August 16th & 23rd, 2012 at 7 pm Open Rehearsals at Chandler Music Hall Free admission August 18th, 2012 at 8 pm Britten, Françaix, Saint-Saëns at Chandler Music Hall August 19th, 2012 at 11 am 2nd Annual Breakfast with Bach Breakfast at 11:00 am in the Esther Mesh Room in Chandler's Upper Gallery Concert at 12:30 pm in Bethany Church Food provided by Three Bean Cafe of Randolph August 19th, 2012 at 4 pm An Encore Performance Britten, Françaix, Saint-Saëns Presented by Pentangle Council on the Arts Woodstock Unitarian Universalist Church August 24th, 2012 at 11 am CHILDREN'S CONCERT: LARK Quartet with percussionist Yousif Sheronick Chandler Music Hall August 25th, 2012 at 8 pm ONE NIGHT ONLY SPECIAL EVENT LARK Quartet with percussionist Yousif Sheronick joined by festival artists Janacek, Muhly, Brahms at Chandler Music Hall August 26th, 2012 at 12:30 pm CONCERT AT THE INN The Sixth Floor Trio Teddy Abrams - piano, clarinet Harrison Hollingsworth - bassoon, violin Johnny Teyssier - clarinet presents Classical to Classic Rock An Afternoon of Eclecticism Complimentary student tickets are available thanks to a special grant, on a first come first serve basis. Please call the Box Office for more information: (802) 728-6464. The Central Vermont Chamber Music Festival announces the release of its first highlight CD: Festival Harvest "The Central Vermont Chamber Music Festival has come a long way since it was founded in 1993 by Peter Sanders, a New York cellist who grew up spending his summers in the Randolph area. An indication of just how far is its excellent New CD, "Festival Harvest," a compilation of live performances of works by Mendelssohn, Schönberg and Frank Bridge at the Chandler Music Hall in 2000 and 2004. When I first heard the album, I had recently heard an excellent performance of Mendelssohn's A Major String Quintet at Vermont's justly revered Marlboro Music Festival. The same work opens this CD, and I actually preferred the Randolph performance. That's big praise." Read the review from the December 2, 2005 issue of Vermont's Times Argus This season's festival artists include: Cyrus Beroukhim, violin and viola Deborah Buck, violin Basia Danilow, violin Arturo Delmoni, violin Louise Owen, violin Michael Roth, violin Katherine Anderson, viola Kathryn Lockwood, viola Peter Sanders, cello Caroline Stinson, cello Thomas Schmidt, piano and organ Randall Wolfgang, oboe The LARK Quartet Yousif Sheronick, percussion Jon-Richard Knoff, accordion Jeffrey Domoto, music director and conductor Marjorie Drysdale, artistic director The Sounding Joy! The Sixth Floor Trio Repertoire and Artists from 1993 to present Cyrus Beroukhim, violin and viola, praised as the "crème de la crème" on National Public Radio's "Performance Today," has received international recognition as a soloist, recitalist, and chamber musician. His recent performances of Bach and Vivaldi Concerti with the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields were heralded as "flawless and sensitive" by the Zeitung im Espace Mittelland (Switzerland). He has appeared at major venues worldwide including Novell Hall in Taipei, Theaterplatz and Paul Klee Zentrum in Bern, Lobero Theatre in Santa Barbara, Kravis center in Palm Beach, The Barns at Wolf Trap in Washington D.C., Qualcomm Hall in San Diego, Ravinia Festival in Chicago, and various halls throughout Japan, Germany, Luxembourg, and Israel. Currently based in New York City, Mr. Beroukhim is concertmaster and regular soloist with the New York Symphonic Ensemble, and is a member of the New York City Ballet. As a founding member of the Zukofsky Quartet, he regularly explores the innovative music of great living composers. In November 2008, the quartet presented the complete Milton Babbitt cycle at Columbia University's "Composer's Portraits" series and the University of Chicago's "Contempo" series. He has recorded numerous records for Vanguard Classics, Naxos, Furious Artisans, Aeon, and New World Records, and has been broadcast live on NPR, WQXR 96.3 (New York), and K-Mozart (Los Angeles). Born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin from Iranian descent, Mr. Beroukhim began his violin studies at the age of two. His early musical training was nurtured by Mimi Zweig and culminated in a successful debut with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra at age 15. He pursued his undergraduate degree at the Oberlin Conservatory under Roland and Almita Vamos, and went on to receive his Master of Music degree at The Juilliard School, where he studied with Cho-Liang Lin. In May 2007, he received his Doctorate of Music from The Juilliard School as a C.V. Starr Foundation Fellow. top Deborah Buck, violin, described by Strad Magazine as "Particularly impressive for her surpassing degree of imagination and vibrant sound," violinist Deborah Buck has built a strong musical career as chamber musician, concertmaster, and soloist. She enjoys a versatile musical life as the first violinist of the LARK Quartet and the tenured Concertmaster of the Brooklyn Philharmonic. This fall, Ms. Buck and LARK Quartet recorded with Gary Graffman the music of Jennifer Higdon for Bridge Records. Highlights of performances this past few months have included a solo recital in Los Angeles, a live broadcast on WNYC's, "New Sounds Live" with principals of the Brooklyn Philharmonic, and concerts with the LARK Quartet in Washington DC, Los Angeles, and New York City. In 2012, Ms. Buck will be featured with pianist, Molly Morkoski n a recital at the Brooklyn Museum of Art and will record the Piano Quintet of Paul Moravec with the LARK Quartet and Jeremy Denk. Ms. Buck was educated at the Juilliard School as a Starling Scholar of Dorothy DeLay and the University of Southern California as a student of Robert Lipsett where she was the recipient of the Jascha Heifetz Violin Scholarship. In 2010, Ms. Buck was named Co-Executive Director of the Kinhaven Music School, a summer music program in Weston, VT. Ms. Buck performs on a violin by Vincenzo Postiglione graciously loaned by Ray and Marcia Corwin. top Violinist Basia Danilow's playing has been described as "...star quality... Ms. Danilow is clearly an accomplished virtuoso whose playing has snap, crackle and pop." (New York Concert Review). Ms. Danilow enjoys a diverse musical life encompassing chamber music, recording, orchestral and solo performances in the U.S. and abroad. She has appeared in recital at Lincoln Center, Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, Merkin Hall and the Kosciuszko Foundation as well as in Yugoslavia and Russia. Ms. Danilow has enjoyed her first season as a member of the Lark Quartet. A recipient of a Copland Grant, the quartet will be recording an all Jennifer Higdon CD this fall with pianist Gary Graffman for Bridge Records, in addition to maintaining a busy concert schedule (larkquartet.com). Ms. Danilow is also a member of the Ariadne Trio and the Danilow- Keremedijiev violin and guitar duo, which presents concerts of classical, ethnic and Russian gypsy music and performs and records as guest artist with the Perspectives Ensemble and the Harmonie Ensemble of New York. She was a winner of the Artists International Competition as a member of the Hollaender Ensemble. Ms. Danilow is concertmaster of the Princeton Symphony Orchestra, often appearing as soloist, is a member of L'Opera Francais, The Orchestra of St. Lukes and performs regularly with The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. She has participated in numerous festivals such as, Caramoor, Lincoln Center Festival, Central Vermont Chamber Music Festival, Windham, Music Festival of the Hamptons and the International Summer Institute at the Moscow Conservatory. Radio and television broadcasts include WQXR, NPR's "Performance Today", Vermont Public Radio and PBS. Ms. Danilow has recorded for the Sony, Atlantic and RCA Victor Red Seal labels. top Arturo Delmoni, violin, is one of the most celebrated artists of his generation. His remarkably distinctive playing embodies the romantic warmth that is the special province of the great virtuosi of the golden age of violin playing. Yo-Yo Ma describes Delmoni as "an enormously gifted musician and an impeccable violinist. His playing style is unique, and his gorgeous sound is reminiscent of that of great violinists from a bygone era." Glenn Dicterow, concertmaster of the NY Philharmonic, says, "Delmoni's playing always goes right to the heart, and his charisma is irresistible." Delmoni's stylish, elegant interpretations of classical masterpieces have earned him critical acclaim in the United States and abroad. Richard Dyer of the Boston