Celebrating Musical Excellence
In just fifty years, the Shepherd School of Music has achieved what few institutions accomplish in a century, transforming from a bold vision of music education into one of the world’s most distinguished music programs.
At the Shepherd School, uncompromising artistry goes hand-in-hand with a deep commitment to student development. Graduates emerge as collaborative, humble, and rigorously trained musicians who elevate every ensemble they join.
From Houston to New York to Berlin, our alumni hold positions across nearly every major U.S. orchestra, shine on opera’s finest stages, and excel far beyond the concert hall in their scholarship and creative success. It fills me with pride to see our alumni embody Rice’s ideals of excellence wherever they go.
As we celebrate this milestone, we honor fifty years of extraordinary achievement and look ahead to a future defined by the same passion, purpose, and excellence that have shaped Shepherd since its founding.
Warmly, Reginald DesRoches
President, Rice University
A Message from the Provost
Fifty Years of Artistry
The Shepherd School of Music excels in bringing the world to Rice — and Rice to the world. With over 400 live performances each year on campus and thousands more by our distinguished alumni, Shepherd’s impact resonates across Houston and far beyond.
For fifty years, Shepherd musicians have flourished with dedicated mentorship, rigorous training, and a culture of care. With seventy-five acclaimed artistteachers guiding just 285 students, Shepherd’s one-tofour ratio ensures every student receives personalized guidance, accelerating artistic growth.
Alice Pratt Brown Hall and Brockman Hall for Opera provide the perfect setting for this work, with worldclass performance halls and rehearsal spaces designed to nurture discovery and foster collaboration.
As we celebrate the Shepherd School’s 50th anniversary this season, we are delighted to honor the remarkable people who have shaped its legacy, and we look forward to the next fifty years of vibrant artistry.
Warmly, Amy Dittmar
Howard R. Hughes Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs, Rice University
Reginald DesRoches
Amy Dittmar
The Translation of Dreams with Matthew Loden Lynette S. Autrey Dean of Music
As we gather to celebrate the Shepherd School of Music’s 50th anniversary, I find myself returning to the words and intentions of those who first imagined it. Our founding dean, Samuel Jones, led our school’s earliest days with a provocative question: What kind of school could we become?
Jones mused about “Dreams and Translations” in his visionary essay, imagining a school that would marry artistic excellence with intellectual rigor, a small community of performers and scholars whose work would elevate both Rice and the city—and he set a course bold enough to stand the test of time.
Today we celebrate the rarest outcome in institutional life: We can look back across half a century and say, without hyperbole, that the core of that original dream has been translated—faithfully, fully, and masterfully—into the school you know today.
The vision was of a selective, bespoke, performance-based music school embedded in a great research university. It called for a small community of artist-scholars bound to the highest standards. It imagined a curriculum that joins craft to intellect and stage to seminar. And it sought a living partnership with Houston’s arts ecosystem.
Jones and the first music faculty set that vision. Together, with our extraordinary community of supporters, we brought it to life at Rice. And this success continues to define us.
Reaching a 50th year is not an ending. It is the moment our school moves from promising adolescence into maturity. We are blessed with a foundation that is intact and strong, and increasingly recognized around the world as something very special. The question before us now is not “what else can we do?” but “what can we do to make what we do now even better?” That is the work of a mature institution.
What
does that look like?
That future rests with our people.
The next movement of our story will be written with and by our faculty, those here now and those we will invite to join us. Our responsibility is manifold: to engage our current faculty deeply as we chart what emerging musicians will need, to recruit the next generation of artist-teachers who can deliver that future without compromising the standards that made Shepherd singular, and to attract the finest students into our classes.
Our scale is deliberate.
In Texas, size may matter, but so does restraint. With roughly 285 students each year, we can populate our studios and ensembles, chamber music, composition classes and musicology research at a level that keeps every rehearsal room active, every studio alive, and every stage worthy. We do not chase shiny methodologies or tuition-driven musical trends to plug revenue needs. We ask ourselves daily, what is the right choice for the future of music, and what do our students need right now to be part of it?
Our work is craft joined to curiosity and innovation.
We will certainly explore the intersection of artificial intelligence and art music, while we also consider how we might integrate digital tools into the daily practice of classical musicians. We will lean into the musical vanguard and still hold fast to the craftsmanship the musical arts have preserved for centuries. No technology can replace the human discipline required to shape a phrase. What remains is sweat equity, rigorous training, and the passing of embodied knowledge—how to play a Brahms symphony or sing a verismo aria, how to listen inside and across an ensemble— from one generation to the next.
Our spaces must be worthy of the art.
Brockman Hall for Opera—opened in 2022 after years of careful planning—has changed not only our footprint but our horizons. To experience opera or chamber music there, with intimacy and acoustical grace placed above spectacle, is to feel what is possible when architecture serves artistry. The building is as sophisticated as any concert hall or Broadway theater, yet it offers the intimacy and elegance of the great European houses. We are, frankly, the envy of many schools and not a few professional companies. The next act is to fully awaken all of our spaces: bring the world to our stage, bring our stage to the world, and welcome Houston in.
Our identity is rooted in belonging to this city.
Houston in the 1970s was a place where big ideas bloomed. That entrepreneurial spirit still suffuses our university and this city. Our alliances with the Houston Symphony, Houston Grand Opera, DaCamera, and our peer institutions create what I often think of as an extended faculty: artistic and administrative leaders who work with us, challenge us, and help us ensure our graduates not only win auditions but thrive in musical organizations of the highest caliber.
Which brings me to the educated artist.
The educated artist is one who understands they are never an audience of one. Music is how we tell human truths to each other—sadness, joy, love, grief, wonder—through sound shaped by virtuosity and care. In an era when shared experiences are scarce, we host more than 400 performances each year, most of them free to the public. That volume of activity drives our creative laboratory. It’s where we learn how to speak to audiences with humility and clarity, how to read the room, and how to honor the diversity of musical worlds beyond our own.
We should all feel a glorious responsibility in the work of our school. From faculty, students and staff to the extraordinary patrons we hold dear, we are all charged with translating our success into a new vernacular without losing the poetry of the place—that is a gift we’ll all treasure.
