BLOOM BLAZE FALL FROST
SEPTEMBER 27 | 7 PM
BRATTLEBORO MUSIC CENTER
BRATTLEBORO, VT
SEPTEMBER 28 | 4 PM
FIRST PARISH SUDBURY
SUDBURY, MA + LIVE ON YOUTUBE
An ode to the seasons
BLOOM, BLAZE, FALL, FROST
SEP 27 & 28
CHASING DREAMS FOR LATER LIGHT NOV 15 & 16
JUVENTAS X NAVONA RECORDS MAY 2
FAMILY PHOTOS JAN 17 JAN 30–FEB 1 LU YU: CENTER STAGE MARCH 14 & 15
AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 MINUTES MAY 16 & 17 MUSIC IN BLOOM JUNE 14 & 21
BLOOM, BLAZE, FALL, FROST
SEPTEMBER 27 | 7 PM | BRATTLEBORO MUSIC CENTER
SEPTEMBER 28 | 4 PM | FIRST PARISH SUDBURY + LIVE ON YOUTUBE
To the Seasons (2009) Gina Gillie
I. To Summer
II. To Autumn
III. To Winter
IV. To Spring
Kelley Hollis, soprano; Anne Howarth, horn; Julia Scott Carey, piano
Komorebi (2014)
Ryan Shannon, violin; Thomas Schmidt, percussion
Remember? (2024) CALL FOR SCORES WINNER
Kelley Hollis, soprano; Julia Scott Carey, piano
Salina Fisher
Brittney Benton
Of Ice and Silver Swans (2001) Carson Cooman
Anne Howarth, horn; Julia Scott Carey, piano
PHOTINUS (2015) Stephanie Ann Boyd Thomas Schmidt, percussion
Bloom / Decay (2025) WORLD PREMIERE Bella Rose Kelly
Anne Howarth, horn; Ryan Shannon, violin; Julia Scott Carey, piano; Thomas Schmidt, percussion
The Slanting Sun (2025) WORLD PREMIERE Oliver Caplan
Kelley Hollis, soprano; Anne Howarth, horn; Ryan Shannon, violin; Julia Scott Carey, piano; Thomas Schmidt, percussion
Karen and Fred Ruymann have generously sponsored Bloom, Blaze, Fall, Frost. Additionally, this program is supported by an Operating Support Grant from the Mass Cultural Council’s Portfolio Program; and by a grant from the Sudbury Cultural Council, a local agency that is supported by the Mass Cultural Council, a state agency.
FROM THE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
Welcome to the start of Juventas’s 21st season!
This year, our programs explore the theme of Journeys, and we can’t imagine a better way to begin than with our annual trip around the sun. Today’s concert features music by seven living composers, each of whom explores the intricate relationship between humanity and nature, viewed through the cyclical lens of the seasons. From the quiet introspection of winter to the vibrant energy of summer, this music invites us to reflect on our place within the natural world and the constant cycles that shape our lives.
In these challenging times, both locally and globally, we hope this performance offers you a moment of beauty, connection, and solace. Thank you for joining us as we embark on this new season together.
With deepest gratitude,
Oliver Caplan, Artistic Director Juventas New Music Ensemble
Andrew Wilkins has generously sponsored Oliver Caplan’s position as Artistic Director for the 2025–26 Season.
Credit: James Jones Photography
JUVENTAS NEW MUSIC ENSEMBLE
Juventas New Music Ensemble is a dynamic contemporary chamber group with a special focus on emerging voices.
We reimagine classical music as a vibrant living art form, uplifting rising voices and bringing audiences music from a diverse array of composers that live in today’s world and respond to our time.
Juventas has earned a reputation as a curator, with a keen eye for new talent. Since our founding in 2005, we have performed the music of over 300 living composers. Our musicians champion these artists with exceptional professional performances that open doors.
From climate change to mental health, our programs speak to the most critical topics of the 21st century. Our concerts center on the human experience, featuring deeply personal music that fosters conversation and reflection.
Our work has been recognized with multiple American Prize wins and support from the National Endowment for the Arts, Massachusetts Cultural Council, New Music USA and Boston Foundation. Juventas has been featured on over a dozen recording projects, including albums from Albany Records, Navona, New Dynamic and RMN Classical.
John A. Carey has generously sponsored Juventas New Music Ensemble’s 2025-26 Mainstage Season.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
John Carey
President
Andrew Wilkins
Treasurer
Meghan Guidry
Clerk
Minjin Chung
Lynn Eustis
Meg Fuchs
Carson Cooman
Leslie Jacobson Kaye
Karen Ruymann
Oliver Caplan
ex officio
STAFF
Oliver Caplan
Artistic Director
Kyla Blocker
General Manager
Saskia den Boon
Grants Coordinator
Graphic Designer
Molly Breen-Aronson
Development Coordinator
Aimee Lents
Arts Administration Intern
Mark Vranos
Arts Administration Intern
IN THE COMPOSER’S OWN WORDS
GINA GILLIE | To the Seasons (2009)
To the Seasons is a four-movement work for soprano, horn and piano which sets four poems by William Blake. These four poems, “To Summer,” “To Autumn,” “To Winter,” and “To Spring,” address each of the seasons in colorfully characteristic ways, expressing unique personality traits and revealing interesting glimpses into the interaction of the seasons with the people of the land.
“To Summer” contains two key musical elements which weave together throughout the movement. The stark open chords in the piano represent the harshness and heat of Summer’s unrelenting character, while the horn solo represents the attempts of the narrator, speaking for the people, to calm and relinquish said heat. The voice adopts the tone of the poetry, fierce and forward when speaking of Summer’s angst, and softer and more lyrical when seeking to persuade and flatter. Throughout the movement, the voice and horn interact with the piano as they attempt to persuade Summer to behave more pleasantly, and the movement ends with a blending of the two musical components, representing an acquiescence of the request.
