MEET THE MUSICIANS | 2023 CONCERT SERIES

Anne-Marie Brown​, violin

Anne-Marie Brown, a member of the Kansas City Symphony since 2001, performs extensively as soloist and chamber musician throughout the Kansas City area. The Kansas City Star has described her performances as displaying "splendid virtuosity, with a rich impressive tone" and KCMetropolis has said her "playing was stellar, with lyricism and technique to spare." The Miami Herald has noted her work's "silky, suave tone and unaffected beauty." In recent seasons, she has been a frequent soloist with the Kansas City Chamber Orchestra, a guest musician with Summerfest, and a member of  the newEar Contemporary Chamber Ensemble, recording a work for piano trio on the Navona label in 2012. In addition, she serves on the faculty of the Heartland Chamber Music Festival.
Previously, she was a member of the New World Symphony, where she appeared as both concertmaster and soloist. She holds degrees from Northwestern University and Manhattan School of Music.
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Dr. Jane Carl, ​clarinet

Jane Carl, Professor of Clarinet at the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music, received her degrees from the University of Michigan.  She has been a member of the South Bend Symphony, the Flint Symphony, and the Michigan Opera Theater Orchestra in Detroit, and performed with the Toledo Symphony Orchestra and the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra.  She performs regularly with the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, as acting assistant principal clarinet from 1999-2003.  She can often be heard performing with the Kansas City Chamber Orchestra and the Kansas City Symphony.  She was the artistic chair of ClarinetFest 2008, the annual conference of the International Clarinet Association, held in Kansas City.  Dr. Carl performed at the 2007 China International Clarinet and Saxophone Festival in Beijing, and the 2009 ClarinetFest in Porto Portugal.  In the fall of 2009, she became the Chair of UMKC’s Instrumental Studies Division.  She has performed with Summerfest for over two decades and is a member of the Artistic Committee which selects music heard at Summerfest concerts.  ​

Amanda Collins, horn

Amanda Collins is a graduate of the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University, Preparatory (certificate), Pennsylvania State University (BM) and Southern Methodist University (MM). Described as “impressively solid” by the Dallas Morning News, Ms. Collins has quickly become a highly sought after performer and educator across the US and abroad.
​In 2017, Ms. Collins was appointed Principal horn of the Gateways Festival Orchestra, an ensemble featuring professional musicians of African descent. Additionally, Ms. Collins is third horn with the Black Pearl Chamber Orchestra and second horn with the American Studio Orchestra. She has performed with several notable ensembles including the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Kansas City Symphony, Memphis Symphony, Opera Memphis, Sphinx Symphony Orchestra, Chineke! Orchestra (UK, tour 2019, 2020) and the Lyric Brass Quintet. A sought after freelancer nationally, she regularly performs for a variety of musical theaters, gospel and R&B/ soul ensembles, pops ensembles and opera companies.​​ Performances include Colour of Music Festival with Grammy award winning singer, Vanessa Williams, Mary Poppins, Hershey Theater, Titanic, Signature Theater, various productions with the Soulful Symphony, Opera NOVA and the Washington Opera Society. Ms. Collins appears regularly as a soloist and guest artist. A dedicated chamber musician, she is a member of the Missouri Quintet and the Mizzou Brass. Ms. Collins was a featured artist in 2017 and 2018 on the national radio show, Performance Today, hosted by Fred Child, broadcasted by American Public Media, performing Francis Poulenc’s Sextet for Piano and Wind Quintet, FP 100 with members of the Gateways Music Festival. Additionally, she performed with the Gateways Brass Collective on Backstage Pass with Julia Figeras on WXXI, NPR in January of 2019 in Rochester, NY.
Ms. Collins is a passionate educator and is currently Assistant Teaching Professor of French Horn at the University of Missouri. Formerly, she was Adjunct Professor of French Horn at Montgomery College and the University of the District of Columbia. She also served as Instructor of French Horn at the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University, Preparatory and the Duke Ellington School of the Arts. In addition to private instruction, Ms. Collins has taught classes in music theory, chamber music and ensemble playing.

