AKRON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA STAFF
Executive Director
PAUL JARRETT
Special Events and Volunteer Coordinator
KELLY MJ ANDREWS
Grant Writer and Development Associate
COURTNEY BONIFANT
Director of Marketing
JAMES BUCKEY
Finance Controller
LORI CONANT
Assistant Orchestra Librarian
BETSY FRASURE
Administrative Assistant and Coordinator of Choral Programs
BRENDA L. JUSTICE
Director of Major Gifts
DOUGLAS KOHL
Operations and Stage Manager
BRANDON KUHN
Director of Education and Outreach
ORZELLA B. MATHERSON
Personnel Manager
JEROME MISKELL
ASO Podcast Host
TOM MOORE
Orchestra Librarian
CORY SMITH
Ticket Services Manager
SHARON SMITH
My Symphony is produced by Baker Media Group, LLC For information on advertising: 330.253.0056 x-104 sales@bakermediagroup.com Design: Baker Media Group, LLC
MEDIA PARTNERS
The Sisler McFawn Foundation
EXECUTIVE OFFICERS
President
TOM CROOKES
Vice President
ALEX QUAY
Secretary
THERESA PETIT-LERNER
Treasurer
ANDREW ZIEGLER
Artistic Advisory Chair
TOM CROOKES
Development Chair
LIA JONES
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion Chair
THOMAS A. JEFFERSON, PH.D
Education Chair
BONNIE PANLASIGUI
Finance Chair
ANDREW ZIEGLER
Marketing Chair
STEVE SEDLOCK
Akron Symphony Friends
PAT NILSESTUEN
Strategic Planning Task Force Chair
TOM CROOKES
Executive Director
PAUL JARRETT
Music Director
CHRISTOPHER WILKINS
REPRESENTATIVES
Akron Symphony Chorus
MARTHA BANKS
Akron Symphony Orchestra
JACK KEHRLI
GAMA BOARD OF TRUSTEES
TRUSTEES
Roula Braidy
Kittie B. Clarke
Tom Crookes
Johnnette S. Curry
Heather Hahn
Thomas Hite
Thomas A. Jefferson, Ph.D.
Lia Evans Jones
Geraldine Wojno Kiefer, Ph.D.
Tom Knauer
Andrew Leask
Adam Lintz
BOARD ALUMNI COUNCIL
Dr. Linda B. Angotti
Mark S. Auburn
Sandy Becker-Neidert
Dr. Todd Beyer
Kathy Booth
Patricia M. Albrecht Bracey
Susan Burnoski, CPA
Lisa Chapman-Smith
Thomas Clark, CFP
Robert L. Culp, Jr.
R. Fred Damerow
Gary Davis
Tracy Dowe
William D. Dowling
Bruce Fahey
Jerilynn Ferguson
Sandra Fishel
Robert Frutchey
GAMA FOUNDATION BOARD
Tom Clark, President
Tracy Dowe
Bruce Fahey
Richard Harris
Mike Pasternak
Charlie Peter
Renée Pipitone
Todd Rosenberg
David Scarponi
Donna Valentine
Charles Nelson
Pat Nilsestuen
Bonnie Panlasigui
Theresa Petit-Lerner
Alex Quay
George Rosin
Elizabeth Saraceno
Steve Sedlock
Michael Sferro
Jeana Singleton
Eda Valentin
Andrew Ziegler
Dr. William K. Guegold
Dorothy Hansen
DuWayne Hansen
Richard H. Harris
Sandra V. Hazra, M.D.
Kevin Heraghty
Robert L. Hunt, Sr.
Jerry Irby
Mary Ann Jackson
Melissa Johnson
Jessica Korkosz Korzhiletskiy
Quinnie Lane
Kathleen Leigh Lewarchick
David Lieberth
Jill Bacon Madden
Diana D. Maurer
Rev. Dr. Charles Myricks, Jr.
Jo Ann Oelschlager
Bryon Palitto
Michael J. Pasternak
Charles A. Peter, M.D.
Lucia M. Pileggi
Guy Pipitone
Renée Pipitone
Ernest E. Pouttu
Ernie Puskas
Charles J. Reitz III
Julianne Robbins
Todd J. Rosenberg
Dr. Walter Ruf
David Scarponi
Karen Schreckengost
Dr. David M. Sinar
Donna Valentine
Julie Weagraff
Donna Zabel
HONORARY TRUSTEES
TRUSTEES OF NOTE TRUSTEES EMERITI
Norman P. Auburn, Ph.D. *
Robert S. Crawford *
J. Ralph Gillman *
Sue Jeppesen Gillman
Mabel Lamborn Graham *
Jane Kaufman *
Edward J. Metzger
Bruce F. Rothmann, M.D. *
Olive Cairns *
William & Margaret Denton *
Dorothy Gaylord *
Ida Grotz *
Joseph S. Lichty, M.D. *
Gerald McFadden*
Lola M. Rothmann*
Dorothy Seeger *
Irene Shadley *
Charles K. Sorkin *
Mary Louise Stewart *
Helen M. Vawter
* deceased
CHRISTOPHER WILKINS
MUSIC DIRECTOR & CONDUCTOR
Christopher Wilkins became Music Director of the Akron Symphony Orchestra in the fall of 2006. Since then, the Orchestra’s programming has reflected his strong interest in community-oriented projects. He has developed partnerships with many artists and organizations based in Northeast Ohio, including the Akron Art Museum, Akron-Summit County Public Library, Firestone High School, Summit County Historical Society, YEPAW 365, GroundWorks Dance Theater, Neos Dance Theatre, and the Cuyahoga Valley National Park.
In recent seasons, Wilkins and the Orchestra have developed programming with an emphasis on diverse and underrepresented voices. The 2021–2022 season began a multi-season exploration of the work of mid-20th century composer Julia Perry. Major collaborative projects during his tenure have included fully staged performances of Porgy and Bess, The Rite of Spring, Titanic, South Pacific, A Midsummer’s Night’s Dream, and Carmina Burana. The Orchestra has released several recordings in recent years, including Julia Perry’s music and works featuring Akron-based EarthQuaker Devices.
Wilkins also serves as Music Director of the Boston Landmarks Orchestra, a summer orchestra performing weekly on Boston’s Esplanade and throughout the neighborhoods of Boston. As a guest conductor, he has appeared with many of the leading orchestras of the United States, including those of Boston, Buffalo, Chicago, Cincinnati, Detroit, Houston, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, Pittsburgh, and San Francisco. He has also appeared regularly with orchestras in Latin America, New Zealand, Spain, and the UK.
He previously served as Music Director of the San Antonio Symphony, the Orlando Philharmonic, and the Colorado Springs Symphony. Wilkins also served as resident conductor of the Youth Orchestra of the Americas, helping launch that orchestra in its inaugural season, and leading it on tours throughout the Americas. Wilkins was winner of the Seaver/NEA Award in 1992. He served as the associate conductor of the Utah Symphony, assisting his former teacher Joseph Silverstein; assistant conductor of the Cleveland Orchestra, as assistant to Christoph von Dohnányi; conducting assistant with the Oregon Symphony under James DePreist; and was a conducting fellow at the Tanglewood Music Center.
Born in Boston in 1957, Wilkins earned his bachelor’s degree from Harvard College. He received his master of music degree from Yale University, where he studied with Otto-Werner Mueller. As an oboist, he performed with many ensembles in the Boston area, including the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra, and the Boston Philharmonic under Benjamin Zander.
MUSIC DIRECTOR & CONDUCTOR
CONDUCTORS
ERIC BENJAMIN
ASSOCIATE CONDUCTOR & AKRON YOUTH SYMPHONY DIRECTOR
In a sixth grade music class in his hometown of St. Albans, Eric Benjamin heard Grieg’s In the Hall of the Mountain King and decided to pursue music, first as a listener, then as a musician — playing baritone horn, piano, viola, guitar, and singing — then as a public school teacher (Newton, Mass. North High) and now, as a composer and conductor.
Collegiate studies took him to New England Conservatory for degrees in music education and orchestral conducting. His conducting mentors were Carl St. Clair, Gunther Schuller, Gustav Meier, Kurt Sanderling, and Leonard Bernstein.
Joining the conducting staff of the Akron Symphony Orchestra in 1991, he is now associate conductor, directing the Akron Youth Symphony. A guest conductor with various community, university, and festival orchestras throughout Ohio, he currently also serves as music director of the Alliance Symphony and the Cleveland Women’s Orchestra. His compositions and arrangements have been performed by various orchestras locally and nationally. Several works have been commissioned by the Canton Symphony, including A Secret Gift (after the book by Ted Gup), An Occasional Overture and, as a centennial tribute to Leonard Bernstein, To LB: A Thank-You Note.
CHRIS ALBANESE
AKRON SYMPHONY CHORUS DIRECTOR
Chris Albanese is an assistant professor of choral conducting at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music where he conducts the Grammy-nominated Singing Hoosiers, and teaches courses in choral conducting. He came to the university by way of San Francisco, where he was a member of the Grammy Awardwinning ensemble Chanticleer.
His most recent work includes conducting and preparing collaborations with Sandi Patty, Sylvia McNair, the Indianapolis Opera, Ft. Wayne Philharmonic, and Carmel Symphony. While at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM), Albanese conducted the University of Cincinnati Men’s Chorus, prepared the Men’s and Women’s Choruses for the North American university premiere of Arthur Honegger’s Joan of Arc at the Stake, and served the CCM opera department in the roles of chorus master and assistant conductor.
