Brent C. Talbot
PhD, 2011

Brent C. Talbot has been a leading voice for change in the field of music education. A prolific author and frequent presenter, Talbot’s work examines power, discourse, and issues of justice in varied settings for music learning around the globe. He is the editor of one of the best selling books in music education, Marginalized Voices in Music Education (Routledge), the curator of an indigenous-centering resource, Gending Rare: Children’s Songs and Games from Bali (GIA), and a co-author of the acclaimed book Education, Music, and the Lives of Undergraduates: Collegiate A Cappella and the Pursuit of Happiness (Bloomsbury). Over the past decade, Talbot has published over 25 articles and book chapters with leading journals and publishing companies and has delivered over 125 presentations on topics that promote equity and inclusion and diversify approaches in music learning and teaching. He serves on the steering committees of leading national and international organizations in music education and on multiple research and editorial boards throughout the globe. Since completing his graduate work at Eastman, Talbot has been the coordinator of the highly successful music education program at the Sunderman Conservatory of Music at Gettysburg College. He also serves as the artistic director of the Gettysburg Children’s Choir, a choir serving the populations of South-Central Pennsylvania, and is founding director of Gamelan Gita Semara, an Indonesian instrumental ensemble that is frequently invited to perform at music festivals around the world and regularly booked for artist-in-residency programs at institutions across the mid-Atlantic region. For more information about Talbot and the work he does at the intersections of music education and ethnomusicology, visit his website: www.brentctalbot.com.

“My diverse teaching and research interests were cultivated and encouraged by the excellent advisors and mentors I had at Eastman. I stand on the shoulders of giants like the late Dr. Susan Conkling, Drs. Donna Brink Fox, Ellen Koskoff, Louis Bergonzi, Richard Grunow, and Chris Azzara who all provided a strong foundation for me to help others become great teachers and change agents in the world. During my time as a graduate student I taught choir and general music in the Rochester City and Webster school districts, worked for the Eastman Community Music School, rounded out my education with coursework in Ethnomusicology as well as courses on justice and equity at the Warner School of Education at the University of Rochester, and studied different musical traditions such as Balinese gamelan, Karnatak and Hindustani music, mbira, hammered dulcimer, and shape-note singing. There is no greater place for studying music in North America. I attribute a great deal of my success to the Eastman network and the continued support and mentorship provided by the faculty with whom I collaborated.”

Kate Maroney
DMA, 2010

Mezzo-soprano Kate Maroney is in demand for her versatility and keen interpretations of works spanning the Renaissance to the 21st century. Kate believes in the transformative, humanizing power of music and in its ability to foster empathy in the community of performers and listeners alike. She values collaborations with kind and generous colleagues who share this conviction.

Kate has appeared, often on recurring occasions, as a soloist with the American Classical Orchestra, New York City Ballet, Sacred Music in a Sacred Space, Musica Sacra, LA Opera, Opera Grand Rapids, Carmel Bach Festival, New York Baroque Incorporated, TENET Vocal Artists, ACRONYM Ensemble, Trinity Wall Street, Indianapolis Symphonic Choir, Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra, Brooklyn Art Song Society, Bangor Symphony Orchestra, Boston Chorus Pro Musica, Bard SummerScape Festival, Oregon Bach Festival, Bach Collegium of San Diego, Blue Hill Bach Festival, Portland Bach Experience, Princeton Pro Musica, Mark Morris Dance Group, Baldwin Wallace Bach Festival, Cantata Profana, Ekmeles, American Opera Project, Beth Morrison Projects, Ensemble Signal, Bach Vespers at Holy Trinity, The Folger Consort, and Anonymous 4. Kate is a regular member of professional vocal ensembles around the country including Seraphic Fire, Santa Fe Desert Chorale, Spire, Clarion, Yale Choral Artists, Trinity Wall Street, and The Crossing. Kate can be heard as a soloist on Seraphic Fire’s 2021 recording of Hildegard von Bingen’s “Ordo Virtutum,” the first full historically-accurate recording of this 12th-century masterpiece. Kate also became a part-time member of the chorus at the Metropolitan Opera during the 2021-2022 season.