Maria Crosby, cello

Maria Crosby received her undergraduate degree in cello performance from Depaul University in Chicago where she studied with Stephen Balderston and Tanya Carey. She went on to earn a master's degree from the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, under the tutelage of Peter Stumpf.
Maria joined the Kansas City Symphony in 2012. In addition to full-time orchestral playing, she is also an active chamber musician. She has performed on stages across the United States, Canada, Germany, France, Lithuania, Armenia, Greece, Russia, Japan, and Brazil, and has participated in a variety of orchestral and chamber music festivals, including the Aegean Verdi Festival, the Schleswig Holstein Musik Festival, the Pacific Music Festival, the Banff Chamber Music Residency, the Recontres francoaméricaines de Musique de Chambre and the Pine Mountain Music Festival. Maria first performed with Summerfest in 2014.
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Dorris Dai Janssen, violin

Dorris Dai Janssen began studying the violin at age 3 and performed in her first orchestra when she was 7. She received her Bachelor of Music in violin performance at the University of Houston and a Master of Music at the University of Minnesota. While living in Minneapolis, Janssen played regularly with the Minnesota Orchestra, with whom she toured the United States, including Carnegie Hall. Her most influential teachers include William Pu, Fredell Lack, Michael Steinberg and Jorja Fleezanis. Janssen made Kansas City home in 2000, when she won a position in the first violin section. Since then, she also has held the position of Acting Assistant Concertmaster for six years and has performed numerous solos with the Kansas City Symphony. Janssen feels extremely fortunate to be able to share music in Kansas City by playing on stage, reaching out on the Mobile Music Box, demonstrating for children in classrooms, and teaching privately. Her summers belong to Wyoming where she has gone each year since 2001 to be part of the Grand Teton Music Festival. Janssen lives in Olathe, Kansas, with her husband, two sons and a dog.

Tony DeMarco, violin

Tony DeMarco has been a member of the Kansas City Symphony for 14 seasons.  His previous professional experience includes Assistant Concertmaster of both the Virginia and North Carolina Symphonies, substitute for the Pittsburgh Symphony, and a member of the Pittsburgh Opera and Ballet Orchestra.  He was raised in the South Hills of Pittsburgh then enrolled at Carnegie- Mellon University at age 16, then transferred to Oberlin Conservatory where he earned an artist’s diploma.  Having chosen his career path at age 9, Tony credits the violin, his mother Bonnie, and his teacher Albert Hirtz of the Pittsburgh Symphony for the opportunity to travel to Asia, Europe, and all around the United States, making lasting friends and playing great music.  Best among those friends is his wonderful wife, Jeannine Elashewich.  Together with sons Albert and Roman, they now reside in a “Little House in Prairie Village.”

Alexander (Alex) East, ​cello

Alexander East is the Assistant Principal Cellist of the Kansas City Symphony.  In addition to duties with the Symphony, which often include leading the section as principal for opera, ballet, and chamber orchestra performances, he is also heard frequently in recitals and chamber music concerts throughout the Kansas City region and with the Sun Valley (ID) Summer Symphony every year since 1992.  Before settling in Kansas City, East spent two seasons as a member of the New World Symphony under the direction of conductor Michael Tilson Thomas.  He received his training at Indiana University and the New England Conservatory of music.  His teachers have included Tsuyushi, Tsutsumi, Jano Starker, Laurence Lesser, and Colin Carr.  He has performed with Summerfest since 2001 and serves on the Artistic Committee which selects the music heard in Summerfest Concerts.
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Shannon Finney, flute
Shannon Finney is Associate Principal Flutist for the Kansas City Symphony.  She has performed with Summerfest since 1996 and is a former Artistic Advisor.  Her summer work extends to Door County, WI, where performs with and is on the faculty at Birch Creek Music Center.  She was a past winner of the National Flute Association Piccolo Artist Competition and has been a fellow at Tanglewood.  Finney has performed with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Pacific Northwest Ballet Orchestra, and the Chicago Sinfonietta.  Her teachers include Walfrid Kujala, Mary Stolper, and Karla Flygare, and her degrees are from Northwestern University.   Finney enjoys the culinary arts, traveling, and many outdoor activities.  An adventurer at heart, Finney spent a month in Nepal in 2014, including two weeks trekking in the Himalayas and reaching Annapurna Base Camp.  In 2017 she enjoyed whitewater rafting with her dad down the entire length of the Grand Canyon.

Michael Gordon, flute

Michael Gordon serves as the Principal Flutist of the Kansas City Symphony. Prior to joining the Kansas City Symphony, he was a member of the New World Symphony, where he performed as a soloist in 2007. Gordon has performed with several orchestras across the United States, including the St. Louis Symphony and the Minnesota Orchestra. In 2004, he earned both his bachelor's and master's degrees from Rice University. His teachers include Leone Buyse and Marianne Gedigian. Gordon previously served on the Artistic Committee for Summerfest Concerts. 
 

