LU YU CENTER STAGE
Featuring Juventas’s celebrated violist in a virtuosic solo program
MARCH 14 | 8 PM
MULTICULTURAL ARTS CENTER
CAMBRIDGE, MA + LIVE ON YOUTUBE
MARCH 15 | 4 PM
FIRST PARISH SUDBURY SUDBURY, MA
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
MUSIC IN BLOOM JUNE 14 & 21 UP NEXT
AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 MINUTES MAY 16 & 17
LU YU: CENTER STAGE
Featuring Juventas’s celebrated violist in a virtuosic solo program
MARCH 14 | 8 PM | MULTICULTURAL ARTS CENTER + LIVE ON YOUTUBE
MARCH 15 | 4 PM | FIRST PARISH SUDBURY
Simply Purple (2008)
Joan Tower
Soliloquio Serrano No. 2 (2020) Gabriela Lena Frank
Solo Sonata for Viola (1992)
i. Melancholia
ii. Alla Bulgarese
iii. Finale sul ponticello
Atar Arad
Shades of Violet for Clarinet in B-flat and Viola (2018) Jenni Brandon with Celine Ferro, clarinet
Trio for Flute, Viola and Harp (2024)
i. Allegro
ii. Largo
iii. Moderato con moto with Nicholas Southwick, flute & Angelina Savoia, harp
Philip White
This program is funded in part by an Operating Support Grant from the Mass Cultural Council’s Portfolio Program; and by grants from the Cambridge Arts Council and Sudbury Cultural Council, local agencies that are supported by the Mass Cultural Council, a state agency.
The March 14 livestream of this program is funded by A Free for All Endowment Fund Grant from the Boston Foundation. Lynn Eustis has generously sponsored our March 14 “Meet the Artists” Reception.
Share your photos and videos on social media and tag @JuventasMusic!
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
Margie Coffin Brown
Carson Cooman
Lynn Eustis
Meg Fuchs
Leslie Jacobson Kaye
Karen Ruymann
Oliver Caplan
ex officio
STAFF
Oliver Caplan
Artistic Director
Andrew Wilkins has generously sponsored Oliver Caplan’s position for the 2025-26 concert season.
Kyla Blocker
General Manager
Meg Fuchs has generously sponsored Kyla Blocker’s position for the 2025-26 concert season.
Saskia den Boon
Grants Coordinator
Graphic Designer
Molly Breen-Aronson
Development Coordinator
J Lamoureux
Social Media Coordinator
Aimee Lents
Arts Administration Intern
FROM THE SOLOIST
The viola’s voice has always felt to me like a conversation, sometimes introspective and solitary, sometimes deeply collaborative. This program grew from two ideas that feel central to the instrument itself: conversation and color. Together, these works explore the viola’s many shades of sound and expression, moving between quiet reflection and vibrant dialogue.
Throughout the program, the viola is constantly shifting in role, at times speaking alone, at others listening, responding, and blending within a shared texture. Each composer approaches the instrument through a distinct palette, revealing different colors: bold and percussive, warm and lyrical, earthy and rooted, luminous and transparent. Whether in the intensity of a solo voice or in the interplay of chamber music, these pieces invite us to hear how color emerges through conversation, between instruments, between musical ideas, and between performer and listener. The viola becomes both storyteller and collaborator, carrying a thread of warmth and humanity through every work.
During my time with Juventas, I have been continually inspired by music that asks us to listen differently, to discover new colors, new perspectives, and new ways of connecting with one another. My hope is that this program invites you into that space of curiosity and imagination, where contemporary music becomes not something distant or unfamiliar, but something deeply human and immediate.
Thank you for being part of this journey.
Sincerely,
Lu Yu Viola
FROM THE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
Juventas’s annual Center Stage series offers a meaningful opportunity to experience our musicians as individual artistic voices. Each year, we highlight one of our extraordinary ensemble members in a solo program of their own design— an invitation to step more deeply into their unique musical perspective.
Lu is, quite simply, a musician’s musician. Her community-centered humility—and perhaps the viola’s role as the alto voice of the string family— can sometimes allow her to fly just under the radar. But within Juventas, we are continually captivated by Lu’s rich, resonant tone; her technical virtuosity; and the passionate artistry she brings to every performance. She is a backbone of our ensemble, continually delivering phenomenal performances with grace and assurance.
