Our listing of alumni successes is organized below by class graduation decade and according to the most recent MSM degree for those members of the alumni community with more than one.
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Kazimierz, A Story of Love and Destiny, a new one-act opera by William Goldstein (BM ’65), had its world premiere in opening the IMAGINE Culture Without Borders Second International Festival in Kazimierz Dolny, Poland.
The limited edition Pirates! The Penzance Musical, with adaptation by MSM alumnus Rupert Holmes (’67, HonDMA ’21) and musical direction from alumnus Joseph Joubert (BM ’79, MM ’81), ran on Broadway from April 24 through July 27 at the Todd Haimes Theatre. Other MSM alumni involved in the production were Louis Garrett (’96), guitars, banjo; Jason Jackson (’95), trombone; and Michael Aarons (BM ’98), Music Coordinator.
CelloBello founder Paul Katz (MM ’64) launched new series “Ensemble by CelloBello” and the “In-Person Chamber Music Intensive” taking place at New England Conservatory.
Bass-baritone John Cheek (’71) and mezzo-soprano Erin Reppenhagen (MM ’19) will appear later in August as Doctor Grenvil and Flora Bervoix, respectively, in The Berkshire Opera Festival’s production of Verdi’s La Traviata.
Composer Michael Daugherty‘s (MM ’78) new album Blue Electra was released on the Naxos American Classics label.
Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center returned to Saratoga Performing Arts Center for its highly anticipated 2025 summer residency curated by Co-Artistic Director David Finckel (’71). CMS also appeared at Wolf Trap in Vienna, Virginia.
Classical pianist Rowena Arrieta (MM ’85, ’88) performed with the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra.
Violinist Aaron Berofsky (’88) taught at Chautauqua’s Music School Festival Orchestra.
Pianist Carolyn Enger (’89) performed music from her album Resonating Earth (Métier, 2024) at the Bruce Museum in Greenwich, Connecticut, the Opera House at Enosburg Falls in Enosburg, Vermont, Bristol Community College in Fall River, Massachusetts, the Mischlinge Exposé at the Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center in Chicago, and the Philadelphia Holocaust Memorial.
Saxophonist Keith Fiddmont (MM ’87) was featured in Dave Iwataki’s musical tribute to eras of Little Tokyo history at East West Players, Los Angeles, California.
Film composer and jazz guitarist John Frizzell (BM ’88) wrote the music for new Netflix series The Waterfront.
Pianist Arthur Hanlon (MM ’86) released album 2 Manos 1 Mundo (Sony Music Latin, 2025).
The Cayuga Chamber Orchestra, including oboist John Lathwell (MM ’84, ’86), performed works by Fauré, Britten, and Mel Bonis on WCNY in Syracuse, NY.
Anne-Marie McDermott (P ’81, ’82, HonDMA ’24) performed Piano Concerto No. 1 in C Major by Beethoven with the Palm Beach Symphony at the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts.
Pianist Dr. Dmitry Rachmanov (DMA ’87) gave a guest artist recital at Eastern Tennessee State University’s Powell Recital Hall. Dr. Rachmanov is Chair of Keyboard Studies at California State University, Northridge.
William Reich (’83) became Senior Director for AI & Machine Learning at Salesforce. Mr. Reich studied classical piano at MSM.
MSM Jazz Piano faculty member Ted Rosenthal (BM ’81, MM ’83) and his wife, violinist Lesley Rosenthal, were featured in the August edition of Berkshire Magazine.
Jazz pianist Brent Runnels (MM ’84, DMA ’87) retired from the faculty of Oglethorpe University in Georgia.
Dr. Shara Sand (BM ’83) says “After founding the MSM Counseling Center in 2012 I retired from the position at the end of the 2024-2025 academic year. It was a privilege to establish this service and hire an extraordinary staff well-versed in music and psychology. I will continue to work with musicians and creative artists in my private practice. A thank-you for the support to MSM, and may the Center continue to grow and help foster student success.”
