an integral part of other community performing arts groups in Modesto. Its founding Artistic Director, Mrs. Gretchen Vogelzang, became the driving force behind many new works created or staged on the company. On this road to excellence, the Company acquired an Honor Status within the Regional Dance America Association (RDA), paving the way for Modesto to have its own recognized dance institution. On its Tenth Anniversary, the name of the company was changed to Central West Ballet to reflect the growing reach of the company in the Central Valley. In the early 2000s, following the passing of Mrs. Juline Schmitz, Mrs. Debbie Bertucci became the Director of Juline • School of Dance. In 2001, after fifteen years of fulfilling creativity and strong leadership, Gretchen Vogelzang moved to Virginia to become President of the RDA. From 2001 to 2004, Central West Ballet’s artistic directorships included tenures by Karen Burns and Coleen Patterson.

Julian Schwarz, Cello

Julian Schwarz was born to a multigenerational musical family in 1991. Heralded from a young age as a cellist destined to rank among the greatest of the 21st century, Julian’s powerful tone, effortless virtuosity, and extraordinarily large color palate are hallmarks of his style.

After making his concerto debut at the age of 11 with the Seattle Symphony and his father Gerard Schwarz on the podium, he made his US touring debut with the Moscow Radio Symphony Orchestra in 2010. Since being awarded first prize at the inaugural Schoenfeld International String Competition in 2013, he has led an active career as soloist, performing with the symphony orchestras of Annapolis, Boise, Buffalo, Charlotte, Columbus, Des Moines, Hartford, Jacksonville, Louisville, Memphis, Modesto, Omaha, Puerto Rico, Richmond, Rochester, San Antonio, Sarasota, Seattle, Syracuse, Toledo, Tucson, Virginia, West Virginia, Wichita, and Winston-Salem, among others. Internationally, he made his Australian debut with the Queensland Symphony, his Mexican debuts with the Boca del Rio Philharmonic in Veracruz and the Mexico City Philharmonic with frequent collaborator Jorge Mester, and his Hong Kong debut at the Intimacy of Creativity Festival. He has also appeared at the Salzburg Mozarteum, and the Verbier festival in Switzerland.

As a chamber musician, Mr. Schwarz performs extensively in recital with pianist Marika Bournaki. In 2016 the Schwarz-Bournaki duo was awarded first prize at the inaugural Boulder International String Competition’s “The Art of Duo”, and subsequently embarked on an extensive 10-recital tour of China in March 2017. Mr. Schwarz is a founding member of the New York based Frisson Ensemble (a mixed nonet of winds and strings), and the Mile-End Trio with violinist Jeff Multer and Ms. Bournaki. He performs frequently at Bargemusic in Brooklyn with violinist Mark Peskanov, on the Frankly Music Series in Milwaukee with violinist Frank Almond, as a member of the Palladium Chamber Players in St Petersburg FL, and has appeared at the Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival, Orcas Island Chamber Music Festival, and the Seattle Chamber Music Festival. In addition, he is the co-coordinator of chamber music at Eastern Music Festival, running programming for the Tuesday evening chamber music series.

Julian Schwarz is an ardent supporter of new music, and has premiered concertos by Richard Danielpour and Samuel Jones (recorded with the All Star Orchestra for public television in 2012, subsequently released as a DVD on Naxos). In the 17-18 season, he gave the world premiere of Lowell Liebermann’s first Cello Concerto with a consortium of six orchestras. Other premieres include recital works by Paul Frucht, Scott Ordway, Jonathan Cziner, Gavin Fraser, Alex Weiser, Ofer Ben-Amots, and the US Premiere of Dobrinka Tabakova’s Cello Concerto. On record, he has recorded Bright Sheng’s “Northern Lights” for Naxos, the complete cello/piano works by Ernest Bloch for the Milken Archive of American Jewish Music, and an album of concertos with the Seattle Symphony.

A devoted teacher, Mr. Schwarz serves as Asst. Professor of Cello at Shenandoah Conservatory of Shenandoah University (Winchester, VA) and on the artist faculty of New York University (NYU Steinhardt). He spends his summers teaching and performing at the Eastern Music Festival (Greensboro, NC). Past faculty appointments include artist-in-residence at the Lunenburg Academy of Music Performance (Nova Scotia, Canada), faculty teaching assistant to Joel Krosnick at The Juilliard School, and artist-In-residence at the pianoSonoma Festival.

Born in Seattle, WA, Mr. Schwarz studied at the Academy of Music Northwest and the Lakeside School. He continued to the Colburn School in Los Angeles under Ronald Leonard, and then moved to New York City to study with mentor Joel Krosnick at The Juilliard School (BM 14, MM 16). Other influential teachers include the late David Tonkonogui, the late Toby Saks, Lynn Harrell, Neal Cary, and chamber music mentors Andre Roy, Arnold Steinhardt, Jonathan Feldman, Toby Appel and Paul Coletti. Julian plays a Neapolitan cello made by Gennaro Gagliano in 1743 and an American bow made by Paul Martin Siefried. He is an active contributor to Strings Magazine’s Artist Blog, and sits on the music committee of the National Arts Club. A Pirastro artist, he endorses and plays the "Perpetual" medium and edition sets of cello strings. Julian also proudly endorses Melos Rosin.

For more information, go to www.julianschwarz.com.

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Website: https://www.julianschwarz.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/julianschwarzcellist/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jlnschwarz

Twitter: https://twitter.com/jlnschwarz

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/Tortelier18/videos

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Upcoming Performances

John Hillebrandt, piano

John Hillebrandt keeps an active schedule as a pianist, composer and educator. His numerous and highly acclaimed performances each season include solo recitals, chamber music, concertos, and original compositions. He retired in 2011 from California State University, Stanislaus, where his remarkable career as staff accompanist and lecturer for 15 years included more than 500 performances. He has been the Principal Pianist and Keyboardist for the Modesto Symphony Orchestra since 1996, and plays with other regional orchestras including the Sacramento Philharmonic and the “Music in the Mountains” festival orchestra. He has taught many award-winning students, and is a regular adjudicator for the United States Open Music Competition, the Music Teachers’ Association of California, and others. He is also currently teaching online courses through Modesto Junior College, and performs regularly on faculty artist concerts. 

Dr. Hillebrandt is the choir director and organist/pianist at First United Methodist Church of Sacramento, where many of his original compositions are heard regularly. Hillebrandt’s Concerto for Piano and Orchestra was featured by the Modesto Symphony Orchestra in 2013, and his orchestral composition, “Valley Fever,” was commissioned by the MSO in 2018 as part of Modesto’s Graffiti celebration. He has recently been performing his Twelve Transcendental Hymn-Fantasies to great acclaim, including as the opening concert of the Sacramento State Piano Series’ 2017-2018 season.

Hillebrandt is also an avid skier and mountaineer. His climbs include the Grand Teton, Mt. Shasta, Mt. Rainier, and Mt. Whitney; and he has hiked to the top of Half Dome in Yosemite more than 50 times. He has completed one ultramarathon (50 km) and skied the Vallée Blanche in the French Alps, a 20 km glacier ski descent of Mont Blanc.

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Website:
http://www.johnhillebrandt.com/John_Hillebrandt/Home.html

Youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCc3DrJKAOvXzaTsDgPAGRGw

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Upcoming Performances