Elliot Figg, Harpsichord is a keyboardist, conductor, and composer from Dallas, Texas, and a graduate of the Historical Performance Program at The Juilliard School. He studied with Kenneth Weiss at Juilliard and with Arthur Haas at the Yale School of Music. He is an active member of several New York-based early music and contemporary ensembles, including Ruckus, ACRONYM, and House of Time. Recent engagements include Handel’s Rodelinda at Hudson Opera Theater with Ruckus and the recording of their forthcoming second album with flutist Emi Ferguson, concerts at Boston Early Music Festival, the Naumburg Orchestral Bandshell in Central Park with ACRONYM, and the Sweetwater Music Festival in Canada, where he performed J.S. Bach’s “Brandenburg” Concerto No. 5 among other works. He earned Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in music composition from the University of North Texas where he studied composition with Cindy McTee and Joseph Klein and harpsichord with Lenora McCroskey. His own works combine Baroque performance techniques with altered tuning systems and modern formal approaches.

Adam Gautille, Trumpet is a genre-hopping, multi-instrumental musician based in Boston who thrives in the classical, jazz, and singer/songwriter worlds. A young professional, he is active throughout the New England music scene with repertoire that includes trumpet, guitar, and vocals. Since 2017 he has performed with the Boston Symphony, Boston Pops, and other orchestras nationwide. In 2015 he established Trio Ardente, a modern chamber group featuring trumpet, viola, and piano that commissions new works combining different art forms to convey compelling stories. In the fall of 2023, he will release Songs for a Friend, an album dedicated to his late teacher, Ryan Anthony. The project incorporates trumpet players from different stages of Anthony's life and continues the legacy that he established with organist Gary Beard. He and Trio Ardente are preparing for the 2024 world premiere of works by Ady Cohen and Edmar Colon in Greece and Israel.

Arthur Haas, Harpsichord Arthur Haas is one of the most sought-after performers and teachers of Baroque music in the United States today.  He received the top prize in the Paris International Harpsichord Competition in 1975 and was an active member of the growing European early music scene. While in Paris, he joined the acclaimed Five Centuries Ensemble, known for its performances and recordings of Baroque and contemporary music.  He is a member of the Aulos Ensemble, whose recordings of Bach, Vivaldi, Telemann, Couperin, and Rameau have won critical acclaim in the press; the Empire Viols; and the exciting new group, Gold and Glitter. He has recorded the complete harpsichord works of Rameau, and harpsichord music of Forqueray, Purcell and his contemporaries, Francois Couperin, and others. Annual summer workshop and festival appearances include the International Baroque Institute at Longy, Portland (ME) Bach Virtuosi Festival, and the Amherst Early Music Festival, where he was artistic director of the Baroque Academy from 2002 to 2011. Haas is professor of harpsichord and early music at Stony Brook University where he leads the award-winning Stony Brook Baroque Players, and is Visiting Professor of Harpsichord at the Yale School of Music.  He is a founding faculty member of Juilliard’s historical performance program. 

Alison Hale, Flute Alison Hale made her New York debut at Carnegie Recital Hall in 1982 as winner of the Artists International competition and has performed at Lincoln Center, Merkin Hall, CAMI Hall, many of the major churches in New York City, and concert halls throughout the US, Europe, and South America. Solo performances include appearances with the Berkshire Bach Ensemble, New England Piano Quintet, Portland (ME) String Quartet, Portland Symphony Orchestra, and at the National Flute Association convention.  In 2012 she was inducted into the Fryeburg (ME) Academy Hall of Excellence. She has been a member of the Portland Symphony Orchestra since 1985, Opera Maine, and Portland Ballet Orchestras, in addition to the Berkshire Bach Ensemble. Other honors include the Kandell Fellowship for participation in the Tanglewood Institute, where she was awarded the C.D. Jackson Master prize. Currently on the faculties of Mt. Holyoke and Bennington, she has taught previously at Amherst, Bowdoin, and Bates Colleges.  She holds Master and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees from Manhattan School of Music, as well as an undergraduate degree from Mt. Holyoke College, where she received the prestigious Mary Lyon award for outstanding alumnae.

Katherine Halvorson, Oboe, is one of the most versatile oboists working today.  She is an accomplished classical player, a modern improviser, and a lover of jazz, about whom The Boston Globe wrote that “no praise is sufficient.”  She studied at the New England Conservatory, at Rutgers University, and at the Royal Conservatory in the Netherlands and while in Holland performed regularly with several prestigious music organizations including the Rotterdam Philharmonic, the Netherlands Wind Ensemble, the Netherlands Balletorkest, and others.  In the U.S. she has worked with, among others, the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, the American Symphony, and New Jersey Symphony Orchestras, and has been principal oboe with the Symphony Orchestra de Mineria in Mexico City, with the ensembles for the Broadway Musical On the Town, and the 2017 North American tour of Les Misérables.  Her discography includes two CDs with Sylvan Winds, 12 CDs with the Toronto Chamber Orchestra, and a CD of Harpsichord Concertos with Christopher Lewis for Naxos.  Her arrangements and improvisations on pop, jazz, folk, and world music can be heard on the CDs Unraveled and Palette with her oboe trio Threeds. 

Caitlyn Koester, Harpsichord is a harpsichordist and music director active in early music communities throughout North America. Her international duo, AKOYA, releases its debut album of Graupner’s complete sonatas for violin and harpsichord under ATMA Classique in December 2023. She holds degrees from the University of Michigan and The Juilliard School and is pursuing a Doctorate of Musical Arts at SUNY Stony Brook under the tutelage of Arthur Haas. She has been on collegiate and pre-college faculty at San Francisco Conservatory of Music in the Theory and History departments, and her 2023 Fall/Winter season includes concerts for two harpsichords with Elliot Figg through Gotham Early Music Scene and The Berkshire Bach Society, AKOYA’s debut at the Montreal Bach Festival, and work with New York Baroque Incorporated, Washington Heights Chamber Orchestra, and the Johnstown Symphony, among others. When not playing the harpsichord, Caitlyn enjoys going on adventures with her dog, a Great Pyrenees mix named Polyphony.

Christopher Krueger, Flute, is a graduate of the New England Conservatory of Music and a prominent performer on both modern and period instruments. He became interested in historical performance practices and instruments in the mid-1970s, developing a career as a performer on the Baroque flute, and has appeared as a soloist and ensemble member with virtually every major early-music organization in the US. He is the principal flutist with the Boston Early Music Festival Orchestra, Mostly Mozart on Original Instruments, the Handel and Haydn Society, the Smithsonian Chamber Orchestra, the Classical Band, Boston Baroque, the New Hampshire Symphony, and Banchetto Musicale. He is also a member of the Bach Ensemble, New Music, the Aulos Ensemble, and the Smithsonian Chamber Players and a founding member of the Naumburg Award-winning Emmanuel Wind Quintet. He has performed with the Drottningholm Theater Orchestra, Aston Magna, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the Boston Pops, the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, Tafelmusik, Cantata Singers, and the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra. He has been a soloist on the Great Performers Series and Mostly Mozart Festival at Lincoln Center, as well as at Tanglewood, Ravinia, the Berlin Bach Festival, the City of London Festival, the Festival at Perth, and many other venues. He has served on the faculties of New England Conservatory of Music, Boston Conservatory, and the Longy School of Music. Currently, he teaches at Oberlin’s Baroque Performance Institute and Boston University and is Professor Emeritus at UMass Amherst. He has an extensive discography on the Deutsche Grammophon, RCA, Nonesuch, Pro Arte, CRL, and L’Oiseau-Lyre labels.  This is his first appearance with Berkshire Bach.