A passionate educator, Albanese has facilitated master classes throughout the United States and Europe, and exhibits a keen interest in the music of Ibero-America, with special focus on the extant masses and motets of Juan Gutierrez de Padilla. He is a fervent advocate of popular and syncretic music styles, and their incorporation within the choral medium.
His own varied musical experiences include work as a keyboardist in the Chicago-based Chris Buehrle Band, lead tenor saxophone with the Dayton Jazz Ensemble, and study of raga and basic Hindustani vocal technique with Stefan Fiol and Kanika Pandey.
JONATHON TURNER
GOSPEL MEETS SYMPHONY CHOIRMASTER
Jonathon
Turner enjoys a multifaceted career as a pastor, conductor, tenor, and educator, having served in numerous capacities locally and nationally. He received his undergraduate training at Kent State University and is a member of the James Abbington Cohort at Hampton University. He holds a Certificate of Leadership from Yale University, is an M.Div Candidate at Virginia Union University, and M.M Candidate at University of Arkansas. Turner also serves as the Senior Pastor of The Israelite Missionary Baptist Church in Akron.
Some of the highlights of his musical accomplishments include serving as the Director of Kent State University’s Gospel Choir, Artist-in-Residence at Purdue University, Director of the University of Mount Union Chapel Choir, Director of Band and Choral Activities at Emmanuel Christian Academy, and Director of Choral Activities at Lutheran High School East. He currently serves as The AP/ Dean of Students at Campus International High School
Turner has also spent several years as a member of the Gospel Meets Symphony Rhythm Section and has served as The Chorus Master since 2019.
The Gospel Meets Symphony Choir is comprised of singers from more than 70 area churches. The choir serves as the inspirational voice of the Akron Symphony Orchestra’s annual Gospel Meets Symphony concert, which has been a Northeast Ohio tradition since 1994.
DOUGLAS BAYDA
AKRON YOUTH PHILHARMONIC DIRECTOR
Douglas Bayda has been the conductor of the Greater Akron Youth Philharmonic since 2012. A native of Canton, Ohio, Bayda graduated Summa Cum Laude from Bowling Green State University with a bachelor's of music in music education where he served as principal clarinet for both the orchestra, under the direction of Robert Spano and Grzegorz Nowak, and the Symphonic Band, under the direction of Mark S. Kelly. He also earned a master's of music in wind instrument performance from The University of Michigan, where he studied with Fred Ormand as a fellowship student performing in both the Symphonic Band and the orchestras.
Currently, Bayda is the Director of Orchestras at Miller South School for the Visual and Performing Arts in Akron. In 2013, he was awarded Teacher of the Year for Miller South and was a finalist for the Secondary Division Teacher of the Year for the Akron Public Schools. Before returning to Northeast Ohio, Bayda taught both band and orchestra for the Princeton City Schools in Cincinnati, Ohio, as well as schools in Kentucky and Michigan. An active member of the Ohio Music Education Association, Bayda serves as an adjudicator and chaired the 2015 All-State Orchestra. In addition to his teaching responsibilities, Bayda tries to find opportunities to perform as a woodwind doubler in various productions throughout the area. He and his wife, Beth, reside in Medina and have three grown children.
CHRISTOPHER WILKINS // Music Director John S. Knight Chair
Permanently Endowed Chairs Red Chair Society
ERIC BENJAMIN // Associate Conductor & Akron Youth Symphony Director
CHRIS ALBANESE // Akron Symphony Chorus Director
JONATHON TURNER // Gospel Meets Symphony Choirmaster
DOUGLAS BAYDA // Akron Youth Philharmonic Director
AKRON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
VIOLIN I
TALLIE BRUNFELT, CONCERTMASTER
Mathilde B. & Charles K. Sorkin Chair, Dr. Lawrence & Mabel Graham Chair, Nelson & Dorothy
Seeger Chair, Jane & Harold Kaufman Chair
HADAR ZAIDEL, ASSISTANT CONCERTMASTER
Mary Louise Irvin Memorial Chair
SEBASTIAN ORELLANA
VACANT
CORY SMITH*
Guy and Renée Pipitone
SUSAN BRITTON*
SARA SCHAFT
Diana Frances Gayer Chair
VACANT
VACANT
SAMUEL PETREY
VACANT
MCKENNA GLORIOSO
VACANT
VACANT
VIOLIN II
KAREN FERRY, PRINCIPAL
Mrs. J. Robinson Silver, Jr. Chair
AMY GLICK
Nell B. While Chair
JOSEF MUELLER
RUOYAO LI in memory of Wanda L. Fair
JORI BUTLER-GEYER
STEPHANIE SCHORE
Darwin Steele
VACANT
KATHLEEN ANTHONY
Kathryn Booth
STEVEN OSTROW
The Mary and Dr. George L. Demetros
Charitable Trust
KERRY BROKER
SARAH HUSAK
VACANT
VIOLA
MICHAEL STRAUSS, PRINCIPAL
The H. Luther and Ruth Frentz Memorial Chair
JACK KEHRLI
James and Linda Venner
BREANNA LANG
MARK HEINZEN
Mary Kay & Ernest Pouttu
JERRY MISKELL
Mike & Julie Pasternak
SETH GOODMAN
KAREN WENDEL
VACANT
ANNABELLE SPOTO
LARA DUDACK
Mike and Julie Pasternak
VACANT
CELLO
ERI SNOWDEN-RODRÍGUEZ, PRINCIPAL
Laura Lee and Joseph Garfinkel Chair
VACANT
VACANT
JULIE MYERS KING
The Mary S. and David C. Corbin Foundation
VACANT
JAMES BENSON
The Mary S. and David C. Corbin Foundation
ALYSSA BALJUNAS
Dorothy and Duwayne Hansen
NATHANIEL HOYT
DAVID ELLIS
BASS
ANN GILBERT, PRINCIPAL
Maggie and Jerry Lippman Chair
REMY HOWARD
OLE LATHAM
Charlie and Therese Peter
VACANT
BRIAN DEL BIANCO
The Mary S. and David C. Corbin Foundation
JOHN MCCOMB
Dan and Lori Nelson in memory of Josephine Nelson
THOMAS FLOWERS
J. Ralph and Sue Jeppesen Gillman
FLUTE
BARBARA O’BRIEN, PRINCIPAL
Thomas R. and Marilyn W. Merryweather Chair;
Audrey and Harold Frazier Chair
KYRA KESTER*
FLUTE/PICCOLO
JENNY ROBINSON
Betty and Harold Baker Chair; Judy and Roger
Read Chair
OBOE
TERRY ORCUTT, PRINCIPAL
James H. Seiberling Chair
RENATE SAKINS
Howard Greene
OBOE/ENGLISH HORN
CYNTHIA WARREN
Lynn and Edward Metzger Chair
CLARINET
VACANT
Mr. and Mrs. J. Robert Wilson Chair
MATTHEW ROSEN
CLARINET/BASS CLARINET
TOM REED
Salma and Sam Gibara Chair
BASSOON
TODD JELEN, PRINCIPAL
Earl W. Baxtresser Chair
THOMAS ENGLISH
BASSOON/CONTRABASSOON
MARK DEMIO
Charles and Therese Peter Chair
HORN
VACANT
Robert S. and Frances M. Crawford Chair; Robert C. and Suzanne W. Frutchey Chair
ZACHARIAH REED
KEN WADENPFUHL
Jean Schooley
SAM HARTMAN
LISA FINK
BF Goodrich Chair
TRUMPET
JUSTIN KOHAN, PRINCIPAL*
John Charles Frentz Chair
VACANT
LOREN TOPLITZ
TROMBONE
JOHN GRUBER, PRINCIPAL
Dorothy and Joseph L. Boltz Chair
THOMAS PYLINSKI
Dorothy & Duwayne Hansen
BASS TROMBONE
SEAN MCGHEE, PRINCIPAL
TUBA
KENNETH HEINLEIN, PRINCIPAL
Flora M. Bump and Robert L. Wise Chair
The musicians of the Akron Symphony Orchestra are represented by the American Federation of Musicians Local 24, Akron, Ohio.