Globe wrote "It's hard to imagine how the violin could be much better played than Delmoni did --- he plays with astonishing speed, lightness, fluency and sweetness of tone." Alan Heatherington of the American Record Guide wrote "The growing discography of Arturo Delmoni testifies to a musician who must possess an artistic soul of exceptional beauty. Each new issue reveals additional aspects of a winsome musical personality and verifies an impression of great warmth and geniality." Delmoni made his debut at Carnegie Hall at age 14 playing the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto with the Little Orchestra Society under Thomas Scherman. Since then he has been a soloist with the St. Louis, Dallas, Spokane, Jupiter, El Paso, Glendale and Tucson Symphony Orchestras; the Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra of Boston; the California Chamber Symphony; the New York City Ballet Orchestra; the Rhode Island, Brooklyn, Boston, Omaha and Kansas City Philharmonics; and the Boston Pops. He has appeared as a recitalist throughout the United States and in Europe, the Middle East, Japan and Hong Kong. As a chamber musician, Delmoni has performed with illustrious colleagues such as Pinchas Zukerman, Elmar Oliveira, Emanuel Ax, Nathaniel Rosen, Jon Kimura Parker, Jeffrey Kahane and Dudley Moore. Songs My Mother Taught Me, Delmoni's recording of romantic miniatures, received extraordinary reviews from prominent critics. Audiophiles and audio critics generally regard his recording of unaccompanied violin music of Ysaÿe, Kreisler and Bach as a reference for the sound of a solo violin. Delmoni's duo recital recording with cellist Nathaniel Rosen, entitled "Music for a Glass Bead Game" was nominated for an AFIM Indie Award, received a Golden Ear award, and was on Fanfare's "Best of the Year" list. Arturo Delmoni plays a JB Guadagnini, 1780, and a viola from the same period. top Praised by the Boston Globe as "a brilliant performer", violinist Louise Owen, has played chamber music concerts with world-renowned pianist Menahem Pressler, toured North America and Europe with Barbra Streisand, and has served as concertmaster for Harry Connick Jr. on his 2011 tour. She made her Broadway stage debut opposite Christopher Walken in "James Joyce's The Dead", and she played in the orchestras of the Broadway award-winning productions of "The Producers" and "South Pacific". Louise has an active freelance career in New York City, giving chamber music recitals and performing with ensembles such as American Symphony Orchestra, the Orchestra of St. Ignatius Loyola, New York Pops, Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, Stamford Symphony, and she is the principal second violinist of the Riverside Symphony. A native of Southern California, Louise received much of her musical training at the New England Conservatory. She is a gourmet cook and a part-time chocolatier in between gigs, and she writes about her musical and culinary adventures on her blog, Kitchen Fiddler. (www.kitchenfiddler.blogspot.com) Louise was recently featured on "60 Minutes" in an Emmy-nominated profile about people with an extremely rare superior autobiographical memory. top Michael Roth, violin, is a native of Scarsdale, NY and received his early musical training with Frances Magnes at the Hoff-Barthelson Music School. He attended Oberlin College and Conservatory, continuing his studies with Marilyn McDonald. At Oberlin, he won the Kaufman Prize for violin and First Prize in the Ohio String Teacher's Association Competition. He completed his Master of Music degree at the University of Massachusetts where he worked with the distinguished American violinist and pedagogue Charles Treger and was a recipient of the Julian Olevsky Award. Mr. Roth is currently associate concertmaster of the New York City Ballet Orchestra and has appeared in chamber music and as a soloist with the company, most recently in the debut of "Slice Too Sharp", a ballet of Biber and Vivaldi violin concerti, and "After the Rain", violin music of Arvo Pärt. In addition he is Principal 2nd violin of the Westchester Philharmonic, a member of the Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra, and Principal 2nd violin of the American Composers Orchestra and the New York Pops. He has been concertmaster of the Vermont