Lu is a deeply cherished member of the Juventas family, and we are beyond thrilled to celebrate her with this spotlight on her exceptional talent.
Sincerely,
Oliver Caplan Artistic and Executive Director
PROGRAM NOTES
Joan Tower | Simply Purple (2008)
Simply Purple was commissioned by the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and is dedicated to the extraordinary violist Paul Neubauer.
This is my third piece for viola (and for Paul) which includes the word “purple.” The first was Wild Purple for solo viola, and then came Purple Rhapsody for viola and orchestra. I have always thought of the viola (which I played briefly) as having this deep kind of rich purple sound, a beautiful timbre, quite distinct from other string instrument sounds. Of the three, this piece is the simplest and shortest (about 3 1/2 minutes) exploring slow upward scales that are occasionally interrupted by a repeated pattern “held” in register.
Gabriela Lena Frank | Soliloquio Serrano No. 2 (2020)
Gabriela Lena Frank wrote Soliloquio Serrano No. 2 for violist Margaret Audrey Snyder. The composer does not specify what “Serrano” refers to here—the pepper, the Native American tribe in Southern California, the small town of Villa Serrano in Bolivia, or something entirely different. We can infer two things from the short piece’s title: it draws inspiration from Latin American influences, as many of Frank’s pieces do; and it is to be performed as a soliloquy. In the dramatic arts, a soliloquy is a monologue addressed to oneself, speaking one’s thoughts aloud with no one else privy. Soliloquio Serrano No. 2 opens with the protagonist singing alone onstage, continuing her musing amidst timbrally disparate interjections—one can imagine the sul ponticello passages as the wind whirling or trees rustling. While Frank certainly develops thematic material in this piece, it does not have a goal-oriented form. There are peaks and valleys, but no definite climax; it is more of a six-minute-long rumination or daydream, with its main themes almost unrecognizably transformed by its end.
Atar Arad | Solo Sonata for Viola (1992)
My Solo Sonata for Viola evolved from a great deal of improvisation, in addition to musical and instrumental ideas inspired by years of daily contact with my beloved Nicolo Amati viola. Only when the piece began taking shape did I realize that its blend of Middle-Eastern and Balkan flavors was a reflection of great longing for my childhood and for Israeli music of the 1950s.
The first movement, “Melancholia,” makes use of the wistful, soulful quality of the viola sound. It is played with “expressive intonation,” and some notes are marked to be lowered by almost (but not quite) a quartertone, thus enhancing the melancholy character of the movement and hinting at Middle-Eastern music.
The second movement, “Alla Bulgarese,” owns more to music I have heard as a child in Tel Baruch—a community of immigrants from Bulgaria—than to the Sherzo from Bartok’s String Quartet No. 5 from which I have borrowed the title (and maybe some more). Central to this movement are two Bulgarian tunes my mother used to sing in moments of happiness. Appropriately, I dedicated the Sonata to her.
The third movement, “Finale sul ponticello,” is a caprice in which I attempt—humorously and briefly—to shake off some of the nostalgia previously revealed.
I premiered the Sonata in Chicago, at the 22nd International Viola Congress, in June 1993. The Sonata was recently issued on a RIAX CD, along with my String Quartet.
Jenni Brandon | Shades of Violet for Clarinet in B-flat and Viola (2018)
The title for Shades of Violet came about during a phone call with clarinetist Elizabeth Crawford and violist Katrin Meidell. We were discussing this new work and their ensemble’s name “Violet” and the phrase “shades of violet” was mentioned. I loved this phrase and knew it would inspire the work, plus pay homage to this new ensemble’s namesake!
When I started to research the color violet I found many interesting facts about this color. It is a “true” color in that it has its own set of wavelengths on the spectrum of visible light—between blue and invisible ultraviolet. It also has a lot of other meanings throughout history, encompassing spiritually, emotions of love and passion, and physical manifestations of the color. I wanted to portray these “shades of violet” not just from the color spectrum, but what it has meant to people symbolically. I made a list of what I found when I researched this color, and many of these words or phrases that inspired me during the creation of this work appear as descriptions of sections in the score:
Meditation
Union of Body and Soul
Mental balance and stability
Inspiration Imagination
Passionate
Original Unconditional love Dignity
Delicate Crown Chakra Flighty
Compassion Vain Extravagance
In some ways this work is a love story: two instruments seeking passion, inspiration, union, unconditional love. We reach this union toward the end of the piece, represented through the higher registers of both instruments, a push and pull of harmonies and shades of violet that I think represent the complexities of what the color Violet represents.
