Music Faculty: Biographies

Lori Akins                                       Brian Bevelander
William Bleyle                                Dr. Grant Cook III
Michael DiCuirci                             Carol Dusdieker
Ioana Galu                                     Pieter Grobler
Sophia Grobler                              David A Hanson
                                                       Nancy Lendrim
Doug McConnell                             Joan Holder McConnell
Susan Nelson                                 Vicki Ohl
John Owen                                     Emilie Sargent
Daniel Schuetz                              Jennifer Hilbish-Schuetz
Barbara Specht                             Michele Tosser
Pierre van der Westhuizen
Rachel Pinkney
Carrie Banfield-Taplin
 
Lori Akins teaches flute at Cedarville University, Heidelberg, and Wittenberg University, where she also directs their flute choirs. In addition, she is a recitalist on the faculty performing artist series at each institution. She is a flutist with the Springfield Symphony, Ohio Valley Symphony and an associate musician with the Columbus Symphony Orchestra. Ms. Akins performs with the Springfield Symphony Woodwind Quartet and the Heidelberg Faculty Woodwind Quintet. She previously served on the faculties at Capital University and Muskingum College. Ms. Akins is a frequent recitalist, chamber musician and free-lance flutist. She is in demand as an adjudicator and clinician and also maintains a private flute studio.  Ms. Akins is past president of the Central Ohio Flute Association and was for many years chairman of their Young Artist Flute Competition. She received her Bachelor of Music Education and Master of Music in flute performance from The Ohio State University. Ms. Akins has served as General Competitions Coordinator for the National Flute Association and is currently Assistant Secretary/Secretary-Elect. top

Brian Bevelander, composer/pianist, was born in Boston, Massachusetts, and received his education at the New England Conservatory of Music, Hartt College of Music (BM), Boston University (MM), and West Virginia University (DMA). After receiving a doctorate in composition, he did post-graduate study at Brooklyn College, Dartmouth College and Boston University. His principal composition teachers were Thomas Canning at West Virginia University and Hugo Norden at Boston University. Bevelander's residencies include The Danish Institute of Electro/acoustic Music (DIEM),  Aarhus, Denmark; The Koninklijk Conservatorium (Institute for Sonology) Den Hague, Netherlands; The Tyrone Guthrie Centre, County Monaghan, Ireland; the Instituut voor Psychoacustica en Elektronische Muziek (IPEM/BRT), Gent, Belgium; The Corporation of Yaddo, Saratoga Springs, New York; The Virginia Center for the Creative Arts and The Edward MacDowell Colony. Besides a number of radio broadcasts in the United States, his music has also been broadcast by Danish Radio, Belgian Radio, Radio Moscow, VPRO Radio, Netherlands and many others. His music has been published by the American Composers Alliance, Dorn Publications, Inc., Branden Press, Opus One Records, Capstone Records and Equilibrium Records. Many of his compositions are performed on a regular basis in Europe and the United States. top

 
William Bleyle, Instructor of Percussion, has thirty years music teaching experience in the New Riegel school district covering first through twelfth e grades. His work included instruction in general music, band, choir, jazz ensemble, marching band, show choir, and musical productions. An instructor of percussion at Heidelberg since 1968, Mr. Bleyle teaches applied percussion and directs the Heidelberg Percussion Ensemble. He has also directed various Heidelberg instrumental ensembles including the Jazz Ensemble and the Athletic Band.  Mr. Bleyle also performs frequently as a percussionist, including some of the compositions of Heidelberg colleague Brian Bevelander. top

Dr. Grant W. Cook III, Associate Professor of Choral Music and Music History at Heidelberg, directs the Concert Choir and Chamber Singers and teaches beginning and advanced conducting and music history. He holds a bachelor of music degree in vocal pedagogy from Heidelberg (Class of ’89) and a master of music degree in choral conducting and doctor of philosophy degree in historical musicology/ethnomusicology, both from Kent State University. Choirs under Dr. Cook’s direction have appeared in concert at state and regional meetings of the American Choral Directors Association and Music Educators National Conference. In addition, he is active as a guest conductor and clinician for a variety of choral events throughout Ohio, Indiana and Pennsylvania. Dr. Cook holds memberships with the American Musicological Society, American Beethoven Society, American Choral Directors Association, Music Educators National Conference and The Honor Society of Pi Kappa Lambda.  top
 
