Susan Marshall '76
Susan Marshall '76 Memorial Concert
This annual concert series was established by Susan's parents, Irl and Barbara Favill Marshall '46, in 1983 in memory of their daughter and her life-long love of music.
Susan played violin and piano, enjoyed singing and graduated from North Shore in 1976. She continued her studies at Dartmouth College and in graduate school at the University of Denver. Each year, a young emerging musician is invited to perform a concert and visit with students and faculty.
Featured Musicians
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Anthony Trionfo (2023)
Praised as a “breezily virtuosic flutist” by The New York Times, Anthony Trionfo has performed as a soloist with the Grant Park Festival Orchestra, Orchestra of St. Luke’s and Orpheus Chamber Orchestra. Anthony is a founder of the Umoja Flute Institute, a non-profit dedicated to providing flutists of African descent with the tools needed to succeed and thrive at all levels of music-making. He studied at the Colburn School with James Walker and the Interlochen Arts Academy as a student of Nancy Stagnitta.
Alexander Hersh (2022)
Alexander began playing the cello at the age of 5, and has gone on to receive top prizes at competitions worldwide. He is one of the most exciting and versatile talents of his generation and is also is co-artistic director of NEXUS Chamber Music, a collective of international artists committed to stimulating interest in serious chamber music.
Monica R. Mhangwana (2021)
A versatile singer and entrepreneur, born and raised in Pretoria South Africa, Monica sings in many genres ranging from Jazz African, Contemporary and Western Classical styles. In 2020, she won The Smith Award Prize for Mezzo-sopranos in the Voices of South Africa International Opera Singing Competition and was a semi-finalist in the Grand Finale. She is also a co-founder and Director of Glacier Stone, a creative music, arts and media company.
Centennial Celebration (2020)
In honor of our Centennial, we celebrated the history of the Susan Marshall '76 concert series. Click here to watch the video.
Neave Trio (2019)
Since forming in 2010, Neave Trio–violinist Anna Williams, cellist Mikhail Veselov, and pianist Eri Nakamura–has earned enormous praise for its engaging, cutting-edge performances. Neave has performed at many esteemed concert series and at festivals worldwide, including Lincoln Center’s Mostly Mozart Festival, Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall, Smithsonian American Art Museum and 92nd Street Y. The trio has held residency positions across the country. In the fall of 2017, they joined the faculty of the Longy School of Music of Bard College as Alumni Artists, Faculty Ensemble‑in‑Residence.
Julian Rhee, violin (2018)
Soloist and chamber musician Julian Rhee has been establishing himself as a prominent performer across the United States. He was the first-prize winner of the Johansen International Competition in Washington DC. Julian appeared at the John F. Kennedy Center as a Presidential Scholars in the Arts and received his medal at the White House. In 2018, he won the Aspen Music Festival Violin Concerto Competition.
Nathan Mo, cello (2017)
Nathan Mo is from Rolling Meadows, Illinois and studied with Hans Jørgen Jensen at the Music Institute of Chicago. In 2014, Nathan participated in the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition as a member of the Vox Quartet and won the silver medal. He was a member of the Vieira Quartet, which was awarded first prize at the 2017 Rembrandt Chamber Music Competition, grand prize at the 2017 A.N. & Pearl G. Barnett Chamber Competition. He is currently a student at the Colburn School.
Daniel Aisenberg, clarinet (2016)
Daniel Aisenberg has been playing the clarinet since he was seven years old. He was selected as a member of the National Association for Music Education 2015 All-National Honor Ensemble and chosen to play in the 2014-15 All-State Music Festival. As of 2020, Daniel is studying clarinet performance at Indiana University Jacobs School of Music.
