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Preparatory Music Faculty

Faculty

Patrick Clifford – Violin/Viola

Director, Preparatory Department

Education:

Frost School of Music
University of Miami
         Master of Music
         Violin Performance
Cleveland Institute of Music
         Bachelor of Music
         Violin Performance

About:

A native of Michigan, Mr. Clifford began his violin studies at age six. Many of his formative years were spent studying at the University of Michigan School of Music with Robert Culver.  His summer studies include Interlochen International Music Camp, Meadowmount School, and Encore School for Strings. He received his Bachelor of Music degree in violin performance from the Cleveland Institute of Music, and his Master of Music degree in violin performance from the University of Miami. His teachers include Daniel Majeske, Stephen Majeske, David Cerone, David Updegraff and Glenn Basham. Patrick was principal second violin with the National Chamber Players, and has performed with the North Carolina Symphony, the Knoxville Symphony, the Florida Grand Opera Orchestra, Miami City Ballet Orchestra and the Naples Philharmonic. He has performed throughout South and Central America and continues to perform solo and chamber music recitals here in south Florida. He is currently assistant professor of violin and viola at Palm Beach Atlantic University, where his position includes being first violinist in Quartetto Stringendo, the quartet-in-residence at the university, the founder/director of the Preparatory Department, founder/director of Stringendo School For Strings and the concertmaster of the Palm Beach Atlantic Symphony. As a pedagogue, Mr. Clifford has been teaching privately for twenty five years and teaching full time at the university level since 2000. Mr. Clifford’s travels as a clinician at conferences, judge for competitions, and master-class instructor have taken him throughout the United States, South America and Asia. Mr. Clifford performs on a violin previously in the collection of Mischa Mischakoff bearing the name Matteo Goffriller 1720. He currently resides in Lantana, Florida with his wife Belen who teaches violin and viola in the Preparatory Department, is second violin in Quartetto Stringendo, and their two children Nathan and Joanna.

Belen Clifford

Violin/Viola

Education:

University of Miami
Frost School of Music
         Bachelor of Music
         Violin Performance
Institute of Fine Arts
Havana, Cuba
          Bachelor of Music
          Violin Performance

About:

Born in Havana, Cuba, Belen began studying the violin at age eight, attending the Manuel Saumell Conservatory and studying with Alla Taran. At age thirteen Belen was accepted to the Esteban Salas Conservatory in Santiago de Cuba. She completed her studies there receiving the certificate of performer/professor of violin and viola. During this time she competed nationally in the Amadeo Roldan Competition and was awarded first prize, second prize, and two honorable mentions. She was also a member of the Symphony Orchestra of Santiago de Cuba. She then entered the Institute of Fine Arts in Havana where she completed her studies in violin performance. While in Havana she was a member of the Camerata Brindis de Salas and the National Symphony Orchestra first violin section. After emigrating to the United States she attended the University of Miami where she received her Bachelor of Music in Violin Performance. She has performed as a member with the Miami City Ballet Orchestra, the Florida Grand Opera Orchestra, the Boca Pops, and was a per service member of the Naples Philharmonic. She also is second violinist in Quartteto Stringendo, the quartet-in-residence at Palm Beach Atlantic University. She currently teaches violin and viola in the Palm Beach Atlantic University School of Music and Fine Arts Preparatory Department as well as the Stringendo School for Strings Summer Academy. Mrs. Clifford enjoys teaching and the relationships she develops with her students. Many of her students hold leadership positions in the area youth and school orchestras and have won numerous competitions here in Palm Beach county and throughout the state of Florida. It gives her great satisfaction to watch her students as they succeed musically, academically as well as personally.

Renata Guitart

Violin/Viola

Education:

University of Miami
Frost School of Music
            Bachelor of Music
            Violin and Viola Performance
Higher Institute of Arts
Havana, Cuba
      Bachelor of Music
      Violin Performance

About:

Renata was born in Havana, Cuba. She began her musical education in Manuel Saumell Conservatory when she was 8 years old with Ala Taran, a teacher from the Ukraine. Miss Guitart graduated High School from the Esteban Salas Conservatory in Santiago de Cuba, where she earned the Teacher and Player of Violin Certificate in 1989. She was then awarded a full scholarship to continue her studies in the Higher Institute of Arts in Havana. Miss Guitart participated in Competitions within the Santiago de Cuba winning the 3rd Prize in 1984 and the 2nd Prize in 1987. She also won the 3rd Prize in the National Competition in 1987. Renata has been playing in professional orchestras since she was 14 years old. She toured the country with the Easter Symphony Orchestra. From 1992 – 1995 she was concertmaster of the National Symphony Orchestra of Cuba as well as a member of the prestgious Camerata Brindis de Salas Chamber Orchestra. In 1994 she toured Spain with performing also in the Autumm Festival of Madrid. In 1995 she emigrated to the United States where she received a scholarship to finish her musical studies in the University. While studying at the University she earned her Bachelor of Music Degree in both Violin and Viola Performance. She studied with Glenn Basham, Robert Rozek and Pamela McConnell. She has performed with the Boca Pops Orchestra, the Florida Philharmonic, Symphony of the Americas, and the Miami Symphony with which she performed in Carnegie Hall. She currently performs with the Naples Philharmonic, the Palm Beach Opera, she is the violist in Quartetto Stringendo the quartet-in-residence at Palm Beach and is on the Faculty of the Palm Beach Atlantic University Preparatory Department. Atlantic University of Miami of Miami Province.

Kelsey Lin

Violin

Education:

Lynn University
Conservatory of Music at
       Bachelor of Music
       Violin Performance

About:

Kelsey Lin was born in West Palm Beach, Florida. Her love of music began at a very early age when she begged her mother to take her to cello lessons. Eventually she traded in her cello for a much smaller instrument, the violin. Over the years Kelsey participated in many music festivals such as the Florida State University Summer Music Camps, Brevard Summer Music Festival, Indiana University Summer String Academy, and Domaine Forget Summer Music Festival. During those festivals Kelsey studied violin with Austin Hartman violinist in the former Biava Quartet, Helmut Lipsky violin professor at the University of Montreal, and Marie Berard, violin professor at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto. During these festivals Kelsey also participated in ensemble practice. At Brevard she was placed as the principal violinist of the Transylvania Symphony Orchestra, and was also placed in the elite Il Solisti group. She participated in many string ensembles receiving instructions from the Biava String Quartet and the Nash String Quartet. Kelsey has also been asked to play in many master classes with great violinists Oleh Krysa, Regis Pasquier, Elmar Oliveira, and Mimi Zweig. While attending high school at A.W. Dreyfoos Jr. High School of the Arts, Kelsey was selected to play in the Florida All-State Orchestra for three consecutive years. She also soloed with her high school orchestra and was concertmaster on occasion. Currently Kelsey is the El Sistema Director at U.B.Kinsey/Palmview Elementary School of the Arts and mentors at Jupiter Middle School. She is also on faculty at Palm Beach Atlantic University’s Preparatory Department. Kelsey is dedicated to creating and sharing music with people of all ages in PB County.

Susan Snow

Violin

Education:

Palm Beach Atlantic University
       Bachelor of Science
       Elementary Education,
Music Minor

About:

Susan Snow is an American violinist who was raised in Lakeland, Florida. After several years of piano lessons, Susan took up the violin at the age of 10 and spent her middle and high school years attending arts schools, earning yearly positions in Florida’s All-State Orchestra, and serving as Concertmaster for both her high school symphony and All-county orchestras. For her college years, Susan continued her education at Palm Beach Atlantic University where she received a degree in Elementary Education with a minor in Music. During these years, Susan studied classically with Patrick Clifford. After graduation, Susan was presented with the unique opportunity to tour, record, and perform with the rock group, ‘Dashboard Confessional’. For 3 years, Susan toured all over the states, Canada, and Australia, playing electric violin. She also accompanied the group during performances on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Late Show with David Letterman, Late Night with Conan O’brien, and The Today Show. Her time with the band culminated in a sold-out show at Madison Square Gardens in NYC, which was filmed for a PBS special. In an effort to combine her 2 passions, teaching and violin, Susan joined the faculty of Palm Beach Atlantic University’s Preparatory Department . Since joining the faculty in 2007, Susan has enjoyed instructing private students, teaching ensemble/theory classes, facilitating group lessons at nearby schools, and working with students at the Stringendo School for Strings summer camp. Susan’s hope as a violin instructor is to instill in her students a lifelong dedication to and passion for the violin while having fun along the way! In an effort to combine her 2 passions, teaching and violin, Susan joined the faculty of Palm Beach Atlantic University’s Preparatory Department. Since joining the faculty in 2007, Susan has enjoyed instructing private students, teaching ensemble/theory classes, facilitating group lessons at nearby schools, and working with students at the Stringendo School for Strings summer camp. Susan’s hope as a violin instructor is to instill in her students a lifelong dedication to and passion for the violin while having fun along the way!

