community Arts Academy
music, art, and drama lessons
The Community Arts Academy has been providing music instruction to children and adults for decades.
All music lessons take place on the campus of Purdue Fort Wayne in the Purdue Fort Wayne Music Center, a state-of-the-art music facility with teaching studios, rehearsal spaces, and practice rooms that are acoustically isolated and calibrated.
Lessons are available in 30-, 45-, and 60-minute increments; please discuss the appropriate length and number of lessons with your instructor prior to registering.
All of our instructors are Purdue University Fort Wayne School of Music faculty, professional community musicians, and selected Purdue Fort Wayne students.
In 2023, we launched individual art and drama instruction. In 2024, we added individual music production instruction. Our teachers are experts in their fields—performing, exhibiting and teaching their crafts. Build up your skills in painting and drawing, learn the Adobe Creative Suite, or prepare for an audition. The Community Arts Academy is northeast Indiana's resource for visual and performing arts.
Are you an expert in a visual or performing art? Do you have a skill that you'd like to share with a group through a class or with an individual through the PFW Community Arts Academy? Contact Molly Papier at [email protected] with your pitch.
Our Instructors
Gloria Minnich completed her degree in general studies from Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne with a theatre and dance minor. She is no stranger to the local community theatre scene, acting in productions for PFW, the Fort Wayne Civic Theatre, First Presbyterian Theatre and the Arena Dinner Theatre. She is an Anthony Award and Arena Award winner. When not teaching classes for the PFW Community Arts Academy, Gloria is a member of the Fort Wayne Dance Collective Touring Company. She also teaches dance for the Fort Wayne Dance Collective. An active learner, she took several Shakespeare classes with the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford-upon-Avon, England, and is very excited about bringing Shakespeare to life for children and young adults.
Learn more and register for Gloria's classes.
Learn more and register for Gloria's individual drama instruction and audition prep.
Dorian Soto, a first year art education major at Purdue Fort Wayne, has been creating art her entire life. Dorian loves to explore both 2D and 3D artwork, using a variety of media including graphite and colored pencil, charcoal, watercolor, gouache, acrylic, and alcohol-based markers.
Last year, Dorian worked as an art teacher in a public school classroom where she enjoyed encouraging children to explore their creativity. She individualized instruction to meet each child’s learning style.
After spending six years in the Army National Guard, Dorian decided to pursue her degree here at Purdue University Fort Wayne.
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Sculptor Ron Knepper earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Indiana University, Bloomington, Master of Arts degree from New Mexico State University, and a Master of Fine Arts degree from Mills College. He is a recipient of a Pollock-Krasner Foundation Grant and an Arts United Foundation Master’s Fellowship from Allen County, Indiana.
Originally from Fort Wayne, Indiana, Ron Knepper lived in New York City for fourteen years where he taught at New York’s Parsons School of Design. Ron was a seasonal sculptor for Macy’s Parade Studio, creating objects for the Thanksgiving Day Parade Floats. His techniques and oeuvre are vast, from traditional figurative objects to purely abstract forms.
He was a visiting artist at the Kent Institute of Art at Canterbury, England and a Finalist for a Henry Moore Fellowship at the Wimbledon School of Art, Wimbledon, England. Other teaching posts include Bilken University, Ankara, Turkey, and Indiana-Purdue University Fort Wayne. He is currently teaching 2-D courses for Purdue University Fort Wayne.
His work is in various private and public collections in the United States, including a 2005 bronze monument of Pere’ Marquette, installed at Marquette University, Milwaukee, WI; a 2006 bronze sculpture of Special Forces soldier Pedro Munoz, killed in Afghanistan, installed at the Military Museum at Fort Bragg, North Carolina; and a baptismal font for the Krauss Chapel at Trinity English Lutheran Church in Fort Wayne.
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Martyna Bleke is an accomplished cellist and instructor whose talents have taken her around the world. Born in Rzeszow, Poland, Bleke earned her Master of Arts from the Karol Lipinski University of Music under Professor Lidia Grzanka-Urbaniak. During her studies she took part in numerous international Musical Master Courses, giving her the opportunity to study with professors such as Hidemi Suzuki, Glaus Richard, and Ulf Tischbirek. Since that time, Martyna has been an active participant in various orchestral projects. She has recorded the works of Brahms in the studio of the Polish Radio and Television in Wroclaw, performing for the grand opening of the Holocaust Memorial in Berlin, Germany and had the pleasure to work under Kurt Masur, the great conductor of the New York Philharmonic.
A natural leader and educator, Bleke was appointed bandleader for the Adagio String Quartet onboard Holland America Line where she managed and led a group with a 300+ piece repertoire and performed with guest artists, theatre productions, and private events. In 2014, Martyna moved to Fort Wayne, Indiana, where she has remained an active member of the region’s arts community. From cello instructor at PFW, Mynett Music, and the Community Arts Academy, to her performances with the Fort Wayne Philharmonic, PFW faculty trio, and Heartland Sings, she always has her cello by her side.
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Chris Dessent is a music educator, conductor, composer, and arranger. He currently serves as Assistant Band Director and Assistant Professor of Practice at Purdue University Fort Wayne. Prior to this position, Chris was an Associate Band Director at Fishers High School in Fishers, Indiana. His responsibilities included work with the school’s award-winning concert bands, marching band, and jazz bands. Under his direction, the FHS bands consistently received top ratings at state and national contests and festivals. Chris’ other responsibilities included work with the school’s pep band, pit orchestra, and chamber ensemble program. From 2015-2021, he served as a Band Director at Fishers Junior High School and Sand Creek Intermediate School. From 2012-2015, Chris taught K-8 general music, band, and choir in Cincinnati Public Schools.
Chris is also a highly sought-after clinician, adjudicator, and performer. He is on faculty with the Indiana Clarinet Experience, and frequently adjudicates for Bands of America events across the country. Chris is a woodwind specialist, maintaining a private studio of clarinet and saxophone students in his community. As a composer and arranger, his works for wind ensemble and other mediums reflect Chris' diverse musical experiences and interests.
A 2012 graduate of the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, Chris received a Bachelor of Music Education degree with High Distinction, studying clarinet with Howard Klug. In May of 2023, Chris received a Master of Music Education degree from Butler University in Indianapolis.
Vivianne Belanger has been the second flute of the Fort Wayne Philharmonic since 2012 and flute professor at Purdue University Fort Wayne since 2014. As a substitute orchestra player, Vivianne has performed with ensembles such as the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Lexington Philharmonic, the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony Orchestra, Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra.
A native of Montreal, Canada, Vivianne began playing the flute at age nine. In the years to follow, her passion for music grew, leading to the pursuit of a Bachelor in Music Performance from the McGill University Schulich School of Music in 2008. She went on to earn her Master of Music Performance and a Certificate in Performance from DePaul University. Her teachers include Mathieu Dufour, Denis Bluteau and Carolyn Christie.
As a teacher, Vivianne is passionate about helping guide her students to continuously enhance and expand their flute playing abilities. Dedicated, knowledgeable, and approachable, Vivianne makes the learning experience for her students both creative and positive.
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Anne Lewellen is Principal Harp of the Fort Wayne Philharmonic, a position she has held since 1987. With this orchestra she has appeared as soloist on numerous occasions and is a regular performer on the Philharmonic’s Freimann Chamber Music series. In addition to her position with the Philharmonic, she has performed and recorded with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, and the Utah Symphony.
Since 1999, Anne has appeared every summer as a member of the prestigious Grand Teton Music Festival in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
As a dedicated teacher, Anne serves as Associate faculty at Purdue University Fort Wayne and maintains an active Suzuki Harp studio, teaching students of all ages.
Anne Lewellen holds a B.M. in Harp Performance from Oberlin College Conservatory of Music where she was a student of Alice Chalifoux. Additionally, she received an Artist Diploma from the Curtis Institute of Music where she studied with Marilyn Costello.
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Ryan's bio here
Ryan's head shot to left.