The poetry of “To Autumn” describes an autumnal celebration in which the music is characterized by a dancing, folk-like melody in the voice and horn. The middle of the movement features the voice as the character of Autumn singing a song about his bountiful season. The movement is book-ended by unaccompanied voice and horn which serve as the narration for the opening and closing of the song.
“To Winter” is characterized by jagged melodic lines and diminished chords which provide a fair amount of dissonance. This dissonance is meant to portray the tyrannical and frightening character of Winter, who shows no mercy to any living thing, but rather delights in robbing the land of life. The horn solo which opens the movement introduces many of the musical motives that are found throughout this portion of the piece, such as the interval of an augmented second and jagged leap of a major seventh. At the end of the movement, the coming of Spring transforms the music into a major sonority which drives the wintery monster “yelling to his cave.”
After the chilling effects of Winter, “To Spring” is meant to renew and restore. The rolling major arpeggiation in the piano is calming, and the lyrical lines of the horn and soprano, as well as the sonorous harmonies, allow one to bask in beauty. An exultant fanfare from the horn and piano proclaim the poetry’s declaration of the coming of Spring. A brief horn solo near the end of the piece represents a transformation out of the previous season as it works its way through some chromaticism back to the tonality of F major. The end of “To Spring” brings the entire composition full circle and leaves the listener with the warmth and beauty that characterizes the text of this poem.
SALINA FISHER | │Komorebi (2014)
This is my response to the beautiful Japanese word ‘Komorebi’ which means ‘sunlight that filters through the leaves of trees’. The piece is based on the Ryukyu mode of Okinawa, Japan.
Komorebi won the 2014 New Zealand School of Music Composers Competition.
BRITTNEY BENTON |│Remember? (2024)
Remember? is about the loss of a loved one, told through the lens of seasons in a year. As the piece transitions through the seasons, the same melody is used throughout, transitioning from the happy beginning to the melancholic ending.
This piece was initially written for a music theater composition class I took while completing my masters. The prompt for the song was to write an AABA song with a plot twist. I decided to write a love song, with the twist that the person being sung about had passed away. This song has been through many iterations, starting out as a song for a lower voice, becoming a choral arrangement for sopranos and altos, and now it has made its way back to a song for solo soprano. As a composer who also loves arranging, it has been really fun for me to see this song continually transform, with there being three different versions of it now. Seeing my music transform in this way has been gratifying, and I hope you enjoy listening to it.
Remember? is a Juventas Call for Scores Winner.
CARSON COOMAN│| Of Ice and Silver Swans (2001)
Of Ice and Silver Swans (2001) for horn and piano was written for and is dedicated to Hazel Davis. The work is in two sections—the first uses ‘ad libitum’ technique with unsynchronized horn and piano parts. The second fast section presents conflict and resolution of the harmonic material of the first section, driving onward to the conclusion.
For this composer, there has always been some mental connection between the horn and swans—perhaps the arched neck of the animal is reminiscent of the horn’s many curves. This piece is also about winter and specifically the thaw at the end of winter that allows swans to return to the waterways. This is mirrored by the harmonic “thaw” in the music as one set of pitches resolves to another over the course of the piece.
STEPHANIE ANN BOYD | PHOTINUS (2015)
PHOTINUS, written for percussionist Harrison Honor, is a tribute to the sounds of summer and the magic of bioluminescence. This piece uses a unique percussion instrument setup invented by Sam Solomon for ease of performance and cohesion of instrumental timbre, and borrows inspiration from traditional Ghanaian drumming rhythms and field recordings of cicadas in various parts of their life cycle. The title
PHOTINUS refers the Rover Fireflies, a specific genus of firefly. I’ve always been endlessly fascinated with these tiny beacons of light, and misnamed them “thunder bees” as a small child. This piece was dreamed up in the summer of 2015, in Manhattan, where I was so starved for sounds of nature that the first arcing drone of the late-summer cicadas made me actually laugh with joy.
BELLA ROSE KELLY | Bloom / Decay (2025)
In every beginning, there is a hidden ending. The first flowers of spring are nourished by the last leaves of winter to decay. A newborn child inherits the eyes of their late great-grandparents. Every new story told builds on the endings of its predecessors. In this way there is a bittersweetness: a melody growing and reaching up to the heavens while its counter begins its descent.
Carson Cooman has generously sponsored the World Premiere performance of Bloom / Decay.
OLIVER CAPLAN | The Slanting Sun (2025)
Every morning, I begin my day with a cup of sencha, shipped directly from the tea fields of Uji to my little corners of the world in Massachusetts and Vermont. Such are the wonders of modern life! I sip the emerald liquor, and think about the day ahead. But sometimes my mind wanders East (or is it West?) to a country that has stirred my heart.
I’ve spent over 2 months in Japan, mostly on Honshu and Kyūshū. As I write this note, a particular afternoon in Kurokawa comes to mind (November 2017). My husband Chris and I, having walked into town and back about a half-dozen times, gazed wistfully at a persimmon tree, down a steep hillside, perched over the river. Perfect orange globes adorned the branches, like lanterns beckoning, but just too high to reach. I know, because we tried yesterday. All of a sudden, a local worker popped out of the woods. He was carrying a long poll with a basket on the end… and eating a persimmon! All of a sudden Chris and I were following him, bounding down the mountain. The sweet golden flesh melted in our mouths, as we shared a conversation of smiles.
Autumn is a festive season in Japan. In Kyoto, the air smells of burnt caramel, from street vendors roasting sweet potatoes on sticks. Lush, mossy gardens are dappled with a rainbow of yellows and reds. Many temples even stay open late into the evening for special night-time foliage viewings.
