Category Archives: About BMS

DAVE BARTLEY, piano jazz improvisation

• Education: BFA Piano Performance, SUNY Buffalo
• Experience/Affiliations: Created the music department at The Academy at Swift River in Cummington; composer and musician for the Washington Performing Arts Society
• Special Interests: Active performer as a soloist, and in jazz ensembles throughout Western Massachusetts

DAVE BROWN, guitar

• Education: BA Jazz Performance, U-Mass, Amherst
• Experience/Affiliations:Showband musician with cruise line
• Special Interests: Active performer with a number of local bands and theatre productions

JACK BROWN, voice

• Education: BM, College of Wooster
• Experience/Affiliations: Faculty, The Hotchkiss School; Choir Director, Simons Rock and MCLA; Artistic Director Berkshire Lyric Theatre
• Special Interests: Bass-baritone soloist throughout the northeast and Canada

SHERRI JAMES BUXTON, voice

• Education: M.Ed, Cambridge College; BME, Indiana University
• Experience/Affiliations: Public school teacher; appeared on Broadway
• Special Interests: Professional cabaret singer

CAROLINA CARRY, choir

• Education: MA Music Composition, City University of New York; BM, Boston College
• Experience/Affiliations: Co-founder of D’Arte a Musica; worked in theater and national television
• Special Interests: Cantilena Chamber Choir; Saratoga Choral Festival; Organization of American Kodaly Educators

BILL CHAPMAN, Jazz Ensemble

• Education: MEd, BM, Westfield State College; studies with Billy Martin of Medeski, Martin and Wood
• Experience/Affiliations: Adjunct faculty, MCLA; endorses Noble & Cooley, Vic Firth Drumsticks
• Special Interests: Performs with Empire Brass, Charles Neville, John Medeski and other northeast groups

BETH CRAIG, cello

• Education: BS Performance, Mannes College of Music; MM Performance, Kent State University; major teachers-Claus Adam, Yehuda Hanani
• Experience/Affiliations: Teaching cello at Miss Hall’s, Indian Mountain School, Rudolph Steiner School, Hawthorne Valley School. Previously cellist with orchestras in Brazil, Ohio, and Pennsylvania
• Special Interests: Performer, composer for theater productions and small groups with jazz and improvisation focus.

OTHA DAY, drumming

• Education: MM Piano Performance, Piano Pedagogy, Music Education, Eastern Illinois University; private studies in African, Caribbeab and Japanese drumming.
• Experience/Affiliations: Adjuct faculty, Williams College; leads drumming workshops for corporations and groups; operates individual and group piano studios.
• Special Interests: Solo performer specializing in classical piano music of Black composers

AARON DEAN, saxophone, beginning clarinet

• Education: MEd, Westfield State
• Special Interests: Active performer with a number of local bands

OUISA FOHRHALTZ, violin, viola

• Education: MM, U-Mass, Amherst
• Experience/Affiliations: Suzuki instructor; violinist with Albany and Berkshire Symphonies
• Special Interests: violinist with Vivante Trio

JUDITH GRAY, voice

• Education: MM Voice Performance, University of Michigan
• Experience/Affiliations: Adjunct faculty at Smith College and The Berkshire School
• Special Interests: International soprano soloist performing oratorio, recital and orchestral works

DAVID GROVER, guitar, song writing

• Experience/Affiliations: Founder of the National Children’s Music Project; award winning singer/song writer with Emmy and Grammy nominations; performed at the White House; toured nationally with Arlo Guthrie; created several family music recording and videos
• Special Interests: David Grover and the Big Bear Band, performs regularly throughout the region

SUSAN HADFIELD, piano

• Education: MM Performance, N.E. Conservatory; BA, Mt. Holyoke College; performance certificate, Kodaly Institute
• Experience/Affiliations: Taught at Milton Academy and other private schools; member New England Piano Teachers Assn.
• Special Interests: Choral, & instrumental accompanist; adult students