Logan Weber is a Fort Wayne saxophonist who graduated with a BS in music from Purdue Fort Wayne in 2013. Logan studied classical and jazz saxophone with Dr. Farrell Vernon and music composition with Dr. Chris Rutkowski and Dr. Ken Johnson. Logan is also a pianist and composer in genres ranging from classical and jazz, to electronic music. Logan plays with area professional bands, which include Fernando Tarango and the Wickersham Brothers, Night to Remember, the John Durnell Band, and has featured with the Alicia Pyle Quartet and Hope Arthur Orchestra. In addition to teaching private saxophone lessons through Community Arts Academy, Logan teaches beginner piano at St. Henry’s Arts Academy.
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Olivia Bressler graduated from Purdue Fort Wayne with a Bachelors in Music in Piano Performance in 2022. She has lived in Fort Wayne her entire life and grew up surrounded by the arts community.
Olivia studied with Dr. Hamilton Tescarollo during college and with Alicia Pyle for many years prior. During her undergrad, she was a practice coach and recitalist at the Purdue Fort Wayne Gene Marcus Piano Camp and Festival several years in a row. She was honored to be named Exemplar of the 2022 Visual and Performing Arts graduating class.
She was one of the winners of the 2021 Purdue Fort Wayne Concerto and Aria competition, performing second piano in Poulenc’s “Concerto for Two Pianos” with the PFW University and Community Orchestra. In addition, she has participated in masterclasses with artists such as Lise de La Salle, Liu Liu, Kevin Ayesh, and Qing Jiang.
Olivia currently teaches private lessons in Southwest Fort Wayne in addition to Purdue Fort Wayne.
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Andrew Nesler has been a featured performer at international concert series and festivals, recently appearing at Llandaff Cathedral (Llandaff, UK), the Penarth Chamber Music Festival (Penarth, UK), the International Clarinet Association’s ClarinetFest (Reno, NV, US), The Exploratorium (San Francisco, CA, US), and BBC Cardiff Singer of the World (Cardiff, UK). Among awards he’s received are two First Prizes at the Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne Concerto Competition, Moving Classics TV’s “Composer of the Week” (Munich, Germany), and First Prize at the John Ireland Competition (Cardiff). He currently serves as Music Director for Transgress Opera (Cardiff) and has enjoyed working with others on projects including shadow puppetry, silent film, up to 24 pianists altogether at once, chamber music, piano duo, wind ensemble, and ballet.
An experienced educator, Andrew has over a decade of experience giving piano lessons and has given masterclasses and coached in festivals in the United States and United Kingdom. In addition, he co-authored and delivered whole-class music education curricula in three Indiana school districts from 2018-2021, reaching over 1,000 students in just three years. During his Masters studies at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, he developed a model for "Wild Music Pedagogy," in which students become advocates for themselves and others in their environment, drawing on anti-colonial, feminist, and eco-literate pedagogies.
He holds a MMus (Distinction) in Piano Performance from the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama and a B.M. in Piano Performance from Purdue University Fort Wayne, having received scholarships to both institutions. His primary teachers have included Mei Yi Foo (RWCMD) and Dr. Hamilton Tescarollo (PFW), and he has coached with Alessio Bax, William Bolcom, Jayson Gillham, Stewart Goodyear, Simon Lepper, Louis Lortie, Steven Osborne, Antonio Pompa-Baldi, Boris Slutsky, and Llŷr Williams, among many others.
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Hamilton Tescarollo is Professor of Piano and Director of Keyboard Studies at Purdue Fort Wayne. In this capacity, he teaches applied piano and piano-related courses, and coordinates the piano and organ areas in the Purdue Fort Wayne School of Music. Through CAA, he works with both promising young pianists and advanced musicians seeking further study as a non-degree option. He also has taught at the Saarburg International Music Festival in Germany and has presented master classes throughout the US and abroad.
Dr. Tescarollo‘s work as a teacher has been recognized with the “Teacher of the Year” award at the 2001 Schimmel-AZ Piano Young Artist Piano Competition. His students have garnered many prizes at prestigious piano contests such as the Music Teachers National Association Competitions, the Phoenix Symphony Concerto Competition and the Indianapolis Symphony Young Musicians Competition. They have been awarded scholarships to top national and international summer programs and have gained admission into top degree programs in the country.
Dr. Tescarollo holds piano performance degrees from Arizona State University (DMA and master’s), Santa Marcelina College (undergraduate), and the São Paulo Municipal School of Music (diploma). His teachers include pianists Gilberto Tinetti, Caio Pagano, and Robert Hamilton.
Addison Koble graduated from Garrett High School in 2021 and is currently studying Music Performance at Purdue Fort Wayne where she is a member of the Symphonic Wind Ensemble, Jazz Band, Orchestra, Jazz Combo, and Trombone Ensemble.
In July 2022, Addison was the bass trombonist for the World Youth Wind Orchestra Project in Schladming, Austria. She has experience teaching at Garrett High School, South Side High School, and Memorial Park Middle School. As both a tenor and bass trombonist, she is most experienced in classical and orchestral playing. Addison has studied privately with Andrew Hicks, Josh Hettinger, and Evan Zegiel. In her free time, she enjoys going to concerts, collecting records, and traveling.
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Tyler Summers is a French Horn player from Newburgh, Indiana. He is principal horn of the pfw wind ensemble and orchestra and is currently in his second year at Purdue Fort Wayne, pursuing a degree in music education.
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Johanna (“Yana”) Bourkova-Morunov is currently serving as acting associate concertmaster of the Fort Wayne Philharmonic, after serving as assistant concertmaster in the 2011-12 season. Other full-time positions she has held include section first violin position in the Honolulu Symphony Orchestra, as well as assistant concertmaster of the Richmond Symphony Orchestra (Virginia).
Yana is a native of St. Petersburg, Russia. She began her violin studies at the age of six in the studio of Savely Shalman and traveled extensively throughout Russia, Europe and the US to perform and to assist in Mr. Shalman's master classes. She is a laureate of the St. Petersburg Open Competition of Young Violinists and the International Violin Competition in Murcia, Spain, as well as the Society of American Musicians Competition. She studied at the St. Petersburg Rimsky-Korsakov State Conservatory Junior College with Elena Zaytseva for two years until her family moved to the US, where she began studying with Almita and Roland Vamos at the Music Institute of Chicago. Still as a student of Almita Vamos, Yana attended Oberlin Conservatory and later Northwestern University School of Music, where she graduated summa cum laude in 2004. She received her master of music degree at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the studio of Vartan Manoogian as a recipient of the Collins Wisconsin Distinguished Fellowship. She has served as concertmaster of Northwestern University Symphony Orchestra, UW-Madison Symphony Orchestra, the Mannes College for Music Orchestra and Aspen Music Festival Sinfonia. At the Aspen Music Festival, where she studied for two summers with David Halen, the concertmaster of the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra, she has also played in the Aspen Festival Symphony and Aspen Chamber Orchestras. She pursued her professional studies diploma at the Mannes College for Music as a student of Michelle Kim, the assistant concertmaster of the New York Philharmonic. Yana also has been a member of the Madison Symphony Orchestra, the Brooklyn Philharmonic, Northwest Indiana Symphony Orchestra, Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra, Elgin Symphony Orchestra and Ars Viva!/Chicago Mastersingers orchestra.
Yana has been a featured soloist with the Fort Wayne Philharmonic for the Masterworks and Summer series. She has appeared as a guest artist on the Alumni Recital Series at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, as well as Faculty Recital Series at Brigham Young University-Hawaii, where she served on the faculty. Yana is an active chamber musician, frequently performs at the Freimann Chamber Music series, has aired on classical radio stations in Chicago and Seattle, has performed as a guest artist at the Hawaii Performing Arts Festival, and has taken part in numerous sound recordings, including the album "Next!" by Scott Evan Davis.