The Slanting Sun is a tribute to this special time in a country that I love. The text draws on poetry—mostly haiku—from 14 luminaries. Japanese culture is particularly attuned to the seasons (the traditional calendar recognizes 72 subdivisions!) and I curated these poems into sections that map the annual journey from the end of summer to the start of winter. If you know me, then you know I use a lot of words to express what I want to say. By contrast, these miniatures are a study in the art of succinctness, painting richly evocative scenes, often with under 10 words. Of course, there is this one, from Shiki: Eating persimmons; the bell sounds, of Horyuji Temple.
Raspberry Man (2011)
Sculpting the Air (2011)
Spectres (2016) You Are Not Alone (2017)
Figments Vol. 3 (2022)
Brass Tacks 2 (2023)
To What Listens (2022)
Hackpolitik (2014)
Watershed (2021)
Voices of the Land (2023)
Sauntering Songs (2023)
Scan for More!
JUVENTAS IN THE STUDIO
OUR RECORDING LEGACY
TEXT & TRANSLATIONS
To the Seasons (2009) | Gina Gillie
I.
To Summer
O thou who passest thro’ our vallies in Thy strength, curb thy fierce steeds, allay the heat
That flames from their large nostrils! thou, O Summer, Oft pitched’st here thy golden tent, and oft
Beneath our oaks hast slept, while we beheld
With joy, thy ruddy limbs and flourishing hair. Beneath our thickest shades we oft have heard Thy voice, when noon upon his fervid car
Rode o’er the deep of heaven; beside our springs
Sit down, and in our mossy vallies, on Some bank beside a river clear, throw thy Silk draperies off, and rush into the stream: Our vallies love the Summer in his pride, Love the Summer in his pride.
Our bards are fam’d who strike the silver wire: Our youth are bolder than the southern swains: Our maidens fairer in the sprightly dance: We lack not songs, nor instruments of joy, Nor echoes sweet, nor waters clear as heaven, Nor laurel wreaths against the sultry heat.
II. To Autumn
O Autumn, laden with fruit, and stained
With the blood of the grape, pass not, but sit Beneath my shady roof; there thou mayst rest, And tune thy jolly voice to my fresh pipe, And all the daughters of the year shall dance! Sing now, sing now, sing now The lusty song of fruits and flower, of fruits and flowers. Sing now, sing now, sing now O Autumn.
“The narrow bud opens her beauties to The sun, and love runs in her thrilling veins; Blossoms hang round the brows of Morning, and Flourish down the bright cheek of modest Eve,
Till clust’ring Summer breaks forth into singing, And feather’d clouds strew flowers round her head.
“The spirits of the air live on the smells Of fruit; and Joy, with pinions light, roves round
The gardens, or sits singing in the trees.” Thus sang the jolly Autumn as he sat; Then rose, girded himself, and o’er the bleak Hills fled from our sight; but left his golden load.
III. To Winter
O Winter! bar thine adamantine doors: The north is thine; there hast thou built thy dark Deep-founded habitation. Shake not thy roofs
Nor bend thy pillars with thine iron car.
He hears me not, but o’er the yawning deep Rides heavy; his storms are unchain’d, sheathed In ribbed steel; I dare not lift mine eyes; For he hath rear’d his scepter o’er the world.
Lo! now the direful monster, whose skin clings
To his strong bones, strides o’er the groaning rocks: He withers all in silence, and in his hand
Unclothes the earth, and freezes up frail life.
He takes his seat upon the cliffs, the mariner Cries in vain. Poor little wretch! that deal’st With storms; till heaven smiles, and the monster Is driven yelling to his caves beneath Mount Hecla!
IV. To Spring
O thou with dewy locks, who lookest down Thro’the clear windows of the morning, O turn thine eyes, turn thine eyes, turn Thine angel eyes upon our western isle, Which in full choir hails thy approach, O Spring!
The hills tell one another, and the list’ning Valleys hear; all our longing eyes are turned Up to thy bright pavilions: issue forth, issue forth And let thy holy feet visit our clime!
Come, come o’er the eastern hills, and let our winds Kiss thy perfumed garments; let us taste
Thy morn and evening breath; scatter thy pearls
Upon our lovesick land that mourns for thee.
O deck her forth with thy fair fingers; pour Thy soft kisses on her bosom; and put Thy golden crown upon her languish’d head, Upon her languished head Whose modest tresses are bound up for thee.
Remember? (2024) | Brittney Benton
Do you remember watching the bloom of spring, and the pink-ish flowers as our laughter filled the air?
And then in summer, under the sprawling leaves, we learned how to love and the happiness it brings.
Now it’s fall, and I’m wanting for what we used to do. But the summer night is gone! And you’ve faded too.
Do you remember me? And spring? And the leaves?
Or were you lost, in the fading light of summertime?
You won’t remember feeling the chill of fall, with its fleeting light, and the darkness of it all.
And in the winter seeing the barren trees, will remind me seasons will start again, and repeat again. Without you.
The Slanting Sun (2025) | Oliver Caplan
Translations by R.H. Blyth
Just this morning,— A single paulownia leaf
Has gently fallen. -Issa
The sun, bright red, Relentlessly hot,—
But the wind is of autumn. -Môgan
In the dark forest, A berry drops: The sound of water. -Shiki
// At Nara; The smell of chrysanthemums, The ancient images of Buddha. -Bashô
The slanting sun:
The shadow of a hill with a deer on it
Enters the temple gate.
-Buson
The mountain grows darker, Taking the scarlet
From the autumn leaves.
-Buson
The dance of the dragon-flies: A world
In the setting sun.
//
-Kigiku
I kept hanging the moon
On the pine-tree, and taking it off, Gazing at it the while.
-Hokushi
The autumn full moon; Children sitting in a row On the verandah of the temple.
-Bashô
The water-fowl
Pecks and shivers
The moon on the waves.
-Zuiryu
The moon in the water; Broken and broken again, Still it is there.
-Chôshû
//
Down from the mountain, The moon
Accompanied me, And when I opened the gate, The moon too entered.
-Kotomichi
The bright moon: On the tatami
The shadow of the pine-tree.