His published research focuses on the American Beethoven scholar Alexander Wheelock Thayer (1817-1897), the first complete performance in America of Bach’s St. Matthew Passion and the Viennese court singer and conductor Ignaz Karl Dirzka (1779-1827). Dr. Cook was a recipient of the 2002 and 2003 Aigler Faculty Research Grant (Heidelberg), and, in June 2002, completed a one-week residency with the Chor und Orchester von St. Augustin (Vienna, Austria), culminating in performances of Mozart’s Requiem and Missa brevis in C under the direction of Mag. Alois Glaßner, Kirchenmusikdirektor.
 
Dr. Cook is also a recipient of Kent State University’s Young Alumni Achievement Award and was nominated by his students for inclusion in Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers. He recently completed a two-year term as treasurer of the Ohio Choral Directors Association and is currently serving on the National Research and Publications Committee of the American Choral Directors Association. top

Michael DiCuirci is a teacher and performer of tuba and low brass. Currently he lives in Columbus, Ohio, where he works as an area musician and teaches at two Ohio private colleges. Recently he has commissioned two works for solo tuba and tuba and tape, which will premiere this winter.  top

Carol Dusdieker, soprano, is originally from North Liberty, Iowa. Ms. Dusdieker is currently pursuing her Doctorate in Music at Indiana University under the tutelage of Costanza Cuccaro. This past summer, Ms Dusdieker made her debut with Cincinnati Opera as the First Priestess in Aida. Ms. Dusdieker joined Cincinnati Opera as a resident artist and also covered the role of Marguerite in Faust. Ms. Dusdieker has participated in other emerging artist programs such as: Glimmerglass Opera, Des Moines Metro Opera and Lyric Opera Cleveland. Major roles performed include: Arabella in Arabella, Fiordiligi in Cosi fan tutte, Musetta in La Bohème, Alice Ford in Falstaff, Antonia in Les Contes d’Hoffmann, Konstanze in Abduction from the Seraglio, Countess in The Marriage of Figaro, Piramo in Hasse’s Piramo e Thisbe, and Esmeralda in The Bartered Bride. In addition to performing on the operatic stage, Ms. Dusdieker enjoys collaborating with chamber ensembles and has performed Bach’s Jauchzet Gott in allen Landen, and Handel’s Gloria with the Bloomington Chamber Orchestra. Ms. Dusdieker has a passion for modern music and has premiered many works, including the title role in Florida with Lyric Opera Cleveland, Wernick’s Oracle of Shimon Bar Yochai with the IU New Music Ensemble and Canticles of Love, Despair and Hope with the IU Contemporary Vocal Ensemble. Competitions credits include: Presser Music Award, Don Felton Award, Emerging Artist Winner/Quad Cities Opera, and Indianapolis Matinee Musicale winner. Upcoming performances include Pamina in Die Zauberflöte with Cedar Rapids Opera and Handel’s Messiah with the Windsor Chamber Orchestra. top

Ioana Galu is a native of Romania, where she earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in violin performance from Gheorghe Dima Music Academy of Cluj. Before coming to the United States, she served on the faculty of the Music Academy as an assistant professor of violin and chamber music. She earned a second master’s degree in violin performance from Bowling Green State University and is working on her doctorate at the Cincinnati-College Conservatory of Music.

Galu has performed in master classes for the Voces String Quartet, Amernet String Quartet, Alexandru Gavrilovici, David Erlich, Stefan Milenkovich, Annette-Barbara Vogel, Kiss Ladislau, Trio Kadek, Jacques Saint-Yves, Sherban Lupu, Devics Sandor and Wolfram Just. In addition, she earned a scholarship for study at the Academie National de Villecroze of France in 2000.She has been awarded prizes in numerous national and international competitions, including second prize in Mozart International Competition for Piano Trios (Romania), and first prize and a special prize of SOROS Foundation at the George Enescu Violin National Competition (Romania). She also won the second prize in the Starling Violin Competition (CCM) and was the winner of the CCM concerto competition in February 2004.