SUZANNE HIGGINS, guitar

• Education: BA Classical Guitar, Florida State University
• Experience/Affiliations: Composer; Suzuki guitar instructor; taught at Simon’s Rock College and Stetson University
• Special Interests: Performs guitar, mandolin, and banjo

RAHIMA HOHLSTEIN, piano

• Education:DMA Piano and Theory, University of North Carolina; MM, The Boston Conservatory
• Experience/Affiliations: Taught music at The College of St. Rose, and University of North Carolina; College Music Society member and lecturer
• Special Interests: Soloist and ensemble performer

YELENA LEVINA, piano

• Education: USSR state certified, Nizhney Novgorod Pedagogical University and Music College
• Experience/Affiliations: Piano teacher Nizhney Novgorod, Bennington Music School, and Pittsfield High School
• Special Interests: Accompanist, private lessons in piano and theory

BING LIU, viola, violin

• Education: MA Viola Performance, Boston University; Central Conservatory of Music, Beijing
• Experience/Affiliations: Member of Suzuki Association of America
• Special Interests: International soloist and orchestral performer; member of Berkshire Trio

CHARLES MARSHALL, piano

• Education: BS, Music Education with Piano Concentration, Gordon College; graduate courses, Music Education, (Orff & Kodaly) Westminster Choir College
• Experience/Affiliations: Interim Choir Director/Organist First Congregational Church, Dalton; Founder, Director & Instructor of Marshall Arts Academy of Music; music instructor grades Pre-K-12
• Special Interests: Marshall Arts Entertainment

KATHLEEN MCDONALD SHEPARD, voice

• Education: MFA Vocal Performance, University of California
• Experience/Affiliations: Faculty member of Berkshire Community College and Windsor School of Music
• Special Interests: Performer and instructor in solo, opera and musical theatre

CHRISTINE MORTENSEN, French horn

• Education: MM Performance, UMass, Amherst; BME, Oberlin Conservatory
• Experience/Affiliations: Teacher at Northampton Community Music Center and Greenwood Music Camp
• Special Interests: Active performer; member of Berkshire Brass Quintet, principal horn of Connecticut River Valley Orchestra, and Da Camera Singers

JOANNE NELSON-UNCZUR, oboe

• Education: MM Performance, Cincinnati Conservatory; BME, Ithaca College
• Experience/Affiliations: Music teacher, public schools
• Special Interests: Active performer

ART NIEDECK, percussion

• Education: BM, Juilliard School of Music
• Experience/Affiliations: Percussion teacher, public schools
• Special Interests: Pittsfield City Jazz Board Member

CHRISTINE NOBLE-DROSEHN, voice

• Education: BA Vocal and Theatre Performance, Franklin Pierce College, NH
• Experience/Affiliations: Choral Director, Darrow School; repertoire performer, Hancock Shaker Village
• Special Interests: Active soloist; church choir

CHRIS OBERFIELD, piano

• Education: MEd, Westfield State College; BS, Indiana University of PA
• Experience/Affiliations: Retired music teacher, public schools; “Piano Kids” instructor; choir director, organist, soloist and accompanist for several churches
• Special Interests: Serves as organist, First Baptist Church, Pittsfield

CINDY OGULNICK, violin, viola

• Education: BME, Performance, SUNY Potsdam
• Experience/Affiliations: Teacher, public schools
• Special Interests: Member of Berkshire Symphony and Rosamund String Trio

ZAFER PONTER, bassoon, recorder

• Education: BA, Rowan University
• Experience/Affiliations: Principal bassoon with Sage City Symphony; member of Bennington Trio, Gramercy Quintet, and Taconic Consort
• Special Interests: Active freelance performer with area ensembles

SHARON POWERS, flute, recorder

• Education: BM Flute and Composition, Juilliard and Manhattan School of Music
• Experience/Affiliations: Flute instructor and orchestra director regionally and abroad in France and Bangkok
• Special Interests: Soloing with national orchestras