Mozart Festival Orchestra for many years and has often appeared as soloist there, as well as at the Caramoor and Bard Music Festivals. He has played and toured internationally with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra and the New York Chamber Soloists. As a chamber musician, Mr. Roth has collaborated with artists such as Eugene Drucker, Menahem Pressler, Steven Doane, Hamao Fujiwara and members of the Brentano, Manhattan and Ying Quartets, and recently presented a recital of contemporary Cuban solo violin and chamber music in Weill Hall at Carnegie Hall under the auspices of the American Composers Orchestra. With Orpheus, the Eos Orchestra, Philharmonia Virtuosi, The New York Pops and the American Composers Orchestra and others, Mr. Roth has recorded for the Sony, Angel, Telarc, Decca, BMG, Point Music, ESSA.Y. and Arbors Music labels. top Violist Katherine Anderson performs throughout North America, Europe, and Asia in solo recitals, chamber ensembles, and in major orchestras. A frequent performer with the Broyhill Chamber Ensemble, Crested Butte Chamber Music Festival, Houston DaCamera Society, Rockport Chamber Music Festival, Boston Musica Viva, Griffin Music Ensemble, Ashmont Hill Chamber Music Series, Music from Eden's Edge, and the Lawrence Chamber Players, Ms. Anderson has also collaborated with the Cleveland, Meliora, Brentano and Ridge Quartets, and with such distinguished artists as Yo-Yo Ma, Paula Robison, Steven Doane, Peter Salaff, and Sergiu Luca. Ms. Anderson began her musical studies on the violin at the age of six in Sacramento, California. She earned her Bachelor of Music degree in violin and her Master of Music degree in viola from the Eastman School of Music, where she studied with members of the Cleveland Quartet. She has also studied with Nobuko Imai, Joyce Robbins, and Jeffrey Irvine. A fine teacher as well as a performer, Ms. Anderson has served on the faculties of the Longy School of Music, the New England Conservatory Extension Division, the Vancouver Academy of Music, and the Greenwood Summer Chamber Music Camp. A member of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra since 1992, Ms. Anderson also served as Associate Principal Viola in the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra. Ms. Anderson currently lives in Dobbs Ferry, NY with her husband, violinist Calvin Wiersma, and their two children. top Kathryn Lockwood has been hailed as a violist of exceptional talents in reviews around the country. The Cleveland Plain Dealer proclaimed, "...Lockwood played the vociferous viola cadenza with mahogany beauty and vivid character." Ms. Lockwood is the violist of both the internationally renowned Lark Quartet and the unique viola and percussion duo with her husband Yousif Sheronick, duoJalal. Additionally she performs with numerous other prestigious groups including Music from Copland House, Trio Solisti and Triple Helix. Before relocating to New York in 2001 Ms. Lockwood held the position of violist of the Pacifica Quartet since its inception. As an original member of Pacifica Quartet, Ms. Lockwood was heard live on National Public Radio's Performance Today and on the stages of Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall, Ravinia's Bennett Gordon Hall, Corcoran Gallery, St. Lawrence Center, and University of Thessaloniki / Greece. Ms. Lockwood collaborated with violist Michael Tree on an all Dvorak CD and composer Easley Blackwood on recordings released by Cedille Records. 2005 marked the release of Kathryn's solo recital CD of Viola Music by Inessa Zaretsky, "Fireoptics", which Strad declared "Lockwood is absolutely inside the music's idiom finding appropriate tonal shadings". 