She is married to the Philharmonic's second oboist, Pavel Morunov, and together they are raising three lively young children.
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Marcy Trentacosti, director for the Purdue Fort Wayne Community Arts Academy Summer String Camp, has been a full-time section violinist in the Fort Wayne Philharmonic since 1976. Ms. Trentacosti also is the conductor of the Fort Wayne Philharmonic Youth Concert Orchestra. She graduated from Indiana University in 1981 with a Bachelor of Music Education and in August 2008 received her MM in violin performance from Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, Ohio.
Ms. Trentacosti participated in the Rome Festival Orchestra in Rome, Italy; Chicago Civic Orchestra; Bach, Beethoven, Breckenridge Music Festival and was concertmaster of the Marion Philharmonic. She taught orchestra at Snider High School, Woodside Middle School, Canterbury School and Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp.
She maintains a private teaching studio and teaches for the Community Arts Academy in addition to serving as a Purdue Fort Wayne associate faculty member.
Dr. Sam Savage is a tenor whose varied performance experience includes opera, oratorio, musical theater, and recitals. Dr. Savage's was the winner of the Virginia Music Teachers Concerto Competition, the A. Eli and Esther Nisenfeld Award for Outstanding Tenor, and a finalist in the Richard Tauber International Competition for Tenors. He has appeared with the Metropolitan Opera, New York City Opera's national tour, Operafestival di Roma, Virginia Opera, Sarasota Opera, Maryland Opera Studio, and Western Plains Opera. Dr. Savage made his Carnegie Hall debut in 1996 performing the tenor solos in works by Leonard Bernstein and Adolphus Hailstork.
Dr. Savage, retired associate professor of music, served the Purdue Fort Wayne School of Music as director of voice for thirteen years. His other academic appointments included: the University of Texas at Arlington, Longwood University, University of Richmond, and University of Virginia
Dr. Savage's students have been accepted at prestigious graduate programs around the country. His students have been consistent winners in competition and have appeared with world-renowned opera companies, on and off Broadway, and in Hollywood films and TV productions. Dr. Savage's previous teachers include the late Maestro Franco Corelli, Linda Mabbs, and Dr. Kenneth Bowles.
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A graduate of Indiana University/Purdue University Fort Wayne in theatre and former theatre professor at Purdue University Fort Wayne, Kate Black is offering private acting coaching to students and adults preparing for an audition or professional or college theatre programs. She has been involved in the Fort Wayne theatre scene since 1971, with 9 years professional acting experience in San Francisco, doing both stage and on camera work. Performing in more than 80 stage productions, many industrial films, commercials, and videos, and doing extensive voice over projects, Kate has a special facility for dialects and an affinity for Shakespearean interpretation. Locally she has been seen on many stages, including FPT, PFW, Playground 630, the Fort Wayne Civic Theatre, and Arena Dinner Theatre, garnering awards at the last two. Aside from treading the boards and teaching theatre, she has been a fitness professional for the last 30 years, teaching aquatic fitness at the YWCA and currently at the Central YMCA, where she also does one on one Personal Training with members. Kate looks forward to the opportunity of assisting actors in finding the intention behind their characters to bring them to life.
Morgan McClarnon Schrock is a 2014 graduate of IPFW's Art Education program and currently teaches elementary school art for East Noble Schools. She focuses on painting and ceramics, but enjoys all mediums. She is very passionate about art, because she believes that creativity is a part of everything in life. She strives to be the best art educator she can be!
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Brad Kuhns is a versatile upright and electric bassist, comfortable in many genres. He has performed with many jazz groups, both locally and touring.
He has also played with several rock groups, appearing everywhere from New York to the deep South and on many albums.
Classically trained, he performs often with the Fort Wayne Philharmonic, and has also performed with orchestras in cities such as Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, South Bend, and Springfield (IL).
Brad is currently Professor of Electric Bass in the PFW Popular Music area, and is ready to assist students on electric or upright bass.
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Kylie Stultz-Dessent is a versatile artist with a varied career as an educator, soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral performer. She is currently serving as visiting instructor of clarinet and music theory at Purdue University Fort Wayne School of Music. Prior to her appointment at PFW, Kylie served as adjunct instructor of clarinet and chamber music at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. She has performed with numerous regional orchestras including the Richmond Symphony Orchestra, the Columbus Philharmonic, the Carmel Symphony Orchestra, the Bloomington Chamber Singers Orchestra, and the Bloomington Pops Orchestra.
Additionally, Kylie is a member of the award-winning, Novacane Quartet, a clarinet quartet based out of Indiana. Ms. Stultz-Dessent holds degrees from Indiana University Jacobs School of Music and the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. She is currently in the final stages of her doctoral degree at Indiana University's Jacobs School of Music. In addition to performing, Kylie is a dedicated and passionate clarinet teacher. Her students have placed in All-State ensembles, received top ratings at solo festivals and competitions, and have successfully auditioned for prestigious music schools. In the summer of 2014, Kylie co-founded the Indiana Clarinet Experience (ICE), a week-long clarinet institute that focuses on clarinet instruction, chamber music, music appreciation, and musicality. She is especially excited to be hosting Indiana Clarinet Experience at the Purdue University Fort Wayne School of Music this June.
Patricia Reeves is second flutist of the Richmond Symphony Orchestra, a position she has held since 2003. A 1997 graduate of Indiana University, Patricia studied flute with Kate Lukas and baroque flute with Barbara Kallaur. While a student there, she performed with the Baroque Orchestra as well as all of the other top orchestral ensembles. She has appeared as soloist with the Bach Collegium, the Richmond Symphony Orchestra, the Gateways Festival Chamber Orchestra, and the Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra. Ms. Reeves plays frequently with the Fort Wayne Philharmonic Orchestra, and has performed with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, the New World Symphony Orchestra, and the Orkestra Project. Patricia has participated in music festivals in Aspen and New York, and has concertized widely in the United States and the Far East. She often has collaborated with her husband, Derek Reeves, the principal violist of the Fort Wayne Philharmonic Orchestra. Patricia and Derek reside in Fort Wayne with their son, Preston.
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Nathan Jackson is a guitarist and multi-instrumentalist and a recent graduate of Purdue University Fort Wayne with bachelor's degree in Music Performance. He has been deeply involved in music from a young age playing guitar, bass guitar, trombone, baritone, and other instruments in various settings including jazz bands, concert bands, marching bands, small ensembles, popular music groups, and solo performances. In addition, he has several years of experience composing and recording music using different professional software including Pro Tools, Studio One, and FL Studio. Writing, recording, and performing music is a deep passion of his and he is excited to pass the freedom and enjoyment that he gets from music onto others who are looking to learn.
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John's Bio here
John's head shot to left.
Pavel Morunov is a native of Russia. He has received his education at Gnessins' Russian State Academy of Music in Moscow where he studied with professor and principle oboe player of the Russian Academic State Symphony Orchestra Anatoly Liubimov, Ph.D. During the last three years of his study at the Gnessins’ Academy Pavel was a full-time member of the symphony orchestra of the Moscow opera theater “The New Opera.” Pavel was invited as a guest soloist to participate in the performances of the State Academic Symphony Orchestra of Russia and other professional symphony orchestras of Moscow. After receiving his bachelor's and graduate school diplomas he was admitted into the post-graduate program at the academy, but left the country to continue his education in the United States.
Pavel has received his master of music degree from Northwestern University where he studied with the former principal oboe player of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Mr. Ray Still. In the spring of 2003 Pavel was a recipient of the Collins Distinguished Graduate Fellowship of the University of Wisconsin-Madison. In summer 2005 Pavel attended Aspen Music Festival as a recipient of the Noyce Bowers Oboe Fellowship. He received the dedicated English horn fellowship for the summer of 2006 and 2007 from the same festival. He received his professional studies diploma from Mannes College of Music, the division of the New School University, where he studied with Elaine Douvas, principal oboe player of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. Currently he is a doctoral degree dissertator at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music where he studies with Professor Marc Fink.
