Performers

The Opus Project is a chamber music initiative formed in 2020 in Montréal by Christophe Gauthier and Joanna Marsden. Inspired by the beauty of early musical prints and manuscript sources, the Opus Project explores unsung treasures of the baroque chamber music repertoire by focusing deeply on one collection at a time. 

Joanna Marsden is a “fabulous” (The Whole Note) flautist based in Montréal, Québec. She has performed with numerous ensembles throughout North America and Europe “beautifully” (Luis Gago, Madrid) and “with notable rhetorical clarity” (Boston Musical Intelligencer), and worked with conductors including Ton Koopman, Masaaki Suzuki, Václav Luks, Julian Prégardien, Mathieu Lussier, and Florian Heyerick, among others. She holds degrees from Vassar College, the Royal Conservatory of the Hague, and McGill University. She has offered engaging workshops and masterclasses to students throughout Europe and North America.

Described by Pierre Boulez as “un musicien formidable” and “unflaggingly robust” by Opera Magazine, tenor Brian Smith Walters began his musical career as a French horn player before turning to singing. In his career, Walters has performed over 75 roles, including such roles as Tristan in Tristan und Isolde, Siegfried, Parsifal, Siegmund in Die Walküre, Paul in Die tote Stadt, Samson in Samson et Dalila, Captain Vere in Billy Budd and Peter Grimes. He has worked with conductors Valery Gergiev, Sir Mark Elder, and Christoph Eschenbach in festivals such as Lucerne, Schleswig-Holstein, Longborough, Buxton, Grange Park, and Aldeburgh with additional work at the Barbican and Royal Opera, Covent Garden.

Described as a violinist with “chops to burn, and rock solid musicianship” (The Whole Note, Toronto), Canadian violinist Véronique Mathieu enjoys an exciting career as a soloist, chamber musician, and music educator. An avid contemporary music performer, she has commissioned and premiered numerous works by American, Brazilian, and Canadian composers, and has worked with composers such as Pierre Boulez, Heinz Holliger, and Krzysztof Penderecki. Her album debut of solo works by Boulez, Donatoni, and Lutoslawski was praised as a display of “outstanding violin playing” and “stunning [performance] with amazing technique.”

Thomas Bowes is one of the United Kingdom’s finest violinists. He is very active in the realm of cinema, and millions have heard him on the soundtracks of his 200+ film credits. Most recently he was featured as the solo violinist in Alexandre Desplat’s score for Guillermo del Toro’s award-winning stop-motion film Pinocchio.

A native of Memphis TN, baritone Courtney D. Carey earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music from Morehouse College in Atlanta GA, Master of Music degree in Conducting from Eastman School of Music in Rochester NY, and the Professional Studies Diploma in Voice from Mannes College of Music in New York NY. Carey made his operatic debut in the summer of 2003 as Morales in Bizet’s Carmen and Hermann in Offenbach’s Hoffmans Erazaehlungen with the Komische KammerOper Muenchen in Munich, Germany. Since his debut, Carey has sung principal and supporting roles in Il Tabarro, Gianni Schicchi, Die Zauberfloete, My Fair Lady, Ariadne auf Naxos, and Don Alfonso in Mozart's Cosi fan Tutte. 

Kristina Marinova has been described as a virtuoso performer of extreme energy and youthful vibrance. Her clear and precise tone enhances her stormy expressions and performances, full of grace, serenity, style, and beauty. Her album entitled 4 RHAPSODIES, which she performed live at Carnegie Hall on November 17th, 2022, has been called “A Feast for the Ears” by Darren Rea of Classical Music Review Magazine.

Ensemble Spinoza is a Montreal based early music ensemble. It was co-founded by Noémy Gagnon-Lafrenais and Christophe Gauthier in 2020. Acclaimed gambist Margaret Little joined the ensemble in 2021. The group specializes in the performance of 17th century baroque on period instruments. The ensemble’s mission is to uncover hidden gems of the repertoire and make them available to North Americans. Ensemble Spinoza stands apart through its profound artistic contemplation, embodying a pursuit of knowledge that echoes the philosophers from whom it draws its name.

In 2008, Lande was appointed principal guest conductor of the St. Petersburg State Symphony, and in 2011 he led the orchestra on a 24-concert "Tour of the Americas” including New York’s Alice Tully Hall, Boston’s Symphony Hall, Philadelphia’s KimmelCenter, Baltimore’s Meyerhoff Hall, and the Society of the Performing Arts in Houston, as well as the most prestigious venues in Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Peru, Chile, and Uruguay.