JOHN CURTIS, PRINCIPAL
Yrma & Louis Ratener Chair; Jane Watters Memorial Chair
PERCUSSION
VACANT
Myers Industries, Inc. Chair
MATTHEW DUDACK
Mr. and Mrs. Herbert Newman
KEVIN LEWIS
Dave Scarponi and Tish Hight HARP
MARY DUPLANTIER, PRINCIPAL
Frances & Joseph Hall Chair; Peggy & Bruce Silver Chair
PIANO
JACOB BERNHARDT, PRINCIPAL
Akron Symphony Guild Chair
*2025-2026 Leave of Absence
AKRON SYMPHONY CHORUS
SOPRANO 1
ANN BARNI
KARIN COLLINS
RILEY COURTHEYN
DIANE DEL GRECO
SARAH GAITHER
APRIL HELD
MIRIAM HENKEL-MOELLMANN
SUSAN HOLBROOK
ALICIA HOTES
BRENDA JUSTICE
LOUISA KREIDER
COLLEEN MILLER
RACHEL O’CONNELL
DEANNA PERDUE
KAITLIN PRIVARA
ASHLEY STATEN
EMMA WILLIAMS
COURTNEY ZIMMERMAN
SOPRANO 2
SALLY ANN ANDERSON
MAJORIE BENJAMIN
MICHELLE GIPPIN
BARB GOETTEL
LYDIA HARTMAN
KAREN HAZLETT
AME HELD
DAWN HORNER
CAROLYN HURLEY
DESIREE JENKINS
CHERYL KLINE
LISA LAZAR
MARYANN NETHING
MIKAILA ONYEKPE
MARY ANNE SCHMIDT
JANE SCHWEITZER
ROBERTA WERVEY
ALTO 1
RACHEL COVER
KAREN DICK
KRISTA DULANEY
NATALIE GILBERT
KAREN GRACY
JANET GRIFFING-LABONNE
JOAN HOUGER
NANCY IRBY
SHARON JUSZLI
JACKIE LANN
KASSIE LYONS
CHRISTINE MAKOSKY
AMY GREENBERG MCCORMICK
JOAN NIEWIEROSKI
JENNIFER PALMIERI
ELIZABETH REILLY
CLAUDINE ROBINSON
JANET TAYLOR
WENDY WAGNER
BARBARA WINBERG
JENNIFER YOUNG
ALTO 2
JACKIE ABNEY
MARTHA BANKS
FREDERICA COHEN
LISA DONATELLI
AMANDA EGOLF
ROSEMARY FITZPATRICK
TARA GILLESPIE
THERESIA HARTZ
ERIN HAYWOOD
PEGGY HOGAN
BETH ILLES-JOHNSON
SUE JOHNSON
POLLI PARKER
NANCY POTTER
JULIANN REESE
KATHY SCHAEFER
AMBER SCHROCK-ANDREASEN
CINDY SPENOSO
PENNY THOMPSON
SYLVIA THOMPSON
EMMA WEIHE
ANITA YOUNG
JULIE ZIMMERMAN
TENOR 1
ATHENA CORBIN
EDDIE CUEVAS
CHRIS FARMET
SAM GARNER
XANDER GOLIGHTLEY
STEVE LORD
TIMOTHY ONDACK
TENOR 2
ROGER DUVALL
PHILIP FOSTER
SEAN GILBOW
WILLIAM HARTZ
RALPH HEIMBERGER
DEVÓN JACKSON
FLOYD JUSZLI
DONALD LAMBO
KEN LINSCOTT
DAVID LOAR
DARRELL MUSIC
TIMOTHY ONDACK
BASS 1
ROBERT BALLI
SIMON BECK
JOHN BURKLEY
RICK DAILEY
CHRIS GODARD
TIM HELD
STEVE HOGAN
JOSEPH PALMIERO
HENRY PAYDEN JR.
MARK PITRONE
DENNIS REYNOLDS
BOB SIGSWORTH
PATRICK STROMBERG
BASS 2
MATTHEW BACHMAN
GAWAINE BANKS
EUGENE FUBLER
JOSEPH GARDNER
JOHN GRUNEICH
CALEB HELGESEN
RICHARD LIEGHLEY
RANDY PETERS
BOB PEYAK
ANDY RAMBLER
GREG SCHUMACHER
KURT SPENOSO
TODD ST. JOHN
BRUCE TAYLOR
AKRON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA 25/26 SCHEDULE
Academic Festival Overture
EJ Thomas Hall, The University of Akron
MAHLER’S FIRST
Piano Concerto in A Minor, op. 7
Allegro maestoso
Christopher Wilkins, conductor
Angela Cheng, piano
Romanze: Andante non troppo con grazia
Eri Snowden-Rodríguez, cello
Finale: Allegro non troppo
Angela Cheng, piano
INTERMISSION
Johannes Brahms (1833–1897) 10 minutes
Clara Wieck (Schumann) (1819–1896) 21 minutes
Symphony No. 1 in D major “Titan” Gustav Mahler (1860–1911) 53 minutes
I. Langsam. Schleppend. Wie ein Naturlaut—Im Anfang sehr gemächlich Slow. Dragging. Like a sound of nature—In the beginning very leisurely
II. Kräftig bewegt, doch nicht zu schnell. Trio: recht gemächlich; etwas langsamer With vigorous movement, but not too fast. Trio: restrained; somewhat slower
III. Feierlich und gemessen, ohne zu schleppen
Solemn and measured, without dragging
IV. Stürmisch bewegt. Energisch. Mit grosser Wildheit Tempestuous. Vigorous. With great ferocity
Thank you to the Tuesday Musical Association for the generous use of the Three Graces Steinway piano.
Preview From the Podium Sponsor September 20th, 2025 | 7:30 pm
ANGELA CHENG
PIANO
Consistently praised for her brilliant technique, tonal beauty, and superb musicianship, Canadian pianist Angela Cheng is one of her country’s national treasures. In addition to regular guest appearances with virtually every orchestra in Canada, she has performed with the symphonies of Saint Louis, Houston, Indianapolis, Colorado, Utah, San Diego, Fort Worth, and Jacksonville, as well as the philharmonic orchestras of Buffalo, Louisiana, Rhode Island, London, Israel, and Minas Gerais in Brazil.
Recent performances include a return to the Edmonton Symphony, Boulder Philharmonic, Minas Gerais Philharmonic, Music Toronto, and the Vancouver Recital Society for the Brahms Festival. Next season will include the Richmond Symphony, Akron Symphony Orchestra, Regina Symphony, and a recital at Art Spring, among others.
Cheng has performed recitals and concertos at Carnegie Hall, Kennedy Center/Washington, D.C., the 92nd Street Y, New York, and Wigmore Hall in London. She appears regularly on recital series throughout the United States and Canada and has collaborated with numerous chamber ensembles including the Takàcs, Colorado, and Volger quartets. North American festival performances include Banff, Chautauqua, Colorado, Great Lakes Chamber Music, Vancouver, Toronto, and the Festival International de Lanaudiére in Quebec.
Cheng has made several recordings for CBC, including discs of Mozart and Shostakovich concerti and a CD of four Spanish concerti with Hans Graf and the Calgary Philharmonic. In addition, an allChopin recital CD has been released by Universal Music Canada.
Cheng was a Gold Medalist of the Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Masters Competition, as well as the first Canadian to win the prestigious Montreal International Piano Competition. Other awards include the Canada Council’s coveted Career Development Grant and the Medal of Excellence for outstanding interpretation of Mozart from the Mozareum in Salzburg, Austria.
A native of Hong Kong, Cheng studied extensively with Menahem Pressler at Indiana University and Sasha Gorodnitzki at The Juilliard School. She is currently on the artist faculty of the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, where she was honored with the 2011-12 Excellence in Teaching Award.
PODIUM NOTES
Brahms Academic Festival Overture | Clara Schumann Piano Concerto | Mahler First Symphony
Gaudeamus igitur iuvenes dum sumus!
The 2025-26 season launches with a youth movement.
Johannes Brahms was still a teenager in Hamburg when he met the Hungarian violinist Eduard Reményi. Together, they toured Europe in programs featuring popular music for violin and piano. Brahms quickly arranged folk dances based on verbunkos—or gypsy dances—for piano four-hands. These Hungarian Dances became the most popular and profitable publications of his lifetime.
We often think of Brahms as a guardian of high art, yet he once again drew on popular melodies in one of his most celebrated orchestral works, the Academic Festival Overture. Written to thank the University of Breslau for awarding him an honorary doctorate, the piece is a gleeful tribute to the tradition of German student songs. Blending craftsmanship and exuberance—the “academic” and the “festival”—it culminates in a rousing rendition of “Gaudeamus igitur,” the centuries-old drinking song still beloved at universities and sporting events today.
Brahms was just twenty when he met Robert and Clara Wieck Schumann. Robert, an influential composer and music critic, and Clara, one of the finest pianists of her generation, were deeply impressed by the young musician. Clara noted in her diary that Brahms “seemed as if sent straight from God.” Robert’s public declaration that Brahms was Beethoven’s true heir brought the young composer instant fame, along with deep anxiety.
Brahms became like a family member to the Schumanns, serving as a surrogate father to their many children after Robert’s mental illness left him incapacitated. Over time, Brahms and Clara Schumann developed a deep mutual affection. “There is the most complete accord between us,” she confided in her diary. “It is not his youth that attracts me — No, it is the fresh mind, the gloriously gifted nature, and the noble heart, that I love in him.” Whether their bond ever became romantic is unknown; if it did, the amorous phase was brief. They remained devoted friends until the end, dying within a year of each other.
Clara Wieck’s Piano Concerto was published in 1836, when she was just sixteen. She had begun the work three years earlier, composing the final movement first—with considerable help from Robert, a piano student of Clara’s father. Originally conceived as a stand-alone piece, it later grew into a full concerto when she added the two opening movements, orchestrating them herself. The concerto bears the hallmarks of a prodigiously gifted young performer: demanding virtuosity, a freely imaginative spirit, command of classical form, and a taste for the unconventional. Angela Cheng, returning to our stage after a glorious Mozart performance in 2018, has become an ardent champion of this concerto.
Gustav Mahler was a composer of symphonies and songs— two forms inseparably linked in his work. He loved the orchestra—which he knew intimately as one of the foremost conductors of his generation—and he loved singers. His Songs of a Wayfarer, with his own text, grew out of an affair with soprano Johanna Richter of the Kassel Opera. These
Let us rejoice while we are young! — traditional student song originating in the Middle Ages by Christopher Wilkins
songs supplied much of the thematic material and emotional impulse for the First Symphony
What is most astounding about Mahler’s First Symphony is how unmistakably Mahlerian it is. While it reflects the influence of giants who preceded him—Beethoven, Schubert, Wagner—it ultimately sounds like no one but Mahler. We hear his distinctive musical voice in every bar: sounds evoking the natural world; song-inflected phrasing; the ideals of chamber music applied to a vast orchestra; and above all, the conviction that a symphony must embrace all of life. From the very beginning, Mahler viewed composition as a vehicle for exploring his own experience of the world: his struggles, passions, sorrows, and triumphs.
