Madlen H. Breckbill (Viola, Violin) has worked in Europe as an orchestral trainee with Konzerthausorchester Berlin, the violist of the TAÏGA String Quartet in Denmark and as a chamber music trainee with Villa-Musica in Rheinland Pfalz. As an orchestral player, Madlen toured China and Japan, and performed under the batons of Sir Roger Norrington, Leon Fleisher, Christian Eschenbach, and Ivan Fischer. As a chamber musician, Madlen has performed across Europe and North America collaborating with Martin Beaver, Ernst Kovacic, Steven Dann, and cellist Richard Lester (to name just a few).

In 2019, Madlen founded the Stoughton Chamber Music Festival, facilitating chamber music collaborations dedicated to diverse and experiential programing.

Madlen has performed with trio with(out), Bach Dancing Dynamite Society, Midsummer Music, Token Creek Chamber Music Festival, The Happenstancers and West End Micro Music Festival.  

Madlen holds a BM and MM from UW Madison, and an Artist Diploma from the Glenn Gould School in Toronto. Her primary teachers include violinists Eugene Purdue, David Perry, Paul Kantor, Erica Raum, Barry Shiffman, and violists Steven Dann and Sally Chisholm.

Johanna Wienholts is a harpist and creative artist celebrated for her authentic, expressive sound and joyful stage presence. A passionate educator, she currently serves on the string faculty at University of Wisconsin’s Mead Witter School of Music, and previously taught at Lawrence Conservatory of Music in Appleton, Wisconsin. Johanna is the principal harpist of the Madison Symphony Orchestra and performs regularly with the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra. In addition to her life as a soloist and orchestral harpist, she is an enthusiastic chamber musician and lover of new music. Johanna holds a bachelor's degree in classical harp performance from University of Toronto and a graduate degree in performance from Manhattan School of Music. She trained at Interlochen Arts Academy under Joan Holland, professor of harp at the University of Michigan. In Toronto, she studied with the renowned harpist Judy Loman, one of the last pupils of Carlos Salzedo. This will be Johanna’s first season with ESCMF and is most looking forward to playing the Debussy Danses with such a wonderful group of string players!

Dr. Hsin-I Huang, Taiwanese-American classical pianist, has captivated audiences the world over with his emotional virtuoso performances by evincing masterfully dexterous playing and profound musical sensitivity. Over his illustrious career and with his impressive range, he has won high acclaim and numerous awards performing across the United States, Europe and Asia. As both a soloist and chamber musician, he maintains a rigorous performance schedule with some 60 concerts each year. He has released two solo albums: his 2015 debut “Bach/Busoni-Brahms-Schumann” and his 2016 follow-up “Mighty Shadow – Rachmaninoff – Mussorgsky.” Both albums are available on Apple iTunes and in 14,000 retail stores worldwide. Dr. Huang’s third solo album is set to release next year.

Dr. Huang has also been invited and served as a jury member for many international competitions such as the Forte International Music Competition at Carnegie Hall in New York City, the Spectrum Symphony Young Artist Concerto Competition in New York City and the Singapore Annual Music Talent Competition. In 2017, he was also invited to be on the board of directors and to launch the role of Concerto Competition Program Director for the non-profit Spectrum Symphony In New York. In 2019, Dr. Huang was further invited to serve as a Steinway Educational Partner as an ambassador for piano education in New York. Despite his demanding performance schedule, he has also been invited to conduct master classes at universities and conservatories in the U.S., Europe, Singapore and Taiwan.

Though widely acclaimed as a performer, Dr. Huang has also been an inspiration to his many students because of his passion for classical music. He is fervently committed to their success by leveraging strong discipline, positive encouragement and programmatic structure. His students have been accepted into world-renowned music schools including The Juilliard School, Manhattan School of Music, Royal Academy of Music. They have also won top prizes from major international competitions including the Los Angeles International Liszt Piano Competition, Memphis International Piano Festival and Competition, Gina Bachauer International Young Artists Piano Competition and American Protégé International Piano and Strings Competition.

In 2023, Dr. Huang founded Vision Arts Foundation and it has emerged as a formidable force committed to promoting classical music with a profound focus on fostering creativity and supporting young, emerging talents. The VAF endeavors encompass a harmonious blend of concerts, exhibitions, grants, and educational programs. Simultaneously, our advocacy efforts aim to heighten awareness regarding the integral role of arts and culture in society, striving to garner public support and funding.