Kate was featured worldwide in over 75 performances of Einstein on the Beach with the Philip Glass Ensemble, for audiences in Montpellier, Paris, London, Brooklyn, Toronto, Reggio Emilia, Amsterdam, Hong Kong, Melbourne, Berkeley, Mexico City, Los Angeles, Berlin, and Gwangju, South Korea. Being part of this historic tour and piece of living art was a profound and transformative experience – Kate also learned how to sing numbers really fast. 

Always eager to explore music outside the standard repertory and to develop new pieces, Kate has performed extensively in New York City as well as abroad. She has worked closely with and premiered works by composers Philip Glass, Julia Wolfe, Martin Bresnick, Daron Hagen, Dominick Argento, David Lang, Hannah Lash, Paola Prestini, Missy Mazzoli, Ted Hearne, Alex Weiser, Olga Bell, Lisa Bielawa, Harry Stafylakis, Christopher Cerrone, Jacob Cooper, Ola Gjeilo, and Scott Wheeler.

Kate holds a a DMA from Eastman in Voice Performance and Literature with a Minor in Voice Pedagogy, as well as degrees in music from SUNY Purchase and Yale. She has written articles published in The Washington Post and The Journal of The New York Singing Teachers’ Association. Kate has been on faculty at the Mannes School of Music since 2015, where she teaches courses in voice pedagogy and performance. When not singing or teaching her heart out, Kate loves being home in Fort Greene, Brooklyn, with musician and composer husband Red Wierenga, son, Ossian, and their two cats, Misha Mengelberg and Albert Ayler.

“Eastman prepared me well for an incredibly diverse musical ecosystem that comprises my freelance life. I loved being immersed in a culture where the vast ways one can pursue a life in music were valued and celebrated—the bars for performance, musicianship, scholarship, and education were all set equally high. Through the academic rigor of required musicology and theory seminars, I deepened my practice of preparing and contextualizing the music I perform. Through relationships formed with my teachers, I witnessed the discipline of their own practice, and it inspired me to strive for the same. Ownership over the process of studying and preparing music has served me well and in turn I strive to instill that rigorous practice in my students. I loved the variety of singing experiences I had when I was at Eastman—opera, art song, Renaissance polyphony, Bach motets, minimalist and atonal music. Many of these experiences were new for me during my time as a student and created a foundation for repeat performances (and ability to implement differences in stylistic approach) in my professional life. Most importantly, I learned at Eastman that the *process* is ongoing and is the important part of a life in music—you will always hone technique, seek answers, ask more questions, do more research, and find collaborators willing to travel that path with you. Being prepared as well as you can is your job as a performing musician and teacher. You will wear a different hat day to day (or within one day!) I remember often feeling that way while in the midst of my coursework at Eastman, and I continue to feel that way a decade later. My time at Eastman was one of the great gifts of my life and it enabled me to forge a career that continues to reward and inspire.”

Doug O’Connor
DMA, 2012

Saxophonist Doug O’Connor is passionate about sharing music that challenges audiences to explore, connect, and grow. His performances push the athletic limits of the saxophone and feature music from all eras and in many styles, including classical, contemporary, jazz, and electronic. He strives to champion new works, present adventurous and innovative chamber music, and perform with an improvisatory command of music from Bach to Coltrane.  O’Connor honed his artistic mission while performing on the Astral Artists roster from 2003 to 2013 and completing his training at the Eastman School of Music, where he earned his MM and DMA degrees in 2008 and 2012, and eventually went on to serve as Adjunct Assistant Professor of Saxophone in the fall of 2017. In addition, he served as Associate Lecturer of Saxophone at the University of Wisconsin in Eau Claire, as a saxophonist with the United States Naval Academy Band, and since 2016 as a saxophonist with the United States Army Band “Pershing’s Own.” He is proud to be a co-founder of the Global Premiere Consortium Commissioning Project, an online platform for instigating the composition, dissemination, and performance of new music worldwide.