Andrew Guo, piano (2015)
Andrew Guo was a student at the Music Institute of Chicago (MIC) since 2003, and a member of the MIC Academy since 2007. He began Suzuki piano with MIC faculty member Kate Nir at age four. From age five he studied under the esteemed Emilio del Rosario until his retirement, and then studied with Alan Chow of MIC and Northwestern. Andrew was named a U.S. Presidential Scholar of the Arts in 2017. As of 2020, he is at the University of Pennsylvania, where he studies mathematics, computer science, statistics and data science.
Adé Williams, violin (2014)
Adé’s orchestral debut with the Chicago Sinfonietta (2004) at age six as that orchestra’s youngest ever soloist launched a wonderful succession of solo performances with symphonies and orchestras throughout the Midwest. She won the Walgreen’s National Concerto Competition (2005) at age eight and was the first laureate in a string of competitions from 2009-2014.
She currently attends the Curtis Institute of Music, where she won the Concertmaster position of the Curtis Symphony Orchestra (2018/19) and Associate Concertmaster of Symphony in C (2018).
http://www.sphinxmusic.org/bio-ade-williams/
Andrew Hudson, clarinet (2013)
Andy earned his DMA in Clarinet Performance with a Cognate Certification in Music Theory from Northwestern University and his undergraduate degree from Columbus State University. As of 2020, Andy is an Assistant Professor of Clarinet at the University of North Carolina Greensboro and each summer joins the artist-faculty of the Tennessee Valley Music Festival. Previously, he held teaching positions at Northwestern University and Lake Forest College. He has been the North Carolina State Chair for the International Clarinet Association since 2019.
Ben Manis, cello (2012)
Chicago native Ben Manis studied with Richard Hirschl of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and was co-principal cellist of the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra. He studied conducting and cello at the Colburn School, where he was a soloist and conducted outreach concerts in Los Angeles area public schools. He was appointed Resident Conductor of the Houston Grand Opera in September 2019. Today he continues his studies at Rice University, and has spent summers with the Aspen Music Festival and School from 2017-2020. He was the 2020 recipient of the Aspen Conductor Prize at the Aspen Conducting Academy.
Alexandra Alvarado Switala, violin (2011)
Mexican-American violinist Allie Alvarado Switala began her musical studies at the age of four in Texas and moved to Chicago in 2010 to study with Roland and Almita Vamos. She made her solo debut with the Ft. Worth Symphony at the age of 13 and has since performed as a soloist with orchestras including the New World Symphony, Buffalo Philharmonic, New York Philharmonic, Cleveland Orchestra, and many orchestras in the greater Chicago area. Allie is currently pursuing her undergraduate degree with Ida Kavafian at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia.
http://www.sphinxmusic.org/bio-alexandra-switala/
Molly Yeh, percussion (2010)
Molly Yeh attended The Juilliard School and was a gold medalist in both the 2004 and 2006 Fischoff National Chamber Music Competitions. She has performed as a soloist with many ensembles including the South Bend Symphony, the New Juilliard Ensemble, the North Shore Concert Band and the Knox-Galesburg Symphony, among others. Today, Molly lives with her husband and son on a farm on the North Dakota-Minnesota border, where she hosts her own cooking show, Girl Meets Farm, on the Food Network.
Cheng-Hou Lee, cello (2009)
Taiwan native Cheng-Hou Lee is a graduate of Julliard and holds a doctorate of musical art from the New England Conservatory. An accomplished chamber musician, soloist, and winner of multiple awards. He has worked with world-renowned artists such as Yo-Yo Ma, Harvey Shapiro, Mstislav Rostropovich, Paul Katz, Gary Hoffman, Tim Eddy and members of the Juilliard, Tokyo, and Alban Berg Quartets. He is currently the cellist of the Avalon Quartet, the quartet-in-residence at Northern Illinois University, where he is also an Associate Professor.
https://www.niu.edu/music/meet-us/bio/lee.shtml
Benjamin de la Fuente ’93, baritone (2008)
International bass-baritone opera singer and alumnus Benjamin de la Fuente ’93 is a graduate of Amherst College and Manhattan School of Music. Benjie has performed in Don Giovanni and Cosi Fan Tutte. As a member of the New York Gilbert & Sullivan Players, he appeared in The Pirates of Penzance, The Yeomen of the Guard, The Mikado, and Ruddigore and performed as Theseus in the NPR broadcast of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Benjie is currently the Vice President of Global Technology at J.P. Morgan in New York, responsible for technology risk management.