Erin Lensing, English Horn, is an oboist and educator based in Philadelphia and New York City. She performs with orchestras and chamber ensembles across the country including the Charleston Symphony, Ensemble Signal, Double Entendre Music Ensemble, Ensemble Mise-En, Slee Sinfonietta, Contemporaneous, on Broadway, and at such venues as Carnegie Hall, Miller Theatre, National Sawdust, and The Shed. Festivals at which she has performed include Spoleto Festival USA, Klangspuren Ensemble Modern Academy, Bang on a Can at MASS MoCA, Ukrainian New Music Festival, and June in Buffalo. Her experience as an instructor of piano and oboe includes teaching undergraduates from the University of Rochester as a Graduate Teaching Assistant at the Eastman School of Music. Erin holds degrees from the University of North Texas and the Eastman School of Music, where her teachers included Charles Veazey, James Ryon, and Richard Killmer.

Renée Anne Louprette, Organ Hailed by The New York Times as one of New York’s finest organists, Renée Anne Louprette has established an international career as organ recitalist, conductor, and teacher.  She is associated with distinguished music programs in the New York City area and has served as Associate Director of Music at the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola, Associate Director of Music and the Arts at Trinity Wall Street, Organist and Associate Director at the Unitarian Church of All Souls, and Director of Music at the Church of Notre Dame.  She is Assistant Professor of Music and College Organist at Bard College and coordinator of the organ studio at Mason Gross School of the Arts, Rutgers University, where she has been University Organist since 2013. She is a former member of the organ faculty at the Manhattan School of Music, The Hartt School of the University of Hartford, and the John J. Cali School of Music at Montclair State University.  She is an active freelance keyboardist, performing both in the U.S. and abroad in high-profile venues with important practitioners. She has appeared in concert halls and churches throughout the United Kingdom and Ireland, including Westminster Abbey and the Temple Church in London, St. Giles Cathedral of Edinburgh and Dunblane Cathedral in Scotland, and Galway Cathedral and Dún Laoghaire in Ireland. In 2018, she made her solo debuts at the Royal Festival Hall in London and the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris. She regularly performs at regional meetings of the American Guild of Organists and was featured at two national conventions. Her 2014 recording of J.S. Bach’s Great Eighteen Chorales on the Metzler Organ, Trinity College, Cambridge, was named a classical music Critics' Choice by The New York Times.  She holds degrees in conducting from Bard College, piano performance and organ performance from The Hartt School, and honors from the Conservatoire National de Région de Toulouse and the Centre d’Études Supérieures de Musique et de Danse de Toulouse, France.

Laura Lutzke, Violin Laura Lutzke earned her undergraduate and graduate degrees from The Juilliard School and a Master of Music with Distinction from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London.  She is an avid chamber musician, and was named one of the “Rising Stars” at the Caramoor International Music Festival, collaborating with artists such as Atar Arad, Pamela Frank, and Arnold Steinhardt. She has taught and performed at the Bowdoin International Music Festival alongside musicians such as Frank Huang, Mikhail Kopelman, Kurt Muroki, and Paul Neubauer. Since 2006 she has participated in festivals throughout the US, Europe, the UK, and Asia, including Open Chamber Music at Prussia Cove in Cornwall, England.  She collaborates regularly with diverse artists and ensembles such as Alarm Will Sound, Björk, Le Cercle de l’Harmonie, Gabriel Kahane, Johann Johannsson, The Knights, Max Richter, Orchestra of St. Luke’s, Paul McCartney, The National, Stars of the Lid, Roomful of Teeth, Wordless Music Orchestra, and Yann Tiersen. She is currently a member of the critically-acclaimed American Contemporary Music Ensemble (ACME) and Co-Leader of Le Cercle de L’Harmonie classical orchestra in France.

Myron Lutzke, Cello, is well known to audiences as a cellist on both modern and period instruments. He attended Brandeis University and is a graduate of The Juilliard School, where he was a student of Leonard Rose and Harvey Shapiro. His chamber music studies include work with Robert Koff, Eugene Lehner, and Felix Galimir. He is currently a member of St. Luke’s Chamber Ensemble, Aulos Ensemble, Mozartean Players, Bach Ensemble, Loma Mar Quartet, The Theater of Early Music, and the Esterhazy Machine, and serves as principal cellist for the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, American Classical Orchestra, and for 14 years, the Handel and Haydn Society with Christopher Hogwood in Boston. He has appeared as soloist at the Caramoor, Ravinia, and Mostly Mozart festivals, and is a regular participant at the Sweetwater Music festival, Ottawa Chamber Music Festival, Santa Fe Promusica, and the Smithsonian Chamber Players. His numerous recordings include the complete Mozart and Schubert piano trios with the Mozartean Players and the album Working Classical with the Loma Mar quartet for Paul McCartney. He has recorded for the Sony, DG, Dorian, Atma, Arabesque, EMI, and Oiseau-Lyre labels. He teaches regularly at the Indiana University Early Music Institute and is currently on the faculty of the Mannes School of Music, where he teaches period cello and Baroque performance practice, and New York University. He has also served as director of the Amherst Early Music Baroque Academy.

Alistair MacRae, Cello Alistair MacRae has appeared as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral principal throughout North America, Europe, Asia, South America, and the Middle East. His playing has been praised for its "rich sound and lyrical phrasing" (Palm Beach Daily News) and his performances have been featured in radio broadcasts across the United States on WQXR, WWFM, WDAV, WCQS, KING FM, and Vermont Public Radio.  He is Cordelia Wikarski-Miedel Artist in Residence at the University of Puget Sound, and the cellist of the Puget Sound Piano Trio, and principal cello of both the Princeton Symphony Orchestra and Symphony Tacoma.  He also performs with his wife, soprano Alison Pohl, in the voice and cello duo Soprello and is a member of the Artist Faculty at the Brevard Music Center.  His past projects include chamber music and recitals in venues such as Carnegie Hall's Zankel and Weill Halls, Seattle’s Benaroya Hall, and Palm Beach's Kravis Center for the Performing Arts; recordings of chamber music by Kodaly and Telemann; premiere performances of 21st-century pieces at Princeton, Yale, Columbia, and Harvard Universities; and ensemble albums of music by Mozart and Scott Joplin.

Eric Martin, Viola, is a well-known professional musician in the Berkshires who holds performance degrees from Ithaca College and the University of Limerick, Ireland, where he studied with Italian violist Bruno Giuranna. He has performed with instrumental and vocal ensembles both in the U.S. and Europe including Syracuse Symphony, Orchestra of the Southern Fingerlakes, Cayuga Chamber Orchestra, Tri-Cities Opera Orchestra, Irish Chamber Orchestra, Springfield Symphony, Berkshire Bach Society, Crescendo, Berkshire Lyric, Berkshire Children’s Chorus, Vocalis, and Boston Camerata. In addition to performing classical repertoire he is a traditional dance musician and often participates in events at festivals, camps, and various organizations specializing in Contra and English Country Dances throughout North America and Europe. He maintains a teaching studio at his home in Monterey (MA), and works with young musicians at the Great Barrington Waldorf School.