Rob Vuono, Jr.‘s (’80) composition Oliver’s Journey for Viola and Organ was premiered at Christ Church in La Plata, Maryland.
Gail Archer (DMA ’95) was a guest artist for the fourth “Lucio Tummeacciu” International Organ Festival in Arzachena, Italy.
Principal Viola Brant Bayless (BM ’97), Principal Double Bass Scott Pingel (MM ’99, PS ’00), and Principal Trumpet Anthony Limoncelli (BM ’14) performed in the 2025 Mainly Mozart Orchestra.
Lee Cioppa (MM ’93) was promoted to Vice Provost and Dean for Academic Operations at the Colburn School.
Music director and pianist Kimberly Grigsby (’93) was appointed the inaugural music director of the Sexton Institute for Musical Theatre.
Violinist Kelly Hall-Tompkins (MM ’95, HonDMA ’16) gave her third performance of Jeff Beal’s Violin Concerto, Body In Motion, with Maestro Leonard Slatkin (HonDMA ’13), this time at the Eastman School of Music. She was also the keynote speaker and featured artist for the University of Rochester’s inaugural Women’s Summit, an international gathering of alumnae in Manhattan at the InterContinental Hotel in Times Square. Additionally, she returned to her hometown to be honored by her arts magnet school alma mater, the Fine Arts Center (Greenville, South Carolina) for its 50th Anniversary through a featured performance and induction into the school’s inaugural Hall of Fame.
Stefon Harris & Blackout performed at New York Jazz All Stars 2025 in Mexico City. The group includes former MSM Jazz Arts Dean Stefon Harris (MM ’97) on vibraphone and current Jazz Arts alto saxophone faculty member Jaleel Shaw (MM ’02).
Barbara Jamison (MM ’98) began her new position as General Director & CEO for Opera Colorado.
Kristjan Jarvi (BM ’95) conducted the Toscanini Philharmonic in the final concert of the 2025 Toscanini Festival. This particular performance occurred in the famous Piazza Duomo.
Mezzo-soprano Heather Johnson (MM ’97) was promoted to Director for Advancement and Partnerships at the American Lyric Theater.
Executive Director of Kaufman Music Center and trombonist Anthony Mazzocchi (BM ’95, MM ’97) was the subject of New York State Music profile, “Reshaping Music Education: Anthony Mazzocchi and His Growing Impact on Musicians.”
Jason Moran (BM ’97) will serve as Artist-in-Residence for the upcoming Detroit Jazz Festival taking place Labor Day Weekend.
Vocalist N’Kenge Pacurar (BM ’96) will release her album CENTERSTAGE – Live from the Ella Fitzgerald Festival later this month.
At DROM in NYC’s East Village, Gene Pritsker‘s (BM ’94) composition “Hand Motion” was featured at the 15th Annual Comp-Play-Comp Marathon by Composers Concordance. Mr. Pritsker’s composition “Imminent” was also premiered at Kostabi World by the Leo Genovese & Franz Hackl Duo.
Cellist Karlos Rodriguez (’96) performed in the Catalyst Quartet at the Shelter Island Presbyterian Church in Shelter Island’s Friends of Music 2025 season, featuring works by Ravel, Piazzolla, D’Rivera, and Gershwin.
Jazz drummer Dan Weiss (BM ’99) released album Unclassified Affections (Pi Recordings, 2025). Personnel included guitarist Miles Okazaki (MM ’99). Mr. Weiss was interviewed by JazzTimes about the project.
Bass Matthew Anchel (’07) performed as The King in Verdi’s Aida at Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall in Baltimore, Maryland.
Laura Ayres (MM ’05) began her new position as Global Privacy Process Manager at Nielsen. Ms. Ayres studied classical voice at MSM.
The Escher String Quartet, which includes MSM alumni Adam Barnett-Hart (MM ’06) and Pierre Lapointe (DMA ’12) performed in the 2025 Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival at St. Francis Auditorium and Lensic, giving the U.S. premiere of Julian Anderson’s String Quartet No. 4.
