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Your Music Director |
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Octavio Más-Arocas
Music Director
Octavio Más-Arocas is a versatile and dynamic conductor whose achievements demonstrate his talent and musicianship. Más-Arocas is currently the Music Director and Conductor of the Mansfield Symphony Orchestra in Ohio, the Director of Orchestras at Ithaca College in New York, Conductor-in-Residence at the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music, and conductor of the Interlochen Philharmonic at the Interlochen Arts Camp.
An award-winner conductor, Mr. Más-Arocas won the Robert J. Harth Conducting Prize at the Aspen Music Festival, the Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy Award, given by Kurt Masur, is the recipient of the Thelma A. Robinson Award from the Conductors Guild, a Prize Winner of the Third European Conductors Competition, and a winner of the National Youth Orchestra of Spain Conductors Competition. In 2012, Mr. Más-Arocas was selected by the League of American Orchestra to conduct the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra in a showcase event during the League’s National Conference in Dallas.
Chosen by Kurt Masur, Mr. Más-Arocas was awarded the prestigious Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy Scholarship. Consequently, he worked as Maestro Masur’s assistant with the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra and the Helsinki Radio Orchestra, and made his German conducting debut with the Leipziger Symphonieorchester. The offer came after Mr. Más-Arocas’ New York debut concert sharing the podium with Maestro Masur and the Manhattan School of Music Symphony.
Mr. Más-Arocas served as Principal Conductor of the Green Bay Symphony Orchestra, Wisconsin, and held the positions of Director of Orchestral Studies and Opera Conductor at the Lawrence University Conservatory of Music in Wisconsin, Director of Orchestral Studies and Associate Professor of Conducting at the Baldwin Wallace University Conservatory of Music in Ohio, Director of Orchestras at the Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan, Resident Conductor of the Sewanee Summer Music Festival in Tennessee, and Assistant conductor of the National Repertory Orchestra in Colorado. In 2013, simultaneously to his work with the Lawrence Symphony Orchestra, Mr. Más-Arocas was the Resident Conductor of the Unicamp Symphony Orchestra in Campinas, Brazil, where he also was a Visiting Professor of conducting at the Universidade Estadual de Campinas. Mr. Más-Arocas spends part of his summers and winters in the Grand Traverse area, where he has developed a relationship guest conducting the Traverse City Orchestra and continues his association as guest conductor at the Interlochen Center for the Arts. In addition, he has worked with the Alabama Symphony Orchestra as a regular cover conductor.
In the last few years Mr. Más-Arocas has conducted orchestra across North and South America and Europe including the Filarmonica George Enescu in Romania, the Granada City Orchestra in Spain, the Leipziger Symphonieorchester in Germany, the Orquestra Sinfônica da Unicamp in Brazil, the Green Bay, Traverse City, Bluewater, Fort Worth, Spokane, Toledo, Phoenix, Memphis, Kansas City, and San Antonio Symphonies, the National Repertory Orchestra, the Manhattan School of Music Symphony, the orchestras of Viana do Castelo and Artave in Portugal, the Interlochen Philharmonic, the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico Philharmonic, the Rosario Symphony in Argentina, Kharkov Symphony in Ukraine, the National Youth Orchestras of Portugal and Spain, the Pescara Symphony in Italy, the Amsterdam Brass in the Netherlands, and the Ciudad Alcala de Henares Symphony. In addition, Mr. Más-Arocas has served as assistant conductor at the Madrid Royal Opera House.
Mr. Más-Arocas was assistant conductor of the National Repertory Orchestra, which he conducted in subscription, family, and pops concerts. As the Resident Conductor at the Sewanee Summer Music Festival he conducted the Festival, Symphony, and Cumberland Orchestras. Other festival appearances include the Aspen Music Festival, the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music, the Festival Internacional Carlos Gomes in Campinas, Brazil, the Interlochen Music Festival, the Bach Festival at Baldwin Wallace University, and the MidAmerican Center for Contemporary Music.
His ability to work, inspire, and transform young talents has lead him to be a frequent guest conductor with prominent music education organizations and ensembles around the world. He has worked with the World Youth Symphony Orchestra, the national youth orchestras of Portugal and Spain, has conducted All-State Honor Orchestras, and has been in residence with university orchestras in Chicago, Portugal, and Brazil. Mr. Más-Arocas has lead tours with the National Youth Orchestra “Templarios” of Portugal, the Interlochen Symphony, the Baldwin Wallace Symphony, and toured Argentina with the Silleda Wind Symphony.
Mr. Más-Arocas is an alumnus of the prestigious American Academy of Conducting at Aspen, where he studied with David Zinman. He completed doctoral studies and his main mentors include Kurt Masur, Harold Farberman, and Emily Freeman Brown.
