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Art Brownlow, Prof.

Brass: Trumpet, Music History
(956) 882-8946
art.brownlow@utrgv.edu
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Art Brownlow is Professor of Music at UTRGV Brownsville, where he teaches trumpet and music history, directs the UTRGV Brownsville Trumpet Ensemble, and is known as an innovator in the use of technology in music education. He is a recipient of the 2014-15 Instructional Technology Initiative Award from the College Music Society, and he has also been named an Apple Distinguished Educator, Class of 2015.

Dr. Brownlow currently performs as co-principal trumpet of the Valley Symphony Orchestra, and also with the UTRGV Brownsville Faculty Brass Quintet. In addition, he has performed with the South Texas Festival Orchestra, Border Brass Quintet, Brownsville Messiah Orchestra, Valley Sinfonette and South Texas Chamber Orchestra. Outside of the Valley, he has performed with the Corpus Christi Symphony, University of North Carolina Faculty Brass Quintet, Foothills Brass Quintet (Greenville, SC), Greenville Symphony, Greenville Brass Quintet, Wheaton (IL) Summer Symphony, North Carolina Symphony (Raleigh), North Carolina Bach Festival (Raleigh), Winston-Salem (NC) Symphony, Augusta (GA) Symphony, and Lake Forest (IL) Symphony. He has also played with the Ringling Brothers/Barnum and Bailey Circus Band, the Red Skelton Show Band, and at the Carowinds Amusement Park in Charlotte, NC. Dr. Brownlow performed as soloist in the inaugural concert of the 1996 Festival Internacional de Otoño in Matamoros, Mexico. He also performed as a member of the Spoleto Festival Orchestra at the Spoleto Festival USA in Charleston (SC) and at the Festival dei Due Monde in Spoleto, Italy.

Teaching Music History with iPad is Dr. Brownlow’s latest book, and is available on the iBooks Store. He also wrote The Last Trumpet: A History of the English Slide Trumpet, which was published by Pendragon Press of Hillsdale, NY. He has presented papers at the College Music Society, National Opera Association, International Historic Brass Symposium, Texas Music Educators Association convention, and has published articles in The Opera Journal and The Instrumentalist.

In addition to a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Trumpet Performance from the University of Texas at Austin, Dr. Brownlow received an M.M. from Northwestern University, also in trumpet performance, and a B.M. in Music Education from Furman University. Further studies in musicology were undertaken at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. His trumpet teachers include Vincent Cichowicz (Chicago Symphony), Raymond Cruiser (NBC Symphony and New York studios), Larry Black (Atlanta Symphony), Larry Cook (Greenville Symphony) and Helmut Wobisch, (Vienna Philharmonic). He has also studied musicology with Howard Smither and James Haar.

Dr. Brownlow is the director of the university’s Study Abroad Program in Vienna, Austria. This is a music-oriented program for music majors, minors and other university students interested in music. The next Study Abroad in Vienna program will be offered during the May session of 2016.

Curriculum Vitae

Art Brownlow, Prof.
Brass: Trumpet, Music History
School of Music
Email: art.brownlow@utrgv.edu
Brownsville: TACB
Phone: (956) 882-8946

Cynthia Cripps, Prof.

Winds: Saxophone Ensemble
(956) 665-3474
cynthia.cripps@utrgv.edu
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Dr. Cynthia Cripps joined UTPA’s music faculty in 2006. She currently teaches applied saxophone and saxophone ensembles, instrumental pedagogy, woodwind methods, and is graduate advisor. She organizes and directs UTPA’s Summer Saxophone Ensemble and SUMMERFEST concert series and plays bassoon in UTPA’s Faculty Wind Quintet.

Born in Newaygo, Michigan, Dr. Cripps has attended universities in Michigan, Indiana, and Florida. She has studied saxophone with John Nichol, Hannes Kawrza, George Wolfe, Tyler Kuebler, Dale Underwood, and Gary Keller. Her bassoon teachers include MaryBeth Minnis, Homer Pence, James Hansen, Luciano Magnanini, and Carol McNabb-Goodwin.

Dr. Cripps resided in the Republic of Panama for ten years. She played bassoon and saxophone in the Panama Symphony Orchestra from 1993-1999. From 1997-2003, she taught band, grades 6-12, at the International School of Panama (ISP). Dr. Cripps worked on curricula design at ISP and developed an eight-year saxophone program for the Instituto Nacional de Musica (INM - music conservatory) where she taught saxophone from 1994-2003.

Dr. Cripps has performed solo and quartet recitals and presented lectures at the North American Saxophone Alliance (NASA) Biennial Conferences: 2012 in Tempe, Arizona and 2008 in Columbia, SC, Region IV NASA Conferences: 2011 in Huntsville, TX and 2007 in Dallas, TX, and World Saxophone Congresses: the 13^th (2003) in Minneapolis, MN and 14th (2006) Ljubjana, Slovenia, as well as the Instituto Nacional de Musica (Panama), and the UTPA campus.

As part of her DMA, she traveled to the countries of Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama and Guatemala to research and complete her essay "Classical Saxophone Curricula in Central America."

In Michigan, Indiana, Panama, Florida, and Texas, Cindy has participated in many community orchestras, concert and jazz bands, including pit orchestras for productions such as: Evita, Bye, Bye Birdie, Anything Goes, Mikado, and The Rothchilds.

Curriculum Vitae

Cynthia Cripps, Prof.
Winds: Saxophone Ensemble
School of Music
Email: cynthia.cripps@utrgv.edu
EPACB 2116
Phone: (956) 665-3474

Peter Dabrowski, Prof.

Symphony Orchestra
(956) 665-2175
peter.dabrowski@utrgv.edu
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"A true concert leaves the audience and musicians on the edge of their chairs", says Peter Dabrowski, conductor, who in such a way leads his concerts. His interpretations, imbued with great expression, provoke, intrigue and excite, creating much emotion throughout the audience. Full of magnetism, charisma, and love for music, Peter Dabrowski is a conductor devoted to his art. Described by critics as exceptionally talented, his artistic personality wins over both audiences and musicians alike.

Great partnership with the soloist and orchestral musicians characterize Dabrowski's artistic work. Musicians under his baton are creative, involved and disciplined. As a conductor he is able to convey his rich and colorful musical interpretations with authority and scholarship. The final interpretations are not only the result of rehearsals, but are also due to the tremendous level of energy and concentration exerted during the concert. Dabrowski unifies the intensity and many talents of the musicians into one orchestral voice.

Musicians enjoy making music with Dabrowski. His passion and musical sensitivity empowers the orchestra. His goal is to create an atmosphere within the orchestra in which each musician feels like an artist. "I present attractive programs not only for the audiences, but, also for the musicians," says the conductor, for whom the role of concert programming is very important.

Dabrowski is the Music Director and Conductor of the Valley Symphony Orchestra and Chorale in Edinburg, TX and the Associate Conductor of the Chicago Chamber Orchestra. He also served as the music director and conductor of the American University Symphony Orchestra in Washington, D.C., the American Youth Concert Orchestra in Northern Virginia, and the Chicago Philharmonic. He is in demand as a guest conductor throughout Europe and the United States. He studied conducting at Northwestern University, the University of Utah, and the Warsaw Music Conservatory in Poland. He also participated in prestigious conducting courses at the Tanglewood Music Center, the Aspen Music Festival, and in Budapest and Miskolc, Hungary.

Curriculum Vita

Peter Dabrowski, Prof.
Symphony Orchestra
School of Music
Email: peter.dabrowski@utrgv.edu
Edinburg: ELABS 334
Phone: (956) 665-2175

Richard Davis, Prof.

Voice
(956) 665-2868
wendell.davis@utrgv.edu
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Richard Davis, baritone, has combined a career as both singer and teacher. After a successful season at Wolf Trap he acquired management in New York City and sang roles in regional opera houses for three years. He sang in a production of Il Signor Bruschino in Florence, Italy, in 1989, and has sung six roles with the New Orleans Opera. He has directed three zarzuelas at UTRGV and a professional production of Rigoletto for South Texas Lyric Opera in 2009.

As a teacher he has served on the faculties of Columbus College (GA), Eastman School of Music (CED), Nazareth College (Rochester,NY), Oberlin Conservatory, Penn State University, University of Louisiana at Lafayette, and Pittsburgh State University (KS). He has had student winners at regional and state Nats competitions for many years.

He has published articles in the American Music Teacher, Journal of Singing, Nats Journal, and the Choral Journal. His new book, A Beginning Singer's Guide is in its second printing and is available from Scarecrow Press. The book has received good reviews from scholarly publications and eminent vocal pedagogue Richard Miller. Planned as a text for voice lessons and pedagogy class, it fast-tracks undergraduates to an understanding of the vocal mechanism and the immediate issues of learning to sing.

Richard Davis is active in the National Association of Teachers of Singing and the College Music Society. He holds the Doctor of Music in Performance Degree (with Distinction) from Indiana University. He teaches voice and directs opera at UTRGV. Dr. Davis likes to spend time with his family, travel, play with electronic technology, and collect old cars.

Curriculum Vitae

Richard Davis, Prof.
Voice
School of Music
Email: wendell.davis@utrgv.edu
Edinburg: Performing Arts Complex.
Phone: (956) 665-2868

Virginia Davis, Prof.

Elementary Music Ed.
(956) 665-7439
virginia.davis@utrgv.edu
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Kurt Martinez, Director

Prof. Guitar Ensemble
(956) 665-2992
kurt.martinez@utrgv.edu
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Dr. Kurt Martinez completed the degree of Doctor of Musical Arts from the University of Wisconsin- Madison, he also has degrees in guitar performance from Georgia State University and the University of Miami. Dr. Martinez has studied with some of the finest teachers in the world including , Javier Calderon, Angelo Gilardino and Juan Mercadal. His studies have taken him to Europe, where he attended the Corsi Internazionali di Chitarra in Muzzano, Italy and also studied flamenco guitar in Madrid, Jerez de la Frontera, Granada and Cordoba Spain, with numerous distinguished guitarists.

Dr. Martinez maintains an active performance schedule and has presented recitals at guitar festivals throughout the United States, Europe, Central America, South America and Mexico. In addition to being recognized as a performer Dr. Martinez has also been recognized as a teacher, and has presented master classes at the Festival Internacional de Guitarra de Sonora, Festival Internacional de Guitarra-Solistas del Mundo, Lawrence Conservatory of Music, Copiah - Lincoln College, Laredo Community College, Beloit College and Del Mar College. Dr. Martinez is also often called to adjudicate International guitar competitions most recently serving as a judge in the Concurso Nacional de Guitarra de Mexico.

The doctoral research of Dr. Martinez on La Folia has led to an article published in Soundboard Vol 30 No. 3, 2004, and his debut recording entitled Folias. This recording charts the history of a work that has been used repeatedly by guitar composers for five hundred years. Dr. Martinez has also given lecture/recitals on La Folia explaining the history of this work and providing reasons for its longevity. He has presented this lecture at guitar festivals and prestigious academic institutions such as the Colegio de Sonora in Hermosillo, Mexico.

Dr. Kurt Martinez currently holds the position of Director of the School of Music at the University of Texas- Rio Grande Valley.

Curriculum Vitae

Kurt Martinez, Director
Prof. Guitar Ensemble
School of Music
Email: kurt.martinez@utrgv.edu
Edinburg: Performing Arts Complex B2.108
Phone: (956) 665-2992

Carol McNabb, Prof.

Winds: Double Reeds
(956) 882-7528
carol.mcnabb@utrgv.edu
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Dr. Carol McNabb Goodwin holds degrees in bassoon performance from the University of Arizona, the University of Louisiana, Monroe, and the University of North Texas. Dr. McNabb Goodwin played professionally for over twenty years as a regular member of many orchestras, including the Fort Worth Symphony and Opera Orchestras, the Shreveport Symphony, the Tucson Symphony Orchestra, and the Catalina Chamber Orchestra (Tucson). She has also performed with the State Orchestra of Monterrey, Mexico and the Corpus Christi Symphony, among others, and currently performs as co-principal bassoon in the Valley Symphony. She performed for 15 years with musicians from across the country at the Arizona Music Festival in Scottsdale, Arizona, She has soloed with the Catalina Chamber Orchestra, the Arizona Music Festival Orchestra, the Puebla (Mexico) Conservatory Orchestra and the UTB/TSC Orchestra, and has given master classes at the University of Eastern New Mexico, Virginia Commonwealth University, the Vidal Trevino High School for the Performing Arts (Laredo), the Conservatorio de Musica del Estado de Puebla (Puebla, Mexico), the Escuela Superior de Musica y Danza (Monterrey, Mexico), and has performed recitals in Cuidad Victoria, Montemorelos, and Matamoros, Mexico, Portales, New Mexico, and numerous recitals in Brownsville and Edinburg, Texas. She is an active recitalist and chamber musician and has premiered works written for her by composers Richard Urbis, Carl Seale, and Roger Jones.

Dr. McNabb Goodwin is a professor at UTRGV Brownsville, where she has taught since 1999. She teaches double reeds, music theory and aural skills, and the capstone course for senior music majors. She founded the Scorpio Consort early music ensemble and directed it for ten years. She has performed and presented lectures at conferences of the National Association of College Wind and Percussion Instructors, the Texas Music Educators Association, the College Music Society South Central Region, and the Texas Bandmasters Association. She has taught the advanced bassoon students each summer at the BocalMajority Brownsville double reed camp since 2012 and has twice had the honor of selecting the Texas High School All-State bassoon audition etudes.

Curriculum Vitae

Carol McNabb, Prof.
Winds: Double Reeds
School of Music
Email: carol.mcnabb@utrgv.edu
Brownsville: Eidman 206
Phone: (956) 882-7528

Lorne O'Neil, Prof.

