Faculty

Lori Akins, Adjunct Instructor

Lori Akins is principal flutist with the Springfield Symphony, and she plays with the Ohio Valley Symphony and the Columbus Symphony. She performs frequently as a recitalist and freelance flutist in the central Ohio area. Ms. Akins is Secretary of the National Flute Association, having previously served as General Competitions Coordinator. She is an active flute clinician and adjudicator and maintains an extensive flute studio. She received a Bachelor of Music Education degree and a Master of Music degree in flute performance from Ohio State. Ms. Akins joined the Wittenberg faculty in 1982. lakins@wittenberg.edu

Colvin Bear, Adjunct Instructor

Colvin Bear has been a member of the Springfield Symphony since 1973 and he has performed with the Lima Symphony, Dayton Philharmonic, the Springfield Concert Band, the Springfield Summer Arts Festival, and numerous other musical organizations. His horn teachers have included Charles Waddell, Herbert Spencer, Robert Bayless, Mason Jones, Herbert Pierson, and Ward Fearn. Mr. Bear’s interests are wide ranging, and he is currently employed by the Northeastern Local School District of Clark County, where he teaches eighth-grade history. He lives in a geodesic dome house of his own design, where he resides with his wife. He holds a Bachelor of Music Education degree from the College of Wooster, where he graduated with honors, and a Master of Music in horn from Bowling Green State University, where he was a member of Pi Kappa Lambda. He began teaching at Wittenberg in the fall of 1983. cbear@wittenberg.edu

Lloyd Bryant

Lloyd Bryant began his career in radio while in high school as a part-time announcer, and has been involved in broadcasting ever since. He entered the field of recording engineering and audio production after serving in the United States Air Force. Mr. Bryant is chief engineer and producer for the radio broadcasts of the Dayton Philharmonic and the Springfield Symphony Orchestra. He has worked as narrator and fundraising host on Dayton Public Television and now serves as announcer on two public radio stations, WGUC in Cincinnati and WDPR in Dayton. Lloyd holds bachelors and masters degrees in electrical engineering from Georgia Tech University.

Donald Busarow, Professor

Donald Busarow is a noted composer of church music and a concert organist. He has published more than 50 choral works, including several wedding solos, 100 compositions for the organ, and four volumes of works for organ and instruments. He has written a sacred opera, and his setting of John Donne’s poem “Death Be Not Proud,” written for soprano, horn, and piano, won first prize in the International Horn Competition. An organ consultant, designer, and performer, he annually gives organ recitals throughout the country and is in frequent demand as a choral and organ clinician in church music workshops. Since 1976, Dr. Busarow has held positions as Director of Music at churches in Michigan, Wisconsin, and Ohio (including St. Matthew’s Lutheran Church in Dayton). He regularly presents papers at professional meetings on topics such as “The Organist and the Hymn,” “The Organ in Worship,” and “Improvisation for the Church Organist.” Busarow received a BS degree from Concordia Teachers College, a Master of Music degree from the Cleveland Institute of Music, and a Ph.D. from Michigan State University. He came to Wittenberg in 1975. dbusarow@wittenberg.edu

Bryan Crisp, Adjunct Instructor

Bryan Crisp has toured the United States extensively as a soloist and educator. As a member of Mr. Jack Daniel’s Original Silver Cornet Band and Tim Zimmerman and the King’s Brass, Bryan has performed as soloist in more than three dozen states, including appearances at the International Trumpet Guild Conference, Great American Brass Band Festival, Sacramento Jazz Jubilee, Mammoth Lakes Jazz Festival, Medford Jazz Festival, and Sun Valley Jazz Jamboree. Bryan has been a winner of the National Trumpet Competition (brass quintet division) and Tennessee Trumpet Competition (solo and duet divisions), and a recipient of the International Trumpet Guild’s 2001 Blackburn Scholarship. Mr. Crisp has performed with the Dayton Philharmonic, the Cincinnati, Nashville, Middletown, Kentucky, and Richmond Symphonies. He is currently a member of the Cincinnati Ballet Orchestra. Bryan has also performed with the Cincinnati Brass Band and the Broadway show Peter Pan starring Cathy Rigby, and he was lead trumpet at the Cumberland County Playhouse in Crossville, Tenn.

