Joel Feigin is an internationally performed composer, whose operas, chamber, orchestral, and piano works have been widely praised for their "very strong impact, as logical in musical design as they are charged with emotion and drama." (Opera Magazine)  

Feigin’s first opera, Mysteries of Eleusis, written on a Guggenheim Fellowship, commissioned and premiered by Theatre Cornell, was later featured at the Moscow Conservatory (Russia), and a year later repeated at the Russian American Operatic Festival.  A second opera, Twelfth Night, commissioned by Long Leaf Opera, has been seen in three productions, in North Carolina, Chicago, and southern California.  It has been praised for “many striking passages, hushed and shimmering for lovers, sparkling and cheeky for the comic figures."  The recent California production “brought the audience spontaneously to their feet. Feigin’s magical score is key to that exuberant response…. It’s a sleeper that deserves to be in the repertory of major opera houses.” (Bravo California).  Excerpts from Twelfth Night have also been presented in the New Works Sampler at the Opera America Conference, 2006, and on New York City Opera’s VOX 2003 Showcase.

Feigin’s current opera-in-progress, Outcast at the Gate, has had two highly successful workshops, at the Colburn School in Los Angeles, featuring the Brightwork Ensemble and the vocal ensemble HEX, and in New York by The Center for Contemporary Opera.  After seeing the New York workshop, critic James Grant termed it a “wonderful new opera… contemporary, but with echoes of the distant past...a closely observed mirror of our time”.

Instrumental commissions include orchestral, chamber and piano works such as Aviv: Concerto for Piano and Chamber Orchestra, written for Yael Weiss on a Fromm Commission, and heard on Feigin’s  widely praised, latest  CD, Music for Chamber Orchestra (Toccata Classics).  David DeBoor Canfield writes that “regardless of the style in which he is writing, Feigin retains his unique compositional voice.  This music demands to be heard”, and Ken Meltzer finds it “an immensely gratifying experience…. It’s wonderful to hear a contemporary composer who embraces varying styles and modes of expression without a hint of pastiche, and in a totally convincing and communicative fashion.”  (Fanfare Magazine)

The CD Lament Amid Silence (MSR) presents a large-scale work for solo viola, a consort of six violas, and solo piano, written for violist Helen Callus and her studio at the University of California, and which Ms. Callus has termed “one of the most beautiful and dramatic pieces in the literature for the viola”.  The recording contains two piano pieces played by Feigin, one of which, Meditation I, has been termed “an as yet unrecognized masterpiece of contemporary piano literature...Feigin is an excellent and most sensitive pianist”( Mark Greenfest, SoundWord Sight).  Feigin’s work is also heard on the two-CD set, Transience (Albany), which has been termed as a “comprehensive survey of Feigin’s sincere, communicative, and deeply felt music” by critic Hubert Culot.  Pianist Margaret Mills commissioned Feigin’s Variations on Empty Space, and included it, in addition to Feigin’s Four Meditations from Dogen, on her Cambria CD, Meditations and Overtones.  Concerts devoted solely to Feigin’s music have been given in Russia and Armenia, and in New York at Merkin Hall and Lincoln Center’s Bruno Walter Auditorium.  Two all-Feigin concerts were presented in Moscow during Feigin’s year on a Senior Fulbright  Fellowship at Moscow Conservatory, at the Conservatory, and at the Scriabin Museum.  

Dr. Feigin studied with Nadia Boulanger at Fontainebleau and with Roger Sessions at The Juilliard School.  His many honors include a Mellon Fellowship, a Guggenheim Fellowship, Senior Fulbright Fellowship, and the Edward A. Dickson Emeriti Professorship of the University of California, Santa Barbara.  

The Joel Feigin Collection at the New York Public Library of the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center opened in 2011. Feigin is Professor Emeritus of Composition at the University of California, Santa Barbara.  A long-time student of Zen Buddhist, Feigin studied for many years with the late Sojun Mel Weitsman Roshi. 

