Dr. Emily Britton, a native of Rochester, New York, currently serves as Consortium Instructor of Horn at the University of Evansville and Principal Horn of the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Music Education from Roberts Wesleyan College, a Master of Music Performance and Literature degree from Eastman School of Music, and a Doctor of Music degree in Brass Performance from Florida State University. Dr. Britton studied with Michelle Stebleton, W. Peter Kurau, and Jennifer Burch.
Before joining the faculty at University of Evansville, Dr. Britton was a member of the USAF Heritage of America Band, stationed at Joint Base Langley-Eustis in Hampton, Virginia. During her tenure with the Air Force, she performed with the Heritage Brass, the Langley Winds, and the concert band. In five years of service, she gave over four hundred performances of various kinds throughout the East Coast, giving master classes at various universities and high schools and enjoying several particularly unique opportunities, such as playing the National Anthem for millions of NASCAR and Major League Baseball fans and performing the music of Glenn Miller in the streets of Poland. While living in Virginia, Dr. Britton also became a frequent substitute horn player with the Virginia Symphony Orchestra. Before entering the military, Dr. Britton appeared regularly with the Tallahassee Symphony, the Albany Symphony, the Mobile Symphony, the Pensacola Symphony and Opera, and Sinfonia Gulf Coast, and served as Principal Horn of the Northwest Florida Symphony and the Gainesville Chamber Orchestra. She was awarded second place in the collegiate division of the International Horn Competition of America in 2009.
Dennis Malfatti is associate professor of music and director of choral activities at the University of Evansville. At UE, he conducts the University Choir, Women’s Chorus, Men’s Chorus and the Kantorei Chamber Choir. He also serves as Conductor of the Evansville Philharmonic Chorus. Prior to coming to Evansville, Dr. Malfatti was the director of choral activities at Longwood University in Virginia.
In May, 2011 Dr. Malfatti made his Carnegie Hall debut conducting Haydn’s Missa in tempore belli with the New England Symphonic Ensemble and a chorus of one hundred fifty-five singers made up of choirs from across the country. Choirs under Dr. Malfatti’s direction have performed by invitation at both the Indiana Music Educators Association Annual Conference and at the Virginia Music Educators Association Annual Conference. His choirs have also performed by invitation at Washington National Cathedral, and recently performed in a master class with the world renowned vocal sextet, The King’s Singers. In addition to his work with university choirs, he has served as music director of the York River Symphony Orchestra, assistant conductor and chorus master of the Operafestival di Roma, guest conductor of the Virginia Commonwealth University Opera Theatre and Orchestra, chorus master of the Bronx Opera Company in New York City, and he has conducted the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra and Chorus in multiple performances of Handel’s Messiah.
In both 2005 and 2010, Dr. Malfatti was selected as a participant in Helmuth Rilling’s choral/orchestral conducting master class at the Oregon Bach Festival. As a participant in the master classes, he conducted the Oregon Bach Festival Orchestra and Chorus in six performances which included movements from Bach’s B Minor Mass, several sacred and secular cantatas, and Bach’s Fourth Orchestral Suite. He has also conducted members of the University of Illinois Symphony Orchestra as a participant in the Illinois Orchestral Conducting Workshop under the guidance of Donald Schleicher. He is regularly invited to conduct choir festivals and is often called upon as a guest choral clinician. He serves on the Executive Board of the Indiana Choral Directors Association where he holds the position of Repertoire and Standards Chair for College and University Choirs. He has published articles and book reviews in both state and national publications of the American Choral Directors Association.
Dennis Malfatti received his doctorate in choral conducting with a minor in orchestral conducting from Louisiana State University, a masters degree in conducting from the Pennsylvania State University, and an undergraduate degree in music theory and composition from the University of the Pacific where he graduated summa cum laude. While at LSU, he was the recipient of the School of Music Graduate Assistant Excellence in Teaching Award. His conducting teachers include Kenneth Fulton, Jindong Cai, and D. Douglas Miller.
John Jordan is Assistant Professor of Music at the University of Evansville. He earned master's degrees in music education and conducting from Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge and a doctorate in musicology and sacred music from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas. Dr. Jordan has done extensive research in the aesthetics, philosophy, and practice of sacred music in 19th-century America. He has catalogued and surveyed the theoretical and practical writings of Thomas Hastings, one of the preeminent figures in American church music of the last century.
Dr. Jordan teaches all music literature and history courses for music majors, as well as the Senior Seminar in World Music, and music appreciation classes for non-majors. Since coming to the University of Evansville, Dr. Jordan has also introduced and taught general education courses in American Music and Music and Film.
James Sullivan is assistant professor of music theory and double bass at the University of Evansville. He holds a DMA and MM in double bass performance from the Eastman School of Music, as well as a BM in double bass performance and a BS in mathematics from Indiana University. He is currently finishing a PhD in music theory at Eastman.
Sullivan received the University of Rochester’s Edward Peck Curtis Award for Excellence in Teaching and Eastman’s Teaching Assistant Prize. Past teaching includes Eastman’s full undergraduate theory and aural skills curriculum, the graduate theory review sequence, and guest double bass lessons and classes.