Bryan has taught trumpet at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and at the Tennessee Governor’s School for the Arts. For two years, he was Assistant Band Director at Cumberland County High School and Director of Bands at North Cumberland Elementary School. Bryan has also taught at several high schools in Tennessee, Kentucky, Indiana, and Ohio. He holds undergraduate degrees in music education and music performance from Tennessee Technological University and a masters degree from the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, where he is now working on a Doctor of Musical Arts degree. Bryan can be heard on five recordings, including Classic Hymns, available on Summit Records. He came to Wittenberg in 2007. bcrisp@wittenberg.edu

Lesa DeBorde, Adjunct Instructor

Lesa DeBorde teaches violin and viola performance. She has served as principal second violinist of the Springfield Symphony since 1998. She currently teaches 50 private students throughout central Ohio, many through Wittenberg’s Center for Musical Development. In February 2004 she appeared as soloist with the Springfield Symphony in Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 5, and since 1998 she has served as second violin with the SSO String Quartet. She has also performed with the Dayton Philharmonic, the Ohio Valley Symphony, the Southern Ohio Light Opera, and the Huntington Symphony. For several years DeBorde has served as string coach for the Springfield Youth Symphony. She holds a Bachelor of Music degree from Ohio University, where she graduated with top honors as a student of Howard Beebe. Lesa came to Wittenberg in 2003. lpolley@wittenberg.edu

Peng-Hsin Chen, Adjunct Instructor

Peng-Hsin Chen has been involved in piano pedagogy for more than two decades and has been active as a composer. She received a Master of Music degree in piano performance from the University of Southern California and completed their advanced studies in Scoring for Motion Pictures and Television. She has received commissions for compositions from many festivals nationwide, and her music has been performed in New York, Los Angeles, Seattle, San Antonio, and Taiwan’s National Music Hall. Her work includes a wide variety of genres including music for animation, commercial film, cinema, and dance. Ms. Chen joined the Wittenberg faculty in 2003. pchen@wittenberg.edu

Christopher Durrenberger, Associate Professor

Christopher Durrenberger has received top prizes at major national and international competitions, including the Coleman and Carmel Chamber Music Competitions, the Los Angeles Etude Musical Club Piano Competition, the Young Keyboard Artists Association International Piano Competition, and the National Music Teachers Association National Piano Competition. He was selected to pilot a National Endowment for the Arts residency, “Chamber Music in Rural America,” which led to hundreds of performances, live broadcasts on National Public Radio, a featured spot on ABC World News Tonight with Peter Jennings, and a performance for the National Council in Washington, D.C.

Solo, concerto, and collaborative engagements have taken Dr. Durrenberger throughout the world, including the Sarasota and Aspen Music Festivals, the Cairo Opera House, and the Taipei National Hall. His teachers and mentors have included Denise Restout, Julian Martin, Leon Fleisher, Yohevid Kaplinsky, John Perry, Robert Levin, and James Bonn. A frequent contributor to Piano & Keyboard magazine, his publications include reviews of hybrid electronic keyboards and articles on piano technology and repertoire. Durrenberger has been a frequent presenter for the World Piano Pedagogy Conferences (Orlando, Las Vegas and Anaheim), and the Music Teachers National Association. Dr Durrenberger has held teaching positions in the U.S. and abroad, including at Colorado Mountain College, Irvine Valley College, and Taipei City Municipal Teachers College. He earned a Bachelor of Music degree at Oberlin College and a masters and D.M.A. with honors (Pi Kappa Lambda) from the University of Southern California School of Music and joined the Wittenberg faculty in 1999. cdurrenberger@wittenberg.edu