Michael Emery
Concertmaster
Michael Emery began his musical studies in Albany at the age of ten with Alfredo Cavalieri and in two years was selected to perform in Carnegie Recital Hall by the Violin, Viola, and Violoncello Teacher’s Guild of New York City.
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- Violinist Michael Bosetti attended the Univ. of Michigan and the New England Conservatory. His primary violin instructors were Mihail Stolarevsky, Paul Makanowitzky, Louis Krasner, and Jaimie Laredo. Michael was a full-time member of the Syracuse Symphony for 31 years and has worked with the Atlantic Symphony (now called Symphony Nova Scotia), North Carolina Symphony, the Chautauqua Institute Orchestra, the Grand Teton Festival Orchestra, the Garth Newell Festival, Glimmerglass Opera, and others. Now a busy freelancer and violin instructor, he performs with several orchestras, including the Buffalo Philharmonic, Symphoria, Tri-Cities Opera, the Binghamton Orchestra, and the Clinton Symphony Orchestra.
- Michael is an avid chamber musician. He is the first violinist and founding member of the Clinton String Quartet. Formed in 1983, CSQ remains a very popular ensemble performing for private parties, corporate, religious, and municipal events, and in concert. He also performs with other ensembles including the Clinton String Trio and violin/piano duo.
Michael Bosetti
Principal Violinist
Violinist Michael Bosetti attended the Univ. of Michigan and the New England Conservatory. His primary violin instructors were Mihail Stolarevsky, Paul Makanowitzky, Louis Krasner, and Jaimie Laredo.
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- Michael was a full-time member of the Syracuse Symphony for 31 years and has worked with the Atlantic Symphony (now called Symphony Nova Scotia), North Carolina Symphony, the Chautauqua Institute Orchestra, the Grand Teton Festival Orchestra, the Garth Newell Festival, Glimmerglass Opera, and others. Now a busy freelancer and violin instructor, he performs with several orchestras, including the Buffalo Philharmonic, Symphoria, Tri-Cities Opera, the Binghamton Orchestra, and the Clinton Symphony Orchestra.
- Michael is an avid chamber musician. He is the first violinist and founding member of the Clinton String Quartet. Formed in 1983, CSQ remains a very popular ensemble performing for private parties, corporate, religious, and municipal events, and in concert. He also performs with other ensembles including the Clinton String Trio and violin/piano duo.
Carlton Clay
Principal Trumpet
Carleton Clay began playing trumpet at the age of 11, composing at the age of 18 and by age 25 he was teaching and producing concerts. He received his bachelor’s degrees in Music Theory and Music History from the University of Oklahoma, and his Masters in Musical Composition from Yale University.
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- Carlton is currently employed as Professor of Music emeritus at SUNY Oneonta (a 47-year career) and has taught at Colgate University and Hartwick College, as well. He is President and Music Director of Catskill Conservatory and is the Principal Trumpet with the Catskill Symphony and the Clinton Symphony orchestras. He is also a member of Alone Together: The Mollin-Clay Jazz Duo, with bassist Rich Mollin. Carleton is the founder of and trumpeter with the Catskill Brass Quintet.
- The most satisfying part of his career has been the friendships he’s made with fellow musicians whom he has invited to this area, starting with Chuck Schneider in 1973, and including more than two dozen other musicians. Each has brought his/her own perspectives, interests, and skills to bear, creating a snowball effect that has helped make Central NY one of the most vital non-urban musical centers in the country.
Debrah Devine
Principal Second Violinist
Debrah studied Violin Performance at SUNY Fredonia and CUNY Brooklyn College with Cornelius Dufallo and Liang Chai. In June 2016, Debrah took on a new role as Conductor of the Preparatory Orchestra of the Little Delaware Youth Ensemble in Oneonta. She maintains private teaching studios in Norwich, Oneonta and Mt. Vision NY and has a combined 35-40 students in her studio.
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- Her talent and dedication has placed her on stage with many regional orchestras and performing organizations including the Binghamton Philharmonic, the Orchestra of the Southern Finger Lakes, the Tri-Cities Opera Orchestra, the Catskill Symphony, Glens Falls Symphony, the Clinton Symphony, the Orpheus Theater Orchestra, the MostArts Festival Orchestra and the Catskill Choral Society. As a chamber musician, Debrah has performed with the Star Trio and in other various small ensembles. She has a diverse and active freelance career. An in-demand violin teacher in the Central NY Region, Debrah has been teaching violin and viola in Upstate NY for 13 years.
