Artistic Staff
Ryan Murray
Ryan Murray, Principal Pops Conductor
Ryan Murray, Principal Pops Conductor
Guest Artists
Ashlyn Einhell
Terron Brooks, guest vocalist
Terron Brooks, guest vocalist
Guest Artists
Ashlyn Einhell
Chester Gregory, guest vocalist
Chester Gregory, guest vocalist
Guest Artists
Ashlyn Einhell
Audrey Wright, violin
Audrey Wright, violin
Guest Artists
Ashlyn Einhell
Branford Marsalis, saxophone
Branford Marsalis, saxophone

Zachary Gordin, baritone

Praised for his “arresting musical insights”, Zachary Gordin has been active in many facets of the Classical Music industry. He has established himself as a leading baritone soloist, collaborative pianist, conductor, organizational consultant, and artist mentor; training singers who perform in the world's great opera houses and concert halls. 

His debut disc: Amour sans ailes - Songs of Reynaldo Hahn on the MSR Classics label was named "Best Lieder Recording of 2017" by Voix des Arts. On the operatic stage Gordin is well known for his performances of Joseph De Rocher in Jake Heggie’s Dead Man Walking, a role that won him critical acclaim when he premiered it at Dayton Opera in 2015. Other major roles include Count Almaviva in Le Nozze di Figaro, Escamillo in Carmen, Silvio in Pagliacci, Aeneas in Dido and Aeneas, Enrico in Lucia di Lammermoor, and Germont in La traviata. A veteran of the concert and recital stage, Gordin’s recent engagements include performances with San Francisco Symphony, Oakland Symphony, Sacramento Philharmonic, YOSA Philharmonic, Bay Area Rainbow Symphony, Olympic Music Festival, and many others.

“A voice that is commanding and intense without ever descending into coarseness”
— The Seattle Times

During his early childhood, he was inspired by his Great-Grandfather, an organist, and began training as a pianist at a young age. His commitment to education and access to the arts reinforces his work as General and Artistic Director of Festival Opera. He has served on the voice faculty of Sonoma State University and Santa Clara University, as a judge for regional and national voice competitions, and has given master classes at some of the country’s most renowned opera companies and schools. Gordin is also widely recognized as a frequent presence on Barihunks, a site dedicated to physically fit and vocally gifted operatic baritones from around the globe.

Upcoming Performances

Kaley Ann Voorhees, vocalist

Kaley Ann Voorhees is most known for being the youngest person to play Christine in The Phantom of the Opera, where she made her Broadway debut. She went on to perform in Prince of Broadway, a musical centered around the life and works of legendary director and producer Hal Prince, in both the touring Japanese and Broadway productions. Kaley had the honor of returning to the role of Christine on the international tour of Phantom during their run in Taipei, while it was the only production in the world still performing during the pandemic. Other credits include Candide (New York City Center), and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (Amazon TV).

Upcoming Performances

Calendar
December 1 & 2 / Holiday Pops!
December 1 & 2 / Holiday Pops!

Ryan Murray, conductor
Ashley Brown, guest vocalist

Fri. Dec. 1, 2023 at 7:30 pm
Sat. Dec. 2, 2023 at 2 pm

Michael Cavanaugh, vocalist

Michael Cavanaugh at Picnic at the Pops, 2010

Michael Cavanaugh is the new voice of the American Rock & Roll Songbook and a charismatic performer and musician made famous for his piano/lead vocals in the Broadway musical Movin’ Out. Handpicked by Billy Joel to star in Movin’ Out, Cavanaugh evokes a style rivaling the Piano Man. He appeared in the show for three years with over 1,200 performances and received multiple accolades. The show culminated in 2003 with both Grammy and Tony award nominations.

Michael began playing at age seven, when his parents bought their first piano.  Encouraged by family and friends, and inspired by his hero Billy Joel, Michael formed his first band at age 10 and began playing local functions, fine-tuning the craft that would become his chosen career. His first full-time gig as a musician was an extended engagement in Orlando, Florida, at a piano bar called Blazing Pianos. In January of 1999, Michael received an offer that would unknowingly change his life: an opportunity to play Las Vegas at the famed New York, New York Hotel and Casino. It was there that Billy Joel spotted Michael and joined him on stage one fateful night of February 2001.  It only took two songs before Billy was convinced that he had found his new Piano Man: Michael Cavanaugh. Michael closed up shop at New York, New York and moved to New York City to work alongside Billy Joel and Twyla Tharp to shape the Broadway Musical that would be called Movin’ Out.  In the lead role, he received both Tony and Grammy nominations.

With the close of Movin’ Out at the end of 2005, Michael began touring in his own right, creating a show that reinterprets the modern pop/rock songbook. Michael soon became one of the hottest artists in the private events market, and he continues to perform worldwide for company and charity events as well as sporting events including many PGA tour events, the SuperBowl, and the Indy 500.  His interpretation of the modern rock/pop songbook led to Billboard calling him “The New Voice of the American Rock and Roll Songbook,” and he was recognized by Reuters as Entertainer of the Year for the private events market.