Philip White | Trio for Flute, Viola and Harp (2024)
My dear friend Meredith Crawford (and Salastina’s Resident Artist) commissioned me to write for her harp trio’s 2014 performances on the East Coast. I composed two movements for the occasion. Ten years later, when Maia encouraged me to record it under Salastina’s banner, I realized it needed a third movement (I never claimed to be a fast writer).
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
ABOUT THE COMPOSERS
JOAN TOWER | b. 1938
Joan Tower is widely regarded as one of the most important American composers living today. During a career spanning more than sixty years, she has made lasting contributions to musical life in the United States as composer, performer, conductor, and educator. Her works have been commissioned by major ensembles, soloists, and orchestras, including the Emerson, Tokyo, and Muir quartets; soloists Alisa Weilerstein, Evelyn Glennie, Carol Wincenc, David Shifrin, Paul Neubauer, and John Browning; and the orchestras of Chicago, New York, St. Louis, Pittsburgh, Baltimore, Nashville, Albany NY, and Washington, D.C., among others.
In 2020 Chamber Music America honored her with its Richard J. Bogomolny National Service Award; Musical America chose her to be its 2020 Composer of the Year; in 2019 the League of American Orchestras awarded her its highest honor, the Gold Baton. Tower is the first composer chosen for a Ford Made in America consortium commission of sixty-five orchestras. Leonard Slatkin and the Nashville Symphony recorded Made in America in 2006 (along with Tambor and Concerto for Orchestra). In 2008 the album collected three Grammy awards: Best Contemporary Classical Composition, Best Classical Album, and Best Orchestral Performance. Nashville’s latest all-Tower recording includes Stroke, which received a Grammy nomination for Best Contemporary Classical Composition.
In 1990 she became the first woman to win the prestigious Grawemeyer Award for Silver Ladders, a piece she wrote for the St. Louis Symphony where she was Composer-inResidence from 1985-88. Other residencies with orchestras include a 10-year residency with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s (1997-2007) and the Pittsburgh Symphony (2010-11). She was the Albany Symphony’s Mentor Composer partner in the 2013-14 season. Tower was co-founder and pianist for the Naumburg Award-winning Da Capo Chamber Players from 1970-85. She has received honorary doctorates from Smith College, the New England Conservatory, and Illinois State University. She is Asher B. Edelman Professor in the Arts at Bard College, where she has taught since 1972.
GABRIELA LENA FRANK | b. 1972
Included in the Washington Post’s list of the most significant women composers in history, Gabriela Lena Frank has long centered her music around her multifaceted heritage. Born in 1972 to a mother of Peruvian/ Chinese ancestry and a father of Lithuanian/Jewish descent, Frank has been commissioned or performed by all of the major orchestras in the United States including the Philadelphia Orchestra where she served as composer-in-residence from 2018 through the premiere of Picaflor: A Future Myth in 2025.
Her first opera, El último sueño de Frida y Diego with a libretto by her frequent collaborator, the Pulitzer-winning playwright Nilo Cruz, was commissioned by San Francisco Opera and San Diego Opera for the 2022-23 season and subsequently performed by Los Angeles Opera and Omaha Opera in the 2023-24 season. Her opera will see new performances in the 2025-26 season with Chicago Lyric followed by a new stage production at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City. She is currently at work on her second opera.
Frank’s long list of chamber works feature several that have been recognized by the Grammy Recording Academy.
In 2017, the award-winning Gabriela Lena Frank Creative Academy of Music was founded, a non-profit training institution held on Frank’s two rural properties in Boonville, CA for emerging composers. It is the recipient of multi-year support from the Mellon Foundation. In the spring of 2025, Frank was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Letters. Her work is published exclusively by G. Schirmer/Wise Music Classical.
ATAR ARAD | b. 1945
Israeli-born violist and composer Atar Arad is a faculty member at the Jacobs School of Music, Indiana University, Bloomington. His summer activities include teaching at Keshet Eilon, Israel, Domaine Forget, Canada, Heifetz Institute and the Steans Music Institute (where has served as faculty since 1991).
