At the Conservatory he received his masters and doctoral degrees. Throughout his career, he has gained extensive performance and teaching experience. From 1974 to1990, he was principal bassoonist of the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra under such world-renowned conductors as Kirrill Kondrashin and Dmitry Kitaenko. Dr. Irchai taught bassoon at the Gnessins Music Pedagogical Institute in Moscow, Russia. Among his awards are the first prizes in the All-Russia Music Competition for Woodwind Quintets and the Distinguished Artist of the Russian Federation Award. He has toured Europe, Asia and the Americas with the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra and other world-class orchestras. As a soloist and chamber musician, Dr. Irchai has performed recitals throughout the United States and the world for many years. Recent solo performances include appearances at Lincoln Center, NY; Kennedy Center, DC; the Lyceum, Alexandria, VA; the F. Scott Fitzgerald Theater, Rockville, MD; Strathmore Hall, MD; Lyceum of Arts, St. Petersburg, Russia; Castelnuovo di Garfagnana, Italy; and other venues. Dr. Irchai’s performances have been widely reviewed and featured in local, national, and international mass media. His performances elicited admiring comments that "Irchai…was impressive not only for flexibility of his performance which audiences have come to expect, but also for his tone quality – sweet but not cloying, with an even focused vibrato in the lyrical passages and deep tones that resonated with warmth" and "bassoon at its best" in the Washington Post. Mount Vernon Gazette rightly praised Irchai as "a master of his instrument" having "singing tone and superb technique." Until recently, Dr. Irchai was a member of the faculty at both the Washington Conservatory of Music in Washington, DC, and Columbia Union College in Takoma Park, MD. He was also the Principal Bassoon of the National Philharmonic, Washington, DC, the Principal Bassoon of Arlington Symphony, Arlington, VA, and Prince William Symphony, Manassas, VA. Currently, Dr. Irchai is Associate Professor of Bassoon at the University of Florida, School of Music where he has been a professor since 2002, and the Principal Bassoon of the Ocala Symphony Orchestra, and the Gainesville Chamber Orchestra. He is also a faculty member of the Summit Music Festival, Manhattanville College, Purchase, NY, International Academy of Music, Castelnuovo di Garfagnana, Italy, and St. Petersburg, Russia, as well as of the Burgos International Music Festival, Spain, and member of DT Duo. Dr. Irchai’s arrangements are published by TrevCo Music. Dr. Irchai is Fox Corporation Performing Artist.

 

...Throughout her education at the New England Conservatory, Eastman School of Music and Ohio State University, she has gained significant performance and teaching experience earning awards, scholarships, and fellowships. She competed and was a semi-finalist at the prestigious Fischoff Chamber Music Competition, won an ASCAPLUS Award in the Concert Division, and has been awarded numerous grants to research and perform in the US and abroad. Her interest in repertoire for bassoon has led her to publish a well-regarded book on excerpt collections (Mellen Press). She is also involved in an ongoing research project into Russian bassoon literature. As part of the exploration of this complex and varied repertoire, she works closely with musicologists, performers, and composers from around the world and, has numerous articles published in the journal of the IDRS. Dr. Kott has taught at the University of Tennessee at Martin, West Liberty University, Berry College, and the Long Island Conservatory where she also held an administrative post. Additionally, she has given performances and master classes at the University of Georgia, University of Florida, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, University of Missouri, and the CUNY Graduate School among others. Dr. Kott has performed at numerous IDRS Conferences, the NFA Conference, the Aspen Music Festival, Grand Teton Orchestral Seminar, and Domaine Forget, Quebec, Canada. She has served as West Virginia State Chair for NACWPI, CMS Campus Representative, published articles, has arrangements published by Dorn and TrevCo, and adjudicated for national band, orchestra, and young artist competitions. Additionally, she has given clinics at multiple state and national conferences, and has served on the faculty of the Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp. As an orchestral musician, Dr. Kott has performed as principal bassoon with the Orquesta Sinfonica Universidad Autonomo Nuevo Leon, Mexico, The Heidelberg Schlossfestpiele Opera Orchestra, Germany and served as Associate Musician with the Columbus (OH) and Chattanooga Symphony Orchestras and other ensembles throughout the US. Recently, she performed with orchestras in AZ, TN, KY, and GA. She is also involved in recording projects and regularly commissions and premieres new works for bassoon and chamber ensemble. As a chamber musician, Dr. Kott most recently performed with the Bravada ensemble and is currently a member of the DT Duo. The DT Duo, believes strongly in commissioning new works, education and community outreach. In collaboration with the Ocala Symphony and other orchestras, the duo has presented programs in the public schools. Recent concert performances, lectures, and master classes include engagements at the Lyceum in Alexandria, VA, the 20th Anniversary Season of the Summit Music Festival, NY, Southeast Missouri State University, Murray State University, University of Florida, International Double Reed Society Conference, and the NACWPI Conference. The DT Duo recently released theri first compact disc. Currently, Dr. Kott is affiliated with Northern Arizona University and is a Fox Corporation Performing Artist.

