Students

Wednesday, Oct. 25 | 4:30-6 p.m.
Harper Hall
FREE

Allyson Fleck has appeared as soloist with orchestras in Wisconsin, Illinois, Georgia, and with Russia’s Novgorod String Orchestra. As an orchestral musician, she has served as Principal Viola of the Greeley Philharmonic, Assistant Principal of the Fort Collins Symphony, section member of Cheyenne Symphony, Madison Symphony, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, Atlanta Ballet and Opera orchestras, and she is active in the freelance community.

Dedicated to chamber music, she has appeared at Midsummer’s Music since 2004 and performed at the Token Creek Music Festival, Madeline Island Chamber Music Festival, and New York’s famed Carnegie Hall, among others.

Fleck’s arts administration experience includes roles as the orchestra manager of the Cheyenne Symphony and librarian of the Greeley Philharmonic. As an educator, she was Assistant Professor of Music at Beloit College, a member of the faculty at Ripon College, and at Kennesaw State University where she directed the chamber music program and taught studio viola. She has also taught beginning strings in various school systems.

Fleck received her Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Viola Performance from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. She enjoys spending time with her boys, Jacob and Eli, listening to music, and outdoor activities.

Wednesday, Oct. 18 | 8-9:30 p.m.
Harper Hall
FREE

As a performer, Leo Sussman loves nothing better than curating provocative programs and bringing new music to life.

Some highlights include performances at the Philharmonie de Paris, Tippet Rise Art Center, and Black Rock City; the premiere recording of Julia Wolfe’s Oxygen; and shows around NYC with groups including Alarm Will Sound, SEM Ensemble, and Metropolis Ensemble. In recent summers he has received fellowships at the Norfolk, Bowdoin, and Atlantic chamber music festivals.

As an alum of Carnegie Hall’s Ensemble Connect, Leo appeared regularly in Weill Recital Hall throughout the 2018-2020 seasons. His wind quintet, ConnectFive, received Chamber Music America’s 2021 Ensemble Forward grant and has performed across the northeast, including through an educational partnership with Quogue Chamber Music on Long Island.

A native of Buffalo, NY, Teagan Faran is a multidisciplinary musician focused on enacting social change through the arts. Faran has collaborated with the International Contemporary Ensemble, Alarm Will Sound, Palaver Strings, and the Cabrillo Festival Orchestra. Recent recording features include albums with Carlos Simon, La Martino Orquesta Típica, and loadbang. She has had compositions featured at the NYSSMA Conference and the Persis Vehar Competition for Excellence. Also active in the world of tango music, she has performed with Victor Lavallén and the Orquesta Escuela de Emilio Balcarce, as well as at festivals across the United States.

As a soloist, Faran has performed throughout the United States, Italy, Argentina, Germany, México, and Canada, including appearances with the Buffalo Philharmonic, the Uptown Philharmonic, the Greater Buffalo Youth Orchestra the Ann Arbor Camerata, the Williamsville East Symphonic Orchestra, and the University of Vermont Symphony. Administratively, she has held internship positions in the Marketing and Education Departments of the Buffalo Philharmonic, and Education and Concerts/Touring with Jazz at Lincoln Center. She founded Ann Arbor arts collective Red Shoe Company and worked as a teaching artist with the Kennedy Center, the University Musical Society and the Sphinx Organization.

After graduating from the University of Michigan, Faran moved to Buenos Aires on a Fulbright grant. Faran was also a Turn The Spotlight Fellow, receiving their inaugural Hedwig Holbrook Prize. Faran participated in OneBeat, a fellowship in musical diplomacy, DeeDee Bridgewater’s Woodshed Network, and recently graduated from the Manhattan School of Music, where she studied Contemporary Performance. She performs in the electroacoustic duo Persephone & the Phoenix as well as being a certified personal trainer, with a focus on career longevity for performers. Faran currently teaches violin and runs the Electronic Experimentation Lab at DePauw University.