A Cum Laude First Prize winner at the Geneva International Music Competition (1972), he has performed worldwide in recitals and as a soloist with major orchestras and, for seven years, as a member of the celebrated Cleveland Quartet. His recordings with the quartet and as a soloist for labels such as Teldec, Telarc, RCA and RIAX are widely acclaimed. His performance of
Paganini’s Sonata Per La Grand’ Viola e Orchestra in particular is considered by many as a landmark in the history of the viola.
A “late bloomer” composer, Arad’s compositions include Solo Sonata for Viola, two String Quartets, a Viola Concerto (which he premiered in Bloomington, Brussels and in Stockholm) and more. His Tikvah for Viola Solo was commissioned for the 2008 Munich International Viola Competition by the ARD. His Listen (three poems by W.S. Merwin) for tenor, clarinet, viola, cello and bass was written for the International Musicians Seminar’s concert tour in England with singer Mark Padmore. Epitaph for cello and string orchestra was written for cellist Gary Hoffman who premiered it in Kronberg, Germany, with the Kremerata Baltica Orchestra. Arad performed the viola version of this piece at the International Viola Congress in Rochester, NY. Arad performed and presented his Twelve Caprices for Viola on several USA, Canada, Israel and European concert tours. The Caprices are published by Hofmeister Musikverlag, Leipzig. Recent performances include the Primrose Memorial Concert at BYU and, as a part of his services as the Lorand Fenyves Distinguished Visitor, in Toronto.
In November 2018, Arad was a featured artist at the International Viola Congress in Rotterdam, premiering his new concerto for viola and strings, titled Ceci n’est pas un Bach.
Atar Arad is a recipient of the American Viola Society’s Career Achievement Award (June 2018) and the International Viola Society’s Silver Alto Clef 2018 “in recognition for his outstanding contributions to the viola” (November 2018).
atararad.com
JENNI BRANDON | b. 1977
Jenni Brandon is a renowned composer and conductor known for her collaborations with various musicians and artists, crafting music that is both beautiful and lyrical. Her compositions are characterized by memorable melodies that often draw inspiration from the stories of her collaborators, the natural world, and poetry.
Brandon’s prolific output includes music for soloists, chamber ensembles, concertos, operas, and orchestras, with a catalogue boasting over 100 works. Her compositions have been featured on more than two dozen albums across labels such as Delos, MSR Classics, Blue Griffin, New Focus Recordings, Summit Records, Albany, and Centaur. She has been honored with several prestigious awards including the Sorel Medallion, the American Prize, the Paderewski Cycle, the Women Composers Festival of Hartford International Composition Competition, and the Bassoon Chamber Music Composition Competition. Moreover, her pieces have been selected as required repertoire for notable international competitions,
such as the International Double Reed Society Conference, the International Clarinet Association, and the Meg Quigley Vivaldi Bassoon Competition, and are included on university audition repertoire lists at leading institutions like Juilliard, Manhattan School of Music, and the University of Texas at Austin, among others.
Brandon’s works are published and distributed by a range of respected publishers including Boosey & Hawkes, Santa Barbara Music Publishing, Graphite Publishing, TrevCo Music Publishing, Imagine Music, J.W. Pepper, and June Emerson. Through Jenni Brandon Music, she oversees the global publication and distribution of her works.
As a conductor, Brandon often leads performances of her own compositions and those of other contemporary composers. She has conducted community and church choirs across Southern California and led notable performances such as her one-act opera 3 PADEREWSKIS at the Kennedy Center’s Terrace Theater and the Aula Nova Akademii Muzycznej in Poznan, Poland.
In addition to her musical creations, Brandon is deeply committed to education and collaboration, offering workshops and talks on these topics at universities and festivals throughout the United States. She serves as the Co-Artistic Director for Heartland Marimba, where she has developed numerous workshops and festivals focusing on composition for Marimba and Keyboard Percussion.
Brandon holds a bachelor’s degree in Music Composition from West Chester University in Pennsylvania, a master’s degree in Music Composition from the University of Texas at Austin, and has pursued doctoral studies at the University of Southern California, where she has served as Adjunct Lecturer with the School of Dramatic Arts.
