Faculty

About

Academic Information

• DMA, Piano Performance and Literature from the Eastman School of Music

Professional Background

Solo and collaborative performing artist in the U.S. and abroad. Honored into the Steinway Hall of Fame, 2019. Served as Cultural Ambassador for the U.S. State Dept. throughout the Middle East. In demand as a Clinician/presenter/performer/adjudicator at regional, national and international festivals and events including MTNA and NCKP conferences.

About

Andrew Angelos is Third Horn as well as the Operations and Personnel Manager for the Spokane Symphony. He graduated from Manhattan School of Music with both a Bachelors and Masters degree. He has attended numerous music festivals across the country including the National Symphony Orchestra Summer Music Institute and Marrowstone Music Festival. Andrew is the brass coach for the Spokane Youth Symphony and also enjoys mentoring and teaching his private studio of young musicians. In addition, he enjoys walking and running along Riverfront Park in Spokane and taking road trips through Eastern Washington. In his spare time, he likes to work on his 1966 Mustang and explore the brewery scene in Spokane. Mr. Angelos has a Master of Music from the Manhattan School of Music – New York.

About

Academic Information

• DMA, University of Washington

Professional Background

Dr. Janet Ahrend is the instructor of Organ at EWU and previously served as the Choirmaster and Organist at St. John’s Cathedral in Spokane.

About

Dr. Ben Cleveland has over 15 years teaching experience teaching voice lessons, both at the university level and privately. He has done extensive coursework in vocal pedagogy, anatomy, and performance technique, along with 15 years of professional performance experience at major
opera companies in the US. He has collaborated with some of the greatest stage directors, singers, and conductors in the modern operatic world and has done extensive coursework in acting, movement, and dance. Some of his roles include Gastone – La Traviata/Inland Northwest Opera, Sam/Susannah – Low Brow Opera, Don José – Carmen/Billings Symphony Orchestra, Margherita/Guillermo – Cinderella in Spain/Seattle Opera,
Don José – Carmen/Pacific Northwest Opera to name a few! Dr. Cleveland has a DMA from the University of Kansas.

About

Academic Information

• B.S. Eastern Washington University

Professional Background

Composer, arranger, performer. Writes for all Western instruments, with a strong emphasis on lower brass. Director of low brass ensembles.

About

Academic Information

• PhD, The Ohio State University

Professional Background

Dr. Jane Ellsworth is both a musicologist and a professional clarinetist. She is Professor of Music History and Clarinet Studies. Her books include A Dictionary for the Modern Clarinetist (Rowman & Littlefield, 2015) and The Clarinet (University of Rochester Press, 2021), as well as a forthcoming monograph on the clarinet in eighteenth- and nineteenth-century America. Jane is also bass clarinetist with the Spokane Symphony. She holds BM and MM degrees from the Cleveland Institute of Music, along with a DMA in clarinet and a PhD in musicology from The Ohio State University.

About

Academic Information

• DMA, The Juilliard School

Professional Background

Principal bassoon, Spokane Symphony. She serves on the EWU and Whitworth University music faculty. Dr. Feller-Marshall also performs with the SSO principal winds, Northwest Bach Festival, and Paradox. She studied with Stephen Maxym, Frank Morelli and Frank Wangler.

About

Academic Information

• DMA, University of North Texas

Professional Background

Dr. Friel is an active performer and clinician and performs regularly as a soloist with renowned ensembles on saxophone, oboe, clarinet, and flute. He has a vibrant performance schedule with jazz orchestras, symphonic orchestras, musical theaters, cover bands and independent artists, which include playing lead alto for Natalie Cole and performing with Tony Bennett.

Dr. Friel can be heard on several cd’s from the University of North Texas’ Wind Ensemble and Two O’Clock Lab Band. He is currently serving in his 35th year of military service with the Army National Guard Bands.