Sullivan has presented at numerous conferences, including those of the Society for Music Theory, the Society for Music Perception and Cognition, and the International Society of Bassists on topics as diverse as mathematical music theory, rhythm perception, and the performance and analysis of post-tonal music. He is currently working on a Post-Tonal Method Book for the Double Bass. Sullivan’s performance interests are varied but focus especially on new music. He has commissioned and premiered numerous pieces for double bass and has performed with Eastman Broadband at Carnegie Hall.
Dr. Thomas Josenhans is professor of music and a member of the Harlaxton Quintet, the woodwind quintet in residence, at the University of Evansville. He currently serves as Chair of the Department of Music and teaches courses in applied clarinet and applied saxophone. His prior teaching appointments include positions at McMurry University in Abilene, Texas, and Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania.
Dr. Josenhans is principal clarinetist of the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra. During summers he is principal clarinetist and a member of the Artist Faculty at the Wintergreen Music Festival in Virginia. He has served as guest principal clarinetist with the Charleston Symphony during the Piccolo Spoleto Festival and was principal clarinetist with the Roanoke (VA) Symphony Orchestra from 1992-2007.
An active performer and chamber musician, Dr. Josenhans has appeared as soloist with groups as diverse as the Columbus Symphony Orchestra and the Abilene Community Band. He was soloist with the UE Wind Ensemble for a performance of Dana Wilson's Liquid Ebony, and he has been featured as a soloist with the Roanoke Symphony, Evansville Philharmonic and at the Wintergreen Festival. He has played at conferences of the International Clarinet Association, and performed recitals at the University of Oklahoma Clarinet Symposium. He is an active clinician in area schools and has presented clinics at the Indiana Music Educators Association (IMEA) Convention and the Texas Music Educators Association Convention. He has also been heard at the Aspen, Blossom, Sarasota, and Chautauqua Music Festivals.
Dr. Josenhans holds degrees from Oberlin Conservatory of Music, the Cleveland Institute of Music, and State University of New York at Stony Brook. Charles Neidich, Franklin Cohen, Theodore Johnson, and Lawrence McDonald are among his primary teachers.
Dr. Timothy Zifer, Professor of Music, holds a bachelor's degree in music education from Ohio University, a master of music in trumpet performance from Louisiana State University, and a doctorate in trumpet performance with a minor in wind conducting from Louisiana State University. Dr. Zifer teaches courses in applied trumpet, UE Jazz Ensemble I, UE Trumpet Ensemble, jazz studies, and music management. Dr. Zifer received the Dean's Teaching Award in 2010.
Dr. Zifer is the principal trumpet of the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra and is an active soloist and recitalist. He also serves as the principal trumpet and founding member of the Shepard Brass (UE Faculty Brass Quintet). Most recently, Dr. Zifer recorded Robert Russell Bennett's Rose Variations with the UE Wind Ensemble.
Prior to taking over the jazz program, Dr. Zifer served as director of bands (1996-2008). During this time the University of Evansville wind ensemble toured over 20 states and appeared at the 2001 International Trumpet Guild Conference, competed in the 2002 International Hawaiian Music Festival, and performed at the 2006 and 2008 Indiana Music Educators Association conventions. The UE Jazz Ensemble I has performed and competed at the prestigious Elmhurst Jazz Festival from 2008-2012, having received two honorable mentions and recognition for an original composition by a student. The UE Trumpet Ensemble has performed at the 2001 and 2004 International Trumpet Guild Conferences as well as the 2011 University of Kentucky TrumpetFest. In 2001, Dr. Zifer served as the conference host for the International Trumpet Guild Conference on the campus of UE. The conference brought in over 800 attendees from around the world and featured recitals, lectures, exhibits, and clinics by some of the world's leading trumpet professionals.
Dr. Mary Ellen Wylie earned a Bachelor's degree in music education from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and advanced degrees, including a Doctorate, from the University of Kansas. She is an experienced music therapist having worked with children with severe developmental delays and multiple handicaps; adults with mental handicaps; the elderly and terminally ill; and patients with cancer.
Dr. Wylie is President of the American Music Therapy Association (AMTA) and has served a number of years on the Board of Directors and Executive Committee of the organization. She has also held several appointed and elected positions in the Great Lakes Region of AMTA, including President of the Region. In March 2010 she was awarded the Honorary Life Member award from the region for distinguished contributions made over the years.
Dr. Wylie has given numerous presentations locally, as well as at national, regional, and state music therapy conferences. She has been published in the Journal of Music Therapy and Music Therapy Perspectives. As Director of the music therapy program, Dr. Wylie teaches courses in music therapy, supervises music therapy practica, and coordinates internships.
Dr. Kenneth Steinsultz is Associate Professor of Music and Director of Bands at the University of Evansville. Prior to coming to Evansville he served as assistant to the Director of Bands at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
An active performer, Dr. Steinsultz was a guest artist for the Tuba and Euphonium Association’s Midwest Conference in 2013 and 2015. Dr. Steinsultz also performed at the 2014 International Tuba and Euphonium Conference. He has served as principal euphonium in the Evansville Symphonic Band. Dr. Steinsultz has been featured soloist with the Bend in the River Brass Band (Evansville), the Concert Band of Central Illinois, and the Quincy (IL) Park Band. In 2005, he was guest clinician for the Association of Concert Bands national conference and performed as a guest artist on the finale concert.