Judith Mendenhall, Flute Judith Mendenhall has appeared throughout the US, Europe, and Asia as a recital, chamber, and orchestral musician. She is principal flutist of the American Ballet Theatre Orchestra, and performs regularly with the Cleveland, Mendelssohn, and Emerson String Quartets and Musicians from Marlboro. Her solo recitals include appearances at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the 92nd Street Y, and the National Chiang Kai-Shek Cultural Center in Taipei. She has been principal flutist with the New York Chamber Symphony, the Mostly Mozart Festival, the Grand Teton Festival, and the Colorado Music Festival, and was a founding member of the Music Today Ensemble and Aulos Wind Quintet. She received the 2016 Distinguished Teaching Award from The New School, where as a faculty member of the Mannes School of Music, she chairs the wind department. She is also on the faculty of Queens College of the City University of New York. In addition, she performs in summer festivals including the Interlochen Flute Institute and the Aria International Summer Academy, and the biennial recital-master class tours of Taiwan.

Elizabeth Mann, Flute, is the principal flutist of the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, and is a featured performer in concert halls throughout the United States, Europe, and the Far East. She is a member of the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, has played principal flute with the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Valery Gergiev, and recently recorded and performed as associate principal flute with the New York Philharmonic. She has been principal flute of the Santa Fe Opera and Minnesota Orchestra, and other important organizations. She is a well-known teacher in New York and gives masterclasses across the country. She is involved with the Orpheus Institute at The Juilliard School and Manhattan School of Music, and teaches at the Colorado College Summer Music Festival.

Maximilian Morel, Trumpet Maximilian Morel was born in Paris, France, and began studying the trumpet at age six.When he was ten, he auditioned at the Paris Conservatoire and was accepted by the trumpet studio of Gerard Boulanger.At 15 he moved to New York City to study with Raymond Mase at the Juilliard Pre-College division, and went on to complete his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees at the school, studying with Louis Hanzlik.He performs as a soloist on modern and period trumpet in various venues both here and abroad, and has performed as soloist in the “Brandenburg” Concerto No. 2 with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, Bach’s Mass in B minor under the direction of Masaaki Suzuki, and in other repertoire on international tours with the Orpheus Chamber orchestra.He is a frequent guest artist with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, the Pegasus Orchestra, the Riverside Symphony, and Pro Musica.He has been a featured soloist with the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory Orchestra, the Miami Lynn University Orchestra, the Rome Aimart Chamber Orchestra, and the Jeju South Korea Philharmonic.He is a winner of major trumpet competitions, including the French National Trumpet Competition in L'Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, the Eighth International Competition of the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory, the Twelfth Jeju International Brass Competition, the International Roger Voisin Trumpet Competition, and the Girolamo Fantini International Trumpet Competition, 2019 Second Edition.

Neil Mueller, Corno da Caccia Neil Mueller enjoys a career performing and teaching music.  He is Associate Professor of Trumpet at Central Michigan University, Principal Trumpet of the Lansing Symphony Orchestra and Cleveland’s BlueWater Chamber Orchestra, and third trumpet in the Grand Rapids Symphony.  He has toured the US and Italy with the Brass Ring quintet and recorded new works by Pulitzer Prize-winning composers Jacob Druckman, David del Tredici, and Joseph Schwanter.  In addition, he has performed concerti with the Boston Pops, the Eastern Connecticut Symphony, Fargo-Moorhead Symphony, as well as the Berkshire Bach Ensemble.  He has recorded extensively as both a soloist and chamber musician and has a published several popular pedagogical works for the trumpet.  He recently released the CD Call and Response, featuring new works for trumpet and piano and trumpet duo with fellow Berkshire Bach Ensemble member Allan Dean and pianist Zhihua Tang.

Anca Nicolau,Violin, was born in Bucharest, Romania, where she began studying the violin at the age of four. She won her first competition at age nine, and at ten was accepted as a student of George Manoliu, a pupil of George Enescu. While still in Romania, Ms. Nicolau performed in master classes led by David Oistrach and Yehudi Menuhin, and at fifteen, won the Romanian National Youth Competition. A year later, she received a scholarship to study with Ivan Galamian at the Juilliard School, and later worked with Raphael Bronstein and Ruggiero Ricci. She holds a Bachelor of Music from the Manhattan School of Music, a Teacher Training Certificate from Louise Behrendt’s School for Strings, and a Masters in Philosophy from Columbia University. She has performed on both modern and period instruments, and is currently a member of the Mozartean Players, the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, and the American Classical Orchestra among others. She is currently on the faculties of the Manhattan School of Music’s Preparatory Division, the Hoff-Barthelson Music School, as well as the Sulzbach-Rosenberg International Music Festival and School, in Germany. In 2010, Ms. Nicolau was the recipient of the Belz-Parker Award for Excellence in Musical Artistry, and in 2011, was presented with the Certificate of Excellence by the Forte International Competitions and Festivals.

Margaret Owens, Oboe Margaret Owens is in demand for her performances on historical oboes and has appeared with many of North America's baroque orchestras, including American Bach Soloists, Apollo’s Fire, Folger Consort, Handel and Haydn Society, National Cathedral Baroque Orchestra, Tafelmusik, Washington Bach Consort, and others. She is a member of the chamber group REBEL and a founding member of Kleine Kammermusik, whose debut album Fanfare and Filigree: Chamber Music from Paris to Dresden (2017) received critical acclaim. She participates in many summer music festivals, including the Charlotte Bach Festival, the Staunton Music Festival, and the Amherst Early Music Festival, and holds degrees in oboe performance from the University of North Carolina, Greensboro, the Manhattan School of Music, and the City University of New York.  She is on the faculty of the Jacob School of Music at Indiana University, the Peabody Conservatory of Johns Hopkins University, and the Amherst Early Music Festival.  In her teaching she focuses on broadening the study of historical oboes, from technique to 18th-century performance practice.  An eastern North Carolina native, she lives in Northern Virginia with her husband, a music historian, and her son, a computer enthusiast.

Mariken Palmboom, Harpsichord was fascinated by the harpsichord from an early age. After studying piano for several years, at age 16 she turned her attention full time to her first love and favorite instrument, the harpsichord. She was educated in Holland at the Royal Conservatory in The Hague, studying at the famous Early Music Department, where many pioneers of the period instrument movement were teaching. She majored in Harpsichord Performance, with Bob van Asperen as her main teacher, and in Baroque ensemble studies, with musicians such as the Kuijken brothers, Anner Bijlsma, and Frans Brüggen. She was invited to attend and participate in master classes with legendary harpsichordist Gustav Leonhardt. At the Royal Flemish Conservatory, she did post-graduate work with Jos van Immerseel and earned a Master degree in Solo Performance and the First Prize with Greatest Distinction. In 1986 she received a Special Award in the International Harpsichord Competition in Bruges, Belgium. She has performed as a soloist and continuo player in Europe and the US and participated in major Early Music Festivals, including Flanders, Utrecht, Berkeley, and Boston, with such artists as Jos van Immerseel, Frans Brüggen, Jaap Schröder, and Marion Verbruggen. More recently she has appeared with Jane Hershey, Dana Maiben, Anne Legêne, Tricia van Oers, Rodrigo Tarraza, and Emily Hale. A Berkshires resident since 1997, she teaches keyboard instruments—both harpsichord and piano—to many students, young and old. On Sunday mornings you can hear her play the organ at the First Congregational Church in Worthington, MA. Her harpsichord was made by distinguished harpsichord builder Carl Dudash of Norfolk, CT, with whom she shares a longstanding friendship.