When I first read Jones’s essay and his exploration of how to translate the early dream of the Shepherd School into reality, I was struck by how prescient it was, and how familiar. I recognized the music school I have the privilege to serve. I also thought of poet and translator W. S. Merwin’s paradox
Read Samuel Jones’s original vision for the Shepherd School of Music as founding Dean.
of loss and gain throughout his works. Merwin reminds us that translation always leaves something behind, and that moving from one language to another is an act of hope. He writes, “What you remember saves you. To remember/Is not to rehearse, but to hear what never/Has fallen silent.”
If the poem of our first fifty years was written in one language, the lines of the next fifty will be written in our own voice, for our own time. The spirit will not be lost, and will not fall silent. It will be made new.
If you are new to us, we make one simple request: give us one chance. Come to a concert and feel the energy among students who support one another wholeheartedly, among faculty who show up night after night, in halls designed for listening, on a campus built for discovery. Without knowing anything about us, you will sense who we are.
And if you already love this place, help us ensure that love is contagious. What we steward here is rare and, in its way, very fragile in today’s world. The more ambassadors we have for the music and the mission, the stronger our translations will be.
Thank you, for your faith in our students, your trust in our faculty, and your belief that the next chapter can be even more resonant than the last.
Here’s to the next fifty years of dreams, and to translating them, together.
With gratitude,
Matthew Loden Lynette S. Autrey Dean of Music
The History of the Shepherd School of Music: A
Timeline
Explore the milestones, achievements, and transformative moments that have shaped the Shepherd School of Music into a world-class conservatory over 50 years. From its founding to today, this timeline highlights the people, events, and innovations that have defined our legacy and inspire our future.
1950
The Very Beginning
In 1950, Sallie Shepherd Perkins and her husband Malcolm made a visionary gift that laid the foundation for Rice University’s Music Department.
Sallie’s generous contribution honored her grandfather, Benjamin Shepherd, a pioneering Houston financier and passionate supporter of the arts.
View an enhanced historical timeline on Shepherd’s website.
1983
Shepherd School Symphony Orchestra
As enrollment grew to over 150 students under Dean Livingston, the school became big enough to be able to form the Shepherd School Symphony Orchestra. The Symphony Orchestra’s inaugural concert took place at Hamman Hall on March 28, 1983.
1953 Rice’s First Music Department
In 1953, Rice University officially established a music department under the leadership of Professor Arthur E. Hall. Over the next two decades, the department grew steadily, offering music classes, hosting a community orchestra, and welcoming a range of guest artists—laying the groundwork for a thriving musical culture on campus.
1983 — 1986 Dean Livingston
After serving twice as interim dean (1979 and 1982), Clyde Holloway was succeeded by acclaimed conductor and educator Larry Livingston, who became the school’s third dean, serving until 1986. His tenure was transformative— in four years, he expanded the faculty and student body and laid the groundwork for the campaign that would give Shepherd its future home.
Rehearsal in Hamman Hall
1955
First Ensembles
In 1955, the Rice Chamber Orchestra became the department’s first orchestra, comprising students and community members.
The Rice Chorale was founded in 1960, welcoming singers from both within Rice University and the wider community. Today, the sixty-voice ensemble continues its rich tradition, blending voice and music majors with talented singers from Houston.
1978 REMLABS
Rice’s first electronic music studio was established by Professors Arthur Gottschalk and Ellsworth Milburn in 1978. Today, it’s known as Rice
June
29, 1977
The Shepherd Society
The Shepherd Society was officially founded to channel financial support to students from a robust community of music lovers. Over 50 years, Shepherd Societyfunded scholarships have played a critical role in attracting today’s most talented young musicians.
1984
Opera Beginnings
Anthony Addison launched the Shepherd School’s opera program in 1984. Early productions were intimate and staged in unconventional campus spaces, including the former Bonner Nuclear Laboratory.
1975
Founding with Dean Jones
An additional generous bequest from Sallie Shepherd Perkins enabled our expansion into a fully fledged school of music. In the fall of 1975, 22 students enrolled in the inaugural class.
Samuel Jones was named the founding Dean, and Shepherd’s first faculty members were hired—among them is Professor of Double Bass Paul Ellison, who continues to teach at Shepherd to this day, 50 years later!
1977 Houston Partnerships
Houston Friends of Music— now named Chamber Music Houston—formed an official partnership with the Shepherd School after having relocated to Rice in 1968. In following years, longstanding collaborations were established with the Houston Youth Symphony, Houston Chamber Choir, and Music in Context, strengthening Shepherd’s ties to the city’s vibrant musical community.
1987 — 2001
Dean Hammond
Michael Hammond became dean, serving until 2001, bring Shepherd to new heights—expanding our world-class faculty, launching programs for young musicians, and overseeing the opening of Alice Pratt Brown Hall. Shepherd’s annual, free family concerts began under Hammond.
Five Shepherd students pose for a photo at Rice in the late 1970s
The Rice Chamber Orchestra returns from their tour to Germany and Austria (1970)
1991
Larry Rachleff
Walter Kris Hubert
Professor Emeritus of Orchestral Conducting Larry Rachleff’s appointment in 1991 marked a new era for the Shepherd School’s orchestra program, elevating its artistry and national reputation.
October 4, 1991
Alice Pratt Brown Hall
Shepherd got its first home with the opening of Alice Pratt Brown Hall, designed by Ricardo Bofill and envisioned by Dean Hammond as a modern monastery for music study. Uniting the community under one roof proved transformational, propelling our growth into one of the nation’s leading conservatories.
2021
Dean Loden
Matthew Loden became the 6th dean of Shepherd, bringing extensive experience leading major educational and performing arts organizations across North America. Loden is focused on recruiting the best students and faculty, advancing the school’s public profile, deepening community engagement through leveraged partnerships, and exploring new creative practices.
April 2022
Brockman Hall for Opera
Designed by Allan Greenberg and Thomas Noble, Brockman Hall for Opera finally gave our renowned opera program the dedicated space it had long deserved, including its crown jewel: the 600-seat Morrison Theater. The program welcomed Joshua Winograde as its new leader the following year.
