violinist, director

Canadian-born violinist Shannon Lee grew up in Plano, Texas, and studied for many years with Jan Mark Sloman, former Principal Associate Concertmaster of the Dallas Symphony. She made her solo debut with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra at the age of 12, and has since performed with orchestras such as the Tokyo Symphony, Antwerp Symphony, Belgian National Orchestra, and New York String Orchestra at Carnegie Hall. Shannon has been internationally recognized with top prizes at the Sendai Competition in Japan, Queen Elisabeth Competition in Belgium, Shanghai Isaac Stern Competition, Indianapolis Competition, and Naumburg Competition in New York City. As a chamber musician, she has played at Creative Dialogue France, Krzyżowa-Music in Poland, Music@Menlo in California, Yale University’s Norfolk Chamber Music Festival and Heifetz International Music Institute, where she was Artist-in-Residence and teaching assistant. Among Shannon's major teachers and influences are David Nadien, Ida Kavafian, Arnold Steinhardt, Jaime Laredo, and Vera Beths. Currently based in the Netherlands, Shannon also took lessons at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam in baroque violin and music composition. Her experiences in teaching and, more recently, in composition, converged in the creation of this workshop in 2023. (website)

composer, pianist

Born in St. Petersburg, composer-pianist Arseniy Gusev moved to the US to study at the Cleveland Institute of Music and Yale University, after graduating with honors from the Specialized Music School of the St. Petersburg Rimsky-Korsakov State Conservatory. Among his teachers are Sergei Babayan, Keith Fitch, Chris Theofanidis, and David Lang. Gusev’s compositions include a colorful variety of styles and genres, some of which are solo, collaborative, symphonic, ballet, and opera. He actively performs in the US and abroad, and has given solo concerts in Austria, Belgium, Italy, Slovakia, Russia, and Germany. His compositions are performed in Mariinsky Theater, Carnegie Hall, Konzerthaus Dortmund, St. Petersburg Philharmonic and other major venues. Arseniy is a laureate of many prestigious competitions, such as the Cleveland Piano Virtu(al)oso Competition, Singapore International Piano Competition, Three Arts Piano Competition, Cleveland Composers Guild Contest, and “Another Space” Composition Competition. Arseniy has an exclusive contract with “Kompozitor” publisher house. Among recently published works are 24 Postludes (2018) and 3 Toccatas (2020). (website)

composer

Fueyo is a composer from Tampico, Mexico whose music explores ancient aesthetics and their place in our rapidly changing, contemporary culture. His pieces often reference ancient art and literature investigating idealization, historicism, memory, and transcendence. Recently, his piece Eleventh Heaven—premiered at Severance Hall by Carlos Kalmar & the CIMO for CIM’s 100th Anniversary—received the 68th BMI Student Composer Awards (2020) and the 2020 ASCAP Morton Gould Young Composer Awards. His violin concerto Serpiente de Turquesas—premiered by Shannon Lee and Sunny Xia—also received the 2021 ASCAP Morton Gould Young Composer Awards. Most recently Fueyo was a SFSC Fellow at the Aspen Music Festival (2022) where his pieces 'Hurakán', 'O Condicionado,' and 'Lume in forma di rivera,' were featured. Fueyo is an Interlochen Arts Academy, Cleveland Institute of Music, and Yale School of Music alum where he studied with Keith Fitch, David Lang, Aaron J. Kernis, and Chris Theofanidis. (website)

cellist

Portuguese cellist Mafalda Santos brings to the stage her engaging personality and desire to share music and stories with audiences all over the world. As the winner of over 20 awards from prestigious competitions, she has performed in acclaimed venues such as the Royal Albert Hall and Berliner Philharmoniker. Since her debut with the FIME Ensemble at the age of fourteen, Mafalda has performed as a soloist with symphony orchestras in Europe and the United States. As an avid chamber musician, Mafalda has participated in renowned chamber music series and festivals. Passionate about exploring the impact of classical music in society, Mafalda collaborates with numerous organizations across the US to create innovative and inclusive concerts. Mafalda holds degrees in Cello Performance and Musicology from the Peabody Conservatory, where she studied with Amit Peled on a full scholarship. She is currently pursuing a Doctor of Musical Arts degree at Yale University, studying with Paul Watkins as a George W. Miles fellowship recipient. (website)

staff, creative producer, violist

Reshena Liao is a violinist and violist based in San Francisco, where she has worked as a producer and project manager for the Kronos Quartet / Kronos Performing Arts Association (KPAA) since 2015. She has produced several commercial albums and more than 75 tracks for the group, and helped lead the Kronos Fifty for the Future project, an education initiative that commissioned and released 50 new works (scores, recordings, and more) online, free of charge. Before her time at KPAA, Reshena spent several seasons at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, where she worked on the programming and production teams for the Lincoln Center Out of Doors, Midsummer Night Swing, Mostly Mozart, and White Light Festivals.