Marie-Volcy Pelletier, Cello Marie-Volcy Pelletier is a native of Paris and received the Premier Prix in Cello and Chamber Music from the Conservatoire National de Région de Boulogne-Billancourt (France), where she studied with Michel Strauss. She became a member of the Lyon Symphony at the age of 21, and subsequently won a Fulbright Scholarship to study with Bernard Greenhouse, cellist of the Beaux Arts Trio. She has been the principal cellist of the Orquestra Ciutat de Barcelona in Spain, and while living in London frequently performed with the London Symphony and the BBC Orchestra. She has been a recitalist and featured in chamber music concerts and on both sides of the Atlantic. A founding member of the Concert Players String Trio in London, the Forster String Trio, and the Kinor Quartet in New York City, she has been a member of the Laurentian String Quartet in residence at Sarah Lawrence College (New York), and has performed at the Monadnock Music Festival in New Hampshire; the Light House Chamber Players on Cape Cod, (MA), the Mohawk Trails Concerts, and the Manchester Music Festival in Vermont. Her discography includes a CD of piano trios by Piston, Perera, and Bernstein on the Bridge label released in 2020. Recognized as a master teacher, Pelletier is a Lecturer in Cello Performance at Smith College and a member of the Sage Chamber Music Society and the Elm Chamber Ensemble.

Gerard Reuter, Oboe Gerard Reuter is a dedicated chamber musician and a past recipient of the prestigious Pro Musicis International Award.  He studied oboe at the Juilliard School from the age of nine and later attended the Royal College of Music in London.  He has appeared as a soloist with Jupiter Symphony, Philharmonia Virtuosi, Riverside Symphony and Orchestra of the Bronx, the National Chamber Orchestra, the Soviet Emigré Orchestra, and the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, among others. A founding member of both the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra and An die Musik, he is a long-time member of the Dorian Wind Quintet and has performed with many ensembles in the United States and abroad, occasionally as a guest conductor.  He has recorded for Sony, New World, Telarc, Columbia, BMG-Catalyst, Dorian, Summit, and Musical Heritage Society.

Michael Roth, Violin Michael Roth, a native of Scarsdale, NY, received his early musical training with Frances Magnes at the Hoff-Barthelson Music School.  He is a graduate of both Oberlin College and Conservatory and the University of Massachusetts, where he was the recipient of the Julian Olevsky Award.  He is currently associate concertmaster of the New York City Ballet Orchestra, a member of the Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra, and principal 2nd violin of the Westchester Philharmonic, the American Composers Orchestra, and the New York Pops. He has served as concertmaster of the Princeton Symphony, the Vermont Symphony Orchestra, the Greenwich Symphony Orchestra, and for many years was concertmaster of the Vermont Mozart Festival Orchestra.  As a chamber musician, he regularly participates in the Central Vermont Chamber Music and the Windham Chamber Music Festivals, and he plays frequently with the Sherman Chamber Ensemble, the New York Chamber Ensemble, and the Saratoga Chamber Players.

Emily Daggett Smith, Violin Emily Daggett Smith has been praised for the quality of her playing and has performed across the United States, Europe, South America, and Asia. She made her New York concerto debut as a soloist with the Juilliard Orchestra in Alice Tully Hall and has since performed with many groups, including Iris Orchestra, the Festival Mozaic Orchestra, and the New Amsterdam Symphony Orchestra.  She has appeared as a recitalist in such venues as the Kennedy Center and Chicago’s Music in the Loft and as a chamber musician with members of the Cleveland, Emerson and Juilliard String Quartets. She is on the faculty at the Bard College Conservatory Pre-College program and the Juilliard School. She holds undergraduate and graduate degrees from Juilliard and a Doctor of Musical Arts from Stony Brook University.  She studied with Soovin Kim, Philip Setzer, Joel Smirnoff, Laurie Smukler and Donald Weilerstein.  She plays on a Johannes Cuypers violin, generously donated by Dr. Marylou Witz.

John Thiessen, Trumpet has been described by The New York Times as “the gold standard of Baroque trumpet playing” in the U.S. and has appeared as soloist and principal trumpet with Trinity Baroque Orchestra, Tafelmusik, Philharmonia, Boston Baroque, American Bach Soloists, Handel & Haydn Society, the Boston Early Music Festival, and Opera Lafayette. He has performed as a soloist with the San Francisco Symphony and as guest Principal with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s. Internationally, he has performed with the Academy of Ancient Music, Taverner Players, the English Baroque Soloists, and the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra. He is known especially for his clarino register playing and has an affinity for the works of J.S. Bach, Handel, Scarlatti, and Telemann. He serves on the faculties of the Historical Performance Department of The Juilliard School and the American Bach Soloists Academy and is Executive Director of Gotham Early Music Scene, New York’s foremost supporter and fiscal sponsor of Early Music. Mr. Thiessen has recorded over 80 discs for Sony Classical Vivarte, Telarc, EMI, BMG, Deutsche Harmonia Mundi, London Decca, Analekta, CBC, Tafelmusik Media, and Denon, including major works by J.S. Bach, Handel, Mozart, Haydn, and Beethoven. His forthcoming recording Music from Grace features 17th century German repertoire by Schütz and Pezel.

Liuh-Wen Ting, Viola Liuh-Wen Ting is a multi-faceted musician, member of the award-winning Meridian String Quartet, and co-founder of Ensemble Meme. She has collaborated with artists from the Lincoln Center Chamber Music Society to the Manhattan String Quartet, Cassatt Quartet, and the Persian vocal duo Shahram and Hafez Nazeri, with whom she has worked for eleven years. A proponent of contemporary music, she is on the staff of the Composers Conference and Chamber Music Center and has premiered and recorded solo and chamber works for labels including Naxos, Atlantic, Mode, Capstone, Albany, and others. She has performed in music festivals including Ostrava New Music Days, Prague Spring Music Festival, Warsaw Autumn Music Festival, Primavera en la Habana, and the international electro-acoustic music festival in Cuba. She has been a member of the Orchestras of St. Luke’s and the Berkshire Bach Ensemble for over two decades.