Evan Halloin, bass
Evan Halloin is thrilled to be joining Summerfest as an artistic advisor in 2023. He was appointed associate principal bass of the Kansas City Symphony in 2016 after having served as a member of the bass section since 2012. Prior to coming to Kansas City he was a member of the New World Symphony. He earned a master’s degree from Rice University and a bachelor’s degree from the New England Conservatory. His primary teachers include Timothy Pitts and Donald Palma. Halloin has performed as a substitute musician with the Chicago, Milwaukee, and Houston Symphony Orchestras, and the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra. Originally from De Pere, Wisconsin, Halloin currently resides in Prairie Village, Kansas, where he loves to let his dog Penny take him, his wife Margaret, and two-year-old son Graham for walks around the neighborhood. 

Joshua Hood, bassoon
​Joshua Hood, bassoonist, received his bachelor of music degree from the University of Michigan, where he studied with Lewis Hugh Cooper.  He completed his master's degree at the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University with Benjamin Kamins, former Principal Bassoonist of the Houston Symphony.  Hood has performed with a number of orchestras including the Kansas City Symphony, Houston Symphony, and the North Carolina Symphony.  He joined the Charlotte Repertory Symphony to outstanding reviews.  He has also performed with several festivals including the Pacific Music Festival in Japan, May Music Festival in Charlotte, NC, Gateways Music Festival in Rochester, NY,  the Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara, CA, and with the Ritz Chamber Players on  the Amelia Island Music Festival in Florida.  He has performed with Summerfest since 1998.
 

Rena Ishii, ​violin
​Rena Ishii joined the Kansas City Symphony in 2011. She holds bachelors and masters degrees in violin performance from University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, where she studied with Won-Bin Yim. She continued her studies with William Preucil at Cleveland Institute of Music and received a professional studies certificate. In the Cleveland area, she became active as an orchestra player and was a member of Canton Symphony, Akron Symphony and the Cleveland Pops Orchestra. Ishii has spent summers at Aspen Music Festival, Spoleto USA, and Tanglewood Music Center. Ishii has a passion for teaching as well. She has been actively teaching privately and at schools. In her free time, she enjoys jogging, cooking, and reading. 
 

Celeste Johnson Freher, oboe
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Celeste Johnson is currently Associate Professor of Oboe at the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory and remains active as a performer, pedagogue, clinician and presenter.  She performs as a substitute with the Kansas City Symphony and has also performed as a featured soloist with the Tulsa Symphony Orchestra, of which she was a member for eleven seasons.  As a performer, Celeste has presented concerts in Japan, Colombia, Switzerland, the Isle of Man (British Isles), Canada and across the United States.
 
Her first recording, KaleidosCoping, features 21st century compositions for flute, oboe and piano and was released in 2019 on the Equilibrium label.  Her second album, Wider Than the Sky, features compositions by women composers and was released on the same label in 2023.  

Celeste maintains active memberships in professional organizations, and as such has presented at the International Double Reed Society, Midwest Double Reed Society as well as the Texas, Missouri and Oklahoma Music Educators Association conferences.  She has recently been named chair of the Norma Hooks Young Artist Competition for oboe, hosted by the International Double Reed Society bi-annually.  

Ms. Johnson holds degrees from the Eastman School of Music and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.  

Duke Lee, viola
Duke Lee is a native of Houston, Texas. He attended the Oberlin Conservatory of Music and the Juilliard School. He also was a fellow at the New World Symphony. Lee has been a member of the Kansas City Symphony since 2006. Lee is married to Kansas City Symphony violinist Rena Ishii and they have three boys, Leon, Anton, and Owen.
 

Jessica Nance, viola
Jessica Nance has been a member of the Kansas City Symphony since 1995 and Assistant Principal Viola since 1997. She has performed locally with the Boulevard String Quartet, newEar, the Kansas City Chamber Orchestra, and on a variety of chamber music, solo, and educational projects. Before moving to Kansas City, Jessica was Principal Viola in the Michigan Opera Theater and with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. She attended the University of Michigan where she studied with Yizhak Schotten. Jessica is married to trumpeter Brian Rood and together they have two children. When not playing the viola, she enjoys running and triathlon training. Jessica has performed with Summerfest since 2000.
 

Melissa Rose, piano ​

Pianist Melissa Rose has collaborated with instrumentalists and singers in concerts throughout the United States and at venues in Argentina, Malta, Santorini, and Russia. She has recorded and edited arrangements for viola/piano of the Tonadillas by Granados (ViolaSound), one of which was included in the 2017 Grammy-nominated music film, The Music of Strangers. In addition to chamber music recordings on the Naxos, Centaur, Blue Griffin, Delos, Good Child Music, and Navona Records labels, Melissa has participated in numerous premieres and residencies with leading American composers and is a member of ALIAS Chamber Ensemble in Nashville. Currently a Professor of Piano and Senior Associate Dean at Vanderbilt Blair School of Music, she enjoys preparing pianists for careers in collaboration. Melissa received the M.M. in piano performance from the Yale School of Music and the D.M.A. in collaborative piano from the University of Michigan. Melissa has enjoyed performing with Summerfest since 1994.