The symphony opens as if at the dawn of time. A single pitch reverberates across the entire spectrum of the strings—lowest to highest—while primordial bits of melody in the woodwinds appear and disappear—like strands of DNA. Snatches of fanfares in clarinets and offstage trumpets dissipate in the wind. Out of this budding soundscape, the Wayfarer’s tune emerges, as he strides cheerfully out into nature on a spring morning, finally bursting into full-throated song. In the middle of the movement, the stillness of the opening returns, drained of all energy by the summer heat. Gradually the walking pace returns, building steadily to an ecstatic finish.
The two middle movements evoke rural life. The second movement presents two versions of the Austrian Ländler, a country dance in triple meter. One is vigorous and boisterous, the other graceful and beguiling. The third movement pictures a world turned upside down. A funeral cortège moves through the forest. But the deceased is the hunter and the mourners are the animals gleefully carrying him to his grave. The theme is a children’s song—“Frère Jacques”—begun in the minor key by a solo double bass. Suddenly, a klezmer band appears, as if at a Jewish wedding. Such abrupt juxtapositions baffled Mahler’s early audiences, but today they are recognized as central to his style. In the middle section, the symphony’s “hero” rests beneath a linden tree. The music quotes the closing line of Songs of a Wayfarer, when the heartsick lover bids farewell to life: “My only comrades were love and sorrow.”
The finale opens with a lightning bolt and a thunderous crash, as the symphony’s “hero” battles powerful headwinds. An upwardly striving four-note figure in the minor key hints at victory, though triumph remains far off. Relief appears in the form of one of Mahler’s most beautiful melodies. A premature “false” victory sounds, but it is unearned and fleeting. Mahler recalls the opening of the first movement: bird calls, fanfares, and the symphony’s first theme. A cello soliloquy leads to a wistful oboe melody, quoted from one of Mahler’s earlier love songs. The upward-moving figure returns in the violas, and a slow, determined build toward true victory begins. In the final pages, a radiant hymn bursts forth, its contours recalling the “Hallelujah” chorus from Handel’s Messiah—music that in its glorious original form will conclude the Akron Symphony Orchestra’s November 15th concert.
Photographer Tom Kiefer’s El Sueño Americano / The American Dream is a traveling exhibition documenting the migrant experience at the U.S./Mexico border.
The exhibition features nearly 300 works, along with a revealing selection of migrant belongings. For the first time, the exhibition will also feature works from contemporary Mexican American artist Elizabeth Z. Pineda, whose artwork explores complex issues related to identity, displacement, and migrant deaths that occur in the Arizona desert.
Sleepy Hollow Suite
October 18th, 2025 | 7:30 pm
EJ Thomas Hall, The University of Akron
THE FIREBIRD
Christopher Wilkins, conductor
Chamber Choir of the Akron Symphony Chorus
Chris Albanese, Director
Danny Elfman (b. 1953)
orchestrated by S. Bartek and David Slonaker 12 minutes
Chamber Choir of the Akron Symphony Chorus
Riley Courtheyn, soprano
Eric Benjamin, conductor
The Isle of the Dead (Symphonic Poem after a Painting by Arnold Böcklin)
INTERMISSION
The Tempest (first performance)
The Storm The Island Love
The Firebird Suite (1919)
Introduction
The Firebird and her Dance Round Dance of the Princesses Infernal Dance of King Kastcheï Berceuse Finale
Preview From the Podium Sponsor
Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873–1943) 22 minutes
Cliff Eidelman (b. 1964) 16 minutes
Igor Stravinsky (1881–1973) 19 minutes
Additional Support
PODIUM NOTES
by Christopher Wilkins
Elfman Sleepy Hollow | Rachmaninoff The Isle of the Dead | Eidelman The Tempest | Stravinsky The Firebird
Danny Elfman wasn’t drawn to music as a teenager; he liked science and science fiction. His conversion came with the discovery of Igor Stravinsky. Captivated by the Russian master’s orchestrations and his modern twists on simple melody, Elfman began shaping his own style under the influence of Petrushka, The Rite of Spring, and L’Histoire du soldat. As for Elfman’s taste for the loopy, that was already well honed during his years as leader of the 1980s new wave band Oingo Boingo.
Elfman has scored more than twenty Tim Burton films, beginning with Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure in 1985. His music for Batman (1989) marked a major turning point, as his orchestral textures became denser and more intense, drawing inspiration from old-time masters: Erich Korngold, Bernard Herrmann, Nino Rota, Max Steiner, and Franz Waxman. His score to Sleepy Hollow (1999) marked another high point. It is The Firebird’s dark cousin: muted strings cast dark shadows; low brass menace the innocent; lyrical woodwinds linger at their peril. Eerie voices hang in the air as the distant, disembodied Akron Symphony Chorus weaves its lonely lines. Elfman lavished extra care on the End Credits, where some of the score’s best music is found, including much of tonight’s suite.
I once asked my friend, composer Carlton Gamer, “Do your students hear what’s going on at a symphony concert?” “Most don’t,” he answered. “They don’t play an instrument or read music. Most have no idea where Beethoven lived or when. But— if the music has a story, a poem, or an image—anything extramusical they can relate to—they are much more perceptive than students of the past. Today’s generation knows how to connect the dots.”
Poetry and visual art inspired some of Sergei Rachmaninoff’s best music. In 1907, while performing in Paris, he encountered a painting he couldn’t get out of his mind: Die Toteninsel (The Isle of the Dead) by the Swiss symbolist Arnold Bocklin. It shows a small boat carrying a coffin, accompanied by a mourner in a white shroud, approaching the shore of a gloomy island. Towering cliffs rise from the water, their rocky faces pierced by ancient crypts high above the shoreline.
The following year, Rachmaninoff transformed the imagery of the painting into his symphonic poem The Isle of the Dead. Low chords suggesting mist and dark harmonies conveying grief hover over undulating rhythms in 5/8 time. A hypnotic pulse swells into sweeping climaxes as the medieval chant Dies iræ (Day of Wrath) begins to predominate. Relief comes in a middle section—in what Rachmaninoff called a “melody of life”— but all hope is dashed in two succeeding climaxes. The music gradually subsides into the stillness of the opening.
For music that “connects the dots” there is no score more vivid than The Tempest by a composer who has ascended to Hollywood’s heights, Cliff Eidelman. We are thrilled to give the world premiere of the work tonight—the only previous performances being on recordings by the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, conducted by the composer. Cliff Eidelman writes, "This musical tone poem, an impression of Shakespeare’s The Tempest, is set some 3,500 years ago in the ancient Mediterranean. It unfolds in three main sections.
"The first movement opens with the full orchestra’s thrust, depicting the sudden, violent storm at sea conjured by Prospero, the island’s master magician, to bring his enemies within reach. Musical waves of sound crash and swirl, drawing distant foes toward an unseen shore. As the tempest subsides, the ship settles safely on the island. Quiet cellos and basses evoke the calm after the storm, as the castaways find themselves scattered across the island’s shores. High flute and harp awaken Ariel, the airy spirit, whose unseen hand veils the ship from sight and gently steers fate toward a meeting between the young prince Ferdinand and Miranda, setting in motion the love that will heal old rifts.
"The second movement bursts forth with quick-paced trumpets, capturing the energy and mischief of the island’s encounters, both noble and whimsical. Sudden, commanding interjections from the powerful brass represent Prospero’s interventions as he bends events toward his aim: uniting his daughter with Ferdinand. A heroic French horn theme portrays Prospero’s steadfast will. In a scene of trial, the music, in its darker mood, depicts Ferdinand’s arduous labor, under Prospero’s watch, proving his devotion to Miranda.
"The final movement begins with the softly played strings, heralding reconciliation and ultimate celebration. The long separated are reunited; forgiveness is granted. The lovers’ engagement is blessed, and Prospero prepares to leave the island’s magic behind. As the company boards the restored ship to sail home, the music settles on Prospero’s quiet joy, watching Miranda and Ferdinand step toward their future of love across glistening waters beneath a mesmerizing sunset.”
Igor Stravinsky changed musical history in the first decade of the twentieth century. The Firebird—the first of his great ballets for impresario Sergei Diaghilev—introduced his music to Parisian audiences, and, in fact, to Western Europe as a whole. In it, he aimed to create sounds as vivid and striking as the spectacle of the Ballets Russes itself. In 1919, he created a symphonic suite from the complete ballet—music that has since become a staple of the orchestral repertoire.
The suite’s introduction sets the scene. Low strings and woodwinds cast a dark spell over an enchanted land, an ancient forest possessed by the powers of the evil magician Kastchëi. We hear the rhythmic tread of Kastchëi’s castle guards, and melodic hints in the horn of our hero, Ivan, peering over the wall. Suddenly, the Firebird’s music bursts forth: clarinets and flutes flare in bright plumes, like flames rising from the pulsating high strings. Now the textures soften as, in the moonlight, thirteen princesses—Kastcheï’s captives—descend from a hill and begin a stately dance. They invite Ivan to join in the ceremony. Ivan has eyes only for one, the Tsarevna, and we soon recognize that they are in love. Without warning, Kastcheï’s soldiers and strongmen appear; their Infernal Dance gathers force and Ivan is taken prisoner. The Firebird reappears and begins to lull the entire court to sleep. As a quiet and dignified folk song slowly grows in ardor, the princesses are reunited with their knights, and Ivan and the Tsarevna prepare for their wedding procession. With nuptial bells peeling, the Firebird circles overhead, blessing the seven couples.