Anne Trout, Bass, has performed, toured, and recorded in the U.S. and abroad with most North American early music ensembles, including Aston Magna, Handel & Haydn, Trinity Wall Street, Boston Baroque, Boston Early Music Festival Orchestra, Opera Lafayette, Philharmonia Baroque, REBEL, Tafelmusik, Emmanuel Music, Tempesta di Mare, American Classical Orchestra, the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, and others.  She has performed with several important leaders in historical performance, including John Scott, Christopher Hogwood, Kristian Bezuidenhout, Paul Leenhouts, Mark Morris, Richard Egarr, Andrew Parrot, Scott Metcalfe, Herve Niquet, Jane Glover, John Hsu, Bruno Weil, William Christie, and Roger Norrington.  She serves on the faculties of the Longy School of Music of Bard College, Boston College, and International Institute for the Baroque at Longy (IBIL).  She leads seminars and workshops in early performance practice for bassists throughout the US. In 2011 she acquired the ‘Delmas’ Maggini violone, an historic instrument that dates from 1610, built by prominent Baroque viol maker Giovanni Paolo Maggini, and has adapted her performance career accordingly. She is currently focusing on collaborations with Four Nations, Blue Hill Bach, Green Mountain Project, The Vivaldi Project and Circolo Maggini, with other initiatives including commissions for new works, recording projects, research into repertoire from 1600-1850, researching the viol’s provenance, and publishing a chronology and details of its restoration. She has appeared previously with Berkshire Bach.

Jessica Troy, Viola, is a versatile international performer with a penchant for unique projects and presenting music across multiple genres. For the past 20 years she has performed with the Mark Morris Dance Group Music Ensemble, appearing at venues from Moscow (Idaho) to Moscow (Russia) with numerous music festivals and groups in the US, Europe, and Asia. She has performed with Yo-Yo Ma across the US and Japan and is the principal violist of the Trinity Baroque Orchestra and Opera Lafayette. She has played with many period instrument ensembles, including Four Nations, Rebel, Dryden, and Concert Royal, and performed with Renée Fleming on the David Letterman Show. She is a member of the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, the Brooklyn Philharmonic, and the Westchester Philharmonic, and performs frequently with many other area ensembles, including the New York City Opera, Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra, and American Composers Orchestra. Some of her more unusual projects include recordings for Lou Reed, Ani DiFranco, and Charming Hostess, performing on screen with David Byrne in the 2011 Sean Penn film This Must be the Place, and appearing on stage with the East Village Opera Company, a rock group, in performances from Toronto to Lima, Peru and on their Grammy-nominated CD, Olde School. She has played on Broadway, recorded cast albums and movie soundtracks, and recorded contemporary chamber music with groups such as Sequitur and North/South Consonance Ensemble. She can be heard on Marlboro’s 50th anniversary CD in a live performance of György Kurtág’s Microludes for string quartet, which she prepared with the composer. She holds degrees from Amherst College, S.U.N.Y. Stony Brook, and the Musikhochschule Lübeck, and studied with Philipp Naegele, Caroline Levine, Barbara Westphal, Julius Levine, Samuel Rhodes, Joel Krosnick, and Eugene Lehner. This is her first appearance with Berkshire Bach.

Stephen Walt, Bassoon Stephen Walt is one of the original Berkshire Bach Ensemble members, playing in every Bach at New Year’s concert since inception.  He retired recently as principal bassoonist of the Albany Symphony Orchestra, after 37 years, and as Senior Lecturer at the University of Massachusetts, where he taught for two decades. He is currently Artist-Associate in Bassoon and Director of Woodwind Chamber Music at Williams College and on the faculty of the Chamber Music Conference of the East. He has performed with orchestras, opera companies, and chamber ensembles throughout the United States and overseas, including the Borromeo, Lark, Muir, Amernet, and Shanghai String Quartets, and has been a guest artist at the Monadnock Festival, Musicorda, Music Festival of the Hamptons, and Music from Greer in Arizona.  His primary teachers were his father, Sherman Walt, the eminent former principal bassoonist with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and Arthur Weisberg. He has recorded for Naxos, CRI, Decca, Koch International, Gasparo, Nonesuch, and Albany Records.  He plays a 1958 Heckel bassoon known as “The Brussels,” which was made for his father and exhibited at the 1958 Brussels World’s Fair as an example of fine German artisanship

Jessica Warren, Oboe Jessica Warren is in demand as an orchestral performer, chamber musician, and teacher throughout the U.S. She appears regularly with ensembles including the National Symphony Orchestra, Richmond Symphony, Kennedy Center Opera House Orchestra, Eclipse Chamber Orchestra, Wintergreen Festival Orchestra, Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, Portland Symphony Orchestra, and Virginia Symphony Orchestra. In 2017 and 2018, she performed as an oboe fellow at the Tanglewood Music Center, and has performed with the New World Symphony, as well as an Associate Member of the Chicago Civic Orchestra.  She teaches oboe at George Washington University, and regularly appears as guest lecturer at Indiana University, Boston University, and New England Conservatory. She has worked with advanced high school oboists at the Interlochen Center for the Arts and New England Conservatory Preparatory School. Ongoing pre-college teaching engagements include the DC Youth Orchestra Program, Potomac Valley Youth Orchestra, and the Potomac School in McLean, VA.  She currently serves as the News of Interest Coordinator for The Double Reed, the journal of the International Double Reed Society. A specialist in teaching reed-making, she regularly presents masterclasses in the area of mindfulness in reed-making, and is a gouging machine repair specialist and teacher for Harvard Double Reeds.  Her primary teachers include John Ferrillo, Linda Strommen, and Robert Sorton. She currently lives, performs, and teaches in Washington, D.C.

Kenneth Weiss, Harpsichord Born in New York, Kenneth Weiss began his musical studies on piano. After attending the High School of Performing Arts, he entered the Oberlin Conservatory of Music where he studied piano with Joseph Schwartz, organ with William Porter, and harpsichord with Lisa Goode Crawford. It was through his studies on organ and harpsichord that he became aware of the extensive repertoire of early keyboard music and decided to devote his professional life to it. He continued his studies with Gustav Leonhardt at the Amsterdam Conservatory and in 1985 settled in France, where he is based today. He has worked as an accompanist, vocal coach, opera continuist, chamber musician, conductor, and soloist throughout his career.  He has performed extensively in Europe, North America and Asia and as a dedicated teacher, has taught at the Norwegian Academy of Music, the Conservatoire à Rayonnement Régional de Paris, the Haute École de Musique in Geneva, and the Juilliard School in New York City.  He has given master classes in Mexico, Great Britain, and Israel, and since 1996 has taught Chamber Music at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris. His solo recordings on the Satirino label include Bach’s “Goldberg” Variations, BWV 988, the keyboard Partitas, and the Well-Tempered Clavier, a recording of Rameau operas and ballets transcriptions, two albums of music by Scarlatti, and two albums devoted to Elizabethan keyboard music—A Cleare Day and Heaven & Earth. His latest recording of Bach’s last work, The Art of Fugue, BWV 1080, will be released in early 2022. See kennethweiss.info for more information.

Peter Weitzner, Double Bass Peter Weitzner, a graduate of the Juilliard School, has performed with Solisti New York, the Jupiter Symphony, EOS Ensemble, SONYC, Philharmonia Virtuosi, Musicians Accord, and the New Jersey Symphony.  He is currently the acting principal bas of the Stamford Symphony (CT). As soloist, he has appeared with the Baltimore Symphony and performed the New York premiere of Sheila Silver’s Chant for bass and piano.  Mr. Weitzner has been a frequent participant at international music festivals including Mostly Mozart, OK Mozart, Cape May, Festival of the Hamptons, Bratislava Music Festival, and the Bruckner Festival in Linz, Austria.

