March 21, 2009
Bravura Philharmonic Chamber Concert

"Piano and Winds for Springtime"

Featuring
Sylvie Webb, Piano
Chiu-Ling Lin, Piano
Barbara Williams, Flute
Melissa Bohl, Oboe
Deborah Gers, Clarinet
Christopher Hansel & Ron Sverdlove, Horn
Elizabeth Randolph & Edward Ziegman, Bassoon

Program
Beethoven Quintet for Piano and Winds
Rimsky-Korsakov Quintet for Piano and Winds
Grieg Norwegian Dances Piano Duet
 

Return to 2008-09 Season

Sylvie Webb, pianist, is a recipient of a Gold Medal from the Conservatoire National de St Germain-en-Laye, a Prix d'Excellence from the Conservatoire of Montes, and a First Prize from the Union des Conservatoires des Hauts-de-Seine. She moved from France to the United States in 1986, and pursued a solo and chamber music career in the tri-state area.  Mrs. Webb’s solo performances include appearances with the Manalapan Battleground Symphony, Princeton Symphony Orchestra and Westminster Community Orchestra in Princeton. In 2007, Mrs. Webb made her China solo debut in the Shanghai Grand Theater. She has adjudicated for organizations such as NJMTA, the Steinway Society of Princeton and the Cecilian Music Club. She has been on the Faculty of Westminster Conservatory of the Rider University, and maintains an active studio in her Princeton home.

Melissa Bohl is the principal oboist of the Bravura Philharmonic Orchestra, Greater Trenton Symphony Orchestra, the Edison Symphony Orchestra, and the American Repertory Ballet Orchestra, and performs regularly with many other area musical organizations, including the Delaware Valley Philharmonic, Garden State Philharmonic, and the Orchestra of St. Peter by the Sea. She teaches oboe at the Lawrenceville School and at Westminster Conservatory, where she is also head of the Wind Department, conducts the Stuart-Westminster Instrumental Ensemble, and manages the series Westminster Conservatory at Nassau, the Kaleidoscope Chamber Series, and Gallery Concerts. Ms. Bohl has degrees in music from the Eastman School of Music, the University of Notre Dame, and Princeton University. 

Clarinetist Deborah Gers received her M.M. from the University of Cincinnati Conservatory of Music. She was also a student of the late Joe Allard, and she won her first orchestral position at the age of 19. Ms. Gers has performed and recorded with such groups as the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, Network for New Music, Lexington Philharmonic, West Virginia Symphony, and Delaware Valley Philharmonic. Ms. Gers is Principal Clarinetist of the Bravura Philharmonic Orchestra. She has performed with artists such as Dave Brubeck, Henry Mancini, Dinah Shore, Mitch Miller, Gunther Schuller, and Michael Gielen. An active chamber player, Ms. Gers has performed and taught extensively in the Pennsylvania/New Jersey region. She has a private studio in Flemington, NJ, with her students selected to All-State Bands in Ohio, Kentucky, Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

Christopher M. Hansel,  horn, studied with Douglas Lundeen in the Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers. Mr. Hensel is the principal horn player for the Bravura Philharmonic Orchestra.  

Pianist Chiu-Ling Lin, a former US Artistic Ambassador, has performed before enthusiastic audiences around the world. Dr. Lin has appeared as a soloist in  Carnegie Recital Hall, and soloed with fourteen orchestras in the US and abroad.  Dr. Lin  has collaborated with world-renowned artists such as Marina Piccinini, Marcos Granados, and Ignat Solzhenitsyn. She is the Bravura Philharmonic Orchestra Board President, New Jersey Music Teachers Association President-elect, and Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music Tri-State Representative.

Elizabeth Randolph studied bassoon with Mark Popkin at the North Carolina School of the Arts, where she earned a Bachelor of Music Degree. She also studied with Loren Glickman, and received a Master’s Degree from Queens College. She has performed at the Casals Festival with both of her teachers. Ms. Randolph has been a freelance artist in NYC, where she also worked for Herbert Barrett Management. Currently, she plays with Bravura Philharmonic Orchestra  and the Eastern Wind Symphony. Ms. Randolph teaches Ancient History to 6th graders at the Community Middle School in Plainsboro. She lives in Allentown, NJ, where she raised her daughter and continues to enjoy working with horses. 

Ronald Sverdlove, horn received his M.A. in music composition from Stanford University. He studied horn with Earl Saxton and Jane Richter. He is currently a member of the Bravura Philharmonic Orchestra, Delaware Valley Philharmonic Orchestra and principal horn of the Central Jersey Wind Ensemble. Ron is Assistant Professor of Finance in the School of Management at the New Jersey Institute of Technology. 

Barbara Highton Williams, principal flutist of the Bravura Philharmonic Orchestra, received a bachelor of arts degree in music with honors from Principia College. She has performed on both coasts of the United States as well as in France. A former member of the San Jose Wind Symphony and Blawenburg Band, she played under the batons of Darrell Johnston, Jerry Rife, and Frederick Fennell. In recent years, Ms. Williams has performed with orchestras in central New Jersey, including the Westminster Bach Festival Orchestra under Andrew Megill. She is a founding member of the Volanti Flute Quartet, and appears frequently in chamber music programs in the Princeton area. In recital, she has collaborated with pianists Brad Clark, Donald Dolan, James Goldsworthy, and Marianne Lauffer. She teaches flute and chamber music at the Westminster Conservatory in Princeton. Her principal teachers were composer Reinhart Ross and flutists Thomas Perazzoli, Jacob Berg, Frances Blaisdell, and Jayn Rosenfeld. 

Edward Ziegman began his bassoon studies in New York City with Roberto Sensale. Ziegman received Bachelor’s and Master’s Degree from the Manhattan School of Music in Bassoon Performance,  where he was a student of Stephen Maxym. He also studied with Frank Ruggieri. Mr. Ziegman has been active as a freelance player in New York City and the tri-state area for many years. He has performed with the Opera Orchestra of New York, as first bassoonist with the Royal Danish Ballet appearing at Lincoln Center, and with the national tour of “Jesus Christ Superstar.” He has also played in the Hamilton Philharmonic of Canada. Ziegman’s music experience includes being a member of the Concertante Wind Quintet, L'Arema Trio, and the Prevailing Winds. He was first bassoon with the Independence Sinfonia in  suburban Philadelphia.