-Kikaku
//
White dew on the bramble; One drop On each thorn.
-Buson
Peeling a pear, Sweet drops trickle down The knife.
-Shiki
The sparrows are flying From scarecrow To scarecrow.
-Sazanami
A hundred different gourds, From the mind Of one vine.
-Chiyo-ni
Eating persimmons; The bell sounds, Of Hôryûji Temple.
-Shiki
//
In the far depths of the forest, The woodpecker, And the sound of the axe.
-Buson
It Is colder; No insect Approaches the lamp.
-Shiki
The rice having been reaped, The wild camomiles weaken and dwindle, Along the path.
-Shiki
The water becoming lower, How thin and long The legs of the scarecrow!
-Buson
Fallen leaves
Come flying from elsewhere: Autumn is ending.
-Shiki
//
It is deep midnight: The River of Heaven Has changed its place.
-Ransetsu
Leaning against the tree, Branches and leaves are few: A night of stars.
-Shiki
Credit: James Jones Photography
ABOUT THE COMPOSERS
ginagilliemusic.com
GINA GILLIE | b. 1982
Gina Gillie a nomadic composer who slow-travels full-time around the world. She formerly held the position of Professor of Music at Pacific Lutheran University where she worked with many wonderful students and colleagues and performed in hundreds of recitals and concerts over the course of almost two decades. She is trained as a horn player, and most of her music features brass instruments. Her musical style is characterized by beautiful melodies and accessible harmonies, interwoven with playful counterpoint.
SALINA FISHER |│b. 1993
Salina Fisher is an award-winning New Zealand composer whose works are frequently performed worldwide. Drawing from her background as a multi-instrumentalist of mixed Japanese heritage, her highly evocative music often involves collaborations, notably with taonga pūoro practitioners. Her works have been programmed by New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, Auckland Philharmonia, Tanglewood Music Festival, Helsinki Philharmonic, A Far Cry, Brodsky Quartet, and Symphony Orchestras of Seattle, Atlanta, Dallas, Melbourne, and Shanghai, including with conductors Gemma New and Tianyi Lu. She became the youngest-ever recipient of the SOUNZ Contemporary Award in 2016 and 2017, and has received awards from Fulbright, The Arts Foundation, Creative NZ, and CANZ. She is a graduate of Manhattan School of Music, New York, and New Zealand School of Music—Te Kōkī, Victoria University of Wellington, where she was appointed Composer-in-Residence (2019-2020) and Teaching Fellow in Composition.
salinafisher.com
BRITTNEY BENTON |│ b. 1999
Driven by storytelling and imagery, Brittney Benton’s music takes you on a journey through a lush melodic and harmonic soundscape, filled with personality at every turn. Brittney holds a bachelor’s degree in Music Composition with a minor in Music Technology from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and a master’s in Music Composition from the Yale School of Music. She is very interested in working outside of the concert hall, especially in the realm of video game music.
Brittney’s music has been performed by the Bellevue Chamber Chorus, ZOFO, the Beo String Quartet, the Lowell Chamber Orchestra, the Armenian State Symphony Orchestra, SOLI Chamber Ensemble, and more. She was named one of the winners of Chicago a Capella’s “Her Voice Competition” in 2022. In 2024 she was named one of the winners of the SOLI Chamber Ensemble’s “30x30x30” competition and was a recipient of Kind of Kings “Bouman Fellowship.”
Recent composition festivals include the 2020 Charlotte New Music Festival and Connecticut Summerfest 2021. She also attended the inaugural Akropolis Chamber Music Institute (ACMI) in 2022. In 2024, she attended the Alba Music Composition Festival in Alba, Italy. Her principal teachers include Jennifer Bellor, Viet Cuong, Aaron Jay Kernis, Christopher Theofanidis, Martin Bresnick, and David Lang.
brittneybentonmusic.wixsite.com/composer
CARSON COOMAN | b. 1982
Carson Cooman is an American composer with a catalog of hundreds of works in many forms—from solo instrumental pieces to operas, and from orchestral works to hymn tunes. His music has been performed on all six inhabited continents in venues that range from the stage of Carnegie Hall to the basket of a hot air balloon. Cooman’s music appears on over forty recordings, including more than twenty-five complete CDs on the Naxos, Albany, Artek, Gothic, Divine Art, Métier, Diversions, Convivium, Altarus, MSR Classics, Raven, and Zimbel labels. Cooman’s primary composition studies were with Bernard Rands, Judith Weir, Alan Fletcher, and James Willey. As an active concert organist, Cooman specializes in the performance of contemporary music. Over 300 new compositions by more than 100 international composers have been written for him, and his organ performances can be heard on a number of CD releases and more than 7,500 recordings available online (representing the work of more than 800 composers). Cooman is also a writer on musical subjects, producing articles and reviews
frequently for a number of international publications. He serves as an active consultant on music business matters to composers and performing organizations, specializing particularly in the area of composer estates and archives.
STEPHANIE ANN BOYD│| b. 1990
Michigan-born, Manhattan-based American composer Stephanie Ann Boyd writes melodic music about women’s memoirs and the natural world for symphonic and chamber ensembles. Her work has been performed in nearly all 50 states and has been commissioned by musicians and organizations in 37 countries. Boyd’s five ballets include works choreographed by New York City Ballet principal dancers Lauren Lovette and Ashley Bouder and include a ballet commissioned for the grand opening of the TWA Hotel at JFK Airport. Stephanie’s music has been praised as “a racing, brassy score” (New York Times), “attractive lyricism” (Gramophone), “[with] ethereal dissonances” (Boston Globe), “[music that] didn’t let itself be eclipsed” (Texas Classical Review), and “arrestingly poetic” (BMOP).