Joe Karwacki
First Chair – Double Bass
Mr. Karwacki has enjoyed a rich musical career in the Central New York community and looks forward to many continued performances with the Clinton Symphony Orchestra.
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- He has been fortunate enough to play under the baton of Maestro Charles Schneider over the past 40 years. He began his study of the Double Bass in 1967 and has been a first-call bassist in the area for countless musical productions since his performing career started in high school. For this, he is thankful to his family and teachers, all of whom have served to further his growth and career throughout his life. He has been married to his life-long partner and flautist Ellen since 1979, has four children, and resides in Marcy, NY.
Dan Martin
Principal Trombone
Trombonist Dan Martin holds degrees in music education and performance from Ithaca College and the University of North Texas. He teaches at the Laurens Central School, where his bands have won numerous awards and honors. Previously, he taught at four central New York colleges and universities.
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- His performance credits over the past 25 years have included: the position of Principal Trombone in the Catskill, Utica, and Clinton Symphonies, as well as that of a regular substitute with the Binghamton and Schenectady Symphonies; membership in the Glimmerglass Opera Orchestra and the Glimmerglass Trombone Quartet; and regular appearances as both performer and conductor with the Orpheus Theatre in Oneonta, the Catskill Brass, Catskill Stompers and numerous jazz combos.
Janet Nepkie
Principal Cello
Janet Nepkie is a Distinguished Service Professor of Music and Music Business at the State University of New York, College at Oneonta. In addition to her work as Principal Cellist of the Clinton Symphony, she has performed with the Albany, Schenectady, Northeastern Philharmonic, Glens Falls, Utica, Glimmerglass Opera Orchestra, and many other orchestras.
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- Her instructional responsibilities include courses in music business affairs and copyright law. She has served as Chair of the United University Professions Technology in Higher Education Committee, Chair of the University Faculty Senate Committee on Undergraduate Programs and Policies, Chair of the University Faculty Senate Ethics Committee and she has been a member of the Board of the Copyright Society of the USA. She is a frequent speaker on issues of academic and commercial intellectual property ownership and exploitation. She earned her bachelors and masters degrees at the University of Michigan and her Ph.D. at New York University.
Norman Thibodeau
Principal Flute
Flutist and composer Norman Thibodeau lives in Schenectady, New York, and is active as a performer and teacher from Central New York through Western New England. Norman was assistant principal flutist of the Orquesta Sinfónica del Estado de México and is now a member of the chamber group Musicians of Ma’alwyck and the wind quintet Fünf.
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- Norman teaches flute at Schenectady Community College, the Berkshire Music School, and privately. He has also recorded solo flute works of Anthony Holland for Albany Records and has had both live and recorded performances broadcast on NPR.
- As a composer, he has had works published and recorded by ALRY Publications and by flutist Jan Vinci on Albany Records (a CD very favorably reviewed in American Record Guide). His ensemble compositions have been performed by the orchestra of the University at Albany, the College of St. Rose Wind Ensemble, and the String Ensemble of the Empire State Youth Orchestra.
- Norman was trained at Peabody Conservatory and the University at Albany. He studied composition with Leonard Kastle and Lee Mitchell and counterpoint and orchestration with John Henry Carton. In recent years, he continues to refine his flute skill through intensive study of the Feldenkrais Method.
Susan Daves
Principal Basoon
Before returning to the capital district in 2010 Susan Loegering Daves played principal bassoon in the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra in New Orleans from for 17 Years. For most of that time, she was on the orchestra board, serving as president of the Musicians’ Committee.
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- While in New Orleans she taught bassoon and chamber music at Loyola and Tulane Universities. Mrs. Daves has also toured extensively with the Meliora Winds woodwind quintet including having management and being on Performance Today on NPR. Ms. Daves currently teaches at Skidmore College and is principal bassoon with the Clinton, Schenectady and Catskill symphonies. She also has performed with the Albany Symphony, Glens Falls Symphony, and Symphoria in Syracuse. She resides in the Capital Region with her husband and twin boys.
TJ McAvaney
Principal Viola
Bio coming soon.
Roger Moore
President
Roger is a charter member of the American Board of Family Practice, former president of St. Elizabeth Hospital medical staff, winner of the Excelsior Award, board member and volunteer at Abraham House, chairman of the Hall of Distinction committee of the Clinton Central School Foundation, treasurer of Little Thinkers, Clinical Associate Professor of Family Practice at the Upstate Medical Center, and a member of the Clinton Athletic Hall of Fame.