Trudy Faber, Professor

Trudy Faber received Wittenberg’s 1998 Distinguished Teaching Award. She has performed on organ and harpsichord throughout the U.S. and Europe, including the All Saints Day recital at the Lutheran Theological Seminary (Columbia, South Carolina), the Distinguished Organists Recital Series at the U.S. Military Academy (West Point), at the United States Air Force Academy (Colorado Springs), with the Springfield Symphony Orchestra, as a recitalist for the national convention of the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians (Minneapolis), on the Carl Barckhoff organ at First Congregational Church of Deer Isle (Stonington, Maine), and organ recitals at Abbey Church (Mt. Angel Abbey, Oregon) for the annual Mt. Angel Abbey Bach Festival. She has performed at women’s music conferences in Pennsylvania, Virginia, Ohio, and California, including a harpsichord lecture-recital entitled “Five Centuries of Keyboard Music by Women Composers” at the Fifth International Festival of Women Composers at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. She has presented organ recitals in the Netherlands, music worship services in Germany (including the Nicolaikirche, Leipzig, where J.S. Bach was cantor), and recitals at Coventry Cathedral and St. Paul’s Cathedral, London. For many years she has given pre-concert lectures for the Springfield Symphony Orchestra concerts; and she has taught in England at Exeter University. Faber has presented papers and lectures on Bach and Baroque dance for the international conference of the 18th-Century Historical Society (Charleston, South Carolina), national convention of American Lutheran Church Musicians (Minneapolis), American Guild of Organists Convention in (Chicago), and international conference on J.S. Bach (Hofstra University). She presented two lecture/demonstrations on “Bach and the Dance” at a conference of the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians.

A Certified Church Musician, serving as organist at Covenant Presbyterian Church, Springfield, she has presented numerous recitals to dedicate church organs, has accompanied the Wittenberg Choir and other large choral groups in oratorio concerts, has accompanied sacred operas and other musical productions throughout the area, and has made a recording of organ music. After graduating from Calvin College, she received a Fulbright scholarship to study organ and harpsichord at the Amsterdam Conservatory with Gustav Leonardt. She did graduate work at the University of Toronto and studied harpsichord at the Royal Conservatory of Music, Toronto, under Greta Kraus. She received an MA degree from Smith College. She also attended the international Organ Concours in Haarlem (in the Netherlands), studying organ under Anton Heiller and harpsichord under Kenneth Gilbert. Faber came to Wittenberg as a part-time instructor in 1966 and joined the faculty in 1970, serving as Department Chair from 1995 to 2004. tfaber@wittenberg.edu

Basil Fett, Adjunct Instructor

Basil Fett conducts the choirs at Wayne High School in Huber Heights, Ohio, is Music Director at Springfield’s Covenant Presbyterian Church, and is assistant conductor for Choral Arts of Springfield. He has worked as a church soloist and performed in numerous cantatas, oratorios, and musicals throughout Ohio. For many years, Basil was involved as both conductor and performer in Coventry Green, an eight-voice vocal ensemble that recorded several CDs. He holds a Bachelor of Music Education degree from Miami University and a Master of Music in Choral Conducting from Bowling Green State University. Fett came to Wittenberg in 1996. bfett@wittenberg.edu

Lisa Grove, Adjunct Instructor

Lisa Grove is principal oboist with the Springfield Symphony Orchestra and a member of the Symphony’s Woodwind Quintet. She has performed in orchestras throughout Ohio and Pennsylvania, including the Columbus Symphony, the ProMusica Chamber Orchestra, and the Carnegie Mellon Philharmonic, performing in such venues as Symphony Hall in Boston and Carnegie Hall in New York. Lisa has served as Double Reed Specialist for the Columbus School District. She received bachelors degrees in both music education and performance at Ohio State and a masters degree at Carnegie Mellon University. Lisa began teaching at Wittenberg in fall 2006. lgrove@wittenberg.edu