In addition to performing, Dr. Steinsultz has been a member of the Board of Directors for the Evansville Symphonic Band, serving as secretary. He has presented clinics at state conferences in Illinois and Indiana.
As a conductor, Dr. Steinsultz is a frequent guest conductor of district and regional honor bands. His university ensembles have performed at regional festivals and state organizational conferences, most recently the College Band Directors National Association 2016 North Central Division Conference at Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa. At the University of Evansville, he conducts the Wind Ensemble, University Band, Aces Brass Pep Band, and teaches courses in applied low brass and conducting. Dr. Steinsultz also serves as music director and conductor for The Spirit of Evansville Sweet Adelines Chorus.
Dr. Steinsultz has served as music director at Lewistown (Illinois) Community High School and director of bands for Brown County Unit Schools in Mt. Sterling, Illinois. He has been a member of the Quincy Park Band, Quincy Symphony Orchestra, and Mississippi River Brass Band. He has performed with the Champaign-Urbana Symphony, Danville (Illinois) Symphony, Illinois Symphony of Springfield/Bloomington, and the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra.
He is a member of the College Band Directors National Association, National Band Association, Indiana Bandmasters Association, International Tuba and Euphonium Association, and Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia (honorary membership).
Dr. Steinsultz holds degrees from Quincy University and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Carol Dallinger is Professor of Music at the University of Evansville where she has been a member of the faculty since 1972. She is also founder and coordinator of the University of Evansville Suzuki Violin Program. An active performer, Ms. Dallinger serves as principal second violinist of the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra and performs regularly on department recitals. Ms. Dallinger has lectured at both state and national music conferences and, as a registered teacher trainer with the Suzuki Association of the Americas, frequently serves as clinician for summer institutes throughout the United States and overseas. She is a former member of the National Board of Directors of the Suzuki Association.
Ms. Dallinger has been recognized for her contributions to teaching with the UE Alumni Board Outstanding Teacher Award in 1995, and the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences Outstanding Teacher Award in 2000. In 2006, she received the Suzuki Chair Award for her contributions to the field of Suzuki Talent Education at the American Suzuki Institute, Stevens Point, WI. From 2008 - 2013 Ms. Dallinger held the title of Oramay Cluthe Eades Distinguished Professor of Music.
Professor Dallinger holds a Bachelor of Music in performance from Illinois Wesleyan University and a Master of Music in performance from the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana. She currently teaches courses in applied violin, applied viola, and Suzuki violin pedagogy.
Before coming to the United States, Renato Butturi performed throughout Italy, France, Germany, Kenya and the Ivory Coast. As a member of the University of Evansville music faculty, he is much in demand as a soloist and chamber musician and has performed as special instrumentalist with the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra, the Fort Wayne Symphony and the Indianapolis Symphony. Professor Butturi is an active jazz performer and is on the summer faculty at the University of Cincinnati Classical Guitar Workshop. He appeared on a recording of Spanish song for baritone and guitar titled CANCIONES, and is the founder and artistic director of the Evansville Classical Guitar Society.
Professor Butturi holds a Bachelor in Music Education degree from the University of Evansville and Master of Music degree in Historical Performance Practice from Washington University. He currently teaches courses in applied and jazz guitar, applied lute, and jazz studies.
Anne Hastings Fiedler is the Oramay Cluthe Eades Distinguished Professor of Music and head of the keyboard area. She is a recipient of the prestigious Exemplary Teacher Award given by University of Evansville and also the Outstanding Teacher Award given by the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.
An active performer, Professor Fiedler was finalist and prizewinner in the National Beethoven Piano Sonata Competition and has collaborated nationally with a variety of soloists and ensembles, notably in performances at International Trumpet Guild Conference and several International Double Reed Society Conferences. She can be heard on the CD entitled Oboe Serenade. Professor Fiedler has been featured soloist on numerous occasions with the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra, the Evansville Chamber Orchestra and the University of Evansville Orchestra. She performs frequently as collaborative pianist with faculty and guest artists on the First Tuesday Series and Tuesday Night Concert Series sponsored by the music department. Fiedler is also principal keyboard and assistant principal second violin of the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra.
Professor Fiedler's diverse areas of interest and teaching experience include studio piano, music theory, piano pedagogy, and collaborative piano. She has reviewed collegiate theory texts for McGraw-Hill Publishing and regularly presents master classes and serves as an adjudicator for local, state, and regional piano competitions. She is co-founder and first president of the Greater Evansville Chapter of the Indiana Music Teachers Association and has presented at IMTA state conferences.
Professor Fiedler holds Bachelor of Music with Highest Honors and Master of Music Degrees from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She currently teaches courses in applied piano and music theory.
Dr. Ungar, Associate Professor of Music, teaches courses in applied piano, accompanying, and theory. He holds degrees in piano performance from the Universities of Toronto, Calgary, and Houston—where his principal teachers were William Aide, Marilyn Engle, Abbey Simon, and Ruth Tomfohrde—and an Associate Performer's diploma from the Royal Conservatory of Toronto. He has also studied with Marek Jablonski at the Banff School of Fine Arts, Marc Durand and Anton Kuerti at the Centre d'Arts Orford in Quebec, and Bernard Ebert at the Academie de Musique de Sion in Switzerland.
