Faculty

Studio Faculty - Voice

Studio Faculty - Clarinet

Biography

Sierra Allen is a freelance clarinetist and educator in Los Angeles. Some of her projects in the Hollywood Studio Orchestras include principal clarinet on The Call of the Wild, Encanto, and The Ice Age Adventures of Buck Wild. Sierra has performed with a variety of orchestras in and around the LA area, including the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Pacific Symphony, New West Symphony, and Muse/ique. She has also performed in Washington with the Seattle Symphony and Pacific Northwest Ballet.

Sierra received her BM in Music Education at Biola University and MM in Clarinet Performance at California State University, Fullerton. She received her DMA in Clarinet Performance at UCLA and published her dissertation on E-flat and bass clarinet doubling in orchestral and chamber music in June 2022. She is passionate about teaching both auxiliary clarinets. While at UCLA, Sierra worked as a Graduate Research Mentorship recipient during her dissertation year and was the teaching assistant for the woodwind chamber music course for two years. She believes in teaching the clarinet as a physical and mental endeavor, encouraging students to find their own positive ways to think through their performances. She enjoys teaching at Concordia University Irvine, Biola University, and privately. Sierra maintains a healthy studio of in-person and online clarinet and saxophone students from multiple states. Her mentors include Ray Guyll, Joshua Ranz, and Boris Allakhverdyan.

Studio Faculty - Composition

Biography

Described by the New York Times as “…abrasive outbursts…monstrous climax…yearning melody in a rapturous surge,” music by Elliott Bark (b.1980) has been performed in many venues, such as Stern Auditorium of Carnegie Hall, Segerstrom Center for the Arts, Seoul Arts Center, Aspen Music Festival, Bowdoin International Music Festival and Korean Composers Festival. Elliott has worked with many groups, including Pacific Symphony and Cleveland Orchestra members.

Elliott, two-time recipient (2012, 2014) of The Korean National Composer Prize (the most prestigious award for Korean composers), received the Susan and Ford Schumann Fellowship from Aspen Music Festival and School and numerous prizes including the 2017 Agape Church Music Festival, 2013 Indiana University Dean’s Prize, 2010 Bowdoin International Music Festival Composition Competition and 2009 First Music Commission.

Elliott has recently been commissioned by Pacific Symphony, Soli Deo Gloria Music Foundation, The New York Classical Players (for Grammy-nominated flutist Carol Wincenc), Barkada Saxophone Quartet (Fischoff Competition Grand Prize Winner), Linda Strommen (Indiana University Oboe Professor), among many others.

Elliott, currently the director of the Instrumental Music Program at Crean Lutheran High School, an adjunct faculty member at Concordia and Biola Universities, received his bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees in composition from Indiana University where Elliott served as an Associate Instructor and Graduate Assistant in the composition department. He has studied composition with Claude Baker, David Dzubay, Don Freund, Jonguk Kim, P.Q. Phan, and Sydney Hodkinson and instrumental conducting with David Effron, Arthur Fagen, and Cliff Colnot.

Studio Faculty - Oboe

Biography

Siri Lyon received her Master of Music in Oboe Performance at the University of Southern California, and her Bachelor of Music in Oboe Performance at New England Conservatory of Music. Her former teachers include David Weiss, Mark McEwen and Basil Reeve.

Known for her dynamic musical interpretations and expression, Siri has performed throughout the United States and internationally as an orchestral, chamber and solo artist. Based in Southern California, Mrs. Lyon has served as Principal Oboist for the Los Angeles Doctors Symphony Orchestra, and has also appeared with the Young Musicians Foundation Debut Orchestra, the Dana Point Symphony and the 2012 Piatigorsky International Cello Festival Orchestra where she collaborated with members of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra. She has played under the baton of many celebrated conductors including Hugh Wolff, Helmuth Rilling, Carl St. Clair and Mei-Ann Chen, and has performed in St. Peter's Basilica, Walt Disney Concert Hall, Renee & Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall, Boston's Jordan Hall and Orchestra Hall in Minneapolis.

Mrs. Lyon has given solo recitals in Los Angeles, Boston and the Twin Cities. As a native Minnesotan, she returns regularly to give special concerts and has organized performances of Bach cantatas, traditional hymns and other vocal pieces with local musicians in addition to solo engagements. Committed to the education of young musicians, she has also offered master classes and private lessons to budding oboists in the area, including Concordia's annual Double Reed Day.

Studio Faculty - Voice

Trumpet Instructor

Biography

Richard Chasin holds a Bachelor of Music Degree in Trumpet Performance from the University of Michigan, where he was a student of Armando Ghitalla, former principal trumpet with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Further study was done at the Aspen Music School and the Tanglewood Institute.

Richard has been teaching trumpet for over 25 years and has had many of his students perform with the All Southern California Honor Band as well as the California All State Honor Band at both the high school and junior high school levels. Richard's students have also been members of the Orange County Youth Orchestra and the Pacific Symphony Institute. Professor Chasin is currently a music faculty member at five colleges and universities. He has also taught trumpet at UC Irvine and Irvine Valley College.