It wasn’t long before symphony orchestras discovered Michael’s talents and audience appeal. He accepted his first orchestral booking, “Michael Cavanaugh – The Songs of Billy Joel and More,” which debuted in April 2008 with the Indianapolis Symphony and continues to tour today.  In October 2008, he signed with Warner/ADA to distribute his first CD, In Color.  In June 2010, Michael debuted his second symphony show in the Generations of Rock series titled “Michael Cavanaugh: The Songs of Elton John and More” and then debuted his third symphony show, “Singers and Songwriters: the Music of Paul Simon, Neil Diamond and James Taylor,” in 2012.  In 2015, he debuted his fourth symphony show: “Rockin’ Christmas with the Pops.”  He continues to tour all four symphony productions along with performing with his band in performing arts centers and other public venues.

“The Way I Hear It”, his second commercial album, was released in April 2017, and it debuted at #17 on the Billboard Heatseekers chart.

In 2020, Michael Cavanaugh reached the POLLSTAR Live75.  The top 75 active touring acts in the country.

Upcoming Performances

Calendar
September 10 / Picnic at the Pops! The Music of Elton John
September 10 / Picnic at the Pops! The Music of Elton John

Ryan Murray, conductor
Michael Cavanaugh, guest vocalist

Sat., Sept. 10, 2022 at 7:30 pm
E. & J. Gallo Winery Grounds

Christopher Dragon, conductor

Australian conductor Christopher Dragon is the Music Director of the Wyoming Symphony Orchestra and Resident Conductor of the Colorado Symphony. He joined the Colorado Symphony in the 2015/2016 Season as Associate Conductor – a position he held for four years. For three years prior, Dragon held the position of Assistant Conductor with the West Australian Symphony Orchestra, which gave him the opportunity to work closely with Principal Conductor Asher Fisch.

Dragon has a versatile portfolio ranging from live-to-picture performances of Nightmare Before Christmas, Jurassic Park and Mary Poppins, a wide variety of collaborations with artists such as The Flaming Lips, Cynthia Erivo and Wynton Marsalis, to standard and contemporary orchestral repertoire such as Danny Elfman’s Violin Concerto, Eleven Eleven, all areas of which he has become highly sought after. Christopher has become known for his charisma, high energy and affinity for a good costume, consistently delivering unforgettable performances that has made him an audience favourite.

Recent season highlights include his subscription series debut with the San Diego Symphony, performances of Danny Elfman’s Music from the Films of Tim Burton with Danny Elfman reprising the role of Jack Skellington and the historic Colorado Symphony performances with the Wu-Tang Clan at Red Rocks and the Mission Ballroom. Dragon’s upcoming debuts include concerts with the San Francisco Symphony and the Utah Symphony.

Christopher works regularly in Australia and has guest conducted the Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and West Australian Symphony Orchestras. His 2015 debut performance at the Sydney Opera House with John Pyke and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra was released on album by ABC Music and won an ARIA the following year. Christopher’s other guest conducting includes Orquestra Sinfônica de Porto Alegre, Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, San Diego Symphony, Omaha Symphony, Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, Singapore Symphony Orchestra and the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra.

He has also conducted at numerous festivals including the Breckenridge and Bangalow Music Festivals, with both resulting in immediate re-invitations. At the beginning of 2016 Dragon conducted Wynton Marsalis’ Swing Symphony as part of the Perth International Art Festival alongside Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra.

Christopher began his conducting studies in 2011 and was a member of the prestigious Symphony Services International Conductor Development Program in Australia under the guidance of course director Christopher Seaman. He has also studied with numerous distinguished conductors including Leonid Grin, Paavo and Neeme Jarvi at the Jarvi Summer Festival, Fabio Luisi at the Pacific Music Festival and conducting pedagogue Jorma Panula.

Upcoming Performances

Gabriela Martinez, piano

Versatile, daring, and insightful, Venezuelan-born pianist Gabriela Martinez is establishing a reputation both nationally and internationally for the lyricism of her playing, her compelling interpretations, and her elegant stage presence.

Since making her orchestral debut at age 7, Ms. Martinez has played with such distinguished orchestras as the San Francisco, Chicago, Houston, New Jersey, Tucson, West Michigan, Pacific and Fort Worth symphonies; the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra; Germany’s Stuttgarter Philharmoniker, MDR Rundfunkorchester, Nürnberger Philharmoniker, and MDR Leipzig Radio Philharmonic Orchestra; Canada’s Victoria Symphony Orchestra; the Costa Rica National Symphony; and the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra in Venezuela. In the past four seasons she has appeared with the Knoxville, Pacific, Richmond, Charlotte, Grand Rapids, Pasadena, Billings, Richardson, Springfield, Wichita, and Waco symphony orchestras; the Orlando, Boise, and Dayton philharmonics; the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia; the Atlantic Classical Orchestra; and the Symphony of Southeast Texas. Orchestral engagements in the 2021-22 season include the Omaha, Hartford, Texarkana, and San Antonio symphony orchestras.

