Contact Detroit Chamber Winds and Strings

Detroit's Finest Professional Musicians

David Ammer is Principal Trumpet of the Michigan Opera Theatre orchestra and principal trumpet of the Sunflower Music Festival in Topeka, Kansas. He is also a regular member of the Ann Arbor-based Today’s Brass Quintet, and a founding member of the Detroit-based Motor City Brass Quintet, whose debut recording, Christmas Vespers, has received wide critical acclaim.

Stephen Anderson has served as assistant principal trumpet with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra since 1992. He received degrees from the University of Illinois and Arizona State University before moving on to perform with the San Diego and New Mexico symphony orchestras, the Santa Fe Opera Orchestra, and Chicago Chamber Brass.

Donald Baker is principal oboe of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra and has taught and performed at Aspen, The Grand Teton Festival, Interlochen, and the Santa Fe Opera. Prior to joining the DSO, Baker was Principal Oboist of the Dallas Symphony. Donald Baker’s 2010-2011 DCWS appearances are sponsored by Gwen and Dick Bowlby.

Douglas Cornelsen played in the United States Marine Band and the Cincinnati Symphony before joining the clarinet section of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. For ten years he was Principal Clarinetist of Michigan's Pine Mountain Music Festival, and for the last three seasons he has performed as Principal Clarinetist of the Lake George Opera Festival in New York state.

Philip Dikeman, acting Principal Flutist of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Dikeman began playing with the DSO in 1992. He has also performed as Guest Principal Flute with the St. Louis Symphony and Minnesota Orchestra, and most recently joined the Los Angeles Philharmonic on their 2010 US Tour. Philip Dikeman’s 2010-2011 DCWS appearances are sponsored by Gwen and Dick Bowlby.

Deborah Fayroian became a member of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra in 1976, leaving her post as Principal Cellist of the Toledo Symphony Orchestra. She has been a member of Detroit Chamber Winds & Strings since its inception and appears as a guest soloist with many of Michigan’s orchestras. From 1990-2004 she served as Director of Nightnotes. Now retired, Ms. Fayroian lives in Northwest Michigan where she is founding Director of Chamber Music North and Northern Cello Retreat.

Penelope Fischer is Principal Flutist of the Ann Arbor Symphony and performs regularly with a number of southeast Michigan ensembles. She has won four national music competitions and has premiered new works for flute by William Albright, Jeff Robbins, Thom David Mason and Sonny Burnette. She was a delegate on cultural exchanges with China, Russia, Germany and the Czech Republic. Fischer has taught on the music faculties of George Washington University, Eastern Michigan University and University of Michigan and also teaches privately. In the summers she is on the artist faculty of Interlochen's Adult Chamber Music Camp. She can be heard on recordings on the Koch, Crystal, CRI, Centurioin and Naxos labels.

Kevin Good, a co-founder of Detroit Chamber Winds & Strings, has served in the trumpet section of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra since 1979. Prior to his appointment he taught trumpet, music theory, and jazz at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas. He teaches at the University of Michigan and is a member of the CutTime Players.

Pamela Hill received degrees from both the University of Michigan and Wayne State University. Hill has served for many years as Principal Flutist of the Michigan Opera Theatre Orchestra and she teaches in the Livonia Public Schools. She has two daughters and lives in Ypsilanti.

David Jackson was featured soloist at several recent engagements, including performances at the Midwest Band and Orchestra Clinic in Chicago, Music at Gretna in Mt. Gretna, Pennsylvania, and with the Ann Arbor Concert Band. Jackson was also guest soloist with the Los Angeles Symphonic Winds both in Los Angeles and at the MidEurope Festival in Schladming, Austria. Other recent solo performances include the Interlochen World Youth Symphony and the Idyllwild Festival Wind Ensemble at Disney Hall in Los Angeles. Jackson is Associate Professor of Trombone at the University of Michigan.

Maxim Janowsky is a member of the double bass section of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. He studied in New York under Fred Zimmerman and has taught at many local universities and colleges.

Bryan Kennedy is a member of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra's horn section. Kennedy previously served as Professor of Horn at the University of Michigan. He has also played with the Michigan Opera Theatre Orchestra, the Richmond Symphony, and the National Symphony of Costa Rica. He has recorded on the London, DECCA, RCA, Koch, Chandos, and Crystal labels.

Kimberly Kaloyanides Kennedy became a member of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra in 1998 and was awarded the prestigious position of Associate Concertmaster in 2003. She has been featured as a soloist with the University of Michigan Symphony and the University of Michigan Chamber Orchestra, and was a winner of numerous prizes including Grand Prize in the state round of the 1997 American String Teachers Association Competition. She also plays with various chamber groups in the Detroit area.

Victoria King joined the Detroit Symphony Orchestra after playing bassoon for several years with the Michigan Opera Theatre Orchestra. A co-founder of Detroit Chamber Winds & Strings, King received her bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Michigan. Victoria King's 2010-2011 DCWS appearances are sponsored by Betty Blair.

David Kuehn has held the position of Principal Trumpet with the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino Orchestra of Florence, Italy, the Symphony Orchestra of Bilboa, Spain, the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, the Phoenix Symphony Orchestra, and the Michigan Opera Theatre Orchestra. He has performed with I Solisti Fiorentini and was the cornet soloist with the United States Army Field Band. Kuehn was also a member of the music faculty at the State University of New York at Buffalo. He now resides and plays in the Atlanta area, but visits Detroit to rejoin his DCWS colleagues.