Galu has performed recitals in Romania, Budapest (Hungary), Dusseldorf (Germany), Lyon and Villecroze (France) and Tiffin, Bowling Green, Toledo, Cincinnati and New York City. She appeared as soloist with several orchestras in Romania, with the CCM Orchestra in 2004 and with Perrysburg Symphony in 2005.

Currently, she is teaching at Eastern Music Festival in Greensboro, N.C., and is a member of the Eastern Philharmonic Orchestra. In the fall of 2005 she became the director of the Preparatory Department at Heidelberg where she teaches violin and chamber music. top

Pieter Grobler, a South African-born pianist, received his initial training from the vocal coach and pianist of the then largest opera company in the country, PACT, exposing him at an already early age to a wide musical literature. His tertiary music training was under the country's foremost piano pedagogue: Joseph Stanford at the University of Pretoria. Pieter moved to the U.S.A. in 2002 to further his studies. He is active as a performing artist, and, in addition to performances in Europe, the USA and South Africa, he has also performed in China. He returned to Bulgaria in November 2007 to perform Mozart’s Piano Concerto in A major, K488 with the Vratza Symphony Orchestra after an earlier performance this summer with the Varna Symphony Orchestra playing Liszt’s Piano Concerto in E-flat major. In 2007 he completed his graduate studies at the University of North Texas, College of Music working with pianist Joseph Banowertz, and with Adam Wodnicki during the summers. Pieter is currently holding the Collaborative Piano Position at Heidelberg. top
 
 

Sophia Grobler, born in South Africa, made her debut as soloist with the South African National Chamber Orchestra at age 18. She majored in both piano and violin as undergraduate student, and was the winner of numerous prizes, awards and scholarships during the course of her studies. She continued her studies in the U.S., focusing on piano performance. Her major teachers were Frank Weinstock, Truida van der Walt, and Caroline Oltmanns. Her performances were heard on WCLV (Cleveland) and WYSU (Youngstown). She continues to perform internationally as soloist and collaborative pianist, and will appear as soloist with the Festival Orchestra in South Africa this coming summer. She serves on the faculty of Heidelberg as Assistant Professor of Piano. Sophia is currently doing research on the development of the piano waltz as it lead to Ravel’s La Valse -  a work which is often interpreted to represent the “death” of the waltz. She also has a special interest in New Music which started during her undergraduate studies in South Africa where she often performed works by South African composers. She has performed in numerous New Music Festivals in Cincinnati, at Heidelberg and in South Africa, with featured composers such as Karel Husa, P.Q. Phan, Rzewski and Kaia Saarijaho.

Sophia is also part of the Westhuizen piano duo, with her husband Pierre van der Westhuizen. As a duo, they have performed across the U.S. and South Africa, where they also teach master classes. Their interest in New Music has led them to premiere numerous works by young South African and American composers. Just recently, they were the first piano duo to receive fellowships as Young Artists at the prestigious PianoTexas International Academy and Festival. They have received master classes from artists such as Emanuel Ax, Janos Starker, James Tocco, The Pridonoff Duo, Alan and Alvin Chow and Awadagin Pratt. Their performances were heard on WGTE (Toledo), Radio sonder Grense and ClassicFM. Just recently they featured as guest artists at the Volksblad Arts Festival in South Africa, as well as OSU/Port Clinton Arts Festival in Ohio, and were invited to perform at the Firelands Concert Series, Lakeside Summer Music Festival and St. Mary’s College in Indiana. top

David A. Hanson received his Bachelor of Music degree from Bowling Green State University (’68), his Master of Music degree from the University of Michigan ‘(72), and has completed 30 hours of additional postgraduate study at BGSU. He has also studied at the Brevard Music Center and the Aspen Music School. Mr. Hanson was the Director of the Orchestra Program for the Findlay City Schools and taught grades 4-12 for 35 years before retiring in 2003. He has been on the faculty of Heidelberg for 32 years in addition to having taught at Bluffton University, the University of Findlay, and Bowling Green State University.

Mr. Hanson has directed the Findlay High School Symphony Orchestra at the following clinics, conferences, festivals, college and university campuses: Mid-East Instrumental Music Conference (Pittsburgh, Pa. ‘70,’75), Mid-West International Band and Orchestra Clinic (Chicago, Ill. ‘79), Ohio Music Educators Professional Conference (Toledo ‘79, Columbus ‘83, Toledo ‘88, Cleveland ‘91, Columbus ‘95), Bowling Green State University (‘71, ‘79, ‘91), University of Cincinnati (‘74), Bluffton University (‘75), Heidelberg (‘78), Kent State University (‘82), Miami University (‘93), Ohio State University (‘87, ‘94).