She has performed with conductors Gustavo Dudamel, James Gaffigan, James Conlon, Marcelo Lehninger and Guillermo Figueroa, among many others, and at such esteemed venues as New York’s Carnegie Hall, Avery Fisher Hall, Merkin Hall, and Alice Tully Hall; the Broad Stage in Santa Monica; the El Paso Pro Musica and Kansas City Harriman-Jewell series; Canada’s Glenn Gould Studio; Salzburg’s Grosses Festspielhaus; Dresden’s Semperoper; Copenhagen’s Tivoli Gardens; and Paris’s Palace of Versailles. Her festival credits include the Mostly Mozart, Ravinia, and Rockport festivals in the United States; Italy’s Festival dei Due Mondi (Spoleto); Switzerland’s Verbier Festival; the Festival de Radio France et Montpellier; and Japan’s Tokyo International Music Festival.

Amplified Soul, her debut solo album released in 2016 by Delos Records, features a wide-ranging program including works by Beethoven, Rachmaninoff, and Szymanowski. The album also pays homage to acclaimed composers Mason Bates and Dan Visconti, whose title selection Amplified Soul (world premiere recording), was written for Ms. Martinez. She collaborated with Grammy Award-winning producer David Frost on the album. A music video of Visconti's Amplified Soul can be found on Ms. Martinez's YouTube Channel.

Her wide-ranging career includes world premieres of new music, live performance broadcasts, and interviews on TV and radio. Ms. Martinez’s performances have been featured on National Public Radio, CNN, PBS, 60 Minutes, ABC, From the Top, Radio France, WQXR and WNYC (New York), MDR Kultur and Deutsche Welle (Germany), NHK (Japan), RAI (Italy), and on numerous television and radio stations in Venezuela.

Ms. Martinez was the First Prize winner of the Anton G. Rubinstein International Piano Competition in Dresden, and a semifinalist at the 12th Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, where she also received the Jury Discretionary Award. She began her piano studies in Caracas with her mother, Alicia Gaggioni, and attended The Juilliard School, where she earned her Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees as a full scholarship student of Yoheved Kaplinsky. Ms. Martinez was a fellow of Carnegie Hall’s The Academy, and a member of Ensemble Connect (formerly known as Ensemble ACJW), while concurrently working on her doctoral studies with Marco Antonio de Almeida in Halle, Germany.

Read our exclusive interview with Gabriela!

Upcoming Performances

George Li, piano

Praised by The Washington Post for combining “staggering technical prowess, a sense of command, and depth of expression,” pianist George Li possesses  brilliant virtuosity and effortless grace far beyond his years. Since winning the Silver Medal at the 2015 International Tchaikovsky Competition and being named the recipient of the 2016 Avery Fisher Career Grant, Li has rapidly established a major international reputation as he performs regularly with some of the world’s leading orchestras and conductors, such as Gustavo Dudamel, James Gaffigan, Valery Gergiev, Gustavo Gimeno, Manfred Honeck, Andrés Orozco-Estrada, Kirill Petrenko, David Robertson, Leonard Slatkin, Yuri Temirkanov, Vladimir Spivakov, Michael Tilson Thomas, Long Yu, and Xian Zhang.

Highlights of the 2021–22 season include orchestral engagements with the Nashville, San Diego, New World, North Carolina, Pacific, and Valencia Symphonies, as well as the National Philharmonic Orchestra of Russia. In addition, Mr. Li will perform recitals presented by the Chicago Symphony, University of Washington in Seattle, The Cliburn Foundation in Ft. Worth, Emory University in Atlanta, and StuttgartKonzert in Germany.

Recent concerto highlights include performances with the Los Angeles, New York, London, Rotterdam, Oslo, St. Petersburg, and Buffalo Philharmonics; the San Francisco, Tokyo, Frankfurt Radio, Sydney, Montreal, Baltimore, Utah, and Pittsburgh Symphonies; as well as the Philharmonia, DSO Berlin, and Orchestra National de Lyon.  His eight-concert tour of Germany with the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra included performances at the Berlin Philharmonie, Philharmonie am Gasteig Munich, and the Stuttgart Liederhalle. Mr. Li frequently appears with Valery Gergiev and the Mariinsky Orchestra, including performances at the Paris Philharmonie, Luxembourg Philharmonie, New York’s Brooklyn Academy of Music, Verbier Festival, Grafenegg Festival, and in various venues, such as the Mariinsky Concert Hall, and others throughout Russia. Li has also performed with major Chinese orchestras, such as the NCPA, China Philharmonia, and Shanghai and Guangzhou Symphony Orchestras, under the baton of Long Yu and Xian Zhang.

