Music School Festival Orchestra
Monday June 30, 2025
Amphitheater at 8:15pm
Join the Chautauqua School of Music's Festival Orchestra for their 2025 Season debut with works by Still, Mozart and Harlin.
Timothy Muffitt, artistic and music director
Hannah Schendel, conducting fellow
Anna Sykes, concert master
Frances Norton, principal second violin
Kate MacKenzie, principal viola
Lekai Li, principal cello
Zoe Harris, principal double bass
Symphony No. 31 in D Major, K. 297/300a “Paris” (20’)
- Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756 – 1791)
I. Allegro assai
II. Andantino
III. Allegro
Earthrise, 2022 (20’)
- Patrick Harlin (b. 1984)
Symphony No. 2 in G Minor, 1937 “Song of a New Race” (29’)
- William Grant Still (1895 – 1978)
1. Slowly
2. Slowly, with expression
3. Moderately fast
4. Moderately slow
Violin 1
Anna Sykes, concertmaster
Charlotte Fong
Ophir Dahari
Byron Laing
Yvonne Lee
Veronica Rokicki
Evan Schuman
Paula Sastre
Rhianna Lingle
Cade Carter
Jameson Darcy
Blake Armstrong
Violin II
Frances Norton, principal
Ian Jenson
Cecelia Santiago
Jamily Lee
Noah Ghosh
Kana Aihara
Zihua Ma
Pavlo Kyryliuk
Caleb Frailey
Rebekah Geller
Tianyu Liu
Maxwell Fairman
Viola
Kate MacKenzie, principal
Kamilah Brown
Daniel Castorena
Chloe Kitzmiller
Martha Mulcahy
Josh Corwin
Mira Vaughn
Ariana Mascari
Alondra Damian-Noyola
Alison Wong
Cello
Lekai Li, principal
Nathaniel Stone
Alexandra Dillulio
Ethan Hess
Myla Wyrick
Milo Klise
Benjamin Smith
Noah Vin
Layla Morris
Ewan Manalo
Double Bass
Zoe Harris, principal
Aidan Lobenstein
Sunny Lin
Stan Legan
Austin Beck
Paolo Garcia
Carson Fast
Flute
Alex Lehmann
Carter Reynolds
Emma Westerfield
Oboe
Kearsen Erwin
Celia Wojcik
Erin Yun
Clarinet
Lauren Enos
Hongbo Liang
Dan Spitzer
Caroline Weiss
Bassoon
Jason Capozucca
Noah Eastman
Heather Hippchen
James Smelley
Horn
Lilah Costanzo
Jordan Petan
Louis Roy
Amir Sharipov
Cristina Vieytez
Trumpet
Dasara Beta
Jordan Ku
Elijah Leonard
Kirk Morrison
Trombone
Griffin Rupp
Elijah Van Camp-Goh
Bass Trombone
Iris Liu
Tuba
Parker Burkey
Percussion
Jose Diaz
Will Morgan
Connor Speakman
Patrick Sorah
Harp
Beth Henson
Piano
Alicja Basinska
Each summer we enroll 81 of the most promising young instrumentalists from here and abroad to join us for an exciting summer of music making. Our students are typically 18 to 28 and enrolled in (or recently graduated from) undergraduate or graduate studies.
The School of Music at Chautauqua considers orchestral work, private study, and chamber music each to be vital components of the program. The orchestra rehearses daily for the majority of the summer and performs its concerts in Chautauqua’s 4,400-seat outdoor Amphitheater. Other facets of orchestral study include sectionals, repertoire classes and mock auditions all run by our professional faculty. Topics covered include the psychology of auditioning, performance issues/anxiety, and instant feedback providing priceless insight into the professional road ahead.
The chamber music program runs throughout the festival. Students receive regular coaching from our distinguished faculty and have multiple performance opportunities. Percussionists participate in a two-week chamber music residency with Michael Burritt, concluding with a percussion ensemble concert. Many of the ensembles mix with the opera conservatory, piano and even theater and dance programs to provide a wide and diverse offering of performing experiences.
Private study rounds out the curriculum with each student receiving six private lessons with a member of Chautauqua’s world-renowned faculty. Master classes from both resident and guest faculty are part of the program as well. Climate-controlled practice cabins provide an ideal environment for the personal work that goes into a summer of artistic growth.
MSFO Student Librarians
Dasara Beta
Caleb Frailey
MSFO Manager
Paola Garcia
MSFO Percussion Manager
Jose Diaz
Instrumental 2025 Faculty
Jaren Atherholt, oboe
Alicja Basinska, collaborative pianist
Aaron Berofsky, violin and chair of strings
Bill Bernatis, horn
Curtis Burris, bass
Michael Burritt, percussion
Cristina Cutts, tuba
Eli Eban, clarinet
Pedro Frenandez, chair of percussion
Shannon Hesse, collaborative pianist
Roger Kaza, horn
Akiko Konishi, collaborative pianist
Brian Kushmaul, percussion
Owen Lee, bass
Eric Lindblom, bass trombone
Madeleine Olson, harp
Nurit Pacht, violin
Lynne Ramsey, viola
Mark Robbins, horn
Jeff Robinson, bassoon
Richard Sherman, flute and chair of winds
Matt Strauss, percussion
Almita Vamos, violin
Kathryn Votapek, chair of chamber music
Felix Wang, cello
Micah Wilkinson, trumpet and chair of brass
Chris Wolf, trombone
School of Music Administration
Sarah Malinoski, Director, Chautauqua Schools of Performing and Visual Arts
Samantha Minardi-Lopez, Manager of Student Services & Arts Education Business Coordinator
Alyssa Shimmel, Administrative Assistant
Becky Mack, Head Librarian
Mariana Mathewson Bernstein, Connections Coordinator
Robert Bussell, Piano Technician
Igor Gersh, Resident Luthier