Winds: Clarinet/Clarinet Choir
(956) 665-3476
lorne.oneil@utrgv.edu
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Dr. William O'Neil joined the Faculty of the University of Texas Pan American in 1992, where he now holds the rank of Professor. Dr. O'Neil received his DMA (Doctor of Musical Arts) degree in clarinet from the University of Minnesota in 1990 where he studied with Cloyde Williams and John Anderson. He subsequently held one-year appointments at Utah State University and at Memorial University of Newfoundland before coming to UTPA. Dr. O'Neil is active as a recitalist, chamber musician, and clinician as well as being a prolific arranger of music for clarinet and saxophone solos and ensembles. Notable among his teachers have been Leon Russianoff, Mitchell Lurie, John Anderson, and Cloyde Williams. He is the creator of a highly successful On-Line Music Appreciation class being offered through the UT Telecampus since 1996. He is co-founder of the Valley Classic Ensemble and the University of Texas-Pan American faculty Ensemble Romantique. As an orchestral performer, he has been principal/co-principal clarinetist with the Valley Symphony since 1994. He has also played with the Minnesota Orchestra, the Omaha Symphony, the Victoria (TX) Symphony, the Symphony Orchestra of Nuevo Leon (Mexico), the Minnesota Opera, the North Star (MN) Opera, and the South Texas Lyric Opera. He recently was featured soloist with the Valley Symphony in the Weber Concertino for clarinet and orchestra. Dr. O'Neil attributes much of his success as a teacher to a terrible start on the clarinet, with no formal instruction whatever from his start in 7th grade until his second year in college. Having corrected every bad clarinet habit in the world, he has both the diagnostic/remedial skills to fix most students' problems, and the patience to help a student past some of their own personal musical crises.

Curriculum Vitae

Lorne O'Neil, Prof.
Winds: Clarinet/Clarinet Choir
School of Music
Email: lorne.oneil@utrgv.edu
EPACB 2114
Phone: (956) 665-3476

Joel Pagan, Prof.

Strings: Viola/Violin
(956) 665-3677
joel.pagan@utrgv.edu
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Hailed by The Monitor as an “impassioned performer,” Joel Pagán enjoys a multi-faceted career as a concert artist and educator. An active chamber and solo recitalist, Pagán has performed throughout the United States, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Canada, Bolivia, Italy, Costa Rica and Brazil. Additionally, Pagán has performed in various international festivals such as the Brevard Music Center Festival, FOSJA/Casals Festival Puerto Rico, Meadowmount School of Music, Schlern International Music Festival, Cooperstown Chamber Music Festival, Chamber Music Institute at UNL, Festival Internacional de Música de la Escola de Música e Artes Cênicas da UFG, UNB Encontro de Cordas, International Adventist Youth Festival, Banff Centre and the Killington Music Festival among others. He has also given master-classes and workshops in the National Conservatory of Bolivia, Middle Tennessee State University, University of California Santa Cruz, Interamerican University of Puerto Rico, UNADECA, Universidade Federal de Goiás, Universidade de Brasil, Andrews University, Texas State University at San Marcos, University of Wyoming, Colorado State University and the Puerto Rico Conservatory of Music among others.

As a soloist with orchestras, he has appeared with the Valley Symphony, Laredo Philharmonic, Monterey Bay Sinfonietta, UTPA Symphony, Sam Houston State University Symphony, Puerto Rico Conservatory Symphony and Andrews University Symphony. As an orchestral musician, Joel has performed in the violin and viola sections of the Chamber Orchestra of San Antonio, Puerto Rico Philharmonic, Puerto Rico Chamber Orchestra, Corpus Christi Symphony, Mansfield Symphony, Lansing Symphony, Jackson Symphony, and the Brevard Music Center Orchestra. Pagán has also appeared in the Youth Symphony of the Americas, Midland Symphony, Laredo Philharmonic, and Valley Symphony as principal violist.

Having studied with Robert Dan, I Fu Wang, Alan Bodman, José Figueroa, Ann Setzer, and Sally Thomas, Pagán holds degrees from Michigan State University, University of Akron, and the Conservatorio de Música de Puerto Rico.

Currently, Pagán is an Associate Professor of Viola & Violin at The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, faculty at the Killington Music Festival and principal viola of the Laredo Philharmonic.

Curriculum Vitae

Joel Pagan, Prof.
Strings: Viola/Violin
School of Music
Email: joel.pagan@utrgv.edu
Performing Arts Complex B2.129
Phone: (956) 665-3677

Michael Quantz, Prof.

Guitar Ensemble
956-882-7527
michael.quantz@utrgv.edu
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Dr. Michael Quantz is an internationally recognized and leading advocate for guitar education. He is the recipient of the University of Texas System Regents’ Outstanding Teaching Award and the University of Texas at Brownsville/Texas Southmost College President’s Outstanding Teaching Award and he served as the Director of Education for the Guitar Foundation of America (GFA). He has presented clinics for numerous school districts in the US, the GFA and the Texas Music Educators Association Conference (the world’s largest music teacher conference). He has many years of experience in performance adjudication, having judged the prestigious GFA International Artist Competition, the University of Texas at Dallas Classical Guitar Competition, the Beatty Competition (Washington, DC), and many University Interscholastic League contests. In addition, he was the creator and director of the GFA’s International Youth Competition and Guitar Ensemble Showcase.

Dr. Quantz has conducted guitar ensembles across the nation. In August, 2015 he co-directed the UT Brownsville/Texas Southmost College Flautarra ensemble in a feature concert during the National Flute Association convention in Washington DC. In June of 2015 he conducted the UT Brownsville/Texas Southmost College Guitar Orchestra as the featured university performers at the GFA convention in Oklahoma City. He led the UT Brownsville One O'clock Guitars on a two week tour of Austria in July 2014 that included performances at the Schoenbrunn Palace and the US Embassy in Vienna. In June of 2014 he directed the guitar orchestra for the Congresso National de Guitarra de Nicaragua and spent a week teaching lessons and master classes for students who traveled from all over Central America to attend.

After receiving a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in guitar performance from the University of North Texas, he directed the Guitar Studies and Estudiantina programs at the Lopez Fine Arts Academy in Brownsville, Texas. Under his leadership, this program grew into one of the largest competitive high school guitar programs in the United States. During his tenure at Lopez, the College Board and the J. Paul Getty Trust selected him as the Site Coordinator for a multi-year project entitled: The Role of the Arts in the High School Curriculum.

Dr. Quantz is a respected and sought after classical guitar teacher. He enjoyed notable success developing the guitar division at UT Brownsville/Texas Southmost College into a dynamic, award-winning, and highly regarded program that is recognized as one of the best in the United States. His students have distinguished themselves individually as top prize winners in the Eastfield Collegiate Competition, Houston’s Classical Minds Festival, the UT Pan Am Competition, and also as top ten performers in the UT-Dallas Texas Solo Guitar Competition and the Corpus Christi Young Artists Competition in a group representing the world’s top music conservatories. Under his direction the UTB/TSC Guitar Orchestra was twice featured on the internationally syndicated "Guitar Alive!" show on National Public Radio. He is also the creator/director of the Annual Brownsville Guitar Ensemble Festival and Competition which draws participants from all over the nation and is the second largest classical guitar event in the nation.

Curriculum Vitae

Michael Quantz, Prof.
Guitar Ensemble
School of Music
Email: michael.quantz@utrgv.edu
Brownsville: Eidman 204
Phone: 956-882-7527

Mark Ramirez, Prof.

Percussion Ensemble
956-665-8762
mark.ramirez@utrgv.edu
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Dr. Mark Joseph Ramírez is Professor of Percussion at The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. As an artist, Mark has performed and collaborated under the direction of some of the leading musical authorities in the field composition, including Pulitzer Prize-winning composers John Corigliano, David Del Tredici and William Bolcom and Prix de Rome recipient Kevin Puts. He has performed with internationally acclaimed jazz and classical artists Ernie Watts, Eddie Daniels, Greg Abate, Jeff Jarvis, Dick Oats, Steve Wiest, Gordon Stout, Phil Smith, and performed as a guest Soloist with the Rio Grande Valley Symphony Orchestra.

As a scholar, Dr. Ramírez has received invitations to present and perform at the International Conference on Caribbean Studies, the Southwestern Conference on Latin American Studies, the Percussive Arts Society International Convention, and the American Association of Hispanic in Higher Education. In addition, Dr. Ramírez was awarded a 2008-2009 Faculty Fellowship from the American Association of Hispanics in Higher Education and the 2015 Kerspit (X, Y)-honor Artist in Residency Fellow in Gent, Belgium. Other work includes six pending publications of original compositions for Marimba entitled Psalm, Despedidas, and Wooden Landscapes: IV Landscapes for Marimba. In the fall of 2012, I completed a collaboration with Fulbright SIR Scholar Mark Cloet (artist and sculptor). An exhibition entitled C. Stone was showcased at the International Museum of Art and Science in McAllen, TX. The exhibit ran for six months, from October 2012 through February 2013. My contribution to the exhibition resulted in a five movement original composition entitled Transformation of Stone. The first two movements were recorded at Breed Music in Dallas, TX in collaboration with 2012 84th Oscar Academy Award Winner John Hunter.

Curriculum Vitae

Mark Ramirez, Prof.
Percussion Ensemble
School of Music
Email: mark.ramirez@utrgv.edu
Edinburg: Performing Arts Complex B1.125
Phone: 956-665-8762

Steven Block, Prof.

Dean, College of Fine Arts
(956) 665-2175
steven.block@utrgv.edu
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Steven Block was born in New York City on November 5, 1952. He is currently Dean of the College of Fine Arts at the University of Texas – Rio Grande Valley after having served as Chair of the Department of Music at the university of New Mexico for 17 years. As Dean, he is building new Arts programs, including that of the School of Music, from two separate legacy campuses. Block has appeared in the various personae of composer, music theorist, music critic, pianist, and both classical radio and disco d.j., among others. His compositions have been performed worldwide including performances in Australia, Paris, and Poland. His articles as a music theorist and music critic have appeared in such journals and magazines as Perspectives of New Music, Integrales, Music Theory Spectrum, the Journal of Music Theory, the Annual Review of Jazz Studies, Music Library Notes, and High Fidelity.

Block has studied with some of the most innovative composers and theorists in the world including David Stock, a pioneer in the promotion of contemporary music; Robert Morris, one of the leading contemporary music theorists and composers; A. Wayne Slawson, who has led the exploration of timbre as a musical component; and the internationally known and important late composers Franco Donatoni and Luciano Berio. Block was a Leonard Bernstein Fellow at the Berkshire Music Center (Tanglewood) in 1983. Block’s Piece for Two Cellos and eveningspun/black for solo piano have received competition awards.

Block has had a lifelong interest in Jazz, in particular “Free Jazz” (Cecil Taylor was on the faculty of Antioch College where Block received his B.A.) and has written several articles on the subject. His articles, “Pitch-Class Transformation in Free Jazz” (Music Theory Spectrum) and “Organized sound: Pitch-Class relations in the music of Ornette Coleman” (Annual Review of Jazz Studies) blazed important trails in being the first such specialized articles in these respective juried journals.

Block studied piano at a young age, notably with concert artist Zalic Jacobs, but matriculated at Antioch College in the writers program. At Antioch he met a number of influential music professors (David Stock, John Ronsheim, Daniel Lentz, and Cecil Taylor) and rediscovered his passion for music and music making. It was at Antioch College that he first began to think of himself as a composer having written his breakthrough composition, eveningspun/black for piano solo while listening to the Watergate hearings in a tent housed in the backyard of his then mentor David Stock.

After accumulating a portfolio of compositions at Antioch College, he moved on tostudy at the University of Iowa for his masters degree for two years where he wrote more than a half-dozen compositions, all of which received their premieres through the strong contemporary performance foundation of the Center for New Music. Block studied with William Hibbard and Donald Martin Jenni during this time. Among the highlights of this time were the performance of his free jazz-influenced Puttin’ it Together for 2 saxes, 2 doublebasses, and trapset (as performed by classical saxophone-trained artists) and Chemical Wedding for 5 flutes, 4 brass, and 3 percussion, a work based on artwork by Max Ernst. At the University of Iowa, Block began performing in a contemporary improvisation ensemble which he in turn eventually led in new iterations at Stanford University and the University of Pittsburgh.

The academic road following the masters degree at Iowa was more difficult as Block traversed four different schools (Stanford, CUNY-Graduate Center, University of Pittsburgh, and the Eastman School of Music) over the course of the next 12 years while pursuing a composition and teaching career and becoming a husband and father. During a two-year stay in New York City where he taught at Queens College as an adjunct, he wrote FireTiger for violin and piano (Elements Rising, Navona Records NV5990) and the Missa De Profundis. He received his Ph.D. in Music Composition and Theory in 1981 from the University of Pittsburgh (where his primary mentors were Robert Morris and A. Wayne Slawson) and went on to be A.B.D. at the Eastman School of Music for a second Ph.D. in Music Theory before accepting a full-time Assistant Professor position in Chicago. The 12 years during this fruitful period saw Block’s emergence as a composer in his acceptance to the Berkshire Music Center (Tanglewood), the performance of many of his works by the Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble, and a number of commissions for new works including his Piano Sonata No.1, the ballet Players, Thelonious Rex for chamber ensemble, Rockin’ Pneumonia for chamber ensemble, and Phantasmagoria for chamber orchestra. While in Pittsburgh he wrote many articles serving as the music critic for the entertainment weekly, Market Square of Pittsburgh. He also served as the music director and pianist for a weekend cabaret revue in Pittsburgh, writing and performing some of the popular music, and forming a relationship with Professor Myron Nadel (Carnegie-Mellon University) who directed the ensemble and who wrote the book for the musical The Ballet Man (staged and performed in Buffalo, NY in the ‘90s). A major compositional highlight of this time period was the writing of his full-length opera, The Tumbler of God, during his final year at the University of Pittsburgh while on a Mellon Fellowship. His three years at the Eastman School of Music were largely devoted to mastering the craft of music theory, emphasizing contemporary posttonal techniques, and most of his published work on music theory derives from the foundation learned at the Eastman School from such notable luminaries as Robert Morris, David Beach, and Robert Bailey. In his final year at Eastman, he accepted a teaching position at Northeastern
Illinois University in Chicago, Illinois.