November 15, 1995
First Gala
The Shepherd School hosted its first gala with opera superstar Cecilia Bartoli and pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet. Future galas featured André Watts, Itzhak Perlman and Renée Fleming.
2014
Carnegie Hall
The Shepherd School Symphony Orchestra made its debut in 2014 in New York’s Carnegie Hall under Larry Rachleff, and returned again in 2016. These landmark performances affirmed Shepherd’s place among the nation’s premier conservatory orchestras.
2024
The Concert Truck
Shepherd expanded community engagement by partnering with The Concert Truck, a 16-foot box truck complete with lighting, sound system and piano. Concerts across the city included the Houston Rodeo, ION, Eldorado Ballroom, and POST.
Jean-Yves Thibaudet and Cecilia Bartoli
Carnegie Hall in 2014
1997
Organ Hall
Construction on the Edythe Bates Old Recital Hall was complete, and Alice Pratt Brown Hall became home to a custom-built 75-stop, 4,493-pipe grand concert organ. Its opening gala featured Professor of Organ Clyde Holloway.
2002 Preparatory Program
The Michael P. Hammond Preparatory Program was officially inaugurated following several summers of educational programming for young students.
Aleko Series
The Aleko Endowed Artist Master Class and Recital Series was established to welcome leading artists and teachers to campus. Notable guests have included Renée Fleming, James Conlon, Joyce DiDonato, Frederica von Stade, and Isabel Leonard.
February 2025
Chamber Music America Conference
Chamber Music America hosted its annual conference in Houston— for the first time outside of New York City—in partnership with the Shepherd School of Music. The conference featured hundreds of performances, play-ins, and panels, with strong involvement from the Shepherd community.
2003 — 2021 Dean Yekovich
After serving twice as interim dean (1986 and 2001), Anne Schnoebelen was succeeded by Robert Yekovich . During his 18year tenure, Dean Yekovich oversaw the appointment of a significant number of renowned faculty, increased scholarship funding dramatically, led landmark performances including Carnegie Hall tours, and championed the construction of Brockman Hall for Opera.
2004
Chamber Music Festival
Director of Chamber Music Norman Fischer launched the Shepherd School’s Chamber Music Festival. For over two decades, the festival has highlighted outstanding string and piano chamber music each semester.
August 2025
New Faculty
Shepherd welcomed its largest cohort of new faculty in the school’s history: David Chan, Professor of Violin; Elizabeth Freimuth (’98), Professor of Horn; Erin Hannigan, Professor of Oboe; Miguel Harth-Bedoya, Distinguished Resident Director of Orchestras & Professor of Conducting; Allegra Lilly, Associate Professor of Harp; Cristian Măcelaru (’06, ’08), Distinguished Visiting Artist; Nick Platoff, Associate Professor of Trombone; and Valentin Radutiu, Professor of Cello.
2014 Aleko Endowed Artist Renée Fleming
A Legacy of Excellence
The Shepherd School of Music orchestra department is highly regarded as one of the top preprofessional orchestral programs in North America. In fact, recent research shows that the Shepherd School leads the country in its ratio of alumni in professional orchestras to current student enrollment. Shepherd alumni perform across nearly all major U.S. orchestras, including the Boston, Cleveland, Philadelphia, Chicago, and Houston symphony orchestras.
The school’s orchestral roots date back to 1955, with the Rice Chamber Orchestra, comprising students and community members. Though modest in size, it made a mark touring Europe twice during the 1970s.
With the Shepherd School’s founding in 1975, Dean Samuel Jones established the school’s first student orchestra, the Shepherd Sinfonia, alongside the Campanile Orchestra–a community orchestra still active today that serves as a training ground for Shepherd student conductors.
By 1983, the growth in student enrollment under Dean Larry Livingston made possible the creation of the larger Shepherd School Symphony Orchestra. Led by a rotating roster of esteemed guest conductors, including Benjamin Zander, Gisèle Ben-Dor, and Uri Mayer, the orchestra gained recognition performing across Houston’s major venues.
Still, the absence of a dedicated hall and resident music director left the future of the program uncertain— until 1991, with the opening of Alice Pratt Brown Hall and the appointment of Larry Rachleff as the Walter Kris Hubert Professor of Orchestral Conducting.
Under Rachleff’s leadership, the Shepherd School Symphony Orchestra and Shepherd School Chamber Orchestra, established in 1993, quickly rose to national prominence. For three decades, Rachleff had an immeasurable impact on the lives and careers of countless musicians, including acclaimed conductors
Cristian Măcelaru (’06, ’08) and James Gaffigan (’03). Rachleff’s passing in 2022 was deeply felt across the classical music community, and he is remembered as a dynamic, oncein-a-generation maestro who helped elevate the Shepherd School to worldclass stature.
For the next few years, a distinguished roster of guest conductors upheld the orchestra’s excellence as the school prepared for its next chapter in 2025, when acclaimed conductor Miguel Harth-Bedoya stepped into the role of Distinguished Resident Director of Orchestras. With over 35 years of experience and a deep commitment to mentoring the next generation of musicians, Harth-Bedoya is poised to build on the school’s rich orchestral legacy while guiding students into a vibrant new era.
Orchestra rehearses in Hamman Hall, late ’70s Fall ’25 Symphony Orchestra concert
Larry Rachleff
Orchestra at the Shepherd School
Miguel Harth-Bedoya with Shepherd School Symphony Orchestra
From Modest Beginnings to a Powerhouse Program
Opera at the Shepherd School
In just over four decades, the Shepherd School has transformed its opera department from modest beginnings into one of the nation’s premier training grounds for young singers.
When the opera program was formed under Anthony Addison in 1984, productions were small in scale and held in unconventional spaces around campus—even including the former home of the Bonner Nuclear Laboratory. In 1986, Shepherd hosted its first fully staged opera production in Hamman Hall of Robert Ward’s The Crucible , performed with the Shepherd School Symphony Orchestra.