Outside of her musical pursuits, Brandon enjoys spending time with her two dogs and travels with her husband to scuba dive in tropical locations.
jennibrandon.com
PHILIP WHITE | b. 1974
Multiple BMI Award-winning composer Philip White writes music for film, television, interactive media, and the concert stage. He has composed the scores for Tyler Perry’s A Madea Homecoming, The Loud House Movie (HMMA nomination for Best Original Score for an Animated Film), Jexi, A Madea Family Funeral, Nobody’s Fool, Boo 2! A Madea Halloween, and Alex & Me. Most recently, he co-arranged Wondrous Journeys, the Disneyland fireworks spectacular celebrating 100 years of Walt Disney animation.
In television, Philip most recently scored The Winchesters for the CW, and had the
pleasure of working on Supernatural for the duration of its historic 15 seasons. Other major TV credits include Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock, Lost in Space, Ray Donovan, The Bachelor, What/If, Bates Motel, Agent Carter, When We Rise, Revolution, and Dallas.
He has written additional music for Smurfs: The Lost Village, Superintelligence, The War With Grandpa, Identity Thief, HOP, Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore, Disaster Movie, the French thriller La Horde, and the holiday specials The Smurfs: A Christmas Carol and The Legend of Smurfy Hollow.
His interactive credits include James Bond: Quantum of Solace, Starhawk, Space Miner Wars, and The SIMS 3: Pets Expansion Pack.
Outside his work in media, Philip enjoys composing for the concert stage. Salastina, an LA-based chamber ensemble and presenting organization, recently released his Trio for Flute, Viola and Harp. In September 2024, they will also release fragile certain songs, a 6-piece song cycle drawn from poetry by e.e. cummings for voice and piano quintet. The Los Angeles Master Chorale has performed two of Philip’s choir pieces, On This Side of the Window and El Niño Mudo.
His film music was performed live in concert at the 7th International Film Music Festival in Úbeda, Spain, in the summer of 2011. In addition, Philip collaborated with renowned Cuban jazz legend Arturo Sandoval as part of Christopher Lennertz’s Symphony of Hope: The Haiti Project.
Born and raised in Madrid, Spain, Philip began studying music by way of classical and Flamenco guitar. He graduated with dual degrees in Drama and Composition from Tufts University and the New England Conservatory of Music, and later received his graduate degree from the USC Scoring for Motion Pictures and Television program. The Sundance Institute named him a fellow in the 2012 Feature Film Composers Lab. He is also an alum of the Nautilus Composer-Librettist Studio. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife, Maia Jasper White, their son, Galen, and their daughter, Naomi.
philipwhitemusic.com
Credit: James Jones
ABOUT THE MUSICIANS
LU YU | viola
Julia Scott Carey and Richard Mitrano have generously sponsored Lu Yu for the 2025–26 concert season.
Born in China, violist Lu Yu began her musical journey on the violin at the age of six, before turning to the viola as her principal instrument at twelve, all while studying at the Xinghai Conservatory of Music in Guangzhou. Her musical path led her to the Royal Academy of Music in London on full scholarship, where she earned her bachelor of music degree under the guidance of Matthew Souter. She later continued her studies at the New England Conservatory in Boston with Marcus Thompson, receiving her master of music degree.
An expressive and versatile musician, Ms. Yu maintains an active career devoted equally to solo performance, chamber music, contemporary repertoire, and teaching. She is a core member violist of the Juventas New Music Ensemble, reflecting her strong commitment to collaborative artistry and the performance of new and adventurous works. Honored as “The Young Musician of 2008” in Hong Kong, her performances have taken her to stages throughout the United States and abroad. Her orchestral experience includes past engagements as principal violist of the Boston Civic Symphony, performances with the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra, and co-principal viola of the Missouri Symphony, along with frequent collaborations with ensembles across the Boston area.
Equally dedicated to education, Ms. Yu brings a thoughtful and supportive approach to teaching, guiding students with the same musical integrity that shapes her performances. She is also a devoted wife and mother, balancing a vibrant artistic life with the joys of family.
Credit: James Jones Photography
NICHOLAS SOUTHWICK | flute
Emily Lyons and Ryan Snyder have generously sponsored Nicholas Southwick for the 2025-26 concert season.