Block joined the faculty of the University of New Mexico in 1989 where he spent much of his career building the Department of Music as Chair and increasing the number of academic faculty in composition, theory, musicology-ethnomusicology, and music education accordingly. As the head of a Department that grew from 170 majors to 400 majors and 60 faculty members, Block’s career as a composer has been more limited. Nevertheless, composition highlights from this time period include his String Quartet No.2, Shadows for orchestra (Fire and Time, Navona Records NV 5871; Shadows and Phantasmagoria form two movements of a projected large-scale
symponic work based on the same musical material), 5 Plainchants for Clarinet (Pinnacle, Navona Records, scheduled for release), and the most recent production of the operetta (part of a projected 3-operetta trilogy) Elisha and the Bears premiered by the UNM Opera (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FPmvotggabc).

In addition to the works described above (a portion of his opus during his quarter-century at the University of New Mexico), Block served the University of New Mexico and the profession by serving on the board of the Albuquerque Youth Symphony and John Donald Robb Trust, acting annually as a Question Leader for the AP Music Theory Exams, chairing visiting accreditation teams for the National Association of Schools of Music and serving on the NASM Commission for the full-term length (6 years).

Steven Block is also an active mediator, participating in several mediations every month for the Metro Court system in Albuquerque, Faculty Dispute Resolution (Ombuds) and other Dispute Resolution organizations and is often asked to coach new mediators for private organizations. He has served as cantor and music director at various churches and has written and arranged a number of sacred works for a cappella choir. He is married to Stephanie Block, a free-lance writer who also wrote the libretto for his operas (The Tumbler of God, Elisha and the Bears, and East of the Moon, West of the Sun) and whose artwork often graces the cover pages of his scores. They have 7 children, all of whom have pursued varied roads in their lives from religious sister to air force pilot (daughters), and teacher to police officer (sons) while, at this writing, blessing the Blocks with 19 grandchildren.

William Zagorski of Fanfare writes of Block’s orchestral movement Shadows: "His skillful use of tuned percussion gives several passages a gamelanlike quality reminiscent of Messaien. The long-note passages...and their harmonic suspensions are wonderful. I impatiently await the completion of this Symphony."

Curriculum Vitae

Steven Block, Prof.
Dean, College of Fine Arts
College of Fine Arts
Email: steven.block@utrgv.edu
Brownsville SETB 1.506 Edinburg ELABS 334
Phone: (956) 665-2175
Fax: 956-665-2177

Pedro Martinez, Prof.

Brass: Trombone, Latin Band
(956) 665-3182
pedro.martinez@utrgv.edu
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Dr. Martinez is currently serving his 13^th year as a faculty member of the School of Music at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, formerly named University of Texas - Pan American. In the 12+ years of service at this institution, 7 of those years were served in the capacity of Department Chair for the Department of Music and Dance. Since 2004, Dr. Martinez has proudly dedicated himself to ensure excellence in teaching, performance and service in the Rio Grande Valley. Dr. Martinez is currently serving the School of Music in the capacity of Associate Professor of Music, where his responsibilities are to teach all aspects related to the trombone studio, be it through applied lessons, low brass methods, trombone pedagogy, or as director of the trombone choir and One O’clock Latin Band. In regard to his teaching philosophy, he firmly believes that versatility is an important asset for successful administrators, artists, and teachers in music. The experience he gained from performing in diverse musical ensembles and teaching in both musical and non-musical settings have given him a well-rounded understanding of many educational and instructional techniques that he uses on a daily basis with his students. At both UTRGV and UTPA, he has been fortunate to teach a wide variety of classes where he has made use of these skills. Courses taught by Dr. Martinez include Applied Low Brass (trombone, euphonium, and tuba from 2004-2006), Brass Methods/Techniques, Music Appreciation, One O’clock Latin Band, Jazz Combo, Secondary Methods, Brass Pedagogy, Brass Literature, and he re-established a Spirit/Pep Band, Brass Ensemble, and secured funding for the inception of the Drum Line even though it was outside of his area of specialization.

Curriculum Vitae

Pedro Martinez, Prof.
Brass: Trombone, Latin Band
School of Music
Email: pedro.martinez@utrgv.edu
EPACB 2.111
Phone: (956) 665-3182

Juan Andrade, Assoc.

Prof., Piano
(956) 882-8247
juan.andrade@utrgv.edu
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George J. Amorim, Assoc. Prof.

Strings: Double Bass
(956) 665-2869
george.amorim@utrgv.edu
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George Amorim is Associate Professor of Double Bass at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley and director of the annual ¡Viva el Bajo! South Texas Double Bass Festival.

Dr. Amorim’s career is marked by versatility and creativity as a performer and educator with teaching and performances engagements that have taken him to Europe and across Central, South and North Americas.

George earned a doctoral degree from the University of North Texas where he studied under the world-renowned performer and pedagogue Jeff Bradetich. He also holds a Master of Music from Baylor University and a Bachelor Degree from the Ceará State University.

In addition, George has also pursued studies with Francesco Petracchi and he also devotes time to the study of historical performance practices subject in which he has received instruction from David Sinclair and Robert Nairn.

George performed for several years with the Paraná State and Recife Symphony Orchestras in Brazil as well as with the Santo Domingo Music Festival Orchestra under Philippe Entremont. He is currently principal double bassist with the Corpus Christi Symphony Orchestra and most recently he was invited to travel to Yerevan, capital of Armenia representing the USA in the 24/04 World Orchestra for a concert in remembrance of the 100^th Year of the Armenian Genocide.

An educator in demand, Dr. Amorim’s articles on double bass pedagogy has been published by Bass World and Strings magazines. He has been a featured clinician, adjudicator and consultant in several states and abroad, such as the Texas Music Educators Association Convention, the International Society of Bassists Convention, the Chicago Bass Festival and the European Double Bass Congress.

Dr. Amorim heads a thriving double bass studio at UTRGV, which is comprised of some of the most gifted young bass players from the RGV and a handful of equally talented international students. He also founded and directs the ¡Viva el Bajo!, an organization that promotes double bass playing in South Texas and helps inspire and guide young musicians in their studies of the double bass.

Dr. Amorim spends his summers teaching and performing in various programs and this past summer he joined the artist-faculty of the Nuevo Mundo Festival in Aruba and the Campamento de Cuerdas in Puerto Rico.

George performs on an unlabeled mid-1700’s bass, a 1860 French bass and an Aaron Reiley’s copy of a 1756 M.I. Stadlmann Viennese violone and several modern and historical bows, including a modern German bow by Marco Pasquino, a baroque bow by Antonio Airenti and a couple of transitional bows made by Ed Shillitoe.

Visiting Artists

Double Bass students at UTRGV have the unique opportunity to hear and work with some of the finest musicians in the world through master classes and clinics.

Visiting artists are made possible through the generous support of local and nationwide consortia of music businesses, the UTRGV School Music, the COFA Dean’s Office and the ¡Viva el Bajo! Educational Services.

Listed below are some of the artists who have visited our school to perform and teach:

Thierry Barbé, Solo Bassist at the Paris Opera (2016)
Philip Alejo Professor at University of Arizona (2016)
Bret Simner, Viennese Violone/Early Music Specialist (2016)
P. Kellach Waddle, Austin Symphony/Composer (2016)
Joel Quarrington, London Symphony Principal Bassist (2015)
Barry Green, The Inner Game of Music (2015)
Mark Morton, Professor at Texas Tech University (2012-2016)
Jessica Gilliam-Valls, Austin Symphony/Southwestern University (2015)
Paul Unger, Fort Worth Symphony (2015)
Heran Yang, TianYang Liu, ChengYin Lu, The T.R.Y Ensemble (2015)
Carlos Gaviria, Professor at Stephen F. Austin University (201 and 2015)
Sonia Martinez, Young Bass specialist (2008-2015)
Erik Unsworth, UT El Paso (2015)
Antonio Hernandez, Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo Leon, MX (2014)
Jack Unzicker, Professor at UT Arlington (2014)
James VanDemark, Eastman School of Music Double Bass Professor and concert artist (2011/2013)
Ciro Vigilante, Vienna Chamber Orchestra (2013)
Greg Hamilton, Concordia Collene, MN (2012)
Robert Nairn, Penn State/Juilliard School of Music (2012)
Nick Scales, West Texas A&M (2012)
David Dawson, Austin Symphony /Texas State University (2012)
Francesco Petracchi, World renowned soloist and pedagogue (2012)
Tony Parry, Louisiana Philharmonic (2012)
Christopher Buddo, Director of the Eastern Carolina University School of Music and concert artist (2011)
Alexandre Ritter, Soloist and Professor of Double Bass at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul in Brazil (2011)
Jeff Bardetich, University of North Texas Double Bass Professor and concert artist (2008, 2010)
Catalin Rotaru, Arizona State University Double Bass Professor, concert and recording artist (2009)
Gudrun Raschen, Tarleton State University Double Bass Professor and concert artist (2008)
Sonya Ray, Federal University of Goiás Double Bass Professor and Scholar (2008)
Tony Rosario, Abilene Philharmonic Principal Bass (2009)
Carolina Melchiori, Edinboro University of Pennsylvania Double Bass Professor (2009)
Joao Titton, Professor at State University of Santa Catarina, Brazil (2007)

Check out:

www.vivaelbajo.org

www.georgeamorim.com

Curriculum Vitae

George J. Amorim, Assoc. Prof.
Strings: Double Bass
School of Music
Email: george.amorim@utrgv.edu
PACB 2.108
Phone: (956) 665-2869

Rebecca Coberly, Assoc.

Prof., Voice
(956) 665-7154
rebecca.coberly@utrgv.edu
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Soprano Rebecca Coberly is a versatile performer as a recitalist, concert soloist, and on the musical stage. She is a frequent solo recitalist, performing throughout the United States and internationally on concerts in Barcelona, Spain and throughout Germany. She recently appeared as soprano soloist in Poulenc’s Gloria with the Valley Symphony Orchestra, and with the Tulsa Oratorio Chorus in their recent performance of Barber’s Prayers of Kierkegaard and Theofanidis’s The Here and Now, Other concert performances include Beethoven’s 9th’ Symphony, Carmina Burana, Rutter’s Requiem, Karl Jenkins’ The Armed Man: A Mass for Peace, Mozart’s Requiem, J. S. Bach’s Jauchzet Gott in Allen Landen and performances of Messiah on tour in Ireland and Great Britain with the American Oratorio Chorus. She was winner of the Texas Tech University Symphony Orchestra Concert Competition, performing four orchestral songs by Joseph Marx with the Texas Tech Chamber Orchestra. Opera and musical theatre roles include Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro, Baby Doe in The Ballad of Baby Doe, Giulietta in I Capuleti e i Montecchi, Mrs. Darling in Peter Pan (Bernstein), and Mother Abbess in The Sound of Music.

Rebecca has attended summer programs at the Aspen Music Festival, the American Institute of Music in Graz, and, mostly recently, the artist-teacher Advanced Artist program at OperaWorks. She holds a Doctor of Musical Arts in Vocal Performance from Texas Tech University, a Master of Music in Vocal Performance from Rice University, a Bachelor of Arts in Music from Northwestern University, and is currently Associate Professor of Voice at The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley.

Curriculum Vitae

Rebecca Coberly, Assoc.
Prof., Voice
School of Music
Email: rebecca.coberly@utrgv.edu
Edinburg: Performing Arts Complez B1.119
Phone: (956) 665-7154

Jonathan Guist, Assoc.

Prof., Winds: Clarinet Ensemble
(956) 882-8808
jonathan.guist@utrgv.edu
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Dr. Jonathan Guist is Associate Professor of music at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, where he teaches applied clarinet, clarinet ensemble and chamber music. He holds a D.M.A. from the Eastman School of Music, a M.M. from Baylor University and a B.M.E. from New Mexico State University. Principal teachers include Kenneth Grant, Richard Shanley, and Laroy Borchert. Dr. Guist’s previous teaching engagements have included the Eastman School of Music, Nazareth College, Baylor University, the Hochstein School of Music and Dance, and the Conservatory of Central Illinois.

Dr. Guist holds the position of Co-principal Clarinet with the Valley Symphony Orchestra (Edinburg, TX) and also appears frequently as a soloist and chamber musician throughout the United States and internationally. His recent engagements include performances as featured soloist with the Valley Symphony Orchestra, UTRGV Symphony Orchestra, and UTRGV Wind Ensemble and a solo recital at the Escuela de Artes Musicales, Universidad de Costa Rica. Additional appearances include lectures, clinics and performances at conferences of the International Clarinet Association, National Flute Association, Texas Music Educators Association, College Music Society, National Association of College Wind and Percussion Instructors and the International Double Reed Society and as an adjudicator for Music Teachers National Association, Texas Music Educators Association and Texas UIL Solo & Ensemble.

Dr. Guist is a strong advocate for chamber music and new music and has been involved in the commission of several new works for chamber ensemble. Additionally, he is a founding member of the Frontera Chamber Music Society whose mission is to advance and promote chamber music through inspiring community performance, education and outreach.

Curriculum Vitae

Jonathan Guist, Assoc.
Prof., Winds: Clarinet Ensemble
School of Music
Email: jonathan.guist@utrgv.edu
Brownsville: Eidman 2018
Phone: (956) 882-8808

Daniel Hunter-Holly, Assoc. Prof.

Voice, Opera
956-882-7178
daniel.hunterholly@utrgv.edu
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Susan Hurley-Glowa, Assoc.

Prof., Ethnomusicology
(956) 882-8247
susan.hurleyglowa@utrgv.edu
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Krista Jobson, Assoc. Prof.

Winds: Flute, Flute Ensemble
956-665-7227
krista.jobson@utrgv.edu
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Dr. Krista Jobson, flutist, enjoys an active career as a soloist, chamber musician, orchestral player, and teacher. A frequent guest artist and masterclass clinician, Dr. Jobson has performed and given masterclasses at universities and schools in AL, CA, CO, FL, GA, KS, KY, MA, MO, SC, TN, TX, and also in Australia, Germany, Japan, France, and Mexico.