The opening of Alice Pratt Brown Hall in 1991 aligned with the opera program’s growing need for more space, as productions became increasingly ambitious and technically demanding. Under Dean Michael Hammond, vocal faculty largely ran the program through the 1990s, with Debra Dickinson heading the Opera Workshop and Advanced Opera Studies (AOS) classes.
A turning point for the program arrived in the early 2000s, when Dean Robert Yekovich appointed Stephen King as Professor of Voice and Richard Bado as Director of Opera Studies, bringing a welcome structure to the program. To attract top talent by offering competitive scholarship support, the opera department became more selective, limiting enrollment to approximately 20 master’s students.
This strategic change helped elevate Shepherd’s reputation, a legacy continued by future Directors of Opera Michael Heaston (in 2018) and Miah Im (in 2020), who each brought strong industry connections and new ambitions to the program. After Im’s passing in 2021, Principal Coach of Opera Studies Bethany Self served as interim director for two years, keeping the program thriving with warmth and care.
Joshua Winograde’s arrival in 2023 as Director of Opera ushered in a new era focused on professional
readiness, with mock auditions, guest artist master classes, and personalized mentorship from industry professionals. The opening of Brockman Hall for Opera further elevated the program, offering stateof-the-art performance and rehearsal spaces rivaling those of professional opera houses.
Today, the Shepherd School’s opera program has achieved a level of excellence that places it among the nation’s premier training programs—a testament to the vision, artistry, and care that have shaped its remarkable growth over the past four decades.
View our events calendar
Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin, Fall ’23
Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi, Fall ’08
Corigliano’s The Ghosts of Versailles, Spring ’25
The Heart of Collaboration
Chamber Music at the Shepherd School
From its earliest days, chamber music has been central to the Shepherd School’s artistic and educational vision. Every Shepherd instrumentalist participates in weekly chamber music rehearsals, mentored by faculty who have performed in some of the world’s finest chamber groups. Shepherd composition students also benefit as their peers bring new works to life, forming a vibrant laboratory for artistic exploration.
Did You Know?
In 2004, Director of Chamber Music Norman Fischer launched the Shepherd School’s Chamber Music Festival, a cherished tradition that highlights string and piano ensembles each semester.
“Everything we value in music—listening, communication, balance and trust—is learned in chamber music. It’s where musicians learn collaborations at the deepest level, and those skills carry into every corner of their musical lives,” says Fischer.
These acclaimed string quartets all studied at Shepherd School of Music with Professor James Dunham:
Dover Quartet Balourdet Quartet
Callisto Quartet
Rolston Quartet
Get to Know the
Degrees of Study
• Shepherd offers Bachelor’s, Master’s, Doctor of Musical Arts, and Artist Diploma degrees.
• Students specialize in composition, orchestral conducting, music history, orchestral instruments, organ, piano, and voice/opera studies.
Our Spaces
Our venues are designed to feel as welcoming as they are inspiring: Alice Pratt Brown Hall (opened in 1991) and Brockman Hall for Opera (opened in 2022) have become vibrant spaces where students, faculty, and the Houston community gather to learn, rehearse and celebrate music.
Our large rehearsal and performance halls include:
• Morrison Theater, Dean’s Rehearsal Hall and Tudor Patrons’ Lounge in Brockman Hall for Opera
• Stude Concert Hall, Duncan Recital Hall, Edythe Bates Old Recital Hall and Grand Organ, Wortham Theatre, and Hirsch Orchestra Rehearsal Hall in Alice Pratt Brown Hall
Our Faculty
75 acclaimed artist-teachers mentor 285 Shepherd students. This 1:4 ratio guarantees personalized coaching and accelerates artistic growth.
Alumni Highlights & Accomplishments
From Houston to the world, the sound of Shepherd resonates far beyond these walls. Our alumni perform on the grandest stages, lead major ensembles, compose, conduct, and teach with excellence that turns heads — and opens hearts. Each success story echoes a shared truth: Shepherd’s reach is global, but its soul remains deeply rooted here at Rice.
Blanton Alspaugh (MM ’87), student of Samuel Jones
One of the country’s most respected classical music producers with over 11 GRAMMY-award wins and 28 nominations. Blanton is currently Senior Producer at Soundmirror.
Bryan Anderson (MM ’18), student of Ken Cowan Winner of multiple international competitions, including the 2023 Longwood Gardens International Organ Competition with a $40,000 Pierre S. du Pont First Prize—the largest cash prize of any competitive organ event.
Nicholas Brownlee (MM), student of Stephen King
Bass-baritone and winner of the 2025 Richard Tucker Award, often referred to as the “Heisman Trophy of Opera,” with a $50,000 prize.
“Shepherd School people are everywhere. Every orchestra pit I look into, every stage I step onto—Valencia, Paris, New York–I run into musicians and singers who trained at Rice. It’s a joy to be a part of that lineage.” –Brownlee
Cristle Collins Judd (BM, MM ’83), student of Paul Cooper
11th president of Sarah Lawrence College, and recipient of the Emerging Scholar Award and the Wallace Berry Award from the Society for Music Theory.
Megan Conley (BM ’05, MM ’09), student of Paula Page
Former Principal Harpist of the Houston Symphony and artistic director of Ocean Music Action, a program raising awareness for ocean conservation through music and education.
Nina DeCesare (BM ’14), student of Paul Ellison Bassist with the Baltimore Symphony, faculty at the Peabody Conservatory, and founder of the Artemis Bass Initiative, a comprehensive mentorship program supporting the next generation of women and nonbinary bassists.
“I was incredibly fortunate to be studying the bass in a healthy and supportive studio at Rice” –DeCesare
Andy Einhorn (BA ’04), student of Jeanne Kierman Fischer
Leading Broadway music director and conductor for Broadway productions, including Gypsy, Carousel starring Renée Fleming, and Hello, Dolly! starring Bette Midler.