Joseph Hesseman, Adjunct Instructor

After graduating from the U.S. Armed Forces School of Music in Norfolk, Virginia, Joseph Hesseman served as principal bassoonist with the 298th Army Band in Berlin (1977-1979). As a member of the United States Air Force, stationed at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (near Dayton), he served as Woodwind Section Supervisor of the Air Force Band of Flight. Hesseman made six recordings with Air Force personnel, including the CD Blue Skies, on which he plays with Huffman Prairie Winds. He has performed in professional orchestras and bands for over 30 years, including the Cleveland Pops, Cincinnati Pops, Dayton Philharmonic, Dayton Bach Society, Dayton Philharmonic Concert Band, Springfield Concert Band, numerous US Army and Air Force Bands, and 26 years as bassoonist with the Springfield Symphony Orchestra. Mr. Hesseman has presented world premieres of ten compositions and has recorded these on seven different CDs. He studied bassoon at Wright State University with Theodore Atsalis and in Germay with Bert Corderman. Hesseman has a long record as an educator. For fourteen consecutive years, his bassoon students have won superior ratings at OMEA Solo and Ensemble Adjudicated Events. He has served as a faculty member at the Kaleidoscope Orchestra Camp, coached at the Springfield Youth Symphony retreats, and taught general music at St. Theresa Local School in Springfield, Ohio. Hesseman is currently a music instructor in the Centerville (Ohio) School District. He Hesseman joined the Wittenberg University faculty in 1997. jhesseman@wittenberg.edu

Brandon Jones, Assistant Professor and Coordinator of Instrumental Music

Before Wittenberg, Dr. Jones held the position of Conductor and Music Director of the Cincinnati Youth Wind Ensemble, and he has appeared as guest conductor with the Miami University Wind Ensemble and Xavier University Symphonic Wind Ensemble. As a graduate conducting associate at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, he regularly conducted the CCM Wind Symphony, Symphony Band, Chamber Winds, Chamber Players, and Brass Choir. Brandon taught band at the junior high school and high school levels in the Princeton City School District and continues to be an active clinician and guest conductor for area schools. He holds professional memberships in the College Band Directors National Association, Ohio Private College Instrumental Conductors Association, Music Educators National Conference, and Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity. He was Co-Chair of the 2008 Ohio Music Educators Association State Professional Development Conference in Cincinnati, the third largest conference of its kind in the nation. Dr. Jones received a Bachelor of Music degree in Music Education from Miami University (where he studied conducting with Gary Speck. He received Master of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees in Wind Conducting from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music as a student of Rodney Winther. He lives in Mason, Ohio with his wife Stephanie, an accomplished strings specialist and orchestra director in the Mason City School District. Dr. Jones joined the Wittenberg music faculty in 2006. bjones@wittenberg.edu

Daniel Kazez, Professor

Daniel Kazez has performed recitals in many of the musical capitals of Europe, including London (the Manor House and Sternberg Centre), Paris (Temple Victoire), Brussels (Cercle Ben Gurion), Salzburg (Chabad House), and Cardiff, Wales (Penylan House). His Paris and Florence debuts, in 1995, earned him standing ovations, and he performed to a standing-room-only audience at Rome’s Il Pitigliani. He has performed at international music festivals in Berlin, Prague, and India. In 1999 Kazez presented a concert tour in Eastern Europe, with performances in the Czech Republic (Congress Hall, Prague; Jesuit Hall, Český Krumlov), Poland (Herbst Palace, Łódź; Ośrodek Promocji Kultury, Częstochowa; Centrum Kultury Żydowskiej, Cracow), and Hungary (Bálint Zsidó Közösségi Ház, Budapest). Kazez’s first performances in Africa, in 1998, were in Casablanca (Abbon al Abdullah) and in Morocco’s three “imperial cities”: at the Royal University Moulay Ismaïl in Meknes, the National Conservatory of Music in Marrakesh, and at the Centre Maïmonides in Fez (as part of Morocco’s thirty-seventh national Fête de Trône celebration). Kazez has performed and lectured in Bangkok and northern Thailand and has recorded with the Bombay Film Orchestra (Hum Ko Deewana Kar Gaye, 2005).