Dr. Jobson serves as Assistant Professor of Flute at the University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley (Edinburg, TX), where she instructs flute, directs the UTRGV Flautistas Ensemble, and coaches woodwind chamber music.

A versatile performer, Dr. Jobson is currently Co-Principal Flute of the Valley Symphony Orchestra (Edinburg, TX) and sings as a member of both the Valley Symphony Chorale and the newly-formed Valley Choral Artists. She is also Principal Flute of the Tradewinds Recording Ensemble for Carl Fischer, Co-Principal Flute of the International Fellowship of Conductors, Composers and Collaborators Ensemble (IFC3), Flutist for the CrossWinds Wind Quintet and Flutist in the Cherry Street Flute Duo. Her recent concerto performances include solo appearances with the Valley Symphony Orchestra, Taffelmusik (Matamoros, Mexico), Musiche Doulos (McAllen, TX), the University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley Orchestra, UTRGV Clarinet Symphony, and the UTRGV Wind Ensemble (Edinburg, TX).

Previously, she performed for four years as a member of the concert band and woodwind quintet of the Band of the Air Force Reserve, an active-duty band based at Robins Air Force Base in Warner Robins, Georgia. Dr. Jobson served as Principal Flutist of the Topeka Symphony Orchestra from 2009 to 2011, and she has also given performances with the Spoleto USA Festival Orchestra, Spartanburg Philharmonic, Spartanburg Repertory Theater Orchestra, Spartanburg Children’s Theater Orchestra, and Brevard Symphony Youth Orchestra.

Prior to her faculty position at the University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley, Dr. Jobson served on the faculties of The University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music and Dance, Missouri Southern State University, Kansas City Kansas Community College, and held teaching positions at the Lawson Academy of the Arts in Spartanburg, SC, the Performing Arts Institute in Kingston, PA, and was Assistant Director of the Heartland Summer Chamber Music Academy in Overland Park, KS.

Dr. Jobson's principal flute teachers are Mary Posses, Christopher Vaneman, Christina Smith, Jean West, and Nancy Clew. She received her Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Flute Performance from the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music and Dance, where she held the flute position in the Fellowship Woodwind Quintet.

Dr. Jobson’s current and former students have enjoyed successes with competitive scholarships, prestigious masterclasses and fellowships, as well as summer programs, and have been accepted to top graduate programs. Many former students have attained jobs in public and private music education around the country, as well as internships and employment at arts centers and symphony orchestras internationally.

During the summer, Dr. Jobson serves as a faculty member at Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp, in Twin Lake, MI, where she has performed in solo recital, as flutist with the faculty woodwind quintet, and as Principal Flute of the faculty wind band and festival orchestra.

Curriculum Vitae

Krista Jobson, Assoc. Prof.
Winds: Flute, Flute Ensemble
School of Music
Email: krista.jobson@utrgv.edu
Edinburg: Performing Arts Complex B2.112
Phone: 956-665-7227

Brendan Kinsella, Assoc.

Prof., Piano
956-665-2874
brendan.kinsella@utrgv.edu
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“Brendan Kinsella presented the concert ‘Lisztomania’ on a date that could be daunting, October 22nd, 2011, the actually 200th birth anniversary of Franz Liszt, but you will hear that it didn’t seem to faze him at all. In fact, he attacked one of Liszt’s more famous transcriptions [Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, op. 67] with the passion and energy that Liszt required.”
-Bill Baker, host of Syracuse Public Radio’s “Concert Hall”.

“An amazing pianist.”
-The Houston Chronicle

“Pianist Brendan Kinsella did a great job of breathing life into arrangements [Radiohead-O’Riley transcriptions] that, in lesser hands, might deflate ever so slightly.”
-Andrew Sigler, NewMusicBox.org

Described as a “sensitive musician with an ear for color” by the Cincinnati Enquirer, pianist Brendan Kinsella’s recent concert engagements have taken him to New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Houston, Dallas, Holland, Italy, and other cities throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia. He earned his Bachelor (with honors) and Master of Music degrees at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music as a pupil of Frank Weinstock (with additional coaching from James Tocco and Kenneth Griffiths) and in 2008 received his Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Missouri-Kansas City as a student of Robert Weirich. In master classes, he has performed for artists such as Christopher Elton, Susan Graham, Martin Katz, Ani Kavafian, Anne-Akiko Meyers, Frederic Rzewski, Andre-Michel Schub, Peter Serkin, David Shifrin, Midori, and the Takacs Quartet. He completed his training as a Solo Piano Fellow at the Music Academy of the West, working under the guidance of Jerome Lowenthal, Professor of Piano at the Juilliard School. In 2010, he debuted as a soloist in Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall and was a featured concerto soloist at the prestigious Midwest Clinic in Chicago.

Kinsella has appeared in concerti ranging from Beethoven to Brahms to Barber with the Kentucky Symphony, the Jefferson City Symphony, the CCM Chamber and Concert Orchestras, the UMKC Conservatory Orchestra, and the UMKC Wind Symphony in collaboration with conductors Xian Zhang, Steve Davis, and Robert Olson. As a collaborative pianist, he has performed both as an orchestral pianist and in duo-recitals with members of the New World Symphony, the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, the Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra, the Omaha Symphony, the Dayton Philharmonic, the Kansas City Symphony and Lyric Opera, and in recital with artists such as Benny Kim, Carter Enyeart, Daniel Saenz, and his wife, Shoko. During the summers, he serves as an Artist-Teacher of Piano at the Maccagno Piano Days Festival and Competition.

A noted interpreter of all things dissonant, Kinsella’s all-contemporary recitals featuring the works of living masters and emerging voices have garnered wide acclaim. Of a performance of Rzewski’s De Profundis in Montecito, the Santa Barbara Daily Sound remarked that “Kinsella’s performance was truly astonishing, as he missed nary a beat nor tripped over any words. The sense of terror, misery, despair, disdain, and righteous anger was palpable, and the essay is ultimately life-affirming if horrifying…I’m glad to have heard it, especially by such a passionate and gifted pianist who clearly believed in his mission.” The Kansas City Star declared that his performances of George Crumb’s chamber repertoire were “marvelous…he displayed convincing tonal colors, impressive technique, and incisive rhythms.” Utrecht’s Le Bon Journal described a 2011 solo recital of Beethoven, Rzewski, Liszt, and Poulenc as characterized by the “indestructible force and optimism that Americans can radiate proverbially.” In 2014, his national concert tour of Rzewski’s ""The People United Will Never Be Defeated!"" was the subject of a full-length profile article in the Houston Chronicle and a corresponding interview on NPR.

Among Kinsella’s experiences as a lecturer and visiting artist at festivals and universities include engagements at the 2014 Texas A&M Contemporary Music Festival, the 2013 International Conference on Medieval and Renaissance Thought, the 2011 College Music Society South Central Conference, the 2010 Cal State Fullerton New Music Festival, the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, the SUNY Fredonia School of Music, the University of Iowa School of Music, and many others. His seminar topics have included lectures on keyboard music of the Italian Renaissance, recent developments in avant-garde American music, the influence of Greek philosophy on Olivier Messiaen’s piano music, and studies on the evolving role of the collaborative pianist in selected chamber repertoire.

A dedicated teacher, Kinsella presently serves as Assistant Professor of Piano at the University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley, where he teaches applied piano, chamber music, piano pedagogy, and piano literature. Members of his select studio of graduate and undergraduate pianists regularly participate in prestigious national and international summer festivals, perform in master classes for distinguished artists (such as Jerome Lowenthal, James Dick, and Adam Wodnicki), present their scholarly research at professional conferences, and gain admittance to prestigious master’s and doctoral programs nationwide. Before joining the faculty at UTPA, he was as a member of the piano area at Missouri Western State University and held graduate assistantships in piano and collaborative piano at CCM and UMKC.

Born 1980 in Cincinnati, Ohio, Kinsella began playing the piano at age 11 and made his concerto debut at 15. A live recording of his performance of Messiaen’s Oiseaux Exotiques at the Midwest Clinic is commercially available from the MarkRecords label, and his recording of Narong Prangcharoen’s chamber music was released on Albany records in 2012 to favorable reviews. His recent and upcoming engagements include a teaching residency at Xinghai Conservatory in China, a series of outreach concerts throughout Texas with his collegiate studio, and speaking on teaching advanced repertoire at the 2016 MTNA National Convention in San Antonio.

Curriculum Vitae

Brendan Kinsella, Assoc.
Prof., Piano
School of Music
Email: brendan.kinsella@utrgv.edu
Edinburg: Performing Arts Complex B1.109
Phone: 956-665-2874

Scott Roeder, Assoc.

Prof., Brass: Tuba, Euphonium
956-665-7134
scott.roeder@utrgv.edu
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Dr. Scott Roeder is Associate Professor of Tuba and Euphonium at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley where he teaches applied tuba/euphonium and conducts the UTRGV Brass Band and UTRGV Tuba/Euphonium Ensemble. Previously Dr. Roeder served as Principal Tubist with the Midland-Odessa Symphony, Lone Star Brass Quintet, and the Texas Music Festival. Currently he serves as Principal Tuba with the Valley Symphony Orchestra and serves as the Personnel Manager for the organization. Additional orchestral performances include the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, Canton Symphony, Illinois Symphony and many other professional orchestras throughout the country.

As a soloist Dr. Roeder has performed recitals at universities around the country and has been an invited performer at multiple ITEA Regional Tuba Euphonium Conferences as well as a guest artist at the 2012 and 2014 International Tuba Euphonium Conferences in Linz, Austria and Indiana University. Additionally he has been a featured soloist with the Midland-Odessa Symphony, Valley Symphony Orchestra, University of Akron Symphony, Odessa College Band, and the UTPA Wind Ensemble and UTPA String Orchestra. Dr. Roeder has been a prize winner in multiple regional solo competitions and was named a semi-finalist for the Leornard Falcone International Tuba Competition (1999 and 2000) and the 2000 International Tuba Euphonium Conference Solo Artist Tuba Competition in Regina, Saskatchewan.

As an educator Dr. Roeder previously taught at Wayland Baptist University, the University of Akron, and served as the low brass instructor for the Midland, Odessa, and Crane (TX) school districts. Other teaching positions have included the Wisconsin Summer Music Clinic, Baylor University Summer Music Camp, Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp, and Sewanee Summer Music Festival. Dr. Roeder has also presented sessions at the 2004 International Tuba Euphonium Conference in Budapest, Hungary and the 2010 International Tuba Euphonium Conference in Tucson, Arizona. He is the author of the book “Tuba Tutor”, a pedagogical text on solo tuba literature. Dr. Roeder has also served as an adjudicator at the Leonard Falcone International Euphonium and Tuba Competition and the International Tuba Euphonium Conference. Dr. Roeder’s students have advanced in numerous international competitions and have held positions in the US Army Bands and other professional music ensembles.

Dr. Roeder received his Bachelors in Music Education at the University of Illinois, Masters in Music Performance from the University of Akron, and in 2008 received his DMA from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. His teachers include John Stevens, Tucker Jolly, Mark Moore, Sam Pilafian, and Pat Sheridan.

Curriculum Vitae

Scott Roeder, Assoc.
Prof., Brass: Tuba, Euphonium
School of Music
Email: scott.roeder@utrgv.edu
Edinburg: Performing Arts Complex B2.115
Phone: 956-665-7134

David Sadlier, Assoc.

Prof. Voice, Opera
956-665-2860
david.sadlier@utrgv.edu
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David Sadlier has been praised for both his vocal and dramatic abilities and hailed as "one of America's leading dramatic tenors" (Oxford Mail). Dr. Sadlier's opera credits include appearances with the Lyric Opera of Baltimore, Chicago Opera Theater, Glimmerglass Opera, Opera Theatre of St. Louis, New Orleans Opera, Opera Circle of Cleveland, Opera North, and the Baltimore Concert Opera. Fortunate to be involved in many new works, Dr. Sadlier has performed several world premieres including Loss of Eden (Opera Theater of St. Louis), the title role in Thamos: King of Egypt (Opera Circle of Cleveland), Our Town and the collegiate debut of A View From the Bridge (Indiana University). Most recently, Dr. Sadlier appeared in Tosca with the Lyric Opera of Baltimore and both Carmen and Tosca with The Baltimore Concert Opera. He returned to Opera Circle of Cleveland as Edrisi in Szymanowski's Krol Roger where he also performed Tebaldo in I Capuletti e i Montecchi, and the role of Fritz Kobus in L'Amico Fritz. In addition, the tenor covered the role of Siegmund in Virginia Opera's recent production of Die Walküre. Concert appearances include a world premier song cycle, All ye know on Earth with the St. Anne's Camerata (Oxford), Handel’s Messiah with the Virginia Symphony Orchestra with Maestro Joanne Falletta;Britten's Serenade under the baton of Richard Hughey, Mozart's Requiem with the Battle Creek Symphony, Britten's Saint Nicolas with the Kokomo Symphony Orchestra, Haydn's Lord Nelson Mass and Brahms' Liebeslieder Walzes with the Lafayette Bach Chorale, Vaughan Williams' Serenade to Music with the Indianapolis Symphony, and several performances with the Valley Symphony Orchestra.

Equally at home on the recital stage, Dr. Sadlier has performed many major works including Die schöne Müllerin, Dichterliebe, An die ferne Geliebte, On Wenlock Edge, andFinzi's O fair to see and been featured at major international venues including London’s Church of St. Martin in the Fields, Oxford’s Jacqueline du Pré Music Room and The Schumann-Haus in Zwickau, Germany. Dr. Sadlier collaborates in recital with his wife, pianist, Dr. Lelia Molthrop Sadlier. The duo specialize in theme-specific recitals and past performances have featured songs of William Shakespeare and, most recently, World War I.