Dr. Huang began his piano studies at the age of seven in Taiwan and moved to Graz, Austria at the age of 14 on a merit scholarship to continue his musical studies and to learn the German language and European culture and history. He moved to the United States for high school and college and achieved his doctorate in piano performance from Stony Brook University in 2019. Dr. Huang taught as an adjunct professor at Queens College of the City University of New York at the Aaron Copland School of Music. Dr. Huang is currently teaching selectively and privately for promising, high-achieving students.

Dr. Dan Phipps is a saxophonist and educator based in Marietta, GA. An advocate for new music, he has premiered works as a soloist and chamber musician with ensembles such as Mixed Media, Atlanta Contemporary Music Collective (ATLCMC), and Duo IOC.

Dan has earned recognition in solo and chamber competitions, most notably winning the Georgia and Massachusetts MTNA Solo Woodwind competitions. He has performed as a concerto soloist with ATLCMC Chamber Orchestra and the symphony orchestras of the University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass) and the University of Georgia (UGA). His playing can be heard on professional studio recordings with the Massachusetts Chamber Players, Mixed Media saxophone quartet, and avant-garde improvisation ensemble Kaphca Trio.

As an educator, Dan has taught aural skills at UGA and saxophone at institutions including the UGA Summer Music Institute, Carere Music Inc., and Atlanta Music Academy. Dan also works with a number students in Metro Atlanta as a sectional coach and as the co-director of the Atlanta Youth Saxophone Ensemble. He holds a Doctor of Musical Arts (music theory minor) and Master of Music from UGA and a Bachelor of Music from UMass. His primary teachers include Dr. Connie Frigo, Jonathan Hulting-Cohen, and Lynn Klock.

A native of Marquette, Michigan, Dr. Aubrie Jacobson is a Wisconsin-based collaborative pianist, music educator, and arts administrator with an interest in storytelling through dynamic recital programming and a passion for making arts communities welcoming, engaging, and nourishing places for all people. 

Aubrie currently works as a collaborative pianist at Carroll University, as a piano instructor for Madison Conservatory, as Music Assistant for Madison Opera, and as a freelance collaborative pianist, including with Suzuki Strings of Madison.

An advocate of new music, Aubrie has premiered works such as Cory Brodack’s “Citrus Twist” with clarinetist Gretchen Hill and participated in Source Song Festival’s MNDuo Program, creating a premiere recording of a new art song, “The Cup,” by Molly Hennig with mezzo-soprano Dr. Lindsey Meekhof. Aubrie also appears in a recording of Reza Vali’s Love Drunk (Folk Songs, Set No. 16b) for Violin and Piano with Dr. Ava Shadmani on the album I Will Greet the Sun Again. 

Aubrie earned a bachelor’s degree in piano performance from Viterbo University and completed master’s and doctoral degrees in collaborative piano performance from the University of Wisconsin-Madison Mead Witter School of Music.

Originally from the Philadelphia suburbs, Katherine has enjoyed serving as concertmaster and in the violin section of orchestras around the world including Philadelphia, Chicago, Italy, Colorado, and Florida where her playing was described by the Palm Beach Arts Paper as “lovely, poised and accomplished”. Katherine is a core violinist in the Sarasota Orchestra and plays as a frequent guest in the Atlanta, Colorado, and Jacksonville Symphonies, the Naples Philharmonic, and the Florida Orchestra. As a touring musician she was a principal violinist for the Game of Thrones Live Concert Experience and has also toured with artists such as Josh Groban, Michael Bublé, Andrea Bocelli, Sarah Brightman, Joshua Bell, Sigur Rós, Il Volo, and the Tran-Siberian Orchestra. During her summers, she has participated in music festivals such as the Artosphere Festival, National Repertory Orchestra, Aspen Music Festival and the St. Augustine Music Festival. 

Katherine is passionate about arts education and in addition to serving as Adjunct Professor of Chamber Music at the New College of Florida, she also founded the Katherine B. Violin Academy where she teaches a full studio of private violin students from around the world, both virtually and in person. 

A native of Cherry Hill, NJ, Katherine began the violin at age 10 and went on to make her solo debut five years later performing Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto with the Ocean City Pops Orchestra. In 2010 she was awarded the NJ Governor’s Award in Arts and Education and the same year, the mayor of Cherry Hill proclaimed April 12th “Katherine Baloff Day” in honor of her contributions to the community and representation of her hometown in several local and national orchestra competitions. 