Joe Goering

Cello

Education:

Lynn University
Bachelor of Music Performance

Lynn University
Master of Music Performance

Mount Royal University
Artist Diploma in Music Performance

The Glenn Gould School of Music at The Royal Conservatory
Artist Diploma in Music Performance

About:

Joe Goering soloed with the Kansas City Symphony at the age of sixteen after winning the Regional Competition for Young Performing Artists. Playing in the Lyric Theatre, Joe played Saint-Saens’ First Cello Concerto in A Minor under the baton of Timothy Hankewich.

Mr. Goering has continued to perform for audiences. He was featured in the Artists of Tomorrow’s program at the Bowdoin International Music Festival in 2013. He premiered Noam Faingold’s Prelude for Cello and Piano with Daniel Rorke and also performed music of Shostakovich. Music festivals are an important part of Joe’s life and include appearances at Meadowmount, Encore, Bowdoin, St. Lawrence String Quartet Seminar, Domaine Forget, Atlantic Music Festival and Toronto Summer Music Festival. His summer festival teachers include Hans Jorgen Jensen, Melissa Kraut, Orlando Cole, Stephen Geber, David Ying and David Requiro. He has also performed publicly with acclaimed string musicians like Paul Coletti, Pedja Muzijevic, David Hetherington, David Louie, and Jonathan Crow.

Joe has a Bachelor and Masters degree from Lynn Conservatory in Boca Raton, Florida where he studied with David Cole. He continued his studies in Canada by earning a Performance Certificate from Mount Royal University in Calgary, Alberta. In addition, he received an Artist Diploma from The Glenn Gould School of Music at The Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto, Canada where he studied with John Kadz and Desmond Hoebig. Joe has also collaborated with the most distinguished artists of our time including masterclass appearances with Lynn Harrell, Raphael Wallfisch, Johannes Moser, Mischa Maisky, Matt Haimovitz and Richard Aaron.

After completing his education, Joe began his career as an orchestral musician and was a member of Sudbury, Thunder Bay and Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony Orchestras in Ontario, Canada. After several years of performing, Mr. Goering transitioned into teaching full time. He is currently on faculty in the preparatory department at Palm Beach Atlantic University in West Palm Beach, Florida and has devoted his time to teaching young cello students in South Florida. He plays on a cello from 1899 by the Italian maker Stefano Scarampella and a Victor Fetique bow.

Dr. Claudio Jaffé

Cello/Bass

Education:

Yale University
       Bachelor of Arts
School of Music
        Doctor of Musical Arts Cello Performance
        Master of Musical Arts Cello Performance
        Master of Music
        Cello Performance

 

About:

Hailed by The New York Times as “an elegant and accomplished artist” of “taste, technique, musicianship, and a contagious youthful enthusiasm”, Claudio Jaffé fascinates his audiences with his colorful and passionate virtuosity. As a recitalist and chamber musician, Jaffé has performed in some of the most prestigious concert halls around the world, including the Weill Recital Hall, in New York City; the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC; the Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires; Sociedade Cultura Artistica in São Paulo; Wigmore Hall in London; and Suntory Hall in Tokyo;  At the age of 18, he made his first appearance as a soloist with a major symphony orchestra. He has also performed throughout the United States with the Delaware, Lexington, Missouri, Pensacola, Jackson, and Columbus symphony orchestras to name just a few. He was a semi-finalist in major International competitions including the Tchaikovsky International Competition in Moscow, Russia; the Gaspar Cassadó International Cello Competition in Florence, Italy; the Naumburg Competition in New York; the Maria Canals International Competition in Barcelona, Spain; and the Viña del Mar International Music Competition in Chile. Jaffé was also selected as Musical America’s Young Artists of 1987. In addition to performing in over 40 U.S. states, Jaffé has been an active educator. He has conducted master classes around the world and has served on the faculty at several music festivals. He was a faculty member at Florida International University and Florida Atlantic University, and for 4 years served as Dean of the Conservatory of Music at Lynn University. He created and directs the String program at Saint Andrew’s School in Boca Raton, FL and has been the Resident Conductor of the Florida Youth Orchestra for over 14 years. He is currently Professor of Cello at Palm Beach Atlantic University School of Music and Fine Arts, Preparatory Department, and is on the faculty of Stringendo School For Strings Summer Academy. Born in São Paulo, Brazil, Jaffé began his cello studies at the age of seven and gave his first public concert at the age of eleven. His early teachers included Iberê Gomes Grosso, his father Alberto Jaffé, Antonio Guerra Vicente, and Juarez Johnson. At the age of fifteen, he received an invitation by the distinguished Yale professor of cello Aldo Parisot to study in the United States. Subsequently, Jaffé earned his undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degrees from Yale University under Parisot’s tutelage. Jaffé studied in Master classes and special workshops with great masters of the cello including Yo-Yo Ma, Lynn Harrell, Tokyo String Quartet, Janos Starker, Nathaniel Rosen, and Ralph Kirshbaum.

Dr. Erikson Rojas

Piano

Education:

Rutgers University
Mason Gross
School of the Arts
      Doctor of Musical Arts
      Piano Performance
Peabody Institute of the
John Hopkins University
       Master of Music
       Piano Performance
Cairn University
       Bachelor of Music
       Piano Performance
       Bachelor of Science in Bible

About:

Dr. Erikson Rojas, has given numerous solo and chamber performances in the U.S., Europe, and Latin America, including eight appearances at Carnegie Hall. In each case he has been featured as soloist with orchestra. His recordings have obtained critical acclaim, and as a teacher, lecturer, and church musician, he continues to gain distinction amidst high demand. Dr. Rojas is honored to have been one of five Americans and the only Hispanic in 30 pianists selected worldwide to participate at the Cleveland International Piano Competition. He has won the Ambler Symphony Orchestra Competition, the Outstanding Young Christian Artists Competition, Cuba’s Amadeo Roldán and UNEAC Competitions, among others. Dr. Rojas’s primary piano teachers include Leon Fleisher, Samuel Hsu, Eleanor Sokoloff, and Min Kwon. Studies in conducting and organ were with Gustav Meier and Robert Carwithen, respectively. Other lessons and masterclasses in piano were with Claude Frank, Gary Graffman, Seymour Lipkin, Martin Canin, John Perry, Ilana Vered, Sasha Starcevich, Pavlina Dokovska, Susan Starr, Jorge Luis Prats, Charles Abramovic, and Paul Hoffmann. He is on faculty at Palm Beach Atlantic University, Csehy Summer School of Music, and Sounds of Manhattan International Music Festival and Competition. He also serves as Pianist of the Choral Society of the Palm Beaches and as Music Minister at Royal Palm Presbyterian Church in Southeast Florida, where he resides with his beloved wife Diandra. Hailed as “an impressive performer in his own right… impassioned, hypnotic, insightful…superb tonal control” by the New York Concert Review, and as a “prodigy…Rojas, the piano and the music become one” by the Los Angeles Times.

Dr. Rosalyn Soo Mauldin

Piano

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Education:

University of Oklahoma
      Doctor of Musical Arts Piano Performance and Pedagogy
Eastman School of Music
      Master of Music Piano Performance and Literature
University of Victoria
      Bachelor of Music

About:

Canadian pianist, Rosalyn Soo Mauldin, originally from Calgary, Alberta, received her Bachelor of Music with distinction from the University of Victoria. She was a fellowship recipient and teaching assistant in piano at the Eastman School of Music, where she obtained her Master of Music in Piano Performance and Literature. Her teachers include Gloria Saarinen, Robin Wood, David Burge, and Tony Caramia. Rosalyn Soo Mauldin completed her Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Piano Performance and Pedagogy at the University of Oklahoma, under the direction of Andrew Cooperstock, Jane Magrath, and E. L. Lancaster.
Dr. Soo Mauldin has been featured as a guest artist on radio and television programs, and is a frequent performer in Canada and the United States. Her playing was described on the Nashville Public Radio program Live from Studio C as, “…sparkling technique which she uses to full musical advantage.” She is the recipient of various awards, including art grants from the Robert Spence Foundation and Alberta Culture. She has won numerous competitions, including the Nell Keaton Cooke Competition, the Wurlitzer Collegiate Artist Competition (Oklahoma), and the Alberta Young Artists Competition. Rosalyn Soo Mauldin holds Associate and Licentiate performance diplomas from the Royal Conservatory of Music, Victoria Conservatory of Music, Mount Royal College Conservatory, and the Western Board of Music. She has performed at the National Piano Pedagogy Conference and Music Teachers National Association Convention. In addition, Dr. Soo Mauldin has adjudicated for various competitions, presented recitals, workshops, and master classes for numerous universities and music associations across North America. She also assisted with music ministry during a mission trip with the Iglesia Evangelica Nacional Presbiteriana in Guatemala. Dr. Soo Mauldin has taught on the faculties of Vanderbilt University, Ball State University, Belmont University, Georgia State University, University of South Alabama, and University of Mobile. She has also served on the faculty of the Masterworks Festival, inaugurated by the Christian Performing Artists’ Fellowship. Dr. Soo Mauldin is married to the Rev. Dr. David Mauldin, and they have two sons, Joseph and Daniel.

Dr. Joseph Kingma

Piano

Education:

University of Texas Austin
Butler School of Music
       Doctor of Musical Arts
       Piano Performance
Rice University
Shephard School of Music
       Master of Music
       Piano Performance
Rice University
Shephard School of Music
        Bachelor of Music
        Piano Performance

About:

Award-winning pianist Joseph Kingma, whose sound has been described by conductors as “rich and encompassing, yet delicate and refined,” and “flawless and expressive,” maintains a career as both a performing artist and committed pedagogue. He has won awards in numerous international competitions, including first prize in both the American Liszt Society’s 2017 Franz Liszt International Piano Competition and the Monroe Symphony League’s 2018 Marjorie Stricken Emerging Artists Competition.
He comes to Palm Beach Atlantic University after two years as assistant professor of music at Louisiana College. A pianist with an active performing schedule, he has appeared on recital series, at universities, and with orchestras across the nation, including the University of Louisiana-Monroe, Union University, William Carey University, the Illinois Valley Symphony, and the Spring Hill Orchestra, to name a few. For the 2018-19 season, he has also been invited to perform recitals and conduct master classes at Wheaton College’s Conservatory of Music, Ohio State University, and the University of North Alabama; he will perform additional solo recitals on the Dorothy MacKenzie Price Concert Series (OH), the Good Shepherd International Concert Series (MN), the St. James Concert Series (LA), the Cathedral Concert Series (LA), and the Arts Alive! Concert Series (PA). A versatile musician, Joseph regularly performs as a chamber musician in a variety of genres, including several performances with the Cordova Quartet, violinist Jessica Mathaes, baritone Terrance Brown, and soprano Kameryn Lueng. He often adjudicates competitions, and recently judged the Rapides Symphony Young Artist Competition and the University of Louisiana-Lafayette’s Frank Hanley Piano Competition. In 2017, Joseph graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with his DMA, where he studied with Anton Nel. Previously, he earned his BM and MM at Rice University under the tutelage of Robert Roux. His earlier teachers include Aviram Reichert, Philip Pletcher, and Elena Arseniev.

Dr. Jackie Yong

Piano

Education:

Florida State University DM in Piano Performance

University of Tennessee (Knoxville)  MMus in Music Performance

About:

Dr. Jackie Yong, a versatile Malaysian pianist, serves as Assistant Professor of Piano and Coordinator of the Keyboard Division at Palm Beach Atlantic University. Approaching music teaching and learning as a form of discipleship, Dr. Yong emphasizes student-centered, comprehensive and sustainable methods that encourage a thorough and practical understanding of music.

As a celebrated performer, Dr. Yong is recognized for his thoughtful programming and ability to engage audiences with repertoire that spans from Bach to Bernstein, Boulez to Bright Sheng, captivating listeners across Malaysia, Brunei, Singapore, Germany and the United States. He has excelled in numerous international competitions, winning awards at the Rockwood Piano Competition, Asia-Open International Piano Competition, Charleston International Piano Competition, ASWARA International Piano Competition and Young Person’s Piano Competition. A passionate advocate for new music, he has premiered works by living composers and performed at major events like FSU’s Biennial Festival of New Music and UTK’s New Sound Concert Series. His artistry has been featured in broadcasts and interviews, including on WUOT 91.1 FM’s UT Concert Hall Series and 988 FM.