“As for my time at Eastman, it was magical. For me this was a time of whirlwind intensity of musical and interpersonal connection, as I found the sense of community and tie between music and human relationships to be quite strong there. This felt especially strong – the sense of family – in Dr. Lin’s saxophone studio, and it has been inspiring to watch it continue to grow and develop. Even Dean Rossi found time to listen to, track concerts on, and stay in touch with students like myself. It is a powerful thing to move about in the post-college world, bump into folks that attended the same program, and have such an instant and powerful connection, a trust borne of shared experience and challenges. Finally, this is a place where lots of disparate and isolated skill sets grew and eventually connected, one informing the other: I matriculated behind the curve in music theory, for example, but thanks to Prof. Steve Laitz this topic eventually became a passion woven tightly into the way that I perform and experience music.”

Futaba Niekawa
DMA, 2013

Known for her verve and sensitivity, Japanese pianist Futaba Niekawa pushes the boundaries of her artistry as a soloist and collaborative pianist across genres and disciplines. She has performed throughout the United States, Canada, England, Spain, Taiwan, and Japan and to date has released five recordings (PARMA Recordings, Petrichor Records), and her live performances have been recorded for radio broadcast. 

In demand as a collaborative pianist, Niekawa has performed with Atar Arad, James Campbell, Charles Castleman, Gabriele Ragghianti, and the members of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, among others. She has been engaged as a collaborative pianist at the Banff Centre, New England Conservatory, Meadowmount School of Music, and the IU Summer String Academy. Praised as “a beautifully balanced duo” by Gramophone Magazine, Niekawa’s long-term duo partnership with violinist Kerry DuWors, duo526, has led to numerous performances, recordings, and artist residencies at the Banff Centre and Avaloch Farm Music Institute. Niekawa’s passion for multi-disciplinary collaboration and performing music of her generation have developed into artistic partnerships with composers, dancers, poets, and visual artists. In her leisure time, she improvises.

Niekawa is currently a Lecturer in Music (Chamber and Collaborative Music) at Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music. She earned her Doctorate of Musical Arts degree from the Eastman School of Music. Her dedication to pedagogy, mentoring, and performance practice is shown through workshops at duo526’s annual Sonata Seminar, and invitations as a guest teacher at universities across North America. 

“Having done both undergraduate and doctoral degrees at Eastman (BM 05’ and DMA 13’), almost half of my adult life is indebted to and wonderfully influenced by my time there. I am thankful for the excellent performance standards and high academic expectations, which trained me in the kind of disciplines that I have called upon in the professional world. However, the best takeaway is the open Eastman spirit and its inviting community. I was and still am constantly inspired by my peers with curiosity, humility, and boundless creativity. I have met friends, collaborators, and mentors for life, and I sincerely think of each of their influences in my musical life very often!”

Ian Quinn
PhD, 2004

Ian Quinn is a music theorist studying the cognitive foundations of human music-making, with a particular focus on song. After Eastman he spent time at the University of Chicago’s Department of Music as a postdoc and the University of Oregon’s School of Music as a member of the theory faculty. He joined the Yale faculty in 2004, where he is now Professor and Chair of the Department of Music in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences.

Quinn’s early work with mathematical modeling of equal-tempered pitch structures earned him the Alfred Mann Dissertation Award from Eastman, and later the Emerging Scholar Award and Outstanding Publication Award from the Society for Music Theory. In 2008-09 he spent a year at Stanford as a fellow of the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, where he developed an abiding interest in the symbol systems used in music teaching and learning, and computational approaches to the analysis of notated repertories. With Daniel Shanahan and J. Ashley Burgoyne, he is an editor of the forthcoming Oxford Handbook of Corpus Studies in Music. 