2011 saw the release of duoJalal's first CD A Different World which Toronto Star claims "Lockwood is all slow, sensuous allure with her bowing arm one moment, a tempest of notes the next. If this is what world music's future holds, bring on the party." Kathryn moved from her homeland of Australia to the United States in 1991 only to capture some of the most sought-after awards in the country including the Naumburg Chamber Music Award, Grand Prize at the Coleman Chamber Music Competition, Concert Artists Guild Management Award, and awards at solo competitions such as the Primrose Competition, Washington International Competition, and the Pasadena Instrumental Competition. Currently on faculty at University of Massachusetts/Amherst, Ms. Lockwood was previously on the faculty at Rutgers University in NJ, Northwestern University, University of Chicago, Music Institute of Chicago, and National Music Camp in Australia. Ms. Lockwood earned her Master's Degree with Donald McInnes at the University of Southern California, and her Bachelor of Music Degree from the Queensland Conservatorium of Music with Elizabeth Morgan. top Peter Sanders, cello, is a native New Yorker and a graduate of the Manhattan School of Music. Mr. Sanders is a member of the New York City Ballet Orchestra (for which he has served as Acting Principal) and performs with the Riverside Symphony, the Stamford Symphony and has performed and recorded as a guest artist with the Perspectives Ensemble. He has toured Southeast Asia twice with the New York Symphonic Ensemble and as concerto soloist with the group performed in concerts in Taipei and Singapore. He is Artistic Director of the Central Vermont Chamber Music Festival, which had its inaugural season in 1993. Mr. Sanders was a winner of the 1998 Artists International award as a member of the Hollaender Ensemble and is currently a member of the Ariadne Trio. He has participated in many summer festivals including the Colorado Music Festival, Skaneateles Festival, Crested Butte Chamber Music Festival, Eastern Music Festival (faculty position), CVCMF, Lancaster Festival, Ohio (where he was principal cello from 1992-98), Windham Chamber Music Festival, the Sherman Chamber Ensemble and the Park City & SLC Autumn Classics Music Festival. As a studio musician Mr. Sanders has recorded for a variety of popular artists including Pat Metheny, Jewel, Kathie Lee Gifford and Carlinhos Brown. He can be heard on the Delos, Muse, Bridge, RCA Victor-Red Seal, New World, On the Lamb and KOCH International Classics labels. top Praised for her vibrant lyricism, fresh interpretations and expressive performances, cellist Caroline Stinson is sought after by orchestras and fellow musicians in the US, Canada and Europe as a soloist, recitalist and chamber musician for concerts of both traditional and contemporary repertoire. Ms. Stinson's solo invitations include the Museum of Modern Art's Summergarden Series, Poisson Rouge and Bargemusic in New York; Cité de la Musique Strasbourg and the Lucerne Festival in Europe, and the Centennial Centre and Winspear Halls in Canada. As a soloist she has performed with the Banff Festival and Cleveland Institute of Music Orchestras, the Alberta Baroque Ensemble, and the Interlochen World Youth and Syracuse Symphonies. A champion of contemporary music, Ms. Stinson has commissioned concerti from Steven Bryant (Cornell Wind Ensemble) and Andrew Waggoner (Syracuse Symphony), works for cello with electronics from Patrick Carrabre and John Link, in addition to chamber music with the Lark Quartet and her new music and improvisation group, Open End. Performance highlights include Elliott Carter's "Triple Duo" with conductor Pierre Boulez in New York and Europe, the premiere of Paul Moravec's Piano Quintet with Jeremy Denk and the Lark Quartet in New York, and performing Esa-Pekka Salonen's "YTA III" for solo cello, at the composer's recommendation at Scandinavia House in New York. Caroline's début CD, Lines, was released late last summer on Albany Records and was reviewed in Fanfare: "She has it all, fabulous tone, great technique, innate musicality, and a real sense of how to project a wide variety of contemporary music." Caroline holds degrees from the Cleveland Institute where she studied with Alan Harris, the Hochschule fuer Musik Koeln with Maria Kliegel and a Master's and Artist Diploma from The Juilliard School where she studied with Joel Krosnick. Caroline is a teaching assistant to Joel Krosnick at the Juilliard School and is on the cello and chamber music faculty of the Setnor School of Music at Syracuse University. top Thomas Schmidt, piano & organ, has had a multifaceted career as pianist, organist, conductor and composer. He has been pianist of the Arden Trio ever since it was founded in 1979. They have concertized extensively throughout the country, and have been resident artists in many communities, reaching out with educational presentations to school audiences