He has written eleven teaching related articles, which have been published in professional music educator journals, and he has composed 24 musical compositions, two of which have been published. He has also performed professionally in numerous ensembles including the Toledo Symphony Orchestra, the Lima Symphony, and the Findlay String Quartet. top

Nancy Lendrim has been Principal Harpist of the Toledo Symphony Orchestra since 1980. A graduate of the Oberlin Conservatory of Music and the Cleveland Institute of Music, Nancy was a student of renowned harpist Alice Chalifoux. Her studies included twelve summers with Chalifoux at the Salzedo School in Camden, Maine.  
 
A native of Williamsburg, Virginia, Nancy has participated in several summer music festivals, including those in Breckenridge and Evergreen, Colorado; Madison, Wisconsin; Bar Harbor, Maine and Graz, Austria. She has appeared frequently as a soloist with The Toledo Symphony on their Chamber, Mainly Mozart and Neighborhood Concert series. Recent appearances include a solo performance with the Akron Symphony, in a performance described as bringing "... a proficiency and professionalism to Debussy's Sacred and Profane Dances and to Ravel's Introduction and Allegro. (Lendrim) raised the level of playing with her performance." She has also performed with the Cleveland Orchestra, Atlanta Symphony and the Philadelphia Orchestra. Chamber performances across the United States have been highlighted by numerous world premiere performances, most recently in St. Louis and Norfolk.
 
Teaching has always been an important part of Nancy's career. She is an Adjunct Professor of Music at the University of Toledo and is on the faculty of Heidelberg in Tiffin, Ohio and the Saratoga Harp Colony. She was formerly on the faculty of the National Music Camp in Interlochen, Michigan and the Toledo School for the Arts. She has appeared as a performer, presenter and clinician at both regional and national harp conferences, and in 2002, performed at the World Harp Congress in Geneva, Switzerland as a member of both the Salzedo Harp Ensemble and the Salzedo Harp Duo. In 1997, she founded the Northwest Ohio Harp Week, and continues to serve as Co-Director of this music camp. She is also Director and Coach of the University of Toledo Harp Ensemble.
 
Offstage, Nancy maintains an active roster of private students, is President of the Northwest Ohio Chapter of the American Harp Society, and is a regular contributor and reviewer for The Harp Column magazine. She lives in Sylvania, Ohio with husband Roger Greive and sons Elliot and Oliver.  top
    

Doug McConnell, Professor of Theory/Composition and Chair of the Department of Music. Dr. McConnell enjoys an active career as a composer, teacher and administrator. His career in college teaching has also included positions at Mississippi State University, St. Mary's College, and the University of Dayton. Dr. McConnell's compositions have been performed throughout the U.S. and internationally, including Canada, England, Germany, Sweden, Finland, Estonia, the Czech Republic and Russia. In the United States, Doug's commissioned works have been premiered by the Cincinnati May Festival Chorus, the Indianapolis Symphony and Chorus, and the Dayton Bach Society, as well as a number of college faculty artists and ensembles. Dr. McConnell has written for a variety of performing mediums, but he especially enjoys writing for voices; his work in this area includes a variety of works for chorus. He has also composed several song cycles, including Langston's Lot, a song cycle for tenor voice, alto saxophone, and piano based on the poetry of Langston Hughes. Dr. McConnell has composed for the theater as well; his work includes incidental music for several plays and two operatic works. His most extensive composition is his opera Lily, a ninety-minute opera in one act, based on a short story by Walter Wangerin.