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Roger Moore was born in Pompey Hollow, near Cazenovia, on a farm. He graduated from Cazenovia Central School and Syracuse University in painting. (The urges to farm and paint were never very effectively suppressed.). He was drafted into the Korean Conflict, and upon returning, after two years of pre-med, went to medical school in Syracuse, followed by Family Practice training at St. Joseph’s in Syracuse.
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Music for the Moores was, and is, an ongoing passion. Roger has sung in his church choir for fifty-four years, missing only twice in that period of time. He sang eleven roles with the Utica Opera Guild a generation ago. His artistic production is notable (not that volume of works necessarily reflects quality of work, although in this instance he thinks it does: 600 oils, 2000 watercolors, multiple stained glass works…). Roger’s youngest grandchild, as a school project, wrote a “biography” of his grandfather. He stressed the facts that he “plays the harmonica and raises big pumpkins.” That was all he mentioned.
- He and, Joanna, his wife of sixty years, moved to Clinton and practiced with fury for forty years. They have six children and ten grandchildren. Roger’s interest in the vitality and sustenance of the Clinton Symphony is truly genuine.
Joan Fargnoli
Treasurer
Joan was born and raised in Saratoga Springs, NY. Her first interest in classical music emerged when she started piano lessons at 8 years of age. Around this same time, Joan saw a movie with Mario Lanza about the life of Enrico Caruso, and her enthusiasm and admiration for opera music were born.
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- Joan attended college near New York City (Manhattanville College in Purchase, NY). Every month, Joan attended a performance at the MET. On Friday nights, the college had tickets available for us. While at home in Saratoga during the summer of my sophomore year of college, she and a group of her friends from Saratoga developed the Youth Committee for the Performing Arts. Our goal was to raise awareness and interest in establishing Saratoga as the summer home of the Philadelphia Orchestra. At that time, the orchestra was looking for a summer home. Joan’s group wrote letters to newspapers and contacted officials for support for this effort. Once Governor Nelson Rockefeller was on the board to support this endeavor, he established a commission to raise money to build a shell. The Saratoga Performing Arts Center soon became a reality for the Philadelphia Orchestra.
- After Graduation from Manhattanville College, Joan pursued a Master in Education for children with hearing loss. In 1990, while employed at the New York State School for the Deaf in Rome, NY, Joan developed a home-based infant program. Other than her love for classical music, Joan’s passion for the infant program – working with families with babies with hearing loss – has provided for her a lifetime opportunity to achieve her goals.
Cynthia Killian
Secretary
Coming soon
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Catherine Grace
More soon!
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We will have a bio for Catherine soon.
Nicole Hawley
More soon!
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We will have a bio for Nicole soon.
Jan Moore
More soon!
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We will have a bio for Jan soon.
Roger Thompson
Roger has a deep respect for classical musicians like Maestro Charles Schneider and the many wonderful instrumentalists in the Clinton Symphony. Roger and the rest of the Symphony Board are dedicated to establishing a regular base of subscribers to support our goal of a consistently high quality listening experience.
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- Roger Thompson started piano lessons at age 7. Being in an Air Force family that moved frequently, Roger had a succession of piano teachers. At Peru Central High School, Roger had the privilege of performing with and accompanying his good friend Rocky Blake who went on to an acclaimed career as arguably the finest Rossini tenor of his time. It was obvious to Roger that his talent did not approach Rocky’s and in the interest of enjoying regular meals, he settled on a career as a well-nourished veterinarian, rather than a hungry classical pianist!
Rand Carter
Since moving to central New York State, Rand has served on the boards of several arts organizations, including the Chamber Music Society of Utica and Players Theater. He served as President of The Landmarks Society of Greater Utica and Sculpture Space and was the first Chair of Utica’s Commission on Scenic and Historic Preservation.
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- Rand was lucky to have had parents who started taking him to concerts when he was six or seven years old. From the time he could walk, Rand would climb up onto the piano bench and, with the help of a stack of music books that raised him high enough to reach the keyboard with his little hands, would make sounds that delighted him. Rand so enjoyed the music classes in kindergarten that he began private piano lessons at age six, later studying cello as well. In the 1940s even the smallest towns had a concert series, often part of The Civic Music Association or Community Concerts sponsored by major musical management agencies such as Sol Hurok or Columbia Artists who sent the musicians they represented on heavily-booked and carefully mapped out nation-wide tours. These subscription series gave people around North America—including the South Texas in which Rand grew up–the opportunity to hear great musicians live. The Metropolitan Opera also made a national tour every spring, bringing live opera to people throughout the U.S. and Canada.