Alison Balsom, trumpet (2007)
Alison studied trumpet at the Paris Conservatoire and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. She holds an honorary doctorate from Anglia Ruskin University and the University of Leicester, is an honorary Fellow and Visiting Professor at the Guildhall. Alison regularly teaches masterclasses worldwide, including at the Juilliard School and the Curtis Institute. In addition to performing and recording music around the world, Alison gave a TED talk entitled ‘Music as a Healer.’ A passionate advocate of the importance of music education, she is also an ambassador for the BBC’s Ten Pieces project.
Reginald Robinson, piano (2006)
Reginald Robinson is a self-taught jazz pianist and composer from Chicago. His love for music started in 1984 with his brother playing big band jazz records at home. Throughout the 1990s he created scores for many plays and films. In 2004, he was awarded the rare and distinguished John D. & Catherine T. MacArthur Award for his innovation in ragtime. Today, Robinson is an internationally recognized pianist, recording artist and educator. He also collects and preserves historical materials related to ragtime and African American classical music.
Katherine Needleman, oboe (2005)
Katherine Needleman joined the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra as principal oboist in 2003, the same year she won first prize at the International Double Reed Society’s Gillet-Fox Competition. As a soloist, she has appeared in symphony orchestras around in most major cities in the U.S and around the world. She has been a member of the faculty at the Peabody Conservatory of Johns Hopkins University since 2005, and is currently on the faculty at the Young Artist Summer Program at Curtis SummerFest.
Benjamin Hochman, piano (2004)
Born in Jerusalem, Hochman began his piano studies with Esther Narkiss at the Conservatory of the Rubin Academy and Emanuel Krasovsky in Tel Aviv. He is a graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music. Hochman made his New York recital debut in 2006 at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Winner of the prestigious Avery Fisher Career Grant in 2011, he has performed in major cities around the world as an orchestral soloist, recitalist and chamber musician, working with an array of renowned musicians, and has recently begun conducting.
David Young, trumpet (2003)
David Young is a critically acclaimed trumpeter and graduate of Northwestern University. Today, he is a dynamic bandleader and music producer who runs David Young Presents, a full-service entertainment company that offers high-energy dance bands, ceremony and cocktail ensembles, DJs, and world music ensembles for weddings and special events.
2002 Corgliano Quartet (2002)
Composed of violinists Michael Jinsoo Lim and Elisa Barston, who alternate at first violin, violist Melia Watras, and cellist Amy Sue Barston, the Corigliano Quartet rapidly climbed the ranks of the chamber music world. The group formed as students at Indiana University. One year after its formation, the group was invited to the Isaac Stern Chamber Music Workshop at Carnegie Hall. They’ve performed at venues and festivals all over the world, including the Kennedy Center and Ravinia Festival.
1999 Music Institute of Chicago Brass Ensemble (1999)
The Brass Ensemble included Chris Hasselbring and Cameron Schroeder, trumpets; Virginia Sandstrom, horn; Adam Moen, trombone; and John McAllister, bass trombone and tuba. Members of the quintet have performed extensively around the world. In addition to teaching at the Music Institute of Chicago, members of the quintet also serve on the faculties of several local colleges.
Pacifica Quartet (1998)
Founded in 1994, the Pacifica Quartet quickly gained recognition at several major competitions. From 1996-1998, the Pacifica Quartet served as the Resident Quartet of the Music Center of the North Shore. Today Quartet’s members Simin Ganatra, violin, and Brandon Vamos, cello, are professors at Indiana University and principals in the quartet. Kyu-Young Kim, violin, moved on to be Artistic Director and Principal Violin of The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra. Kathryn Lockwood, viola, is on faculty at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst and at Montclair State University.