Katherine’s primary teachers were Elmar Oliveira and Ilya Kaler. She holds a Master’s Degree and Professional Performance Certificate from the Lynn Conservatory of Music in Boca Raton, Florida and a Bachelor’s Degree from DePaul University’s School of Music in Chicago. She currently plays on a 2004 Benjamin Ruth violin and resides in Sarasota with her violinist husband and 3 foster-turned-adopted cats.

Born in Plovdiv, Bulgaria, Yordan Tenev first came to the United States at age 13 to attend the prestigious Idyllwild Arts Academy in California on a full scholarship. Since then he has enjoyed a diverse career, playing for orchestras across several states, as well as teaching violin and viola for more than ten years. He holds a Master of Music degree in Violin Performance from Lynn University Conservatory of Music, studying with Prof. Carol Cole. Yordan has appeared as soloist with various orchestras, including the National Repertory Orchestra, the Dali International Festival Orchestra, and the Lynn Philharmonia. Yordan currently resides in Sarasota, Florida and performs with the Sarasota Orchestra and the Florida Orchestra in Tampa. In his free time he enjoys traveling and performing with his wife, fellow violinist Katherine Baloff and spending time with their three cats Rosie, Rocky, and Bowie.

Delcho Tenev has been a member of the Colorado Symphony since 2015. He received a Bachelor’s degree from Indiana University Jacobs School of Music and earned a Master’s degree and Professional Performance Certificate from Lynn University.

Delcho Tenev began his music education in the “Dobrin Petkov” school under Prof. Darina Dankova in his hometown of Plovdiv, Bulgaria. At age 14 he moved to the U.S. and attended high school at the Idyllwild Arts Academy in California, studying with Prof. Todor Pelev. He received a Bachelor’s degree from Indiana University Jacobs School of Music where he studied with Prof. Kevork Mardirossian, and then earned a Master’s degree and Professional Performance Certificate from Lynn University where he was a student of Prof. Carol Cole.

Delcho has spent several summers at prestigious music festivals in the U.S. and abroad, including RoundTop International Music Festival in Texas, Spoleto Festival in South Carolina, Castleton Music Festival in Virginia, Penderecki Akademie held in Germany and Poland, and AIMS Festival held in Graz, Austria. He was invited to perform in numerous masterclasses and collaborate with important music personas such as Lorin Maazel, Kristof Penderecki, Leonard Slatkin, Paul Kantor, Ilya Kaler, Ruggiero Ricci, Schmuel Ashkenazy and Joel Smirnoff, among others. Delcho joined the violin section of the Colorado Symphony in September of 2015 and is happy to be playing great music with such a wonderful orchestra, as well as exploring the beautiful city of Denver, his new home.

Blakeley Menghini is the Education Director at the Rockford Symphony Orchestra in Rockford, IL and an active freelance violist. Before relocating to IL in 2024, she was Visiting Assistant Professor of Music at Luther College in Decorah, Iowa, where she taught viola and several courses, including String Methods and chamber music, and directed the Philharmonia string orchestra. Blakeley is a Doctor of Musical Arts graduate of the UW-Madison Mead Witter School of Music, where she studied viola with Sally Chisholm of the Pro Arte Quartet. While earning her DMA, Blakeley was a member of the Hunt Quartet, a competitive graduate scholarship ensemble which focused on both formal performances and educational concerts for children through the Madison Symphony Orchestra’s Up Close and Musical program. Before her time at UW-Madison, she earned her Masters of Music and a Performer’s Certificate at Northern Illinois University, where she studied with Anthony Devroye of the Avalon Quartet. 

Blakeley has performed in masterclasses with Alban Gerhardt, Nobuko Imai, Laurie Smukler, and the St. Lawrence, Arianna, Avalon, Pro Arte, and Verona Quartets. She has participated in the Arianna Chamber Music Festival, Northern Lights Chamber Music Festival, Token Creek Chamber Music Festival, LunArts Festival, Caroga Lake Chamber Music Festival, and spent time in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia under the mentorship of the Verona Quartet at the Lunenburg Academy of Music Performance (LAMP). 

From 2018 to 2022, Blakeley served Northeastern Wisconsin as a founding member and violist of the Griffon String Quartet, reaching audiences of all ages with the mission to Educate, Enrich, and Excite their community. In 2022, she co-founded the Kalara String Quartet, often featured in the Candlelight Series concerts throughout Wisconsin. Passionate about chamber music for young people, the Kalara Quartet has offered masterclasses and chamber music camps in Wisconsin and Illinois. Blakeley has also held positions as principal violist of the Weidner Philharmonic (Green Bay, WI) and the Civic Symphony of Green Bay, and is a substitute violist in the Fox Valley, Madison, and Rockford Symphonies. 