Dr. Sadlier currently serves as Assistant Professor of Voice at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley where he teaches applied voice, language diction, and serves as operatic conductor and stage director. Dr. Sadlier's students have distinguished themselves as winners of regional competitions, and through admittance to nationally and internationally recognized summer training programs and leading graduate programs such as the Manhattan School of Music, the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University, the University of Michigan, the New England Conservatory of Music, and the Longy School of Music. Dr. Sadlier continues to serve as a guest clinician and recitalist at universities and institutes throughout the country; including Florida State University, The University of Colorado Boulder, Radford University, University of Southern Mississippi, Nicholls State University, SUNY Geneseo, the Interlochen School for the Arts, Montana State University, Western Illinois University, Albion College, and the Baldwin-Wallace Conservatory. Dr. Sadlier has also served as a guest-lecturer at St. Anne's College, Oxford.

In the summer of 2011, Dr. Sadlier founded The Cornish American Song Institute (CASI) based in Falmouth, Cornwall, UK. The Institute is a three-week study of art-song for singers, pianists, and composers. The Institute provides applied music lessons, musical coachings, English Music Classes, tours of historic sites in England, and presents several concerts. In addition, CASI spends one-week in Oxford engaging in lectures and master classes with musical luminaries from the University of Oxford and Trinity College in London. CASI has become a leading training ground for art song performers whose alumni have gone on to distinguish themselves in their young careers.

Dr. Sadlier earned the Doctor of Music degree from The Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University where he continues to study with Andreas Poulimenos. While at IU he served as an Associate Instructor of Voice for four years. Dr. Sadlier also holds a Masters degree in vocal performance from Indiana University as well as a Bachelor of Music from Loyola University in New Orleans.

Curriculum Vitae

David Sadlier, Assoc.
Prof. Voice, Opera
School of Music
Email: david.sadlier@utrgv.edu
Edinburg: Performing Arts Complex
Phone: 956-665-2860

Kenneth Saxon, Assoc.

Prof., Piano
956-882-8267
kenneth.saxon@utrgv.edu
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Pianist, Kenneth Saxon has performed as a soloist and collaborative pianist on three continents, including appearances at the Esplanade in Singapore and performances at the IBLA Grand Prize in Ibla, Sicily where he was awarded special recognition as anOutstanding Performer. Known for his wide-ranging repertoire, he has given numerous premieres while also exploring in depth the standard repertoire from Bach to Bartok. His performances are characterized by the passionate commitment of his playing, the clarity of his musical ideas, and his dedication to a beautiful sound.

In 2005, Saxon released his first solo recording, 13 Preludes, Op. 32 by Sergei Rachmaninoff (Plum 052). Saxon has given complete performances of the Op. 32 Preludes on numerous occasions in the United States, Mexico, and Italy. Listeners have noted the pianist's dedication to Rachmaninoff's score and his success in bringing the music to life as the composer intended it.

He has recorded Kawai Shiu’s “clear shade” for the CD, music of kawai shiu (SSR0004) and Shiu’s “Winter Tide” for the CD, eXchange:China (CRI805). During the spring of 2005, he premiered Shiu’s piano piece la negacion de simbolos which was written for him. In the spring of 2012, Saxon’s contemporary music ensemble, Sin Fronterasperformed the music of Kawai Shiu during a special visiting composer event at the University of Texas at Brownsville/Texas Southmost College.

As a collaborative pianist Saxon has performed hundreds of concerts. Notable collaborators include performers Alexa Still, Stafford and Rebecca Turner, Jonathan Noffsinger, Andrea Dawson, composer Sir Harrison Birtwistle, and conductors Frederick Fennel and Louis Lane.

He holds a DMA in piano performance from the University of Alabama where he was awarded a Graduate Council Fellowship. His teachers include Amanda Penick, Helen Ramsaur, Elizabeth Buday, Anthony di Bonaventura and Bela Nagy.

Curriculum Vitae

Kenneth Saxon, Assoc.
Prof., Piano
School of Music
Email: kenneth.saxon@utrgv.edu
Brownsville: Eidman 120D
Phone: 956-882-8267

Justin Writer, Assoc. Prof.

Music Theory/Composition
956-665-2890
justin.writer@utrgv.edu
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Justin Writer is Associate Professor of Composition and Music Theory at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. Writer’s music is performed by professional and university ensembles throughout the United States, Europe, Mexico, and South America. Among groups that have performed Writer’s works include the October Trio, Crouse Quartet, Levande Musik, ContemporarY Ensemble, Konza Winds, Duo Avanzondo, Springfield Symphony Orchestra and Chorus (Massachusetts), Bozeman Symphony Orchestra and Symphonic Choir, Wichita State University Wind Ensemble, Emporia State Concert Band, Pittsburg State University Wind Ensemble, University of Texas-Pan American Wind Ensemble, Quintet Oklahoma, and Quartetto Saloma. His music is published by Cimarron Music Press, Media Press, Fatrock Ink, Echelon Music, and Really Good Music. Fantasia and Five Images From Early Earth can be heard on Duo Avanzando's debut CD.

Awards, honors, and special performances include ASCAPLUS awards (2007-2014), International Trumpet Guild (2015), CMS South Central Chapter (2009), 2012 International Tuba/Euphonium Conference, 2011 International Tuba/Euphonium South Central Regional Conference, 2012 North American Saxophone Alliance, 2012 Chicago Bass Festival, 2010 SCI Region 6 Conference, 2010 and 2011 CMS National Conferences, winner of the Wichita State University Contemporary Music Festival Competition (1999, 2000), winner of Levande Musik’s Live Elevator Project (2008), Voxnovus 60X60 Midwest Minutes Mix (2006), work selected for 2009 Nashville Sound Crawl, work selected for the University of Nebraska at Kearney New Music Festival (2007), work selected for the Seventh International Festival of Contemporary Art, Mexico, 2000, Finalist, 1997 BMG National Young Composers Competition, Pi Kappa Lambda, and Kappa Kappa Psi.

Writer received his D.M.A in Composition from the University of Oklahoma, his M.M. in Theory/Composition from Wichita State University, and a B.M.E. from Pittsburg State University (Kansas). Dr. Writer’s principal composition teachers include Marvin Lamb, Walter Mays, Robert Deemer, Katherine Ann Murdock, Evan Hause, and Stephen Andrew Taylor.

Curriculum Vitae

Justin Writer, Assoc. Prof.
Music Theory/Composition
School of Music
Email: justin.writer@utrgv.edu
Edinburg: Performing Arts Complex B2.131
Phone: 956-665-2890

Andres R. Amado, Assist. Prof.

Ethnomusicology
956-665-2944
andres.amado@utrgv.edu
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Dr. Andrés R. Amado teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in music history, world music, research methods, ethnomusicology, and courses cross-listed with the department of anthropology, the Mexican American Studies program, and the Center for Gender and Women Studies. His research focuses on the music of Latin America, particularly Guatemala, where he studies issues of race and ethnicity, musical nationalism, and cosmopolitanism and transnationalism. He incorporates methodologies from ethnographic fieldwork, archival research, and musical analysis. He has contributed entries to the second edition of the Grove Dictionary of Musical Instruments and the forthcoming edition of Music in Geschichte und Gegenwart (MGG). He has published papers in peer-reviewed journals in ethnomusicology and cultural studies in English and Spanish.

As a musician, Dr. Amado has performed with various Western and non-Western ensembles. He has extensive experience in choral music as a singer, conductor, and arranger, and has performed with the Phoenix Symphony Chorus (Phoenix, Arizona), the Valley Chamber Chorale (Phoenix, Arizona), the Salt Lake Choral Artists (Salt Lake City, Utah), the Texas Choral Consort (Austin, Texas), The Valley Symphony Orchestra and Chorale (McAllen, Texas), and the Valley Choral Artists (Edinburg, Texas). He has also played in the UTRGV African Drumming Ensemble (Edinburg, Texas), the UT Javanese Gamelan (Austin, Texas), the ASU Javanese gamelan (Tempe, Arizona), the UT Caribbean Ensemble (Austin, Texas), and the Marimba Maderas de Comitán (Tempe, Arizona).

Andrés Amado holds a Ph.D. from The University of Texas at Austin (Austin, Texas), a Master’s from Arizona State University (Tempe, Arizona), and a Bachelor’s from Brigham Young University (Provo, Utah).

Curriculum Vitae

Andres R. Amado, Assist. Prof.
Ethnomusicology
School of Music
Email: andres.amado@utrgv.edu
Edinburg: Performing Arts Complex B1.117
Phone: 956-665-2944

Jared Broussard, Assist.

Prof. Trumpet
(956) 665-3771
jared.broussard@utrgv.edu
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Dr. Jared Broussard is Assistant Professor of Trumpet at The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. He earned his D.M.A. and Masters Degrees from The University of Texas at Austin and holds a Bachelors of Music degree from Virginia Commonwealth University. Broussard’s primary teachers are Ray Sasaki, Rex Richardson, and Jim West. He has previously served on the faculty of the University of Mary Hardin Baylor in Belton, Texas.

Broussard is an avid performer and is adept in a variety of styles of music. He is currently a member of the Dallas Wind Symphony and is Principal Trumpet of the Valley Symphony Orchestra. Previously, he was Principal Trumpet of Marine Band San Diego and a member of the Marine Corps Brass Quintet. He also served in the unit’s Ceremonial Band, Rock Band and Party Band. Because of his outstanding musical accomplishments and exceptional leadership as a Non-Commissioned Officer, Broussard was twice awarded as Marine Musician of the Year for Marine Band San Diego during his time in the Marine Corps. He has frequently performed with the Austin Symphony Orchestra, Abilene Symphony Orchestra, Brazos Valley Symphony Orchestra, the Chamber Orchestra of San Antonio, and the Richmond Symphony Orchestra amongst others. Dr. Broussard is ever active as a soloist and chamber musician. He has been a semi-finalist as a soloist in the National Trumpet Competition and has given solo recitals across the Unites States and abroad. As a chamber musician, Broussard is busy performing with the Wraith Ensemble, which is a collective of musicians that focuses on performing new music. He has performed with trumpet ensembles at multiple International Trumpet Guild conference, most recently at the ITG conference at San Antonio in 2018. He is in demand as a freelance artist; often performing in brass quintets with many of the United States’ best brass musicians. Broussard has also performed in recital with famed percussionist Nebojsa Zivkovic at PASIC in 2011. Jared plays Lead Trumpet with the Gabriel Santiago Jazz Orchestra, which performs frequently in Austin and periodically in Brazil. As a jazz/commercial musician, Broussard has performed on tour with The Temptations and has had the pleasure of performing with Maria Schneider, John Clayton, Joshua Redman, Wycliffe Gordon and other jazz greats. He is currently collaborating with folk artist Sean Bruce on multiple projects. Broussard has extensive touring experience having toured nationally and internationally in many of the world’s greatest venues to rave reviews as a recitalist, chamber musician, and large ensemble musician.

As an educator, Dr. Broussard enjoys opening up the world of music to his students. He has taught every level of student from beginners to professionals and his students have had much success not only as students but also as professional musicians later on in their careers. Broussard has taught privately in Louisiana, California, Virginia, and Texas and has been invited to be on the faculty of the InterHarmony Music Festival in Sulzbach-Rosenberg, Germany and Acqui Terme, Italy. Many of his private studio students have gone on to make various local, regional, and All-State Bands and Orchestras. His collegiate trumpet students enjoy working as professional trumpet players and many have gone on to be successful band directors. He is in demand as a clinician and has given lectures on military music, trumpet pedagogy and performance anxiety at universities and at state music educator association conferences. Dr. Broussard currently teaches Applied Trumpet and conducts the UTRGV Trumpet Ensembles.

Broussard is a mainstay on the music scene wherever his travels take him. He aspires to introduce audiences to ways of experiencing the trumpet in new and interesting concepts.

Jared Broussard, Assist.
Prof. Trumpet
School of Music
Email: jared.broussard@utrgv.edu
EPAC B2.117
Phone: (956) 665-3771
Phone Alt: 956-665-3471

William Haugeberg, Assist. Prof.

Euphonium/Trombone/Tuba
(956) 882-7700
william.haugeberg@utrgv.edu
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Dr. William (Bill) Haugeberg is currently the Assistant Professor of Low Brass at The University of Texas at Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) in Brownsville, Texas. Prior to his appointment at UTRGV, Dr. Haugeberg taught at Tarleton State University (Stephenville, TX), Albany State University (Albany, GA) and was a graduate assistant at Florida State University (Tallahassee, FL).

Known for his versatility, Bill frequently plays on tenor, alto and bass trombone in a variety of styles, from jazz to orchestral and from solo to chamber music. He is a member of the Valley Symphony Orchestra, and has performed with many regional symphonies including the San Angelo Symphony, Allen Symphony, Monroe Symphony, Sinfonia Gulf Coast, Reno Philharmonic and the Mid-Texas Symphony. Bill has been a featured with several ensembles, including the UTRGV Wind Symphony, Tarleton State University Wind Ensemble and is a founding member of the Bell Street Four Trombone Quartet, winners of the 2008 International Trombone Association Quartet Competition.

As an educator, Bill has been an invited clinician at many colleges and universities in the United States, including the University of Central Arkansas, Missouri State University, the University of Southern Mississippi. For information on masterclasses and lessons, please contact him by email or phone.

Bill earned his Doctor of Music in Trombone Performance from Florida State University, Master of Music in Trombone Performance from the University of North Texas and Bachelor of Music in Trombone Performance from the University of Alaska at Fairbanks.

Curriculum Vitae

William Haugeberg, Assist. Prof.
Euphonium/Trombone/Tuba
School of Music
Email: william.haugeberg@utrgv.edu

Phone: (956) 882-7700

Silvia M. Lazo, Assist. Prof

Ethnomusicology: Musicology
(956) 665-2929
silvia.lazo@utrgv.edu
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Dr. Silvia Lazo’s research explores the social, cultural, and political dimensions of music in Latin America. Her current book-length project is Musicking the Self. The Life and Leading Works of Roberto Sierra. Lazo’s scholarship touches on Old and New World forces that have shaped classical music in the Caribbean. She has authored several articles on Pau Casals’s musical and institutional legacies. Lazo’s work on Casals’s transference of Western classical music to Puerto Rico during the Cold War has been critically acclaimed, sparking a reassessment of foreign influence within the island’s soundscape. Her areas of interest include music and human rights, politics, media, and gender.

