GUEST ARTIST RECITAL: IMANI WINDS

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

BRANDON PATRICK GEORGE, FLUTE | New York-based flutist Brandon Patrick George has appeared with many of the world’s leading ensembles, including the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, and the International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE). He has performed at Alice Tully Hall, Cité de la Musique, The Kennedy Center, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and is a frequent recital artist at Bargemusic in New York. An avid chamber musician, Brandon has collaborated with members of the New York Philharmonic, the Jasper String Quartet, and has performed live on New York's WQXR with harpist Bridget Kibbey.

With the LA Phil, Brandon has performed at Walt Disney Concert Hall, and at the Hollywood Bowl, under conductors Gustavo Dudamel, Karina Canellakis, and Ludovic Morlot. George has toured the U.S. and Europe with ICE, appearing at the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM), the Museum of Contemporary Art (Chicago), the Park Avenue Armory (NYC), and the Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival in England. His live performances with ICE have been heard worldwide on BBC Radio 3. Brandon's debut album featuring works by Aho, Bach, Boulez, and Prokofiev will be released by Hänssler Classic this autumn.

George is a graduate of the Oberlin Conservatory of Music at Oberlin College. He received his Master of Music degree from the Manhattan School of Music, and won the Manhattan School of Music's Concerto Competition. At the invitation of Sophie Cherrier, Brandon continued his studies in France at the Conservatoire de Paris (Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris).

TOYIN SPELLMAN-DIAZ, OBOE | Oboist Toyin Spellman-Diaz grew up surrounded by her parents’ enormous record collection in Washington, DC. It was there that she absorbed the many layers of classical music’s beauty and the inspiring and uniting potential of the world’s diverse cultural landscape. 

Spellman-Diaz earned her Bachelor’s of Music degree from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music and her Master’s and Professional Studies degrees at the Manhattan School of Music. Her orchestral career includes performances with the New York Philharmonic, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Chicago Civic Orchestra, Orchestra of St. Luke’s and the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra. 

Hailed by the Washington Post for her “smooth, controlled tone and excellent technique,” Spellman-Diaz has performed concertos with the Chicago Civic Orchestra, Manhattan Virtuosi, and with the Kennedy Center Youth Orchestra. 

An original member of Imani Winds, Spellman-Diaz has built her career as a champion of contemporary chamber music. Along with her Imani Winds colleagues, she is devoted to discovering new and diverse musical voices and cultures to increase and enhance the woodwind quintet repertoire. She has also collaborated with some of today’s most influential chamber music ensembles, including Alarm Will Sound, the Antara Ensemble and Camerata Pacifica. Spellman-Diaz teaches at Brooklyn College and NYU Steinhardt School of Music, and currently serves on the Board of Directors of the American Composers Orchestra. 

KEVIN NEWTON, FRENCH HORN | Kevin Newton is the newest member of the GRAMMY-nominated wind quintet, Imani Winds. A native of South Boston, Virginia, he is a horn player and educator based in Manhattan. His first music teacher, his mother, instilled in him a love of music-making’s collaborative spirit.

As a chamber musician, he has performed with Orchestra of St. Luke’s, Metropolitan Horn Authority, Roomful of Teeth, and Tredici Bacci, among other ensembles. He has appeared professionally on the stages of Carnegie Hall, The Kennedy Center, the DiMenna Center for Classical Music, and National Sawdust.

An advocate for new music, Newton collaborated with composer Erin Busch to premiere a solo work as a part of the Contemporary Performance Institute at the Composers Conference in 2020. He is involved with several commissions set to premiere in the 2021–22 season. Newton formerly served as principal horn of the Waynesboro Symphony and, as an orchestral soloist, he has performed works by Gordon Jacob, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and Franz Strauss.

Newton enjoys a busy recording schedule and has recently recorded with Tredici Bacci, Metropolitan Horn Authority, Tex Crick, and Sami Stevens, as well as for commercial projects. He is currently pursuing a Doctor of Musical Arts degree at Stony Brook University. He holds a Master of Music degree in orchestral performance from Manhattan School of Music and a Bachelor of Music degree from Virginia Commonwealth University. He is a regular participant at Yellow Barn in Vermont.