Dr. McConnell has been the recipient of several teaching honors, including a Faculty Achievement Award for Undergraduate Teaching from the Mississippi State Alumni Association and a Grisham Faculty Achievement Award. He won the Composition Prize awarded by the Mississippi Institute of Arts and Letters in recognition of his chamber composition Songs of the Beloved. Dr. McConnell was also awarded an Honorable Mention in the Roger Wagner Choral Composition Competition for his choral piece, Look to this Day!, which was recently published by Gentry Press. Most recently, the Ohio Music Teachers Association chose Dr. McConnell as their Ohio Composer of the Year for 2006. As part of this honor, he was commissioned to write a new work for piano trio, which was premiered at the OMTA state convention in November 2006.  top

Joan Holder McConnell is a member of the adjunct faculty of Heidelberg University, where she teaches Music Theory, Aural Training, Organ, and Piano. She also serves the Music Department as one of the staff accompanists, working with student recitalists. Since returning to Ohio in 2000, she has been studying organ with Trudy Faber of Wittenberg University and performing an annual Faculty Artist recital.  These programs are comprised mostly of newly learned material, often involve collaborative musicians, and always feature extensive program notes for the audience. Ms. McConnell has performed guest artist recitals in other venues, including First United Methodist Church, Mansfield, Ohio; St. Wendelin’s Church, Fostoria, Ohio; and Fourth Presbyterian Church, Chicago.  In addition to her work at Heidelberg, Ms. McConnell is a church musician, serving Trinity United Church of Christ (Tiffin) as Organist and Music Coordinator. 
Ms. McConnell earned her Master of Music degree in Organ Performance at the College Conservatory of Music, University of Cincinnati.  She took her Bachelor of Music degree in Church Music at Wittenberg University in Springfield, Ohio, spending one year at the Kirchenmusikschule in W. Berlin, Germany.  Additional credentials include a Master of Arts degree in Theological Studies from the University of Notre Dame. top

Susan Nelson, bassoonist and native Montanan, is active as an international performer and clinician. Pursuing an active career as a bassoonist, Miss Nelson has studied with Carl Rath, Alan Hawkins, Susan Wadsworth, and Forrest Cornwell. Miss Nelson received her Bachelor of Music degree in Bassoon Performance and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Kansas and her Masters degree in Bassoon Performance from the University of Oklahoma. In August 2006 she performed as principal bassoonist with the annual Classical Music Festival in Eisenstadt, Austria. She has also performed with the Oklahoma City Philharmonic Orchestra and the Helena Symphony. Miss Nelson teaches at the University of Arkansas Junior High and Senior Summer Music Camps. She received the top award at the Midwest Double Reed Society Young Artists Competition, was a finalist in the University of Oklahoma Concerto Competition, and was a finalist in the Arapahoe Philharmonic Concerto competition. Recently Miss Nelson was the principal bassoonist in the Great Falls Symphony and a member of the Chinook Winds quintet. Currently Miss Nelson is pursuing her Doctorate in Bassoon Performance at the University of Michigan under the direction of Jeffrey Lyman.  top
 

Vicki Ohl is the Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of Arts and Sciences at Heidelberg, in addition to her appointment as Professor of Music Theory and Piano. Her degrees in Piano Performance, Music Theory and American Culture Studies reflect her interest in the ways music fits into a larger cultural context.

Her research has examined intersections between classical and popular music, and she has arranged popular music for choral groups. She is particularly interested in classic American popular song from the 1930s and the 1940s. Her biography of Broadway composer Kay Swift, Fine and Dandy: The Life and Times of Kay Swift, was published by Yale University Press.  top

John Owen holds the Bachelor of Music Education degree  from Illinois Wesleyan University,  a Master of Music degree in music education and trumpet from Southern Illinois University, and the Ph.D. in music education (concentrations in trumpet and conducting) from the Ohio State University.  His teaching responsibilities at Heidelberg include conducting the Symphonic Band and Jazz Ensemble, as well as teaching studio trumpet and upper-level music education courses.  He also teaches a course in Heidelberg’s Honors Program, entitled “Creativity and Madness.”  In addition to his undergraduate teaching responsibilities, Dr. Owen is Director of the Master of Music Education program, a summer-only masters program begun in 2009.

Dr. Owen’s ensembles have appeared at a variety of professional conferences, as well as for alumni, school, and festival presentations.  The ensembles have played in the U.S., Canada, the Bahamas, and in the Caribbean. Dr. Owen appears frequently as a guest conductor and clinician for high school and collegiate ensembles.   He has served on the state board of the Ohio Music Education Association, as the North Central Division Collegiate Representative for MENC, and as the President of the Ohio Private College Instrumental Conductor’s Association.  His professional presentations include the Ohio Music Education Association, the College Music Society, the Heidelberg Faculty Research Symposium, and others.  He has been a recipient of Aigler grants for summer research, and was named the recipient of the 2008 Heidelberg University Ream-Paradiso Distinguished Teaching Award.