November 15th, 2025 | 7:30 pm
EJ Thomas Hall, The University of Akron
HANDEL’S MESSIAH
Justin Kohan, trumpet
Rachel O’Connell, soprano
Ode to the New Year, 1758
Christopher Wilkins, conductor
Cierra Byrd, mezzo-soprano
Timothy Culver, tenor
Ye, Who Seek the Truth*
Trumpet Concerto in Eb Major
Allegro
Andante Finale: Allegro
*Celebrating Akron’s Bicentennial
Adam Cioffari, bass
William Boyce (1711–1779)
3 minutes
Julia Perry (1924–1979)
arranged Jannina Norpoth 4 minutes
Joseph Haydn (1732–1809)
13 minutes
Justin Kohan, trumpet
INTERMISSION
Messiah
PART THE FIRST: The Advent of the Messiah
1. Symphony Overture
2. Accompagnato (Tenor): Comfort ye, my people
3. Air (Tenor): Ev’ry valley shall be exalted
4. Chorus: And the glory of the Lord
5. Accompagnato (Bass): Thus saith the Lord, the Lord of Hosts
6. Air (Alto): But who may abide the day of His coming
7. Chorus: And He shall purify
8. Recitative (Alto): Behold, a virgin shall conceive Air and Chorus (Alto): O thou that tallest good tidings to Zion
9. Accompagnato (Bass): For behold, darkness shall cover the earth
10. Air (Bass); The people that walked in darkness
11. Chorus: For unto us a Child is born
Preview From the Podium Sponsor
George Frideric Handel (1685–1759)
58 minutes
12. Pifa (Pastoral Symphony)
13. Recitative (Soprano): There were shepherds abiding in the field
Accompagnato (Soprano): And lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them
Recitative (Soprano): And the angel said unto them
14. Accompagnato (Soprano): And suddenly there was with the angel
15. Chorus: Glory to God in the highest
16. Air (Soprano): Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Sion
17. Recitative (Alto): Then shall the eyes of the blind be open’d Duet (Alto & Soprano): He shall feed his flock like a shepherd
18. Chorus: His yoke is easy, His burthen is light Chorus: Hallelujah
PART THE SECOND: The Passion of Christ
39. Chorus: Hallelujah
Additional Support
Media Sponsors
JUSTIN
KOHAN
TRUMPET
In addition to his role as Principal Trumpet of the Akron Symphony Orchestra, Justin Kohan is also currently serving as the Acting Principal Trumpet of the Columbus Symphony Orchestra; Principal Trumpet of the ProMusica Chamber Orchestra, the Canton Symphony Orchestra, and the Westmoreland Symphony Orchestra; Second Trumpet of the Erie Philharmonic; and a member of the Grand Teton Music Festival in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
An active performer, Kohan routinely performs with groups such as The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Chicago’s Music of the Baroque, and The Richmond Symphony. He can be heard with the Buffalo Philharmonic in their Grammy-nominated recording of Kodály: Háry János Suite on the Naxos label.
Dedicated to music education, Kohan is a professor of trumpet at Youngstown State University, where he oversees not only his studio of graduate and undergraduate students, but also teaches a class on popular music aimed at expanding the reach of music education to nonmajors as well. He previously served as an adjunct professor at Chatham University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Kohan received his B.M. from the New England Conservatory, and a M.M. from Carnegie Mellon University. He is a native of Orchard Park, New York, and currently resides in Pittsburgh with his wife Jorie, a violinist also with the Akron Symphony.
PODIUM NOTES
by Christopher Wilkins
Boyce Ode to the New Year | Perry Ye, Who Seek the Truth | Haydn Trumpet Concerto | Handel Messiah
Akron’s Bicentennial has inspired musical events of many kinds. This month, the Akron Symphony Orchestra continues our celebration by featuring artists exclusively from our region. Both our third Classics series concert and our Holiday Pops program also include short works by Julia Perry, the mid-twentiethcentury musical prodigy who was raised and educated in Akron.
William Boyce was still in his first year as Master of the King’s Music when he wrote Ode to the New Year, 1758 for King George III. He frequently composed musical tributes for royal birthdays, holidays, and other state occasions. This work—scored for double reeds, trumpets, timpani, and strings, the same forces Handel employed in Messiah—is a high point of English Baroque style, balancing brilliance with simplicity, invention with decorum.
Julia Perry, daughter of a prominent Akron physician, benefited from exceptional music programs in the city’s public schools. Raised, celebrated, and supported in Akron, her extraordinary talent carried her to international prominence in the 1940s and ’50s. It is likely that no more significant figure in classical music has ever emerged from this city. Yet over time, her fame faded. In the past five years, through initiatives led by the Akron Symphony, Perry’s name has returned to the world stage. Boosey & Hawkes, the largest international publisher of classical music, has recently committed to distributing all of her unpublished works—which make up the majority of her catalogue—worldwide.
Ye, Who Seek the Truth was first published in 1952 as a work for mixed chorus with tenor solo and organ. At the time, Julia Perry had just moved to Italy to study with composer Luigi Dallapiccola, immersing herself in the European modernist mainstream. Recently, violinist Jannina Norpoth—co-founder of the multi–Grammy-nominated PUBLIQuartet—has reimagined the work for string orchestra. A prolific composer and arranger, Norpoth brings a fresh perspective to Perry’s music, as she did in her recent collaboration with Jessie Montgomery in their new arrangements for Scott Joplin’s Treemonisha: A Musical Reimagining.
Like most of Perry’s music, Ye, Who Seek the Truth is compact in form and concise in style. It has no flourishes or grand gestures. Lasting about four minutes, its mood, melodies, text, and occasional call-and-response structure recall the traditional spiritual. The text of the original is Perry’s own, paraphrasing rather than directly quoting biblical verses. Perry arranged spirituals throughout her life, beginning with vocal and choral settings she published with major houses while still in her twenties. In 2022, the Akron Symphony released recordings from reading sessions of two orchestral sets: Three Spirituals (1956) and Four Spirituals (1965).
The modern trumpet is an elegant technological solution to an age-old problem. Before the mid-nineteenth century, the “natural” trumpet—just a fixed-length tube—could easily produce only its fundamental pitch and nearest overtones—octave, fifth, third. This limited its use to fanfare-type themes or bare rhythmic support. Scales were possible only in the highest, most difficult register. Even today, to perform using that high “clarino” technique remains a challenge, yet it brings brilliance to many works of Handel and J. S. Bach, and to Boyce’s Ode to the New Year, 1758.
Enter Anton Weidinger, trumpeter of the Imperial Court Orchestra in Vienna. Weidinger experimented with a 7-keyed trumpet capable of playing a scale in the instrument’s middle range by pressing down keys in the manner of a flute or oboe. He commissioned both Joseph Haydn and Joseph Nepomuk Hummel to compose concertos for this instrument. Haydn delighted in the possibilities of the new trumpet, exploiting its lyrical potential to the fullest. The first movement of his popular Trumpet Concerto begins with a cheerfully noble theme made up of every note of the scale. Haydn introduces the keyed trumpet with humor: it plays only conventional limited “fanfare” material at first before unveiling its expanded voice. The slow movement is practically a love song to the new instrument. The lively finale features an athletic theme and cascades of sound, using the full capabilities of the instrument in virtuoso fashion.
The keyed trumpet didn’t last. Drilling holes in its bore in order to add keys compromised the trumpet’s greatest strength: the power and burnish of its tone. Today’s valved trumpet provides a superior solution. It is three tubes in one. Pressing the valves directs airflow into any of three lengths of tubing, or into any combination of them, producing seven options in all. As soloist tonight, we’re thrilled to collaborate with Justin Kohan, the brilliant principal “valved” trumpeter of the Akron Symphony. Handel’s Messiah is the most frequently performed choral work of the Baroque era, maybe of any era. Popular from its first performance, it was originally billed as a “Musical Entertainment” and performed during Lent rather than at Christmastime. Theaters were closed during Lent. As one commentator remembered, “There was strong opposition to hearing the words of the New Testament in a theatre, peopled by actors and actresses and others of loose morals and dubious habits.” So Handel offered instead an “opera for the mind.”
Handel’s librettist, Charles Jennens, created a series of scenes inspired by the Gospels without staging them theatrically. With enormous skill, he drew from a range of scripture to tell not so much the story of Christ’s life, but the prophecy of the Messiah and its fulfillment. Adhering to written and unwritten rules, Jennens scrupulously avoided Christ’s own words and relied mostly on verses from the Old Testament.
One of the most delightful aspects of Messiah is its word painting: creating a musical picture in response to the text. The opening chords of the overture place us in the dark world of the Hebrew exile. As the tenor sings of rough places becoming plain, the orchestra smooths out all the intervals, gradually opening a whole vista before our eyes. For the Refiner’s fire, the music glows red, leaping like flames in a furnace. During the Annunciation of the angel, the strings form a halo above her, the heavens open up to reveal the choir of the heavenly host, as the trumpets echo their sounds “on high.”
Messiah is a one of a kind, in part because it unfolds on many levels at once. Taken as a whole, the work touches on the Prophecy, Nativity, Crucifixion, Resurrection, Ascension, and the Promise of Redemption, embracing all of the major festivals of the church calendar. Tonight, we perform Part I, the “Christmas” portion. But we couldn’t very well leave out the Hallelujah Chorus, which appears at the conclusion of Part II, Christ’s Passion. Among the most famous music in the world, it never fails to inspire and thrill audiences of all faiths.