In her free time, Blakeley enjoys iced coffee, arts and crafts, organizing, kickboxing, and spending time with her husband Ben and grey cat Concs.

Born in Korea, Yujin Lee started her musical path in piano at the age of five. After graduating from Sunhwa High School of Arts, she received her bachelor’s and master’s degree from Seoul National University, where she studied with Soo-Hee Auh and Aviram Reichert. She won the teen piano competition, the Sunhwa music competition, and the Korean Piano Society Competition.

Yujin came to the United States in 2013 to further pursue her studies and to experience performing on an international scale. Recitals for Hartford Musical Club and as a finalist in the CT Young Artist Competition soon followed, in addition to concerts featuring her as a winner of both the Chopin International Piano Competition in Hartford and the Paranov Solo Concerto Competition at The Hartt School. She earned an Artist Diploma (AD) in Piano Performance and a Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) at The Hartt School under David Westfall.

As an avid chamber music performer, Dr. Lee has enjoyed collaborating with numerous instrumentalists and performing on many duo recitals. She participated in the Atlantic Music Festival as a fellow pianist and performed with celebrated musicians. Currently, she has been working as a staff pianist at the Hartt School since 2020 and teaching at the Hartt Community Division as a faculty member.

Dr. Silvia Rath is an active performer, educator, and chamber musician in Southwest Alabama. She is a member of the Mobile Symphony Orchestra and frequently performs with the Pensacola Symphony Orchestra, Mobile Opera Orchestra, and Gulf Coast Symphony Orchestra. Dr. Rath is the founder and director of Southwest Alabama Academy of Music, a violin and viola program for talented children 3-18 years old. She is a Mobile Symphony Orchestra Education Program faculty member, teaching string group classes in Mobile County Public Schools. She served as a member of the string quartet in residence at The University of Alabama from 2017-2020, performing a variety of recitals, educational programs, and outreach and community concerts in the United States, Italy, and Ireland. During past summers Silvia has been a teaching assistant at prestigious music festivals such as Interlochen Center for the Arts and Meadowmount School of Music. She completed her master’s degree at Lynn University under the tutelage of world-renowned violinist Elmar Oliveira, post-graduate studies with Ilya Kaler at DePaul University, and a Doctor of Musical Arts degree at the University of Alabama with Jenny Gregoire.

Kayla Schultz is a violist, educator, and dedicated chamber musician based in Madison, WI. She earned her Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2024, studying under Sally Chisholm and performing as a member of the Marvin Rabin String Quartet at the Mead Witter School of Music. Current member of the Galaxy String Quartet and the Eastern Shore String Trio, she finds immense joy in both teaching and exploring a wide range of musical genres. Notably, she was a finalist in the 2023 University of Wisconsin-Madison Symphony Concerto Competition and the 2021 Mead Witter Viola Competition.

Kayla completed her Bachelor of Arts in Viola Performance at Cardinal Stritch University under Olga Tuzhilkovbefore earning her Master’s Degree and Performance Diploma at the Chicago College of Performing Arts, where she studied with Igor Fedotov. She has a deep passion for chamber music, cherishing the intimacy, collaboration, and artistic freedom it offers.

When she’s not performing or teaching, Kayla is an avid artist and crocheter and runs her own small business making handcrafted pieces under the name Crafts and Whimsy.

Chadwick Thomas is a clarinetist, conductor, and educator based in Hartford, Connecticut. Especially passionate about chamber music, he is a member of the Ecor Quartet and has performed with violinist Vadim Gluzman, double bassists Donald Palma, James VanDemark, and Robert Black, soprano Lucy Shelton, and clarinetist Ayako Oshima, among others. He has played with orchestras in the Northeast including the Greater Bridgeport, Hartford, Ridgefield, and Wallingford Symphonies and the Connecticut Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra. In February 2023, he performed the clarinet concerto by Jean Françaix after winning the Paranov Concerto Competition. He teaches clarinet privately, has been the Clarinet Teaching Fellow at Interlochen Arts Camp since 2023, and is currently adjunct faculty at The Hartt School, where he is completing a doctorate in clarinet performance. 