Dr. Ungar has appeared throughout North America as piano soloist with orchestras, in recitals and masterclasses at major universities, and in solo and chamber broadcasts on Public Radio and the CBC, most recently at Indiana University, the University of Michigan, the University of British Columbia, Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong Radio, Tanglewood, the American Liszt Society in New York City, and the Arts and Letters Club in Toronto. He has performed in Switzerland, Sweden, and England. His recording of the Brahms Second Piano Concerto with the Varna Philharmonic in Bulgaria was described in John Bell Young's Clavier Magazine review as “powerful and precise...having solidity and passion, a magisterial presence, structural integrity, immediacy and intensity.” In 2009 he released his second CD, of Schubert piano works. A review in Fanfare Magazine mentioned "subtle nuances under perfect control and never sounding self-conscious…a fine control of myriad touches and colors… steady, focused, and unrelenting-a really superlative account.” Clavier Companion describes “an impressively imaginative and nuanced musical sensitivity with a refined technique” and “a complexity to his interpretations that cannot be fully appreciated at a first listening.”
Dr. Ungar has served on the piano faculties of Mount Royal College in Calgary, the University Settlement House in Toronto, the Music at Maple Mount Summer Institute in Kentucky. He regularly adjudicates piano competitions including, most recently, the Hong Kong Schools Music Festival. His students have won several other important local and state competitions including six first prizewinners in the Evansville Philharmonic Competition, four finalists in the Indianapolis Symphony Competition, and first and second place winners in the Murray State/Paducah Symphony Competition. He has also taught multiple State MTNA and Evansville Schmidt Award winners.
Cellist Jennifer Wingert holds a Bachelor Degree in music performance from DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana and a Performance Diploma from Indiana University Jacobs School of Music. Her teachers include Dr. Helga Winold, Eric Kim, Robert deMaine, and Dr. Eric Edberg. Ms.Wingert has appeared as soloist with the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra, the Warren (MI) Symphony Orchestra and the DePauw University Symphony Orchestra. She appears frequently on music department recitals as soloist and chamber musician and performs as assistant principal cellist with both the Evansville Philharmonic and Owensboro Symphony Orchestras.
Ms. Wingert currently teaches courses in applied cello.
In 2008 after a teaching career of 48 years, including 41 years at the University of Evansville, Dr. Lacy retired from full-time teaching and continues to teach courses in applied bassoon. Before his retirement, his primary duties included teaching bassoon, saxophone, oboe, jazz, and music theory. Dr Lacy is founder of the UE Jazz program and was its director for 40 years. In addition to his teaching duties, Dr. Lacy served as chair of the Department of Music on three occasions for a total of seven and one-half years. His many honors include the Oramay Cluthe Eades Distinguished Professor of Music, the Dean's Award for Excellence in Teaching from the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at UE and was named co-winner of the national "Advisor of the Year" by Sigma Alpha Iota in 2002.
Dr. Lacy serves as principal bassoonist and saxophone soloist with the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra, of which he has been a member for 44 seasons. He was also principal bassoonist of the Owensboro (KY) Symphony Orchestra for nineteen seasons and has served as principal bassoonist of the Indianapolis Festival Music Society Orchestra and the Harlaxton Quintet. He has performed solo recitals at the University of Colorado, the University of Georgia, Western Michigan University and Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville. His chamber music performances have included appearances at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, Interlochen Arts Academy and on the Wisconsin Public Radio Network.
Lacy has been a member of the International Double Reed Society since its inception in 1972 and has been a member of the International Association of Jazz Educators. Other professional memberships include Pi Kappa Lambda music honorary society, and Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity, which has made him a recipient of their Orpheus Award. He is also an honorary member of Sigma Alpha Iota music fraternity. At the University of Evansville, he served as faculty advisor to SAI for 25 years and advisor to Phi Mu Alpha for over 30 years.
His teaching experience has included six years in the public schools of Indiana and Illinois and one year at the University of Charleston in West Virginia, in addition to his 43 years at the University of Evansville. He has also served as visiting professor of music at the University of Louisville and at Indiana University.
Dr. Lacy holds the bachelor of music education degree from Murray State University and the master of music in bassoon and doctor of music in woodwinds from Indiana University.
Dr. Robertson attended the Eastman School of Music and Michigan State University, earning a Bachelor of Music in oboe performance and a Bachelor of Arts in applied mathematics, both with high honors. She continued her studies at Indiana University where she earned a Master of Music in oboe and a Doctor of Music in oboe literature and performance. Her primary teachers were Richard Killmer, Daniel Stolper, Marc Lifschey and Theodore Baskin.
Dr. Robertson has been principal oboe of the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra since 1995 and principal oboe of the Lancaster Festival in Ohio since 2001. She has performed as principal oboe of the Grand Rapids Symphony Orchestra and has substituted with the Louisville Orchestra, Indianapolis Symphony and the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra. Dr. Robertson is a member of the Harlaxton Quintet, woodwind quintet in residence at the University of Evansville.