Dr. Kazez is the author of more than a dozen scholarly articles on music theory, pedagogy, and performance, a dozen editions of music (mostly English and Italian Baroque, with publishers Alfred, Presser, Southern, Ludwig, and MMB), and two books. Rhythm Reading: Elementary Through Advanced Training (W.W. Norton, 2nd ed.) is the most widely used rhythm textbook in the U.S. Kazez has given talks at twenty-five leading U.S. music schools, including the Manhattan School of Music and the University of Texas. In 1997 he traveled to India, where he conducted research in classical Indian music and gave a series of 14 lectures and performances, including appearances in Bombay (Indian Institute of Technology and the Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research), Madras (a one-week residency at the School of the Krishnamurti Foundation in Madras), and Pune (1997 Kala Chhaya Festival). As editor and principal contributor, Kazez published Imprints of India: A Brief Guide to Indian Music, Dance, and the Visual Arts (Aronoff Center), commissioned by the 1996 Cincinnati Performing Arts Festival of India, at which he was the keynote speaker. Kazez has conducted research in Java and Bali (gamelan music, dance, and shadow puppet theater) and in Turkey and Greece (urban folk music). Kazez’s activities have been supported by grants from the Lilly Foundation, the Wray Foundation, and the Ohio Arts Council. He was the recipient of the 1996 Matthies Award and a 1996-1997 University of Chicago/Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Fellowship. Kazez earned a Bachelor of Music degree at Oberlin Conservatory, Master of Music at Peabody Conservatory (Johns Hopkins), and D.M.A. at the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor. He joined the Wittenberg faculty in 1986. dkazez@wittenberg.edu

Lee Merrill, Adjunct Instructor

Lee Merrill has appeared throughout the country in leading opera and musical theatre roles. On the musical stage, her co-stars have included Frank Langella, Noel Harrison, and Eddie Bracken. Variety magazine described Merrill’s voice as “dazzling” and the Houston Chronicle proclaimed it an instrument of “spine-tingling beauty.” An alumna of the Houston Opera Studio, she has performed extensively with the Houston Grand Opera in roles ranging from Papagena in the Frank Corsaro/Maurice Sendak production of Mozart’s Magic Flute to Johanna in Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd (directed by Hal Prince). At Houston’s prestigious Alley Theater she created the role of Lady Beaconsfeld in the Broadway hit Jekyll and Hyde, and her dramatic credits there include Phoebe in As You Like It and Peggy in Front Page. Merrill’s other musical theater roles include Fiona in Brigadoon for Papermill Playhouse (N.J.), for Houston’s Theater Under the Stars, and for Seattle’s Fifth Avenue Theater; Sarah Brown in Guys and Dolls at North Shore Music Theater (Mass.); Laurey in Oklahoma! at the Ordway Theater (Minn.) and at the Sacramento Light Opera; Marian in The Music Man at the Fifth Avenue Theater and at Theater Under the Stars; and Minnie Fay in a production of Hello, Dolly! at Theater Under the Stars. The New York Times wrote of Merrill’s performance of the classic musical Brigadoon: “the second-act duet ‘From This Day On,’ a soaring ballad, is the score’s romantic peak, ardently sung by Joseph Mahowald and Lee Merrill.” As a concert artist, Lee Merrill has been featured with the St. Louis Symphony, the Houston Symphony, the Dayton Philharmonic, and the Columbus Symphony. In 1989 opera star Beverly Sills presented her with the Spirit of the American Woman Award in Opera for her contributions to the arts. Merrill holds a BA from the College of Wooster. She came to Wittenberg in 1996. lhapner@wittenberg.edu