As a past winner of the University of Rochester’s Edward Peck Curtis Award for Excellence in Teaching by a Graduate Student, Quinn is deeply invested in issues of pedagogy and curriculum for music theory. He led a wholesale revision of the undergraduate curriculum for music majors at Yale, and in 2021 launched a new course in the fundamentals of music theory that incorporates both classical and vernacular teaching modalities representing a diverse range of repertories. Outside of the university classroom, he enjoys teaching singing schools for shape-note singing communities across the United States and Europe.  

“When I was graduating from college as a liberal-arts music major and applying to graduate schools, one of my mentors suggested that I should attend a conservatory for graduate school, as a way of becoming deeply immersed in the practice of music. Choosing to come to Eastman for doctoral studies in music theory had a profound impact on my life as a musician and scholar. The opportunity to teach music theory to Eastman’s amazing undergraduates was a centerpiece of my graduate education; we only truly learn something when we have to teach it to gifted students. I have spent the 25 years since my first teaching experience in Old Sibley Library seeking, with occasional success, to recapture the electric atmosphere of that classroom full of talented and intelligent musicians.”

Kevin Michael Holzman
DMA, 2016

Kevin Michael Holzman was recently appointed Director of Wind Studies at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. Holzman received his DMA degree from the Eastman School of Music in 2017, where he studied with Mark Davis Scatterday. A Frederick Fennell Conducting Fellow and 2016 Recipient of the Walter Hagen Prize for Excellence in Conducting, Holzman has had the privilege to worked with professional ensembles including the United States Army Band “Pershing’s Own” and as a cover conductor for the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra. As Director of Wind Studies at the College-Conservatory of Music, Holzman serves as the music director for the CCM Wind Symphony (CCM’s premier large wind ensemble), the CCM Chamber Orchestra, the CCM Chamber Winds, and the CCM Bras Choir. His academic responsibilities include teaching graduate conducting, survey of wind literature and related courses as well as the advising and mentoring of wind conducting students in CCM’s MM and DMA programs.

While at Eastman, Holzman collaborated with David Maslanka and Bert Appermont for the “Celebration of the Symphony” concert with the Eastman Wind Ensemble, Eastman’s first live-streamed large ensemble concert. He regularly appeared as a conductor for OSSIA New Music, including multiple world-premiere performances, and also studied with Neil Varon, Director of Eastman Orchestras. In April 2017, Holzman was appointed conductor for a professional recording of the Music in the American Wild Ensemble, a National Endowment for the Arts grant-funded ensemble consisting of Eastman alumni that commissioned 11 new works in celebration of the 2016 U.S. National Parks Centennial.

“One of the greatest aspects of my time at Eastman is that it prepared me so thoroughly to be successful in any music director position. As a student of Dr. Mark Scatterday and graduate assistant to the Eastman Wind Ensemble, I was fortunate to receive so many incredible opportunities and be given invaluable responsibilities throughout my course of study. The connections I made with peers and professors while at Eastman endure today. The entire Eastman experience (and especially the Eastman Wind Ensemble) continues to serve as a model of excellence for me.”

Baljinder Sekhon
PhD, 2013

The music of Baljinder Sekhon has been presented in over 500 concerts in twenty-six countries. From works for large ensemble to solo works to electronic music, Sekhon’s music demonstrates a wide range of genres and styles. His works have been performed in venues such as Carnegie Hall, Kennedy Center, Seoul Arts Center (Korea), and National Recital Hall (Taiwan). Thirteen commercial recordings of his work have been released, with his most recognized output being his contributions to the percussion and saxophone genres. Alchemy, the second full album of Sekhon’s work, features compositions for saxophone and was released on Innova Recordings on 22 October 2021, with the first album (entitled Places & Times) featuring works for percussion.  

Sekhon currently serves as Assistant Professor of Composition at Penn State University. He holds the PhD and MA from the Eastman School of Music where he is a three-time recipient of the Howard Hanson Orchestral prize, and holds a BM from the University of South Carolina. His numerous appearances as a percussionist include those at the LA Philharmonic’s Green Umbrella Series in Walt Disney Hall, Festival Spazio Musica in Cagliari, Italy, and at the Bang On a Can Marathon in New York City. 