Maestro Dian Tchobanov has been the General Music Director of State Opera – Plovdiv since their 2013-2014 season. He earned his master´s degree at the State Musical Academy (Sofia) in 1997 and at the University of Performing Arts and Music Vienna, Austria (Uroš Lajović – orchestra conducting and Konrad Leitner – accompanying). His conducting style has been influenced by Sir Colin Davies, Dresden, Germany, Maestro Fabio Luisi, and Maestro Michael Halas, conductor at Vienna State Opera. Tchobanov has been awarded with the second and the special award of "Lovro von Matačić" at the International Conductors Competition in Zagreb in 2003. In 2015 he was invited to jury the competition.

Founded in 1924 by visionary violin teacher Mary V. Dodge, Portland Youth Philharmonic provides young musicians in Portland OR with a challenging opportunity to explore their creativity while receiving the highest quality musical education. The nation’s first youth orchestra, PYP has produced consistently inspiring performances and upheld a tradition of excellence since its first public concert in February 1925. Alumni of this organization can be found around the world in professional orchestras, teaching music at every level, and promoting music education as an important life skill that benefits individuals in any career path.

Formed in 1891 as the Scottish Orchestra, the company became the Scottish National Orchestra in 1950, and was awarded Royal Patronage in 1977. Throughout its history, the Orchestra has played an integral part in Scotland’s musical life, including performing at the opening ceremony of the Scottish Parliament building in 2004. Many renowned conductors have contributed to its success, including George Szell, Sir John Barbirolli, Walter Susskind, Sir Alexander Gibson, Neeme Järvi, Walter Weller, Alexander Lazarev and Stéphane Denève.

David Watkin has made a wide range of acclaimed recordings including Sonatas by Vivaldi (Hyperion), Beethoven (Chandos), and Francis Pott (Guild), Haydn’s Sinfonia Concertante with OAE (Virgin), and Schubert Quintet with the Tokyo Quartet (Harmonia Mundi). He has been a soloist at Wigmore Hall, Barbican, Royal Festival Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Carnegie Hall, New York, and performed the Schumann Concerto with Sir John Eliot Gardiner and Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique at Lincoln Center, New York. As a guest artist he has collaborated with Robert Levin and Fredericka von Stade. As a founder member of the Eroica Quartet he has performed all over Europe and the United States and their recordings of Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Schumann, Debussy, and Ravel have astonished critics.

“Richard Galliano has changed the course of accordion history. Today we can speak of ‘before’ and ’after’ Galliano.” — Yasuhiro Kobayashi, accordionist and musician accompanist of the singer Björk It was my dearest wish: to give a fair place to this instrument, unjustly qualified as the “poor man’s piano,” whereas my accordion has always been a Steinway with braces. I was determined to restore the image of my instrument, so I left my native village and “went up to Paris” like many others. There I had the chance to meet artists who quickly put their trust in me: accordionists like Jo Basile, singers like Claude Nougaro, Serge Reggiani, Barbara, and jazzmen like Chet Baker, Charlie Haden, Ron Carter and Michel Portal.

Born in San Francisco, violist Brett Deubner has established himself as one of the foremost violists of his generation. As a sought after soloist who has performed with orchestras on five continents, Deubner has redefined the role of “solo artist” and has given the viola a new standing in the world of classical music with his virtuosity, commitment to championing new music, and his mentoring tomorrow’s young artists.

A Grammy-nominated artist and McKnight Fellow, José A. Zayas Cabán has presented performances and taught master classes throughout Europe, the Caribbean, and North America. A native Puerto Rican (born and raised in Mayagüez PR) and musician activist, José now resides in Minneapolis MN and is building an artistic career focused on developing projects, albums, and collaborations that address, respond, and raise awareness about current events and social issues.

Guerilla Opera is one of Boston’s most exciting young companies creating brave new works. Founded in 2007, the ensemble has accumulated a repertoire of 40 new works, which continues to grow, by the most exciting composers of our generation. In daring performances, they have garnered a national reputation for innovative contemporary opera, with the Boston Globe raving that “radical exploration remains the cornerstone of everything it does.”

The Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra (SOSR) was established in 1929 as the orchestra of the Bratislava-based branch of the Radiojournal radio institution, being the first professional symphony orchestra in Slovakia.

Cappella Clausura was founded by Amelia LeClair in 2004 to research, study and perform the music of women composers. Our twin goals are to bring engaging performances of this music to today’s audiences, and to help bring women composers into the classical canon. Our repertoire extends from the earliest known music by women, written in the middle ages, to the music of our own time.

A native of Houston, Andrew Schneider is a composer, pianist, and vocal coach whose virtuosic technique and daring interpretation has cemented his reputation among clients as a fearless musician. His extensive collaborative activity encompasses early music, standard operatic and art song repertoire, as well as contemporary music. Proficient for coaching purposes in French, German, Italian, and Latin, as well as adept with less frequently encountered languages, especially Slavic ones, Schneider enjoys using his considerable linguistic skill to help make challenging texts accessible to his clients. His wide ranging musical activities also include harpsichord and organ performance and conducting.