Dr. Robertson is an active member of the International Double Reed Society and performed at the 2003 and 2006 Conferences. As the youngest of five finalists, she won second place in the IDRS Fernand Gillet Performance Competition in 1991. She has published several articles on the oboe works of Antal Dorati in the IDRS Double Reed journal. Robertson is also a member of the College Music Society and is the CMS campus representative for the University of Evansville. She recently released the CD Oboe Serenade, and currently teaches courses in applied oboe.
Cara Dailey is consortium instructor of flute at the University of Evansville and principal flute with the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra. She is also a member of the Harlaxton Quintet, resident faculty ensemble at the university. Previously, Ms. Daileyheld the piccolo/third flute positions in the Kalamazoo Symphony and Waco Symphony Orchestras. She also joined the American Wind Symphony Orchestra as solo piccolo for their 2009 Great Lakes Tour.
Ms. Dailey holds a MM in flute performance from Northwestern University, studying under John Thorne and Walfrid Kujala and serving as their graduate assistant. She earned her BM in flute performance, Summa Cum Laude, from Baylor University in Waco Texas. She has attended summer festivals such as The International Festival Institute at Round Top and the National Orchestral Institute in Maryland, and has performed in masterclasses with artists such as Marina Piccinini, Carol Wincenc, Leone Buyse, Marianne Gedigian, Michael Parloff, Christina Smith and Linda Toote.
An avid private teacher, Ms. Dailey has maintained flute studios in Dallas and Chicago, and served as the flute instructor in multiple school districts near Waco, Texas.
Ross Erickson is Consortium Instructor of Percussion at the University of Evansville and is Principal Percussion with the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra and the Owensboro Symphony. Prior to coming to Evansville, Mr. Erickson performed as percussionist with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, Terre Haute Symphony Orchestra, and the Columbus Indiana Philharmonic.
Erickson's diverse musical experience includes performances with the IU Brazilian Ensemble, IU Steel Pan Ensemble and IU Afro-Cuban Folkloric Ensemble. He has attended the Aspen Music Festival, National Orchestral Institute, and toured for one season with the American Wind Symphony Orchestra.
Mr. Erickson earned both Bachelor and Master of Music degrees in Performance from Indiana University. His principal teachers include John Tafoya, Dean Borghesani, Kevin Bobo, and Michael Spiro. He is a member of the Percussive Arts Society.
Dr. Alanna Keenan, assistant professor of voice, holds a Bachelor of Music in vocal performance from Simpson College in Indianola, Iowa, and Master of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees in vocal performance with a minor in musicology from Louisiana State University. She teaches applied voice and diction. Prior to joining the faculty of the Department of Music she taught at Franciscan University in Steubenville, Ohio, where she directed the vocal program and taught courses in performance, music history, diction, and aural skills.
Dr. Keenan is an active performer both in recital, opera, and oratorio. Among the roles she has sung are Mother Marie (Dialogue of the Carmelites), Mrs. McClean (Susannah), Cathleen (Riders to the Sea), Hermia (A Midsummer Night’s Dream), Marcellina (Le nozze di Figaro), and the title role in Carmen. Oratorio credits include Saint-Saëns’s Christmas Oratorio, Vivaldi’s Gloria, Fauré’s Requiem, Handel’s Messiah, and Schubert’s Mass in G. Keenan has recently appeared as a soloist with OvreArts, the Pittsburgh Festival Orchestra, and choir of St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Dr. Keenan’s students have been accepted to graduate schools across the country including Indiana University, Catholic University, Cleveland State University, and East Carolina University. Her students have been accepted into summer programs such as SongFest and the American Singers’ Opera Project. She is a full member of the National Association of Teachers of Singing.
Gregory Rike is an Assistant Professor of Music and also serves as Musical Director for the nationally-recognized UE Theater. Prior to coming to Evansville Dr. Rike held teaching positions at the University of Mississippi, The Ohio State University, Ohio Northern University, Heidelberg College, and the University of Findlay.
In demand as a performer, clinician, and coach, Dr. Rike is equally comfortable with opera, oratorio, art song, and musical theater genres. He has been musical director of such shows as A Little Night Music, Follies, Company, Urinetown, Grand Hotel, The Last Five Years, Into the Woods, Parade, Assassins, The Mystery of Edwin Drood and Sweeney Todd as well as The Marriage of Figaro, Baby Doe, and Tartuffe. He has performed with various opera companies as well as the Evansville, Toledo, Charleston, Columbus, and Ohio State Symphony Orchestras. He has judged National Association of Teachers of Singing competitions in Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, Michigan, Mississippi, Arkansas, Louisiana, and Ontario, Canada, as well as the Metropolitan Opera auditions in Memphis, Tennessee.
Dr. Rike currently teaches courses in applied voice, song literature and vocal pedagogy.
Dr. Erzsébet Gaál Rinne is a Hungarian-American harpist, a Kodály pedagogue, and a researcher in physical wellness for musicians. She has given concerts across Europe and America, and is a recipient of the Pro Artibus Award from the Artisjus Foundation for promoting Hungarian contemporary music abroad.