A Detroit native, Laurence Liberson was Principal Clarinetist with the Grand Rapids Symphony for five years before his appointment as Assistant Principal Clarinetist and E-flat Clarinetist of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra in 1981. He is a graduate of the University of Michigan, he teaches privately, and has presented master classes in clarinet and chamber music throughout the U.S.

Maury Okun is Executive Director of Detroit Chamber Winds & Strings, the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival and Eisenhower Dance Ensemble, as well as Principal Trombonist with the Michigan Opera Theatre Orchestra. A co-founder of Detroit Chamber Winds & Strings, he holds degrees from the Eastman School of Music and Northwestern University. Maury Okun's 2010-2011 DCWS appearances are sponsored by Marilyn & Ronald Gunther.

Sally Pituch plays English horn and oboe with the Michigan Opera Theatre Orchestra. For nine years she was the English Hornist/Associate Principal Oboist of the Honolulu Symphony and has also performed with the Jacksonville, Savannah, Ft. Worth and Dallas Opera orchestras. Pituch has served as Artistic Director of DCWS' Nightnotes series since the 2005-2006 season. When not devoting time to practicing or making reeds, she can usually be found honing her skills as an accomplished knitter.

Christine Prince is a graduate of Eastern Michigan University and the University of Michigan. She joined DCWS in 1982, and has also been a member of the bassoon section of the Michigan Opera Theatre Orchestra and the Toledo Symphony Orchestra. In addition to freelancing in the Ann Arbor-Detroit area, Prince is currently on the faculty of Eastern Michigan University. She also maintains a private bassoon studio.

Craig Rifel has been a member of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra's double bass section since 1980. He has also appeared with the Orchestra on many occasions on the piano, harpsichord, organ, and electric bass. Prior to joining the DSO, he played for two years with the Syracuse Symphony and was the principal bass of the Florida Symphony Orchestra. Craig Rifel's 2010-2011 DCWS appearances are sponsored by Cecilia Benner.

Marcus Schoon was the Principal Bassoonist of the Cleveland Ballet and the Cleveland Chamber Symphony, and Second Bassoonist of the Ohio Chamber Orchestra and Cleveland Opera. Prior to joining the Detroit Symphony Orchestra in 1992 as Bassoonist and Contrabassoonist, he was head of the woodwind department at the Cleveland Music School Settlement. Schoon is currently teaching bassoon at Oakland University and contrabassoon at Wayne State University.

Gordon Simmons studied at Wayne State University and Wheaton College, and is a member of the trumpet section of the Michigan Opera Theatre Orchestra. Simmons is one of Detroit's most sought-after trumpet instructors.

Kenneth Thompkins is currently principal trombonist of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. He has previously held positions in the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, the Florida Orchestra, and the New World Symphony in Miami.

Sam Tundo, percussionist, was a member of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra from 1968 until his retirement in 2006. A native Detroiter, Tundo has also performed with the New Orleans Philharmonic and the Santa Fe Opera Festival.

James VanValkenburg became Assistant Principal Violist of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra after a satisfying career in chamber music. As a founding member of the International String Quartet, he toured the world with concerts in Europe, the Far East, South America, as well as the U.S. The quartet won several notable prizes, including the Munich Competition, East & West Artists of New York, and was the first prize winner of the Premier Grand Prix at the International Chamber Music Competition in Evian, France. James VanValkenburg's 2010-2011 DCWS appearances are sponsored by Cecilia Benner.

Corbin Wagner has been a member of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra since 1979. A prizewinner in three international horn competitions, he is an adjunct professor at Oakland University.

H. Robert Reynolds - Artistic Advisor
H. Robert Reynolds is the Conductor and Artistic Advisor of the Detroit Chamber Winds & Strings, a position he has held since the inception of the ensemble over 25 years ago. In addition, he currently is Principal Conductor of the Wind Ensemble at the Thorton School of Music at the University of Southern California. This appointment followed his retirement, after 26 years, from the School of Music of the University of Michigan where he served as the Henry F. Thurnau Professor of Music, Director of University Bands and Director of the Division of Instrumental Studies.

Robert Reynolds has conducted recordings for Koch International, Pro Arte, Caprice, and Deutsche Grammophon. He has also conducted in many of the major concert halls of Europe and the United States including the premiere of an opera for La Scala Opera (Milan Italy), the Maggio Musicale (Florence, Italy), the Tonhalle (Zurich, Switzerland), the Concertgebouw (Amsterdam, Holland), Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center (New York), Orchestra Hall (Chicago), the Kennedy Center (Washington, D.C.), Powell Symphony Hall (St. Louis), and the Academy of Music (Philadelphia). He has won the praise of many important composers including William Bolcom, Aaron Copeland, Henryk Gorecki, Gyorgy Ligeti, Darius Milhaud, Bernard Rands, Gunther Schuller, and Karlheinz Stockhausen, and he holds degrees from the University of Michigan where he was the conducting student of Elizabeth Green. .

Professor Reynolds is Past President of several important musical organizations, and he has received the highest national awards from many distinguished musical associations as well as a Special Tribute from the State of Michigan. He is the conductor of the Tanglewood Institute Wind Ensemble and has been a featured conductor and lecturer at numerous worldwide conferences and festivals. Many of his former students now hold major conducting positions at leading colleges, universities and conservatories.