Amanda Blaikie (PS ’09) was promoted to Acting Assistant Principal Flute of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra.
Liam Bonner (MM ’05) began his new position as Director of Development for the Kinder Institute for Urban Research at Rice University. Mr. Bonner studied classical voice at MSM.
Guitarist Rupert Boyd (MM ’06) performed Clarice Assad’s double concert for cello and guitar, ANAHATA, with the Fargo-Moorhead Symphony Orchestra. He also performed a solo baroque-inspired show at GatherNYC and again for its season finale, which was a collaboration between Orpheus Chamber Orchestra and Boyd Meets Girl (duo including Boyd’s wife, cellist Laura Metcalf).
Carissa Castaldo (MM ’04) was promoted to Associate Director of Alternative Programming at San Francisco Symphony. Ms. Castaldo studied classical voice at MSM.
Alondra de la Parra (BM ’06, MM ’08) conducted the Toscanini Philharmonic in their performance at Teatro Comunale Pavarotti-Freni. She was also named one of the 100 most powerful women in Mexico by Forbes Mexico.
MSM Classical Piano faculty member Dr. Wael Farouk (PS ’07) performed Rachmaninoff’s 3rd piano concerto with the Xiamen Philharmonic Orchestra, one of the top orchestras in China and the only non-state-owned and self-financing orchestra in the country.
Pianist Kirill Gerstein (BM ’99, MM ’00, HonDMA ’21) was featured with the Orchestre Symphonie de Montréal in a performance of Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini at Festival de Lanaudière in Quebec.
Flutist Lindsey Goodman (PS ’04) made her Carnegie Hall debut for a sold-out house in Weill Recital Hall. The recital, presented by PARMA Recordings and performed with pianist Clare Longendyke, was the release concert for her fourth solo album, in the company of music.
Cybele Gouverneur (BM ’05) was appointed Director of Global Patient Advocacy for GondolaBio, following her years of work as Associate Director of Global Patient Advocacy for parent company BridgeBio. Ms. Gouverneur studied classical voice with Joan Patenaude-Yarnell at MSM.
Violinist Vijay Gupta (’04) performed works by Bach accompanied by Indian Kuchipudi dance at the Sierra Madre Playhouse. Lineage Dance Company collaborated with Street Symphony to present the suite Stories of Refugees about the contemporary Syrian humanitarian crisis, and one of the pieces on that program included Mr. Gupta as well as flutist Elise Shope (MM ’11).
Le Poisson Rouge co-founder David Handler (P ’98, BM ’04) was the subject of a feature article interview in Entrepreneur Magazine.
Richard Harper, Esq. (BM ’06) was appointed to the Senior Counsel of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Mr. Harper studied cello at MSM.
Mila Henry (MM ’08) was one of nine recipients of the 2025 Marineau Opera Grants for Women Stage Directors and Conductors.
Soprano Jennifer Holloway (MM ’03) and tenor Bryan Register (MM ’94) were featured on the new release of Wagner’s The Flying Dutchman on Naxos, backed by the Netherlands Radio Choir and Hong Kong Philharmonic under Jaap van Zweden’s baton. Holloway played the role of Senta, and Register played the role of Erik.
Pianist Juan Pablo Horcasitas (BM ’06, MM ’09) appeared as a guest soloist with The Chamber Orchestra of Fine Arts at Sala Manuel M. Ponce del Palacio de Bellas Artes in Cuernavaca, Mexico.
Violist Dr. Chris Jenkins (PS ’04) was appointed Dean of the Conservatory at Lawrence University.
Trombonist and MSM Jazz Arts faculty member Ryan Kebele (BM ’01) and Collectiv do Brasil released album Choro das Águas (Alternate Side Records, 2025), comprised mainly of arrangements of compositions by luminary Ivan Lins.
Dr. Geoffrey Kiorpes (MM ’02, DMA ’07) released an album entitled Black Composers. Dr. Kiorpes is the Co-Founder of the New York City Charter School of the Arts, a middle school in lower Manhattan, where he serves as Arts Director and piano faculty.