“A bracing, fearless account…Mr. Li’s playing combined youthful abandon with utter command.”
— New York Times

In recital, Li performs at venues including Carnegie Hall, Davies Hall in San Francisco, the Mariinsky Theatre, Elbphilharmonie, Munich’s Gasteig, the Louvre, Seoul Arts Center, Tokyo’s Asahi Hall and Musashino Hall, NCPA Beijing, Shanghai Poly Theater, and Amici della Musica Firenze, as well as appearances at major festivals including the Edinburgh International Festival, Verbier Festival, Ravinia Festival, Vail Festival, Seattle Music Festival, La Jolla Festival, Festival de Pâques in Aix-en-Provence Festival, Colmar Festival, and Montreux Festival.

An active chamber musician, Li has performed alongside Benjamin Beilman, Noah Bendix-Balgley, James Ehnes, Daniel Hope, Pinchas Zukerman, Amanda Forsythe,  Sheku Kanneh-Mason, Kian Soltani, Pablo Ferrandez, and Daniel Lozakovich.

George Li gave his first public performance at Boston’s Steinert Hall at the age of 10. In 2011, he performed for President Obama at the White House in an evening honoring German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Among George Li’s many prizes and awards, he was the First Prize winner of the 2010 Young Concert Artists International Auditions, the inaugural Thomas and Evon Cooper International Competition, and the Grand Prix Animato, as well as a recipient of the 2012 Gilmore Young Artist Award and the 2018 Arthur Waser Prize.

George is an exclusive Warner Classics recording artist. His debut album, “Live at Mariinsky,” which was recorded live at the Mariinsky Concert Hall, won an Opus Klassik award for Soloist Recording of the Year in 2018. His second recording for the label features Liszt solo works and Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1, which was recorded live with Vasily Petrenko and the London Philharmonic, and released in October 2019.

George began his piano studies at age 4 with Dorothy Shi, before continuing with Wha Kyung Byun at New England Conservatory beginning at age 12. In 2019, he completed the Harvard/New England Conservatory dual degree program, with a Bachelor’s degree in English Literature and a Master’s degree in Music. He is currently pursuing an Artist Diploma at the New England Conservatory. When not playing piano, George is an avid reader and photographer, as well as a sports fanatic.

Upcoming Performances

Andrew Grams, conductor

With a unique combination of intensity, enthusiasm and technical clarity, American conductor Andrew Grams has steadily built a reputation for his dynamic concerts, ability to connect with audiences, and long-term orchestra building. He’s the winner of 2015 Conductor of the Year from the Illinois Council of Orchestras and has led orchestras throughout the United States including the Chicago Symphony, Detroit Symphony, National Symphony Orchestra, St. Louis Symphony, Cincinnati Symphony, Baltimore Symphony, Philadelphia Orchestra, Dallas Symphony, and the Houston Symphony.

Andrew Grams became music director of the Elgin Symphony Orchestra after an international search in 2013 and recently concluded his tenure there after 8 seasons. His charismatic conducting and easy accessibility have made him a favorite of Elgin Symphony audiences.

A frequent traveler, Mr. Grams has worked extensively with orchestras abroad, including the symphony orchestras of Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver, the Orchestre National de France, Hong Kong Philharmonic, BBC Symphony Orchestra London, the symphony orchestras of Sydney, Melbourne, and Adelaide, the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, the Barcelona Symphony Orchestra, and Het Residentie Orchestra in The Hague, Netherlands. He has led multiple performances of New York City Ballet’s George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker® and the first performances of the new production of The Nutcracker for the Norwegian National Ballet in Olso.

Also an educator, Mr. Grams has worked with orchestras at institutions such as the Curtis Institute of Music, the Cleveland Institute of Music, Indiana University, Roosevelt University, the National Orchestral Institute at the University of Maryland, and the Amsterdam Conservatorium.

Born in Severn, Maryland, Mr. Grams began studying the violin when he was eight years old. In 1999 he received a Bachelor of Music in Violin Performance from The Juilliard School, and in 2003 he received a conducting degree from the Curtis Institute of Music where he studied with Otto-Werner Mueller. He was selected to spend the summer of 2003 studying with David Zinman, Murry Sidlin and Michael Stern at the American Academy of Conducting at Aspen and returned to that program again in 2004. Mr. Grams served as Assistant Conductor of The Cleveland Orchestra from 2004-2007 where he worked under the guidance of Franz Welser- Möst, and has since returned for several engagements.

As an accomplished violinist, Mr. Grams was a member of the New York City Ballet Orchestra from 1998-2004, serving as acting associate principal second violin in 2002 and 2004. Additionally, he has performed with ensembles including the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, Orchestra of St. Luke’s, Brooklyn Philharmonic, and the New Jersey Symphony.