Townsend Plant
DMA, 2008

Townsend Plant has spent over 20 years as an arts administrator, consultant, educator, performer and composer. In 2015 he was appointed Associate Dean for Enrollment Management & Student Life at the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University, where he oversees Admissions, Financial Aid, Registrar and Student Affairs, and is a member of the executive leadership team. He is also an Associate Consultant for Ruffalo Noel Levitz, where he provides consulting to colleges and universities on student recruitment and enrollment management. Prior to Peabody he served as Assistant Dean for Admissions, Summer and Preparatory Programs for the School of Music at Ithaca College, Assistant Provost for Admissions at Binghamton University (SUNY), Director of Admissions and Financial Aid at the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University, Director of Music Admissions and Lecturer in Music at Ithaca College, and Director of the Summer Music Festival & Institute at Hartwick College. Plant has performed widely as a guitar soloist and chamber musician and holds BM and MM degrees from Ithaca College and the DMA from Eastman, where he studied with Nicholas Goluses.

“I had an incredible experience in the DMA program at Eastman. As a full-time professional pursuing the degree, I was fortunate to work with teachers and advisors who were extremely supportive and provided the flexibility I needed to balance both my full-time work and my studies while providing me the opportunity to take advantage of all that the school has to offer. I will be forever grateful for the guidance and support of my teachers, opportunities for exploration, and the rigorous curriculum that challenged me to achieve new heights as a performer, scholar, and educator.”

Daria Rabotkina
DMA, 2012

Born in Kazan, Russia, Daria Rabotkina received her musical education at the Kazan State Conservatory, Mannes College of Music, and the Eastman School of Music under the tutelage of Nora Kazatchkova, Guzel Abdoullina, Sergey Rabotkin, Vladimir Feltsman and Natalya Antonova. Since 2016, Dr. Rabotkina has been an Assistant Professor at the School of Music at Texas State University in San Marcos.

Dr. Rabotkina’s concerto highlights include San Francisco and New World Symphonies, Kirov (Mariinsky) Orchestra, Moscow State and Harrisburg Symphony, Orquesta Sinfonica de Concepción, and Turku Philharmonic Orchestra (Bernstein’s Age of Anxiety). Her orchestral collaborations include conductors Michael Tilson Thomas, Valery Gergiev, Vladimir Feltsman, Julian Kuerti, JoAnn Falletta, Benjamin Shwartz, and Giancarlo Guerrero. Dr. Rabotkina has given recitals at the Kennedy Center and Weill Recital Hall, Ravinia’s Rising Stars, Dame Myra Hess Series, the Moscow Conservatory, and in Denmark, Switzerland, and Japan.

Winner of the 2007 Concert Artists Guild International Competition, Dr. Rabotkina has received top prizes at international competitions and participated in Russia’s White Nights Festival, Finland’s Kuhmo Festival and Copenhagen’s Summer. In the U.S., Dr. Rabotkina has appeared at the Rockport Chamber Music Festival, the International Keyboard Institute, and Festival and PianoSummer at New Paltz.

“Several years after my graduation, the Eastman School is often on my mind. It comes up in conversations with colleagues and students; frequently, I find myself going, or rather, running down memory lane, drawing from the energy and enthusiasm that accompanied my studies, remembering the wonderful people and the thoroughness of the instruction. Doctoral studies were difficult in a reassuring way, because the fact that I was surrounded by a strong group of peers who also had to work very hard to get to the other end, made me feel like I was climbing the right hill. Thank you, Eastman School, for opening many doors and giving me the opportunity to do what I have always wanted, perform and teach. Thank you to my teacher, Natalya Antonova, for opening the Lost and Found box together with me and helping me lose my doubts and find love!”