About

Academic Information

• MM, Eastern Washington University

Professional Background

Composer, performer. Skilled in musical instrument design, and has developed coursework in digital audio signals, amplifier design, and programming within the SuperCollider platform. Accomplished cellist and vocalist.

About

Academic Information

• DMA, University of Kentucky

Professional Background

Musical Director of the Spokane Jazz Orchestra. Active performer with the Bob Curnow Big Band, The Don Goodwin Trio. Active adjudicator and clinician. Published composer through Gary Gilroy Music and ejazzlines.

About

Academic Information

• MA, Eastern Washington University

Professional Background

Versatile pianist and keyboardist, with a background in Classical, Jazz and Latin music. Active performer with numerous area music groups.

About

Davis Hill is an accomplished pianist, in both classical and jazz repertoire. He is a Nationally Certified Teacher of Music (NCTM) through MTNA, and received his Master of Arts in Music from EWU. He has served as an instructor for North Idaho College in jazz piano, theory and composition and maintains a private studio. He has taught English as a second language in France, and has been an invited presenter for regional and state music conferences.

About

Amanda Howard-Phillips is Principal second violin in the Spokane Symphony. She made her solo debut with the Bainbridge Orchestra at age eleven. Amanda received her master’s degree in violin performance from the Cleveland Institute of Music, and her Bachelor’s degree from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, where she studied with Camilla Wicks.

About

Academic Information

• MM, University of North Texas
• DMA, University of Kentucky (in progress)

Professional Background

Composer, Arranger, Trombonist, Educator, Recording Artist. Sought after clinician and workshop presenter throughout the U.S. and Canada. (On leave 2023-24)

About

Academic Information

• MA, Piano Performance/Eastern Washington University

Professional Background

Piano Class, Accompanying, Applied piano.

Ms. Kimura has is an active collaborative pianist and studio teacher.  She studied with Dr. Jody Graves, Ms. Kendall Feeney, Margaret Brinks, Fumiko Yoshida, and Yukiko Takeyama.

About

Lucas is an accomplished piano technician and performer. He has worked with the Steinway Company and is in demand as a technician throughout the region.

About

Academic Information

• DM, Northwestern University

Professional Background

Principal cello, Spokane Symphony. Summer faculty, Interlochen Arts Camp. Founder/Director of the annual CELLObration Spokane festival. Conductor with the Spokane Youth Symphony. Frequent performer with the Spokane String Quartet and the NW Bach Festival.

About

Academic Information

• DMA, Columbia University

Professional Background

A mid-career composer with commissions, performances, and recordings in the US and Europe. Author of Essentials for Composers: Creative Process by Design (Waveland Press). Residencies at Stanford University, University of Chile, and the University of Tampere in Finland.

About

Academic Information

• DME, Indiana University

Professional Background

Taught in the elementary school music classroom for more than 20 years in Washington and California, and at the university level for 12 years in Washington and Indiana, with a special emphasis on world music and foundational skills and methods for both music and general classroom teachers.

About

Academic Information

• BME, Boise State University

Professional Background

Member, soloist in Spokane Symphony, Spokane Jazz Orchestra, Bob Curnow Big Band, Clarion, Spokane Opera. Student of William Adam, Armando Ghitalla, John McNeil, Galindo Rodriguez. Active clinician, adjudicator, and performer.

About

Academic Information

• MM, Manhattan School of Music

Professional Background

Assistant principal bass, Spokane Symphony. Studied with Orin O’Brien, Timothy Cobb, and James VanDemark. Performed with Rochester Philharmonic, Virginia Symphony, Lancaster Festival Orchestra. Summer faculty, Red Lodge Music Festival (Mont.).

About

Ms. Pyke is the Principal Flute (Tenured) player for the Spokane Symphony, and a substitute flautist for the Oregon Symphony, and the New World Symphony. She has won many awards, and performed in numerous festivals throughout her career. She has performed under notable conductors such as Leonard Slatkin, Michael Tilson Thomas and Marin Alsop to name a few. Ms. Pyke studied under Timothy Day and Dr. Alexa Still. She has a
Professional Certificate in Performance and a Master of Music from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.

