Benjamin Wallfisch studied conducting in London with Sir Charles Mackerras and Vernon Handley and in Germany with Bruno Weil. He was awarded First Prize in the 2001 British Reserve Insurance Conducting Competition with a unanimous vote from both Jury and Orchestra. At the age of 22, He was appointed Associate Conductor of the English Chamber Orchestra and between 2003 and 2005 was Assistant Conductor of the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic. During this time he assisted Vladimir Ashkenazy, Valery Gergiev, Edo de Waart and Leonard Slatkin and frequently conducted the NRPO in venues including the Concertgebouw, De Doelen Rotterdam and the Muziekcentrum Vredenburg, Utrecht and in numerous studio recordings.

In the UK, Benjamin has conducted the London Symphony Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Philharmonia Orchestra, Ulster Orchestra and City of London Sinfonia and has performed in venues such as the Barbican, Cadogan Hall, Royal Festival Hall and St. George’s Bristol. In 2005 he made his Australian debut conducting the Sydney Symphony Orchestra in a series of critically acclaimed live broadcast Gala performances at the Sydney Opera House, and in 2009 he made his debut conducting the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl. Other guest conducting highlights have included the Bavarian Radio Philharmonic, Orchestre de Bretagne, Tivoli Symphony Orchestra, and an appearance in the 2007 Mecklenburg Festival with the Weimar Staatskapelle.

In recent seasons he has conducted the Hamburg Symphony (three times, including their annual New Year performances of Beethoven 9), Zagreb Philharmonic, Netherlands Symphony and RTÉ Concert Orchestras. He has also worked with the SWR Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra, Helsingborg Symphony Orchestra and the orchestra of the Beethoven Academy Krakow as part of Poland’s prestigious Beethoven Easter Festival. Future performances include the Bournemouth Symphony, Slovakian Philharmonic, the Israel Symphony and his debut at the Dvorak Prague Festival, conducting the Prague Philharmonia. In the US he has worked with great success with the Monterey Symphony and the North Carolina Symphony, and in 12/13 he will make his debut with the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra.

Acclaimed by The Strad as “one of the finest accompanists anywhere on the podium,” Benjamin has performed concerti with some of the world’s finest soloists in including Evelyn Glennie, Pekka Kuusisto, Freddy Kempf, Dame Felicity Lott, Branford Marsalis, Igor Oistrakh, Jean-Yves Thibaudet and John Williams. Alongside a number of his own orchestral works, he has recorded Shostakovich’s First Violin Concerto with Ruth Palmer and the Philharmonia, a disc of bassoon concerti with Karen Geoghegan and the Orchestra of Opera North for Chandos, and concerto recordings with the London Symphony Orchestra and the English Chamber Orchestra.

Flutist Heather Clark is one of Los Angeles’ most sought after flute players. She earned her bachelor of music degree at USC in flute performance in 1990, and currently holds such prestigious positions as Principal Flute with the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra and the Long Beach Symphony.

Clark says some of her best memories of her experience at USC are of the time spent with fellow students. The many concerts played together, classes shared, and rehearsal sessions all contributed to her experience – not to mention the many discussions they had on campus in the pre-email and texting days!

“Little did I know at the time, that this was all part of my education and not to mention the lifelong friendships that formed from those countless hours of discussions and debates,” says Clark.

These connections, and the training she received at USC, have been invaluable to her career.

In the course of her career, Clark has performed with talented musicians in a variety of genres. She has performed with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Los Angeles Music Center Opera, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, and numerous other Los Angeles regional orchestras. In addition, she has played for movie soundtracks by film composers John Williams, Randy Newman, and Alan Silvestri among others; she can also be heard on the recordings of Josh Groban, Andrea Bocelli and Barbara Streisand.

“I’ve been quite lucky to have such a variety of opportunities and to be able to work with such exceptional musicians,” says Clark.

Having begun playing the flute at the age of nine – after her older sister passed on the instrument – Clark has seen her career grow and flourish. One particular moment that stands out for Clark was winning the National Flute Association competition in 1994.