Biography

Dr. Hyunjoo Choi received her M.M and D.M.A degree in piano performance from Michigan State University under Yong hi Moon. While completing her D.M.A. degree in Michigan State University, Dr. Choi has been recipient of scholarship with working as staff accompanist in the same school. Since she moved to California, she has served as a staff accompanist at Hope International University and Saddleback College. She was also teaching piano lesson in Flint School of Performing Arts and pianoforte. She has performed and studied in worldwide music festival such as the Millennium Keyboard Festival in Spain, The Banff Keyboard Festival and The Orford Music Festival in Canada, and The Chautauqua institute Summer Festival in New York. As a soloist and chamber musician, Dr. Choi performed Rachmaninoff 2nd concerto as keyboardist in Contemporary Music night with Flint Orchestra, The Real New Music 2009, and many solo recitals in Auditorium of Michigan State University.

Studio Faculty - Keyboard Improvisation (Jazz Piano)

Biography

Mina Choi is a pianist, composer, and arranger from Seoul, South Korea. Mina has received a Master Degree of Music from California State University, Fullerton, where she studied piano and arranging with Grammy award winning jazz composer and pianist, Bill Cunliffe. Since her journey here she has also had the opportunities to write and arrange many pieces for jazz combos and jazz orchestras. Her big band arrangements of tunes by the legendary pianist George Cables were featured recently at a performance by the Harvard Jazz Band at Harvard University. Her arrangement of “Bolivia” was chosen by the ASMAC judging committee in the 2015 ASMAC Pete Rugolo Big Band Arranging & Composing Competition. Also, her original of “Paddle through the Lake” was awarded in the 2017 Bill Conti Big Band Arranging and Composing Competition.

She won the 38th Downbeat Outstanding Performance Award with her own original composition, “Sing ChaCha” and arrangement, “Falling away with you” of Muse. In 2016, she was selected Outstanding College Performer of the year, at the Reno Jazz Festival. Internationally, the Mina Choi Trio was a finalist at the 10th Bucharest International Jazz Competition. Her message to the world, that she wishes to share through music, is one of hope and love.

Americana Ensemble Director

Biography

Nico is an active guitarist, private teacher, music director, and worship leader in the SoCal area. Influenced by guitarists like Julian Lage, Allen Hinds, and Blake Mills, his eclectic style combines jazz, fusion, Americana, folk, and blues. Between crafting solo guitar arrangements and fronting his own jazz trio, he maintains a busy performing schedule. 

Nico’s warm, insightful, and precise teaching style is informed by nearly a decade of teaching experience in academic, ministry, and private settings. He studied under Adam Levy (Tracy Chapman, Norah Jones) at the Los Angeles College of Music, receiving an AA in Guitar Performance. Nico then graduated summa cum laude from Concordia University Irvine with the Outstanding Senior Award in Commercial Music. 

When he’s not directing the Americana Ensemble, Nico is also active in ministry, serving as Staff Deacon and Music Director at Center Church in Irvine, CA. He is passionate about integrated discipleship and creative health, leads various workshops and cohorts for local artists, and even preaches the occasional sermon. 

You can also find him working with students in the Writing Center!

Studio Faculty - Drum Set

Biography

Professor Mark Converse received his Bachelor of Music degree from California State University, Northridge where he studied with Karen Ervic-Pershing, Joel Leach and Jerry Steinholz. He also studied drum set with legendary musicians: Nick Ceroli, Ed Shaughnessy, Steve Schaeffer, and Peter Erskine. After completing his degree, Converse continued to study snare drum technique and drum set with Freddie Gruber and Latin percussion with Luis Conte.

Uniquely qualified as a teacher by both university and individual study with some of southern California’s most esteemed percussionists and drummers, Mark is busy as a free-lance musician and brings real world experience to his teaching philosophy. This philosophy balances technique, literature, and musicianship with practical application.

Professor Converse has performed and or recorded with a wide variety of ensembles including the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Santa Barbara Symphony, Santa Barbara Chamber Orchestra, Pasadena Symphony, and the Pageant of the Masters Orchestra. He has had the privilege of backing up such noted artists and entertainers as Paul Anka, Maureen McGovern, Carol Burnett, Carol Channing, Jason Alexander, Robert Goulet, Joely Fisher, Peggy Lee, Dudley Moore, and Steve Allen, to name a few.

Converse is an accomplished teacher of drum set, Latin and ethnic hand percussion, and symphonic percussion. His students have been accepted into high school and collegiate honor ensembles and won scholarships to various four-year institutions.

Studio Faculty - Bass

Biography

Dana Decker, originally from Minneapolis, Minnesota, began his career as a touring bassist playing a wide variety of venues from intimate clubs to stadiums. He holds a Bachelor of Music from Berklee College of Music as well as an Master of Music from CSU Los Angeles. Dana is an in demand session and live bass player, as well as a highly regarded audio instructor who has performed with The Pussycat Dolls, The Dan Band, Katherine McPhee, and Danny Seraphine. He has been seen as a performer on television programs: Matchmaker Millionaire, Fraiser, and Ally McBeal. Dana has also taught audio courses at major colleges and universities throughout the Southland.

Director of Spirit Bells

Erik is the community engagement manager for the arts at Concordia University, Irvine. He assists prospective students with their scholarship auditions and any music-related questions. If you are a student interested in attending CUI, reach out to Erik or complete a scholarship interest form and schedule an in-person or virtual audition. He is also the box-office manager and can be contacted directly with any box-office related inquiries. 

In addition to his duties as community engagement manager, Erik is the handbell program manager and director of Spirit Bells at CUI. He additionally directs the handbell ensemble at Covenant Presbyterian Church in Orange and is a regular clinician for HMA (Handbell Musicians of America) events in Southern California. Having over 18 years of ringing experience, he currently rings with St. John's Cathedral Bells.