She has made presentations at the Fifth and the Eighth World Harp Congresses in Copenhagen, Denmark and in Geneva, Switzerland; The American String Teacher Association National Conferences in Columbus, OH, Dallas, TX, and in Kansas City, MO; Third International Conference on Arts and Humanities in Honolulu, Hawaii; The Phenomenon of Singing International Symposium V, in Newfoundland, Canada; and the Seventeenth International Kodály Symposium in Leicester, England. Her professional work can be heard on the solo harp CD recordings Harpa Hungarica and Harpchipelago, and seen on the DVD program Harp Playing for Life.
Dr. Rinne is an honor graduate of the Ferenc Liszt Academy of Music, Budapest, Hungary, and holds a Doctor of Music degree from Indiana University.
Helen Skuggedal Reed holds a Master of Music degree in performance from the University of Michigan, where she studied organ with Robert Glasgow. Her other principal teachers are Edward Parmentier (harpsichord), Eugene Bossart (collaborative piano), and Maitland Farmer (piano and organ). She earned a BA with Honors in English Literature from Dalhousie University, and she has also received Associate diplomas from the American Guild of Organists and the Royal Conservatory of Music of Toronto.
Ms. Reed is principal harpsichordist for the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra and co-organist of Eastminster Presbyterian Church. She has given concerts in the U.S., Canada, and Norway, and has been a featured soloist with the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra and Chorus, Evansville Chamber Orchestra, University of Evansville Symphony, Harmonie Consort, and Evansville Baroque Soloists. In addition to giving solo concerts, she is in frequent demand as a teacher, adjudicator, lecturer, accompanist, and chamber musician throughout the Midwest. Among her recent performances are recitals featuring the organ music of J. S. Bach and Georg Muffat, as well as premieres of newly commissioned harpsichord music by Richard Faith and Asako Hirabayashi.
Her numerous awards include grants from the Nova Scotia Talent Trust and a Bach Aria Festival Fellowship at Stony Brook University, New York. She is an active member of the American Guild of Organists and the Historical Keyboard Society of North America.
Chun-Ming (Jimmy) Chen is the director of orchestral activities. He was previously the music director of the Heartland Symphony Orchestra in Minnesota and the music director of the Artists Chamber Orchestra in Taiwan.
Chen has served as interim Conductor of the Grinnell Symphony Orchestra in Grinnell, Iowa, acting music director of the Coe College Symphony Orchestra in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, co-director of the Ithaca College Sinfonietta in Ithaca, New York, and Director of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Chinese Choral Society in Boston, Massachusetts.
He has appeared as guest conductor with the Tunghai University Opera Department, and Miaoli Wind Ensemble in Taiwan, Boston Conservatory Symphony Orchestra and Wind Ensemble, Chorus Boston, Cornell Symphony Orchestra, Ithaca College Symphony Orchestra, and the University of Iowa Symphony Orchestra.
Chen earned his bachelor’s degree in saxophone performance from Tunghai University, master’s degrees in orchestral conducting from Boston Conservatory and Ithaca College, and a doctorate in orchestral conducting from the University of Iowa. His primary teachers include Annie Chung, Bruce Hangen, Jeffery Meyer, and Dr. William LaRue Jones.
Jaley A. Montgomery, visiting assistant professor of Music Therapy, M.M., MT-BC, received a bachelor’s degree in music therapy from the University of Evansville, a Master of Music with emphasis in music therapy from Colorado State University, and is a Neurologic Music Therapy Fellow. Montgomery has over nine years of experience working in the clinical setting. Initially she practiced as a contracted music therapist in Southern Indiana, serving clients with diverse abilities and diagnoses including various developmental delays and intellectual disabilities. Most recently Montgomery was employed at an autism center in Southeast Missouri serving individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Montgomery is a registered Music Together teacher and is a member of the American Music Therapy Association.
Philip Christiansen, adjunct instructor of Voice, has held teaching positions at Ohio University, Indiana University, New Mexico State University, Vincennes University, Indiana State University, Millikin University, Park Tudor School and the University of Louisiana-Lafayette. His stage credits include sixty operas, musicals, and plays serving as musical director, stage director, stage manager and performer. Highlights include artistic director of Doña Ana Lyric Opera (New Mexico), stage director for the Dorian Opera Theatre Apprentice Program (Iowa), Emile de Becque in South Pacific at Western Illinois Summer Music Theatre, and Figaro in The Barber of Seville at Opera in the Ozarks (Arkansas).
Dr. Christiansen holds a DM in performance at Florida State University, MM in performance at Indiana University, and BM in performance at Rice University. As a recitalist he has been a guest at Cleveland Institute of Music, Texas A&M-Kingsville, Oakland City University and Truman State University. His teachers include Roy Delp, Dale Moore, Nicola Rossi-Lemeni, and Virginia Babikian. He is an active member of NATS (National Association of Teachers of Singing), having been served as a NATS Intern and President of New Mexico NATS.
Andrea Drury is adjunct instructor of voice at UE. She has also served as conductor of the Evansville Philharmonic Chorus since 2012. Prior to this, she served as the Director of Vocal Music for ten years at North High School in Evansville where the Concert Choir was ranked in the top ten choirs at the ISSMA Organization competition nine of her ten years. In 2014, Mrs. Drury and her husband were awarded the Artist Award presented by the Arts Council of Southwest Indiana. Mrs. Drury has been nominated for the Evansville Courier and Press Teacher of the Year award two times. In 2012-13, she served on the ISSMA Organizational Committee for the state of Indiana.