Current commissions include a concerto for principal clarinet of the New York Philharmonic Anthony McGill, a new reed quintet for Akropolis, and the second book of Flower Catalog Piano Preludes. Recent commissions and premieres include Julia Louisa Esther: A Suffragette Symphony commissioned by the Wyoming Symphony Orchestra with Christopher Dragon, the premiere of which was the subject of a documentary on Wyoming PBS in 2022; Alleluia Olora commissioned by Astral Artists for cellist Tommy Mesa; Aurora, commissioned by the Kurganov-Finehouse Duo, and others.
Boyd’s music has been commissioned and performed by concertmasters of the BBC Symphony Orchestra, the Singapore Symphony, the New York City Ballet Orchestra, the Des Moines Symphony, the Faroe Islands Symphony, the Anchorage Symphony Orchestra, the Boston Modern Orchestra Project, the New England Conservatory Philharmonic, the Cape Cod Chamber Orchestra, and others. Her work has been presented by the Thalia and her Sisters concert series, the Moirae Ensemble, Sandcastle New Music in New York City, Juventas New Music Ensemble, and others.
Stephanie was the 2021-2022 Composer in Residence for the Peoria Symphony Orchestra, the 2016-18 Composer in Residence for the Eureka Ensemble in Boston, the 2013/14 Collage New Music Fellow, and has had composition residencies at summer festivals in Italy, Canada, and the US. She is a faculty member of the Iceberg Institute in Vienna. She holds degrees from Roosevelt University and New England Conservatory (with honors).
BELLA ROSE KELLY | b. 2000
Bella Rose Kelly is a contemporary composer dedicated to accessibility in classical spaces. A graduate of Berklee College of Music, she studied with Dr. Richard Carrick, Dr. Evan Williams, and Dr. Marti Epstein, exploring the boundaries of sound, notation, and electroacoustics in contemporary spaces. She is especially excited by collaborations, multimedia experiences, and audience participation to create singularly unique experiences for each performance. She has had multiple premieres in Boston by the Neither/Nor Ensemble under Dr. Richard Carrick, of which she is an alum member, and was featured at SPLICE Festival V in October, 2023.
bellarosekelly.com
OLIVER CAPLAN | b. 1982
Award-winning American composer Oliver Caplan offers a voice of hope in an uncertain world. Inspired by the resiliency of the human spirit and beauty of the natural world, his music celebrates stories of social justice, conservation and community.
From Carnegie Hall to Kearney, Nebraska, Oliver’s music has been performed by over 75 ensembles in the United States and around the globe. He has been commissioned by the American Wild Ensemble, Atlanta Chamber Players, Bella Piano Trio, Bronx Arts Ensemble, Brookline Symphony Orchestra, Columbia University Wind Ensemble and New Hampshire Master Chorale, among others. Winner of a Special Citation for the American Prize in Orchestral Composition and the Oratorio Society of New York’s 150th Anniversary Competition, additional recognitions include two Veridian Symphony Competition Wins, the Fifth House Ensemble Competition Grand Prize and fellowships at Ragdale, Millay Arts and VCCA. His vocal works include settings of poetry by Maya Angelou, Richard Blanco, Hannah Fries and Meghan Guidry.
A leader in the field of contemporary classical music, Oliver is the Artistic Director of the American Prize-winning Juventas New Music Ensemble. He also serves on the Ragdale Foundation’s Curatorial Board and is a voting member of the Recording Academy.
Oliver holds degrees from Dartmouth College and the Boston Conservatory. He resides in Medford, Massachusetts with his husband Chris and corgi Simon. olivercaplan.com
ABOUT THE MUSICIANS
KELLEY HOLLIS | soprano
Karen and Fred Ruymann have generously sponsored Kelley Hollis for the 2025–26 concert season.
Kelley Hollis is a classically trained soprano known for her interpretations of new and lesser known works. In summer 2019, Kelley traveled to London to record Arnold Rosner’s Requiem with the London Philharmonic Orchestra at Abbey Road Studios (Tocatta Records, 2020). In 2018, she performed a concert at the Prague Castle in the Czech Republic, along with a series of recitals in cities around the country, as a featured artist with the Americké jaro festival.
In 2019 Kelley premiered the role of Juana in the Omar Najmi’s En el ardiente oscuridad Her other opera roles include Rosalinda in J. Strauss’ Die Fledermaus, Mimi in Puccini’s La (femme) Boheme (MassOpera), Beth in Adamo’s Little Women (Metrowest Opera), Eliza in Muhly’s Dark Sisters (Third Eye Theater Ensemble); Florencia Grimaldi in Catan’s Florencia en el Amazonas, Donna Anna in Mozart’s Don Giovanni, Micaela in Le Tragedie de Carmen, Harper in Eötvös’ Angels in America (BU Opera Institute), and Nina in Pasatieri’s The Seagull (Opera del West).
Kelley has performed twice at Boston Symphony Hall: In 2016 she appeared as the First Orphan in The Boston Symphony Orchestra’s concert production of Strauss’ Der Rosenkavalier alongside Renee Fleming and Susan Graham, and in 2015 she was the soprano soloist for Mahler’s 2nd Symphony, performing with the BU Symphony Orchestra. Her most recent concert repertoire includes Vaughan Williams Dona Nobis Pacem, Handel’s Messiah, and Faure’s Requiem
In 2014, Kelley was a finalist for Lyric Opera Chicago’s Ryan Opera Center, and, in 2011, she received an encouragement award at the district level from the Metropolitan Opera National Council. Kelley Hollis received both her master’s and bachelor’s degrees from Northwestern University and is a graduate of the Boston University Opera Institute. Kelley is also a graduate of A.W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts.
Credit: James Jones Photography
ANNE HOWARTH | horn
Horn player Anne Howarth has a passion for small group collaborations and the opportunities they offer performers and audience members alike to forge personal connections with the music and with each other. She is deeply curious about the ways in which shared musical experiences can invite deeper dialogue and contemplation.