Studio Faculty - Guitar

Andrew Doolittle has performed with a broad palette of artists representing a wide variety of styles, including Rita Wilson, Idina Menzel, Taylor Hicks, Joy Williams (The Civil Wars), David Tao (陶喆), A-Mei (阿妹), Patti Page, the Pasadena Pops and the Houston Symphony. He has performed on TV shows including the The Tonight Show, Jimmy Kimmel Live! and The Today Show. Andrew earned his BM in jazz performance from The Oberlin Conservatory of Music and his MM in jazz performance from The New England Conservatory of Music. He keeps an extensive live performance schedule and his guitar work can often be heard in film trailers, video games and TV shows.

Director of Concert Bells

Biography

Alex Guebert is a composer, arranger, clinician, percussionist, music director and music teacher from Orange, California. Besides leading Concert Handbells at CUI, Alex is the Director of Worship and Music at St. John's Lutheran Church in Orange. He also directs two other advanced-level handbell groups: Cathedral Bells (at St. John's) and L.A. Bronze Ensemble. His award-winning handbell compositions and arrangements have been published and performed nationwide and overseas. Alex's compositional style is a result of his background as a percussionist, his love of film and video game score, and his desire to broaden the horizons of handbell repertoire. Alex holds an M.M. in Music Composition from Cal State Long Beach, where his graduate recital featured a 25-minute work for handbells, strings, and percussion. Some of Alex's most recent forays into the national scene of handbells include teaching classes at Handbell Musicians of America national and local seminars and leading several mass ring events. Alex lives in Orange with his wife Heather who works as a scientist in the Orange County Crime Lab, and little daughter Emma Joy, who shares her dad's love of music and her mom's scientific curiosity about the world!

Studio Faculty - Double Bass

Chris Hornung received his Bachelor of Music degree from Western Michigan University and his Master of Music degree from Michigan State University. An active double bassist, he is the principal bass of the Dana Point Symphony, Symphony Irvine and Orchestra Collective of Orange County, and was principal of the Orange County Symphony from 2008-2016. In the past he performed with the Kalamazoo, Jackson, Lansing, Battle Creek and West Michigan Symphonies, Opera Tampa, and the California Chamber Orchestra. Chris is also active as a chamber musician and solo recitalist, and has been featured as a soloist twice with the Orange County Symphony.

In addition to teaching at Concordia, Chris has worked with private students of all ages and as a sectional coach at numerous high schools. In the summers he is a faculty member at Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp in Michigan, where he teaches double bass and music history in addition to performing as principal bass of the Festival Orchestra. Chris is also on faculty at Chaffey College where he teaches bass, Music Appreciation and History of Rock, and at Coastline College where he teaches Music Appreciation, History of Rock and History of Jazz and is chair of the Visual and Performing Arts department.

Biography

Professor Johnson teaches at Concordia as well as her own private violin studio. She has performed with The American Ballet Theatre, The Joffrey Ballet, The Bolshoi Ballet and touring Broadway shows including "The Light in the Piazza", "The Color Purple", "The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber", "South Pacific", "West Side Story", Disney's "The Lion King" and "White Christmas". In addition, she is also an active freelance musician with local symphonies in the Los Angeles and Orange County areas, a studio recording musician for the movies, and has performed with various artists including Andrea Bocelli, Josh Groban, Bebe Newirth, The Vandals and Steve Perry.

Education

• Graduate Performance Diploma from the Peabody Conservatory of Music at the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland
• Master of Music from the Peabody Conservatory of Music at the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland
• Bachelor of Music - University of California, Irvine

Teaching

• Individual Violin Lessons

Studio Faculty - Harp

Biography

Gretchen Sheetz Kirby is a solo, chamber, and orchestral harpist in Southern California and an adjunct professor at Concordia University Irvine. While classically trained, Gretchen has enjoyed performances featuring a diverse range of repertoires, including jazz combo gigs, musical theatre shows (such as The Fantasticks and A Little Night Music) and new music premieres. Her freelance career has provided her with opportunities to accompany artists from the Metropolitan Opera and the Los Angeles Opera and play at unique venues, from The Montage hotel in Laguna Beach to the Soka Performing Arts Center. She has performed with the San Luis Obispo Opera Symphony, Irvine Symphony, and Masterworks Orchestra (Irvine, CA), as well as with orchestral and choral ensembles at multiple universities throughout Orange County.

Gretchen earned her Master’s in Music in harp performance from The Boston Conservatory at Berklee in May 2017, where she was a student of Ina Zdorovetchi; she completed her undergraduate education at Concordia University Irvine (B.A. ’14, music, Summa Cum Laude) and harp studies with Mindy Ball. While at Concordia, Gretchen received the Outstanding Senior Award and the Senior Music Performance Award. Her time in Boston included many performances at the Conservatory, services at Park Street Church, and a harp teaching position at Wellesley College. Additionally, she taught several music history courses as a graduate assistant. Her harp experiences also include masterclasses and private lessons with Susann McDonald, Jessica Zhou, Heidi LehWalder, and Yolanda Kondonassis, and performances with the Pacific Harp Ensemble and The Boston Conservatory Harp Ensemble. Gretchen currently serves as the Director of Music and Worship Arts at Aliso Creek Church, teaches music history classes at Concordia, and maintains private harp lessons and a busy freelance career. She shares her passion for music and education with her husband, Jordan Kirby, a high school choral director.