Susan Musselman, Adjunct Instructor

Susan Musselman holds a Bachelor of Music degree from Western Michigan University and a masters and D.M.A. from Ohio State. She has performed as soloist in such major works as Handel’s Messiah, Poulenc’s Gloria, Beethoven’s Mass in C, and Mozart’s Requiem. Musselman has performed the title role in Floyd’s Susannah, Leila in Bizet’s Les pêcheurs de perles (The Pearl Fishers), Lady with a Cake Box in Argento’s Postcard from Morocco, Mrs. Nordstrom in Sondheim’s A Little Night Music, and Laurey in the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical Oklahoma. With Opera Columbus, she has performed in the chorus for Die Fledermaus, Die Zauberflöte, Camelot, and H.M.S. Pinafore. She was a member of Opera Columbus’s Education and Outreach program in 2003 and 2004, performing the role of Despina Pig in The Three Little Pigs (a touring children’s opera). smusselman@wittenberg.edu

Timothy Olt, Adjunct Instructor

Tim Olt earned a Bachelor of Music Education degree at Wright State in 1996 and a masters degree in tuba performance at Miami University (Oxford, Ohio) in 2002, studying with Michael Thornton. Olt was Visiting Assistant Professor of Tuba and Euphonium at Bowling Green State University from 2003 to May of 2007, and he has also taught in the Versailles Exempted Schools (Versailles, Ohio), at Adrian College (Michigan), and at Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp (Twin Lake, Michigan), where he continues to teach tuba and perform in the faculty brass quintet and serve as principal tubist for the Festival Band and Orchestra. Tim regularly performs with the professional tuba quartet All the King’s Tubas, with the Glass City Brass Quintet and Queen City Brass Quintet, and as principal tubist of the Lima Symphony Orchestra. In addition, he has performed with the Cincinnati Opera Orchestra, Cincinnati Symphony, Cincinnati Pops, Toledo Symphony, and Tallahassee Symphony, as well as orchestras throughout Ohio, Indiana, Michigan and Kentucky. Mr. Olt is active as a composer and arranger for groups such as the Encore Brass, All the King’s Tubas, Miami University Brass Choir, Florida State Tuba Ensemble, and the Lima Symphony. His arrangements are available through Cimarron Music Press and Tuba-Euphonium Press. Tim joined the music faculty in the fall of 2007. He also serves as Personnel Manager for the Springfield Symphony. tolt@wittenberg.edu

Lawrence Pitzer, Adjunct Instructor

Lawrence Pitzer has studied guitar with Ramon Estrada, Miguel Alboniz, and Jeffery Van, and has attended lute master classes with Paul O’Dette and Ronn McFarlane. He has also studied recorder and early music with Shelly Gruskin and Scott Reis. Pitzer performed with the Hyland Ensemble from 1985 to 1993 and currently performs with Wind in the Woods, an early music ensemble. He holds a BFA degree from Miami University. From 1972 to 1985 he taught guitar at Wright State University and since 1985 has served on the faculty of Cedarville University. Lawrence Pitzer began teaching guitar at Wittenberg in the fall of 1971. lpitzer@wittenberg.edu

David Schubert, Professor

Baritone David Schubert holds degrees from Baldwin-Wallace College and Boston University and a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Oklahoma. As a soloist, he has performed in oratorios and has sung major roles in several operas, including Faust, Don Giovanni, The Mikado, Street Scenes, and Amahl and the Night Visitors. Most recently, he sang the role of Coll in the premier of David Caudill’s opera The Shepherd’s Story. David Schubert is an active recitalist, specializing in English art song (particularly the music of Gerald Finzi) and German Lieder. As a member of the Doscher Vocal Quartet, Schubert presented a series of recitals of the music of Johannes Brahms and Franz Schubert. He recently collaborated with performers from England and Ireland to present several concerts focusing on the music of the United Kingdom. In 1994, Dr. Schubert was one of twelve vocalists nationwide selected for the fourth annual National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) Internship Program. In 1995, he performed during the NATS national convention and in 1997 presented a lecture recital for the College Music Society’s Southern Chapter Convention. He has coached with Arlene Auger, Richard Conrad, Barbara Honn, Jack Lee, George Shirley, and John Wustman. Dr. Schubert joined the Wittenberg faculty in fall 2007. dschubert@wittenberg.edu