Upcoming Performances

Simone Porter, violin

Violinist Simone Porter has been recognized as an emerging artist of impassioned energy, interpretive integrity, and vibrant communication. In the past few years she has debuted with the New York Philharmonic, the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Los Angeles Philharmonic; and with a number of renowned conductors, including Stéphane Denève,

Gustavo Dudamel, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Nicholas McGegan, Ludovic Morlot, and Donald Runnicles. Born in 1996, Simone made her professional solo debut at age 10 with the Seattle Symphony and her international debut with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in London at age 13. In March 2015, Simone was named a recipient of an Avery Fisher Career Grant.

Recent highlights include Mendelssohn with New Jersey Symphony, Brahms with Pacific Symphony and an extensive tour throughout the US including concerts with the Santa Rosa, Amarillo, Pasadena, Fairfax and Midland Symphonies; the Rochester, Westchester, Orlando and Great Bay Philharmonics; the Sarasota Orchestra and the Northwest Sinfonietta. With the cessation of live concerts Simone continued to record streamed events with Seattle, Pittsburgh, Charlotte and Greater Bridgeport Symphonies. Beginning with the Aspen festival where she is a frequent guest, in July 2021 she resumed a full season of orchestral and recital concerts to include Denver, North Carolina, St. Louis, Grand Rapids, Quebec, Sarasota, Bakersfield, Princeton and Monterey Symphonies and recitals including Boston where the program includes the world premiere of a commission from composer Reena Esmail.

At the invitation of Esa-Pekka Salonen, Simone performed his work ‘Lachen verlernt’ (‘Laughing Unlearnt’), at the New York Philharmonic’s “Foreign Bodies,” a multi-sensory celebration of the work of the composer and conductor. In recent seasons, she has also appeared at the Edinburgh Festival performing Barber under the direction of Stéphane Denève, and at the Mostly Mozart Festival performing Mozart under Louis Langrée. She has also performed with the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl with both Nicholas McGegan and Ludovic Morlot, and at Walt Disney Concert Hall with Gustavo Dudamel.

Internationally, Simone has performed with the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra with Gustavo Dudamel; the Orquestra Sinfônica Brasileira in Rio de Janeiro; the National Symphony Orchestra of Costa Rica; the City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong; the Royal Northern Sinfonia; the Milton Keynes City Orchestra in the United Kingdom; and the Opera de Marseilles.

Simone made her Carnegie Zankel Hall debut on the Emmy Award-winning TV show From the Top: Live from Carnegie Hall followed in November 2016 by her debut in Stern Auditorium. In June 2016, her featured performance of music from Schindler’s List with Maestro Gustavo Dudamel and members of the American Youth Symphony was broadcast nationally on the TNT Network as part of the American Film Institute’s Lifetime Achievement Award: A Tribute to John Williams.

Raised in Seattle, Washington, Simone studied with Margaret Pressley as a recipient of the Dorothy Richard Starling Scholarship, and was then admitted into the studio of the renowned pedagogue Robert Lipsett, with whom she studied at the Colburn Conservatory of Music in Los Angeles. Summer studies have included many years at the Aspen Music Festival, Indiana University's Summer String Academy, and the Schlern International Music Festival in Italy.

Simone Porter performs on a 1740 Carlo Bergonzi violin made in Cremona Italy on generous loan from The Master’s University, Santa Clarita, California.

Upcoming Performances

Anthony Parnther, conductor

American conductor, Anthony Parnther, is the Music Director and Conductor of the San Bernardino Symphony Orchestra and the Southeast Symphony & Chorus in Los Angeles.

Recent guest conducting engagements include the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Los Angeles Opera, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Chineke! Orchestra, Simfònica de Barcelona i Nacional de Catalunya, Jacaranda - Music at the Edge, Hear Now Music Festival, Mann Center Festival Orchestra, Pittsburgh Microtonal Festival, Hollywood Chamber Orchestra, Brightwork NewMusic, and the World Opera Forum in Madrid, Spain. 

Over the next season, Anthony will premiere Kris Bower’s Concerto for Horn with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Tamar-kali Brown’s Oratorio “We Hold These Truths” with the Los Angeles Opera, work alongside composer Anthony Davis on his Pulitzer Prize-winning opera Central Park Five with the Long Beach Opera, and premiere a new work for narrator and orchestra by Oscar-winning, GRAMMY-nominated Jon Batiste, host of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert with the Gateways Festival Orchestra at Carnegie Hall.