RACHEL O'CONNELL
SOPRANO
Local soprano and voice teacher Rachel O'Connell began singing regularly with the Akron Symphony Chorus in 2014. Her musical background includes church music, classical concert singing and some opera. In addition to the Akron Symphony Orchestra, O'Connell has also appeared as a soloist with Summit Choral Society's Metropolitan Chorus, with the Lancaster Chorale, and with the Cairn University Community Chorus. Highlights include: Handel's Messiah, Vivaldi's Gloria and Magnificat, Bach's Christmas Oratorio, and Mozart's Vespers and Mass in C (Coronation).
O'Connell earned her master's of music degree in voice performance from Cleveland Institute of Music. She holds two bachelor's degrees, in voice performance and biblical studies, from Cairn University, near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where she was a two-time winner of the annual Outstanding Young Christian Artist concerto competition.
When not singing or teaching from her home studio in Wadsworth, Ohio, O'Connell becomes absorbed in her hobby as a bead artist. She also enjoys homeschooling and teaching music and literature classes in the Simply Classes program from Akron Fossils and Science Center in Copley, Ohio.
CIERRA
BYRD
MEZZO-SOPRANO
merican mezzo-soprano Cierra Byrd is an alum of the Lindemann Young Artist Development Program at the Metropolitan Opera.
Byrd made her Met debut as Bertha in Terence Blanchard’s historic, Grammy Award–winning production of Fire Shut Up in My Bones, and returned to the Metropolitan Opera to reprise Bertha while also joining the company for its production of Madama Butterfly. Additionally, Byrd appeared at the Met as Woman of Crete in Mozart's Idomeneo and stepped in as Soeur Mathilde for the most recent run of Dialogues des Carmélites. Last season, she joined Houston Grand Opera in Jake Heggie’s Intelligence and with PAC NYC in Huang Ruo’s An American Soldier.
This season, Byrd made notable debuts in three new productions: as Queen Kandake Amanirenas in Kandake with Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, in the world premiere of She Who Dared with Chicago Opera Theater, and in The Knock with Central City Opera. Upcoming highlights include performances of Honegger’s Le roi David with The New York Choral Society and returning to the role of Lucinda in Heggie's Intelligence with Virginia Opera.
Notable roles and performances: Fatima in Rhiannon Giddens and Michael Abels’ new opera Omar at Boston Lyric Opera (Pulitzer- and Grammy-decorated, Giddens most recently played for Beyonce's Cowboy Carter album and Abels is the composer for Jordan Peele's films, Get Out and Us), sang Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with The Philadelphia Orchestra under the baton of Yannick Nézet-Séguin, and Missa Solemnis with The Orchestra Now. Notably, she appeared in Mahler’s Symphony No. 3 with The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, under the baton of Marin Alsop.
Byrd is a graduate of The Ohio State University and Peabody Conservatory at Johns Hopkins University, where she studied with Margaret Baroody and Denyce Graves. She is overjoyed to sing in her hometown with the Akron Symphony Orchestra this season, on the very stage that inspired her many years ago.
TIMOTHY CULVER
TENOR
This season marks tenor Timothy Culver’s twelfth performance with the Akron Symphony Orchestra, having recently been praised for his “burnished high register” in Verdi’s Messa da Requiem last May. During the summer of 2025, Culver was seen as Tevye the Milkman in Porthouse Theatre’s Fiddler on the Roof and as Clarence Elkins in the regional premiere of the opera Blind Injustice.
Since his professional debut in 2003, he has performed over 50 different stage roles. Equally at home in both operatic and musical theater works, Culver has performed with Atlanta Opera, Ann Arbor Symphony, Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra, The Boston Landmarks Orchestra, Cleveland Opera Theater, Canton Symphony Orchestra, Porthouse Theatre, Akron Symphony, Nightingale Opera Theatre, Bar Harbor Music Festival, and the Cleveland Orchestra. Some recent roles include Calaf in Turandot, Cavaradossi in Tosca, Werther in the title role, Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly, Luigi in Il Tabarro, Arturo in Lucia di Lammermoor, Canio in I Pagliacci, Il duca di Mantua in Rigoletto, Alfredo in La Traviata and Nemorino in L’elisir d’amore. During the inaugural season of the Opera Theatre of Lucca in Lucca, Italy, Culver performed and studied under the direction of internationally renowned baritone Lorenzo Malfatti. A frequent recitalist, oratorio, and concert soloist, Culver sang in the U.S. premiere of Erwin Schulhoff’s H.M.S. Royal Oak with the Cleveland Chamber Symphony. In 2012, Culver was selected to participate in the Cleveland Art Song Festival, where he worked with international artists Christine Brewer, Roger Vignoles, and Warren Jones.
Currently, Culver is Professor of Voice in the Hugh A. Glauser School of Music at Kent State University, where he earned both his bachelor's and master's of vocal performance degrees. He resides in Stow, Ohio, with his wife and three children.
ADAM CIOFFARI
BASS
Bass-baritone
Adam Cioffari has been praised for his evocative performances, from his “zesty” (Opera News) Elviro in Houston Grand Opera’s Xerxes to his “sneering” (Washington Classical Review) Tom in Un Ballo in Maschera with Maryland Lyric Opera. In 2022, he made his debut with New York City Opera in the world premiere of Ricky Ian Gordon's The Garden of the Finzi Continis. Recently, he played Capulet in Roméo et Juliette at Central City Opera, Fasolt in Das Rheingold with Dayton Opera and Leporello in Don Giovanni with Opera in Williamsburg. In concert, he recently performed in Handel's Messiah and Mozart’s Requiem with the Columbus Symphony Orchestra, and in Verdi's Requiem and Beethoven's Ninth Symphony with the Arkansas Symphony.
Cioffari’s other role credits include the Commentator in the world premiere of Derrick Wang’s Scalia/ Ginsburg at the Castleton Festival, the Musiklehrer (Ariadne auf Naxos) at the Glimmerglass Festival, Papageno (Die Zauberflöte) at Teatro Municipal de Santiago, Colline (La bohème) with Knoxville Opera, the title role in Le nozze di Figaro with Opera Columbus, Judge Turpin in Sweeney Todd with Pittsburgh Festival Opera, and Masetto (Don Giovanni) with Austin Opera. He has also performed with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Theatre Capitole de Toulouse, Staatsoper Stuttgart, and Komische Oper Berlin.
Cioffari was named “Outstanding Stage Director” by the Tampa Bay Theater Awards for his production of The Merry Widow for St Petersburg Opera, where he also recently directed productions of Samson et Dalila, Tosca, Amahl and the Night Visitors and Così fan tutte. Other directorial credits include Die Fledermaus with Opera in Wiliamsburg, Rigoletto and Così fan tutte at Shreveport Opera and The Magic Flute at Opera North. He currently serves as Artistic Administrator for San Diego Opera.
Cioffari is an alumnus of the Houston Grand Opera Studio, the Merola Opera Program, Music Academy of the West, and Aspen Opera Theater. He is a graduate of the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music.
December 12th, 2025 | 7:30 pm
EJ Thomas Hall, The University of Akron
HOLIDAY POPS
Christopher Wilkins, conductor
Kenneth Nilsestuen, guest conductor Renée Pipitone, guest conductor
Daniel Doty, tenor
Akron Symphony Chorus
Chris Albanese, Director
Members of the Gospel Meets Symphony Choir
Jonathon Turner, Choirmaster
Madrigal Singers of Firestone CLC, Akron School for the Arts
Megan Meyer, Director
Deck the Hall
Fantasy on Christmas Carols
Masters in This Hall
“Hallelujah Chorus” from Messiah
Tales of Hanukkah
Carillon Heigh-Ho
Kenneth Nilsestuen, guest conductor
arranged Gary Fry
Malcolm Arnold arranged Christopher Palmer
Marin Marais arranged Mark Hayes
George Frideric Handel
David Kempers
Julia Perry
Carol of the Bells Leontovich and Wilhousky arranged Richard Hayman
Still, Still, Still Traditional arranged Gary Fry
Silent Night
Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer
“Hallelujah” from A Soulful Celebration
Old American Carols
Sleigh Ride
Christmas Singalong
Franz Xavier Gruber arranged John Rutter
Johnny Marks arranged James Stephenson
George Frideric Handel & Mervyn Warren orchestrated David Kempers
Members of the Gospel Meets Symphony Choir
Jonathon Turner, Choirmaster
Daniel Doty, tenor
Madrigal Singers of Firestone CLC, Akron School for the Arts
Megan Meyer, Director
Renée Pipitone, guest conductor
Gary Gry
Leroy Anderson
David Kempers
DANIEL
DOTY
TENOR
Daniel Doty is a tenor who is equally at home on the opera, theater or concert stage. He has appeared with the symphonies in Akron, Ohio, Mansfield, Ohio, Muncie, Indiana, Urbana, Illinois, Marion, Ohio, and community bands in Medina and Wadsworth, Ohio. Performances have found him in a variety of settings, from church sanctuaries to concert halls, and at such locations as the Celle di Puccini (Puccini summer home) and Severance Hall. Doty has appeared on the stage of Weathervane Playhouse in Akron as King Kaspar in Amahl and the Night Visitors.
As participant of the Opera Theatre and Music Festival of Lucca, Doty spent six weeks in the Tuscan village of Lucca, Italy, singing operatic arias at various venues associated with Lucca's most famous son, Giacomo Puccini.