Dr. Owen is an active composer of works for Symphonic Band and Jazz Ensemble.  The Heidelberg bands have premiered four of his works since 2007, and he has composed for high school concert band as well.  He has worked with many of the country’s leading teachers.  Trumpet teachers include Edward Sandor, Richard Burkhart and Armando Ghitalla, and his conducting teachers have included Mario Mancinelli, Carl St. Clair, and Craig Kirchhoff.  He has worked in masterclasses with H. Robert Reynolds, Eugene Corporon, Elizabeth A.H. Green, Col. Arnald Gabriel, and others.top
 
Rachel Pinkney  began studying the cello when she was 13 and at age 16 had her debut solo performance with the El Paso Symphony Orchestra in Texas. She received her Bachelors degree in cello performance from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music and her Masters degree from the University of Minnesota. Rachel has been a soloist with the University of Minnesota Orchestra and the Wayne State University orchestra, and has toured with the Minnesota Opera Company. She has worked with cellists Lawrence Lesser, Lynn Harrell, Timothy Eddy, Uri Vardi, Norman Fischer, and most recently with the principal cellist of the Detroit Symphony, Robert DeMaine. She regularly performs with the Windsor Symphony as well as the Toledo Symphony, and serves as the assistant principal cello with the Lima Symphony. Rachel also performs with an Irish folk band based in Las Vegas. Their recordings can be found on the Earth Orbit label. She is currently professor of Cello at Ohio Northern University and Heidelberg University.  top

Emilie Sargent, Instructor of French Horn and Music Recruitment Coordinator at Heidelberg, received her DMA, MM, and BM in Horn Performance from the University of Michigan, where her horn teachers included Lowell Greer and Sören Hermansson. Dr. Sargent has been Second Horn with the Toledo Symphony Orchestra since 1998. She is also member of the Ann Arbor Symphony Brass Quintet, which performs interactive outreach programs for youth and older audiences throughout southeast Michigan. Dr. Sargent has served as editor of the Regional Orchestra Players Association (ROPA), Secretary-Treasurer of the Ann Arbor Federation of Musicians (Local 625 of the American Federation of Musicians), and grant writer for the Toledo Symphony.

An eager supporter of current music and developing audiences, she recently commissioned and premiered a new work for horn and chamber ensemble by composer P.Q. Phan, funded through a grant from The Toledo Symphony’s Mellon Foundation program. Her interest in outreach activities resulted in initiating both the Ann Arbor Symphony "Music & Movement" recital series for preschool students and the Toledo Symphony "Class Act" program, including individual visits to elementary school classrooms. She also organized and funded the Toledo Symphony "Music for the Young at Heart" senior citizen outreach program, and performed a recital series at various senior centers in the Ann Arbor, Michigan area. Dr. Sargent's historical interests resulted in a lecture recital given in 2006 on “Eighteenth Century Cor Basse Virtuosi,” and she has a number of research projects and completed interviews for publication in progress.  top

Daniel Schuetz, countertenor, holds graduate degrees from Michigan State University and the University of Illinois, where he studied the lieder of Schubert with John Wustman. He has taught at Heidelberg for the past eight years, and formerly conducted the College Community Choir and the prestigious Singing Collegians, winners of Most Outstanding Performance at the Ohio Jazz Summit in 2000 and 2002. Dr. Schuetz has also taught voice at the Interlochen Arts Camp. His recent stage work includes Rinuccio in Gianni Schicchi at the E.J. Thomas Center in Akron, and roles with Brevard Music Center, Prairie Fire Theater Company, Peoria Civic Opera, Illinois Opera Theatre, Springfield (Illinois) Opera Theatre, Comic Opera Guild of Ann Arbor, and the St. Andrews Players. Recent engagements include a countertenor recital in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and a fellowship and scholarship to attend the Bel Canto Northwest in Portland, Oregon, singing the title role in Giulio Cesare by Handel.  top