“My time at Shepherd School is so memorable to me because I had the great fortune of really finding a place where I could grow and be able to carve my own path as a musician. Through the mentorship of my professors, I was able to find my wings and soar on my own, which led me to New York City, conducting on Broadway.” –Einhorn
Germaine Franco (BM ’84, MM ’87), student of Philip Kraus and Richard Brown
GRAMMY-award winning and Oscar-nominated film composer, producer, and percussionist, best known for her work on the scores for Disney’s Encanto and Coco
Gabriela Lena Frank (BM ’94, MM ’96), student of Samuel Jones
Acclaimed composer and recipient of the prestigious 25th Heinz Award in the Arts and Humanity with an unrestricted cash prize of $250,000. Previous commissions include those for the Kronos Quartet, Houston Symphony, Philadelphia Symphony, and Yo-Yo Ma and the Silk Road Project.
James Gaffigan (MM ’03), student of Larry Rachleff
Music director of the Komische Oper Berlin and of the Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía. In the U.S., guest conducting appearances at the Cleveland Orchestra, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Lucerne Symphony Orchestra, Metropolitan Opera, and beyond.
Jennifer Johnson Cano (MM ’08), student of Kathleen Kaun
Mezzo-soprano with over 100 appearances on the stage at The Metropolitan Opera since her debut in 2009, with frequent concert appearances with the New York Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, and others.
Rena Kraut (MM ’01), student of Michael Webster
Clarinetist who performs regularly with the Minnesota Orchestra and Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, and Executive Director of the Cuban American Youth Orchestra (CAYO), a non-profit organization which promotes U.S.–Cuba cultural diplomacy through education, exchange, and performance.
Artem Kuznetsov (MM ’18), student of Jon Kimura Parker
Winner of over 10 international piano competitions, including the American International Music Competition and the 25th Santa Cecilia International Competition.
Ben Laude (BM ’08), student of Robert Roux Concert pianist, music educator, video producer, and Head of Piano for tonebase, an innovative online platform offering worldclass music instruction.
Anthony Limoncelli (MM), student of Barbara Butler and Charlie Geyer
Principal Trumpet of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, starting 2023. Previously with the Sarasota Orchestra and Atlanta Symphony Orchestra.
Joel Link (MM ’13), student of James Dunham, Norman Fischer, and Kenneth Goldsmith
Concertmaster of The Cleveland Orchestra, starting 2025, and first violinist of the Dover Quartet, graduates of the String Quartet program at the Shepherd School.
Cristian Măcelaru (MM ’06, MM ’08), student of Larry Rachleff
GRAMMY award-winning Music Director of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra National de France, and recently appointed Distinguished Visiting Artist of the Shepherd School.
“The Shepherd School was such a big part of my life. Perhaps the most important thing that I learned when I was here as a student was how important excellence is in everything that we do” –Măcelaru
Caleb Quillen (MM ’16), student of Paul Ellison and Timothy Pitts
Principal Double Bass of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, starting in 2025. Previously with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra and Kansas City Symphony.
Caroline Shaw (BM ’04), student of Kathleen Winkler
Five-time GRAMMY-award winning composer and violinist who has produced and written for artists including Rosalía, Renée Fleming, Yo-Yo Ma, Kanye West, LA Phil, and NY Phil.
William Short (MM ’12), student of Benjamin Kamins
Principal Bassoon of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and faculty member at Juilliard, Manhattan School of Music, and Temple University.
“Having the opportunity to play for, essentially, everyone in the entire school preparing for my Met audition—it just beautifully encapsulated not just what a supportive place Shepherd is, but also what a collaborative place it is. I’m so proud to be an alumnus!” –Short
Lauren Snouffer (BM ’09), student of Stephen King
Soprano who made her Metropolitan Opera debut in 2025 as Sarah Kavalier in The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay. Previous performances include with the Lyric Opera of Chicago, Glyndebourne Festival, Salzburg Mozartwoche, and the Bilbao Symphony Orchestra, among others.
Michael Sumuel (MM ’09), student of Susanne Mentzer
Bass-baritone with regular appearances at the Metropolitan Opera, San Francisco Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Houston Grand Opera, and beyond.
Anne Walters Robertson (MM ’79)
First scholar to win all three awards of the Medieval Academy of America. Distinguished Professor of Musicology and former dean of the Division of the Arts and Humanities at the University of Chicago.
For more alumni updates, visit music.rice.edu.
Cristian Măcelaru at Paris Olympics, Summer ’24
Sasha’s World
Acclaimed mezzo-soprano
Sasha Cooke ’04 finds a home on the international stage.
Clad in a black and gold brocade evening gown, Sasha Cooke ’04 commands the stage at Santa Cecilia Hall, joining Italy’s Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia to perform — in German — Austrian composer Gustav Mahler’s “Resurrection” Symphony, a meditation on death, judgment and eternal life.
The mix of languages, cultures and countries is standard fare for the Grammy Award-winning opera singer of Russian ancestry who’s performed in 11 countries and 25 cities this season alone, including firsts for her in Slovenia, Belgium, Norway and Poland. “That’s one of the greatest parts of this job — the travel,” she says.
Cooke fell in love with Mahler’s music at Juilliard and wrote her master’s thesis on the composer. An early job offer from the Colorado Symphony was to sing “Resurrection,” Mahler’s
Second Symphony. It’s a piece she’s returned to often during her 19-year career. In May, the “Mahler Queen,” as she’s called on social media, visited the composer’s grave outside Vienna and one of his compositional huts near Salzburg.
“There are pieces that go straight into your bones, and they stay,” Cooke says. “‘Resurrection’ is about nuance and pitch and artistry — there’s not a showy high note. It’s about being part of the emotional fabric of the piece. I sought Mahler out. I think he sought me out too. He’s one of the ingredients that’s taken me around the world.”
In Europe, Cooke appreciates that being an artist isn’t overly idealized. Rather, it’s considered a valuable profession that’s part of everyday life. That’s different from the U.S., where she’s sung at venues including the
Metropolitan Opera and San Francisco Opera. “Here, it’s more about identity and ambition and excellence.”
“People imagine singing as glamorous,” says Cooke, “but that’s a very small percentage of it. The rest is booking flights, hotels or Airbnbs, attending rehearsals, coping with jet lag, and juggling relationships with family and friends from afar.”