Anthony has led the Hollywood Studio Symphony in recording sessions for many international feature film and television projects including Star Wars: The Mandalorian, Tenet, Star Wars: Book of Boba Fett, Little, American Dad, The Hunt, Fargo, The Way Back, The Night Of, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, Encanto,  and Ice Age: Adventures of Buck Wild. His live orchestral concert appearances for e-sports titan League of Legends in Barcelona, Beijing, Seoul, and Los Angeles are among the most widely viewed symphonic concerts in the world, with live audiences of 50,000-75,000 spectators and a viewership that outpaces the World Series with approximately 100 million live streaming each League of Legends Finals Opening Ceremony concert.

Anthony has restored and performed orchestral works by Florence Price, Zenobia Powell Perry, Margaret Bonds, William Grant Still, Duke Ellington, and Samuel Coleridge Taylor. He has premiered and recorded works by Anthony Davis, George Walker, Errollyn Wallen, John Wineglass, Gary Powell Nash, Marian Harrison, Renee Baker, James Wilson, Phillip Herbert, Daniel Kidane, Chanda Dancy, and James Newton. In 2015, Anthony was profiled by Los Angeles' KCET/TV as a "Local Hero" for his extensive community outreach and advocacy for the performance of works by Black, Latino, and Women artists. 

Anthony studied music performance at Northwestern University and continued his musical studies at Yale University where he studied orchestral conducting with Lawrence Leighton Smith and Otto Werner Mueller.  He resides in Los Angeles.

Upcoming Performances

Calendar
May 12 & 13 / Mozart Requiem
May 12 & 13 / Mozart Requiem

Anthony Parnther, conductor
MSO Chorus; Daniel R. Afonso Jr., chorus director

Fri. May 12, 2023 at 7:30 pm
Sat. May 13, 2023 at 7:30 pm

Ryan Silverman, vocalist

Ryan Silverman performing with the MSO at Holiday Pops! 2019.

Noted for his performances which “stand in memory” (The New York Times), multiple Drama Desk nominee RYAN SILVERMAN has been praised as the “smoothest, most assured bari-tenor, leading-man theatre voice at the moment” (Playbill.com). Silverman received a Drama Desk nomination for Best Actor for the role of Terry Connor in Side Show on Broadway, and has starred as Raoul in The Phantom of the Opera and as Billy Flynn in CHICAGO.

Silverman has also received Drama Desk and Drama League nominations for his performance as Giorgio in CSC’s 2013 production of Passion, which the New York Times praised for its “risk-taking, unconditional emotional commitment.” Additionally, he has appeared as Sir Lancelot in Camelot at the Kennedy Center, in the Théâtre du Châtelet’s acclaimed production of Passion opposite Natalie Dessay, as Tony in the Olivier-nominated 2008 West End production of West Side Story, and in the premiere of Delaware Theater Company’s new musical, A Sign of The Times.

Silverman recently starred in concert with West Side Story with the Philadelphia Orchestra and in The Golden Apple at City Center Encores! He has made soloist appearances with the New York Pops, Seattle Symphony, Philly Pops, Cincinnati Pops, Houston Symphony, the NHK Symphony in Tokyo, the Cleveland Orchestra, Detroit Symphony, Vancouver Symphony, the Kaohsiung Symphony in Taiwan, and Edmonton Symphony, among others.

Other credits include Cry-Baby on Broadway, Finian’s Rainbow (Irish Repertory Theater), and New York City Opera’s The Most Happy Fella. He recently made his debut at Papermill, starring in Ken Ludwig’s A Comedy of Tenors.

Regional credits include Thoroughly Modern Millie (Jimmy), Cinderella (the Prince), Grease! (Danny), Hello Dolly! (Cornelius), Assassins (John Wilkes Booth), Sweeney Todd (Anthony), Forever Plaid (Smudge), and Blood Brothers (Eddie Lyons). Silverman has performed his club act the Café Carlyle (month long residency) and Feinstein’s at the Regency, as well as 54Below with Melissa Errico. His television and film credits include Suits, Good Fight, Gossip Girl, The 5 Minarets Of New York, Sex and the City 2, and True Blood. 

Upcoming Performances

Calendar
March 17 / The Great American Songbook
March 17 / The Great American Songbook

Ryan Murray, conductor
Ryan Silverman, guest vocalist

Fri., March 17, 2023 at 7:30 pm

Disney Concerts

Disney Concerts is the concert production and licensing division of Disney Music Group, the music arm of The Walt Disney Company. Disney Concerts produces concerts and tours, and licenses Disney music and visual content to symphony orchestras and presenters on a worldwide basis. Disney Concerts’ concert packages include a variety of formats, such as “live to picture” film concerts and themed instrumental and vocal compilation concerts, and range from instrumental-only symphonic performances to multimedia productions featuring live vocalists and choir. Current titles include the Star Wars Film Concert Series (Episodes IV-VII), Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid, Fantasia, Pixar In Concert, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Alice In Wonderland, Frozen, Ratatouille, The Pirates of the Caribbean series (Episodes I-IV), and Silly Symphonies, which last year collectively accounted for over 400 performances in many of the world’s top concert venues, including Lincoln Center, Royal Albert Hall, Sydney Opera House, Tokyo Forum and the Hollywood Bowl. Numerous new concert packages and touring productions from Disney’s portfolio of studios, including Disney’s feature animation and live action studios, Pixar, Lucasfilm and Marvel, are currently in development.