of all ages. Their recordings on the Delos, Naxos, and Canal Grande labels are frequently heard on public radio. Thomas has also been a member of the Omni Ensemble for the past five years. For over twenty years he was professor of music at Concordia College in Bronxville, New York. Since 1990 he has been Director of Music for Saint Peter's Lutheran Church in Manhattan, directing the choir, playing the organ, and composing liturgical music. He is also the conductor of the Long Island Symphonic Choral Association and associate conductor of the Gregg Smith Singers. He has been a featured organist for two national conferences of the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians, and was a featured organist for the 2005 Region II convention of the American Guild of Organists. He has often given workshops on service and hymn playing for AGO and ALCM groups. Dr. Schmidt's undergraduate degree, in church music, is from Valparaiso University. His graduate degrees are in piano, with an M.M. from the University of Wisconsin and a D.M.A. from Yale University. Long-time residents of Manhattan, he and his wife Kathy live in Harlem and enjoy city life, cultural events, cooking, biking, gardening, and frequent visits from family. top Randall Wolfgang, oboe, is an acclaimed musician whose career has led him to perform throughout the United States, Europe, South America, and the Far East. Currently holds the position of Principal Oboe with both the New York City Ballet and the New York City Opera orchestras. A frequent performer and soloist with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, Mr. Wolfgang also enjoys an active freelance career in the New York recording scene. His past accomplishments include many years as principal oboe and faculty member at the Aspen Music Festival and Guest Artist and faculty member at the Aspen music Festival in Nagano, Japan and appeared at the Marlboro and Monadnock Music Festivals. Mr. Wolfgang has recorded extensively on the Deutsche Grammophon, Pro Arte and Nonsuch labels, including a recording of the Mozart Oboe Concerto with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra. He was on the faculty of Queens College and Manhattan School of Music in New York. top The LARK Quartet continues to delight audiences with its energy, passionate commitment and imaginative artistry. The members, all soloists in their own right, have come together to form a "polished and warmly communicative ensemble," that delivers "a performance of grace, proportion and burnished brilliance," - Washington Post. Performing with a unique blend of excitement, individuality, and an unusually sonorous quartet sound, the LARK has won the acclaim of critics and audiences alike. Inspired by the quartet's ground-breaking collaborations with percussionist Yousif Sheronick, The Ethos Percussion Group, the success of their highly acclaimed CD, "Klap 'Ur Handz," commissions of new works by Pulitzer-Prize winning composer Paul Moravec, Giovanni Sollima, and Daniel Bernard Roumain(DBR), the LARK has embarked on a bold new venture, The LARK Quartet Friends. With the quartet at its core, LARK has embraced it's collaborative energy for new programming to include a permanent roster of friends. These bold new programs showcase Stephen Salters (baritone), Yousif Sheronick (percussion) as well as guest artists Jeremy Denk and Gary Graffman (piano); every concert offers audiences new insights into the art of chamber music. The various programs reach a broad range of styles that feature elements of World Music from Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East, Jazz, Minimalism, and Traditional Western Chamber Music. The LARK has always been very active and committed to commissioning and premiering new music. Many of these works have become mainstays of the chamber music repertoire and include: Qt. No. 1 Musica celestis and Qt. No.2 Musica instrumentalis(1997 Pulitzer Prize) by Aaron Jay Kernis, Qt. No.2 In memoriam and Piano Quintet No.2, by Peter Schickele, "A Poet's Dream, by Jennifer Higdon, Early That Summer, by Julia Wolfe and Viaggio in Italia, by Giovanni Sollima. Upcoming commissions include William Bolcom's "Billy of the Darbies" for Baritone and String Quartet and a new work for string quartet and percussion by Glen Velez. top Hailed by the New York