No matter where she travels, Cooke has a habit of seeking out “third places” like coffee shops. “It’s a way of feeling like a local,” she says. “You end up talking to someone, having a human interaction, and that’s a direct line to your mental health.”
This fall, she’ll sing in six countries and 22 cities, debuting in the Sydney Opera House with music by English composer Edward Elgar. She’ll also perform “Of Thee I Sing,” a recital celebrating composers who shaped and were shaped by America, in five U.S. cities. “I’ve been thinking a lot lately about who we are,” Cooke says, “about the dream of America, and if we’re achieving that dream.”
Cooke says she wouldn’t be a musician if not for the personal attention she got as “a shy kid” at the Shepherd School of Music — where she ended up performing opera leads. It built her confidence. “I was seen and honored and taken care of,” she says. Early on, she told her voice professor Kathleen Kaun she wanted to sound like other Rice female singers.
“She told me, ‘It’s good to be different.’ And a light bulb went off. I’m a case of it is good to be different.”
– Deborah Lynn Blumberg, reprinted from the Rice Magazine fall 2025 edition
Sasha Cooke with Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in 2024
50th Anniversary Commissions
To celebrate 50 years, Shepherd School composition faculty are embarking on an exciting multi-year initiative to create seven brand-new works—each with a unique and powerful story to tell.
October 2024, Wortham Theatre
Chen’s creation was a dynamic blend of music, light and shadow puppetry. It drew inspiration from the satirical conspiracy theory “Birds Aren’t Real” and the traditional Chinese piece “Ambush from Ten Directions,” exploring the theme of modern cognitive warfare.
September 2025, Stude Concert Hall
Anthony Brandt’s cross between a concerto and chamber music made its premiere with Professor of Cello Norman Fischer as soloist and the Shepherd School Chamber Orchestra under the direction of Miguel Harth-Bedoya.
January 2025, Duncan Recital Hall
A deliberate nod to the collaborative spirit of the Shepherd School, Lavenda’s commission featured faculty, alumni and graduate students. It expanded upon two earlier compositions and weaved new poetry and musical motifs into a rich, multilayered dialogue between past and present.
October 2025, Wortham Theatre
This multimedia collaboration between composer Kurt Stallmann and poet Joseph Campana explored the evolving relationship between humans and honeybees through music, poetry, electronic sound and visual design.
Learn more about other 50th commissions by Karim Al-Zand, Arthur Gottschalk, and Pierre Jalbert on music.rice.edu.
Special thanks to Rice University’s Office of Research for its support of these commissions.
Shih-Hui Chen Birds Are Real; Ambushed From Ten Directions
Anthony Brandt Chamber Concerto for Cello and Orchestra
Richard Lavenda Upon Further Reflection
Kurt Stallmann & Joseph Campana The Fruit and the Work
Playing by Heart
Shepherd School hits a high note with community
day.
This spring, the Shepherd School of Music threw itself a birthday party — and invited all of Houston. The school’s 50th Anniversary Community Day March 29 welcomed hundreds of guests, transforming the grounds into a kid-friendly cultural playground of musical performances and handson activities designed to connect the school’s world-class talent with visitors.
The day kicked off with a sold-out performance of Sergei Prokofiev’s famed and family-friendly “Peter and the Wolf,” narrated by Michael Sifuentes and conducted by resident maestro Miguel Harth-Bedoya. (Not to be outdone, Sammy the Owl delighted the crowd with his own conducting debut.) Meanwhile, visitors roamed freely throughout both Alice Pratt
Brown and Brockman halls, engaging in activities that included iPadpowered sound experiments and performances that blended chamber music with traditional South Asian and Filipino dance.
Musical demonstrations offered included Baroque movements, opera arias, organ and choral showcases, and creative new compositions, such as unexpected and intriguing duets for violin and contrabassoon. Along the Shepherd School’s Piazza Della Musica, families gathered for face painting, musical games and pop-up concerts performed from a mobile concert truck.
“We know that for so many of these students and families, this is their first interaction with classical music,”
said Lynette S. Autrey Dean of Music Matthew Loden. “We want to make sure that we can give them an experience that’s fun, that they begin to attach themselves to the joy of making music, and hopefully they’ll keep coming back to campus over and over again.” For Houstonian Isabel David, it was a reminder of attending music classes at the Shepherd School when her daughter was a toddler. Celine, now 9 years old, described the day as “fun, dramatic and very memorable.” And for Houston? A joyful reminder of why Rice’s Shepherd School is one of the city’s most treasured cultural gems.
– Sarah Rufca Nielsen ’05, reprinted from the Rice Magazine fall 2025 edition
2025–26 Shepherd School Faculty
The Shepherd School wouldn’t be what it is today without its illustrious faculty. Students come to Shepherd for the opportunity to study with these visionary educators, world-renowned performers, and dedicated mentors.
Dean of the Shepherd School of the Music
Matthew Loden
Conducting
Miguel Harth-Bedoya^
Violin
David Chan^
Paul Kantor
Cho-Liang Lin
Kathleen Winkler
Viola
James Dunham
Ivo-Jan van der Werff
Cello
Norman Fischer
Valentin Radutiu^
Brinton Averil Smith
Double Bass
Paul Ellison
Timothy Pitts
Flute
Marianne Gedigian
Oboe
Erin Hannigan^
Clarinet
Richie Hawley
Bassoon
Benjamin Kamins
Trumpet
Barbara Butler
Horn
Elizabeth Freimuth^*
Trombone
Nick Platoff^
Tuba
David Kirk
Percussion
Matthew Strauss
Harp
Allegra Lilly^
Piano
Brian Connelly
Jeanne Kierman Fischer
Sohyoung Park*
Jon Kimura Parker
Organ
Ken Cowan
Accomplishments galore!