Dr. Lazo has presented papers at national and international conferences. She has been the opening speaker for the colloquium “Puerto Rican Soundscapes. Exploring Puerto Rican Heritage Stateside Through Roots, Jazz and Classical Music,” sponsored by the Center for Puerto Rican Studies, Hunter College, CUNY (2016), an invited panelist at Harvard University’s colloquium “El Exilio Republicano Español. España, Puerto Rico y Estados Unidos: 1936–73” (2014), and a guest speaker at the III Brazilian Congress in Music Iconography (2015). Her publications appear in Diagonal: An Ibero-American Music Review, Latin American Music Review, and Music in Art.

Raised in São Paulo, Brazil, Lazo holds B.A. degrees in Music and Theatre from Whitworth University, and MM Ed. and Ph.D. from the University of Montana. Since graduating Dr. Lazo has been a Post-Doctoral Associate at the Federal University of Bahia, Brazil (2013), and a Visiting Scholar at Cornell University, NY (2014–2017).

Silvia M. Lazo, Assist. Prof
Ethnomusicology: Musicology
Email: silvia.lazo@utrgv.edu
Edinburg: PACB 2.108
Phone: (956) 665-2929

David Means, Assist. Prof.

Voice/Choir/Master Chorale
956-665-3473
david.means@utrgv.edu
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Dr. David Means is Director of Choral Studies at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley in Edinburg, TX and the conductor of the Valley Symphony Chorale. He is also organist and music director at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Edinburg and recently founded Rio Grande Valley’s premier chamber choir, the Valley Choral Artists. Dr. Means came to south Texas from Austin where he was Head Choral Director of the Grammy Award winning Fine Arts Academy of Westwood High School in the Round Rock ISD. Means has also taught at the University of Southern California, Christopher Newport University, Hill College and has more than fifteen years’ experience teaching public school choirs in Texas and California.

Dr. Means earned a Bachelor of Music Education degree in piano and voice from Howard Payne University (teachers included John Ratledge, Elem Ely, Linda Hibbs Dougherty, Alan Smith), a Master of Music degree in Choral Conducting from Baylor University (teachers included Hugh Sanders, Robert Young, Karen Peeler, Joyce Farwell, Joyce Jones) and the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Choral Music from the University of Southern California (teachers included William Dehning, James Vail, Morten Lauridsen, Bard Suverkrop, Hans Beer) where he was awarded the prestigious Outstanding Choral Student Award.

Means is active as a guest conductor, adjudicator and clinician, having taught and performed across the United States, Europe, Mexico, Canada and Japan. He is active throughout the Rio Grande Valley as guest conductor, adjudicator and workshop leader, and also regularly adjudicates TMEA and UIL events across the state. In July 2016 he will serve on the international jury of the Preveza International Choral Festival in Preveza, Greece. Also active as a baritone soloist, Dr. Means has sung as a featured singer with the internationally known Mark Morris Dance Group in two performances with the Virginia Waterfront Arts Festival, and has sung as a professional chorister with the Santa Fe Desert Chorale, the Virginia Chorale and presently sings with the San Antonio Chamber Choir. Means has premiered works by Morten Lauridsen, Z. Randall Stroope, David Childs and John Rutter, and studied conducting in master-classes with Helmuth Rilling, Frieder Bernius, Robert Shaw and Paul Salamunovich. Means remains active as a conductor, singer and pianist, and has shared the stage with Quincy Jones, Liza Minneli and Michael Feinstein, and has performed for former president Ronald Reagan.

Curriculum Vitae

David Means, Assist. Prof.
Voice/Choir/Master Chorale
School of Music
Email: david.means@utrgv.edu
Edinburg: Performing Arts Complex B1.112
Phone: 956-665-3473

Rachel Mitchell, Assist.

Prof. Music Theory
(956) 882-5787
rachel.mitchell@utrgv.edu
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Dr. Rachel Mitchell is an Assistant Professor of Music at UTRGV, where she teaches music theory and ear training courses primarily on the university’s Brownsville campus. Dr. Mitchell completed a Ph.D. in music theory at the University of Texas-Austin, where she held a Kent Kennan Endowed Graduate Fellowship and was awarded the Herbert Colvin Award for the best student paper at the 2005 Texas Society for Music Theory conference. She also holds degrees in music with all-level teacher certification (BM) and music theory (MM) from Texas Tech University. Prior to joining the UTRGV faculty, Mitchell held positions in music theory at the University at Albany – SUNY, the University of North Texas, and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Dr. Mitchell's research interests include the music and writings of the twentieth-century Catalan composer, Roberto Gerhard, and other Second Viennese School composers; the Mexican composer Silvestre Revueltas; electroacoustic and film-music criticism; and pop-rock theory. Dr. Mitchell is also engaged in developing a computer-aided, music theory instruction package called Harmonia, which combines music notation, automatic music analysis and grading, word processing, multimedia playback, and a sophisticated web-based learning management system. As the Senior Content Developer for Illiac Software, she creates pedagogical content for Harmonia, updates software support pages, and runs a general music theory resource blog for teachers and students on the Harmonia website. Visit www.harmonia.illiacsoftware.com to learn more.

Dr. Mitchell has presented her research throughout the United States, as well as in Canada, Germany, Spain, and the UK. Her work is published by Salem Press, Ashgate Publishing, and Cambridge Scholars Press, and her Harmonia research has been supported with funding from the University of Illinois and a Phase I STTR grant from the National Science Foundation.

Dr. Mitchell is a reader for the national AP music theory exam, she is an active member of the Texas Society for Music Theory, and holds memberships in the Society for Music Theory (SMT), the Association for Technology in Music Instruction (ATMI), the College Music Society (CMS), and the Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA).

Teaching Philosophy:

It is my philosophy to treat my students as mature adults. I expect them to be intelligent and responsible, to stand by their own opinions, yet be open to different schools of thoughts and teaching styles.
To actively engage my students in the educational process, it is my duty to lead class discussions to determine the level of understanding and mastery. I prefer that my students “uncover” the mysteries of a work on their own (in small, moderated group settings). We all end up learning more because everyone approaches works from different perspectives.
I like to listen to and teach from a wide range of musical styles and traditions ranging from the European classical tradition, popular music, jazz, and world music. I also enjoy talking about pieces my students enjoy.
Ultimately, I encourage my students to always consider the practical application of their theoretical study by reflecting on their own personal musical experiences as performers and listeners. It is my goal to encourage my students to approach their theoretical studies as a means for providing deeper understanding of their own musical experience.

Rachel Mitchell, Assist.
Prof. Music Theory
Email: rachel.mitchell@utrgv.edu
Brownsville: Eidman Hall
Phone: (956) 882-5787

Joe W. Moore III, Assist.

Prof. Percussion Ensemble
956-882-8244
joe.moore@utrgv.edu
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Dr. Joe W. Moore III currently serves as Assistant Professor of Percussion at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. Prior to this, he served as Director of Percussion Studies at the University of Texas at Brownsville/Texas Southmost College. In 2013, he served as sabbatical replacement for Dr. Brett Dietz at Louisiana State University. Moore received the Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Central Florida, the Master of Music degree from the University of South Carolina, and the Doctor of Musical Arts degree with a minor in composition from Louisiana State University. His primary percussion teachers include Jeff Moore, Kirk Gay, Scott Herring, Jim Hall, Brett Dietz and Troy Davis. His composition teachers include Jay Batzner, Brett Dietz, and Dinos Constantinides.

Active as a soloist and chamber musician, Moore regularly performs as a member of the Omojo Percussion Duo and the Black sheep Percussion Quartet. Most recently, the Omojo Percussion Duo performed as featured artists at the 2^nd Annual Brownsville Marimba Festival. Moore was also featured as a soloist with the Rio Bravo Percussion Ensemble during their showcase performance at the 2015 Texas Music Educators Association Convention. In 2008, he performed in Ukemerge and Kaunas Lithuania as a soloist with the UCF Percussion Ensemble during the Ukemerge Annual Percussion Festival. Dr. Moore has also held performing positions at Walt Disney World, as a sub-list member of the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra, and as a member of the Rhythm -N- Blue Drum Line for the Orlando Magic NBA team.

In addition to teaching and performing, Dr. Moore also extends himself as a composer. Moore's music has been performed across the United States and Brazil. His works have been performed by several university performing ensembles across the United States, some of which include the Rio Bravo Percussion Ensemble, Hamiruge - The LSU Percussion Group, the University of South Carolina Percussion Ensemble, the Kansas State University Percussion Ensemble, the University of Central Florida Percussion Ensemble, as well as several other university and high school ensembles. Most recently, he composed the obligatory marimba solo entitled “Halley’s Comet,” for the I CONCURSO PARA MARIMBA MAESTRO ZEFERINO NANDAYAPA held in Paraíba Brazil in June 2015. His work, “juNO” was recently featured in Rhythm! Scene – the official newsletter of the Percussive Arts Society.

C. Alan Publications and Innovative Percussion Publications publish Dr. Moore's music. He also self-publishes many of his own manuscripts, which can be found at www.joewmooreiii.net.

Dr. Moore's sponsors include REMO Drumheads, SABIAN Cymbals, and Vic Firth sticks and mallets.

Curriculum Vitae

Joe W. Moore III, Assist.
Prof. Percussion Ensemble
School of Music
Email: joe.moore@utrgv.edu
Brownsville: MUSI 103
Phone: 956-882-8244

Katrina Roush, Assist.

Prof. Music Theory
(956) 665-2681
katrina.roush@utrgv.edu
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Diana Seitz, Assist. Prof.

Strings: Violin
(956) 665-5318
diana.seitz@utrgv.edu
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“A world-class musician with a strong following…” (Kansas City Star), whose performances are described as “exciting, powerful, energetic, noble and technically brilliant,” violinist Diana Seitz made her first public performance as a soloist with a chamber orchestra in Moscow, Russia, at the age of nine. As a teenager, Diana became a laureate of the Azerbaijan National Violin Competition and appeared as a soloist with the National Azerbaijan Philharmonic Orchestra, performing Niccolo Paganini’s Violin Concerto No.1 in D major with the Cadenza by E. Sauret.

Seitz received her bachelor’s degree in violin performance from Tchaikovsky Moscow Conservatory, where she studied with Olga Kaverzneva – a student of renowned Russian violinist David Oistrakh. During her studies in Moscow, Diana had numerous opportunities to perform in Moscow area and served as the Associate Concertmaster of the Moscow Bach Center Orchestra. Forced to flee her Homeland due to severe ethnic persecution, Seitz continued her studies in the United States. She received her Master’s Degree and DMA in violin performance from the University of Oklahoma, where she studied under Felicia Moye, while serving as the Assistant Concertmaster of the Oklahoma City Philharmonic Orchestra and first violinist of the Crouse String Quartet.

Dr. Seitz is joining the string faculty of UTPA, coming from Washburn University (Topeka, KS), where she served as the Assistant Professor of Violin and String Area Coordinator. Diana is very excited to have an opportunity to come back to UTPA where she already served as the Assistant Professor of Violin in 2008 - 2011. During those years, Dr. Seitz also performed as Associate Concertmaster with the Valley Symphony Orchestra and Concertmaster of the South Texas Lyric Opera. Her professional experience includes conducting the annual Seitz and Sounds violin workshop in Columbus, OH, as well as teaching at the Indiana University Summer Music Clinic (Bloomington, IN), Kinhaven Summer Music School (Weston, VT), Meadowmount School of Music (Westport, NY), and teaching residency at the University of Wisconsin Madison. A soloist in demand, Diana appeared with the National Philharmonic Orchestra of Azerbaijan (Baku, Azerbaijan), Valley Symphony Orchestra (Edinburg, TX), Kinnor Philharmonic Orchestra (Kansas City, KS) and Kansas City Civic Orchestra. As a chamber musician, she has collaborated with Felicia Moye, Haysun Kang, Michael Murray, Cheng Hou Lee, James VanDemark and Christopher Taylor. Dr. Seitz plays a 1759 Paolo Testore violin.

Curriculum Vitae

Diana Seitz, Assist. Prof.
Strings: Violin
School of Music
Email: diana.seitz@utrgv.edu
EPACB 2125
Phone: (956) 665-5318

Sean Taylor, Assist. Prof.

Voice, Master Chorale
956-882-7724
sean.taylor@utrgv.edu
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Kristina Weimer, Assist Prof

Music Ed
kristina.weimer@utrgv.edu
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Francisco Loera, Sr Lecturer

Mariachi/Mexican Folk Music
(956) 665-3045
francisco.loera@utrgv.edu
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Francisco Loera has been a Lecturer at UTPA/UTRGV for over twenty years in the Departments of Modern languages and Music, teaching Language and Literature, the History of Mexican Folk Music, and Mariachi ensemble. He has been the co-director of Mariachi Aztlán during his time at the University, leading the mariachi to earn the reputation as the most outstanding university mariachi program in the nation.

The Mariachi has traveled throughout Mexico representing the United States and throughout America as musical ambassadors representing the beauty of the Hispanic music and cultural traditions. For more than 15 years, in San Antonio, Texas, and in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the Mariachi Aztlán has been selected as the “Outstanding College or University Mariachi” in nationwide competition several years in a row. For several years, the Mariachi Aztlán won “Grand Champion” of the Mariachi Spectacular Competition. In 2014 and 2016, the Mariachi Aztlán was invited as guest clinicians for the Mariachi Spectacular Workshop and performed at international mariachi conferences in San Diego, Tucson and Chicago in 2015 and 2016. The Mariachi Aztlán has won first place in the “Best in Texas” Mariachi Invitational at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, in Houston, Texas numerous times.