An avid chamber musician, Mr. Weitzner is currently the curator and host of the BPL Chamber Players in residence at the Central branch (Grand Army Plaza) of the Brooklyn Public Library. He has performed with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, the Orion, Ensō, Daedalus, Formosa, Clarosa and Cassatt Quartets, Trio Solisti, New York Chamber Ensemble, Yale at Norfolk, Cooperstown Chamber Music Festival, Seal Bay Festival, White Mountains Music Festival with the North Country Chamber Players, New York Philomusica, Garden City Chamber Music Society, Sherman Chamber Ensemble and the Berkshire Bach Society.

He has also performed with the dance companies of Lar Lubovitch and David Parsons as well as Merce Cunningham's 80th birthday celebration at the Lincoln Center Festival in the New York premiere of Biped. He also participated in a performance at NJPAC (NJ Performing Arts Center) with the re-emerging Alice Coltrane shortly before her passing. For ten years Mr. Weitzner toured the world as a member of the Giora Feidman Trio. In the spring of 2009, he was invited to become a member of the Quincy Jones Musiq Consortium, an arts education advocacy group comprised of arts related non-profits, musicians and educators.

His work can be heard on the Nonesuch, Albany, Pro Gloria Musicae, New World Records, Musical Heritage Society, Delos, Grenadilla, and Berkshire Bach Society record labels. He has also produced recordings of the Brandenburg Concerti with the Berkshire Bach Society and the critically acclaimed complete flute music of J.S. Bach with flutist Susan Rotholz and Kenneth Cooper, fortepiano, released by Bridge Records. A CD of American flute music with Susan Rotholz and pianist, Margaret Kampmeier has also been released by Bridge. His latest CD production for Bridge Records contains previously unrecorded American piano trios by Walter Piston and Ron Perera. He is also a frequent contributor of concert recordings to NPR’s Performance Today.

Robert Wolinsky, Harpsichord, has been a member of the Orchestra of St. Luke’s and the St. Luke’s Chamber Ensemble since 1976, appearing as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral continuo player. With over 50 recordings to his credit, he can be heard on two complete recordings of the Bach Brandenburg Concerti and the complete Händel Concerti Grossi, Op. 6, with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra. He has toured as a soloist with St. Luke’s and Orpheus in Japan, the U.S., Germany, Italy, Spain, and the Czech Republic. The Los Angeles Times praised his performance of the Brandenburg Concerto No. 5, BWV 1050, as having “both the sheer motor energy and pointed phrasing necessary to negotiate Bach’s manic challenge in the cadenza, and throughout he supported the flute and violin with spirit and precision.” In addition to his work with St. Luke’s and Orpheus, he has performed with many of America’s leading chamber and early music ensembles, including the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, the Boston Chamber Music Society, New York Philomusica, Helicon, Music for a While, New York Consort of Viols, Waverly Consort, Guido’s Other Hand, Ensemble for Early Music, New York Chamber Ensemble, Mark Morris Orchestra, New Century Chamber Orchestra, the Detroit Symphony, the New Jersey Symphony, and the Philadelphia Orchestra, among others. He has participated in numerous festivals, including Mostly Mozart, Caramoor International Music Festival, Music from Angel Fire, Bravo! Colorado, Aldeburgh (United Kingdom), Brattleboro Bach, Bard Music Festival, Salt Bay Chamberfest, Bridgehampton Chamber Music Festival, Cape May Festival, Ravenna Festival, and Chamber Music Northwest. A versatile keyboardist, he has also performed as a cabaret pianist throughout Germany, the US, Italy, and Austria, and he has performed as a pit musician on and off-Broadway. This is his second appearance with Berkshire Bach.

Keve Wilson, Oboe Hailed by the New York Times for her “magnificently sweet tone,” oboist Keve Wilson skipped music theory and history as a kid to practice Irish jigs and reels instead. Currently oboist with the Broadway revival of Company, she inspires high school band and orchestra students from around the country with her original show Believe NYC---from the Band Room to Broadway. She has played in the orchestras for 13 Broadway shows, is a past winner of Concert Artists Guild, and a recipient of the Clifford-Levy Creativity Grant, which allowed her to travel to the Makuleke Village in South Africa to learn folk songs of the region. As solo oboist with the Grammy-nominated Absolute Ensemble, she has toured everywhere from Argentina to Dubai to South Korea, and most recently recorded oboe for Bruce Springsteen on his upcoming 2022 album. A graduate of Eastman School of Music, she lives in Manhattan with her husband Kerry and Portuguese water dog Bugsy.

Oleksiy Zakharov, Bassoon, is a native of Ukraine and a freelance bassoonist in New York City with an active performance schedule. He has held positions as Acting Associate Principal Bassoon with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Second Bassoon with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and has performed as a guest principal bassoonist with many prominent ensembles, including American Symphony, American Ballet Theatre, Apex Ensemble, Ensemble Signal, Columbus ProMusica, Beethoven Festival Orchestra, and the Orchestra of St Luke’s. As a chamber musician, he has participated in Moab Festival, Bard SummerScape, and Verbier Music Festival (Switzerland) and often performs with the Jupiter Chamber Players and Emerald City Music. He has taught at the Oberlin Conservatory, the Advanced Bassoon Institute at Interlochen, and, since 2017, the Mahanaim School of Music. In addition, he has served as a guest judge for the bassoon concerto competition at Indiana University and is a bassoon technician and specialist who services and restores old and modern bassoons. He holds a Bachelor’s degree from the Oberlin Conservatory, where he studied with Patricia Rogers, Whitney Crockett, and George Sakakeeny, and both a Bachelor and Master of Music degree from The Juilliard School.

VOICE

Erin Brittain, Soprano, has been described by critics as having an “exquisite,” “evanescent,” and “expressive” voice. She has sung for audiences in the U.S. and Europe and performed over 30 roles in opera, operetta, and musical theater. In recent years her solo and choral work has included performances with the Princeton Festival, Opera Fayetteville, American Symphony Orchestra, Bard Music Festival, MasterVoices, and the New York Virtuoso Singers, in venues including Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall, and the Kaufman Music Center. She recently appeared as a soloist in a performance of Ernest Bloch’s Sacred Service with MasterVoices, drawing praise from reviewers for her “crystal soprano [that] ascends gorgeously...like a voice of purity.” She is a founding member of The Perspective Collective, a chamber ensemble that has commissioned, developed, and performed art song and mini-opera projects. The group recently premiered works by Stephanie Leotsakos and Sunny Knable, and will bring both productions to the U.K. in 2023. She earned her B.A. from New York University and her M.A. from the Peabody Institute at Johns Hopkins, both in classical voice.  This is her first appearance with Berkshire Bach.