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Christine Freeman has been a music teacher and collaborative pianist for students and faculty in the Fort Wayne and Los Angeles areas for over 40 years. She received her B.A. in music from California State University at Northridge where she studied with artist-in-residence Jakob Gimpel and Françoise Regnat. Ms. Freeman worked as a collaborative pianist at CSUN, primarily in the cello masterclasses of Peter Rejto and Jeffrey Solow (pupil of Gregor Piatigorsky), and was coached in chamber music by several artists including Erick Friedmann (pupil of Jascha Heifetz), Endre Granat (pupil of Jascha Heifetz) and Nathaniel Rosen (pupil of Gregor PIatigorsky). She received her M.M. degree in piano performance from Butler University where she studied with artist-in-residence Panayis Lyras.
Ms. Freeman has been on the music piano/theory faculty at Purdue Fort Wayne since 2001, and is currently teaching applied piano. She also teaches non-degree students through the Community Arts Academy at Purdue Fort Wayne and coordinates the piano recitals for CAA. She is a member and past president of Northeast Indiana Music Teachers Association, a member and adjudicator for the American College of Piano Teachers (Guild), and a member of Indiana Music Teachers Association and Music Teachers National Association.
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Jonathan Young is an active pianist, composer, teacher, conductor, and accompanist. He recently earned a doctor of musical arts degree in piano performance at the University of Kansas, studying with Dr. Steven Spooner. Career highlights include working as coach/accompanist at Opera in the Ozarks in Summer 2018, attending the Bel Canto Summer Academy in Germany as a collaborative pianist in 2016, and performing solo piano at Haydn’s Esterhazy Palace in Austria through the Classical Music Festival in 2013. In concerto performances, Dr. Young has performed Mozart's Piano Concerto in C Minor with the Wheaton College Symphony Orchestra in 2009 and Mozart's Piano Concerto in D Minor with the Inspiration Point Fine Arts Colony Orchestra in 2007. He is an avid performer of chamber music, vocal, instrumental, and choral music, and has released two solo piano compositions on iTunes and Amazon Music. Dr. Young received his master’s degree from University of Missouri Kansas City with Dr. Robert Weirich and bachelor’s degree from Wheaton College with Dr. Karin Redekopp Edwards. He recently served as vice president of KU’s Collegiate Chapter of MTNA, and reviews books for the American Music Teacher magazine.
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Andrew Nesler has been a featured performer at international concert series and festivals, recently appearing at Llandaff Cathedral (Llandaff, UK), the Penarth Chamber Music Festival (Penarth, UK), the International Clarinet Association’s ClarinetFest (Reno, NV, US), The Exploratorium (San Francisco, CA, US), and BBC Cardiff Singer of the World (Cardiff, UK). Among awards he’s received are two First Prizes at the Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne Concerto Competition, Moving Classics TV’s “Composer of the Week” (Munich, Germany), and First Prize at the John Ireland Competition (Cardiff). He currently serves as Music Director for Transgress Opera (Cardiff) and has enjoyed working with others on projects including shadow puppetry, silent film, up to 24 pianists altogether at once, chamber music, piano duo, wind ensemble, and ballet.
An experienced educator, Andrew has over a decade of experience giving piano lessons and has given masterclasses and coached in festivals in the United States and United Kingdom. In addition, he co-authored and delivered whole-class music education curricula in three Indiana school districts from 2018-2021, reaching over 1,000 students in just three years. During his Masters studies at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, he developed a model for "Wild Music Pedagogy," in which students become advocates for themselves and others in their environment, drawing on anti-colonial, feminist, and eco-literate pedagogies.
He holds a MMus (Distinction) in Piano Performance from the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama and a B.M. in Piano Performance from Purdue University Fort Wayne, having received scholarships to both institutions. His primary teachers have included Mei Yi Foo (RWCMD) and Dr. Hamilton Tescarollo (PFW), and he has coached with Alessio Bax, William Bolcom, Jayson Gillham, Stewart Goodyear, Simon Lepper, Louis Lortie, Steven Osborne, Antonio Pompa-Baldi, Boris Slutsky, and Llŷr Williams, among many others.
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Josh Hettinger graduated from Purdue Fort Wayne with bachelor's degrees in both Music Education and Music Performance. At Purdue Fort Wayne, he was the principal trombonist of the Symphonic Wind Ensemble and was also involved in Jazz Ensemble, Brass Quintet, and Trombone Ensemble. Currently, Josh studies trombone under continuing lecturer David Cooke. Josh has performed in the 2016 IMEA Intercollegiate Band, 2016 Columbia Festival of Winds Intercollegiate Honor Band, 2017 CBDNA Intercollegiate Band in Kansas City, and has performed with the Purdue Fort Wayne Symphonic Wind Ensemble at Carnegie Hall in New York City. Josh has experience teaching at both Woodlan Jr./Sr. High School, and DeKalb High School in addition to teaching privately in the Fort Wayne area prior to teaching with the Community Arts Academy.
Dannie Eyanson graduated from St. Marys Memorial High School in 2019 and is currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in Music and an Outside Field (Theatre) at Purdue Fort Wayne, where they are a member of the Symphonic Wind Ensemble and Orchestra. Dannie has been playing the tuba for over ten years, and they also have experience playing euphonium and bass trombone.
As a low brass instrumentalist, Dannie has studied privately with Andrew Hicks, Chance Trottman-Huiet, and Dr. Evan Zegiel. They have experience leading low brass sectionals with the Three Rivers Honor Bands, as well as performance and music coaching experience from their time spent at Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp. In their free time, Dannie likes to play video games, paint, and do puzzles.
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John Okley Egger is the Director of Music Education at Purdue University Fort Wayne where he teaches undergraduate courses in the areas of elementary music methods, secondary music methods, supervises student teaching, and introductory courses to music education. He was previously a graduate teaching assistant for elementary music methods at the University of Kentucky and a music teacher for Clinton Public Schools and Vicksburg Warren School District in Mississippi.
He completed his Ph.D. in Music Education from the University of Kentucky during the Fall 2014. His previous degrees include a M.A. in Music and Music Education from Teachers College Columbia University and B.M.E. from the University of Southern Mississippi. He has also completed all three levels of Orff-Schulwerk. Professional memberships include the American Educational Research Association, American Orff-Schulwerk Association, College Music Society, Indiana Music Educators Association, Kentucky Music Educators Association, International Society for Music Education, National Association for Music Education, Organization of American Kodály Educators, and Society for Research in Music Education.
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Annette Colgrove was born and raised in Fort Wayne, Indiana. She received her Associates Degree in Science with an emphasis in Music from Ricks College, Rexburg, Idaho in 1986. She went on to receive her Bachelor in Music degree with an emphasis in Music Education: Vocal-Instrumental; Cum Laude in 1989, with emphasis on violin and piano. She is a member of Sigma Alpha Iota and Pi Kappa Lambda. She began teaching piano in 1980 and violin in 1986, and has yet to stop. She taught orchestra grades 4-12 for the Pullman, Washington school district and grades 4-5 for the Moscow, Idaho school district, both from 1990-1992. She moved back to Fort Wayne, Indiana in 1997 with her husband and two youngest children. She currently plays organ for her church and violin with the Purdue Fort Wayne orchestra.
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Mezzo-soprano Ashlee Bickley McCrory performs and teaches various genres across the classical singing medium. Her recent operatic roles include Angelina/Cenerentola (La Cenerentola), Hansel (Hansel and Gretel), Alma March (Little Women), Geneviève (Pelléas et Mélisande), and Mother/Grandmother (Little Red). Operatic covers include Stéphano (Roméo et Juliette), Orlofsky (Die Fledermaus), Marcellina (Le nozze di Figaro), and Tisbe (La Cenerentola).