Praised by the Royal Gazette for his “beautiful phrasing” and “bright and lively playing” and by the Boston Musical Intelligencer for his “admirable ensemble cohesion,” Nicholas Southwick enjoys a diverse musical career as a flutist, lecturer, and curator passionately committed to bringing over ten centuries of classical music to life in performance, writing, and spoken word.
Nicholas is a frequent guest artist of the Bay Chamber Concerts, where he recently performed J.S. Bach’s Orchestral Suite No. 2 with Palaver Strings. He has also performed Bach’s concerti with the Bermuda Chamber Orchestra and was a soloist for the Bach the European series at the Royal Academy of Music. As a recitalist, he has been invited to perform at Harvard University, King’s Chapel, Salem Classical, the University of Cambridge, and the Bloomsbury Festival, in London.
In addition to his role as core flutist of the Juventas New Music Ensemble, Nicholas performs with violist Long Okada in Duo Gwynne, holding a 2023-24 Artist Fellowship with Music for Food. He also founded the Acadie Duo with cellist Jaime Feldman, with whom he curates an annual chamber music series in rural Maine.
Nicholas has a particular interest in interdisciplinary dialogues between music and spirituality, having served as Fellow in Liturgy and Music at Harvard University’s Episcopal Chaplaincy and regularly performing for Duke Initiatives in Theology and the Arts (DITA). As an orchestral player, Nicholas has made appearances with the Bangor Symphony Orchestra, Emmanuel Music, New Hampshire Festival Orchestra, Boston Opera Collaborative, Harvard-Radcliffe and Manchester Choral Societies, and Trentino Music Festival Orchestra (Italy).
A devoted and passionate instructor, Nicholas is committed to empowering creativity in the classroom and encouraging robust interdisciplinary dialogues as a vehicle for encountering music within its social, cultural, and historical contexts. He is currently Assistant Professor at the Berklee College of Music and serves as Affiliated Faculty at Emerson College.
Nicholas completed his postgraduate training at the Royal Academy of Music, London under the tutelage of Karen Jones, Laura Jellicoe, and Katherine Baker. He previously studied at the Longy School of Music of Bard College and Gordon College. His past teachers include Marco Granados, Robert Willoughby, and Susan Heath.
CELINE FERRO | clarinet
Meghan Guidry has generously sponsored Celine Ferro for the 2025-26 concert season.
Celine Ferro is a core member of the Juventas New Music Ensemble, the clarinetist of the Kalliope Reed Quintet, and a force in the all-bass clarinet ensemble Improbable Beasts. Seeking diverse collaborations that take her work beyond the typical concert hall, Ferro is also the clarinetist and bass clarinetist of the groove ensemble Shibui, where she can be heard on their latest album, Quint, released by Ronin Rhythm Records.
Alongside these projects and ensembles, Ferro has recently performed chamber music with Castle of Our Skins, contributed to a variety of orchestral workshops and concerts throughout New England, and even curated a unique collaboration between the Improbable Beasts and Shibui, blending together heavy metal elements, medieval influences, contemporary classical music, and ritualistic groove music.
Beyond these engagements, Ferro serves on the faculty of Powers Music School and the Winchester Community Music School. When she is not teaching, performing, or practicing for all of the above, Celine is an avid hiker, reader, and coffee drinker.
Harpist Angelina Savoia currently serves as Adjunct Harp Faculty at Phillips Exeter Academy. As an orchestral harpist, she performs with the Boston Pops Orchestra, Portland Symphony Orchestra, and is the principal harpist for the Brookline Symphony Orchestra, Quincy Symphony Orchestra, and Brockton Symphony Orchestra. Ms. Savoia holds a Bachelor of Music degree from the Juilliard School, Master of Music degree from the New England Conservatory, and a Juris Doctor from Suffolk University Law School in Massachusetts, where she is a sworn member of the bar.
ANGELINA SAVOIA | harp (guest artist)
Credit: James Jones Photography
9/20/25 | 9/21/25
Premiere: Then Is Now
10/25/25 | 10/26/25
Coming to Boston: From Korea
11/22/25
Lineage
12/13/25 | 12/14/25
Schubert Octet
A FarCry
1/9/26 | 1/10/26
Yeemz × A Far Cry
1/31/26
Side by Side
2/14/26
Heart Strings: A Valentine from The Criers
3/14/26 | 3/18/26
Appalachian Spring A Far Cry on Tour!