Before settling in Evansville, Mrs. Drury sang with orchestras and opera companies across the United States. Her operatic roles have included Mimi from La Boheme, Violetta from La Traviata, Antonia from Les Contes D’Hoffman and La Ciesca and Nella from Gianni Schicchi. She has performed with Amarillo Opera, Portland Opera, Opera Columbus, Brevard Music Center, Kentucky Opera and Opera North. Mrs. Drury has performed as soloist with the Evansville Philharmonic Chorus as well as the Evansville Bach Singers. She is also the conductor of the Trinity United Methodist Chancel Choir.
She received her Bachelor of Music Education from Baylor University in 1996 and her Master of Music in Vocal Performance from The Ohio State University in 2000. Mrs. Drury is blessed with a wonderful and supporting husband and two beautiful sons.
Eykamp String Quartet
For over a decade, through the generous support of Richard and Rita Eykamp, the Evansville Philharmonic and the University of Evansville have had the unique distinction of having a Resident Quartet to enrich the musical, cultural and educational activities of the Evansville community. Since 2012, the Eykamp String Quartet Artists in Residence position has been held by the Larchmere String Quartet. As the Resident Artists of the University of Evansville and the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra, the Quartet works regularly with students at the University of Evansville and the Evansville Philharmonic Youth Orchestra, performs as the principal players of the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra and serves as ambassadors of chamber music performance and educational outreach across the tri-state, nationally, and abroad.
Dedicated to bringing the accessibility of chamber music to all audiences, the members of the quartet have performed regularly on the international stage in venues such as the Kennedy Center, Carnegie Hall, the Gewandhaus, the KKL and Suntory Hall, as well as the most intimate settings including community centers and schools. Along with festival appearances at the Banff Centre (Canada) and Accademia Chigiana (Sienna, Italy), the quartet has most recently toured in New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Georgia, Alabama, Indiana, and Florida. Projects for the upcoming 2014-15 season include a commercial Naxos recording of the complete string chamber works of Stefan Krehl, concert tours and teaching workshops across Indiana, Tennessee, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, and Florida, and serving as Artistic Directors of the inaugural Harlaxton Chamber Music Festival in Grantham, England.
Devoted to music education and performance, the members of the quartet have previously taught at a variety of institutions, including University of Illinois, Indiana University, Johns Hopkins University and DePauw University, and given string and chamber music master classes, lectures and workshops such as Denver University, Virginia Commonwealth University, Rice University, the University of South Florida, and the University of Southern Maine. Additionally, they continue to inspire thousands of young music students through their ongoing work with youth orchestras, at summer music festivals, and in K-12 interactive educational workshops across the US, Canada, and Europe.
Passionate about performing the works of living composers as well as the 20th century masters, member of the quartet have commissioned, premiered and performed works by composers including David Dzubay, Don Freund, Eugene O’Brien, Gabriela Ortiz, Augusta Read Thomas, and Pierre Boulez.
Robert Anemone
Violinist Robert Anemone has been praised for his “complete command, beautiful sound, and firmness without anxiety.” First prize winner of the 2015 Hudson Valley Philharmonic Strings Competition, the 2013-14 New England Conservatory Violin Competition, and the 2007 Concord Young Artist Competition, he has appeared as a soloist with the Concord Symphony, New England Conservatory Philharmonia, and Williamsburg Youth Orchestra, as well as in recital in the United States and Europe. Robert is a member of the Larchmere String Quartet, which is currently on the faculty of the University of Evansville as the Eykamp Quartet-in-Residence. Since 2015, he has held the post of concertmaster of the Evansville Philharmonic.
As a chamber musician, Robert has collaborated with such artists as the Borromeo String Quartet, James Buswell, Stephen Drury, Grigory Kalinovsky, Jeffrey Irvine, and Carol Ou, and has performed on the stages of Carnegie Hall and Jordan Hall. In 2013 he was a recipient of NEC’s Quartetutopia fellowship as a member of the Petrucci String Quartet, and used the attached grant to research and lecture on the original manuscripts of Beethoven’s string quartets. An avid proponent of new music, he has worked closely with composers Roger Reynolds, Christian Wolff, John Heiss, Stratis Minakakis, Menachem Wiesenberg, Katherine Balch, David Hertzberg, Ralph Farris, and others in premieres and performances of their works, many of which were written specifically for him.
At the age of 24, Robert won the position of principal second violin of the Portland Symphony Orchestra, where he has also regularly served as acting concertmaster. He has performed with a variety of larger ensembles including the Boston-based chamber orchestras A Far Cry and Discovery Ensemble, Odyssey Opera, the Boston Modern Orchestra Project (BMOP), and the Callithumpian Consort.
A graduate of James Buswell’s studio at the New England Conservatory (BM 2012, MM 2014), Robert was a recipient of the Dorothy J. Bales ’41 Violin Scholarship and was awarded the 2014 Gunther Schuller medal for outstanding graduate study. He has received additional training at the Taos School of Music, the Aspen Music Festival and School, and the Heifetz Institute, where he worked with the Borromeo, Brentano, Miro, and Shanghai String Quartets, as well as Michael Tree, Robert McDonald, Thomas Sauer, Sylvia Rosenberg, Virginia Weckstrom, and Grigory Kalinovsky, among others. Passionate about passing on the knowledge he has gained from these mentors, he is a committed teacher and has previously taught at the North Bennet Street School, the Ip Piano School, and the Arthur Russel Strings Festival. In addition to music, Robert enjoys good coffee, bad movies, and the great outdoors.