Trumpeter Andrew Kozar (MM ’09) performed in contemporary classical ensemble ‘Loadbang’ at the Library of Congress.
Teatro Ristori in Verona is currently hosting a multimedia and multidisciplinary work that combines theater, music, figurative arts and dance, entitled A timeless kiss – Klimt and Shakespeare in an immersive journey. Classical piano alumnus Luca Longobardi (BM ’00) composed the music and engineered the production’s sound.
The Mivos Quartet, including violist Victor Lowrie (MM ’09), performed Steve Reich’s complete works for string quartet at Bourgie Hall in Montreal, Canada.
The Springfield Chamber Players Clarinet Quintet, which includes MSM alumni violist Yuko Naito-Gotay (PD ’00) and cellist Melissa Westgate (MM ’98), performed at the Sevenars Summer Concert. The program consisted of works by Bernard Herrmann as well as other programmatic and popular contemporary works.
After making his Boston Pops debut as a guest conductor of the orchestra’s New Year’s Eve Celebration concert, featuring Bernadette Peters at Symphony Hall in Boston, maestro Troy Quinn (MM ’07) returned to guest-conduct the Boston Pops in their concert collaboration with rap legend Nas at Tanglewood.
Classical Flute alumnus Jesse Schiffman (BM ’07) was appointed Executive Director of the Golden State Youth Orchestra.
Soprano Jacquelyn Wagner (MM ’05) performed the role of Leonora at the Opéra National de Bordeaux staging of Beethoven’s Fidelio. She appeared as Field Marshal in Strauss’s Der Rosenkavalier for her return to Bayerische Staatsoper, the Bavarian State Opera in Munich.
Married couple Mateusz (BM ’99, MM ’01), Spokane Symphony Concertmaster, and Dawn Wolski (MM ’01), soprano, were featured on the Spokane Symphony’s Masterworks 7 and 8 concerts, respectively. Mateusz was featured on Max Bruch’s Violin Concerto No. 1, and Dawn was featured on Joseph Haydn’s oratorio The Creation.
Tenor SeokJong Baek (BM ’16, MM ’18) earned critical acclaim in the New York Times for his performance singing the role of Cavaradossi in the Boston Symphony’s performance of Puccini’s Tosca at Tanglewood.
Clarinetist Camila Barrientos (BM ’09, MM ’11) was a featured guest artist and clinician with the Symphonic Band of the Tatuí Conservatory.
In Tanglewood’s Seiji Ozawa Hall, trumpet greats Jon Faddis (MSM Jazz Arts faculty) and Randy Brecker shared the staged with the next generation of trumpet superstars – Benny Benack (BM ’13, MM ’15) and Bria Skonberg – along with the Ted Rosenthal Trio, performing music of trumpet legends Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis, Louis Armstrong, and others.
Christina Bouey (MM ’11, PS ’12, PS ’13) joined Rutgers University’s Mason Gross School of the Arts as Assistant Professor of Violin.
Mezzo-soprano Raehann Bryce-Davis (MM ’12, PS ’13) released her debut album Evolution (Lexicon Classics, 2025).
Metropolitan Opera violinist and MSM Precollege faculty member Julia Choi (PS ’17) was featured in the Spring 2025 issue of the health and wellness publication Real Woman. In the interview, Julia speaks about her career and perseverance to pursue her dreams as a professional violinist.
Christie Dashiell (MM ’13) performed music from her Grammy-nominated album “Journey in Black” with her quartet at the Manggha Museum of Japanese Art and Technology in Krakow.
Bass Edwin Davis (MM ’17) is performing as The Commander in “Mozart’s Don Giovanni: A Rock Opera” at the Cutting Room.
Michael Dwinell (MM ’19) began his new position as Head of Programming for the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra.
Soprano Anna Farysej (MM ’14) was featured as a soloist at The Venice Chorale’s concert program entitled Black & Blue: A Journey Along the Danube in Venice, Florida.