Doty has appeared in Master Classes with such Metropolitan Opera stars as Martina Arroyo and Angela Brown. A past Guest Artist with the Masterworks Festival, Doty worked with David Geier, Assistant Conductor for the New York Philharmonic Orchestra.
Doty holds a bachelor's of music education degree from Bowling Green State University. He is also an ordained minister and holds a master's of divinity degree from Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary, Evanston, Illinois. Currently, Doty is the Designated Interim Senior Minister at First Congregational Church, United Church of Christ in Tallmadge, Ohio. Doty lives in Wadsworth with his wife, Amy, and is the proud father of two daughters, Kristian and Kaetlyn, a newlywed son, Sean, and daughter-in-law, Sara!
CONCERTS FOR KIDS
MAY 12 & 13, 2026
HUDSON
First Congregational Church
47 Aurora St., Hudson, OH
MAY 14, 2026
MONTROSE
Temple Israel
91 Springside Drive, Akron, OH
MAY 18, 2026
BARBERTON
Lake Anna YMCA
500 W. Hopocan Ave., Barberton, OH
MAY 19, 2026
AKRON
Ed Davis Community Center
730 Perkins Park Drive, Akron, OH
The Akron Symphony Orchestra’s CONCERTS FOR KIDS will have young audiences up and moving! This series of performances, kicking off in the spring of 2026, is specially designed for children, ages two to six, but both the young and the young-at-heart will find this year’s concerts to be engaging, exciting, and entertaining.
Concerts For Kids are open to early childhood and elementary school groups, day care centers, Head Start groups, home school groups, and families of all ages. ASO Associate Conductor Eric Benjamin will lead the ASO in a fun and memorable selection of music that will be both new and familiar. Each concert lasts approximately 45 minutes and promises to be interactive and immersive for children.
Tickets are $6 per person, with free admission for children 2 years old or younger, and are available online or by calling the Akron Symphony Ticket Office. Tickets will be available at the door only if space allows.
Concerts For Kids interactive and downloadable resources will be available online for teachers and parents to share with their children after the new year. The concepts, listening and interactions strengthen a wide range of learning and developmental experiences for children. Programs address the child development and early learning framework including creative arts expression, initiative and curiosity, attentiveness, receptive language, literacy knowledge through storytelling, and the portrayal of events, characters and stories through acting.
AKRON YOUTH ORCHESTRAS (AYO) 2025-26
THE AKRON YOUTH SYMPHONY (AYS) was organized in 1955 and held its first concert on January 22, 1956. The AYS celebrates 70 years as one of Ohio’s finest youth orchestras, and continues to provide an outstanding pre-professional educational experience for advanced young musicians in Akron and surrounding communities. This season offers four exciting concerts, culminating in a side-by-side performance with the Akron Symphony Orchestra. The AYS is directed by ASO Associate Conductor Eric Benjamin.
THE AKRON YOUTH PHILHARMONIC (AYP) was organized 40 years ago. Like the AYS, this ensemble draws members from Akron, Summit County, and several surrounding counties. Musicians attend public, private, parochial, and homeschool, and enjoy the opportunity to perform music in a full orchestra setting. The AYP is directed by Douglas Bayda, Director of Orchestras at Miller South School for the Visual and Performing Arts in Akron.
Nov. 9, 2025 AYS FALL CONCERT
Jan. 25, 2026 AYO WINTER CONCERT (AYS & AYP)
Mar. 15, 2026 AYO SIDE-BY-SIDE CONCERT (AYS & AYP SHARE THE STAGE)
Apr. 26, 2026 AYS SPRING CONCERT AND SIDE-BY-SIDE CONCERT WITH THE ASO
Outstanding Senior Living
SEATING LATECOMERS
Note the curtain time on your tickets as events begin promptly. In consideration of others, latecomers will be seated at a suitable pause in the program.
PHYSICALLY CHALLENGED PATRONS
Please be sure to notify the Ticket Office of special seating needs when you place your ticket order. Limited seating is available for patrons in wheelchairs or with special needs. Companion seating is also available. At EJ Thomas Hall, handicapped parking is available with a valid, displayed parking permit.
SPECIAL SERVICES
A special sound system for the hearing-impaired is available free of charge for the concerts at EJ Thomas Hall with advanced notice. Please see the Head Usher for assistance.
CAMERAS, RECORDERS, PAGERS, CELLPHONES, AND MOBILE DEVICES
Cameras, video, and audio recording devices of any kind are prohibited at all performances. Ushers are instructed to retrieve these prohibited items from patrons in the auditorium. In consideration of other patrons, please turn off all pagers and cellular phones during the concert.
SMOKE FREE
EJ Thomas Hall is a smoke-free facility. Smoking is permitted in designated areas outside the building.
BAR SERVICE
Bar service is offered in the lobby before concerts and at intermission. Soda and light snacks are also available. Drinks are permitted in the auditorium.
INTERMISSION
Intermission is 20 minutes in length. The flashing of lobby lights is your signal to return to your seat for the start of the performance.
RESTROOMS
Public restrooms are located below the Robertson Lobby at EJ Thomas Hall. The ladies’ room can be accessed from the odd side of the building and the men’s room access is from the even side. The center stairs in Robertson Lobby lead to both restrooms. Accessible restrooms are located at the bottom of each ramp.
HOUSE NOTES
EVENT CANCELLATION
On rare occasions, we may be forced to cancel or postpone an event. Cancellation information will be available as soon as possible at akronsymphony.org and on the Akron Symphony Facebook page.
SECURITY POLICY
Customer safety and security is of utmost importance. All patrons entering the facility must have a ticket for the performance. There is a police presence both inside and outside of the theater.
PREVIEWS FROM THE PODIUM
Sponsored by Audio-Technica and held inside the main auditorium at EJ Thomas Hall an hour prior to the start of each Classics Series concert, these informal preconcert lectures take the audience beyond the music, connecting you with our conductors, guest soloists, and music selections.
TICKET INFORMATION
AKRON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA 92 N. Main St. Akron, OH 44308
Call 330-535-8131 for tickets and concert information. Tickets are also available at akronsymphony.org
AKRON SYMPHONY TICKET OFFICE HOURS:
Weekdays 9 am to 3 pm
Tickets are also available for purchase at EJ Thomas Box Office, Akron Civic Theatre Ticket Office, and Goodyear Theater Box Office. 330-253-2488
Weekdays 10 am to 4 pm
On concert days, EJ Thomas Box Office opens two hours prior to the concert.
Tickets are also available at www.ticketmaster.com, Ticketmaster outlets, and Ticketmaster phones at 1-800-745-3000.
RELEASING TICKETS:
Season ticket holders who cannot attend a concert can release their tickets for resale by 4 p.m. the Friday before the concert to receive a tax credit for the value of the tickets or exchange them for tickets of equal value to another performance during the season. Call the Akron Symphony ticket office to do so.
All ticket sales are final. Programs, artists, dates, and times are subject to change.
ANNUAL FUND
BENEFACTORS’ CIRCLE
($20,000 and above)
Dr. Howard Greene
DuWayne and Dorothy Hansen
Ms. Cynthia Knight
Michael and Julia Pasternak
Mr. & Mrs. Guy Pipitone
Mr. Darwin Steele
Jim and Linda Venner
GRANTORS’ CIRCLE
($10,000 - $19,999)
Ms. Kittie Clarke
Mark and Theresa Lerner
Herbert and Dianne Newman
Patricia and Kenneth Nilsestuen
David Scarponi and Tish Hight
FOUNDERS’ CIRCLE
($6,000 - $9,999)
Ken and Liz Babby
Ms. Kathryn Booth
Thomas and Karen Clark
Dr. Michael Frank
Mrs. Sue Jeppesen Gillman
Edwin and Heather Hahn
John and Jill Judge
Douglas and Kathryn Kohl
Dr. Susan Merzweiler
Charlie and Therese Peter
Ernie & Mary Kay Pouttu
Roger F. Ream, DDS
Mrs. Jean Schooley
Ms. Donna Valentine
Dr. Harold White
Maestro Christopher Wilkins
ORCHESTRA CIRCLE
($3,000 - $5,999)
Anonymous (2)
Howard Atwood Family Fund
Drs. Mark and Sandy Auburn
Ms. Beverly Cinovec
Ms. Frederica L. Cohen
Mr. & Mrs. Tom and Barb Crookes
Tom Hutchison
Beth Kartarius
James and Maureen Kovach
Daniel and Lorraine Nelson
Mr. & Mrs. Ernie Puskas Jr.
Roger and Sally Read
Todd and Diane Rosenberg
Elizabeth and Nathan Saraceno
Fred and Karen Schreckengost
Neil and Carrie Schore
Mr. Michael Sferro
Sam and Sandy Smith
Drs. Fred and Elizabeth Specht
Mr. & Mrs. Michael Taipale
Dr. Aileen Thong
Mrs. Carol Vandenberg
Kathryn and Kyle Vuchak
MAESTRO’S CIRCLE
($1,500 - $2,999)
Roland and Mary Bauer
Charles E. and Mary K. Booth Family Fund
The Akron Symphony Orchestra acknowledges donors at every level with sincere appreciation. This list recognizes all gifts to the Akron Symphony received between January 1, 2024, and July 31, 2025.