4/25/26
In the Making: Land of the Northern Frog
5/9/26
Season Finale: The Strangers’ Case
Saul Oct 3 + 5
Beethoven Symphony No. 7
Beethoven
Oct 24 + 25
Symphony No. 7
Oct 24 + 25
Handel’s Messiah
Nov 28 + 29 + 30
Handel’s Messiah
Nov 28 + 29 + 30
Baroque Christmas Dec 18 + 21
Mozart + Haydn
Jan 9 + 11
Mozart + Haydn
Bach + Telemann May 15 + 16
Voices Carry May 29 + 31
Jan 9 + 11
Handel’s Water Music
Apr 10 + 12
Apr 10 + 12
Handel’s Water Music
Apr 10 + 12
Voices Carry May 29 + 31
617.262.1815
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. We'll reach out with volunteer opportunities when they arise, and joining our list comes with no obligations.
MAKE A DONATION
Donate to Juventas and help us touch hearts in New England and around the world. This year, with a budget of just $211,000, we are presenting over 20 concert performances. They will reach over 2,500 people in-person and 1,000 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.
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 January 1, 2025 through December 31, 2025. Please visit www.juventasmusic.org/donate-now to learn about making a tax-deductible 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
Futura Productions
Medford Arts Council
The Ripley-Steinemann Family Fund
Bonnie Hirsch
Louise Scribner
PARMA Recordings
$1,000–$1,999
Brookline Commission for the Arts
Paula Luria and William Caplan
Julia Scott Carey and Richard Mitrano
Carson Cooman
Futura Productions
Meg Fuchs
Good Treble Fund
Christie Gibson and Michael Emmanuel
Meghan Guidry
Max Hobart
Leslie Jacobson Kaye and Richard
Kaye
Stella Lee
Emily Lyons and Ryan Snyder
Paul Monsky & Beverly Woodward
Wegmans Medford
$500–$999
Boylston Cultural Council
Brian Cron
April Durant
Jacob Hilley
Hank & Patricia Kucheman
Gloria Lee
Stella Lee
Nagesh Mahanthappa & Valentine Talland
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
Ann Ferentz
Moriah Freeman
Lorna Gibson
Myra and Roy Gordon
Meghan S. Guidry
Beth D Jacob
Ian Lai
Bob Page and Dean Vassil
Jane Parkin Kullmann
Andrew and Laura Waldorf Reiss
Carol Richart
Lori K. Sanders & Jennifer A. Lewis
Lucy & Len Schmolka
Ben Sweetser
$100–$249
Anonymous (2)
Hugh Russell and Kenneth Allen
Charlie & Lea Anderson
Scott and Tina Apelgren
James Aronson
Lee Binnig
Carol Bloom
Evelyn Bonander
Joannie Botkol
Mary Frances Breen
Camille Breen
Chris and Margie Brown
Gail Bucher
Judith Mitrano
David Chia
Larry Cohen and Susan Worst
Deanne Coolidge
Laurel Copeland & John Zeber
Eric & Margaret Darling
Sue Dickinson
Tracy Donsky
Diane Droste
Maggie Edinger
Andy Foery
David and Ellen Fries
In memory of Jean and Ken Royer
David E. Fuchs
John Garton
Patricia and Dr. Robert Gordon
Louise & Michael Grossman
Jan Hardenbergh
Heidi Hellring & Nathan Arnell
Patricia Henry
Maureen Hollis
David and Mary Howarth
Alyson Hudson
Catharine Hyson
Howard Jacobson
Ona Jonaityte
Jim Kane and Sharon Williams
Kenneth Krause and Maura McEnaney
W. Krein
Theodore Lanman
Kimberly and Chris Lehner
Ludmilla Leibman
Steven Levine and Laurie Jacobs
Joshua Levit
Harold Lichtin
Beth Manca
Robert Markelewicz MD
May Marquebreuck
Honor McClellan
Ralph and Sylvia Memolo
Reeva Meyer
Christine Mortensen
Susan Navarre and Tim Olevsky
Joe Sodroski & Alice Noble
Katie Parodi
Velura Perry
Maureen Peters