His website is http://www.joelfeigin.com

The piece begins in the desert of central Australia – a place of dry heat, red earth, and rock… The first movement is Kata Tjuta – which means “many heads” – a group of 36 red dome-shaped mountains, formed hundreds of millions of years ago, sacred to the Anangu people. Walking along the hiking trail of the Walpa Gorge, one of the areas where visitors are allowed, the giant red domes tower on either side of you, and you are asked to “Walk quietly, tread lightly… hold in your heart the knowledge that this is a special place.” 

The fourth movement is Karrimurra Waterfall (also known as Florence Falls) – this is in Litchfield Park near Darwin, in the Northern Territory. The segmented double waterfall cascades about thirty meters down a cliff into a clear, cool, shady plunge-pool, surrounded by lush monsoon forest. The traditional caretakers of the area, the Wangait people, say that “because of the rapids and currents it doesn’t matter how close you are to others, you won’t hear them… it’s a place exclusive to the individual… a spiritual place… which brings peace of mind... it feeds your mind and soul.”

Jana Skarecky is a Canadian contemporary classical composer of vocal and instrumental music – for solo instruments, chamber groups, solo voice, choir, and orchestra.

Jana was born in Prague, in the Czech Republic, on November 11, 1957. She came to Canada with her family in 1968. In 1980 she received a Bachelor of Music degree in Honours Composition from Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario, where her primary composition teacher was Barrie Cabena. She also studied piano with Erhard Schlenker, French horn with Felix Acevedo, and organ with Nixon McMillan and Jan Overduin. She is an Associate of the Royal Conservatory of Music, Toronto, in piano performance. In 1987 she received a Master of Music degree in composition from the University of Sydney, Australia, where she studied with Peter Sculthorpe.

Jana's compositions cover a wide spectrum of instrumental and vocal resources. Her music has an expressive lyricism, and integrates a variety of influences from Gregorian chant to Czech folk song. Her compositions have been performed in North America, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and Japan.

The Lehner String Quartet of Washington DC previously performed her Australian Images in 2021. The piece, composed in homage to her former composition teacher Australian composer Peter Sculthorpe, evokes Jana’s responses to several iconic landmarks of the Australian landscape. 

Mezzo-soprano Maria Soulis premiered Jana’s composition Presences in Toronto in 2022 and New Year Carol in 2024. In 2020 soprano Clarisse Tonigussi premiered the monodrama The Path before Me (with text and music by Jana Skarecky) in Waterloo and online. In celebration of Jana’s 60th birthday in 2017 a concert of her compositions and an exhibition of her art took place in Toronto – Time Tributaries, Music and Art by Jana Skarecky. The premiere of The Land Sings for two bass clarinets, percussion & organ, commissioned by NUMUS, premiered in 2017 in Waterloo, Ontario. Her orchestral work Streams opened Hammerson Hall of the Living Arts Centre in Mississauga, Ontario.

She loves writing for the voice, both solo and choral works, and setting poetry to music — for example, Green and Gold for soprano and piano (settings of poetry by P.K. Page, toured across Canada in 2017 by Clarisse Tonigussi), commissioned for the Wider Boundaries of Daring poetry conference (Windsor), and the choral work Song of Life, commissioned for Then, Now, & Beyond… a Festival of Music by Women (Ottawa). Jana's choral setting of the poem Back to Babylon by Viggo Mortensen was premiered in New Zealand in 2012. Her one-woman opera Emily, the Way You Are was well received by audiences. Some of her choral music is published by Alliance Publications (Wisconsin) and available from Hal Leonard.

Jana Skarecky is an Associate Composer of the Canadian Music Centre. She has been Chair of the Association of Canadian Women Composers, and has served on the National Council of the Canadian League of Composers.

Since his debut with the Kazakh State Symphony Orchestra at age 12, Vladimir Dyo has toured and performed at prestigious venues of the former USSR, Europe, Asia, and the United States, including Carnegie Hall, Walt Disney Hall, Seoul Arts Center, Rachmaninoff Hall, Tchaikovsky Hall, Column Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall, KBS Hall, UNESCO, United Nations General Headquarters etc. 