 
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Tabitha Reist Steiner, harp
Harpist Tabitha Reist Steiner began her musical studies at age four in piano and at age eight in harp. An active freelancer throughout the Midwest, her playing was lauded as “…some of the most precise and beautifully inflected harp playing….” by the Kansas City Star. Steiner is principal harpist with the Topeka Symphony Orchestra and a regular extra with the Kansas City Symphony and the Tulsa Symphony Orchestra. In the past, she has held principal harp positions with the Tulsa Symphony Orchestra, Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra, Tulsa Opera Orchestra and the Washington, D.C. Summer Opera Orchestra. In addition to the Summerfest Chamber Music Festival, she is performing with Des Moines Metro Opera this summer. Steiner earned a master of music degree from the Peabody Conservatory of the Johns Hopkins University and a bachelor of music degree from Washburn University.

Richard Ryan, bass
​Richard Ryan, an Arizona native, has been a Kansas City Symphony member for four seasons.  Before his tenure in Kansas City, he was Assistant Principal bass of the Louisville Orchestra.  A graduate of Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, Richard has participated in music festivals such as Aspen and Artosphere, and has conducted the Louisville Youth Orchestra and Kling Chamber Orchestra.
 

Karen Savage, piano

Praised as a "tour de force" (Santa Barbara News-Press), for "breathtaking beauty and pure lyricism" (Le Soleil, Vancouver), and for “fearless performance” (The Straits Times, Singapore), Karen Hsiao Savage is Associate Professor of Collaborative Piano and Coordinator of Chamber Music at UMKC Conservatory.

Karen received a doctoral and two masters degrees (in solo and collaborative piano) from Juilliard, and a BMus from University of Victoria. She has performed internationally in such venues as Carnegie Hall’s Weill Hall, Merkin Hall, Alice Tully Hall, Shanghai Grand Theatre, and Perlman Music Program, with broadcasts on internationally syndicated NPR programs and on Vietnamese and Chinese national television.  Recent performances include those with members of the Kansas City Symphony, New York Philharmonic, LA Philharmonic, Chiara quartet’s Hyeyung Yoon and Gregory Beaver, and a recording of works by women composers with oboist Celeste Johnson.

In April, Karen premiered new works by Yotam Haber and Paul Rudy, written for 88SQUARED, her piano duo with husband Jeff Savage. The duo received critical praise for international performances and recording premieres of two-piano works by Lowell Liebermann (Albany Records) and by Daniel Ott (Navonna/PARMA Records), at the invitation of the composers who served as the albums’ producers.  They won the Ellis Duo Piano Competition, the Abild Prize in American Music, and second prize and special mention at Concours Grieg International Competition (Norway). Karen’s teachers include Jonathan Feldman, Margo Garrett, Sam Sanders, Yoheved Kaplinsky, and Robin Wood, with additional coachings with Robert McDonald and Anne Epperson. 

Daniel (Dan) Velicer, piano

An active performer and teacher, Dan Velicer appears regularly with the Kansas City Symphony, Trio Fedele, and the Lyric Arts Trio.  He is a frequent collaborator with members of the Kansas City Symphony and the UMKC Conservatory faculty. Velicer also helps university and high school students prepare for recitals and competitions. 
Prior to arriving in Kansas City, he was an Opera Coach Fellow at the Aspen Music Festival and the head staff pianist at the University of the Pacific Conservatory of Music.  Along with his wife, Kristi, Velicer was on the faculty of the Rocky Mountain Summer Conservatory where he coached chamber music, led master classes, and performed with faculty. 
He received his bachelor of arts degree from Cornell University, majoring in both anthropology and music.  He received his master of music degree from Rice University. 
 

Jesse Yukimura,​ viola
​Violist Jesse Keone Yukimura, from Washington State, discovered at an early age the joys of ensemble music, from chamber music to orchestra. Jesse received a Bachelor of Music degree in Viola Performance from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, where he studied with Peter Slowik, as well as a Bachelor of Arts in Chemistry from Oberlin College. He then studied with Ralph Fielding at the Lynn Conservatory of Music, where he earned a Master of Music degree and a Professional Performance Certificate. Before moving to Kansas City, Jesse was a viola fellow at the New World Symphony in Miami Beach, an orchestral academy founded by artistic director Michael Tilson Thomas. Jesse joined the Kansas City Symphony in 2018, previously joined KC Summerfest in 2019, and is excited to play again this summer. Outside of music, Jesse maintains a variety of interests, from birdwatching to boardgames.