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.

Upcoming Performances

Akiko Fujimoto, conductor

Akiko Fujimoto was named Music Director of the Mid-Texas Symphony in May 2019. Fujimoto has electrified audiences throughout North America and has guest conducted the National Symphony Orchestra, Florida Orchestra, North Carolina Symphony, Houston Symphony, San Antonio Symphony, Fort Wayne Philharmonic, Lexington Philharmonic, and the Corpus Christi Symphony.

Upcoming highlights include debuts with the San Francisco Symphony, Vermont Symphony and the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra, return engagements with the Virginia Symphony and the Florida Orchestra, and world premieres by Suad Bushnaq and Tania León.

At the Minnesota Orchestra, Fujimoto was appointed as Assistant Conductor for the 2017–18 season under Music Director Osmo Vänska and promoted to Associate Conductor for the following two seasons. During 2017–2020, Fujimoto also served as cover conductor at the Los Angeles Philharmonic for Esa-Pekka Salonen, Zubin Mehta, and Susanna Mälkki. Prior to arriving in Minnesota, she was Assistant then Associate Conductor of the San Antonio Symphony and Conducting Associate for the Virginia Symphony.

A passionate advocate for young musicians, Fujimoto has held conducting appointments at Harvard University, Stanford University, and the College of William & Mary. While in Virginia, she also served as Music Director of the Williamsburg Youth Orchestras. Born in Japan, Fujimoto holds a bachelor’s degree in music and psychology from Stanford University and Master of Music degrees in conducting from Boston University and the Eastman School of Music.

Upcoming Performances

Daniel R. Afonso Jr., Chorus Director

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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

Ali Ewoldt, vocalist

Ali Ewoldt has appeared as Christine Daaé in The Phantom of the Opera on Broadway, Cosette in Les Miserables (Broadway, National Tour), The King and I (Broadway, Lyric Opera of Chicago), Maria in West Side Story (National Tour, International Tour) and Luisa in The Fantasticks (Off-Broadway). She has also played Philia in A Funny Thing… (The Muny), Fan in A Christmas Carol (McCarter Theatre), Sarah Brown in Guys and Dolls (Sacramento Music Circus) and Martha Jefferson in 1776 (The Muny).

Ali’s concert/symphony work includes: Feinstein's 54 Below, Tokyo's Theatre Orb, Canyon Ranch, Alice Tully Hall, The Town Hall, NY Pops at Carnegie Hall, American Pops Orchestra, Houston Symphony, Kaohsiung Symphony and The Boston Pops with Maestro Keith Lockhart. Her TV/Film credits include The Michael J. Fox Show, Yield, Mia and The Cactus. Ali has a BA in psychology from Yale University and is a proud Filipina-American.

Upcoming Performances

Calendar
December 6 & 7 / Holiday Pops!
December 6 & 7 / Holiday Pops!

Ryan Murray, conductor
MSO Chorus, Daniel R. Afonso Jr., chorus director
Fri. Dec 6, 2024 at 7:30pm
Sat. Dec 7, 2024 at 2:00pm

Roy Stevens, narrator

Roy Stevens is a Modesto native and graduate of both Paradise Elementary School and Modesto High School. He has been the General Director of Opera Modesto since 2018. Since his professional debut in Italy in 1987, his career as an international opera singer has taken him around the world for starring engagements with leading opera companies and symphonies in over 20 countries, on 5 continents, and singing in 14 languages; from the national theaters of Albania, Guatemala, Colombia and Taiwan, to the Dallas Opera, Metropolitan Opera, Dresden Semperoper, Oper Frankfurt, Barcelona’s Liceu, Teatro Nacional de São Carlos in Lisbon and Milano’s famed Teatro Alla Scala. 

Roy and his wife, Annalisa Winberg (Opera Modesto Artistic Director & international opera singer), are also very proud of their work as inspirational performing arts/opera-based educators through their AmazingVox School Residencies. They have had the privilege to touch the educational lives of 500,000+ young Americans in California and across the country. These experiences have profoundly impacted the way they work with Central Valley youth and young artists through the training, educational and nationally unique literacy programs of Opera Modesto. 

Roy’s international operatic career has been very unusual, performing roles in nearly every male vocal category (except true Bass and Counter Tenor); Basso Buffo, Bass-Baritone, Heldenbaritone, Verdi Baritone, Heldentenor, Lyric Tenor, and Musical Theater/Pop Style Baritone & Tenor. He considers this to be fun! 