His individual tone and personal approach to phrasing set him apart from his peers. Critics write: "His mystic contour merged with the instrument and hypnotized the audience....Subtlety and flawlessness of Rachmaninoff's endlessly versatile music created such an emotional reaction with the audience that many had tears in their eyes..." (N. Zemlyakova, musicologist). "Dyo's Sarasate was dazzling..." (Michael Church, BBC World Service). "Vladimir Dyo is a violinist who plays with incredible energy and electricity. His rendition of my LEX was spectacular. He is a major talent who has a very bright future ahead!" (Michael Daugherty, Grammy winner composer).

He has received numerous awards from foundations, politicians, and national and international competitions including Grand Prize at the Michelangelo Abbado International Competition in Milan, Italy, 2nd prize at the International Yampolsky Violin Competition in Moscow, Russia, Grand prizes at the top National and International Competitions in Kazakhstan. ​In 2015, he was invited to perform as guest soloist with Ulsan Philharmonic Orchestra at Carnegie Hall (Stern Auditorium) and at the Peace Concert at the United Nations General Headquarters in NY dedicated to the 70th Anniversary of UN and 65th Anniversary of Korean War, along with legendary coloratura soprano Sumi Jo under the baton of maestro Hong-Jae Kim.

As soloist and chamber musician, Vladimir Dyo performed at the international music festivals including the Graduates of Moscow Conservatory (Russia), Ost-West-Musikfest, Prague-Vienna-Budapest, and Mozarteum (Austria). The Cliburn Institute (USA), Seoul International Music Camp Festival, GwangJu International Classic Festival (Korea), the iPalpiti International Laureates Festival (Los Angeles, USA), and served as faculty member and assistant conductor at the 20th Summit Music Festival in New York. In 2017, Vladimir Dyo was featured soloist at the Namdo International Classical Music Festival in Gwangju, South Korea, where he performed with the Festival Orchestra comprised of musicians of world's leading orchestras, including Vienna Philharmonic, Baltimore, Symphony, Seoul Philharmonic, Mariinsky Orchestra etc. In addition, he has collaborated and performed works of living composers including Daugherty's "Lex", Tsontakis' 2nd Violin Concerto, and premiered works by David Carpenter, Allen Krantz, Kareem Roustom, Paul Moravec and others. In 2019, he was featured on the cover of Strad Korea Magazine including a cover story about his activities as soloist, educator and artistic director of the Global Music Partnership.

Violinist/Violist Joseph Kauffman has studied with Yayoi Numazawa of the Philadelphia Orchestra, James Lyon and Max Zorin of The Pennsylvania State University, and Dr. Eduard Schmieder of Temple University. Kauffman holds violin performance degrees from Penn State (BM) University and Temple University (MM). He is currently a DMA candidate at Temple University. Kauffman has performed in many of the most prestigious concert halls throughout the world including Tchaikovsky Hall, Disney Hall, Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, the Kimmel Center, the Mariinsky Theatre, and the Kennedy Center amongst others.

Kauffman received 1st Prize in the MTNA chamber music competition, and was the winner of the Beene, Kroulik, and Brewster solo competitions. He was awarded the Albert Tashjian and Max Aronoff Prizes by Temple University for excellence in performance and teaching, and the creative achievement award by Penn State University for his memorable performances. He has performed as a soloist with the PSU Philharmonic, Williamsport Chamber Orchestra, Temple Symphony Orchestra, and others.

In 2010, Kauffman joined iPalpiti Artists International, an organization that helps young musicians begin their careers. He has performed chamber music live on the radio in both Philadelphia and Los Angeles. Kauffman performs regularly with the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, the Princeton Symphony, iPalpiti Artists International, Symphony in C, AVA Opera, and the Philadelphia Virtuosi. During this past year, Kauffman performed chamber concerts with Branford Marsalis, and even had the opportunity to perform for Pope Francis during his visit to Philadelphia in the fall of 2015.

Kauffman teaches a talented class of violin and viola students who have gone on to win competitions and college scholarships. He also teaches chamber music at Temple University. Kauffman recorded for the television series documentary, “Philadelphia the Great Experiment,” and is participating in other upcoming television recording projects. Kauffman is the Co-founder and Co-artistic director of the “Music Transforms” concert series in Wayne, Pennsylvania.