Teresa Buchholz, Mezzo-Soprano, a graduate of the Yale University Opera Program, Indiana University, and the University of Northern Iowa, is one of the most versatile artists on the stage today. She spent several summers as a young artist with the Santa Fe Opera, the Opera Theatre of St. Louis, and the Natchez Opera, and enjoys success in the realms of opera, art song, and oratorio. She recently performed as a soloist for a staged version of Bach’s St. Matthew Passion with Gulfshore Opera (FL), Bach’s Magnificat with Voices of Ascension, and Berlioz’s Les nuits d’été with the Bard College Orchestra. She has performed roles as diverse as Mrs. Lovett in Sweeney Todd with Opera Roanoke, Orlofsky in Die Fledermaus with Asheville Lyric Opera, the title role in Giulio Cesare in Egitto with Opera Roanoke, Verdi’s Requiem with the New Jersey Choral Society, Mozart’s Requiem with the Tulsa Symphony, the Stamford Symphony, and Voices of Ascension (NYC), and Brahms’s Alto Rhapsody at the Bard Music Festival. In 2013 she was the winner of the female division in the Nico Castel International Master Singer Competition. This is her sixth appearance with the Berkshire Bach Ensemble.

Margaret Dudley, Soprano, has established herself as a force to be reckoned with in the national concert arena. Acclaimed for her “sparkling voice” and “full-toned soprano,” she is a core member of Boston’s renowned Lorelei Ensemble, touring the nation and collaborating with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, A Far Cry, and Cantus. Recent engagements include soprano soloist in Haydn’s Missa in tempore belli and Vivaldi’s Gloria at Carnegie Hall, Handel’s Messiah at Alice Tully Hall, Poulenc’s Gloria with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, Bach’s St. Matthew Passion with the Hudson Valley Singers, the premier of Julia Wolfe’s Fire in My Mouth with the New York Philharmonic, and soprano soloist with the Choir of Trinity Wall Street. Additionally, she is in demand as an ensemble singer, performing with the Santa Fe Desert Chorale, the Crossing, Oregon Bach Festival, New York Virtuoso Singers, and New York Choral Artists. This is her second appearance with the Berkshire Bach Ensemble.

Sean Fallen, Tenor, is an active opera and oratorio soloist in New York City, the U.S., and worldwide. Recent operatic roles include Alfredo in La Traviata, Danilo in The Merry Widow, Cassio in Otello, Nemorino in The Elixir of Love, Ariel in the world premiere of The Rape of the Lock, Goatherd in the world premiere of My Undying Love, and Almaviva in The Barber of Seville. He has been the featured tenor soloist numerous times at Carnegie Hall, most recently in Lili Boulanger’s Psalm 130, in the Bach Magnificat, Haydn's Paukenmesse, Kurt Weill’s The Road to Promise, and Handel’s Messiah (a specialty). He has sung the latter from coast to coast, from Carnegie and Avery Fischer Halls in NYC to the American Bach Soloists in California. Other opera roles include Ferrando in Così Fan Tutte, Ramiro in La Cenerentola, Ottavio in Don Giovanni, Lippo in Street Scene, and Pong in Turandot. This is his second appearance with the Berkshire Bach Ensemble.

Nicholas Hay, Bass, has an active performance career as an ensemble singer with many choral and operatic organizations in the U.S. He started singing at a young age and joined the American Boychoir, previously one of the country’s premier music schools and a training ground for professional musicians. He has appeared with Opera Philadelphia, Baltimore Opera Company, Dell’Arte Opera Ensemble, Amore Opera, New York Lyric Opera Theatre, the Peabody Opera Theatre, Chelsea Opera, and the Opera Festival of New Jersey. An active choral singer and chamber musician, he sings regularly with the Riverside Choir in New York City, New York Virtuoso Singers, Opera Philadelphia, The Crossing, Bard Festival Chorale, and other choral ensembles. This is his first appearance with The Berkshire Bach Society.

Paul Holmes, Bass, is a versatile choral singer in New York City, singing with the Bard Festival Chorale, the Church of the Holy Trinity in Manhattan's Yorkville neighborhood, Park Avenue Synagogue, the New York Virtuoso Singers, and the Composers Choir. He has performed as part of the Metropolitan Opera Chorus, the Concert Chorale of New York, and the Clarion Choir on its Grammy-winning 2019 recording The Prison, and as a backup singer at the Met Gala in 2018. He graduated from Yale University with a B.A. in Music in 2013. Shortly after completing his studies, he competed on NBC’s The Sing-Off holiday special with the electronic a cappella group a.squared. Paul, an avid bread baker and brewer, enjoys his time between gigs working on home projects. This is his first appearance with The Berkshire Bach Society.

Chad Kranak, Tenor, has an active operatic career in the U.S. and abroad and has been described as a powerful-voiced tenor with stunning high notes. He has appeared with the St. Petersburg Opera and Long Island Lyric Opera in roles such as Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni, Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly, and Aenaes in the Ars Musica production of Dido and Aeneas. In addition to traditional repertoire, he has premiered new works, including Alex Weiser’s opera State of the Jews, Felix Jarrar’s The Ulster County Songbook, and Paula Kimper’s Leaves of Grass: Whitman. This season he is appearing in Handel’s Messiah with the Sequoia Symphony, singing the role of Rinuccio in Regina Opera’s production of Gianni Schicchi, and performing in a recital of music by Paul Bowles at Lincoln Center. This is his second appearance with the Berkshire Bach Ensemble.

Alex Longnecker, Tenor, has an active performance career singing in styles ranging from opera to recital repertoire, commercial singing, and musical theatre. His professional choral credits include the Oregon Bach Festival Chorus, The New Consort, Bard Festival Chorale, New York Virtuoso Singers, Dallas Bach Society, and the Verdigris Ensemble. He has sung operatic roles at the Tanglewood Music Center and with multiple regional companies. He made his Lincoln Center solo debut with Yale Schola Cantorum and Juilliard 415 in Telemann’s Tag des Gerichts, and recently was a soloist in Schumann’s Dichterliebe, He has performed with the Blue Hill Bach Festival and sung Handel’s Messiah and Bach’s St. Matthew Passion and St. John Passion with the Dallas Bach Society and the Collegium Singers of the University of North Texas. He holds a B.A. in Music Education from Iowa State University, an M.A. in Vocal Performance from the University of North Texas, and an M.A. in Musical Arts in Early Music Voice from Yale University, where he performed with the eight-voice group Yale Voxtet. This is his first appearance with Berkshire Bach.

Thomas McCargar, Baritone, has been described by critics as having a “gripping” voice and as singing with “calm fluidity.” He began his career touring internationally with Chanticleer before moving to New York City, where he has established himself as an in-demand soloist and ensemble singer.  He has been a featured soloist at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center as well as the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. As an ensemble singer he is a longtime member of the acclaimed Choir of Trinity Wall Street and has sung with Seraphic Fire, Musica Sacra, Voices of Ascension, and Yale Choral Artists, among others. He has toured internationally with TENET and the American Soloists Ensemble, and has participated in Bay Area lecture recitals with Concordian Dawn. He appears on the recordings of contemporary works that went on to win the Pulitzer Prize for Music. Also a conductor, he is the Director of Compline and the St. Paul’s Chapel Choir at Trinity Church Wall Street, and recently conducted the Choir of Trinity Wall Street and members of NOVUS NY for their Last Words concert. This is his third appearance with Berkshire Bach.