Drummer Jake Goldbas (BM ’11, MM ’13), a Deputy Director of the Find Your Light Foundation, received one of two inaugural Broadway Bound Legacy Awards at Broadway Bound Kids’ annual Raise Your Voice! benefit concert.
Petteri Iivonen (PS ’16, AD ’17) was appointed Professor of Violin at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris.
Er-Hsuan Li (MM ’15, PS ’16) was appointed Assistant Teaching Professor of Piano at Montana State University Bozeman.
Jazz bassist Kaisa Mäensivu (MM ’17) had a CD release show with her band, Kaisa’s Machine, at Chris’s Jazz Café in Philadelphia. The album is titled Moving Parts (Greenleaf Music, 2025) and includes MSM alumnus Joe Peri (BM ’13, MM ’15) on drums.
Malcolm Merriweather (DMA ’15) conducted The Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra in its program Sanctuary Road at Kleinhans Music Hall in Buffalo, New York.
Jasmine Amy Rogers (’19) won the Drama Desk Award and was nominated for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical (BOOP! The Musical) at the 2025 Tony Awards.
Soprano Katherine Saik (MM ’14) will begin the 2025-2026 academic year as a newly promoted Senior Lecturer in Music and Vocal Music Coordinator at Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts.
Classical pianist Sara Leila Sherman (MM ’09, PS ’10) had her book Resonant Minds: The Transformative Power of Music, One Note at a Time published by Bloomsbury, with a foreword by Goldie Hawn.
Hannah Taylor, Esq. (BM ’10) began her new position as Associate Attorney at The Law Office of Michelle Menken in Boston. Ms. Taylor studied bassoon at MSM.
Jonathan Tetelman (BM ’11) sang the title role in the performance of Verdi’s Don Carlo at Deutsche Oper Berlin. He was interviewed by OperaPlus in advance of his performances in Prague.
Percussionist Samuel Torres (BM ’16) performed his big band composition A Dance of Birds at National Sawdust in Brooklyn, NY.
Guitarist Bernie Williams (BM ’16) was a guest artist for the New York Philharmonic’s Concerts in the Parks Series.
Alumnus Itamar Zorman (AD ’10) was appointed Associate Professor of Music in Violin at The Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University Bloomington.
MSM Classical Percussion alumnus Hamza Able (BM ’20) was named Principal Timpani of the Dayton Philharmonic in Ohio.
UpBeat NYC, a music school located in a former church parsonage in the Mott Haven neighborhood of the South Bronx, was the subject of a recent New York Times article. Six MSM alumni are current artistic staff: violinist Selin Algoz (BM ’23, MM ’25), oboist Andrés Ayola (P ’14, BM ’22), violist Ella Bukszpan (BM ’22, MM ’25), violist Ramón Carrero-Martínez (BM ’19, MM ’21), flutist Isabel Serrano (MM ’23), and current MSM viola student Maria Alexandra Paparoni (MM ’26).
Soprano Chira Bell (BM ’22) began their new position as Assistant Director for Online Graduate Admissions and Specialized Events at Shenandoah University.
Tarun Bellur (MM ’22, PS ’23) was appointed Principal Percussionist of the New York City Ballet Orchestra.
Zoe Beyler (MM ’25) won a position as a percussionist with the Hyogo Performing Arts Center Orchestra, in Kobe, Japan.
Contemporary pianist and multihyphenate Nicole Brancato (MM ’22) directed the 2025 Seven Hills Chamber Music festival in Lynchburg, Virginia. The festival consists of works by living classical composers as well as masterclasses, open rehearsals, and work with students in public schools.
Multi-hyphenate musician Rob Buonaspina (MM ’20) was the subject of two in-depth feature stories in major Brazilian publications—Folha de Pernambuco and Taís Paranhos’ culture blog, which are widely read in Recife and beyond. Major news outlets Recife Ordinario and Blog Nayara Vila Nova additionally shared a related Instagram story, garnering tens of thousands of views. The Brazilian press coverage materialized in response to an informal video clip from one of his Instagram stories of a Brazilian-style “Festa Junina” party he hosted at his apartment, which he sent on a whim to a few media outlets in Brazil.