Read more about our faculty at music.rice.edu
Voice
Ana María Martínez
Robin Rice
Nova Thomas
Opera Studies
Joshua Winograde
Patrick Summers
Vocal Coaching
Thomas Jaber
Lyndsi Maus
Alex Munger
Nino Sanikidze
Bethany Self
Rice Chorale
Thomas Jaber
Composition & Theory
Karim Al-Zand
Damian Blättler
Anthony Brandt
Shih-Hui Chen
Arthur Gottschalk
Pierre Jalbert
Richard Lavenda*
Kurt Stallmann
Robert Yekovich
Musicology
Gregory Barnett
Erik Broess
David Ferris
Alexandra Kieffer
Peter Loewen
Danielle Ward-Griffin
Orchestral & Chamber Repertoire
Allen Barnhill
Joan DerHovsepian
Christopher French
Thomas LeGrand
Janet Rarick
Lecturers
Mario Aschauer
Karl Blench*
Susan Dunn-Rachleff
Rick Erickson
Jerry Hou*
Cristian Măcelaru^*
James Palmer^*
Glenn Taylor
Chapman Welch
^New faculty member, fall 2025
*Shepherd alumnus
Shepherd Faculty Through the Years
Throughout the Shepherd School’s history, our faculty have been the heart of its excellence and evolution. With gratitude, we honor all former faculty for their lasting contributions to the school’s success.
Anthony Addison
Dwight Andrews
Edward Applebaum
Atar Arad
Eric Arbiter
Robert Atherholt*
Virginia Babikian
Thomas Bacon
Richard Bado
Nancy Gisbrecht Bailey
Walter Bailey*
George Baker
William Barnard
Jeanne Baxtresser
Gisele Ben-Dor
Karol Bennett
Frances Bible
David Bilger
Wayne Brooks
Allyson Brown
Richard Brown*
Rachel Buchman
George Burt*
Leone Buyse*
William Caballero
Heidi Castleman
William Chaisson
Marcia Citron*
Sergiu Comissiona
Paul Cooper
Wayne Crouse
Courtney Daniell-Knapp
Jan de Chambrier
Warren Deck
John DeWitt
Patrick Diamond
Roberto Díaz
Debra Dickinson
Aralee Dorough
Ken Dye
Mozelle Edelstein
Csaba Erdélyi
Stuart Erwin
Christoph Eschenbach
Meryl Ettelson
Wanda Joyce Farwell*
John Feltch
Raphael Fliegel*
Ali Forough
Michael Franciosi
Phillip Freeman
Angela Fuller
Marc Garvin
Terry Gaschen
Charles Geyer
Armando Ghitalla
Anne Diener Giles
Kenneth Goldsmith*
Rubén Gonzalez
Hans Graf
Christina Leavelle
Greenwood
Mary Lee Greitzer
Lynn Griebling
Robert Gross
Mack Guderian
Eric John Halen
Arthur Hall
Michael Hammond
Mena Mark Hanna
Alice Hanson
Lisa Hardaway
Lynn Harrell
Deborah Harter
Michael Heaston
Desmond Hoebig*
Ralph Holibaugh
Clyde Holloway*
Luke Housner
Mu Chen Hsieh
Frank Huang
Mary Hunt
Miah Im
Andrea Jaber
Robert Johnson
Samuel Jones*
Martha Katz
Paul Katz
Kathleen Kaun*
Stephen King*
Phillip Kloeckner
Brady Knapp
Richard Koehler
Klaus Kratzenstein
Philip Kraus
Walfrid Kujala
Jeffrey Kurtzman
Julie Landsman
Hal Lanier
Richard Lert
Joseph Li
Stephen Lickman
Larry Livingston
Grant Loehnig
Jeannette Lombard
Sergiu Luca
George Lynn
David Malone
Uri Mayer
Frank McKinley
Honey Meconi
Susanne Mentzer
Ellsworth Milburn*
William Bruce Murray*
Virginia Nance
Norma Newton
Mary Norris
Paula Page
Ronald Patterson
Barbara Paver
David Peck
J.J. Penna
John Perry
Richard Pickar
Teresa Procter
Larry Rachleff*
Gwyn Richards
Karen Ritscher
Beatrice Schroeder Rose
Michael Rosenberg
David Rosenfield
Allan Ross
Robert Roux*
Richard Schaffer
Anne Schnoebelen*
Yizhak Schotten
Charles Sepos
Dean Shank
Eudice Shapiro
Peter Shaw
Toshiyuki Shimada
Edward Shmider
Robert Simpson
Julie Simson
Elizabeth Ann Slator
David Soley
Yoonshin Song
Marie Speziale*
Richard Stasney
Donald Strong
Albert Tipton
Abe Torchinsky
Shirley Trepel*
Christopher Turbessi
Karen Verm
Pieter Visser
Robert Walp
David Waters
Cornelia Watkins
Michael Webster
Virginia Weckstrom
Nancy Weems
Camilla Wicks
Gail Williams
James Wilt
Carol Wincenc
YeeJin Yuk
Benjamin Zander
* Emeritus faculty member
Shepherd School Staff
Dean’s Office Administration
Emily Wells, Senior Assistant Dean
Geoffrey Scott, Assistant Dean of Student Affairs and Enrollment Management
Leslie Pruski, Executive Assistant to Dean Loden
Finance & Human Resources
Susie Schoepf, Department Administrator
Enrollment & Student Affairs
Geoffrey Scott, Assistant Dean of Student Affairs and Enrollment Management
Nicolás Kruger-Seiler, Assistant Director of Music Admissions
Spencer Simpson, Music Admissions Administrator
Suzanne Taylor, Graduate Student Administrator
Blair McLaughlin, Music Office Assistant
Marketing, Communications & Ticketing
Katie Sejba, Senior Director of Marketing & Communications
Jane Orosco, Patron Services & Database Senior Manager
Lauren Ross, Digital Communications Manager
Matthew Neumann, Marketing & Communications Specialist
Development
Nancy Giles, Senior Director of Development
Pippa Jarvis-Flores, Assistant Director of Development
Margaret Ann Zentner, Assistant Director of Development, Annual Giving
Facilities
Michael Freese, Director of Facilities Operations
Marty Merritt, Senior Facilities Manager
Juan Araniva, Security Specialist
Production
Jennifer Rimmer, Director of Performance Operations for Music
Isabella Morrow, Recital Hall Production Manager
Madison Elaine Sutton, Concert Hall Production Manager
Francis Schmidt, Audio Recording Engineer
JJ Ramos, Audio/Visual Specialist
Scheduling & Rentals
Alex Stutler, Schedule & Events Manager
Orchestra & Chamber Music
Alan Austin, Orchestra Manager
Caio Alves Diniz, Chamber Music Manager & Librarian
Stephen Bachicha, Orchestra Librarian
Opera Department
Jessie Mullins, Director of Operations for Opera
John Moore, Director of Production for Opera
Colleen Doherty, Lighting Supervisor
Karen Reeves, Opera Administrator
Academic Affairs
Jennifer Overton, Assistant for Academic Processes
Preparatory Program
Julia Jalbert, Program Administrator
Piano Maintenance
Maciej Borgiel, Chief Piano Technician
Hayden Forsythe, Assistant Piano Technician
Rice Electroacoustic Music Labs (REMLABS)
Chapman Welch, Electroacoustic Specialist
Artist Collaborators
Eliza Ching
Beilin Han
Neal Kurz
Mei Rui
Corey Silberstein
Charlie Tauber
Staff Accompanists
Rachel Chao
Shannon Hesse
Preparatory Program Instructors
Matthew Dudzik
Matthew Lammers
Richard Marshall
Sylvia Ouellette
James Palmer
Sohyoung Park
Lisa Shihoten
Staff listing as of October 24, 2025.