Studio Faculty - Voice

Biography

Karla Kniss graduated from Oberlin Conservatory with a BM in vocal performance and music education. She received her masters from USC with William Vennard, studied at the Mozarteum in Salzburg, and received a scholarship to study with Pierre Bernat for two years in Paris, France. She received a License de Concert at the Ecole Nornale de Musique. She has performed recitals in Austria, France, and the U.S. under the auspices of the American Embassies. She is past president of the Los Angeles chapter of NATS and MTAC-Orange County West branch, member of Pi Kappa Lambda National Music Honors Society, and is very active adjudicating.

Studio Faculty - Flute

Biography

An active freelance flutist in the Los Angeles area, Julie Long has played with nearly every major local ensemble at every major local venue. Hailed "a terrific flutist" by Julius Baker and called "the real deal" by Jim Walker, Julie is most comfortable playing a variety of classical genres: from early music to contemporary, from solo to large ensemble.

As an orchestral flutist, Julie has performed with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Los Angeles Music Center Opera Orchestra, Pacific Symphony, Pasadena Symphony, Long Beach Symphony, Los Angeles Master Chorale Orchestra and others. She became a member of the Riverside County Philharmonic Orchestra after winning the second flute audition in the Fall of 2005. As a studio recording artist she has played on dozens of major motion picture soundtracks, such as Fantastic Four, Superman Returns and Horton Hears a Who.

Julie became passionate about chamber music as a student at U.S.C., where she was recipient of the Outstanding Woodwind Chamber Music Student Award for two consecutive years. In 1999 Julie joined the new music group, Ensemble Green, which specializes in performing music of Los Angeles composers. She is also a member of the Resonance Flute Consort, a unique recording ensemble which recently released its second CD, consisting of original arrangements of movie and television music. With a D.M.A. minor in early music, Julie plays wooden Renaissance and Baroque flutes and has performed with the Los Angeles Baroque Orchestra and Bach Collegium San Diego.

Julie has presented dozens of solo recitals and was one of six finalists in the National Flute Association Young Artist Solo Competition in 2000 and 2002. Her knowledge and interpretation of the flute repertoire has led her to inspire many young flute students. She is currently flute professor at Long Beach City College and Concordia University, Irvine. She has been flute coach for the Idyllwild Arts Summer Program since 1997.

Education

• B.M. Flute Performance - Cleveland Institute of Music
• M.M. Flute Performance - University of Southern California
• D.M.A. Flute Performance - University of Southern California

Teaching

• Individual Flute Lessons
• Director, Flute Choir

Bassoon Instructor

Biography

Renowned for her musicality and warm sound, bassoonist Elizabeth Low-Atwater, is quickly establishing herself in the southern California music scene. As a fellowship recipient, she attended UCLA for her Master's degree studying with John Steinmetz and received her Bachelor's degree from California State University at Fullerton with Dr. Rebecca Rivera. In the summer of 2010, she was invited to participate in the Hot Springs Music Festival and studied under Gwendolyn Rose.

Elizabeth maintains an active performing career playing with groups like the Dana Point Symphony, Center Stage Opera Company, as well as many other regional projects. As an avid chamber musician, she is a member of many different groups including the Neapolitan Trio, West Coast Wind Quintet, and Ensemble Christo. While in graduate work, she became a two-time finalist of the Coleman Chamber Competition, as well as participate in the UCLA Gluck chamber outreach scholarship program.

Elizabeth is an adjunct faculty member at three colleges and she provides musical coaching at two high schools. She also holds a private studio where her students have gone on to play in honor orchestras, chamber events, and received music scholarships in higher education.

Biography

Tenor Robert MacNeil has been praised by the Los Angeles Times for possessing a voice that is “clarion” and “clear”. After making his San Francisco Opera debut as the High Priest of Neptune in Mozart’s Idomeneo, he returned to perform in productions of Salome, Le Nozze di Figaro and in Werther, for which Opera News said Robert MacNeil “sang with panache.” Mr. MacNeil most recently performed with LA Opera in Lohengrin, after previous appearances including The Stigmatized, Fidelio, Il Trovatore, Der Rosenkavalier, Festival Play of Daniel, Tannhäuser, La Bohème and Il Tabarro. The tenor made his debut with the famed Ojai Festival under Kent Nagano in Orff’s Die Kluge and recorded the role of Martin in Copland’s opera The Tender Land, which was released on the Koch International Label.

An accomplished concert artist, the tenor has been soloist in more than sixty performances of Handel’s Messiah. He has soloed with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir in performances of Elijah, the Sydney(Australia) Choral Festival in the Berlioz Requiem and in Orff’s Carmina Burana with the Central Union Philharmonic in Beijing. He made his Carnegie Hall solo debut in Britten’s The World of the Spirit and appeared in Rome with the Orchestra Roma Symphonia in Verdi’s Requiem. He has appeared as a guest artist with the Oregon Symphony, Aspen Chamber Orchestra, Los Angeles Master Chorale, Pacific Symphony, Oregon Festival of American Music, Pacific Chorale, Long Beach Opera, Pasadena Symphony, California Philharmonic, Angeles Chorale, Opera Santa Barbara, New West Symphony, Santa Barbara Symphony, Bozeman Symphony and numerous concerts with the San Diego Chamber Orchestra, Third Angle New Music Ensemble, William Hall Master Chorale, Bakersfield Symphony, California Master Chorale and the Cascade Music Festival.