As an oratorio soloist, Ashlee has been featured in Bach’s Weihnachtsoratorium, St. Matthew Passion, Mass in B Minor, Mass in F, and Cantatas 34 and 110, Stravinsky’s Les Noces, Händel’s Messiah, Charpentier’s Te Deum, Vivaldi’s Gloria, Mendelssohn’s Elijah, and Schubert’s Mass in E-flat. She has appeared with the Fort Wayne Philharmonic, Ocala Symphony, Delaware Valley Opera Company (PA), and sings regularly with the Heartland Chamber Chorale and Bach Collegium of Fort Wayne. Ashlee holds degrees from the Eastman School of Music and Florida State University and she will be a Resident Artist Fellow at the Atlantic Music Festival in 2014. She is on faculty at Purdue University Fort Wayne and Trine University.
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Gloria Minnich completed her degree in general studies from Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne with a theatre and dance minor. She is no stranger to the local community theatre scene, acting in productions for PFW, the Fort Wayne Civic Theatre, First Presbyterian Theatre and the Arena Dinner Theatre. She is an Anthony Award and Arena Award winner. When not teaching classes for the PFW Community Arts Academy, Gloria is a member of the Fort Wayne Dance Collective Touring Company. She also teaches dance for the Fort Wayne Dance Collective. An active learner, she took several Shakespeare classes with the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford-upon-Avon, England, and is very excited about bringing Shakespeare to life for children and young adults.
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A graduate of Indiana University/Purdue University Fort Wayne in theatre and former theatre professor at Purdue University Fort Wayne, Kate Black is offering private acting coaching to students and adults preparing for an audition or professional or college theatre programs. She has been involved in the Fort Wayne theatre scene since 1971, with 9 years professional acting experience in San Francisco, doing both stage and on camera work. Performing in more than 80 stage productions, many industrial films, commercials, and videos, and doing extensive voice over projects, Kate has a special facility for dialects and an affinity for Shakespearean interpretation. Locally she has been seen on many stages, including FPT, PFW, Playground 630, the Fort Wayne Civic Theatre, and Arena Dinner Theatre, garnering awards at the last two. Aside from treading the boards and teaching theatre, she has been a fitness professional for the last 30 years, teaching aquatic fitness at the YWCA and currently at the Central YMCA, where she also does one on one Personal Training with members. Kate looks forward to the opportunity of assisting actors in finding the intention behind their characters to bring them to life.
Dorian Soto, a first year art education major at Purdue Fort Wayne, has been creating art her entire life. Dorian loves to explore both 2D and 3D artwork, using a variety of media including graphite and colored pencil, charcoal, watercolor, gouache, acrylic, and alcohol-based markers.
Last year, Dorian worked as an art teacher in a public school classroom where she enjoyed encouraging children to explore their creativity. She individualized instruction to meet each child’s learning style.
After spending six years in the Army National Guard, Dorian decided to pursue her degree here at Purdue University Fort Wayne.
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Morgan McClarnon Schrock is a 2014 graduate of IPFW's Art Education program and currently teaches elementary school art for East Noble Schools. She focuses on painting and ceramics, but enjoys all mediums. She is very passionate about art, because she believes that creativity is a part of everything in life. She strives to be the best art educator she can be!
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Sculptor Ron Knepper earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Indiana University, Bloomington, Master of Arts degree from New Mexico State University, and a Master of Fine Arts degree from Mills College. He is a recipient of a Pollock-Krasner Foundation Grant and an Arts United Foundation Master’s Fellowship from Allen County, Indiana.
Originally from Fort Wayne, Indiana, Ron Knepper lived in New York City for fourteen years where he taught at New York’s Parsons School of Design. Ron was a seasonal sculptor for Macy’s Parade Studio, creating objects for the Thanksgiving Day Parade Floats. His techniques and oeuvre are vast, from traditional figurative objects to purely abstract forms.
He was a visiting artist at the Kent Institute of Art at Canterbury, England and a Finalist for a Henry Moore Fellowship at the Wimbledon School of Art, Wimbledon, England. Other teaching posts include Bilken University, Ankara, Turkey, and Indiana-Purdue University Fort Wayne. He is currently teaching 2-D courses for Purdue University Fort Wayne.
His work is in various private and public collections in the United States, including a 2005 bronze monument of Pere’ Marquette, installed at Marquette University, Milwaukee, WI; a 2006 bronze sculpture of Special Forces soldier Pedro Munoz, killed in Afghanistan, installed at the Military Museum at Fort Bragg, North Carolina; and a baptismal font for the Krauss Chapel at Trinity English Lutheran Church in Fort Wayne.
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Brad Kuhns is a versatile upright and electric bassist, comfortable in many genres. He has performed with many jazz groups, both locally and touring.
He has also played with several rock groups, appearing everywhere from New York to the deep South and on many albums.
Classically trained, he performs often with the Fort Wayne Philharmonic, and has also performed with orchestras in cities such as Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, South Bend, and Springfield (IL).
Brad is currently Professor of Electric Bass in the PFW Popular Music area, and is ready to assist students on electric or upright bass.
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Martyna Bleke is an accomplished cellist and instructor whose talents have taken her around the world. Born in Rzeszow, Poland, Bleke earned her Master of Arts from the Karol Lipinski University of Music under Professor Lidia Grzanka-Urbaniak. During her studies she took part in numerous international Musical Master Courses, giving her the opportunity to study with professors such as Hidemi Suzuki, Glaus Richard, and Ulf Tischbirek. Since that time, Martyna has been an active participant in various orchestral projects. She has recorded the works of Brahms in the studio of the Polish Radio and Television in Wroclaw, performing for the grand opening of the Holocaust Memorial in Berlin, Germany and had the pleasure to work under Kurt Masur, the great conductor of the New York Philharmonic.
A natural leader and educator, Bleke was appointed bandleader for the Adagio String Quartet onboard Holland America Line where she managed and led a group with a 300+ piece repertoire and performed with guest artists, theatre productions, and private events. In 2014, Martyna moved to Fort Wayne, Indiana, where she has remained an active member of the region’s arts community. From cello instructor at PFW, Mynett Music, and the Community Arts Academy, to her performances with the Fort Wayne Philharmonic, PFW faculty trio, and Heartland Sings, she always has her cello by her side.
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Kylie Stultz-Dessent is a versatile artist with a varied career as an educator, soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral performer. She is currently serving as visiting instructor of clarinet and music theory at Purdue University Fort Wayne School of Music. Prior to her appointment at PFW, Kylie served as adjunct instructor of clarinet and chamber music at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. She has performed with numerous regional orchestras including the Richmond Symphony Orchestra, the Columbus Philharmonic, the Carmel Symphony Orchestra, the Bloomington Chamber Singers Orchestra, and the Bloomington Pops Orchestra.
Additionally, Kylie is a member of the award-winning, Novacane Quartet, a clarinet quartet based out of Indiana. Ms. Stultz-Dessent holds degrees from Indiana University Jacobs School of Music and the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. She is currently in the final stages of her doctoral degree at Indiana University's Jacobs School of Music. In addition to performing, Kylie is a dedicated and passionate clarinet teacher. Her students have placed in All-State ensembles, received top ratings at solo festivals and competitions, and have successfully auditioned for prestigious music schools. In the summer of 2014, Kylie co-founded the Indiana Clarinet Experience (ICE), a week-long clarinet institute that focuses on clarinet instruction, chamber music, music appreciation, and musicality. She is especially excited to be hosting Indiana Clarinet Experience at the Purdue University Fort Wayne School of Music this June.
Chris Dessent is a music educator, conductor, composer, and arranger. He currently serves as Assistant Band Director and Assistant Professor of Practice at Purdue University Fort Wayne. Prior to this position, Chris was an Associate Band Director at Fishers High School in Fishers, Indiana. His responsibilities included work with the school’s award-winning concert bands, marching band, and jazz bands. Under his direction, the FHS bands consistently received top ratings at state and national contests and festivals. Chris’ other responsibilities included work with the school’s pep band, pit orchestra, and chamber ensemble program. From 2015-2021, he served as a Band Director at Fishers Junior High School and Sand Creek Intermediate School. From 2012-2015, Chris taught K-8 general music, band, and choir in Cincinnati Public Schools.