Times for his "dazzling improvisations" Yousif Sheronick, percussion, appears internationally as soloist and chamber musician with world-renowned groups and artists such as Philip Glass, Ethos Percussion Group, Glen Velez, Foday Musa Suso, Simon Shaheen, Henry Threadgill, Lark Quartet and Paul Winter Consort. duoJalal is his most recent venture with violist and wife Kathryn Lockwood. Sheronick's unique style encompasses traditions and instruments from the Middle East, North and West Africa, Brazil, India, and Europe. His ability to work in such diverse genres is due to having studied contemporary classical, jazz, world and rock music, which he seamlessly fuses into his playing. Critics say Yousif "is capable of creating hypnotic atmospheres" (Mundoclasico) where he "transported the listener to another dimension." (Ritmic). Prestigious venue performances include Carnegie Hall, Hollywood Bowl, Lincoln Center, Royal Festival Hall (London) and Wigmore Hall (London). Distinguished collaborators include Yo-Yo Ma, Branford Marsalis, Pandit Samir Chatterjee, Marcel Khalife, Sonny Fortune and Cindy Blackman. Modern Drummer Magazine calls Mr. Sheronick's critically acclaimed solo CD titled Silk Thread "a testimony to his genius". He also released a Riq Instructional DVD which Rhythm Magazine (UK) says "is a must to uncover the mysteries of this ancient instrument." He has appeared throughout the US, Europe, Middle East, Asia and Australia with festival appearances including the JVC and Newport Jazz Festivals, Jazztel (Madrid), Edinburgh International Festival, Renaissance Festival (Rethymno, Greece) Early Music Festival (Regensburg, Germany) and Jerusalem Festival (Palestine). He has performed live on NPR's "Performance Today" and John Schaffer's "New Sounds." An active clinician, Mr. Sheronick teaches master classes at home in the US and abroad. Mr. Sheronick holds degrees from Yale University and the University of Iowa and is artist in residence with Ethos Percussion Group at Lehman College (Bronx, NY). top Anesthesiologist, and renowned accordion player, Dr. Jon-Richard Knoff has joined Gifford Medical Center in Randolph. Dr. Knoff previously worked at 170-bed Southern New Hampshire Medical Center in Nashua. He came to Gifford in February as a locum tenens, or temporary doctor, but found himself at home at Gifford and in Randolph. Dr. Knoff is certified by the American Board of Anesthesiology and belongs to such professional organizations as the American Society of Anesthesiology and the American Medical Association. His residency and medical degree were earned at the University of Kansas in Wichita. His bachelor's degree is in music performance from the University of Missouri Conservatory of Music in Kansas City. Originally from Norway, Dr. Knoff began a career in music as an accordion player in Paris before deciding to follow his father's footsteps and become a doctor. He worked as an anesthesiologist in Kansas before practicing in New Hampshire and now Vermont. top Jeffrey Domoto, Music Director & Conductor Vermont Youth Orchestra Association (YAO), previously a member of the conducting staffs of the New York City Opera and Minnesota Opera, Jeffrey Domoto has worked extensively with young musicians and appeared as a guest conductor with orchestras in the US and abroad. Mr. Domoto is a native of Seattle, Washington. Mr. Domoto has worked with young musicians at the Sewanee Music Festival, the Kinhaven School, and the Pittsburgh Youth Symphony Orchestra and with the youth orchestras of Nanjing and Guangzhou, China. Since 1998, he has held the position of Music Director for the Sergio Franchi Music Foundation, an organization that perpetuates the singer's legacy through the support of young and emerging vocalists and entertainers. In addition to providing overall artistic leadership of the VYOA, Mr. Domoto conducts the Vermont Youth Orchestra and Vermont Youth Sinfonia. top Marjorie Drysdale, Artistic Director, Sounding Joy!, of Randolph is a soprano soloist, singing teacher, flute teacher, and choral conductor. Holding a BA degree in music and English from Middlebury College and an MM in music history/performance from the University of Michigan, she has performed in opera, oratorio, musical theater and recital formats for 30 years. Her solo appearances have included performances