The tenor, a National Finalist in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, has his B.M. from Chapman University and M.M. from the University of Southern California. At the University of Southern California, he was a Marilyn Horne Scholar and was named Most Outstanding Graduate Student from the Thornton School of Music.

Studio Faculty - Saxophone

Biography

JAY MASON graduated from CSU, Long Beach, playing lead alto and soprano saxophone in that school’s top-rated wind ensemble, jazz ensemble and orchestra. In 1981 he was a featured soloist at the North American Saxophone Alliance national convention, and in 1983 the University Saxophone Quartet, of which he was a member, were finalists in the Coleman Chamber Ensemble Competition.

After graduation Jay has had a busy freelance performance career. Based in the Los Angeles area, he appears regularly on numerous live concerts and on many studio projects for motion pictures, television and video games. A few of the performers he’s worked with are Michael Buble’, Johnny Mathis, Michael Finestein, Peabo Bryson and Christina Aguilera, the Los Angeles Master Chorale and the Pacific Symphony. Live performances include Broadway shows such as Kinky Boots, Wicked, Spamalot, Jekyll and Hyde and The Addams Family, and he is a member of Gordon Goodwin’s Big Phat Band which has toured throughout the United States, Canada and Asia.

Motion picture and television credits include American Dad, Disney’s ‘Frozen’, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Princess and the Frog, The Tonight Show, Dragon Tales, Toy Story 3 and a number of commercials for companies such as United Airlines and Ford Motor Company. He has also performed on recordings for artists such as Barry Manilow, Michael Finestein, and John Lithgow of Third Rock from the Sun fame.

Jay rounds out his activities by teaching at the Bob Cole Conservatory at CSU Long Beach, Concordia University, and his teaching studio in Irvine, CA. as well as appearances as a guest artist and clinician for high schools and universities throughout the United States. His students have consistently won chairs in the SCSBOA All Star Jazz and Wind Ensemble Honor Groups, are attending major music university programs at schools like Eastman School of Music, Indiana University, CSULB, University of North Texas, and Berklee College of Music. Several have gone on to careers in music as professional performers, educators and producers.

Studio Faculty - French Horn

Biography

Brendan McBrien grew up in Sunnyvale, California where he began his musical training on the French horn in 4th grade. He moved to Southern California and attended California State University, Long Beach, receiving his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in music composition and conducting. For over 30 years he was a professional French horn player in the Los Angeles and Orange County areas playing for symphony, television, movie, and theater orchestras. Brendan’s many compositions and arrangements for band and orchestra are performed worldwide and published with the Alfred, Belwin, Kendor, Kjos, and Wingert-Jones Music Companies. Brendan is an active adjudicator, clinician, and honor group conductor who has served six terms on the board of the Southern California School Band and Orchestra Association. He has presented many workshops at both state and local conventions and has received several awards including Middle School Teacher of the Year for the Irvine Unified School District and Orange County Department of Education. Brendan began teaching in the Irvine Unified School District in 1988 and has been the director of bands and orchestras at Irvine High School, Venado Middle School, and most recently Rancho San Joaquin Middle School. In June of 2022, Brendan retired from the Irvine USD after 34 years of teaching. Since 2015 he has taught Music Arranging, Brass Methods, and student teaching supervision at California State University, Long Beach. He is also an adjunct faculty member in the music department of Concordia University, Irvine where he teaches music education courses. In his free time, he enjoys gardening, concertgoing, and traveling. He attends Trinity United Presbyterian Church, Santa Ana where he and his wife are elders. Brendan’s greatest blessing is being married to his wife of 34 years Karen, and father to his sons Kevin, and Patrick, and daughter Megan.

Jazz Orchestra

Music Department Chair, Associate Professor, University Organist / Church Music, Director of Keyboard Activities and Jazz

Biography

Tom Mueller serves as Associate Professor of Church Music and University Organist at Concordia University in Irvine, California, where he directs academic programs in keyboard, composition, and jazz, and serves in chapel music leadership. An award-winning church musician, he serves as the Associate Organist at St. James’ Church in Los Angeles, where he accompanies the acclaimed Choir of St. James’ under the direction of James Buonemani. He is an active recitalist, clinician, and adjudicator.

Mueller was awarded first place in the 2014 Schoenstein Competition in Hymn-Playing, held in conjunction with the national convention of the American Guild of Organists in Boston, Massachusetts. In 2015, he was honored by The Diapason as a member of the inaugural “20 Under 30” list of influential figures in the world of organ and church music.

He maintains an active concert schedule, and has performed across the United States and Europe. In 2010, he performed the complete organ works of J. S. Bach in a series of seventeen concerts in his native state of Maine. He has received numerous commissions for new choral and liturgical works, and performances of his compositions have been broadcast on national radio and television. Mueller is also an accomplished guitarist and mandolinist, and toured the country as a member of The Muellers, a nationally-recognized family bluegrass band. Their fourth album, The Muellers, was released in 2009. As an organist, his recording credits include Scott Perkin’s A New England Requiem and O Beauty Ever Ancient Ever New by the Choir of St. James’, both of which were released on the Gothic label.

Research interests include the early organ and keyboard works of J. S. Bach, the performance practice of organ continuo playing in the classical-era concerted sacred music of Germany and Austria, and the American reception of the nineteenth-century opera star Jenny Lind. He has presented workshops, masterclasses, and lectures for numerous organizations, including numerous chapters of the American Guild of Organists, and has served as a faculty member for the Guild’s Pipe Organ Encounter (POE) program for young organists. He currently serves on the national Committee for Continuing Professional Education (CCPE) of the AGO, as a regional president and national board member of the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians, and chairs the Organ Study Grant Program of the Orange County AGO.