Denver Seifried, Adjunct Instructor

Denver Seifried retired from Greenon High School in 1995 after 28 years as a band and instrumental educator. Since 1965 he has been bass trombonist with the Springfield Symphony and he is a member of the Symphony’s Brass Quartet and Quintet. Seifried has frequently appeared with the Dayton Jazz Orchestra, the Johnny Mack Super Big Band, and the Wright State University/Community Trombone Ensemble. He has toured with musicals such as Damn Yankees and A Chorus Line and is a member of the International Trombone Association. Seifried holds a BS in music education from Bowling Green State University and a Master of Music in trombone performance from the University of North Texas. He has studied with Betty Glover, formerly of the College-Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati. He taught at Wittenberg from 1967-1969 and re-joined the Music faculty in the fall of 2000. dseifried@wittenberg.edu

Stephen Siek, Adjunct Professor

Stephen Siek has performed extensively throughout North America, and in 1986 he performed the 24 preludes of Rachmaninoff in New York’s Lincoln Center. He made his London debut in 1988. Siek is an authority on the work of British pedagogue Tobias Matthay, and from 1998 to 2002 he served as President of the American Matthay Association. He has given lecture-performances throughout North America at such institutions as the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto, Indiana University, San Jose State University, Penn State, and the University of South Carolina. His numerous articles have appeared in such journals as the American Music Teacher and Piano Quarterly, and in American Music he presented new research concerning musical figures active in post-Revolutionary Philadelphia. Siek is a contributor to the second edition of The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians (the world’s leading English-language musical encyclopedia), and he has recently published in the American Musical Instrument Society Journal and in Symposium, the journal of the College Music Society.

Siek’s recording of The Philadelphia Sonatas of Alexander Reinagle (c. 1750-1809) was released on the Titanic label in 1998. Siek’s interests have also extended to other areas of American history and culture, and he has published and lectured widely on the earlier work of architect Frank Lloyd Wright. His extensive piano training has included studies with noted American teacher Frank Mannheimer and studies in England, over a 15-year period, with Denise Lassimonne. He holds Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees from the University of Maryland and a Ph.D. from the College-Conservatory of Music of the University of Cincinnati. Siek came to Wittenberg in 1972. ssiek@wittenberg.edu

Diane Slagle

Diane Slagle performs concerts and recitals with Wittenberg students and faculty, with guest artists, and as accompanist of Wittenberg Singers. For several years, she has performed as accompanist for Wittenberg opera performances. She has taught elementary music and has directed several adult and children’s choruses. Diane maintains a private piano studio from her home in London, Ohio. She served as Children’s Choir Director, Christmas play director, and substitute organist for the First United Methodist Church in London for many years and is now accompanist for both the Worthington Kilbourne High School choirs and the Columbus Chamber Singers. Diane graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Music Education degree from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, and she earned Orff-Schulwerk Certification from the Lamont School of Music at the University of Denver. Slagle came to Wittenberg in fall 2002. dslagle@wittenberg.edu

Mark Smarelli, Adjunct Instructor

Mark Smarelli holds a Bachelor of Music degree and Master of Music degree from Ohio University in Athens. He is President of the Springfield Musician’s Association and performs percussion with the Springfield Symphony Orchestra. Mark plays vibraphone with the jazz group Good Vibes. The group, which also includes guitarist Chuck Young, drummer John Dessinger, and bassist Jim Bonecutter, has been together for more than a decade, performing jazz standards, pop tunes, and Latin-style selections. For many years, Mark’s late father, John Smarelli, taught violin, performed in a faculty trio, and conducted the String Ensemble at Wittenberg, as well as teaching strings and directing orchestra in Springfield city schools. Smarelli has been teaching at Wittenberg since 1993. msmarelli@wittenberg.edu