Newton joined the faculty of the Curtis Institute of Music in 2021. He is also on the horn faculty of Manhattan School of Music’s Precollege division and MSM Summer.

MARK DOVER, CLARINET | Clarinetist Mark Dover is a man of many horns, always striving to have his feet in as many different genres as he can.  While always maintaining firm roots in classical music, he’s also devoted his career to searching as deep as he can into the vast world of improvised music.

Born in Ann Arbor, Michigan, Dover was privileged to grow up in a town with a strong commitment to arts education, with parents who were passionate about the arts.

In addition to performing with Imani Winds, his orchestral appearances include performances with the Detroit Symphony conducted by Leonard Slatkin, the Cleveland Orchestra with David Zinman, the Blossom Music Festival Orchestra and regular performances with the New World Symphony in Miami Beach.

Dover is on the clarinet faculty at Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University. He’s conducted master classes at numerous academic institutions throughout the country, including the University of Michigan, the Manhattan School of Music and the University of South Carolina.

MONICA ELLIS, BASSOON | Bassoonist Monica Ellis is a founding member of the Grammy-nominated wind quintet, Imani Winds, who in their 24th season, continues to make ground-breaking art while maintaining a vigorous international touring schedule. 

Ellis’ strong work ethic was instilled early on from her mother and father, the late jazz saxophonist, Clarence Oden. As the administrative director & tour manager for Imani Winds, and Co-Artistic Director for the Imani Winds Chamber Music Festival, she has a fulfilling leadership role within group. 

A self-proclaimed “band kid” growing up in her beloved city of Pittsburgh, Ellis played clarinet, saxophone and piano. After being introduced to the bassoon in middle school, she realized its potential and beauty by studying with Mark Pancerev, of the Pittsburgh Symphony. Ellis went on to receive her Bachelor of Music degree from Oberlin College Conservatory of Music, studying with George Sakakeeny. While at Oberlin, her desire to connect with others flourished through her participation in the Panama Project – a month-long camp for young Panamanian students. She received her Master of Music degree from The Juilliard School and Professional Studies Certificate from Manhattan School of Music in the Orchestral Performance Program, studying with Frank Morelli at both institutions. 

Imani Winds formed in 1997, when Ellis along with the four other original members, realized that such a group could fill a significant void in the chamber music world. Imani Winds performs relevant and culturally significant music from the last 100 years and the next 100 years and are role models to all, but especially to the community of African-American classical wind players. 

Recording credits include 8 albums with Imani Winds (Bright Shiny Things, Koch International Classics, EOne and EMI Classics). She can also be heard on the following: Edward Simon – Sorrows and Triumphs, Chick Corea - The Continents, Wayne Shorter Quartet - Without a Net, Mohammed Fairouz - Native Informant, Jeff Scott - Urban Classical Music Project, Brubeck Brothers Quartet - Classified, Steve Coleman – Ascension to Light and Perspectives Ensemble - Montsalvatge Mardrigal. 

For over 20 years, Ellis has enjoyed an active freelance career. She has performed with diverse organizations such as the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Absolute Ensemble, Bard Music Festival, Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra, Perspectives Ensemble, and Alvin Ailey Dance Theatre, to name a few. She has also soloed with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. 

A passionate teacher, she is on the faculty of the Manhattan School of Music and has been a visiting professor or on the faculty at the University of Chicago, The Hartt School (CT), SUNY Purchase and Brooklyn College Conservatory of Music, the Mannes School of Music and The Juilliard School's Music Advancement Program. Also, a renowned clinician, she has given master classes and solo recital performances across the country. 

Ellis is a frequent commentator on discussions dealing with critical issues of race, gender and entrepreneurship in classical music and serves on the advisory boards for Orchestra of St. Luke’s Education Committee, Meg Quigley Vivaldi Competition & Symposium for Women Bassoonists of the Americas, IDRS Commissioning Committee, and is a board member of Concert Artists Guild. 

Monica religiously watches Jeopardy!, loves home decorating and resides in the historic village of Harlem in New York City with the greatest joy of her life - her 7-year-old son, Oden.

ABOUT ABYSSINIAN BAPTIST CHURCH