Dominic Cardarelli
Mr. & Mrs. Michael DePasquale
Jere and Rochelle Dutt
Mrs. Elizabeth Eastman
Robert and Sharon Gandee
Mr. Stanley G. Hoch
Ed and Leslie Kissel
Andrew Leask and Amy White
George and Mary Leuca
Mr. & Mrs. Bill Lowery
Frederick and Erika May
Mrs. Tina Mogen
Ellen and John Perduyn
Rick and Alita Rogers
Dr. Pamela Rupert
Mr. Steve Sedlock
Mr. Richard Shirey
Mrs. Sandra Smith
Cindy Steeb
Mrs. June Tan
Mr. & Mrs. David Tschantz
Mr. John Vander Kooi
Mrs. Jane Weingart
Steve and Holly Wilt
Mrs. Virginia Wojno-Forney*
CONCERTO
($600 - $1,499)
Anonymous
Selma Ankist Family Trust
Mr. James Bates
Ms. Sandy Becker-Neidert
Charles Billow
Robert Bonchack
Ms. Elizabeth Blystone
Ms. Linda Bunyan
Mr. Larry Burns
Marian Calvin
Carmen and Ernie Cannan
Deborah Capper
Mr. & Mrs. Patrick Cerminaro
Dr. Sally Childs
Geary and Shelley Cochran
Steve and Jane Comunale
Michael and Debi Coudriet
Ms. Arlene Cramer
Gary and Deborah Davis
Mrs. Barbara Eaton
Mr. Randall Fairfax
Ms. Lynda Farkas
Mr. George Farris
Mrs. Jerilynn Ferguson
Kevin Ford and Erin Katz
Rev. Mark and Marguerite Frey
Dr. & Mrs. Joseph Gibson
Mrs. Toby Gorant
Carla and Sid Greenwood
Mrs. Charlotte Hamor
Ms. Martha Hancock
Mr. & Mrs. Richard Harris III
Ronald & Christine Hawes
Mr. Michael Hayes
Dr. Sandra Hazra M.D.
Mr. Robert Hernandez
Jerry and Nancy Irby
Geraldine Wojno Kiefer, Ph.D.
Mark and Lori Krohn
Ms. Lisa Lazar
Robert and Terri Lessnau
Stephen and Catherine Leuenberger
Holli Mallak
Thomas and Lisa Mandel
Mr. & Mrs. John Matejkovic
Mr. Ed Metzger
Don and Cindy Misheff
Mr. & Mrs. Charles Nelson
Liz and Matt Nyeste
Margo and Bobby Ohlson
Joseph Ott
Janet Palcko
Joseph Palmiero
Bonnie Panlasigui
Michael and Beth Piglia
William and Rebecca Quinn
Mrs. June Refine
Mr. & Mrs. Charles Reitz III
Mr. & Mrs. John Rohrer
Mr. & Mrs. George Rosin
Joel and Betty Siegfried
Ms. Hedy Simmons
Bert Thomas
Mr. Brien Thompson
Ms. Wendy Turrell
Mrs. Linda Van Fossen
Dr. Melinda Wagner-Rosen and Seth Rosen
Karin and Dick Warner
Marc and Julie Weagraff
Rachel Whitehawk and Chad Gross
Mr. LaVerne Yousey
SONATA ($200 - $599)
Anonymous
Reginald & Rhea Adam Trust
Mrs. Jennifer Anzalone
Ms. Darby Ashelman
Dr. Martha E. Banks
Dr. & Mrs. William Bauman
Mr. & Mrs. Thomas Baumgardner
Mrs. Becky Benz
Robert Berk
Todd and Alexandra Beyer
Julia Rea Bianchi
Ms. Andrea Bishop
Robin Blossom
Courtney Bonifant and Ken Heinlein
Ms. Joan Booth
Roula Braidy
Ms. Winnie Brown
Cindy Bruning
Dr. & Mrs. Kenneth Button
Mr. & Mrs. Bill Caplan
Holly Christensen
Kerry and Steve Clawson
Mr. Robert Critchfield
Robert and Laura Culp
Sam and Christina Dankoff
Tracie and Jerry D'Antonio
Ms. Elizabeth Davis
David and April Deming
Bruce and Elizabeth Fahey
William and Era Fedak
Mr. Harvey Finkel
Mr. Philip Foster
Mr. & Mrs. Steve France
Mr. & Mrs. Robert Frutchey
Mr. & Mrs. Tom Ghinder
Ms. Natalie Gilbert
Mr. & Mrs. Christopher Godard
John and Jennifer Graham
Ms. Bonnie Gunzenhauser
Dr. & Mrs. Douglas Harley
Allan & Roseanne Henderson
Mr. Jay Hershey
Damien & Jennifer Highfield
Mr. & Mrs. David Hilkert
Ms. Nina Hillery
Thomas and Bridget Hite
Dr. Jeffrey Hoch
Ms. Karen Hoch
Erich Holmes
Andi Hoppes
Gloria Irwin
Drs. Charles and Sumru Johnson
Lia and Caleb Jones
Michael Kaminsky
Ms. Karen Karis
Mr. & Mrs. David Kattan
Mr. Walter Keith
Michael Kesselring
Mr. & Mrs. David Koly
Dr. & Mrs. Gerhard Kunze
Mr. & Mrs. Paul Liesem
Mr. & Mrs. Adam Lintz
Mrs. Carolyn Atwood Mackey
Robert and Beth Manning
Herman and Orzella Matherson
Christine McMasters
John Micklitsch
Mr. Sam Moats
Sophia Morton
Mrs. Maryann Nething
Mrs. Judith Nicely
Christopher and Andrea Niekamp
Sarah and Forrest Norman
Rachael and Jacinto Nunez
Mrs. Jo Ann Oelschlager
Mr. Jonathon Pavloff
Mr. & Mrs. Michael Pera
Mr. Daniel Peck
Mr. Steve Pinard
Mr. Bob Pozarski
Progressive Insurance Foundation
Max and Beverly Rothal
Gary and Robin Rouse
Ms. Lynn Saddleton
Mrs. Jean Saraceno
Dr. Richard M. Schwartz
Mrs. Jane Schweitzer
Michele Setzer
Mr. & Mrs. William Silver
Loretta Slezak
Doug and Lisa Smith
Mr. & Mrs. Ronald Smith
Tim Smith
Mr. & Mrs. Stephen Thompson
Ms. Marie Tuccillo
Eda Valentin
Mrs. Lavonne Voelz
Mr. & Mrs. Harvey Wagner
Mrs. Beverly Waltz
Mr. Jim Weber
Clayton and Carol Weitzel
Craig and Karen Wilde
Mr. & Mrs. Herbert* Wilkins
Donna Zabel
Mr. & Mrs. Andrew Ziegler
CORPORATE, FOUNDATION & GOVERNMENT
$20,000 AND ABOVE
Akron Community Foundation
Demetros Charitable Trust
GAR Foundation
Ohio Arts Council
Sisler McFawn Foundation
$10,000 - $19,999
Kenneth L. Calhoun Charitable Trust
KeyBank
Lehner Family Foundation
The Mary S. & David C. Corbin Foundation
Peg's Foundation
Thomas and Lisa Mandel Family Foundation
$6,000 - $9,999
Barberton Community Foundation
Lloyd L. & Louise K. Smith Foundation
IN TRIBUTE
In honor of Guy Pipitone, by Kay Murray
In honor of Kathy Booth, by Joan Booth
The Akron Symphony Orchestra gratefully acknowledges its corporate and institutional partners for their generous support. This list recognizes gifts received between January 1, 2024, and July 31, 2025.
$3,000 - $5,999
Charles E. & Mabel M. Ritchie Foundation
The Harry K. and Emma R. Fox
Charitable Foundation
Harwick Standard Distribution Corporation
M.G. O'Neil Foundation
SeibertKeck Insurance Partners
Synthomer Foundation
University of Akron
Vorys Sater, Seymour, and Pease LLP
Welty Family Foundation
Women's Philharmonic Advocacy
$1,500 - $2,999
Baker & Hostetler LLP
Buckingham, Doolittle, Burroughs, LLP
Huntington Bank
Petit Auto Wash
Rocco's Pizza
In honor of Karla Tipton, by Drs. Mark and Sandy Auburn
Schauer Group
Women in Touch with Akron’s Needs
$600 - $1,499
Akrochem Corporation
Akron Children's Hospital
Bath Volunteers for Service
EarthQuaker Devices
Laura R. & Lucian Q. Moffitt Foundation
OCSEA Summit Chapter 7700
Thomarios
UP TO $599
Akron Metropolitan Housing Authority
Bethany United Church of Christ
Blooming Designs
Clampco Products, Inc.
The Henry V. and Frances W. Christenson Foundation
Meridian Capital Management Group, Inc.
IN REMEMBRANCE
Beth Rusnak, in memory of Bruce and Lola Rothmann
Drs. Mark and Sandy Auburn, in memory of Joseph Kennedy
HERITAGE SOCIETY
Margaret Matejkovic
Mrs. Harold Baker*
Proud to Play a Supporting Role in the Akron Symphony Orchestra
Kathryn Booth
Kittie Clarke
Ms. Hope Everhart*
Dr. Sandra Fishel*
Dr. Clarence T. Gilham*
Mabel L. & Dr. Lawrence A. Graham*
Richard H. Harris III
Michael T. Hayes
Mr. & Mrs. Damien Highfield
Charles Klaus*
Doug & Kathy Kohl
Stan & Jessica Korkosz Korzhiletskiy
James P. & Maureen C. Kovach
Jerry & Maggie Lippman*
Eglenna Earline Long*
Mary Ellen & Gerald McFadden*
Ed & Lynn* Metzger
Ken & Pat Nilsestuen
Jo Ann Oelschlager
W. Stuver Parry
Roger & Judith* Read
Aileen Thong
Donna Valentine
Dr. Margaret L. While
Donna Zabel & Richard Depew