About

Academic Information

• DMA, University of Kentucky

Professional Background

Former Director, Spokane Symphony Chorale. Former faculty: Spokane Area Youth Choirs, St. George’s School, Everett HS, Ephrata HS, and AC Davis HS. Adjunct faculty: Whitworth University and Gonzaga University. In demand as a clinician/adjudicator at numerous Music Educator’s events.

About

Beth Rainey is a pianist, cellist and vocalist who had her musical start as a SAYC chorister in 1999. She has accompanied choirs and played for musical theaters in Spokane and Seattle for over 15 years. She is also teaching Spanish in bilingual preschools, elementary and middle/high schools. She is currently working as a Student Support Specialist/ Spanish teacher in The Community School alongside her schedule as a professional pianist. Ms. Rainey has her MIT from Eastern Washington University.

About

Academic Information

• MM in Piano, Manhattan School of Music

Professional Background

Pianist Scott Rednour has appeared in recital with artists such as William Warfield, Hilda Harris, and tenor Robert White; cellist Wolfgang Nüßlein and violinist Bela Horvath. His opera credits include American Opera Projects, Skylight Opera Theater, Chautauqua Symphony, Spokane Symphony and Inland Northwest Opera. Taught at the Manhattan School of Music and Juilliard.

About

Ben Luca Robertson is a composer, audio engineer, and co-founder of Aphonia Recordings. As a practicing artist, his work employs generative algorithms, analog circuits, and handmade, microtonal instruments. As well as as teaching courses in Music Technology, Ben has served as a guest researcher at the Tampere Unit for Computer-Human Interactions in Finland, Audio Editor for the Washington State Archives, and has collaborated with researchers from the University of Idaho and Gonzaga University to convey biological data using sound. Ph.D. Music Composition and Computer Technologies, University of Virginia; M.A. Music Composition, Eastern Washington University

About

Sought after instructor of guitar and active performer throughout the state. Mr. Shields also developed a guitar program which brings both guitars and instruction free to veterans with PTSD through the VA. Mr. Shields has a Master of Music degree in Guitar Performance from U. of Idaho.

About

Academic Information

• DMA, University of Kentucky

Professional Background

Performer, adjudicator, conductor and expert in vocal studies. She is creating an anthology of African-American repertoire for developing singers and frequently presents and leads workshops and masterclasses on such topics as developing anti-racist syllabi,
evaluating appropriate repertoire, careers in music, and building collaboration with arts organizations.

About

Academic Information

• DMA, University of North Texas

Professional Background

Origin Recording artist with critically acclaimed CD entitled “Time Within Itself.” Featured drum set artist at the 2016 International Jazz Educator’s Network Festival. Performs as a clinician on both jazz and classical percussion and is a Yamaha artist. Has performed and recorded with a plethora of world-class artists.

About

A finalist of the 2010 Liederkranz Opera Competition (New York) and a winner in the 2008 Zara Dolukhanova International Art Song Competition (Russia), Dawn Marie Wolski’s clear, effortless soprano has been delighting audiences throughout the opera, operetta, and concert worlds alike.

Ms. Wolski also served in the U.S. Army where she performed with the London Symphony, Boston Symphony, National Symphony, and Cincinnati Symphony, as well as shared the stage with such names as Julie Andrews, Wayne Brady, Wynonna Judd, Michael Peterson, Aaron Tippin, Pam Tillis, and Chris Isaak, not to mention several U.S. presidents. She has recorded for Albany Records.

About

Academic Information

• PhD, University of Cape Town

Professional Background

Vice President of the International Music Council. Serves on the Editorial Board of the Journal of Popular Music Education. Has published numerous chapters and journal articles. Research focus is on music and wellbeing.