Mueller earned the Doctor of Musical Arts degree at the Eastman School of Music, where he studied with David Higgs. He also holds degrees from the University of Notre Dame (M.S.M. in organ), and the University of Maine at Augusta (B.M. in jazz composition and piano), where he graduated summa cum laude. He resides in Orange County with his wife and two daughters.

Publications

• Mueller, Tom. “A New Evaluation of ‘Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern,’ BWV 739.” In CrossAccent 2020, no. 2: 16–25.
• Mueller, Tom. “Mindful Hymnody and Leadership.” In In Tempo 2018, no. 2.
• Mueller, Tom. “Towards the Recovery of Authentic Organ Continuo Practice in Haydn’s Concerted Sacred Music.” In Online Journal of the Haydn Society of North America 7, no. 2 (Fall 2017).
• Mueller, Tom. “The 2016 EROI Festival—Breath for Singing: The Organ and the Human Voice.” In The Diapason 1293 (2017): 22.

Papers, Presentations, and Workshops

• “Organ Consoles and Hymn Registrations for Church Musicians,” LCMS All Workers Conference, November 2020
• “Leading the Church’s Song from the Organ,” Association of Lutheran Church Musicians Conference, Portland, OR, June 2019
• “J. S. Bach’s Clavier-Übung III,” St. John’s Lutheran Church, Orange, CA, February 2019
• “Text-Driven Interpretation and Leadership in Congregational Hymnody,” Lectures in Church Music, River Forest, IL, October 2018
• “Musical Poetics: Rhetoric and Music in the Seventeenth Century and Applications for Modern Liberal Education,” Association for Core Texts and Courses 24th Annual Conference, Framingham, MA, April 2018
• “Why Art? Music, History, and Faith Through the Eyes of Heinrich Schütz,” Concordia University Irvine Enduring Questions and Ideas Forum, September 2017.
• “A Leader and a Servant: Preparing Hymns for Congregational Singing,” LCMS Institute for Preaching, Liturgy, and Church Music, Chicago, July 2017
• “Organ Continuo Practice in Viennese Concerted Sacred Music,” American Guild of Organists National Convention, Houston, June 2016
• “Jenny Lind Sheet Music in Pre-Lindomania America,” North American Conference for Nineteenth-Century Music, Andover, MA, July 2015
• “Seventeenth-Century Influences on the Earliest Organ Works of J. S. Bach,” University of Notre Dame, October 2014
• “A New Evaluation of ‘Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern,’ BWV 739,” American Guild of Organists National Convention, Boston, June 2014

Professional Service and Memberships

• Region 4 President, Association of Lutheran Church Musicians, 2018–present
• Chair, Organ Study Grant Program, Orange County AGO, 2018–present
• Member, Committee for Continuing Professional Education (CCPE), American Guild of Organists, 2015–present
• Co-chair, Programming Committee, American Guild of Organists 2019 Regional Convention
• Subdean, Orange County AGO chapter, 2015–2017
• Member, Association of Lutheran Church Musicians
• Member, Organ Historical Society
• Member, Education Committee, Los Angeles AGO chapter, 2014–2016

Current Teaching

• MUS 303 Music Theory III
• MUS 304 Music Theory IV
• MUS 305 Arranging
• MUS 403 Orchestration and Instrumentation
• MUS 430 History and Analysis of Modern Music

• Applied Organ
• Applied Composition
• Applied Harpsichord
• Applied Jazz Piano

• Director, Concordia Jazz Orchestra and Ensembles
• Director, Concordia Americana Ensemble

Past Teaching Assignments

• MUS 102 Music Fundamentals
• MUS 111 Experiences in Music
• MUS 331 Music History I
• MUS 332 Music History II

Adjunct Professor

Biography

Jenny Hyunseung Oh, cellist, has established her career as a soloist, chamber musician and instructor. She received her Bachelor of Music Degree from Seoul National University, and she earned a Master of Music Degree from Peabody Conservatory. She also received her Graduate Certificate in Music Performance at the University of Southern California.

Jenny has appeared as a soloist with Bucheon Philharmonic Orchestra in Korea and North Hungarian Symphony Orchestra in Hungary. She also has performed as a chamber musician in numerous concerts throughout the United States, Korea, Germany and France. She is a passionate member of a chamber music, Charis Christian Chamber and W trio of USC alumni. She is also a coach of the Junior Chamber Music in Orange County. Since 2017, Jenny teaches as an adjunct professor at Concordia University.

Studio Faculty - Guitar

Biography

An Irvine, California native, Donovan Raitt started his musical career with the piano at the age of 5. At the age of 11, Donovan fell in love with the electric guitar and started taking private lessons. Unaware of his family's history with the electric guitar (Donovan's cousin is Grammy winning blues guitarist Bonnie Raitt), Donovan's love for the guitar grew as he started to perform regularly in a wide variety of styles. By the age of 18, Donovan had performed in many rock, blues, and top 40 bands and was a featured soloist with the University High school Jazz ensemble, performing at the Anaheim convention center, The Irvine Jazz Festival and Disneyland.

