OnCampus

Winner of first prize in the prestigious Georg Solti International Conductors’ Competition in Germany,
Shizuo Z Kuwahara is the music director of Symphony Orchestra Augusta (SOA), formally known as
The Augusta Symphony. Prior to SOA, Mr. Kuwahara’s was associated as a conducting staff with
Philadelphia Orchestra, Virginia Symphony, Pacific Music Festival, Saito Kinen Festival,
IPPO Philharmoniker, College of William & Mary and American University.

In Philadelphia, he was an apprentice to the Music Director Christoph Eschenbach and lead the family and student concerts and covered additional performances. In summer of 2008, he was an assistant conductor at
Saito Kinen Festival, where he was an assistant to Seiji Ozawa and conducted Ozawa Jyuku Orchestra.
He spent his summer of 2006 in Sapporo, Japan where he was an assistant conductor of Valery Gergiev at
Pacific Music Festival.

Frequent guest conductor of the Japan Philharmonic, the Nagoya Philharmonic and the Orchestra Ensemble Kanazawa, Mr. Kuwahara will make a debut with Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra and Frankfurt Museum Orchestra this season. His past guest conducting appearances includes Tokyo Symphony, Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra, Century Orchestra Osaka, Omaha Symphony, Baton Rouge Symphony, Polish Chamber Philharmonic, Philharmonia Slaska, Sinfonieorchester den Nationalen Philharmonischen Gesellshaft der Uklaine Kiew, German Radio Symphony Orchestra, Buffalo Philharmonic, Chattanooga Symphony and Baltimore Symphony.

In addition to winning the first prize at Solti Competition, he received second prize in the previous Solti Competition, third prize at Malko International Conducting Competition, an honorable mentions in Tokyo International Music Competition for Conducting, Prokofiev International Conducting Competition in St. Petersburg, Russia and Fitelberg International Competition in Katowice, Poland with numerous additional prizes. He is also a recipient of Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowship for New Americans.

Born in Tokyo, Mr. Kuwahara studied conducting at Yale University, where he was awarded Charles Ives Scholarship and won Eleozar de Carvalho Prize, and at Eastman School of Music, where he was awarded George Eastman Scholarship, Performer's Certificate and Arts Leadership Program Certificate. His primary conducting teachers include David Effron and Lawrence Leighton Smith. Mr. Kuwahara has also studied with Leonard Slatkin, David Zinman, Timothy Muffitt and Michael Jinbo at various conducting institutions, including Aspen Festival, National Conducting Institute, Pierre Monteux School, and Chautauqua Music Institute.

Aimee Morris has performed French horn in solo, orchestral, and chamber music concerts in many venues across the United States and abroad. These opportunities include an extended tour of Malaysia, performing and teaching with the Perak Society for Performing Arts in August 2008. She has given both solo and chamber music master classes and greatly enjoys teaching and music outreach opportunities. Since 2007, Aimee has offered multiple clinics on section playing, professionalism, and orchestral etiquette at music schools in New York State. Her teachers have included Patrice Malatestinic, Julie Schleif, and W. Peter Kurau. Aimee is currently in her fourth year of study in horn performance at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY.

Sam Bottoni grew up fascinated by all things music, especially guitar and composition. In high school and throughout his undergraduate studies at DePaul University in Chicago, Sam performed in various jazz ensembles and rock groups, attaining his Bachelor of Music in Music Business with a minor in Business Administration in 2004. Toward the end of his career at DePaul, Sam discovered his talent for electronic music composition and production. He achieved a Master of Music in Electronic Music and Composition from the University of Miami Frost School of Music in May 2006. Sam attended an electronic music cultural exchange program at the LIPM in Buenos Aires, Argentina during the summer of 2006. He then worked in production for the New World Symphony in Miami Beach, where he was involved in concert enhancements including live webcasting and in-hall projections. Sam currently resides in Madison, WI and works as a software design engineer for Sonic Foundry, the industry leader for rich media webcasting.

Originally from Buffalo, Liz Mahler currently lives in New York City, where she works with Orpheus Chamber Orchestra as Assistant Director of Institutional Giving. Prior to a year-long fellowship through the League of American Orchestras, Liz lived in Miami Beach, where she worked with the New World Symphony in three different capacities: as a violinist, Development Coordinator, and Communications Manager. Previous to her work with the New World Symphony, Liz earned a Master's degree in violin performance at Peabody Conservatory and a Bachelor's in American history and literature at Harvard University.

An active performer, educator, and scholar, Dr. Jason Kush is an Instructor of Music at Slippery Rock University where he teaches studio saxophone as well as jazz courses and ensembles. This 2009 appointment came after earning both his Master of Music degree in Jazz Pedagogy and Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Saxophone Performance from the University of Miami. While in Miami, Dr. Kush studied with Gary Keller and Dale Underwood, won the 2008 Concerto Competition, and received the 2008 Outstanding Graduate Student Award. Dr. Kush received his Bachelor of Science degree from Slippery Rock University where studied music education.
The ability to accurately and enthusiastically change styles of performance has aided in landing Dr. Kush positions in various ensembles ranging from the South Florida Jazz Orchestra to the New World Symphony (with whom he toured France and Spain in 2008 as part of an extended tour). As a dynamic freelance performer and recording artist, Dr. Kush has had the pleasure of performing with Andrea Bocelli, The Pittsburgh Symphony Pops, The Russian National Orchestra, The Boca Raton Philharmonic Symphonia, The Pittsburgh Jazz Orchestra, The Woody Hermann Orchestra, The Miami Saxophone Quartet, Arturo Sandoval, Frank Sinatra, Jr., Barry Manilow, The Temptations, The Supremes, The Four Tops, and The O’Jays. 2006 brought Mr. Kush the honor of recording a double Grammy nominated album with Eddie Daniels, Tom Scott, and the Henri Mancini Institute Big Band. Through his career, Mr. Kush has participated in world premiers composed by David Maslanka, Christopher Rouse, Patrick Williams, Paul Osterfield, and Jason Freeman.

