Max Ball is a current A.D. student at the University of Cincinnati’s CCM, studying with Kristin Lee and quartet with the Ariel Quartet.

He has a particular passion for chamber music, putting together several recitals and attending summer programs such as the BUTI String Quartet Intensive, Encore Chamber Music Institute, and Madeline Island Fellowship Program.

Amanda DeBoer Bartlett is an Omaha-based soprano who specializes in the work of living composers. Along with Quince Ensemble and her solo career, she is a member of Ensemble Dal Niente and Hasco Duo.

Saxophonist Daniel Berkey hails from Chicago, IL, and has been playing professionally since age 13.  Under the tutelage of Nic Meyer and Greg Fishman, Daniel won several honors, most notably a DownBeat Magazine Outstanding Soloist award, and was selected as a Vail Jazz All-Star. 

Jasper de Boor is a recent graduate of Oberlin Conservatory, where they double majored in violin and viola with David Bowlin and Kirsten Docter.

Currently, they study viola and chamber music at the University of Cincinnati’s CCM with Ayane Kozasa and the Ariel Quartet.

Violinist and violist Timothy Christie enjoys a multifaceted career as performer, teacher, public speaker and recording artist. He is the Founder and Artistic Director of the Walla Walla Chamber Music Festival (WWCMF), a nonprofit organization in southeastern Washington presenting more than 40 public chamber music events annually.

James W. Doyle is a percussionist, teaching artist, composer, improviser, and multidisciplinary collaborator based in the Pacific Northwest.

During her formative years in Seattle, Mara Gearman’s dedication to the viola earned her awards in various competitions. She also participated in the prestigious RoundTop Music Festival and the Strings Seminar in New York City, performed with the Seattle Youth Symphony Orchestra, and was a member of three different performing and competing string quartets.

A pianist that “defies human description” for some (Concerto Net) and recalls “a young Peter Serkin” for others (New York Times), Conor Hanick is one of his generation’s most inquisitive interpreters of music old and new.

A native of Austin, Texas, Billy Ray Hunter is currently Principal Trumpet with the Metropolitan Opera in New York and Assistant Principal Trumpet with the Grant Park Symphony Orchestra in Chicago.

Cara Kizer is a nationally active freelancer and college professor in St. Louis and Illinois. Born in Texas, she began horn at the age of 14. Her studies began at Texas Tech University, where she studied under Anthony Brittin, a student of James Chambers. She continued on to The Juilliard School for a master’s degree, where she studied under the late Jerome Ashby, Associate Principal Horn of the New York Philharmonic

Sponsored by Edward & Karleen Heintzberger

Norbert Lewandowski was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and began cello studies at the age of 13. He holds a Master's degree in performance and literature from the Eastman School of Music and currently resides in Charleston, South Carolina, where he is the principal cellist of the Charleston Symphony Orchestra.

Adalus Low-Manzini is an emerging Venezuelan cellist, freelance musician, and private cello teacher based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where she is pursuing a Specialist of Music degree in Cello Performance with Professor Amir Eldan at the University of Michigan.

With performances celebrated as “art concealing art” (Dallas News), Chinese-American violinist Sarah Ying Ma is a 2024 Performance Today Young Artist in Residence with host Fred Childs and the recent 2nd Prizewinner of the 2023 Dallas International Violin Competition. In 2024, Sarah was named a semifinalist in both the solo and ensemble categories of the 2024 Concert Artists Guild Louis & Susan Meisel Competition and won the competition with the Poiesis Quartet, receiving management through the Concert Artists Guild. 

​Jackson Maberry is a skilled luthier specializing in crafting violins, violas, and cellos. With nearly two decades of experience, Maberry’s passion for lutherie is evident in his dedication to the art and science of instrument making.

Paul Mergen is a distinguished tuba player and educator with a rich background in performance and teaching. He served as a member of the United States Marine Band, “The President's Own,” from 2004 to 2014.  During his tenure, he performed at numerous high-profile events and collaborated with esteemed musicians, including his brother, trumpeter Michael Mergen.​

Praised for his “sweet, luxurious” sound (Fanfare), and the “thoughtfulness and seriousness” (Nashville Scene) of his interpretations, violinist Stephen Miahky serves as the Joseph Joachim Professor of Violin and First Violin of the Blair String Quartet at Vanderbilt University.

Greg Pattillo is recognized throughout the world for his redefinition of the flute sound. Greg was lauded by The New York Times as “the best person in the world at what he does.”

Sponsored by Albert Marshall

Violinist/violist Philip Payton is a member of the American Symphony, American Modern Ensemble, Furiant Trio, and Vital String Quartet. He also performs in Alarm Will Sound, American Ballet Theater, Colour of Music, Harlem Chamber Players, New Jersey Symphony, Nu Deco Ensemble, Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, Santa Fe Opera, Sarasota Orchestra, and several others.

The Poiesis Quartet is the 2023 Grand Prize winner of the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition. Having formed just eight months earlier during Oberlin Conservatory’s Advanced String Quartet Seminar, Poiesis also received Fischoff’s Senior Strings Gold Medal and the Lift Every Voice prizes, as well as the Gold Medal and BIPOC Prize at the 2023 St. Paul String Quartet Competition.

Finding joy in variety, Liz Pearse is a musician of many pursuits. After a childhood spent playing every instrument she could lay her hands upon, Liz began exploring the endless possibilities of the voice. Hers is an instrument of unusual range, color, and versatility.