Sarah Kramer believes in the importance of cultural diplomacy: using the arts to create connections and understanding between people from all different cultures and walks of life. She is currently a student of harp and international relations at the Eastman School of Music and the University of Rochester, and is looking forward to attending law school after her graduation. She hopes to use her skills gained through these studies and through her participation in the Arts Leadership Program to find innovative ways to use the arts to address more general social issues.

Steve Danyew is a composer, saxophonist, teacher, and arts administrator based in Rochester, NY. Danyew composes works for chamber ensembles, large instrumental ensembles, choirs and more, and currently serves as Managing Editor of Polyphonic.org. His music has been hailed as “startlingly beautiful” and “undeniably well crafted and communicative” by the Miami Herald, and has been praised as possessing “sensitivity, skill and tremendous sophistication” by the Kansas City Independent. Steve received a B.M. cum laude, Pi Kappa Lambda from the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami and holds an M.M. in Composition and Certificate in Arts Leadership from the Eastman School of Music.

Zachary Preucil enjoys a varied career as cellist, educator, and writer. Currently, he serves on the faculties of the Music Institute of Chicago and the Music for Youth Suzuki program in Arlington Heights, IL, in addition to maintaining a private studio in the Chicago area and coaching chamber music for the Schaumburg Youth Orchestra. Previously, he served on the faculty of the Kanack School of Music in Rochester, NY, and as a teaching assistant at the Eastman School of Music.

Zachary received his M.M. in Cello Performance and Literature and an Arts Leadership Certificate from the Eastman School of Music, where he was inducted into the Beta Pi chapter of Pi Kappa Lambda. He received his B.M. in Cello Performance with Academic Honors from the New England Conservatory of Music in May 2012. Zachary's primary teachers have included David Ying, Yeesun Kim, and his father, Walter Preucil; additionally, he has studied chamber music with members of the Borromeo and Ying Quartets. He has also studied at several summer music festivals and institutes, including the Aspen Music Festival in Colorado, the Bowdoin International Music Festival in Maine, the Castleman Quartet Program in New York and the Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan. In recent summers, he has performed with the Midsummer's Music Festival in Wisconsin and the Caroga Lake Music Festival in New York. In June 2014, Zachary made his solo debut with the Schaumburg Youth Orchestra in Chicago's Orchestra Hall.

As a writer, Zachary has served as a co-editor of "The Penguin", New England Conservatory's student-run newspaper, and has blogged for Polyphonic On Campus since 2012. Recently, his work has also been featured on the Chicago Cello Society blog, the Huffington Post Arts blog, and the blog of the CREDO Music Festival. Along with flutist Elizabeth Erenberg, he is a co-founder of Musicovation.com, a multifaceted website dedicated to promoting the latest positive and innovative trends in the music world.

Steve Danyew is a composer, saxophonist, teacher, and arts administrator based in Rochester, NY. Danyew composes works for chamber ensembles, large instrumental ensembles, choirs and more, and currently serves as Managing Editor of Polyphonic.org. His music has been hailed as “startlingly beautiful” and “undeniably well crafted and communicative” by the Miami Herald, and has been praised as possessing “sensitivity, skill and tremendous sophistication” by the Kansas City Independent. Steve received a B.M. cum laude, Pi Kappa Lambda from the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami and holds an M.M. in Composition and Certificate in Arts Leadership from the Eastman School of Music.

Steve Danyew is a composer, saxophonist, teacher, and arts administrator based in Rochester, NY. Danyew composes works for chamber ensembles, large instrumental ensembles, choirs and more, and currently serves as Managing Editor of Polyphonic.org. His music has been hailed as “startlingly beautiful” and “undeniably well crafted and communicative” by the Miami Herald, and has been praised as possessing “sensitivity, skill and tremendous sophistication” by the Kansas City Independent. Steve received a B.M. cum laude, Pi Kappa Lambda from the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami and holds an M.M. in Composition and Certificate in Arts Leadership from the Eastman School of Music.

An undergraduate at Yale University, Nick Baskin composes music full of metric vigor, open harmonies, and flowing, lyrical melodies. Recently, he has turned to the world of music theatre, exploring the ways music can tell stories and provide nonverbal characterization. A firm believer in the ideal of the performing composer, he actively maintains his bassoon-playing skills, having recently appeared with the Yale Symphony Orchestra and Concert Band, as well as in pit orchestras for shows by Britten, Porter, and Sondheim. His works have been performed by the Yale Concert Band, the Harkness Tower Guild of Carillonneurs, and members of the Fresh Inc Summer Music Festival among others. He was recently awarded the Joseph Lentihon Selden Award for "verve, idealism, and constructive interest in music" by the Yale Council of Masters.

Steve Danyew is a composer, saxophonist, teacher, and arts administrator based in Rochester, NY. Danyew composes works for chamber ensembles, large instrumental ensembles, choirs and more, and currently serves as Managing Editor of Polyphonic.org. His music has been hailed as “startlingly beautiful” and “undeniably well crafted and communicative” by the Miami Herald, and has been praised as possessing “sensitivity, skill and tremendous sophistication” by the Kansas City Independent. Steve received a B.M. cum laude, Pi Kappa Lambda from the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami and holds an M.M. in Composition and Certificate in Arts Leadership from the Eastman School of Music.