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Caitlin Byrne, Ramsey Katynski, Michele Soroka, Nicholas Adragna |
| The 12th Annual David Daniels Young Artists Concert, held Sunday, February 15, 2009, 3 p.m. in Varner Recital Hall, includes performances by the winners of Oakland University’s annual concerto competition. Vocalist Caitlin Byrne is a junior voice performance major and resident of Shelby Township. She has studied with Elizabeth (Wiggins) Medivinksy and Edith Diggory, performed in two Oakland University Opera Workshop productions, as the Narrator in “Meanwhile, Back at Cinderella's” and Lenora in “il Trifono de l'Honore,” and is a member of the Oakland Chorale and Symphony Chorus. An active pianist and teacher of music theory and piano, Michele Soroka is currently finishing her Masters of Music in Piano Pedagogy at Oakland University, where she studies with Yin Zheng and Mary Siciliano. She frequently performs at Oakland’s Arts at Noon, studio recitals at Evola Music, and community venues. She teaches freshman-level music theory and aural skills at Oakland University, as well as private piano lessons to pre-college students and music theory classes for elementary students in her home. She graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance from Oakland in 2007, and she was awarded a MaTilDa for outstanding service and the Jennifer Scott Memorial Award during her years as an undergraduate. Vocalist Ramsey Katynski of Clinton Township began his singing career at the age of seven, entering local competitions and joining his church choir as a soprano. He has performed as part of the Michigan Opera Theatre's Learning at the Opera House (LATOH) Program at the Detroit Opera House since 2007. For the 2008 LATOH program, Ramsey worked as the Assistant to the Director of Community Programs and Director of Dance for the Operetta Workshop. Ramsey also became a member of the Madame Cadillac Dance Theater in 2007. He has studied voice under Susan Catanese and Candace DeLattre and plans to graduate with a Bachelor of Arts in Music degree from Oakland University in the winter of 2009. Tuba soloist Nicholas Adragna of Sterling Heights is a senior instrumental performance-tuba major from Sterling Heights. A student of Dr. Kenneth Kroesche, he was honored with a 2008 Department of Music, Theatre and Dance MaTilDa award, for his work in the Meadowbrook Brass Quintet. The Quintet was formed in the spring of 2007 with a goal of performing for the annual state chamber music competition sponsored by the Music Teachers National Association. A concert highlight will be guest conductor Kenneth Kroesche leading Mozart’s delightful overture to “The Magic Flute.” Tickets are $25 general admission, $20 for seniors and $15 for students, and are available at the Varner Box Office Tuesday-Friday, 3-6 p.m. and one hour before performances. General admission tickets are also available through Star Tickets Plus, www.starticketsplus.com or 800-585-3737. |