Carol Todd, Adjunct Instructor

Carol Todd has been a teacher and choral director for over 40 years. She retired from public music instruction after teaching at Watkins Memorial (grades 7-12), Licking Heights (grades 1-12), Hilliard (grades 7-12) and Clark-Shawnee (grades 1-12). She closed her career teaching at Springfield-Shawnee High School. Todd’s choirs, even though non-auditioned, have consistently received Superior ratings at State OMEA events. She was awarded the Springfield Local Teacher of the Year Award, Clark County Excellence in Teaching Award, Ashland Outstanding Teacher Award, and Clark State Community College Adjunct Faculty of the Year Award. Her biography is included in Who’s Who in America, Who’s Who Among American Women, and Who’s Who Among American Educators. As a soprano, Carol has performed solos with choirs at Bowling Green State University and Ohio State, and in many Springfield-area musical groups. In addition, she has directed eight high school Broadway musicals, one college musical, and a community theatre production of the Broadway musical Pippin. As an OMEA State conference clinician, Mrs. Todd has presented two clinics: “Who, Me? Direct the School Musical” (2005) and “Attaining, Maintaining, and Retaining Members in Large Performance Ensembles” (2004). She resides in Springfield with her husband, Larry. Mrs. Todd received a bachelors degree in elementary education and music education at Bowling Green State University, kindergarten certification from Wright State University, and a masters in music education, vocal pedagogy, and supervision from Ohio State. She has taught at Wittenberg since 2000. ctodd@wittenberg.edu

Joyce Wendel, Associate Professor

Although she specializes in art songs and lieder, Joyce Wendel has frequently appeared in opera and oratorio and as soloist with orchestra. In 1985, she received the Elizabeth Stoekler Stevens Prize in Lieder. Wendel is also an accomplished flutist, having performed with symphonies throughout Ohio. She is a flutist with TOFT, a trio covering an eclectic repertoire. She serves as an officer in the Ohio Music Education Association and chairs the North Central region Committee for Original Student Composition for the Music Educators’ National Conference. She serves as an adjudicator of student and professional music competitions and festivals and as an evaluator and consultant for curricula in music programs throughout the country. For the past 25 years she has worked with talented high school musicians from around the state as Director of Student Activities with the All-Ohio State Fair Band in a 24-day music camp each August. In 1998 she was inducted into the Ohio State Fair Hall of Fame for her contributions to the youth of Ohio. Wendel is also active as a church and temple soloist in the Springfield community. Wendel received a Bachelor of Music degree from Ashland College, Master of Music degree from Kent State University and D.M.A. from The Cleveland Institute of Music. Wendel joined the Wittenberg faculty in 1986. jwendel@wittenberg.edu

Richard York, Adjunct Instructor

Richard York is a native of the Buffalo (New York) area, where he studied with Allen Siegel and James Pyne of the Buffalo Philharmonic. While an undergraduate at Oberlin Conservatory, he studied with George Wain and appeared as soloist with the Oberlin Orchestra. He has also studied with Stanley Hasty at the Eastman School of Music, Thomas Peterson of the Cleveland Orchestra, and Achille Rossi of the Indianapolis Symphony. He has performed with the American Wind Symphony Orchestra and the Oberlin Opera Theater during their summer seasons and has been principal clarinetist of the Springfield Symphony Orchestra for over 20 years. York is a frequent performer of chamber music and has presented concerts at area museums and colleges. He has appeared as soloist with the Springfield Symphony, the Clarence (New York) Summer Orchestra, the Springfield Concert Band, and bands at Yellow Springs and Fairborn high schools. Mr. York joined the Wittenberg faculty in 1977. ryork@wittenberg.edu