Jaakko Kuusisto, violin (1997)
Conductor, composer and violinist Jaakko Kuusisto enjoys an extensive career that was launched by a series of successes in international violin competitions in the 1990s. He has conducted orchestras and operas around the world. Jaakko performs regularly as soloist and chamber musician, and has held the position of artistic director at several festivals. Currently he is the artistic director of the Oulu Music Festival with a commitment through 2021.
Carsten Schmidt, harpsichord (1996)
Carsten Schmidt made his professional debut with the Essen Philharmonic in Germany in 1984, and has performed extensively throughout Europe, North America and Japan. Active both as a pianist and harpsichordist, his repertoire ranges from the early seventeenth century to contemporary works. He graduated from the Folkwang Institute in Germany, received an artist diploma from Indiana University, and a doctorate from Yale. He joined the faculty at Sarah Lawrence College in 1998, and is artistic director of the Staunton Music Festival in Virginia.
Donald Milholin, baritone (1995)
Don Milholin is a former winner of the National Association of Music Clubs Auditions. He has appeared at the National Festival of Music in Breckenridge, Colorado; the Festival di Musica Antica in Urbino, Italy; the Classical Music Seminar in Eisenstadt, Austria; and the Ravinia Festival, and also participated as a Young Artist in the Steans Institute. Today he is executive director, president and co-founder of the Out of the Garden Project, a food distribution program that provides nutritious food to families in need in central North Carolina.
https://outofthegardenproject.org/
Jory Vinikour ’81, harpsichord (1994)
Gilbert and Sullivan phraseology is most appropriate for members of the Darrow Dynasty, which includes many of their sisters and their cousins and their aunts. As a student, Anita Straub played the violin for "Pirates of Penzance" while Bill Darrow played oboe, and from those early days on, Onnie's service on behalf of NSCDS has seemed almost instinctual.
Wendy Warner ’90, cello (1993)
After graduating from North Shore with the class of 1990, Warner studied with Rostropovich and graduated from the Curtis Institute of Music. Her collaborators have included conductors Vladimir Spivakov, Christoph Eschenbach, Andre Previn, Jesús López Cobos and Michael Tilson Thomas. She continues to have an extremely successful career in music, appearing with leading U.S. orchestras and internationally—from Paris and London to Serbia and Russia. An Avery Fisher Career Grant recipient, Warner holds the Leah D. Hamer Distinguished Faculty Chair at the Schwob School of Music, Columbus State University.
Jennifer Koh, violin (1992)
Born in Chicago, Jennifer Koh made her debut with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra at age 11. She was a top prize winner at Moscow’s International Tchaikovsky Competition and a recipient of an Avery Fisher Career Grant. Today, Jennifer is a leading soloist in concert hall and recording studio, as well as a lecturer and teacher who has had residencies at many major universities. In 2018 she performed with St Vincent (Annie Clark) and S. Epatha Merkerson at the Kennedy Center Honors.
Gil Shaham, violin (1991)
From Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, American master Gil Shaham is one of the foremost violinists of our time. Early on he moved with his parents to Israel, where he began violin studies with Samuel Bernstein of the Rubin Academy of Music at age seven. The Grammy Award-winner is sought throughout the world for concerto appearances with leading orchestras and conductors, and regularly gives recitals and appears with ensembles on the world’s great concert stages and at the most prestigious festivals.
Seung-Un Ha, piano (1990)
In 1968 at age three in her native Korea, Seung-Un Ha began her piano studies giving her first public recital two years later. At seven she placed first in Seoul’s National Youth Piano Competition; at age ten she and her family moved to Southern California. Her U.S. orchestral debut was at age 13 with the Santa Barbara Symphony. She graduated from the Peabody Conservatory and The Juilliard School.