At the age of 18, Donovan started to teach private lessons in performance and composition in a wide variety of styles to aspiring guitarists of all ages. Donovan continues to further his love for teaching by holding teaching studios in the Orange County and Los Angeles areas. Donovan is an adjunct faculty member at Concordia University in Irvine, specializing in contemporary Christian music for the guitar. He also maintains a teaching studio at Jim's Music Center, the largest independent music store in California, and teaches beginning guitar classes in public schools with Excelsus Music Collaborators, a non-profit music education program. Donovan has also written, edited and published several online guitar lessons for www.zapguitar.com, www.strum-n-comfort.com and www.guitarschool.net. Donovan has also written his first guitar instruction book, "The Practical Guide to the Guitar."

In 2001 Donovan was admitted to the Thornton School of Music at the University of Southern California in the Studio/Jazz guitar program, and was the recipient of the Paul LaRose memorial scholarship for guitar. While at USC, Donovan studied jazz and contemporary guitar styles with Steve Trovato, Richard Smith, Frank Potenza, and Pat Kelley, as well as classical, flamenco and finger-style guitar with David Oakes and James Smith. Donovan graduated from the studio guitar program with honors from USC in 2005. Donovan is currently working towards his master's degree in Jazz Studies from California State University, Long Beach under the direction of Ron Eschete.

Donovan works regularly as a performing guitarist in both solo performance as well as with several groups and ensembles. Some of Donovan's clients include Princess Cruise Lines, The Orange County Financial Society, Congressman John Campbell (R-California), Considerate Done Entertainment, the Embassy Suites Hotel, In Good Company Entertainment, and many more.

Donovan is currently endorsed by Strum-N-Comfort thumb picks as well as Line 6 guitars and effects and continues to perform regularly in the Los Angeles and Orange County areas. Donovan is currently working on a CD of original music for solo guitar, which he hopes to finish by the end of the year.

Studio Faculty - Percussion

Biography

William Schlitt is an accomplished percussion performer and educator. A native to Southern California, he has been active in the music industry for over 35 years.

His teachers include Hollywood studio legends Hal Rees and Earl Hatch, as well as jazz great Chuck Flores and the Los Angeles Philharmonic's Raynor Carroll.

He has performed as a recording artist for a variety of motion pictures, television and audio recordings and was formerly principal percussionist with Music Theater of Southern California. He has performed under such conductors as Pierre Boulez, Robert Shaw, Christoph Eschenbach, and Esa-Pekka Salonen and premiered a work by composer John Cage. Continuing to be active as a freelance musician in Southern California, Bill works with groups such as the Angeles Chorale, the Crystal Cathedral Orchestra, and the Karousel Kids Theater Group. He also currently performs as timpanist with the Redlands Symphony, and as an extra percussionist with the Los Angeles Philharmonic.

As an educator, Bill has authored the drumset method book, Rock Connection, and is in demand as a percussion clinician. He currently serves on the faculty at Concordia University-Irvine, the University of Redlands, Azusa Pacific University, California State Polytechnic University-Pomona, Vanguard University, and the Idyllwild Arts Academy. For the last eighteen years he has been on the faculty of the Idyllwild Arts Summer Festival where he coaches students from around the world to play at the famed Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles.

Biography

Dr. Clarissa Shan joins the Concordia University Irvine Music Faculty in the Fall 2015 Semester. Dr. Shan received a doctorate of musical arts degree at the University of Southern California Thornton School of Music. She also holds a master’s degree from USC and a bachelor of arts degree from La Sierra University.

Dr. Shan is an active soprano performer throughout southern California. She has sung roles such as The Queen of the Night in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte, Cendrillon in Viardot's Cendrillon,Lauretta and Nella in Gianni Schicchi, Crobyle in Massenet’s Thaïs,Giannetta in Donizetti's L'elisir d'amore, Cissy in Albert Herring, and Annina in La Traviata. Ms. Shan’s other major works include soprano solos in the Bach Cantata 140, Fauré Requiem in D minor, Handel Messiah, Mozart’s Coronation Mass and Mass in C minor, Rutter Requiem and Magnificat, and the Vivaldi Gloria.

Ms. Shan has won first place in competitions such as the Burbank Philharmonic Orchestra Young Artist Competition, the Redlands Bowl Young Artist Competition, and the grand prize in the Brentwood Symphony Young Artist Competition. Besides performing, Ms. Shan also shares her passion of music with the younger generation by teaching voice to undergraduate students as well as classes at USC.

Biography

Dr. HyeJung Shin, a native of Korea, is an active pianist, vocal/instrumental coach, and chamber musician. As a collaborative pianist, she has given numerous performances in Korea, the United States, Austria, Canada and Japan. She has worked extensively in recitals and masterclasses with renowned musicians, including Barbara Bonney, Graham Johnson, Martin Katz, Jake Heggie, John Musto, Linda Watson, Gabriele Lechner, Jennifer Ringo, Speranza Scappucci and Warren Johnson. As a passionate chamber musician, Dr. Shin performed and studied at the Aspen Music Festival as a recipient of the Lynette Gutner Memorial Fellowship under Prof. Rita Sloan.

She also appeared in many music festivals such as Song Fest, CA, Grandin Festival, OH, Brevard Music Festival, NC, Bay View Music Festival, MI and the Vancouver International Song Institute, BC, Canada. In summer of 2015-2022, she was invited as a repetitor to the American Institute of Musical Studies in Graz, Austria and she will be returning to the festival this summer in 2022. She was also invited as a performer to the International Double Reed Society Conference, Tokyo in Japan in 2015. She has been actively involved in choral ensembles. She was the pianist for the University of Southern California (USC) Thornton Chamber Singers, under the direction of JoMichael Scheibe, a former national president of the American Choral Director’s Association (ACDA).