Webster Pilcher and Sheryl Koenigsberg
Brian Pingree and Alexis Dearborn
Mark and Jody Raider
Kathryn Ritcheske
Andrew Royer
Nate Ruegger
Mallory A Ruymann
Colin Ryan
Ellen Sarkisian
Isadel & EB Saunter
Elizabeth Saunter
Jon Saxton and Barbara Fox
In memory of Howard Schranz
Jonathan Simon
Sidney Slobotkin
Anders Soderquist
Ann B. Teixeira
Kelsey Thompson
Douglas Urban
Charlene and Stephen Valk
Dino J. Martins
Elaine Walsh
Theodor Weinberg & Eric Hyett
Vicki and Andy Wittenstein
$50–$99
Anonymous (2)
Downing Luvisi Family
Victoria Aparece
Young Yun Baek
Gail Barry
Laura Basford
Kenneth Bigley
Anne Bilder & Johan den Boon
Emily & Stuart Blitz
Stuart Blitz
Kyla Blocker
Mary Bragg
Mary Breen
Caitlin Breen
Thomas Breen
Margaret Cain
Susan Carlson
Minjin Chung
Cathy Chung
Rachel Ciprotti
Susan Dolan
Allison Donelan
Barry Duncan
Mary Eddy
David L. Eddy
Andrew Elliott and John Varone
Ellen Feingold
David Feltner and Robert Edward
Smith
Celine Ferro
Millan Galland
Molly Breen Aronson
James Gleason
Mara Goldberg
John H. Graves
Hans Heilman
Elizabeth Igleheart
Judith Insell
Tim Jarrett
Leonard and Terry Kahn
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
Kevin Mathieu
Tom McAuliffe
Carol McCarthy and Chris Stribakos
Mona McKindley
The Hollis-Goodwin Families
Jennifer Moore
Joleen & James
Jason Pavel and Marie Walcott
Ian Reiss
Janet Rothrock
Jonathan Royer
Christina Rusnak
Dewey Sasser
Tom Schmidt
Andrew & Margot Schmolka
Charles Shadle
Gordon and Shannon Shannon
Arlene Stevens
Meg Stone
Sharon Daniels Sullivan
Pinaud Publication
John Varone
Karen Walwyn
Lauri Wasson
Lynn Chang and Lisa Wong
Elton Wong
Sandy & Craig Blocker
Michael Zammito
Marc Zegans
Up to $49
Anonymous (8)
Andrew Adams
Steven Averett
Weronika Balewski
Skylar Lapin
John Beagan & Sarah Peck
J. L. Bell
Lauren Bernofsky
Lauren Bilello
Johanna Biviano
Kelsey 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
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
Beth Eustis
Noam Faingold
Cynthia Farnsworth
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
Cynthia Johnson
Jon Jones
James and Amy Jones
Jessica Kaplan
Jason Kaplan
Richard Kaye
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
Joshua Levit
Rose Lewis
Rozime Lindsey
Olga Lisovska
Shayna Liu
Gale Livingston
Gami Maislin
Seth Maislin
Linda Markarian
Pamela Marshall
Seth Mascolo
Pranav Mashankar
Patrick Mcallister
Mac McBurney
Kathryn McKellar
Kim McNamara
Taylor McNulty
Sarah McSweeney
Libby Meyer
Krystal Morin
Will Morningstar
B. Morrison
Mary Mulderig
Joseph Musser
Linda Ng
Kaitlin Nichols
Nick Norton
Jessica Oakhem
Luis Ochoa
Ayumi Okada
Justin Ouellet
Andrew Pease
John & Sarah Peck
Paula Petrella
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
Melissa Rubinsky
Erica Ryan
Elizabeth Ryan
Antonio Santos
Laura Schaefer
Joseph Sedarski
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
Barbara Turen
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
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
UP
GARDEN
AROUND THE WORLD
IN 80 MINUTES
May 16 & 17 | 7:00 pm a musical voyage across the globe
MUSIC IN BLOOM
June 14 & 21 | 6:00 pm
15 composers; 5 simultaneous concerts; one unforgettable evening of music al fresco
LEARN MORE AT
juventasmusic.org/around-the-world-in-80-minutes juventasmusic.org/music-in-bloom