“I think musicians from the west coast get a reputation for being too laid back or not serious enough,” says Clark. “It felt good to be nationally recognized.”

In addition to performing, Clark has also begun an Audition Boot Camp to assist musicians with their audition preparation. Like a coach preparing for an athletic event, Clark works with her students to focus on the strengths and weaknesses to find the way for the student to give their best performance.

“I’ve always enjoyed the mental and musical preparation necessary for a successful audition and I find the audition process to be such a unique musical performance,” says Clark. “It’s very satisfying to help musicians in this way.”

Jennifer Olson is an active orchestral and chamber music performer in the Los Angeles area. She is currently principal flute with the Stockton Symphony and second flute with the Long Beach Symphony and Santa Barbara Chamber Orchestra. Jenni also teaches flute at Citrus College and Music Appreciation at Pasadena City College. You can hear her on recent soundtracks such as The Cape, The Event, Night at the Museum 2 and Sex in the City 2. Jenni received her BA from California State University, Stanislaus where she studied with Caryl Mae Scott and received her MM and DMA from University of Southern California where she studied with Jim Walker. When she is not playing the flute she likes to conquer physical challenges.

She has been to the top Mt. Whitney twice and has hiked up Half Dome. She has completed several sprint distance triathlons and will attempt her first half marathon in August 2011.

Edward Cumming is Director of Orchestral Activities and Associate Professor of Music at The Hartt School. For nine years, he was Music Director of the Hartford Symphony Orchestra, hailed for its remarkable artistic growth during his tenure. His appointment came after a two-year search process involving nearly 300 applicants from around the world.

Before coming to Hartford, Cumming was Resident Conductor of the Pittsburgh Symphony, where he stepped in on short notice to conduct a program of which the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette wrote, “some conductors could not do as well even with months to prepare.” As Resident Conductor of the Florida Orchestra, Cumming conducted a recording of the “Star Spangled Banner” with Whitney Houston and the Florida Orchestra for Super Bowl XXV.

Cumming has taught at colleges all over the country, including Pacific University, California State University (Fullerton), University of South Florida, The Hartt School, and Yale University. During his time in Pittsburgh, he was Music Director of the nationally-acclaimed Pittsburgh Youth Symphony Orchestra, one of only five orchestras invited to the biennial National Youth Orchestra Festival. He was the founding Music Director of the Pacific Symphony Institute, and has also taught at the Orange County High School for the Arts.
In Europe, Mr. Cumming has led orchestras in Spain, the Czech Republic, Northern Ireland, Serbia, and Italy. He has conducted ensembles throughout the United States, in Asia, and in Israel. Last year, he made his South American debut with the Filarmónica de Bogotá.

Mr. Cumming studied at Yale University, where he received a Doctorate in Music. As an undergraduate at the University of California at Berkeley, he was awarded the prestigious Eisner Prize for Creative Achievement in the Arts. In May 2010, he received an Honorary Doctorate from Trinity College.

As an orchestra leader, Mr. Cumming has distinguished himself for his remarkable ability to connect directly with listeners. At a time when many orchestras are struggling to grow their audiences, Cumming distinguishes himself for regularly attracting hundreds of people to arrive early for his pre-concert talks. In Tampa/St. Petersburg, his Champagne/Coffee concerts were wildly popular in large part due to the maestro’s conversational style, inviting his audiences to listen to music in new and inventive ways.

Admired for his dynamism on the podium, Benjamin Rous was hired as Associate Conductor of the Virginia Symphony Orchestra in 2010 and quickly became a favorite among audiences throughout southeastern Virginia. Promoted to Resident Conductor in 2013, he took on an expanded role in the VSO’s calendar, where he performs annually on every series including Classics, Regional Classics, Pops, Young People’s Concerts, and state tours. In the summers he pursues his love of education, serving as faculty conductor of Greenwood Music Camp in the Berkshires in western Massachusetts.