Anne is a founding member of the mixed-instrumentation chamber group Radius Ensemble and is a senior member of the wind quintet Vento Chiaro. A strong proponent of new music, Anne has commissioned works for chamber ensemble as an individual and with colleagues. As a freelance orchestral player in demand in the greater Boston area, Anne holds Principal Horn chairs with the Lexington Symphony and Plymouth Philharmonic Orchestra and occasionally performs with the Portland Symphony Orchestra, the Hartford Symphony Orchestra, and the Boston Symphony Orchestra, among others. Curious about the intersection between live music and movement, Anne has collaborated with Monkeyhouse and dancer/choreographer Karen Krolak at First Night Boston, the Oberon, and Tufts University.
Anne is a native of the Detroit area, holds undergraduate degrees in both Horn Performance and Environmental Studies from Oberlin Conservatory and Oberlin College respectively, and earned her Master of Music in Performance at New England Conservatory.
Anne teaches horn and coaches chamber music at Boston Conservatory at Berklee, Tufts University and the Boston University Tanglewood Institute (BUTI), maintains a private studio, and is on the on faculties of the New England Conservatory Preparatory School, and the Milton Afterschool Lesson Program.
RYAN SHANNON | violin
Ryan Shannon is a freelance violinist/violist based in Boston. He performs widely throughout the New England area, collaborating with ensembles of any size: from small quartets to 100-piece orchestras. He has shared the stage with A Far Cry, Celtic Woman and Johnny Mathis, as well as such masters as Yo-Yo Ma and Andrea Bocelli. Although he specializes in the newest music of the contemporary period, frequently performing such composers as Jessie Montgomery, Paul Wianko, and Anna Clyne, Ryan holds a deep fondness and love for the great masters, particularly Brahms, Haydn, and Beethoven. Ryan studied at the New England Conservatory under the tutelage of Lucy
Chapman and Nicholas Kitchen. He is the Artistic Director of Heartspur Arts Festival in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, as well as a core member of Juventas New Music Ensemble in Boston.
Ryan has over a decade of experience performing at weddings with the Fensgate Chamber Players under the direction of Brian Clague.
JULIA SCOTT CAREY | piano
Julia Scott Carey began her music training at the New England Conservatory Preparatory School, where she received the Lanier Prize for Most Outstanding Graduating Senior. She was one of the first students admitted to the Harvard-New England Conservatory joint degree program, through which she received a master’s degree in composition. She received a second master’s degree in collaborative piano from Boston University. Julia is the Minister of Music at the Central Square Congregational Church in Bridgewater, where she leads the adult and children’s choirs from the keyboard. She is one of the accompanists for the Tanglewood Festival Chorus and the Boston Symphony Children’s Choir. She also serves as the accompanist for the Metropolitan Chorale of Brookline, the Dedham Choral Society, the Boston College University Chorale, and the Boston Saengerfest Men’s Chorus. She previously served as the pianist for the Handel and Haydn Society’s Educational Vocal Quartet, the Wellesley College Chamber Singers, and the Boston Children’s Chorus. She is also a founder and core ensemble member of Juventas New Music Ensemble.
As a composer, her orchestral works have been performed by numerous orchestras, including the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Boston Pops, and her works have been broadcast on national TV and radio in the United States and in Russia. She was the youngest composer ever published by the Theodore Presser Company. She was also chosen to arrange a folk song for Yo-Yo Ma and Lynn Chang to play at Deval Patrick’s inaugural ball.
Julia lives in Winchester with her husband and her daughter. In addition to music, she loves cooking, running, and spending time on Cape Cod.
Jones Photography
THOMAS SCHMIDT │| percussion
One of Boston’s versatile freelance percussionists, Thomas Schmidt has performed with The Boston Philharmonic, The Portland Symphony (Maine), Rhode Island Philharmonic, New Bedford Symphony, Placido Domingo, Boston Landmarks Orchestra, Indian Hill Symphony, Lexington Symphony, Symphony New Hampshire, and The Brevard Music Centers Faculty Orchestra. A regular down in the pit orchestra, he has played for The 75th Anniversary Tour of George Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess, Opera Maine, The Boston Lyric Opera, various tours with the New England Opera, and the Da Capo Opera Company. Equally at home playing in a jazz big band or drum-set for a musical, Thomas has performed with the Boston Brass All Stars Big Band and has been the drum-set player for countless musicals in the New England area. He has performed with new music ensembles ALEA III and Dinosaur Annex as well as various choruses, such as Masterworks Chorale, Harvard-Radcliff Chorus, Back Bay Chorale, Boston Celia Society, Coro Allegro, and Chorus ProMusica. Thomas is on the faculty at The Berklee College of Music. He received his bachelor’s degree in Percussion Performance from The University of Maine, and his master’s degree in Percussion Performance from the Boston Conservatory. Thomas is a Zildjian endorsed artist.
SEASON 2025-26
Saul
Oct 3 + 5
Beethoven
Symphony No. 7
Oct 24 + 25
Handel’s Messiah
Nov 28 + 29 + 30
Baroque Christmas Dec 18 + 21
Mozart + Haydn Jan 9 + 11
Handel’s Water Music Apr 10 + 12
Bach + Telemann May 15 + 16
Voices Carry May 29 + 31
MAKE A DONATION
Donate to Juventas and help us touch hearts around the world. Last year, with a budget of just $169,000, we reached 2500+ people in person and 1,000+ people online.
Three easy ways to donate
•Venmo: @JuventasMusic
•Credit Card: www.juventasmusic.org/donate-now
•Check: Juventas New Music Ensemble, P.O. Box 230015, Boston, MA 02123.
Juventas New Music Ensemble is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Your fully tax-deductible contributions are essential for us to present new music.
Advertise with Juventas
Advertise in Juventas’s 2025-26 concert season! Attract patrons from New England and beyond, while supporting arts in your community. Advertising supports the work of Juventas and creates good will by identifying your business as a patron of the arts! For more information, please contact General Manager Kyla Blocker, kyla.blocker@juventasmusic.org.