In scholarship, Dr. Yong’s research covers a range of topics crucial to today’s music educators and performers: teaching collegiate piano literature, recital programming, musical hermeneutics, performance techniques, historical pedagogy and career development for musicians. He regularly presents at national and regional conferences organized by the College Music Society, the Music Teachers National Association and the National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy. A two-time recipient of the David Z. Kushner Paper Award from the CMS Southern Regional Conference, Dr. Yong’s commitment to academic excellence is reflected in awards like the FSU Dissertation Research Grant and UTK Diversity Enhancement Fellowship, along with inductions into the honor societies Pi Kappa Lambda and Phi Kappa Phi.

An MTNA-certified adjudicator, Dr. Yong has judged numerous events, including the Tallahassee Sonata and Sonatina Festival and he is frequently invited to lead masterclasses and workshops on topics ranging from piano technique to hymn playing and improvisation. Beyond the concert stage and classroom, Dr. Yong is deeply involved in church music. Since becoming a Christian as a teenager, he has served as a pianist, organist, conductor and worship leader across various denominations, including Lutheran, Methodist, Presbyterian and non-denominational congregations. His dedication to outreach is evident in his workshops and lectures on hymn playing, where he aims to make music accessible and meaningful to diverse communities.

Dr. Yong earned his Doctor of Music degree in Piano Performance from Florida State University, along with three specialized certificates in Piano Pedagogy, Music Theory Pedagogy and College Teaching. He also holds a Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance from the University of Malaya and a Master of Music in Piano Performance from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. His training with esteemed mentors, including Dr. Read Gainsford, Dr. Diana Dumlavwalla and Dr. Chih-Long Hu, as well as masterclasses with Jerome Lowenthal, Hung-Kuan Chen, Bernd Goetzke, Robin McCabe, Craig Sheppard and Angela Cheng, have shaped his holistic approach to teaching and performance.

Prospective students will find in Dr. Yong a dedicated mentor who combines a rich performance background with a passion for education and community, offering a uniquely inspiring environment for musical growth and discipleship.

Website:http://jackieyong.com

Dr. Nicholas Tavani

Music

Education:

University of Maryland DMA in Violin Performance

University of Texas

MMus in Violin Performance

 

Dr. Lexi Bryant

Music Theory

Education:

University of Maryland

DMA in Music Composition

Rice University

MMus in Composition

About:

Hailed as a “promising composer” by the Cleveland Plain Dealer, Alexandra T Bryant has been lauded for her “ability to convey myriad moods through clear thematic materials and coloristic contrasts.” Inaugurating her compositional commissions, the 2008 world premiere of her piece Apostrophe was presented by the Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra in Severance Hall. In addition she has received commissions from ensembles such as the Kronos Quartet, the Aeolus Quartet in collaboration with the Friends of Chamber Music of Reading and through a grant from the National Endowment of the Arts, Katherine Murdock and Mark Hill, Duo Scordatura and Scordatura Music Society, the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, the Santa Fe Youth Symphony Orchestra Association, the Tacoma Youth Symphony Association, The Greater Twin Cities Youth Symphonies, William Preucil (concertmaster of the Cleveland Orchestra), and the Metropolitan Ballet Theatre & Academy. She has participated in the Cabrillo Festival (2012), is the 2010 winner of the Avalon Composition Competition, and the 2007-2008 recipient of Darius Milhaud Award at the Cleveland Institute of Music. Dr. Bryant has also been a finalist or prizewinner in numerous composition competitions including Morton Gould, Lake George Music Festival, Garth Newel, USA International Harp Society, Flute New Music Consortium, and the Minnesota Orchestra Composer Institute. In the summer of 2011, Alexandra served on the faculty of the Luzerne Music Center as composer-in- residence.