- Rand continued the study of music through his undergraduate years at Columbia, working with the Naumburg Award-winning pianist William Beller who gave Rand a total immersion in the interpretive tradition of his teacher, Artur Schnabel. By this time, Roger was acutely aware of the competition he faced from my musical contemporaries such as Van Cliburn, who was studying at nearby Juilliard. As Rand’s other great obsession was architecture and the visual arts, he went to Princeton for an M.F.A. in art and archaeology, and subsequently won a Fulbright to study at the Courtauld Institute in London. After several years as a fellow of The Royal Institute for the Advancement of Learning (McGill University) in Montreal, Rand accepted a faculty position at Hamilton College in Clinton, New York.
- Over the decades Rand’s work has taken him around the world where he has been privileged to attend concerts and operas in—among other places—Canada, Mexico, Argentina, the U.K., Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Poland, Sweden, and Turkey.
Kristin Kelly Hahn
Musician Representative
Coming soon
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Charles Schneider
(September 16, 1938 – October 9, 2020)
We are saddened by the loss of our our maestro and founder, Charles Schneider.
To read his obituary please click here.
Founding Music Director
An award-winning and versatile musician, Maestro Schneider’s experience spanned the musical spectrum – Broadway musical theatre, opera, pops and symphonic music. He conducted the 1967 CBS Television Special of the Year with Jimmy Durante, The Supremes, and Jimmy Dean. He was the Music Director of the off-Broadway hit “Your Own Thing” that won the 1968 New York Critics Award (first time ever for an off-Broadway show). He wa the Music Director for Juliet Prowse, Dorothy Sarnoff and Broadway legend John Raitt.
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- A number of upstate New York performance organizations have benefited from Charles Schneider’s guidance and expertise: he conducted the Catskill Symphony since 1973, was the Music Director of the Utica Symphony from 1980-2011, and of the Schenectady Symphony Orchestra since 1982. In addition, Mr. Schneider served as Music Director of the Portland (Oregon) Chamber Orchestra. He was the founding music director of Glimmerglass Opera, a position he held for 12 years. He was also co-founder of the Catskill Conservatory of Music (Oneonta, NY). Additionally, he conducted the United States premiere of Bertold Brecht and Kurt Weill’s “The Rise and Fall of the City Mahagonny” with the San Francisco Opera. Mr. Schneider also conducted five orchestra tours throughout Europe with the Central New York Symphony Orchestra, with concerts in Prague, Brno, Bratislava, Vienna, Budapest, Krakow, Athens, Sparta, Patras, Paris, Zurich, Lucerne, Geneva, Lyons, Bordeau, and Crete.
- Maestro Schneider is a four-time recipient of the ASCAP Award for Creative Programming and Performance Excellence. A graduate of Cornell College of Iowa, Schneider studied piano at the Juilliard School of Music. His conducting career began on Broadway in the 1960s and included “West Side Story” at Lincoln Center. In the 1970s he moved into symphonic music as Associate Music Director of the Kansas City Philharmonic. He studied conducting with Igor Markevitch of the National Orchestra of Monte Carlo, with Herbert Blomstedt, formerly of the San Francisco Symphony and the Gewandhaus Orchestra in Leipzig, Germany, and with Franco Ferrara of the St. Cecilia Academy in Rome and Siena, Italy. He later was the assistant conductor for Blomstedt at the Aspen Music Festival.
- In 1984, Mr. Schneider received an Honorary Doctorate from Hartwick College in Oneonta. In 2000, he was awarded the Governor’s Award for Musical Excellence, and in the same year received a Citation of Musical Excellence from the United States Congress.
- Mr. Schneider has served on the music faculties of San Diego State (California), Hamilton College, Colgate University, Hartwick College, SUNY-Oneonta, Mohawk Valley Community College, and Skidmore College.
Marilee Ensign
General Manager
Marilee’s current focus is on classical music, education, and theatre. In addition to being the general manager for the Clinton Symphony of the Mohawk Valley, Marilee spends many hours volunteering at the local community theatre as an actor and director. She is thrilled to be on the ground floor of enriching our community and reaching out to our children, who are, in turn, commissioned with keeping education healthy and our musical heritage alive for many generations to come.
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- Marilee has been involved in the arts all of her life. She acted and sang her way through high school, and planned to get a bachelor’s degree in music. Although she eventually settled on degrees in English and theatre, it was Marilee’s first semester of music history that solidified her love for symphonic music. She was brought more fully into the realm of classical music when she met her husband, John. His bachelor’s in music and master’s in voice and opera broadened her horizons. Marilee has a profound appreciation for the timeless beauty and intellectual brilliance of classical music.
- Marilee was asked to manage the Utica Symphony Orchestra some years ago. It was there that she truly began to realize the role of the arts in creating a vibrant community. The arts enrich, inspire and improve our lives and communities, and attract new residents, visitors and business.