Saturday, November 8, 2025
Anne and Albert Chao
Shawn Stephens and Jim Jordan
Isabel and Danny David
Anne Duncan, Honoree
Thank You to Our Supporters!
President, Rice University
REGINALD DESROCHES
Dean, Shepherd School of Music
MATTHEW LODEN
Gala Co-chairs
ANNE AND ALBERT CHAO
ISABEL AND DANNY DAVID
Underwriter Chairs
SHAWN STEPHENS AND JIM JORDAN
Honoree
ANNE DUNCAN
GALA DONORS
BRAVURA
Dorothy Brockman
Anne and Albert Chao
Isabel and Danny David
Anne Duncan
Anonymous
APPASSIONATO
Virginia Clark l Martiel
Luther
Molly and Jim Crownover
Eliza and John Duncan, Jr.
Small Difference Foundation
Susie and Mel Glasscock
Mary Lynn Marks l Vicki West and Ralph Burch
Lilly and Thurmon Andress l Jacquelin and Buck Ogilvie
Sara and Bill Morgan
Shawn Stephens and Jim Jordan
Michele and Robert Yekovich | Gary Smith and Jim Murdaugh
ESPRESSIVO
Kristy and Chris Bradshaw | Bristow Group
Linda Anderson | Kathleen and Robert Clarke
Elizabeth and Albert Kidd | Lynn Lednicky
VIVACE
Chris Bacon and Craig Miller
John Bland and Mary Parrish
Janet Clark
Melinda Clark and Clark
Trantham l Karen and Larry George l Shelley and Arthur Gottschalk
Catherine and Brian James l
Nancy and Alan Shelby
Ron Franklin and Janet Gurwitch
Kathryn Ketelsen
Cindy and Frank Liu
Ted Adams | Dean and Rachel Baxtresser | Sarah and David Mansouri
Heather and Chris Powers
Lisa Rich and John McLaughlin
Diana Strassmann and Jeffery Smisek
Phoebe and Bobby Tudor
Ben Westbrook and Jeff Bishop
SCHERZO
Dorothy and Mickey Ables
Frances Anderson
Theresa and Peter Chang
Kimberly Cutchall and Matthew Henneman
Shelly Cyprus
Kenneth Fitzgerald
Cece and Mack Fowler
Carolyn and Douglas Galfione
Sandra Godfrey
James Gunn and Joseph Hill
Julie and David Itz
Cristle Judd
Kristen and Matthew Loden
Susan and David Lummis
Virginia and Richard Mithoff
Cathryn and Douglas Selman
Debra Shetlar
Leigh and Reginald Smith
Kristine and Stephen Wallace
Geraldina and Scott Wise
PASTORALE
Cynthia and Bucky Allshouse
Leslie and Jack Blanton
Liz and Steve Crowell
Susie and Joe Dilg
Randa Duncan and Charles Williams
Nancy Dunlap
Leigh Frillici-Killian and Thomas Killian
Rachel and Robert Kimbro
Marilyn Graves Lummis
Anne Schnoebelen
Y. Ping Sun and David Leebron
Margaret Alkek Williams
Cyvia Wolff
FRIENDS OF THE SHEPHERD SCHOOL
Ruth Bellows
Yvonne and Rufus Cormier
Sohyoung Park and Hajin Lim
Russ Pitman
Carolyn and Jason Sabat
Elizabeth and Philip Samuels
Ginny and L.E. Simmons
HOST COMMITTEE
Dorothy and Mickey Ables
Lilly and Thurmon Andress
Cynthia and Bucky Allshouse
Leslie and Jack Blanton
Dorothy Brockman
Chris Bacon and Craig Miller
John Bland and Mary Parrish
Kristy and Chris Bradshaw
Melinda Clark and Clark Trantham
Kathleen and Robert Clarke
Molly and Jim Crownover
Shelly Cyprus
Paula Gilmer DesRoches and Reginald DesRoches
Susie and Joe Dilg
Cece and Mack Fowler
Ron Franklin and Janet Gurwitch
Karen and Larry George
Susie and Mel Glasscock
Sandra Godfrey
Shelley and Arthur Gottschalk
James Gunn and Joseph Hill
Julie and David Itz
Kathryn Ketelsen
Y. Ping Sun and David Leebron
Kristen and Matthew Loden
Martiel Luther
Mary Lynn Marks
Sara and Bill Morgan
Gary Smith and Jim Murdaugh
Jacquelin and Buck Ogilvie
Carolyn and Jason Sabat
Nancy and Alan Shelby
Debra Shetlar
Phoebe and Bobby Tudor
Kristine and Stephen Wallace
Vicki West and Ralph Burch
Margaret Alkek Williams
Geraldina and Scott Wise
Cyvia Wolff
Michele and Robert Yekovich
Elizabeth Young
Beth and Nick Zdeblick