Sarah Nordin, Mezzo-Soprano, has been praised by Opera News for the “clear beauty” of her voice and “spot-on comic timing.” Known for her interpretations of Rossini and Mozart, she has been featured in recent seasons as Rosina in Il Barbiere di Siviglia with Knoxville Opera, the title role in La Cenerentola with Geneva Light Opera, Cherubino in Le Nozze di Figaro, Zerlina in Don Giovanni, and Dorabella in Cosi fan Tutte. She has appeared with Opera Tampa, Opera Orlando, St. Petersburg Opera, and Winter Opera of St. Louis, among others, and performed roles including Carmen, Charlotte in Werther, Isabella in L’Italiana in Algeri, Maddalena in Rigoletto, Nicklausse in Tales of Hoffmann, Adina in L’elisir d’amore, Suzuki in Madama Butterfly, and Orlofsky in Die Fledermaus. She has performed at the Caramoor Festival, Opera Theatre of St. Louis, Central City, and Opera North and in six productions with The Metropolitan Opera, including three Met Live in HD Broadcasts and a tour with The Met to Japan. This is her first appearance with the Berkshire Bach Ensemble.

Margaret O’Connell, Mezzo-Soprano, enjoys a versatile career in opera, musical theater, oratorio, and new music. She made her Carnegie Hall debut under Leon Botstein and the American Symphony Orchestra in Strauss’ Feuersnot and her Berlin debut as Fricka in Das Rheingold, the first opera in Wagner’s Ring Cycle. She has been a featured performer at Bard Summerscape, Aspen Music Festival, Songfest, Center for Contemporary Opera, La Mama Theater in New York City, and American Opera Projects, working with Leon Botstein, Julius Rudel, John Harbison, Martin Katz, and other prominent music directors. Her portrayal of Alyce in Tom Cipullo’s Glory Denied with New York OperaFest was described as “fiercely committed.” Other roles include the title character in Carmen, Olga in Eugene Onegin, Dulcinée in Don Quichotte, Nicklausse in Les contes d’Hoffman, Adalgisa in Norma, Florence in Albert Herring, and Dido in Dido and Aeneas. She holds a Bachelor of Music in Violin and Voice Performance from Oberlin College Conservatory of Music and a Master of Music degree in Solo Voice from McGill University.

Indian-born soprano Sherezade Panthaki is an international soloist who began her musical education at an early age. Following intensive study and after earning top distinction as a young pianist, she turned to singing and found a more personal and expressive means to connect with audiences. Since her singing debut she has become a recognized star in the early music field, and has a particular affinity with the music of J.S. Bach. In recent seasons she has performed the Mass in B Minor, Magnificat, the Christmas Oratorio, various cantatas, and other works with groups ranging from Bach Collegium Japan, to the Boston Baroque, to Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra in Toronto, and the Orchestra of St. Luke’s. She holds an Artist Diploma with top honors from the Yale School of Music and the Yale Institute of Sacred Music, where she was the winner of multiple awards, including the prestigious Phyllis Curtin Career Entry Prize. She earned a Master’s degree from the University of Illinois, and a Bachelor’s degree from West Virginia Wesleyan College.

Katherine Cecelia Peck, Soprano, enjoys a diverse performance career ranging from opera to recitals to chamber music. She performs and records new works regularly and is co-founder of the Madison New Music Festival. Equally at home with early music, she is a frequent oratorio soloist and choral singer, was a 2019 finalist in the Handel Aria Competition, and a soloist with the Bard Music Festival, New York Virtuoso Singers, New York MasterVoices, and the Stamford Symphony Orchestra, among others. Originally from Wisconsin, she holds a Bachelor of Music from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a Master of Music from Boston University. This is her third appearance with Berkshire Bach.

Elizabeth Picker, Alto, is a seasoned operatic and choral performer, appearing regularly throughout the U.S. as a soloist and ensemble singer. A graduate of Yale University, where she was a member of Schola Cantorum under the baton of Simon Carrington of the King’s Singers, she has sung in opera and concert series with New York City Opera, Santa Fe Opera, Musica Sacra, the New York Philharmonic, Bach Vespers at Holy Trinity, Bard Summerscape and Music Festival, among many others, often in world premiere productions. She is a staff singer with the famed choir at New York’s Church of St. Ignatius Loyola and frequently joins other esteemed New York choirs, including those at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, St. Bartholomew’s Church, and Temple Emanu-El. She can be heard on numerous studio recordings and in TV and film productions, most recently in City on a Hill with Kevin Bacon, PBS’s Now Hear This, and The Tefila Project with Israeli singer-songwriter David Broza. This is her first appearance with The Berkshire Bach Society.

Nicholas Prior, Tenor, is a professional choral artist based in New York City who works as a singer, arranger, composer, clinician, and adjudicator. He sings with such groups as the New York Virtuoso Singers, the Bard Chorale, and Essential Voices USA, and is on the voice staff at St. Bartholomew’s Church and Temple Emanu-el. He holds a M.A. in Music and Music Education from Teachers College, Columbia University, and has conducted groups including the Brooklyn Youth Chorus, the Canticum Novum Singers of New York City, the Albuquerque Boy Choir, the NM Kodály Institute, the UNM Children’s Chorus, SCMEA Honor Choir, and the NMACDA All- State Elementary Chorus. He is currently composing a catalog of new choral music for developing voices following many years teaching in the choral classroom.  This is his first appearance with Berkshire Bach.

Dr. George B. Stauffer, Speaker, is Distinguished Professor of Music History and Dean Emeritus of the Mason Gross School of the Arts, Rutgers University. He served as University Organist and Music Director at Columbia University from 1977-1999, and is known internationally as a scholar and writer on the music and culture of the Baroque Era with particular emphasis on the life and works of J.S. Bach. Educated at Dartmouth College, Bryn Mawr College, and Columbia University, he has published eight books on Bach and Baroque music and contributed to many standard reference works including The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, Collier’s Encyclopedia, Early Music, Bach-Jahrbuch, among others. In addition, he has written for leading publications including The New York Times, The New York Review of Books, and The Weekly Standard and has lectured at leading universities in the U.S. and abroad. He has presented pre-concert talks at important concert halls in the U.S. and in February 2023 provided commentary for the organ recital featuring Renée Anne Louprette at the Unitarian Universalist Meeting House in Housatonic (MA). He is currently writing a volume on Bach’s “Brandenburg” Concertos for Oxford University Press. This is his fifth appearance with Berkshire Bach and his second with James Bagwell providing commentary on works by Bach and Vivaldi.

Christopher Tefft, Bass, enjoys an active performance career that spans opera, musical theatre, and sacred music. He has performed with the New York Philharmonic Chorus, New York Virtuoso Singers, Canterbury Choral Society, Ember Concert Choir, the Collegiate Chorale, and with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra at Carnegie Hall. He frequently sings at area worship services and sacred concerts and has recently appeared at Marble Collegiate Church, Cathedral of St John the Divine, and Church of the Heavenly Rest. He has sung roles in Trial By Jury, Traviata, and The Bartered Bride and has appeared with the Metropolitan Opera in Turandot, Tosca, La Bohème and other popular works. He has been Principal Understudy for the role of Oppenheimer in the Off-Broadway Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene production of Amerike: The Golden Land, and played in the regional production of Les Miserables at the Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival. He has toured internationally as the featured soloist in Scooby Doo and the Mystery of the Pyramids. He studied voice with Elizabeth Russo at Millikin University and Interlochen Arts Academy. This is his first appearance with Berkshire.