Make a Planned Gift
Bequests and planned gifts are simple, mutually beneficial ways for you to support Juventas New Music Ensemble beyond your lifetime. You can create your own legacy and keep supporting emerging composers for years to come by leaving a bequest in your will, life insurance policy, retirement plan, or other assets in your estate plan to Juventas New Music Ensemble, while at the same time reaping tax benefits for yourself and your descendents. If you would like more information about making a bequest to Juventas New Music Ensemble or if you’ve already included us in your estate plans, please contact our Artistic Director Oliver Caplan at olivercaplan@juventasmusic.org. Juventas New Music Ensemble is a nonprofit corporation, organized and existing under the laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, with a principal business address of:
Juventas New Music Ensemble P.O. Box 230015 Boston, MA 02123
Our tax identification number is 26-2583870.
Juventas is in search of enthusiastic volunteers to support our concert performances. As a volunteer, you'll be showered with gratitude and rewarded with complimentary tickets! To become a part of our volunteer community, please reach out to our General Manager, Kyla Blocker, at kyla.blocker@juventasmusic.org.
reach out
Credit:
James Jones Photography
SUPPORTERS
Juventas New Music Ensemble is deeply grateful to the incredibly generous community that supports our artistic programs. Juventas received the following individual gifts from September 15, 2024 through September 14, 2025. Please visit www.juventasmusic.org/donate-now to learn about making a taxdeductible gift.
$5,000 and Above
Anonymous
Oliver Caplan and Chris Beagan
John A. Carey
Massachusetts Cultural Council
Karen & Fred Ruymann
Andrew Wilkins
$2,000-$4,999
Anonymous
Cambridge Arts Council
Colleen Cavanaugh & Philip Gschwend
Medford Arts Council
The Ripley-Steinemann Family Fund
Louise Scribner
PARMA Recordings
$1,000–$1,999
Brookline Commission for the Arts
Paula Luria & William Caplan
Carson Cooman
Futura Productions
Good Treble Fund
Meghan Guidry
Leslie Jacobson Kaye and Richard Kaye
Richard Mitrano and Julia Scott
Carey
Paul Monsky & Beverly Woodward
Wegmans Medford
$500–$999
Boylston Cultural Council
Brian Cron
April Durant
Christie Lee Gibson & Michael
Emanuel
Jacob Hilley
Max Hobart
Hank & Patricia Kucheman
Stella Lee
Gloria Lee
Gregory Royer
Steven Sérpa
Sudbury Cultural Council
$250–$499
Alexandra Bowers and James Liu
Theo and Steve Colburn
Sarah Cummer
Joanne Dreher
Yukiko Egozy
John Emler
Lynn Eustis
Moriah Freeman
Lorna Gibson
Myra and Roy Gordon
Beth D Jacob
W. Krein
Ian Lai
Nagesh Mahanthappa & Valentine Talland
Bob Page and Dean Vassil
Andrew and Laura Waldorf Reiss
Carol Richart
Lori K. Sanders & Jennifer A.
Lewis
Isabel & EB Saunter
$100–$249
Anonymous
Edward J Amabile and Mary M Amabile
Charlie & Lea Anderson
Robert Beagan
Emily & Stuart Blitz
Anne Bilder & Johan den Boon
Lee Binnig
Carol Bloom
Evelyn Bonander
Joannie Botkol
Camille Breen
Chris and Margie Brown
Gail Bucher
David Chia
Larry Cohen and Susan Worst
Deanne Coolidge
Laurel Copeland & John Zeber
Eric & Margaret Darling
Sue Dickinson
Disney
Tracy Donsky
Diane Droste
Maggie Edinger
Andrew Elliott & John Varone
Ann Ferentz
Andy Foery
In memory of Jean and Ken Royer
David E. Fuchs
John Garton
Ashleigh Gordon
Louise & Michael Grossman
Heidi Hellring
Patricia Henry
Alyson Hudson
Catharine Hyson
Elizabeth Igleheart
Howard Jacobson
Ona Jonaityte
Mari and Denys Kotskyy
Theodore Lanman
Kimberly and Chris Lehner
Ludmilla Leibman
Joshua Levit
Harold Lichtin
Emily Lyons
Beth Manca
Robert Markelewicz MD
May Marquebreuck
Ralph and Sylvia Memolo
Reeva Meyer
Judith Mitrano
Christine Mortensen
Susan Navarre and Tim Olevsky
Angela Ng
Joe Sodroski & Alice Noble
Ayumi Okada
Katie Parodi
Mary Pederson and Claye Metelmann
Velura Perry
Maureen Peters
Webster Pilcher and Sheryl Koenigsberg
Brian Pingree and Alexis Dearborn
Mark and Jody Raider
Ian Reiss
Kathryn Ritcheske
Andrew Royer
Nate Ruegger
Mallory A Ruymann
Colin Ryan
Ellen Sarkisian
Jon Saxton and Barbara Fox
Andrew & Margot Schmolka
Lucy & Len Schmolka
Graeme Schranz
Kevin & Carol Smith
Anders Soderquist
Ben Sweetser
Ann B. Teixeira
Douglas Urban
Charlene and Stephen Valk
Dino J. Martins
Elaine Walsh
Theodor Weinberg & Eric Hyett
Vicki and Andy Wittenstein
$50–$99
Anonymous (2)
Victoria Aparece
Young Yun Baek