Alicia Choi
Lauded for her “technical flair and gleaming tone” by the Berkshire Eagle and for “possessing a big sound and a warm tone” by TwinCities.com, violinist Alicia Choi has performed with the Atlantic Music Festival, Berkshire Symphony, and Queens Symphony Orchestras under conductors Ronald Feldman, Constantine Kitsopoulos, and Julian Kuerti. Alicia has also won top prizes from the Fresno Musical Club, National Federation of Music Clubs Young Artist Auditions, South Mountain Association, and Virtu Foundation.
A committed chamber musician, Alicia has collaborated with artists such as Jeanie Chung, Marc Coppey, Bonnie Hampton, Paul Hersh, David Hetherington, Eric Nowlin, Menahem Pressler, Masumi Rostad, Axel Strauss, as well as with members of ETHEL and the Momenta Quartet. Alicia has attended several festivals including Piano Texas International Academy and Festival, Toronto Summer Music Festival Chamber Music Institute, and the Yale Summer School of Music Norfolk Chamber Music Festival.
Also an ardent new music advocate, Alicia has premiered works of Stephen Cabell, Eleanor Cory, Laura Elise Schwedinger, and Errollyn Wallen. New music engagements include solo performances in festivals such as Beyond the Machine 10.0, FOCUS! Festival 2011 Polish Modern: New Directions in Polish Music Since 1945, and Random Access Music Discreet Encounters.
Alicia holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in both Chinese and Music from Williams College, and a Master of Music degree from the Juilliard School. Her primary teachers include Joanna Kurkowicz, Robert Mann, and Axel Strauss. Currently, Alicia is the second violinist of the Larchmere String Quartet. The Quartet is the Eykamp Quartet-in-Residence at the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra and the University of Evansville, where Alicia is the associate concertmaster and an artist-in-residence.
Rose Wollman
Praised for her multifaceted interpretations of both classical and contemporary music, violist Rose Wollman is sought after as a soloist, chamber musician, pedagogue, and orchestral musician. Rose is the founding violist of the Larchmere String Quartet, which is the current Eykamp Faculty Quartet-in-Residence at the University of Evansville. As such, she is dedicated to mentoring university and pre-college music students, promoting classical chamber music in the surrounding communities, and serves as principal violist of the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra.
Rose is committed to the performance and promotion of new music, and has commissioned, premiered and performed many pieces, working with groundbreaking composers such as Pierre Boulez, Augusta Read Thomas, David Dzubay, Gabriela Ortiz, and Don Freund. Recent projects include performances of a Concerto for Viola, Winds, and Percussion, dedicated to her by composer Brian St. John. With the Petar Jankovic Ensemble, a chamber group comprised of string quartet and guitar, Rose toured extensively in the United States and Europe, and has released a CD titled From Spain to Tango. Rose is also a devoted music educator, and has served as a viola and chamber music faculty member at DePauw University, Indiana University Jacobs School of Music and the University of Illinois. She has also worked as a teaching assistant for Atar Arad at Indiana University, Mai Motobuchi at the New England Conservatory Preparatory School, Masumi Rostad at the University of Illinois, and mentored countless young students at the String Academy at Indiana University, and the New England Conservatory Preparatory School.
Currently a doctoral candidate in viola with a minor in music theory at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, Rose also holds degrees from the New England Conservatory of Music, and the University of Illinois. Her primary teachers have been Atar Arad, Carol Rodland, Masumi Rostad and Rudolf Haken.
Kirsten Jermé
Equally versatile as a chamber musician, orchestral player, and recitalist, cellist Kirsten Jermé has performed internationally in prestigious venues including Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Madison Square Garden, Le Poisson Rouge and the Joyce Dance Theatre in New York City, Royal Festival Hall in London, and the Banff Arts Centre in Canada. She has performed with a variety of ensembles including the Harrisburg Symphony, New England Symphonic Ensemble, and Orchestra for the Next Century, and has recorded with the Mimesis Ensemble for Bridge Records. As soloist, she has appeared with the Metro Chamber Orchestra, Russian Chamber Chorus of New York, and Stony Brook University Orchestra. Starting in the 2014-15 season, Kirsten joins the Larchmere String Quartet, holding the position of Eykamp String Quartet in Residence at the University of Evansville and acting as Principal Cellist of the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra.
A dedicated educator, Kirsten has served on faculty at the Greenwich House Music School in Manhattan and taught at the Frank Sinatra School of the Arts in Queens, as well as P.S. 129 in Harlem for The Harmony Program, modeled on the groundbreaking Venezuelan music program El Sistema. Committed to expanding access to the arts through community education, she also assisted with outreach programs at Turtle Bay Music School and the Eastman Community Music School.
Kirsten received her M.M. and Arts Leadership Certificate at the Eastman School of Music, and her B.A. from Stony Brook University. Her primary cello teachers include Steven Doane and Colin Carr.