Chung Park is quickly establishing himself amongst the finest of the next generation of American conductors. Eminent composer Steve Reich described his conducting as "revelatory" and called him "a young conductor to keep an ear and eye on". Critic Lawrence Johnson of the Miami Herald hailed his recent performance of Stravinsky's Soldier's Tale as "masterfully directed" and his conducting of Debussy's Afternoon of a Faun as "lucid and refined".
Chung currently serves as Music Director of the Idaho State Civic Symphony in Pocatello, Idaho and Assistant Professor of Upper Strings at Idaho State University. He is also Music Director and Conductor of Project Copernicus, a large chamber ensemble dedicated to performing music by living composers that has received wide critical acclaim.

David Bebe, cellist, is a faculty member at the College of Saint Rose where he serves as the Conductor of the Saint Rose Orchestra and Cello Instructor. He received his D.M.A in Instrumental Performance from the University of Miami and his B.M. and M.M. from Indiana University.
As a pedagogue, Dr. Bebe has been on the faculties of the Indiana University String Academy, the String Academy of Wisconsin at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, the Young Musicians and Artists Festival in Oregon, and the Gem State String Boot Camp at Idaho State University. His Doctoral Essay, "A Logical and Comprehensive Sequence of Skills for Teaching Young Children the Cello" includes a cello method and website.
While in Miami, Dr. Bebe gave the Florida premiere of Steve Reich's Cello Counterpoint with the composer present at his 75th Birthday Celebration. He was a soloist with the Miami Bach Society Orchestra and and a featured chamber musician for Project Copernicus, the National Foundation for the Advancement of the Arts, and Festival Miami. He served as Associate Conductor for the Frost Symphony Orchestra and was appointed the Broward Symphony Orchestra's Guest Conductor in the spring of 2009. In March, Dr. Bebe took members of the Saint Rose Orchestra to perform in Avery Fisher Hall at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City.

Active as a collaborator, chamber musician, studio teacher, and music entrepreneur, Ashley Danyew is dedicated to teaching and learning and creating new opportunities for music.

Ashley received her B.A. in Music, cum laude from the Hugh Hodgson School of Music at the University of Georgia. She completed an M.M. in Music Education at the Eastman School of Music and received the Certificate in Arts Leadership from Eastman’s Institute for Music Leadership. Ashley’s primary piano instructors include Edward Eikner, Dr. Evgeny Rivkin, Louise Barfield, and Dr. Jean Barr. Additionally, she studied organ with Dr. Fletcher Anderson and Dr. Jolene Davis and voice with Dr. Liana Valente. Ashley has performed in masterclasses with George Shirley, Norman McLean, Nadine Whitney, Victor Rosenbaum, Tony Arnold, and Håkan Hagegård.

Ashley performs regularly in a saxophone/piano duo with her husband, Steve Danyew. Together, Ashley and Steve are committed to community education and innovative performance practice through the presentation of classical duo repertoire and transcriptions of vocal art songs. They have presented individual works, recitals, and lecture programs in New York, Massachusetts, and Florida.

Ashley has several years of teaching experience in community music schools, private studio settings, and at the college level, having recently served on the faculty of Fitchburg State University. Ashley also co-founded and currently serves as Co-Artistic Director of the Westminster Chamber Music Workshop, a series of engaging, educational music events. Currently, Ashley is pursuing a PhD in Music Education at the Eastman School of Music.

Fotina Naumenko is a soprano based in the Rochester, NY area. She is an active performer and a graduate of the Eastman School of Music . Fotina has been featured as a soloist with the Eastman Symphony and the Eastman Women's Chorus, and has been a part of several productions of the Eastman Opera Theater (Pelleas et Melisande, Cabaret, Suor Angelica, The Impresario, and the Opera Gala Concert). Fotina is passionate about art song as well as opera, and also enjoys performing and exploring choral repertoire. She has been a regular member of Voices, Rochester's professional chamber choir directed by William Weinert as well as the Eastman Collegium, an early music ensemble led by internationally acclaimed lutenist Paul O'Dette.

Fotina completed her Bachelor of Music studies at the Eastman School in May 2010, and is now working towards a Masters degree at the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music .

In addition to her vocal pursuits, Fotina is interested in the business and administration aspects of the arts. She has held an internship with Pegasus Early Music (Rochester, NY) for the 2009-2010 academic year, and has been a member of the Senior Challenge Scholarship Committee from 2008-2010. Fotina is a prize-winner in the 2010 New Venture Challenge Competition for her development of a Russian Diction Online course for singers. She is the recipient of the Arts Leadership Program Certificate at Eastman.