Laura Basford
John Beagan & Sarah Peck
Kenneth Bigley
Mary Bragg
Mary Breen
Caitlin Breen
Thomas Breen
Mary Frances Breen
Margaret Cain
Susan Carlson
Minjin Chung
Cathy Chung
Rachel Ciprotti
Susan Dolan
Allison Donelan
Barry Duncan
Mary Eddy
David L. Eddy
Ellen Feingold
David Feltner and Robert Edward
Smith
Celine Ferro
William Finkelstein
David and Ellen Fries
Milan Galland
Stacy Garrop
Molly Breen Aronson
James Gleason
Mara Goldberg
John H. Graves
Hans Heilman
Maureen Hollis
Judith Insell
Tim Jarrett
Leonard and Terry Kahn
Jim Kane and Sharon Williams
Bill and Carolyn Kane
Sho Kato
Richard Kaye
Susan Kendall
Matthew Kusulas & Jack Tamburri
Amy Lee
Steve Lewis
Nancy Lipsitt and Len Newman
George Lockhart
Downing Luvisi Family
Kevin Mathieu
Carol McCarthy and Chris Stribakos
Honor McClellan
Mona McKindley
The Hollis-Goodwin Families
Jennifer Moore
Cathi and Jeff Myer
Jane Parkin Kullmann
Jason Pavel and Marie Walcott
Chris Porter
Janet Rothrock
Jonathan Royer
Christina Rusnak
Dewey Sasser
Tom Schmidt
Charles Shadle
Gordon and Shannon Shannon
Jonathan Simon, DC
Sidney Slobotkin
Arlene Stevens
Meg Stone
Sharon Daniels Sullivan
Pinaud Publication
Barbara Turen
Karen Walwyn
Lauri Wasson
Graheme Williams
Lynn Chang and Lisa Wong
Elton Wong
Sandy & Craig Blocker
Michael Zammito
Marc Zegans
Up to $49
Anonymous (4)
Andrew Adams
James Aronson
Steven Averett
Weronika Balewski
Skylar Lapin
J. L. Bell
Lauren Bernofsky
Lauren Bilello
Johanna Biviano
Kelsey Blocker
Kyla Blocker
Betsy Bobo
Ed Bouchard
Molly Breen-Aronson
Eliza Brown
Monica Bruno
Erin Burke
Jennifer W Chan
Jenith Charpintier
Grace Chua
Jeanhee Chung
Linda Ciesielski
Andrea Clearfield
Charles Coe
Chris Combest
Joey Marie Coughlin
Cheryl L Crider
BethAyn Curtis
James Curtis
Deepa Datta
Patrick Dawson
Jade Deatherage
Michael Delman
Saskia den Boon
Karin Denison
Bryce and Kathryn Denney
Ashley Dennis
Emily Eddy
Eric Eisenberg
Carl Ellenberger
John Eustis
Carole Eustis
Beth Eustis
Noam Faingold
Evan Fein
Anthony F.
Miriam Fogel
Anna Fogel
Frederick Frank
Tobin Gedstad
Michael Gilbertson
Charlie Griffin
Andrew Haber
Hillary Hadley
Carrie Hammond
Amanda Harberg
Julia Harrod
Kiyoshi Hayashi
Robert Heaney
Cara Herbitter
Hannah Hickman
Anne Hoef
Susanna Hoglund
Kelley Hollis
Michaela Hollis
Grant Home
Stephanie Howard
Mary and David Howarth
Anne Howarth & Frederick Frank Jr.
Wolcott Humphrey
Michael Hustedde
Emanuella Janita
Kun Yong Jeoung
Jon Jones
James Jones
Daniel Jones
Jessica Kaplan
Jason Kaplan
Zachary Kaye
Louise Kelly
Bella Kelly
Noelle Kelly
Krista Killeen
Abby Krawson
Meg Krilov
Rainice Lai
Jessica Lamoureux
Katy LL
Marc, Skylar, Laura
Kathleen Larson Day
Mina Lavcheva
Vi Le
Jacqueline Lestina
Rose Lewis
Rozime Lindsey
Olga Lisovska
Shayna Liu
Gale Livingston
Terry Lockhart
Gami Maislin
Seth Maislin
Linda Markarian
Pamela Marshall
Seth Mascolo
Pranav Mashankar
Patrick Mcallister
Mac McBurney
Kathryn McKellar
Kim McNamara
Taylor McNulty
Sarah McSweeney
Erin Merceruio Nelson
Libby Meyer
Krystal Morin
Will Morningstar
B. Morrison
Mary Mulderig
Joseph Musser
Linda Ng
Kaitlin Nichols
Nick Norton
Jessica Oakhem
Luis Ochoa
Justin Ouellet
Andrew Pease
Patric Pepper & Mary Ann Larkin
Paula Petrella
Kathleen Quigley
Cassian Ramos
Daniel Ramos
Lianne Ratzersdorfer
Alexander and Sabrina Recendiz
Fern and Ginny Remedi-Brown
Remesch Family
Sarah Ries
Stephanie Riley
Bobbi Ritcheske
Gwyneth Rix
Nathan Roller
David Roth
John Ruymann
Erica Ryan
Elizabeth Ryan
Antonio Santos
Laura Schaefer
Katie Semro
Daron Sharps
Aaron Sheehan
Amy Shuman
Kate Umble Smucker
Nicholas Southwick
Lauren Spavelko
Emily Spear
Beth Stotts
Imogene & Bruce
Jenny Szabo
Barbara Tarrh
Maria Thompson Corely
Susannah Thornton
Evelyn Trier
Lisa Vaas
Katharine & Dave Velleman
Dan Vera
Rachel Veto
Jenna Wang
Beverly Waring
Christopher Wicks
Todd Wilson
Elaine Wu
Alison Yakabe
Lidiya Yankovskaya
Steven Yao
Haesoo Yoon
Lu Yu
Submarine Sound
Vocal Revolution
We’re proud that our donor roster includes 100% of Juventas board, staff and ensemble members, plus 35 composer and musician collaborators.
We are also extremely thankful to the dedicated volunteers who gave their time and talents to Juventas in the past year:
Chris Beagan
Milan Galland
Elizabeth Igleheart
Ann MacDonald
Rachael McKenzie
Jonathon Sedarski
Elaine Walsh
Anne Howarth, horn
Julia Scott Carey, piano
CHASING DREAMS
NOVEMBER
NOVEMBER
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