Chris is also a highly sought-after clinician, adjudicator, and performer. He is on faculty with the Indiana Clarinet Experience, and frequently adjudicates for Bands of America events across the country. Chris is a woodwind specialist, maintaining a private studio of clarinet and saxophone students in his community. As a composer and arranger, his works for wind ensemble and other mediums reflect Chris' diverse musical experiences and interests.
A 2012 graduate of the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, Chris received a Bachelor of Music Education degree with High Distinction, studying clarinet with Howard Klug. In May of 2023, Chris received a Master of Music Education degree from Butler University in Indianapolis.
Patricia Reeves is second flutist of the Richmond Symphony Orchestra, a position she has held since 2003. A 1997 graduate of Indiana University, Patricia studied flute with Kate Lukas and baroque flute with Barbara Kallaur. While a student there, she performed with the Baroque Orchestra as well as all of the other top orchestral ensembles. She has appeared as soloist with the Bach Collegium, the Richmond Symphony Orchestra, the Gateways Festival Chamber Orchestra, and the Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra. Ms. Reeves plays frequently with the Fort Wayne Philharmonic Orchestra, and has performed with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, the New World Symphony Orchestra, and the Orkestra Project. Patricia has participated in music festivals in Aspen and New York, and has concertized widely in the United States and the Far East. She often has collaborated with her husband, Derek Reeves, the principal violist of the Fort Wayne Philharmonic Orchestra. Patricia and Derek reside in Fort Wayne with their son, Preston.
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Vivianne Belanger has been the second flute of the Fort Wayne Philharmonic since 2012 and flute professor at Purdue University Fort Wayne since 2014. As a substitute orchestra player, Vivianne has performed with ensembles such as the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Lexington Philharmonic, the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony Orchestra, Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra.
A native of Montreal, Canada, Vivianne began playing the flute at age nine. In the years to follow, her passion for music grew, leading to the pursuit of a Bachelor in Music Performance from the McGill University Schulich School of Music in 2008. She went on to earn her Master of Music Performance and a Certificate in Performance from DePaul University. Her teachers include Mathieu Dufour, Denis Bluteau and Carolyn Christie.
As a teacher, Vivianne is passionate about helping guide her students to continuously enhance and expand their flute playing abilities. Dedicated, knowledgeable, and approachable, Vivianne makes the learning experience for her students both creative and positive.
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Nathan Jackson is a guitarist and multi-instrumentalist and a recent graduate of Purdue University Fort Wayne with bachelor's degree in Music Performance. He has been deeply involved in music from a young age playing guitar, bass guitar, trombone, baritone, and other instruments in various settings including jazz bands, concert bands, marching bands, small ensembles, popular music groups, and solo performances. In addition, he has several years of experience composing and recording music using different professional software including Pro Tools, Studio One, and FL Studio. Writing, recording, and performing music is a deep passion of his and he is excited to pass the freedom and enjoyment that he gets from music onto others who are looking to learn.
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Anne Lewellen is Principal Harp of the Fort Wayne Philharmonic, a position she has held since 1987. With this orchestra she has appeared as soloist on numerous occasions and is a regular performer on the Philharmonic’s Freimann Chamber Music series. In addition to her position with the Philharmonic, she has performed and recorded with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, and the Utah Symphony.
Since 1999, Anne has appeared every summer as a member of the prestigious Grand Teton Music Festival in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
As a dedicated teacher, Anne serves as Associate faculty at Purdue University Fort Wayne and maintains an active Suzuki Harp studio, teaching students of all ages.
Anne Lewellen holds a B.M. in Harp Performance from Oberlin College Conservatory of Music where she was a student of Alice Chalifoux. Additionally, she received an Artist Diploma from the Curtis Institute of Music where she studied with Marilyn Costello.
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John's Bio here
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Ryan's bio here
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Pavel Morunov is a native of Russia. He has received his education at Gnessins' Russian State Academy of Music in Moscow where he studied with professor and principle oboe player of the Russian Academic State Symphony Orchestra Anatoly Liubimov, Ph.D. During the last three years of his study at the Gnessins’ Academy Pavel was a full-time member of the symphony orchestra of the Moscow opera theater “The New Opera.” Pavel was invited as a guest soloist to participate in the performances of the State Academic Symphony Orchestra of Russia and other professional symphony orchestras of Moscow. After receiving his bachelor's and graduate school diplomas he was admitted into the post-graduate program at the academy, but left the country to continue his education in the United States.
Pavel has received his master of music degree from Northwestern University where he studied with the former principal oboe player of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Mr. Ray Still. In the spring of 2003 Pavel was a recipient of the Collins Distinguished Graduate Fellowship of the University of Wisconsin-Madison. In summer 2005 Pavel attended Aspen Music Festival as a recipient of the Noyce Bowers Oboe Fellowship. He received the dedicated English horn fellowship for the summer of 2006 and 2007 from the same festival. He received his professional studies diploma from Mannes College of Music, the division of the New School University, where he studied with Elaine Douvas, principal oboe player of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. Currently he is a doctoral degree dissertator at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music where he studies with Professor Marc Fink.
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Logan Weber is a Fort Wayne saxophonist who graduated with a BS in music from Purdue Fort Wayne in 2013. Logan studied classical and jazz saxophone with Dr. Farrell Vernon and music composition with Dr. Chris Rutkowski and Dr. Ken Johnson. Logan is also a pianist and composer in genres ranging from classical and jazz, to electronic music. Logan plays with area professional bands, which include Fernando Tarango and the Wickersham Brothers, Night to Remember, the John Durnell Band, and has featured with the Alicia Pyle Quartet and Hope Arthur Orchestra. In addition to teaching private saxophone lessons through Community Arts Academy, Logan teaches beginner piano at St. Henry’s Arts Academy.
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Christine Freeman has been a music teacher and collaborative pianist for students and faculty in the Fort Wayne and Los Angeles areas for over 40 years. She received her B.A. in music from California State University at Northridge where she studied with artist-in-residence Jakob Gimpel and Françoise Regnat. Ms. Freeman worked as a collaborative pianist at CSUN, primarily in the cello masterclasses of Peter Rejto and Jeffrey Solow (pupil of Gregor Piatigorsky), and was coached in chamber music by several artists including Erick Friedmann (pupil of Jascha Heifetz), Endre Granat (pupil of Jascha Heifetz) and Nathaniel Rosen (pupil of Gregor PIatigorsky). She received her M.M. degree in piano performance from Butler University where she studied with artist-in-residence Panayis Lyras.
Ms. Freeman has been on the music piano/theory faculty at Purdue Fort Wayne since 2001, and is currently teaching applied piano. She also teaches non-degree students through the Community Arts Academy at Purdue Fort Wayne and coordinates the piano recitals for CAA. She is a member and past president of Northeast Indiana Music Teachers Association, a member and adjudicator for the American College of Piano Teachers (Guild), and a member of Indiana Music Teachers Association and Music Teachers National Association.
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Olivia Bressler graduated from Purdue Fort Wayne with a Bachelors in Music in Piano Performance in 2022. She has lived in Fort Wayne her entire life and grew up surrounded by the arts community.
Olivia studied with Dr. Hamilton Tescarollo during college and with Alicia Pyle for many years prior. During her undergrad, she was a practice coach and recitalist at the Purdue Fort Wayne Gene Marcus Piano Camp and Festival several years in a row. She was honored to be named Exemplar of the 2022 Visual and Performing Arts graduating class.
She was one of the winners of the 2021 Purdue Fort Wayne Concerto and Aria competition, performing second piano in Poulenc’s “Concerto for Two Pianos” with the PFW University and Community Orchestra. In addition, she has participated in masterclasses with artists such as Lise de La Salle, Liu Liu, Kevin Ayesh, and Qing Jiang.