with the Vermont Mozart Festival, the New England Bach Festival, the Vermont Symphony Orchestra, the Dartmouth Symphony, Vermont Opera North, Through the Opera Glass, and Vermont Opera Theater. Over the course of her career, Marjorie has taught music in public school settings, at Vermont College and Johnson State College, at the Monteverdi Music School, at Orchard Valley Waldorf School, and at her home studio in Randolph. She has directed "Sounding Joy!" for 27 years and has served for more than a decade as music director for the annual youth musicals at the Chandler Center for the Arts in Randolph. Marjorie lives in Randolph with her husband, M. Dickey Drysdale. top The Sounding Joy! chorus takes its name from a composition by Justin Morgan, who lived in Randolph in the late 1700s. Justin Morgan not only bred the first Morgan horse, which became the first American breed of horses, he was also a singing teacher and Vermont's foremost composer during the Colonial era. His fuguing tune, "Sounding Joy," was rearranged by Braintree, Vermont composer Gwyneth Walker and serves as the chorus' theme song. Sounding Joy! first built its reputation in the mid '80s through a series of festive madrigal dinners. Since that time, it has greatly expanded its musical offerings. It performs a classical repertoire that spans seven centuries, and performances in both in standard and dramatic formats. In addition to its classical repertoire, Sounding Joy! has become known for its vivid performances within historical American genres of music. Highlights over the years include a costumed program of Civil War songs, a program of '40s music with dancing and big-band accompaniment by the Keynotes, Sentimental Songs of the 1920s and love songs served up with dessert around Valentine's Day. Sounding Joy! also takes seriously the privilege of presenting original music, especially by Vermont composers. The singers have devoted no fewer than four concerts to works by Randolph-area composers Gwyneth Walker, Kathy Wonson Eddy, Erik Nielsen and David Gunn. The women of Sounding Joy! sang at Carnegie Hall in November of 2005 in a 200-member chorus performing the work of Ms. Walker. The chorus has performed with the Montpelier Chamber Orchestra and the Vermont Philharmonic Orchestra, and also with other Vermont choruses. Sounding Joy! been invited to perform three times at the Vermont History Exposition and three times also at the Vermont State House, at the Governor's Ball, and twice on Vermont Public Radio's "Interlude" program with Peter Fox Smith. Audiences consistently respond to the group's joy and playfulness as well as its musical sophistication. It is no wonder that Times-Argus critic Jim Lowe has pronounced Sounding Joy! "a gem among area choruses." top The Sixth Floor Trio is a chamber group dedicated to the creation and performance of music that furthers a dialogue between different musical communities and other artistic disciplines. Formed by graduates of the Curtis Institute of Music in 2008, the Trio has opened for (and collaborated with) Marvin Hamlisch, performed at the Kennedy Center in 2010, the Kravis Center (Palm Beach) in 2011, and performed concerts and community engagement for Astral Artists in Philadelphia. The Trio received a substantial grant in 2011 from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation to present "Random Acts of Culture" performances across the United States, and to develop a video project featuring folk music from around the world. Upcoming engagements include performances at World Cafe Live in Philadelphia and at the 2011 Central Vermont Chamber Music Festival, in addition to numerous other concerts around the country during their Summer, Fall, and Winter residencies this season. The Sixth Floor Trio's vision places all musical traditions from around the world on one continuum as part of the same great musical language, and their mission is to seek to make connections between these varied musical styles in their repertoire. From Bluegrass to Klezmer, Classical, to Jazz, Ancient Music to Contemporary Rock - they explore it all and bring its energy to the world. In addition, they strive to share their artistic passion and music-making with diverse audiences everywhere, from traditional concertgoers to those with acute needs or in remote places. top