Highlight performances include an invitation from the White House to perform at a signing ceremony of an Executive Order commemorating the renewal and enhancement of the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics, performing for President Barack Obama in 2010. In collaboration with the Houston Grand Opera, Mariachi Aztlán premiered the stage production of Cruzar la Cara de la Luna, the world’s first “Mariachi-Opera” in 2010. Other concerts include appearances at the Hollywood Bowl, the John F. Kennedy Performing Arts Center, and a performance of the mariachi opera Cruzar la Cara de la Luna with the Chicago Lyric Opera in 2013. Other performances include an encore concert with the Chicago Lyric Opera in 2014 and concerts at the 2015, 2016 San Diego Mariachi Festival, the Tucson International Mariachi Conference in 2015, and the Chicago Heritage Mariachi Conferences in 2015 and 2016. The Mariachi Aztlán premiered the new mariachi opera El Pasado Nunca Se Termina with the Chicago Lyric Opera in 2015 and proudly released a new CD, Mi Nombre es México to commemorate the 25^th Anniversary of the UTPA/UTRGV Mariachi Program.

Curriculum Vitae

Francisco Loera, Sr Lecturer
Mariachi/Mexican Folk Music
School of Music
Email: francisco.loera@utrgv.edu
Edinburg: Performing Arts Complex B 1127
Phone: (956) 665-3045

Gabriel Bauza, Lect. II

Music Appreciation/Elem. Music Ed
(956) 665-3471
gabriel.bauza@utrgv.edu
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Tido Janssen, Lect. II

Strings: Cello
956-665-3475
tido.janssen@utrgv.edu
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Dr. Tido Janssen, cello, is Lecturer of Cello at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. He is director of the annual Pan American Cello Festival, Associate Principal Cello of the Valley Symphony Orchestra, and has served as director of the UTPA Symphony Orchestra.

A native of Germany, Dr. Janssen studied cello performance at Folkwang Hochschule für Musik in Duisburg before continuing his studies in the US. He holds a Master of Music Degree from Boston University, and Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of North Texas. His major teachers include Jürgen Wolf, George Neikrug, Carter Enyeart, Walter Gray, and Eugene Osadchy. His chamber music studies include coachings with the Muir Quartet, Lydian Quartet, and members of the Lyontevich and Kolisch Quartets.

Before joining the music faculty at UTRGV in 2015, Dr Janssen served on the faculty of the University of Texas Pan American, the University of Lethbridge in Alberta, Canada, and Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene, Texas. As a charter member of the University of Lethbridge faculty ensemble Trio Amaranth, he has performed extensively throughout western Canada. In Abilene, TX, he was Principal Cellist of the Abilene Philharmonic and Abilene Opera Orchestras, founder and Director of the Abilene Summer Music Festival, and founding member of the Abilene Chamber Players. In the summer of 2013 he performed with the Abilene Chamber Players for the Concerti Nel Chiostro at the Conservatorio di musica “Giuseppe Verdi”, and the Abrosianeum Concerti, in Milan, Italy.

As a performer Dr. Janssen has repeatedly appeared in Germany, The Netherlands, Spain, Italy, Austria, Canada, and throughout the US. He has been a member of the New Hampshire Music Festival Orchestra since 2000, and has recorded for Deutsche Welle, Public Radio, and Centaur Records.

Curriculum Vitae

Tido Janssen, Lect. II
Strings: Cello
School of Music
Email: tido.janssen@utrgv.edu
Edinburg: Performing Arts Complex B2.128
Phone: 956-665-3475

Shoko Kinsella, Lect. II

Piano
(956) 665-2884
shoko.kinsella@utrgv.edu
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Pianist Dr. Shoko Nakamura Kinsella enjoys her diverse career as performer and teacher. She has extensively performed as a recitalist, concerto soloist, and chamber musician throughout the United States, Italy, and Japan. Her past concert engagements include a solo recital in Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall, Valley Symphony Orchestra’s Chamber Music Series, and Artist Presentation Society in St. Louis as a result of winning the APS Solo Competition. Her concerto appearances include Jefferson City Symphony Orchestra, after winning the JCSO Concerto Competition, and University of Cincinnati Orchestra Club, performing at the inaugural concert.

As a chamber musician, she has appeared as guest artist at Western Illinois University, Earlham College in Indiana, Johnson County Community College in Kansas City (live performance broadcasted by 91.5 Kansas Public Radio), Summer Opera and Music Festival in Lucca Italy, and numerous collaborative appearances with large and small ensembles. She served as guest artist faculty of the soundSCAPE New Music Festival in Maccagno, Italy.

Dr. Kinsella is currently on the piano faculty at University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley, where she teaches both undergraduate and graduate piano students, as well as collaborates in recitals with faculty and guest artists. She also gives masterclasses, clinics, and judges competitions internationally and across the state. She received her Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Piano Performance from the University of Missouri-Kansas City (2010), under the instruction of the artist-pedagogue Robert Weirich, with additional trainings by artists including Jerome Lowenthal, Ivan Moravec, and Anthony De Mare. She earned her Master’s (2006) and Bachelor’s (2004, magna cum laude) degrees in Piano Performance from University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music as a student of William Black and Michael Chertock, where she was nominated for the Excellence in Teaching Award. Born in Chiba, Japan, Dr. Kinsella currently resides in McAllen, TX.

Website

Curriculum Vitae

Shoko Kinsella, Lect. II
Piano
School of Music
Email: shoko.kinsella@utrgv.edu
Performing Arts Complex B1. 108
Phone: (956) 665-2884

Albert Lo, Lect. II

Wind Symphony, Jazz Ensemble
(956) 882-5788
albert.lo@utrgv.edu
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Albert Lo is currently the Director of Bands at The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Brownsville campus and the resident Conductor/Artistic Director for the Brownsville Wind Symphony. Mr. Lo is completing a Doctor of Musical Arts degree at The University of North Texas in Denton, Texas where he is under the tutelage of Professor Eugene Migliaro Corporon, Professor Dennis Fisher, and Dr. Nicholas Enrico Williams. A native of Chicago, Illinois, he received his Bachelors of Music Degree from Northern Illinois University and his Master’s Degree from Western Illinois University.

Mr. Lo served as the Director of Bands at Winston Churchill High School in San Antonio, Texas from 2001-2008. Under his direction, Churchill High School continued their tradition of excellence, placing in the finals at consecutive Texas 5A State Marching Contests, Bands of America Regionals, and The Bands of America Grand Nationals in Indianapolis, IN. The Churchill winter percussion line is the 2003 Winter Guard International World Class Indoor Percussion Champions and the color guard was a consistent Winter Guard International World Class finalist at the Nationals in Dayton, Ohio. Both Churchill Jazz Ensembles have been awarded Outstanding Jazz Ensembles at the Northern Colorado Jazz Festival in Greely, CO, the North Texas Jazz Festival in Addison, TX as well as the Harlingen and Fiesta Jazz Festivals. The Charger Band was selected to participate in the Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, CA. and performed in the 50th anniversary celebration of Hawaii’s Statehood. In addition, two wind ensembles were selected simultaneously to perform at the Music for All Concert Festival in Indianapolis, Indiana. The Wind Symphony has been a consecutive finalist at the TMEA Honor Band Area competitions and all four concert bands received consecutive sweepstakes at the University Interscholastic League Concert and Sight-Reading Contest and have been awarded “Best in Class” at various national concert festivals throughout the country.

In addition to his career as a music educator in the public schools, Mr. Lo was a brass instructor and Caption Head for the nationally renowned Phantom Regiment Drum and Bugle Corps. He is currently an adjudicator for Drum Corps International, Music for All, Texas University Interscholastic League, as well as other Judges’ Associations throughout the United States, Europe and Asia. Mr. Lo is an active clinician and guest conductor who has taught, conducted and performed concert and jazz ensembles throughout Europe and Asia. Mr., Lo is a two-time Teacher of the Year recipient and was awarded Certificate of Recognition by the Texas Academy of Math and Sciences at the University of North Texas in Denton, TX. He is a member of College Band Directors National Association, Pi Kappa Lambda Music Honor Society, Phi Mu Alpha Fraternity, Texas Music Educator Association and Texas Bandmasters Association.

Curriculum Vitae

Albert Lo, Lect. II
Wind Symphony, Jazz Ensemble
School of Music
Email: albert.lo@utrgv.edu
TACB
Phone: (956) 882-5788

Sally Sandoval, Lect. II

Elementary Music Ed.
956-882-7701
sally.trenfield@utrgv.edu
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Sally Trenfield is a Lecturer in Music Education at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. She holds a Bachelor of Music Education from the University of Indiana, and a Master’s degree in Music Education from the University of North Texas. She is certified as a Teacher Educator for Basic Pedagogy in the Orff-Schulwerk approach to music education for Levels I, II, and III. She also has completed Levels I and II of Kodaly Education coursework.

Sally has twenty years of experience as a public school educator at all levels, Pre-K through 12th grade. She has taught general music, choral music, and elementary music in Missouri, Indiana, and Texas. In 1998 she received a Rotary Club endowment for Teaching Excellence. She completed the Curso International de Musica y Danza at La Universidad de Cantabria , Santander, Spain. She has presented workshops at music education conferences including the American Orff-Schulwerk Association professional development conference, the Texas Music Education Association convention, and the Texas Choral Directors’ Association conference. She has presented workshops and teacher trainings in the United States, and in Mexico.

Sally is currently teaching the course “Teaching Music in the Elementary School.” It is required of students seeking EC-6^th teacher certification and fulfills the creative arts component of the General Education Core for any UTRTV student interested in music as it applies to the young child. She also teaches elementary music methods for music majors. She is a supervisor for music education student teachers.

Curriculum Vitae

Sally Sandoval, Lect. II
Elementary Music Ed.
School of Music
Email: sally.trenfield@utrgv.edu
Brownsville: Eidman 211A
Phone: 956-882-7701

Saul Torres, Lect. II

Bands: Wind Ensemble
(956) 665-7490
saul.torres@utrgv.edu
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Saul Torres, Director of Bands at The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, brings to this position nearly 20 years of professional and collegiate experience. Dr. Torres studied saxophone in his formative years before attending UTPA where he earned his Bachelor of Arts degree. Upon finishing his undergraduate degree, Saul was a successful band director in South Texas. His bands received numerous superior ratings at the University Interscholastic League Marching, Concert, and Sight Reading contests. His affiliations have include the Texas Music Educators Association, Texas Band Master’s Association Texas Music Adjudicators Association, The Conductors Guild and The Collage Band Directors National Association. . Saul earned his Master’s degree from Southern Methodist University in conducting where he studied under Dr. Jack Delaney. During these years, Dr. Torres collaborated with composer Christopher Tucker in a recording session for his composition Legends. Saul Torres also assisted Dr. Delaney with the Meadows Wind Ensemble for their performance at the Percussive Arts Society International Convention in Austin, Texas. Dr. Torres received his Doctorate of Musical Arts degree from the University of Utah where he studied under Scott Hagen. During his time in Utah, Saul had the honor of conducting the University of Utah Wind Ensemble at the Utah Music Educators Association Conference in St. George, Utah. In addition, Dr. Torres assisted Professor Hagan with their performance at the College Band Directors National Association Regional Conference in Reno, Nevada.

Torres conducts the Wind Ensemble, Symphonic Band and Pep Band. He also teaches both undergraduate and graduate courses.

Curriculum Vitae

Saul Torres, Lect. II
Bands: Wind Ensemble
School of Music
Email: saul.torres@utrgv.edu
EPACB 2113
Phone: (956) 665-7490

Liudmila Varlamova

Lect. II Piano
956-665-7914
liudmila.varlamova@utrgv.edu
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Jia Oliver

Lecturer I
(956) 665-3471
oliver.jia@utrgv.edu
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Described as an artist with “incomparable color and beauty of sound” (Jan Popis, Chopin Gazeta: 2005), Chinese-Swedish pianist Oliver Jia has performed for audiences all over the world, and actively appears in concerts on three major continents. With a repertoire of dozens of concerti in addition to over two hundred solo and chamber works, Oliver made his official debut at Isaac Stern Auditorium in Carnegie Hall under the baton of Maestro James DePreist, performing Sergei Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto no. 5 with the Juilliard Orchestra.

As a testament to his wide-ranging performance career, Oliver has performed with the Orchestra of St Luke’s, the Fort Worth Symphony, the China National Symphony, and the Juilliard Orchestra, among others. He has made solo and concerti appearances at Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center, the Warsaw Philharmonic Concert Hall, Royal Dublin Society, and the Manhattan Center, as well as the premier concert halls in mainland China. Other notable events include performance tours and interviews in northern Italy (Bologna, Senigallia), China (numerous cities, including Beijing, Nanjing, Suzhou,Yangzhou), North Carolina Triangle Area (chamber concerts in Raleigh, Durham,etc) as well as individual recitals in Warsaw, Stockholm, Dublin, Hastings, and other European cities.

In addition to his solo engagements, Oliver is an engaged chamber musician and has collaborated
with numerous chamber ensembles, especially in the US region. He is also busy as a collaborative pianist, and has accompanied numerous string, woodwind, and vocal musicians in various projects. As a teacher, Oliver has maintained a private studio for over two decades, teaching both solo piano and chamber music.

Finally, Oliver is strongly involved in musical research. As part of his doctoral dissertation, Oliver presented a two-hour lecture recital on the complete set of Frédéric Chopin’s monumental Études, complete with a performance and a talk on the subject. In addition, he has written several research papers; these pertain to unique aspects in musicology that focus on topics not often featured in the mainstream of academia publications. These include “Josquin des Prez: A Study in Counterpoint” (New Haven, CT. 2014), “Transcriptions: The Piano as a Broadcasting Instrument” (New York, NY. 2012), and “War of the Romantics: Artistic Ideals in Conflict” (New York, NY. 2006).