MSM alumna Dr. Ya-Lan Chan’s (MM ’16, DMA ’23) composition Sand aSH, written for Quartet121, was one of two winning scores in the 2025 International Call for Scores (ICS) contest sponsored by arts presentation company Neif-Norf. Sand aSH was performed at the ICS Showcase at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. Quartet 121 is comprised of MSM Contemporary Performance alumni: Molly Germer (MM ’17), violin; Julia Jung Un Suh (MM ’18), violin; Lena Vidulich (MM ’18), viola; and Thea Mesirow (MM ’17), cello.
Peter Ecklund (PS ’24) was appointed Second Bassoon of the Detroit Opera Orchestra and will begin that position this fall.
In the upcoming North American tour of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s The Phantom of the Opera, MSM Vocal Arts alumna Jordan Lee Gilbert (BM ’23) will perform the lead female role of Christine Daaé.
Soprano Sofia Gotch (MM ’23, PPD ’25), soprano Shelén Hughes (BM ’18, MM ’20), and mezzo-soprano Erin Wagner (BM ’19) were featured at Carnegie’s Zankel Hall as winners of the 2025 Gerda Lissner Foundation Competition.
Violinist Risa Hokamura (BM ’24, MM ’26) was named Career Grant Winner of New York’s Charlotte White’s Salon de Virtuosi 2025.
Soprano Jasmine Ismail (MM ’21, PS ’22) was accepted to the Academy of Vocal Arts as a Resident Artist.
Mezzo-soprano Hannah Jones (MM ’24) performed in the Metropolitan Opera’s Summer Recital series.
Jazz tenor saxophonist Rico Jones (BM ’20, MM ’22) released new album BloodLines (GiantStepsArts, 2025).
Flutist Dr. Beomjae Kim (MM ’14, AD ’17, DMA ’23) was appointed Assistant Professor of Music at Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, Tennessee.
Bass-baritone Evan Lazdowski (BM ’20), tenor Benjamin Ruiz (MM ’23), and soprano Alexis Seminario (BM ’20) participated in the 2025 Apprentice Program for Singers at The Santa Fe Opera.
Nathan McKinstry (MM ’24, PS ’25) was appointed Second Trumpet of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra.
On September 16, 2025 at 2 and 5 p.m. in Sutton Place Park (East 56th Street), Sutton Place Parks Conservancy and JWM Theatrical Company will collaboratively present Carousel: A Concert. Musical Direction by Musical Theatre alumnus Jarrett Winters Morley (BM ’20) and choreography by Willie Clyde Beaton II (BM ’20). The work is based on Ferenc Molnar’s play Liliom. Current student Kenneth Sweeney (BM ’27) is a part of the production’s Dance Ensemble. The same concert will be presented by JWM on September 30 at 2 p.m. at the Naumburg Bandshell in Central Park.
Musical Theater alumna Ariela Pizza (BM ’21), co-creator of Sceneworks Studios in Bergen, NJ, staged and starred in Legally Blonde: The Musical.
Baritone Laureano Quant (MM ’20) won the Melody category of the Concours Musical International de Montréal.
Jazz vocalist Imani Rousselle (MM ’21) performed as an ensemble member in the recent Broadway adaptation of Good Night, and Good Luck, starring George Clooney.
Ayanna Nicole Thomas (’23) is currently playing the role of Rose Granger Weasley in the Broadway production of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.
Sarah Thorn (BM ’21) performed as an ensemble member in Broadway’s Othello starring Denzel Washington and Jake Gyllenhaal.
Jazz pianist Olivia Trummer (’09) released her new album Like Water (Warner Music Italia, 2025) and performed the album live at the Sandrigo Jazz Festival in Italy.
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