Jennifer Hilbish-Schuetz, mezzo-soprano, has a DMA from the University of Michigan and is Assistant Professor of voice and opera at Heidelberg. She has also taught at Bowling Green State University, Appalachian State University (North Carolina), Eastern Michigan University and at UM-Flint. Dr. Schuetz has performed in major roles with Ohio Light Opera, UM Opera Theater, Toledo Out-Reach Program, Mid-Michigan Opera, Lansing Opera, UMGASS, Illinois Summer Stock Theater, A2 Civic Theater, St. Andrews Players, among others. Recent concert engagements include appearances with the Hartland Symphony, International Symphony, Toledo Symphony, Jackson Symphony, Flint Symphony in addition to others. Jennifer recently directed The Marriage of Figaro at Michigan State University, a scenes program at Toledo Opera and a one act opera for Prairie Fire Theater in Illinois. She and her husband, Daniel, have taught voice at the Interlochen Arts Camps. Recently, she directed The Marriage of Figaro at Bowling Green State University and was a special guest artist there in How to Succeed in Business without Really Trying.  top

Barbara Specht is an active clarinetist, conductor and researcher.  During the past 12 years, besides teaching in the music department, she has also been a member of the Honors Department, serving as instructor of the seminar Women in Music. This research has resulted in performances, both on and off campus of Clarinet Music by Women Composers, including a lecture-recital at the Women in the Performing Arts conference at University of Missouri St. Louis in November 2005.  Her interest and work in the Entrepreneurship and Music area is also filling another need in the department as it revamps the Music Industry degree and considers changes and additions to the curriculum for this major and for the Music Performance area.

Dr. Specht has presented at the Ohio Music Educator’s Conferences in Cincinnati and Columbus in 2003 and 2004 and chaired the committee for the revision of the Solo and Ensemble lists for clarinet. The new list was published in October 2006. The addition of approximately 50 works for clarinet and piano to Classes, A. B. and C will bring the sources of literature for high school students up to date. Dr. Specht is also the Music Director of the Perrysburg Symphony near Toledo, Ohio and serves as Vice-President of the Board of Directors for that organization.  top

Michele Tosser is happy to have joined the Heidelberg faculty in 2006. She teaches oboe, plays in the faculty woodwind quintet, and teaches an Oboe Methods course. Ms. Tosser joined the Toledo Symphony in 2003 as Second Oboist. Prior to joining the Toledo Symphony, Ms. Tosser was Principal Oboist of the South Dakota Symphony and Dakota Wind Quintet. She holds a Masters of Music (2006) from the Cleveland Institute of Music where she was a student of John Mack. Ms. Tosser received a Bachelor of Music (2001) from Mannes College of Music where she was a recipient of the prestigious Performance Award. Ms. Tosser has attended The National Repertory Orchestra, National Orchestral Institute, Kent-Blossom Music Festival, and Domaine-Forget. In her free time she enjoys reading, watching movies, knitting, and working out. Ms. Tosser is originally from Lee’s Summit, Missouri.  top

Pierre van der Westhuizen, a native of South Africa, graduated from Potchefstroom University with a double major in Piano Performance and Composition&Theory. As an undergraduate student he received several prizes, awards and scholarships, which included the M.C. Rhoode Memorial Performance Prize and a grant from the National Research Foundation. He made his concerto debut in 1998, performing with the National Chamber Orchestra of South Africa. He finished his doctoral studies in the U.S., focusing on piano performance, with major teachers being Frank Weinstock, Truida van der Walt, and Caroline Oltmanns. His solo performances were heard on WCLV (Cleveland) and WYSU (Youngstown), and in 2001 he won an international competition to appear as soloist and chamber musician at the Rome Festival in Italy. He continues to perform internationally as soloist and collaborative pianist, and appeared as soloist with the Toledo Symphony Orchestra, as well as such artists as Annette-Barbara Vogel (violin), Ioana Galu (violin), Joel Becktell (cello), and Deborah Norin-Kuehn (soprano). He also has a special interest in New Music which started during his undergraduate studies in South Africa (since he was also a composition major) where he often performed works by South African composers. He has performed in numerous New Music Festivals in Cincinnati, at Heidelberg College and in South Africa, with featured composers such as Karel Husa, P.Q. Phan, and Rzewski, Hannes Taljaard and Barry Jordan.