Since the AMFS’s inception, its alumni have played significant roles in the artistic world, among them: conductor James Conlon; composers William Bolcom, David Lang, and Philip Glass; violinists Joshua Bell and Midori; pianists Ursula Oppens and André Watts; and singers Renée Fleming, Bryan Hymel, Danielle de Niese, and Dawn Upshaw. AMFS alumni also extend beyond the music world: Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was an AMFS piano student in the 1970s.
AMFS alumni performers for the 2025 season include violinists Adele Anthony, Robert McDuffie, Gil Shaham; cellist Alisa Weilerstein; bassist Edgar Meyer; guitarist Sharon Isbin; pianists Conrad Tao and Jeremy Denk; conductors James Conlon, Fabien Gabel, Lawrence Isaacson, Marie Jacquot; and countertenor Key’mon Murrah.
Artist-faculty alumni include cellist Eric Kim, harpist Nancy Allen, percussionist Jonathan Haas, and bassoonists Nancy Goeres and Per Hannevold. For a complete list of artist-faculty members, including alumni, refer to “Artist-Faculty and Guest Artists” on pages 62–63. Faculty appear in performance in orchestral concerts as well as chamber music concerts on July 7, 12, 19, 26; August 2, 9, 16, and 23. Stay connected here for more
Alumni News
Jacqueline Audas (violin, 2016, 2018, 2021) has joined the Seattle Symphony first violin section.
Jacob Bass (conducting, violin, 2016–17; conducting, 2021–22) was appointed head coach and second kapellmeister at the Mittelsächsisches Theater in Freiberg.
Amanda Batista (soprano, 2023) was selected as 2024–25 Lindemann Young Artist.
Cameron Bonner (bassoon, 2016, 2019, 2021–23) was appointed principal bassoon with the Atlanta Symphony.
Le Bu (bass, 2019) was one of Operalia 2024’s First Prize Winners.
Katerina Burton (soprano, 2022) was a Maryland District Winner of the Met Opera Laffont Competition, and also won a George and Nora London Foundation Competition award.
Yufei Chen (piano, 2023–24) was a 2025 YoungArts Winner.
Jenny Choo (opera coach, 2023–24) has been named an HGO Butler Studio Artist for 2025–26.
Roderick Cox (conducting, 2013–14) was appointed the music director of the Opéra Orchestre National de Montpellier Occitanie beginning in the fall of 2024.
Cameron C. Daly (violin, 2013, 2015, 2016) has joined the Seattle Symphony as associate principal second violin.
Paolo Dara (viola, 2017–18) has joined the Atlanta Symphony.
Federico De Michelis (bass, 2016) made his Met debut in the fall of 2024 with a role in Osvaldo Golijov’s Ainadamar.
Anwen Deng (piano, 2018, 2022–23) was a 2025 YoungArts Winner.
Brendon Elliott (violin, 2010, 2013, 2016) was the third-place winner of the Senior Division in the 2025 Sphinx Competition.
Po-Yu Fang (double bass, 2024) won a position in the bass section with the Singapore Symphony Orchestra.
James Feddeck (conducting, 2006–08) has been named principal conductor and musical advisor of the Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra.
Kresley Figueroa (soprano, 2022–23) was a Met Opera Laffont Competition 2025 national semifinalist.
Sarah Fleiss (soprano, 2024) was a Met Opera Laffont Competition Capital District Winner.
Taichi Fukumura (conducting, 2022) has been named assistant conductor of the Cleveland Orchestra beginning in their 2025–26 season.
Baldwin Giang (composition, 2023) received the American Academy of Arts and Letters Charles Ives Scholarship.
Sofia Gotch (soprano, 2024) was a Met Opera Laffont Competition 2025 national semifinalist.
Jack Grimm (trombone, 2023) was appointed second trombone in the Philadelphia Orchestra.
Chelsea Guo (piano, 2014–16, 2021, 2023) was a Connecticut District Winner of the 2025 Met Opera Laffont Competition.
Daniel Gurevich (oboe, 2019, 2022–23) was appointed the new oboe instructor at the Interlochen Arts Academy in fall of 2024.
Matthew Hakkarainen (violin, 2019, 2022) won second prize in the 2024 Mieczysław Wajnberg International Violin Competition.
Sunghoon Han (bass, 2024) was selected as a 2024–25 Lindemann Young Artist.
Trevor Haumschilt-Rocha (baritone, 2024) won second prize in the Neue Stimmen Competition.
Nicholas Hersh (conducting, 2011–12) was named Principal Conductor of the Baltimore Symphony Academy.
Ruo Huang (composition, 1999–2002) has been appointed Composer-in-Residence by the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra.
Caleb Hutchings (bassoon, 2024) has received a one-year contract with the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra.
Seohyun Hwang (violin, 2022–24) is a winner of YoungArts 2025.
