Clara Frantzen is a violinist, composer, and conductor currently pursuing a Bachelor of Music in Violin Performance at the Boston Conservatory. As a composer, they have had two of their compositions premiered by the Civic Orchestra under the guidance of Jessie Montgomery, through the Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s Young Composers Initiative. Before they were a part […]
Justin Weiss is a composer and conductor whose music has been described as “mesmerizing… simultaneously colorful and sparklingly direct” (Amici per la Musica) and “powerfully visual” (Third Coast Review). His music explores the perception of time, energy, and transformation through collective textural play and melodically driven lyricism, immersing the listener in dramatic and vibrant sonic […]
Hao Zhen is a composer, filmmaker, and pianist whose practice spans music, moving image, and installation. Her work explores sound as a material and relational process, engaging touch, distance, and forms of indirect transmission across acoustic and multimedia contexts. She approaches composition as a site of inquiry into how sound travels between bodies, objects, and […]
Dan Moroz is a published composer and innovative performer, with several independent recording projects available on all major streaming platforms. His original composition for saxophone quartet, Greener Pastures, is published by Opus Music Publishers and is actively performed at universities across the country. His performance and teaching experiences have taken him beyond the US to […]
Daniel Freed is a pianist and improviser with an interest in rhythmic exploration and layering. He is currently pursuing a degree in mathematics at the University of Chicago.
Devin Cholodenko is a composer with eclectic taste and signature style. His music tends toward the introspection of inner emotional and psychological experiences. Inspirations include time and memory, the experience of reality, nature, extreme experiences, classical mythology, and identity. His music has been performed, read, and recorded across the United States and internationally by chamber […]
Alissa Voth (she/her) is a composer, paper artist, and PhD candidate based in Chicago IL. Her music explores gradual transformations, drifting between song, noise, and wandering tonalities. Her paper weavings form abstract, textural structures that evoke meaning through the interplay of layered images. Website / Instagram
Mason Kurtz is originally from southern IL but currently resides in Chicago, IL. Mason completed his Bachelor of Music degree in vocal performance at Eastern Illinois University and is a current graduate student at DePaul University pursuing a Master of Music degree in vocal performance. Mason has experience in both opera and musical theatre. Previous […]
Joel Y. Hoo (符永敬) boasts a multifaceted career as a composer, improviser, producer, arranger, and multi-instrumentalist, distinguished by expertise in crafting music across diverse musical genres, tailored for online media, theater productions, and short films. His music stands at the convergence of orchestral and electronic music and treads the balance between post-minimalism and new complexities. […]
Mahalia Hernandez is currently pursuing Violin Performance at the Chicago College of Performing Arts under the direction of MingHuan Xu. Mahalia’s musical journey began at 4 years old at her elementary school’s afterschool strings program, Music House. For several years, Mahalia primarily studied with Zhanna Bullock. Mahalia would be selected as a recipient of the […]
Annabel Punzel is a 22-year-old composer based in Chicago whose music lives at the intersection of classical elegance and imaginative eccentricity. Known for her vivid rhythms, colorful textures, and delightfully unpredictable harmonic turns, she draws inspiration from the shimmering hues of French Impressionism, as well as from folk melodies, rock grooves, and jazz-inflected harmonies—creating a […]
Composer and conductor Hannah A. Barnes focuses on crafting structured yet dynamic, multi-faceted musical worlds characterized by mercurial, volatile, and seemingly incompatible materials. These works straddle tension and expression for both performers and listeners. Barnes’ main concerns are (re)defining Modernism in the twenty-first century, investigating manifestations of complexity and polyphony, and addressing questions of syntax […]