Prior to her arrival in Fall 2024, Dr. Bryant served as Visiting Assistant Professor of Music Theory and Composition at Gustavus Adolphus College in St Peter, MN where she piloted a full theory curriculum revision, pushing students to new standards, increasing standards and learning outcomes. Here at PBA, she is again in charge of the music theory sequence, where she is already implementing changes in the curriculum, raising the bar for student expectations. In addition to Music Theory courses, Dr. Bryant teaches Orchestration & Arranging.

A native of Western Washington, Dr. Bryant is a graduate of the University of Maryland where she taught written theory, aural skills, and music fundamentals. She was a recipient of the school’s Flagship Fellowship and the School of Music’s Dean’s Fellowship and has studied with Mark Wilson and Lawrence Moss. Additionally, Dr. Bryant is a 2010 Master’s graduate of the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University where studied under Dr. Pierre Jalbert and Dr. Arthur Gottschalk. In May of 2008, she completed her Bachelor of Music degree in Composition under the guidance of Dr. Margaret Brouwer and Dr. Paul Schoenfield from the Cleveland Institute of Music. During the summer of 2010, she was a Composition Fellow at the Aspen Music Festival and School studying under Sydney Hodkinson. Dr. Bryant has also studied under George Tsontakis at Aspen, the Bowdoin International Music Festival with Samuel Adler, Claude Baker, and Simone Fontanelli, Tyler White at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Chamber Music Institute, the Czech-American Summer Music Institute in Prague with Ladislav Kubik, and Dr. Robert Hutchinson at the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Washington.

Beginning her musical studies at an early age on the violin under the direction of her mother, her major private instructors since have included Janis Upshall, Dr. Maria Sampen at the University of Puget Sound, and David Russell at the Cleveland Institute of Music. Participating actively in orchestral and chamber music since a very early age, Miss Bryant has acted as Concertmaster of both the Tacoma Youth Symphony and the Peninsula Youth Orchestra, as well as Principal Second of the University of Puget Sound’s Symphony Orchestra and Chamber Orchestras, in addition to numerous leadership positions in other ensembles. During her studies at the Cleveland Institute of Music, Dr. Bryant was the only non-instrumental performance major who participated in the orchestral program and in chamber ensembles at the Shepherd School.

She is married to violinist Nicholas Tavani with whom they have three wonderful boys and a very fluffy dog.

 

Dr. Sam Broomell

Band

Education:

John’s Hopkins University/Peabody Conservatory

DMA-ABD in Wind Conducting; Music Theory Pedagogy

Franklin & Marshall College

MMus in Wind Conducting, John’s  BA in Music

Business. Organizations, and Society,

About:

Professor Sam Broomell was appointed Assistant Professor of Music Education, Director of Bands and Division Coordinator of Instrumental Music at Palm Beach Atlantic University in 2024. He previously served as Director of the Johns Hopkins University Wind Ensemble, Assistant Conductor of the Peabody Institute Wind Ensemble and Assistant Conductor of the Franklin & Marshall College Orchestra and Symphonic Wind Ensemble. He has served as an instructor and graduate assistant in conducting, music theory, aural skills and music education.

He has conducted ensembles across the United States, including the United States Army Field Band, The Soldiers’ Chorus, The Delaware Winds, The Newfound Chamber Winds, The Allegretto Orchestra of Lancaster, The Rockville Concert Band and The Hunt Valley Wind Ensemble. Sam previously taught K-12 music and has served as a clinician and arranger for high school music programs across the country.

As both a performer and scholar, Sam’s past research has included “A Conductor’s Guide to Olivier Messiaen’s Et Exspecto Resurrectionem Mortuorum,” “Music and Philosophy: A survey of the philosophical approaches to music analysis from Greek Antiquity through the twentieth century,” and “Identity constructed through choir: The Welsh male chorus during the Nonconformist movement.”

Sam was awarded the 2024 American Prize in Conducting in the College and University Band division. He was selected to participate in the Tidewater Conducting Competition and Fellowship. He reached the semi-final round for a Fulbright Study and Research Grant to Cardiff University, Wales and was a semi-finalist in the National Youth British Brass Band of Great Britain Conducting Competition.

With a desire to bring glory to the Lord through song, Sam has served as a worship director for churches in Florida, Maryland and Pennsylvania. He is a graduate of the Timothy Foundation Fellows program, a leadership training program committed to raising up the next generation of Christian leaders. His hobbies include running, snow skiing, trying new foods and traveling.