Olivia currently teaches private lessons in Southwest Fort Wayne in addition to Purdue Fort Wayne.
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Jonathan Young is an active pianist, composer, teacher, conductor, and accompanist. He recently earned a doctor of musical arts degree in piano performance at the University of Kansas, studying with Dr. Steven Spooner. Career highlights include working as coach/accompanist at Opera in the Ozarks in Summer 2018, attending the Bel Canto Summer Academy in Germany as a collaborative pianist in 2016, and performing solo piano at Haydn’s Esterhazy Palace in Austria through the Classical Music Festival in 2013. In concerto performances, Dr. Young has performed Mozart's Piano Concerto in C Minor with the Wheaton College Symphony Orchestra in 2009 and Mozart's Piano Concerto in D Minor with the Inspiration Point Fine Arts Colony Orchestra in 2007. He is an avid performer of chamber music, vocal, instrumental, and choral music, and has released two solo piano compositions on iTunes and Amazon Music. Dr. Young received his master’s degree from University of Missouri Kansas City with Dr. Robert Weirich and bachelor’s degree from Wheaton College with Dr. Karin Redekopp Edwards. He recently served as vice president of KU’s Collegiate Chapter of MTNA, and reviews books for the American Music Teacher magazine.
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Andrew Nesler has been a featured performer at international concert series and festivals, recently appearing at Llandaff Cathedral (Llandaff, UK), the Penarth Chamber Music Festival (Penarth, UK), the International Clarinet Association’s ClarinetFest (Reno, NV, US), The Exploratorium (San Francisco, CA, US), and BBC Cardiff Singer of the World (Cardiff, UK). Among awards he’s received are two First Prizes at the Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne Concerto Competition, Moving Classics TV’s “Composer of the Week” (Munich, Germany), and First Prize at the John Ireland Competition (Cardiff). He currently serves as Music Director for Transgress Opera (Cardiff) and has enjoyed working with others on projects including shadow puppetry, silent film, up to 24 pianists altogether at once, chamber music, piano duo, wind ensemble, and ballet.
An experienced educator, Andrew has over a decade of experience giving piano lessons and has given masterclasses and coached in festivals in the United States and United Kingdom. In addition, he co-authored and delivered whole-class music education curricula in three Indiana school districts from 2018-2021, reaching over 1,000 students in just three years. During his Masters studies at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, he developed a model for "Wild Music Pedagogy," in which students become advocates for themselves and others in their environment, drawing on anti-colonial, feminist, and eco-literate pedagogies.
He holds a MMus (Distinction) in Piano Performance from the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama and a B.M. in Piano Performance from Purdue University Fort Wayne, having received scholarships to both institutions. His primary teachers have included Mei Yi Foo (RWCMD) and Dr. Hamilton Tescarollo (PFW), and he has coached with Alessio Bax, William Bolcom, Jayson Gillham, Stewart Goodyear, Simon Lepper, Louis Lortie, Steven Osborne, Antonio Pompa-Baldi, Boris Slutsky, and Llŷr Williams, among many others.
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Andrew Nesler has been a featured performer at international concert series and festivals, recently appearing at Llandaff Cathedral (Llandaff, UK), the Penarth Chamber Music Festival (Penarth, UK), the International Clarinet Association’s ClarinetFest (Reno, NV, US), The Exploratorium (San Francisco, CA, US), and BBC Cardiff Singer of the World (Cardiff, UK). Among awards he’s received are two First Prizes at the Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne Concerto Competition, Moving Classics TV’s “Composer of the Week” (Munich, Germany), and First Prize at the John Ireland Competition (Cardiff). He currently serves as Music Director for Transgress Opera (Cardiff) and has enjoyed working with others on projects including shadow puppetry, silent film, up to 24 pianists altogether at once, chamber music, piano duo, wind ensemble, and ballet.
An experienced educator, Andrew has over a decade of experience giving piano lessons and has given masterclasses and coached in festivals in the United States and United Kingdom. In addition, he co-authored and delivered whole-class music education curricula in three Indiana school districts from 2018-2021, reaching over 1,000 students in just three years. During his Masters studies at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, he developed a model for "Wild Music Pedagogy," in which students become advocates for themselves and others in their environment, drawing on anti-colonial, feminist, and eco-literate pedagogies.
He holds a MMus (Distinction) in Piano Performance from the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama and a B.M. in Piano Performance from Purdue University Fort Wayne, having received scholarships to both institutions. His primary teachers have included Mei Yi Foo (RWCMD) and Dr. Hamilton Tescarollo (PFW), and he has coached with Alessio Bax, William Bolcom, Jayson Gillham, Stewart Goodyear, Simon Lepper, Louis Lortie, Steven Osborne, Antonio Pompa-Baldi, Boris Slutsky, and Llŷr Williams, among many others.
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Hamilton Tescarollo is Professor of Piano and Director of Keyboard Studies at Purdue Fort Wayne. In this capacity, he teaches applied piano and piano-related courses, and coordinates the piano and organ areas in the Purdue Fort Wayne School of Music. Through CAA, he works with both promising young pianists and advanced musicians seeking further study as a non-degree option. He also has taught at the Saarburg International Music Festival in Germany and has presented master classes throughout the US and abroad.
Dr. Tescarollo‘s work as a teacher has been recognized with the “Teacher of the Year” award at the 2001 Schimmel-AZ Piano Young Artist Piano Competition. His students have garnered many prizes at prestigious piano contests such as the Music Teachers National Association Competitions, the Phoenix Symphony Concerto Competition and the Indianapolis Symphony Young Musicians Competition. They have been awarded scholarships to top national and international summer programs and have gained admission into top degree programs in the country.
Dr. Tescarollo holds piano performance degrees from Arizona State University (DMA and master’s), Santa Marcelina College (undergraduate), and the São Paulo Municipal School of Music (diploma). His teachers include pianists Gilberto Tinetti, Caio Pagano, and Robert Hamilton.
Josh Hettinger graduated from Purdue Fort Wayne with bachelor's degrees in both Music Education and Music Performance. At Purdue Fort Wayne, he was the principal trombonist of the Symphonic Wind Ensemble and was also involved in Jazz Ensemble, Brass Quintet, and Trombone Ensemble. Currently, Josh studies trombone under continuing lecturer David Cooke. Josh has performed in the 2016 IMEA Intercollegiate Band, 2016 Columbia Festival of Winds Intercollegiate Honor Band, 2017 CBDNA Intercollegiate Band in Kansas City, and has performed with the Purdue Fort Wayne Symphonic Wind Ensemble at Carnegie Hall in New York City. Josh has experience teaching at both Woodlan Jr./Sr. High School, and DeKalb High School in addition to teaching privately in the Fort Wayne area prior to teaching with the Community Arts Academy.
Addison Koble graduated from Garrett High School in 2021 and is currently studying Music Performance at Purdue Fort Wayne where she is a member of the Symphonic Wind Ensemble, Jazz Band, Orchestra, Jazz Combo, and Trombone Ensemble.
In July 2022, Addison was the bass trombonist for the World Youth Wind Orchestra Project in Schladming, Austria. She has experience teaching at Garrett High School, South Side High School, and Memorial Park Middle School. As both a tenor and bass trombonist, she is most experienced in classical and orchestral playing. Addison has studied privately with Andrew Hicks, Josh Hettinger, and Evan Zegiel. In her free time, she enjoys going to concerts, collecting records, and traveling.
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Dannie Eyanson graduated from St. Marys Memorial High School in 2019 and is currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in Music and an Outside Field (Theatre) at Purdue Fort Wayne, where they are a member of the Symphonic Wind Ensemble and Orchestra. Dannie has been playing the tuba for over ten years, and they also have experience playing euphonium and bass trombone.
As a low brass instrumentalist, Dannie has studied privately with Andrew Hicks, Chance Trottman-Huiet, and Dr. Evan Zegiel. They have experience leading low brass sectionals with the Three Rivers Honor Bands, as well as performance and music coaching experience from their time spent at Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp. In their free time, Dannie likes to play video games, paint, and do puzzles.