Dr. Shin received the Master of Music degree in collaborative piano with full scholarship under the instruction of Kenneth Griffiths from the College-Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati. She earned her Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Keyboard Collaborative Arts as a teaching assistant under Dr. Alan Smith at the Thornton School of Music at the University of Southern California. She was elected to Pi Kappa Lambda by Eta Chapter of the National Music Honors Society in 2017 and is a recipient of the Gwendolyn and Adolph Koldofsky Memorial Endowed Scholarship, Keyboard Collaborative Arts Ensemble Award and the Keyboard Collaborative Arts Department Award at the University of Southern California.

Dr. Shin has served as a principal musician at the University of California Los Angeles, Herb Alpert School of Music. She currently works at Concordia University, Irvine where she is director of Chamber Music and Collaborative Piano, a vocal and instrumental coach/collaborative pianist, director of the Concordia Music Competition and the Summer Chamber Music Camp. She also works at the Orange County School of Arts as an instructor and St. Andrew’ Presbyterian Church, Newport Beach as a pianist.

Studio Faculty - Vocalist

Biography

Jaime Van Der Sluys, originally from Snellville, Georgia, is an accomplished performer, educator, studio singer, arranger, and songwriter currently residing in Long Beach. She entertains audiences with her sincere approach, wide stylistic range, and natural presence. During her career as a vocalist she has performed at Herb Alpert’s Vibrato Jazz Grill, the Dolby Theatre for the Pitch Perfect 3 Premier, The Queen Mary, Disneyland's Club 1901,The Blue Whale Jazz Club as well as many other exciting venues across the country. She can be seen performing regularly throughout the greater Los Angeles area.

Jaime was the featured vocalist in the Stars Wars for Kinect video game on the song “Naturally.” She was a member of the a cappella pop/jazz caroling group Snowfall which was created by Grammy-winning arranger and producer for the Pentatonix, Ben Bram. As a background vocalist, Jaime recorded with the indie/alternative rock band Lord Huron on their most recent album Long Lost. She performed their single “Mine Forever” on the Late Late Show with James Corden. Jaime was a member of the choir for the Rolling Stones tour at Petco Park in San Diego. She also sang with the Josh Tatum Band who were the opening act for Bon Jovi.

Jaime holds a Masters in jazz studies from California State University Long Beach as well as her Bachelors from the University of North Texas. While attending Cal State, Jaime studied under the renowned Christine Guter and was a member of the award winning vocal jazz ensemble, Pacific Standard Time. She has received numerous accolades, including the outstanding vocalist award at the Next Generation Monterey Jazz Festival and was the recipient of the Ella Fitzgerald scholarship. Jaime also received the 2017 Graduate Jazz Soloist award from DownBeat magazine.

Studio Faculty - Organ

Studio Faculty - Trombone & Euphonium

Biography

Len Wicks attended Vanguard University and California State University, Fullerton, where he graduated with a B.A. in Music. He currently works as a music specialist with the N.M.U.S.D. as well as a member of the adjunct music faculty at Concordia University Irvine. He is also on the faculty at Mariners Christian School, where he is the band teacher.

Len’s work as a private instructor spans 30 years and includes Crystal Cathedral Academy and Brethren Christian Schools, and includes tutoring on all brass and woodwind instruments. Len also works as a professional musician and has performed with numerous bands, orchestras and ensembles throughout the Los Angeles and Orange County areas.

Education

• California Sate University Fullerton School of the Arts B.A. Music

Teaching

Len teaches Brass Techniques, Jazz Band, and coaches Brass Ensembles for the University Bands and Orchestras. His private study studios include trombone, bass trombone, and euphonium.

Studio Faculty - Horn

Biography

Erika Wilsen is an active freelance horn performer and an experienced educator. She maintains a large studio, including students hailing from across the country and overseas. Students range from young beginners to university students and beyond. A passionate teacher, Erika earned her Doctor of Musical Arts degree at UCLA in 2021. She was the recipient of several scholarships, including the Mimi Alpert Feldman and the Gluck scholarships, as well as a Summer Graduate Research Mentorship and a Graduate Research Mentorship fellowship. She worked as a teaching assistant for six quarters, including several Musicology courses such as Writing About Music and Creating Musical Community, as well as the 125ABC sequence of music history. She also served as a teaching assistant in the Comparative Literature department.

Most recently, she has performed with Pacific Symphony, UCLA’s Gluck Brass Quintet, Left Coast Quintet, and Pacific Sound Brass Quintet. She has performed extensively in Los Angeles, San Diego, and the San Francisco Bay Area. Erika was a founding member of the woodwind quintet Avenue Winds and performed with the ensemble for 11 years. In addition to playing principal horn for Peninsula Ballet Theatre and St. Peter’s Chamber Orchestra, she has performed with the symphony orchestras of Berkeley, Fremont, Santa Cruz and Vallejo as well as Opera San Jose, San Francisco Lyric Opera, and the San Francisco Choral Society. She has performed with Josh Groban and Barry Manilow. Erika graduated with a double major in English and Music (Honors) at Davidson College and holds her Master of Music in Horn Performance from the University of Michigan. Her mentors include Amy Sanchez, Soren Hermansson, Bryan Kennedy, Frank Portone, Robert Pruzin, and Louis Stout. When Erika is not playing or teaching, she enjoys spending time outside and with her family.