Born to a family with significant musical backgrounds (his grandparents served as distinguished Peking Opera directors for decades), Oliver was raised in Sweden. He holds a Doctor off Musical Arts degree from the University of Michigan, an Artist Diploma from Yale University, and Master of Music as well as Bachelor of Music degrees from The Juilliard School. His major instructors have included Logan Skelton, Peter Frankl, Jerome Lowenthal, Yoheved Kaplinsky, Oxana Yablonskaya, and Paul van Ness. Oliver has served on the piano faculty at the University of Texas, Rio Grande Valley since 2017.

Jia Oliver
Lecturer I
School of Music
Email: oliver.jia@utrgv.edu
EPAC 1.126
Phone: (956) 665-3471

Kim Jooyoung

Lecturer I
956-665-3477
jooyoung.kim@utrgv.edu
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Pianist Jooyoung Kim, a native of South Korea, has been critically acclaimed on international stages for her dazzling technique, superb musicianship, and exquisite artistry. Since making her debut at the age of twelve as a soloist with the Korean Symphony Orchestra, Dr. Kim has presented numerous solo and chamber recitals in Korea, Japan, Germany, Spain, France, Portugal, Italy, Russia, and the United States. She has appeared as a soloist with many orchestras including the Korean Symphony Orchestra, Yonsei Sinfonietta, Yale University Symphony Orchestra, and the Ball State Symphony Orchestra.

Dr. Kim has given solo and chamber recitals in numerous concert series and venues, including the Dame Myra Hess Memorial Concert Series, St. Martin-in-the-Fields Concert Series, Pianoforte Foundation Series, Atelier Concert Series, Korea/Japan Concert Tour, Carnegie Weill Recital Hall, Chicago Cultural Center, Falcone-Borsellino Hall, Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory, Kaluga Philharmonic Hall, The American Cathedral in Paris, Montpelier Arts Center, Indiana Landmarks Center, Kumho Art Hall, Sejong Cultural Center, and Yougnsan Art Hall. Critic/Composer Jeffrey James wrote of her Carnegie Hall debut “Jooyoung Kim gave a forceful, poetic, sensitive and at times even playful reading of Liszt. Technically wonderful playing of a very high level.” Her performances have been broadcast live on the radio stations throughout the United States.

As an active recitalist, soloist, and chamber musician, Dr. Kim has performed in various music festivals including Yong-Pyung Music Festival, Busan Piano Festival, International Piano Festival in Spain, Courchevel International Music Festival, Internationale Klavierakademie Murrhardt, Benefic Chamber Music Camp, Festival of New Music, Aria International Summer Academy, Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp, and 40th Festival of New American Music in Sacramento.

As a sought-after collaborative pianist, Dr. Kim has performed with renowned singers and instrumentalists, including flutists Bonita Boyd, Camilla Hoitenga, Lois Herbine and Jim Walker, soprano Nova Thomas, cellists Julia Lichten and Natalia Gutman, violinist Piotr Milewsky, members of the American Piano Trio and Trio Harmonia in various concert series and music festivals. Dr. Kim’s passion for contemporary music has led her to numerous collaborations with composers and giving acclaimed premiere performances of new works. She has also presented guest recitals, lecturers, and master classes for colleges, universities, music teachers’ organizations, and national conferences throughout the United States.

In addition to performing and teaching, Dr. Kim has served as an adjudicator at the Indiana State School Music Association Piano Competition, Carmel Arts Council Young Performers Competition, South Texas Piano Competition, Texas Music Teachers Association Performance Competition, and Magic Valley Music Teachers Association Piano Competition, among others.

An award-winning artist, Dr. Kim has taken top prizes in numerous national and international competitions, including the Joong-Ang National Music Competition, Yonsei Debut Award, Kingsville International Piano Competition, IBLA Grand Prize International Competition, Indianapolis Matinee Musicale Competition, Ball State University Graduate Concerto Competition, International Beethoven Piano Sonata Competition, Bradshaw and Buono International Piano Competition, Montpelier Art Recital Competition, and the Taneev International Chamber Ensemble Competition. She has also won grants and fellowships, including two Aspire Creative Arts grants.

Dr. Kim, who holds degrees from Yonsei University, Universität der Künste Berlin, and Ball State University, currently serves on the piano faculty at The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. Prior to joining UTRGV, she held faculty positions at Indiana Wesleyan University, Indiana University East, and Indiana University Kokomo. Dr. Kim has recently released her solo CD on MSR Classics that is continuing to receive favorable reviews in the following:

“She represents the richness of talent that welcoming borders have brought to the arts in this country, and she deserves wider attention from pianophiles... The wonderful thing about Kim’s performances is how musical and thoughtful they are, blowing past technical hurdles to find charm, romance and elegance...” (Huntley Dent, Fanfare)

“Kim’s control of the Rachmaninov Corelli Variations’ chordal leaps, vertiginous passagework and often gnarly textures cannot be faulted.” (Jed Distler, Gramophone)

“Kim makes full use of the capabilities of a modern concert grand, and this is particularly effective in the Rachmaninoff variations, which Kim plays with considerable finesse and a fine sense of contrast from piece to piece... Kim is also strong in Liszt’s Grandes Études de Paganini. She handles the material well, and her light touch in the third étude, “La Campanella,” is particularly welcome, as is her handling of the arpeggios in the final étude... Kim shows herself here to be an impressive performer and an effective interpreter of the Romantics.” (Mark J. Estren, InfoDad)

“...polished performances of music by Haydn, Rachmaninov, and Liszt... Kim plays the Haydn with solid, confident enthusiasm, and the luster of her tone. Kim delivers several sterling moments of liquid or hard-patina sound in the Rachmaninoff... Kim makes the Liszt resound with a potent authority...” (Gary Lemco, Audiophile Audition)

Kim Jooyoung
Lecturer I
School of Music
Email: jooyoung.kim@utrgv.edu
EPAC B1.107
Phone: 956-665-3477
Phone Alt: 956-665-3471

Stacy Kwak, Lect. I

Piano
956-882-7387
stacy.kwak@utrgv.edu
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Hector Javier Rodriguez

Lect. I Guitar Ensemble
956-665-3471
hector.rodriguez@utrgv.edu
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Hector Javier Rodriguez Santos enjoys an active career as a soloist, chamber musician and teacher, having given performances and masterclasses in Puerto Rico, Canada, Trinidad and Tobago, and Mexico, as well as in the United States.

As a soloist, Mr. Rodriguez' career is highlighted by several events: he was first place winner in the University of Texas-Pan American Guitar Competition in 2009, and second place winner in the Houston Guitar Competition in 2010 (Classical Minds). Additionally, Rodriguez was recipient of the Ocelotl Award by Universidad Autonoma de Coahuila 2010, for Best Artistic Project. In 2014, he received the Leo Brouwer Prize at Festival Internacional de Guitarra del Noreste, in Saltillo, Mexico. He was Second Prize Winner at the Dallas International Guitar Competition in 2018.

Mr. Rodriguez joined the faculty of the University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley in the fall of 2014, where serves as Director of the Guitar Ensemble and as Lecturer of Applied Guitar. Prior to his appointment at UTRGV, Mr. Rodriguez served on the faculty of the Escuela Preparatoria, Conservatory of Music of Puerto Rico and on faculty at South Texas College.

An advocate for new music for guitar ensemble, Mr. Rodriguez has arranged several works, with the particular aim of replicating the sound world of the symphony orchestra. His arrangements for guitar ensemble have been performed in concerts and festivals in Mexico, Puerto Rico, the United States, Panama, and Lebanon, among others.

Mr. Rodriguez holds a Bachelor of Music in Classical Guitar Performance from the Escuela Superior de Música Universidad Autónoma de Coahuila (Saltillo, Coahuila, México) where his primary teacher was Martín Madrigal, and a Master of Music from the Conservatory of Music of Puerto Rico where he studied guitar with Ivan Rijos and Manuel Barrueco. Rodriguez is currently a candidate for the Doctor of Musical Arts degree at the University of North Texas, where he studies guitar with Thomas Johnson, and where he studies theorbo and early instruments with Daniel Swenberg and Arash Noori.

Hector Javier Rodriguez
Lect. I Guitar Ensemble
School of Music
Email: hector.rodriguez@utrgv.edu
Edinburg: Performing Arts Complex B2.127
Phone: 956-665-3471

Evangelia Leontis

Lecturer I
(956) 882-5786
evangelia.leontis@utrgv.edu
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Evangelia Leontis, soprano, has extensive experience on the opera, concert and recital stages. She has been seen on the operatic stage in roles including Susanna in Le Nozze di Figaro, Zerlina in Don Giovanni, Frasquita in Carmen, Gretel in Hansel and Gretel, Lucy in The Telephone, Zweite Dame in Die Zauberflӧte, Barbarina in Le Nozze di Figaro and Le Feu in L'Enfant et les Sortilèges. On the concert stage, Dr. Leontis has been the soprano soloist in works by Britten, Haydn, Fauré, Rossini, Bach, Bizet, Mozart, Grieg, and Handel with Greensboro Opera, the Greensboro Oratorio Society, the Newburyport Choral Society, Newton Choral Society, Clear Lakes Chorale, Fine Arts Chorale, Polymnia Choral Society, the UNCG Sinfonia, and the UTRGV Master Chorale and Orchestra.

An avid recitalist, Dr. Leontis has sung recitals in Rochester, NY, Greensboro, NC, and Boston, as well as in her hometown of Bowling Green, OH. In recital she aims to program music by women composers and she has worked with the composer Sarah Hutchings on her music. Dr. Leontis won the Bel Canto Award in the 2015 Orpheus Competition, was a finalist in the 2015 Kentucky Bach Choir Competition, a semi-finalist in the American Prize in Voice Professional Art Song Division Competition in 2015, and was a winner of the 2010 Greek University Women’s Club Music Competition.

Dr. Leontis holds the degree of Doctor of Musical Arts from UNC Greensboro. She holds a Master of Music degree in vocal performance from Boston University and a Bachelors of Music degree in vocal performance from the Eastman School of Music. Her research interests lie in the work of women composers. Dr. Leontis currently serves on the voice faculty of the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley where she teaches voice, diction and song literature, and has directed the opera workshop. She has previously served on the voice faculties of the New England Conservatory Preparatory School, Guilford College, and the Boston University Tanglewood Institute. She also serves as Director of Development for Calliope’s Call, a New England-based ensemble dedicated to the performance and promotion of art song. As a yogi, she completed her 200-hour Yoga Teacher Training in Bali, Indonesia with YogaWorks and has presented Yoga for Singers Workshops at the Boston Conservatory, the Manchester Music Festival, the New Music School, the NEC Preparatory School, Greensboro College and the Boston University Tanglewood Institute. Her blog entitled Inner Voice: the Intersection of Yoga and Singing explores topics relating to the ways yoga can help singers. More information can be found at evangelialeontis.com.

Evangelia Leontis
Lecturer I
School of Music
Email: evangelia.leontis@utrgv.edu
BMSLC 2.213
Phone: (956) 882-5786

Diane Taylor

Part-time Lecturer
(956) 882-7768
Diane.Taylor@utrgv.edu
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School of Music College of Fine Arts

Faculty

School of Music - Click here to view Faculty by Area

Art Brownlow, Prof.

Art Brownlow, Prof.

Cynthia Cripps, Prof.

Cynthia Cripps, Prof.

Peter Dabrowski, Prof.

Peter Dabrowski, Prof.

Richard Davis, Prof.

Richard Davis, Prof.

Virginia Davis, Prof.

Virginia Davis, Prof.

Kurt Martinez, Director

Kurt Martinez, Director

Carol McNabb, Prof.

Carol McNabb, Prof.

Lorne O'Neil, Prof.

Lorne O'Neil, Prof.

Joel Pagan, Prof.

Joel Pagan, Prof.

Michael Quantz, Prof.

Michael Quantz, Prof.

Mark Ramirez, Prof.

Mark Ramirez, Prof.

Steven Block, Prof.

Steven Block, Prof.

Pedro Martinez, Prof.

Pedro Martinez, Prof.

Juan Andrade, Assoc.

Juan Andrade, Assoc.

George J. Amorim, Assoc. Prof.

George J. Amorim, Assoc. Prof.

Rebecca Coberly, Assoc.

Rebecca Coberly, Assoc.

Jonathan Guist, Assoc.

Jonathan Guist, Assoc.

Daniel Hunter-Holly, Assoc. Prof.

Daniel Hunter-Holly, Assoc. Prof.

Susan Hurley-Glowa, Assoc.

Susan Hurley-Glowa, Assoc.

Krista Jobson, Assoc. Prof.

Krista Jobson, Assoc. Prof.

Brendan Kinsella, Assoc.

Brendan Kinsella, Assoc.

Scott Roeder, Assoc.

Scott Roeder, Assoc.

David Sadlier, Assoc.

David Sadlier, Assoc.

Kenneth Saxon, Assoc.

Kenneth Saxon, Assoc.

Justin Writer, Assoc. Prof.

Justin Writer, Assoc. Prof.

Andres R. Amado, Assist. Prof.

Andres R. Amado, Assist. Prof.

Jared Broussard, Assist.

Jared Broussard, Assist.

William Haugeberg, Assist. Prof.

William Haugeberg, Assist. Prof.

Silvia M. Lazo, Assist. Prof

Silvia M. Lazo, Assist. Prof

David Means, Assist. Prof.

David Means, Assist. Prof.

Rachel Mitchell, Assist.

Rachel Mitchell, Assist.

Joe W. Moore III, Assist.

Joe W. Moore III, Assist.

Katrina Roush, Assist.

Katrina Roush, Assist.

Diana Seitz, Assist. Prof.

Diana Seitz, Assist. Prof.

Sean Taylor, Assist. Prof.

Sean Taylor, Assist. Prof.

Kristina Weimer, Assist Prof

Kristina Weimer, Assist Prof

Francisco Loera, Sr Lecturer

Francisco Loera, Sr Lecturer

Gabriel Bauza, Lect. II

Gabriel Bauza, Lect. II

Tido Janssen, Lect. II