Kayden Kelly (piano, 2023) is a winner of YoungArts 2025.
Joseph Kingsbury (countertenor, 2023) is a Connecticut District Winner of the Met Opera Laffont Competition.
Ye In Kwak (opera coach, 2023) was selected as a 2024–25 Lindemann Young Artist.
Delyana Lazarova (conducting, 2019) has been appointed Principal Guest Conductor of the Utah Symphony.
Chai Lee (harp, 2022–23) has been appointed principal harp of the Kansas City Symphony.
Shuailin Li (piano, 2024) won third place in the International Piano Competition in Aarhus, Denmark.
Harrison Linsey (oboe, 2013–15) has been appointed principal oboe by the Oregon Symphony.
Tom Liu (piano, 2018, 2022) is a winner of YoungArts 2025.
Josh Lovell (tenor, 2018) won the 39th International Hans Gábor Belvedere Singing Competition.
Shengyu Meng (cello, 2022) was a semifinalist in the Irving M. Klein International String Competition 2025.
Boson Mo (violin, 2008–10, 2012) has been appointed affiliate artist by the University of Houston’s Moores School of Music.
Raditya Muljadi (piano, 2024) has been named a 2025 YoungArts Winner.
Tito Muñoz (conducting, 2004–06) has been appointed interim principal conductor with the Cleveland Institute of Music.
Ethan Murphy (cello, 2023–24) was a semi–finalist in the Sphinx Competition’s Senior Division.
Wilson Ng (conducting, 2016–17) was appointed conducting fellow with the London Philharmonic Orchestra for its 2025–26 season.
Rafael Noriega (bass trombone, 2024) recently won a job in the Navy Band in Washington, D.C.
Gabriela Pena-Kim (violin, 2015) has been appointed to the second violin section of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra.
Sun-Ly Pierce (mezzo, 2022) was an Operalia 2024 semifinalist and third prize winner.
Gracie Potter (trombone, 2021) was appointed principal trombone with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra.
Liv Redpath (soprano, 2011, 2016) has been engaged to sing Pamina in The Magic Flute at Staatsoper Hamburg.
Miles Reed (cello, 2022, 2024) was a semifinalist in the Irving M. Klein International String Competition 2025.
Ian Rucker (baritone, 2021) makes his Festival d’Aix-en-Provence debut this summer in the title role of Billy Budd.
Finn Sagal (bass-baritone, 2019, 2022) has won third prize in the Neue Stimmen Competition.
Alexis Seminario (soprano, 2024) was a Florida district winner of the Met Opera Laffont Competition.
Lauren Taylor (soprano, 2024) was a national semifinalist in the 2025 Met Opera Laffont Competition.
Brooklynn Thatcher (violin, 2024) has been named a 2025 YoungArts Winner.
Max Vinetz (composition, 2024) received the American Academy of Arts and Letters Charles Ives Scholarship.
IN MEMORIAM OF
LEONARD S. POLONKSY
Leonard S. Polonsky was a friend and supporter of the Aspen Music Festival and School. His efforts in our community also included the establishment of the AMFS Polonsky Foundation Fellowship. In addition to his contributions to the AMFS Mr.Polonsky’s philanthropy extended to many organizations in Aspen, New York, and beyond. He helped make significant historical artifacts and documents available to the public, including Sir Isaac Newton’s early papers and a letter from Christopher Columbus’s maiden voyage. He made his fortune in the financial services sector when his company, Hansard Global, went public on the London Stock Exchange in 2006, earning him a profit of 99 million pounds. But his philanthropy began earlier: in 1985 he started the Polonsky Foundation in an effort to support the arts. Among its many beneficiaries was the Theatre for a New Audience in Brooklyn, where Mr. Polonsky was born. Further beneficiaries included students from British music academies who received scholarships to attend the Aspen Music Festival and School.
IN MEMORIAM OF
PAUL SPERRY
Paul Sperry was a concert tenor and teacher of song repertoire, and was a member of the AMFS artist-faculty. His absorbing love of American contemporary songs and the people who write and perform them defined his performing and teaching careers. He premiered dozens of new works, including Leonard Bernstein’s Dybbuk Suite with the composer conducting the New York Philharmonic, and Bernard Rands’s Pulitzer Prize-winning Canti del Sole. He recorded 36 albums and compiled and edited eight books of American song repertoire. He mentored generations of young singers and commissioned works from numerous composers, many of whom became friends. He served on the faculty not only of the AMFS, but also of The Juilliard School and the Pacific Music Festival in Sapporo, Japan. In promoting American contemporary music, he served as the director of Joy in Singing, president of the American Music Center, and chair of the American Composers Orchestra. He performed his final concert on his 90th birthday: April 14, 2024. Paul brought joy to all facets of his life, from his love of good food and good wine to his passion for good (and bad) jokes that he shared with friends and family, with whom he was always in touch.