KARL RAUSCH, guitar

• Education: BM, Berklee College of Music
• Special Interests: Active recording artist and performer

AMY RENAK, piano

• Education: BA, Mary Washington College; graduate studies, Hartt School of Music, University of Hartford
• Experience/Affiliations: Faculty of BCC; Director of Music, Zion Evangelical Church
• Special Interests: Active performer and accompanist.; choir director and organist

TARI WHEELER ROOSA, flute, recorder, programs for young children

• Education: MME, University of Colorado; BM, University of Lowell; Suzuki and Early Childhood training
• Experience/Affiliations: Music instructor in MA, VT, and CO public schools; assistant conductor of the Eagles Band
• Special Interests: Active performer; flutist for Berkshire Children’s Chorus; Jovia Trio

HARRIET ROTHSTEIN, piano

• Education: MM, Temple University
• Experience/Affiliations: Taught piano for more than 25 years
• Special Interests: Professional collaborative pianist

DOUG SCHMOLZE, classical guitar, composition, voice

• Education: Studies at Berklee School of Music
• Experience/Affiliations: Certified Music Practitioner in the Music for Healing and Transition Program
• Special Interests: Soloist tenor and church choir member. Has performed with Berkshire Choral Festival, Berkshire Opera, Cantilena Chamber Choir and Crescendo Chorus of Lime Rock CT.

ALICE SPATZ, double bass, mandalin, theory / composition

• Education: MFA Composition, Bennington College; BA, New School for Social Research
• Experience/Affiliations: Published composer; co-author of a series of bass pedagogy books
• Special Interests: Active performer with the folk group “Wintergreen” ensemble; published composer

JEAN STACKHOUSE, piano

• Education: MM, University of Oklahoma; BM, De Pauw University
• Experience/Affiliations: Former faculty member of New England Conservatory and Westminster Choir College; founder of Piano Performance Seminars
• Special Interests: Active performer; contributor to “Keyboard Companion”

PAUL SUNDBERG, trumpet

• Education: BM, Oberlin Conservancy of Music
• Experience/Affiliations: Williams College trumpet instructor, brass ensemble director
• Special Interests: Founding member, Berkshire Brass Quintet; principal trumpet of Berkshire Symphony

PETE SWEENEY, percussion

• Education: Drummer’s Collective, NYC; studies with Joe Morello
• Experience/Affiliations: Faculty member of National Guitar Workshop and the Vic Firth Education Program author of “The Complete Drumset Method”
• Special interests: Jazz trio leader; member of Latin/Jazz group “Sensemaya”

NORMAN THIBODEAU, flute, orchestra

• Education: MM Flute and History of Music, Peabody Conservatory
• Experience/Affiliations: Served as assistant principal flute of the Orquest Sinfonica del Estado de Mexico
• Special Interests: Active conductor and composer

KRISTEN TUTTMAN, piano

• Education: BM, Vassar College; Hartt School of Music
• Experience/Affiliations: Instructor at Syracuse University, SUNY New Paltz, and Hartt School of Music
• Special Interests: Performer with Albany Symphony Orchestra and Eribeth Chamber Players

DAVID WAMPLER, trombone

• Education: MM, University of Nebraska
• Experience/Affiliations: Faculty member of College of St. Rose and Simon’s Rock
• Special Interests: Professional musician

ERIN M. WHITE, advanced clarinet

• Education: BME, Hartt School of Music, University of Hartford
• Experience/Affiliations: Teacher at Lee High School; taught band, choir, history and theory
• Special Interests: 1st Clarinet with Hartt Symphony Band

ALLA ZERNITSKAYA, violin, viola

• Education: MA Violin Performance, MA Education, Belorussina State Conservatory, USSR; BA State Musical College of Belorussia
• Experience/Affiliations: String program instructor for the Pittsfield public schools;former faculty member at Simon’s Rock College
• Special Interests: Violin workshops internationally