She passed away in 2013 after building a distinguished career as a concert pianist at renowned symphonies, orchestras, and festivals around the world.
Carter Brey, cello (1989)
Carter Brey is an American cello virtuoso who rose to international attention in 1981 when he won third prize in the Rostropovich International Cello Competition. He was the first musician to win the Arts Council of America’s Performing Arts Prize, and the winner of the numerous prestigious grants and awards. He became the principal cellist of the New York Philharmonic in 1996 and is a member of the New York Philharmonic String Quartet, which was established in the 2016–17 season. Since 2008 he has also been on faculty at the Curtis Music Institute.
Peter Winograd, violin (1988)
Peter Winograd was born into a musical family. His father was the founding cellist of the Juilliard Quartet; his mother a professional pianist. He gave his first public solo performance at age 11, and at 17 became a student of Dorothy DeLay at the Juilliard School. He placed second in the 1988 Naumburg International Violin Competition. Since his debut, he has appeared with orchestras and in recitals across the country. He joined the American String Quartet in 1990. Today he is a professor at the Manhattan School of Music and continues to appear as a soloist in the U.S. and abroad.
Stephen Hough, piano (1987)
Stephen Hough is an accomplished pianist, composer and writer. Since taking first prize at the 1983 Naumburg Competition in New York, Hough has performed with many of the world’s major orchestras and has given recitals at prestigious concert halls. He also has a very successful recording career and frequently records his arrangements of songs by musical theater composers Rodgers and Hammerstein. He was the first classical performer to be awarded a MacArthur Fellowship in 2001 and was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 2014. He won Northwestern University’s 2008 Jean Gimbel Lane Prize in Piano, the Royal Philharmonic Society Instrumentalist Award in 2010 and in 2016 was made an Honorary Member of RPS.
Gary Hoffman, cello (1986)
He made his debut at Wigmore Hall in London at the age of 15. At age 22 he became the youngest faculty appointee in the history of the Indiana University School of Music. After winning the Rostropovich International Competition in Paris in 1986, he embarked on an international career, appearing with the world’s most noted orchestras, in major recital and chamber music series and at prestigious festivals. In 2011, Mr. Hoffman was appointed Maître en Résidence for cello at the prestigious Chapelle Musicale Reine Elisabeth in Brussels.
Ruth Golden, soprano (1985)
Ruth Golden appeared at the New York City Opera as Mimi in La Boheme, Marguerite in Faust, both Pamina and First Lady in Die Zauberflote, Zerlina in Don Giovanni, and heroines in The Student Prince, The Mikado and The Merry Widow. She has performed at venues all over the country, including Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, Weill Recital Hall, the Kennedy Center, Los Angeles Music Center, the Ravinia Festival and the Aspen Music Festival. Today she is recognized as a master voice teacher and currently teaches at the Manhattan School of Music.
Marcantonio Barone, piano (1984)
American pianist Marcantonio Barone made his debut in 1972 at the age of 10 at a Philadelphia Orchestra children's concert. He returned in 1990 as soloist on the Orchestra's subscription series under the direction of William Smith. He has performed as soloist with the St. Louis and Houston Symphony Orchestras, the Moscow Symphony Orchestra, and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, among others. He is currently an associate professor at Swarthmore, as well as head of the piano department at the Bryn Mawr Conservatory of Music.
Mark Peskanov, violin (1983)
At 15, soloist and virtuoso Mark Peskanov emigrated to the United States, where he attended Julliard. In 1985, he won an Avery Fisher Career Grant and Carnegie Hall’s first Isaac Stern Award. He is also a Grammy-nominated composer. Today he is the executive and artistic director of Bargemusic, a floating symphony at the foot of the Brooklyn Bridge as well as music advisor to the Woodstock Mozart Festival in Illinois, where he performs and conducts.