Johannes Müller Stosch
DMA, 2008

German-born conductor Johannes Müller Stosch serves as conductor of the Bob Cole Conservatory Symphony at California State University, Long Beach as well as Associate Dean for the College of the Arts. In 2017 the Bob Cole Conservatory Symphony played in Germany and the Czech Republic for sold-out venues and toured South Korea in 2013. Stosch also serves as Music Director and Conductor of the Holland Symphony, a professional regional orchestra in West Michigan. During his tenure, the Holland Symphony has seen unprecedented growth in the size and quality of its performances, as well as record numbers of season subscriptions. 

Johannes Müller Stosch keeps an active guest-conducting schedule both internationally and nationally. His most recent engagements include concerts with the Kunming Philharmonic in China, Long Beach Symphony, Eastman School of Music, College-Conservatory of Music in Cincinnati (CCM), UBC Symphony in Vancouver, Canada, and at the University of Oregon in Eugene. In 2009, Stosch was a featured guest conductor with the Busan Sinfonietta in Korea. This concert was broadcast on national TV (KBS).

He has been a frequent guest conductor for new opera productions at CCM, including the main-stage production of Britten’s Owen Wingrave. Previous engagements include Mozart’s Così fan Tutte, the world premiere of Joel Hoffman’s The Memory Game, Dvořák’s Rusalka, and Virgil Thomson’s The Mother Of Us All. 

In Germany, he worked with Hannover’s L’Arco, Bremer Ratsmusik, and Concerto Brandenburg. He also had frequent appearances on organ and harpsichord with the Pacific Symphony in Orange County. Concert tours as a soloist and collaborative artist have taken him throughout the US, Germany, Italy, Korea, Chile, and Japan. Stosch has several commercial recordings to his credit, all of which have been played on public radio.

“My time at Eastman was one of the most important periods of my education. Prof. Neil Varon and the access to the Philharmonia, Eastman Symphony, and conducting-lab orchestras shaped and polished my ideas about conducting and craft of rehearsing tremendously. I enjoyed my classes, especially with Paul O’Dette and Dr. Marie Rolf, who inspired me to expand my view of musical practice and analysis. I was also lucky enough to further my organ study with private lessons with Hans Davidson and seminars with David Higgs. After graduation and a round of auditions, I received four conducting job offers and have enjoyed a privileged career in music since.”

Michael Unger 
DMA, 2013

Originally from Toronto, Michael Unger holds a Doctorate of Musical Arts with Performers’ Certificate from the Eastman School of Music, where he was a student and teaching assistant of David Higgs and William Porter, and recipient of the school’s Jerald C. Graue Musicology Fellowship. He is a multiple award-winning performer who appears as a soloist and chamber musician in North America, Europe, Japan and South Korea. He is a First Prize and Audience Prize winner of the National Young Artists’ Competition of the American Guild of Organists (NYACOP), a First Prize winner of the International Organ Competition Musashino-Tokyo, and a Second Prize and Audience Award winner of the International Schnitger Organ Competition on the historic organs of Alkmaar, the Netherlands. Recent solo recitals include performances for national conventions of the American Guild of Organists, Organ Historical Society and Historical Keyboard Society of North America, ‘Five Continents – Five Organists’ Festival at Seoul’s Sejong Center, Internationale Orgelwoche Nürnberg – Musica Sacra, and numerous international and regional recital series. Recent harpsichord collaborations include Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Cincinnati Opera, Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra, Collegium Cincinnati, Catacoustic Consort, and Publick Musick. He received favorable international reviews for his debut solo recordings under the Naxos and Pro Organo labels, and his performances have been broadcast on North American and European radio, including syndicated programs Pipedreams and With Heart and Voice. He was a guest faculty at the 2015 and 2016 Smarano International Academies in Trentino, Italy, the 2019 Colorado State University Organ Week, and has given masterclasses at several North American universities and conservatories. He is Associate Professor of Organ and Harpsichord at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, and also serves as organist of Cincinnati’s historic Isaac M. Wise – Plum Street Temple.