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Tyler Summers is a French Horn player from Newburgh, Indiana. He is principal horn of the pfw wind ensemble and orchestra and is currently in his second year at Purdue Fort Wayne, pursuing a degree in music education.
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John Okley Egger is the Director of Music Education at Purdue University Fort Wayne where he teaches undergraduate courses in the areas of elementary music methods, secondary music methods, supervises student teaching, and introductory courses to music education. He was previously a graduate teaching assistant for elementary music methods at the University of Kentucky and a music teacher for Clinton Public Schools and Vicksburg Warren School District in Mississippi.
He completed his Ph.D. in Music Education from the University of Kentucky during the Fall 2014. His previous degrees include a M.A. in Music and Music Education from Teachers College Columbia University and B.M.E. from the University of Southern Mississippi. He has also completed all three levels of Orff-Schulwerk. Professional memberships include the American Educational Research Association, American Orff-Schulwerk Association, College Music Society, Indiana Music Educators Association, Kentucky Music Educators Association, International Society for Music Education, National Association for Music Education, Organization of American Kodály Educators, and Society for Research in Music Education.
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Johanna (“Yana”) Bourkova-Morunov is currently serving as acting associate concertmaster of the Fort Wayne Philharmonic, after serving as assistant concertmaster in the 2011-12 season. Other full-time positions she has held include section first violin position in the Honolulu Symphony Orchestra, as well as assistant concertmaster of the Richmond Symphony Orchestra (Virginia).
Yana is a native of St. Petersburg, Russia. She began her violin studies at the age of six in the studio of Savely Shalman and traveled extensively throughout Russia, Europe and the US to perform and to assist in Mr. Shalman's master classes. She is a laureate of the St. Petersburg Open Competition of Young Violinists and the International Violin Competition in Murcia, Spain, as well as the Society of American Musicians Competition. She studied at the St. Petersburg Rimsky-Korsakov State Conservatory Junior College with Elena Zaytseva for two years until her family moved to the US, where she began studying with Almita and Roland Vamos at the Music Institute of Chicago. Still as a student of Almita Vamos, Yana attended Oberlin Conservatory and later Northwestern University School of Music, where she graduated summa cum laude in 2004. She received her master of music degree at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the studio of Vartan Manoogian as a recipient of the Collins Wisconsin Distinguished Fellowship. She has served as concertmaster of Northwestern University Symphony Orchestra, UW-Madison Symphony Orchestra, the Mannes College for Music Orchestra and Aspen Music Festival Sinfonia. At the Aspen Music Festival, where she studied for two summers with David Halen, the concertmaster of the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra, she has also played in the Aspen Festival Symphony and Aspen Chamber Orchestras. She pursued her professional studies diploma at the Mannes College for Music as a student of Michelle Kim, the assistant concertmaster of the New York Philharmonic. Yana also has been a member of the Madison Symphony Orchestra, the Brooklyn Philharmonic, Northwest Indiana Symphony Orchestra, Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra, Elgin Symphony Orchestra and Ars Viva!/Chicago Mastersingers orchestra.
Yana has been a featured soloist with the Fort Wayne Philharmonic for the Masterworks and Summer series. She has appeared as a guest artist on the Alumni Recital Series at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Music, as well as Faculty Recital Series at Brigham Young University-Hawaii, where she served on the faculty. Yana is an active chamber musician, frequently performs at the Freimann Chamber Music series, has aired on classical radio stations in Chicago and Seattle, has performed as a guest artist at the Hawaii Performing Arts Festival, and has taken part in numerous sound recordings, including the album "Next!" by Scott Evan Davis.
She is married to the Philharmonic's second oboist, Pavel Morunov, and together they are raising three lively young children.
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Annette Colgrove was born and raised in Fort Wayne, Indiana. She received her Associates Degree in Science with an emphasis in Music from Ricks College, Rexburg, Idaho in 1986. She went on to receive her Bachelor in Music degree with an emphasis in Music Education: Vocal-Instrumental; Cum Laude in 1989, with emphasis on violin and piano. She is a member of Sigma Alpha Iota and Pi Kappa Lambda. She began teaching piano in 1980 and violin in 1986, and has yet to stop. She taught orchestra grades 4-12 for the Pullman, Washington school district and grades 4-5 for the Moscow, Idaho school district, both from 1990-1992. She moved back to Fort Wayne, Indiana in 1997 with her husband and two youngest children. She currently plays organ for her church and violin with the Purdue Fort Wayne orchestra.
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Marcy Trentacosti, director for the Purdue Fort Wayne Community Arts Academy Summer String Camp, has been a full-time section violinist in the Fort Wayne Philharmonic since 1976. Ms. Trentacosti also is the conductor of the Fort Wayne Philharmonic Youth Concert Orchestra. She graduated from Indiana University in 1981 with a Bachelor of Music Education and in August 2008 received her MM in violin performance from Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, Ohio.
Ms. Trentacosti participated in the Rome Festival Orchestra in Rome, Italy; Chicago Civic Orchestra; Bach, Beethoven, Breckenridge Music Festival and was concertmaster of the Marion Philharmonic. She taught orchestra at Snider High School, Woodside Middle School, Canterbury School and Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp.
She maintains a private teaching studio and teaches for the Community Arts Academy in addition to serving as a Purdue Fort Wayne associate faculty member.
Mezzo-soprano Ashlee Bickley McCrory performs and teaches various genres across the classical singing medium. Her recent operatic roles include Angelina/Cenerentola (La Cenerentola), Hansel (Hansel and Gretel), Alma March (Little Women), Geneviève (Pelléas et Mélisande), and Mother/Grandmother (Little Red). Operatic covers include Stéphano (Roméo et Juliette), Orlofsky (Die Fledermaus), Marcellina (Le nozze di Figaro), and Tisbe (La Cenerentola).
As an oratorio soloist, Ashlee has been featured in Bach’s Weihnachtsoratorium, St. Matthew Passion, Mass in B Minor, Mass in F, and Cantatas 34 and 110, Stravinsky’s Les Noces, Händel’s Messiah, Charpentier’s Te Deum, Vivaldi’s Gloria, Mendelssohn’s Elijah, and Schubert’s Mass in E-flat. She has appeared with the Fort Wayne Philharmonic, Ocala Symphony, Delaware Valley Opera Company (PA), and sings regularly with the Heartland Chamber Chorale and Bach Collegium of Fort Wayne. Ashlee holds degrees from the Eastman School of Music and Florida State University and she will be a Resident Artist Fellow at the Atlantic Music Festival in 2014. She is on faculty at Purdue University Fort Wayne and Trine University.
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Dr. Sam Savage is a tenor whose varied performance experience includes opera, oratorio, musical theater, and recitals. Dr. Savage's was the winner of the Virginia Music Teachers Concerto Competition, the A. Eli and Esther Nisenfeld Award for Outstanding Tenor, and a finalist in the Richard Tauber International Competition for Tenors. He has appeared with the Metropolitan Opera, New York City Opera's national tour, Operafestival di Roma, Virginia Opera, Sarasota Opera, Maryland Opera Studio, and Western Plains Opera. Dr. Savage made his Carnegie Hall debut in 1996 performing the tenor solos in works by Leonard Bernstein and Adolphus Hailstork.
Dr. Savage, retired associate professor of music, served the Purdue Fort Wayne School of Music as director of voice for thirteen years. His other academic appointments included: the University of Texas at Arlington, Longwood University, University of Richmond, and University of Virginia
Dr. Savage's students have been accepted at prestigious graduate programs around the country. His students have been consistent winners in competition and have appeared with world-renowned opera companies, on and off Broadway, and in Hollywood films and TV productions. Dr. Savage's previous teachers include the late Maestro Franco Corelli, Linda Mabbs, and Dr. Kenneth Bowles.
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