In 1995, Annalisa and Roy were the featured soloists in a wonderful Modesto Symphony Orchestra & Chorus concert of opera highlights. Roy is delighted to return to MSO as Narrator, just a few years later. This occasion should also mark, for the public, the genuine atmosphere of friendly collaboration that currently exists between Central Valley arts organizations…something to be truly treasured! 

Upcoming Performances

Calendar
December 6 & 7 / Holiday Pops!
December 6 & 7 / Holiday Pops!

Ryan Murray, conductor
MSO Chorus, Daniel R. Afonso Jr., chorus director
Fri. Dec 6, 2024 at 7:30pm
Sat. Dec 7, 2024 at 2:00pm

Francisco Vila-Haas, cello

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“Vila brought out the fervor and vitality…consummate projection.”
— The Strad Magazine (April 2012)

Francisco Vila began playing the cello at age 8 and had his solo debut with orchestra at 14. Concert activities have taken him throughout Europe, North and South America. Performing collaborations have included those with artists such as Nobuko Imai, Cho-Liang Lin, Gary Hoffman, Wolfram Christ, Toby Hoffman, Sunwook Kim, Martin Chalifour, and members of the Juilliard String Quartet.

Vila has appeared as a soloist with the Houston Symphony, South Dakota Symphony, Aalborg Symfoniorkester, Liege Royal Philharmonic, Royal Chamber Orchestra of Wallonia, Santander Festival Orchestra, Indiana University Philharmonic, and all principal orchestras of his native Ecuador.

He has been a participant at the Ravinia Steans Institute and guest artist at the Beaumaris, Santander, and Stavelot music festivals among others. As a member of the iPalpiti Festival of International Laureates he performed in such venues as the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall, Philadelphia’s Kimmel Center, Los Angeles’ Disney Hall, Mozarteum Salzburg, and on international tours.

Mr. Vila views teaching as an important aspect in music-making. In March of 2015, he founded and directs the International Music Festival of Esmeraldas (Ecuador) in his hometown. This is a social project that awards full-tuition scholarships to numerous gifted young talents from Central and South America for two weeks of masterclasses with some of the world’s great artists. For his work with this platform, Mr. Vila has received coveted grants from the US State Department, Tarisio Trust, and the Sphinx MPower Grant.

Vila was granted a Presidential Scholarship to the Boston Conservatory for his Bachelor studies, after which he received a Performance Diploma from Indiana University where he was a student of Janos Starker, Sharon Robinson and Menahem Pressler.

In 2012, he was selected to the inaugural cello class at the prestigious Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel in Belgium, where he earned an Artist Diploma under the famed cellist Gary Hoffman. In the same year he became the second-prize laureate of the Sphinx Competition in Detroit Michigan.

Mr. Vila serves on the faculty at the Longy School of Music of Bard College and performs on a fine cello crafted by Vincenzo Panormo in 1790 on generous life-term loan from the “Karl McNutt Family Trust” as well as the “ex-Janos Starker” Edward Tubbs bow.

Upcoming Performances

Stuart Chafetz, conductor

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Stuart Chafetz is the Principal Pops Conductor of the Columbus Symphony and the newly appointed Principal Pops Conductor of the Chautauqua and Marin Symphonies. Chafetz, a conductor celebrated for his dynamic and engaging podium presence, is increasingly in demand with orchestras across the continent and this season Chafetz will be on the podium in Detroit, Houston, Milwaukee, Naples, Philly Pops, Cincinnati Pops, Pittsburgh, San Diego,  and Winnipeg.  He enjoys a special relationship with The Phoenix Symphony where he leads multiple programs annually.

He’s had the privilege to work with renowned artists including Chris Botti, 2 Cellos, Hanson, Rick Springfield, Michael Bolton, Kool & The Gang, Jefferson Starship, America, Little River Band, Brian McKnight, Roberta Flack, George Benson, Richard Chamberlain, The Chieftains, Jennifer Holliday, John Denver, Marvin Hamlisch, Thomas Hampson, Wynonna Judd, Jim Nabors, Randy Newman, Jon Kimura Parker and Bernadette Peters. 

He previously held posts as resident conductor of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra and associate conductor of the Louisville Orchestra. As principal timpanist of the Honolulu Symphony for twenty years, Chafetz would also conduct the annual Nutcracker performances with Ballet Hawaii and principals from the American Ballet Theatre. It was during that time that Chafetz led numerous concerts with the Maui Symphony and Pops. He's led  numerous Spring Ballet productions at the world-renowned Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University.

In the summers, Chafetz spends his time at the Chautauqua Institution, where he conducts the annual Fourth of July and Opera Pops concerts with the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra in addition to his role as that orchestra’s timpanist.

When not on the podium, Chafetz makes his home near San Francisco, CA, with his wife Ann Krinitsky. Chafetz holds a bachelor’s degree in music performance from the College-Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati and a master’s from the Eastman School of Music.

Upcoming Performances

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