Aaron Copland, James Conlon, and Jens Nygaard. He is a former member of Musical Elements, the New York Quintet, and the New York Art Ensemble, and has performed in Broadway orchestras for Bernstein’s Candide and Gilbert and Sullivan’s Pirates of Penzance. His performances have been recorded by Columbia, RCA, Elektra-Asylum, Sony Digital, Musical Heritage, MMG, Grenadilla, CRI, Opus One, and for Universal Pictures. In a 1991 review in The Strad, Marcia Young writes, “Eugene Kurtz's 1974 work, The Last Contrabass in Las Vegas, shared a programme with three world premieres in the New York Art Ensemble's February 25 recital at Merkin Hall. Essentially a comic duet for contrabass and actress, Kurtz's work put bassist Dennis Masuzzo and his instrument through their paces thoroughly, using surely every method and device ever conceived for getting sound out of a contrabass. The work's programme—the gushings of a female fan of the instrument who literally goes mad over it—is a clever idea and the occasion of lots of musical jokes. Masuzzo performed masterfully and from memory.” While a double bass student at Juilliard, Mr. Masuzzo was the guitarist with the Juilliard Contemporary Ensemble. He has also studied extensively with Joe Morello, legendary jazz drummer. Mr. Masuzzo freelances in the New York metropolitan area and has been bassist for the Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn, NJ, since 1991. He teaches privately and is an adjunct faculty member at Seton Hall University in South Orange, NJ and the Montclair State University Preparatory Center in Montclair, NJ. Mr. Masuzzo plays a guitar-shaped double bass made in 1833 by Vincenzo Lucarini and uses a Henk te Hietbrink bow. Mr. Masuzzo lives with his wife Leslie and son Benjamin in Montclair, NJ.

...Mr. Milkis’ unique interpretations and artistry have earned him an international stature as a dazzling soloist, chamber musician, recitalist and jazz clarinetist, with performances at principal venues of virtually every continent, including the Far East, Europe and the Americas.

His numerous soloist appearances include the Toronto Symphony, CBC Vancouver Orchestra, State Symphony Orchestra of Russia (Gosorkestr), St. Petersburg Philharmonic, L’Orchestre Nationale de Lyon, L’Orchestre Symphonique Francaise, among many others, performing on such prominent stages as New York’s Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center, Salle Pleyel and Salle Gaveau in Paris, Great Halls of the Moscow Conservatory and the St. Petersburg Philharmonic, Roy Thomson Hall and Weston Recital Hall in Toronto, and National Concert Hall in Taipei.

Aside from being an established soloist, Julian Milkis is a sought-after chamber musician, having collaborated with some of today’s leading artists including Yuri Bashmet, Misha Maisky, the Borodin String Quartet and the St. Lawrence String Quartet, to name a few. A multifaceted musician, Mr. Milkis is one of the leading voices for his instrument in the field of Jazz. His treasured collaboration with jazz pianist Dick Hyman – Benny Goodman’s old bandmate who has transcribed a number of King of Swing’s classics for Milkis – provide a rare and genuine insight into the golden era of Jazz. With recent performances at Carnegie Hall’s Zankel Hall, Mr. Milkis has had a Jazz Concerto dedicated to him, and has worked with bass legend Tony Falanga.

With an extensive amount of music written for him, including a number of concertos, Milkis has had the honor of working with iconic music personalities such as Giya Kancheli and Olivier Messiaen. Mr. Milkis has recorded for Warner Classics’ Lontano, the French Suoni e Colori, Sony’s Russian division CEAUX, and Russian Melodiya and Russian Season.

Julian Milkis holds degrees from the Juilliard School and the Manhattan School of Music, where he was he studied renowned pedagogue Leon Russianoff, as well as a Masters Degree in Russian Literature from Norwich University in Vermont, possessing a keen interest in all aspects of the fine arts. Julian Milkis performs exclusively on Yamaha Clarinets.

Ms.Newton serves on the teaching faculty of the Music Conservatory of Westchester and has held faculty positions at the Manhattan School of Music and Queens College. Ms. Newton holds an M.A.in music performance (harpsichord )from the Aaron Copland School of Music at Queens College and a Ph.D. in English Literature from the Graduate School and University Center of the City University of New York.
 

...and the St. Cecilia Orchestra. He has appeared in recital throughout the Unites States and in Europe including Weill Recital Hall, Merkin Hall, and the Kennedy Center Terrace Theater to name a few. Whiteside is flutist with the VERGE Ensemble of the Contemporary Music Forum of Washington, the edgEnsemble, and the Dinosaur Annex Ensemble. He has worked closely with a number of eminent composers including George Crumb, Donald Martino, and Joseph Schwantner. In 1999 he gave the Washington premiere of Melinda Wagner’s Pulitzer Prize winning Concerto for Flute, Strings and Percussion. Whiteside played with the Aeolian Chamber Players and served on the faculty of the Bowdoin Summer School of Music (now the Bowdoin International Festival). Mr. Whiteside studied with James Galway, Jean-Pierre Rampal, Julius Baker and Walfrid Kujala and holds the Master of Music degree and Performer’s Certificate from the EastmanSchool of Music.