Thomas is from eastern North Carolina and holds a bachelor's degree from The Peabody Institute and a master’s degree from the University of Michigan. He studied clarinet with Ayako Oshima, Charles Neidich, Chad Burrow, Daniel Gilbert, Alexander Fiterstein, Deborah Chodacki, and Douglas Moore-Monroe and conducting with Glen Adsit and Edward Cumming.

Andrea Beltran Landers is a passionate chamber and orchestral musician with extensive teaching experience in cello and chamber music. She is founding member of the Kahlo Quartet. As a member of this ensemble, Andrea received special training in the 2019 Audience Engagement Intensive at Carnegie Hall.

Andrea’s teaching experience spans over fifteen years. During this time, she has taught at the graduate and undergraduate level at William Carey University. She is currently adjunct cello instructor at University of South Alabama and University of West Florida. As a guest lecturer, Andrea has recently taught at Cellobration (University of Alabama), the 2021 Bienal of Violoncello in Lima, Peru, and Prizm music festival. In addition to running a private cello studio, Andrea is Education Instructor with the Mobile Symphony.

As an orchestral musician, Andrea has performed extensively in orchestras of the Gulf Coast. She is a member of the Mobile Symphony Orchestra, Assistant Principal Cello of Pensacola Symphony Orchestra, and Principal Cello of the Gulf Coast Symphony Orchestra.

Andrea holds a doctorate degree in Performance and Pedagogy from the University of Southern Mississippi. She also received a master’s degree from this institution, and a bachelor’s degree from Western Illinois University.

Daniela Pardo’s musical experience includes fifteen years with the Simon Bolivar Symphony Orchestra in Venezuela’s acclaimed “El Sistema” where she also was an active teacher and chamber musician. In 2000, she moved to Milwaukee to pursue a master’s in music. After holding the string department chair position at the Wisconsin Conservatory for eight years and founding the Suzuki program there, Daniela moved to Hattiesburg in 2010 and taught orchestra and private lessons for nine years at several schools, as well as at Southern Mississippi and William Carey universities. At the Southern Miss music department, she also worked in international recruiting and community outreach. Her position as an adjunct music professor at William Carey University inspired her to create and direct for 6 years the “William Carey Suzuki Institute” and “My First String Camp at Carey”. Daniela relocated to the Mobile area in 2019 to become the Mobile Symphony Education Director. Ms. Pardo is an active teacher in the Mobile and Baldwin counties, viola performer in several regional orchestras and festivals, and a successful administrator and music contractor.

Born in Marietta, GA, Sydney Doemel (b.1996) is an acoustic and electro-acoustic composer and violinist. Her music has been performed by the JACK Quartet, Seraphic Fire, Transient Canvas, The Bent Frequency Duo, The Departure Duo, and The UGA Symphony Orchestra, with premieres in New York City, Alba, Italy, Prague, Vienna, and Salzburg. Her piece In the Teeth Of was performed on Transient Canvas' 2022 tour at Virginia Tech, Miami University, Hamilton College, and Lawrence University. Sydney was the student Composer-in-Residence with both Miami’s premier vocal ensemble, Seraphic Fire in 2021-22, and the UGA Symphony Orchestra in 2018-19.

Sydney is a violinist in the Atlanta Contemporary Music Collective, where her recent work for chamber orchestra, STORHAGA, was premiered. Her playing is featured on albums by local Atlanta and Athens bands, including Walden, The Familiar Strange, and Floral Portrait, where she is also the band's violinist. Sydney has performed in Alice Tully Hall, the Chicago Symphony Center, the Voorhees Theater, and across Atlanta venues such as Variety Playhouse, The Masquerade, the Georgia Theater, and the Center For Puppetry Arts. 

Sydney completed her Master’s in Music Composition at the University of Miami and holds degrees in Music Composition and Violin Performance from the University of Georgia. She is currently working as a software engineer at a tech startup in Atlanta, GA.

Benjamin Rollings is a native of Gulf Shores, Alabama. He believes that his ultimate purpose as a musician is to bring glory to God. He has earned recognition as first place winner and finalist in several national and international music competitions and has been invited to participate in master classes with some of the world’s most distinguished pianists. In 2020, he received his doctorate in piano performance from Indiana University where he was an associate instructor. He currently serves on the faculty of Pensacola State College and Coastal Alabama Community College and teaches piano and organ lessons privately. Benjamin maintains an active interest in organ performance and has held organist posts since high school. Since 2018, he has been the organist and choir director at St. Francis at the Point Anglican Church in Point Clear, AL. He is also an avid photographer and enjoys astronomy, flying, bicycling, kayaking, and cooking.