Woodwinds
DR. SCOTT WRIGHT
CLARINET instructor/Band Director
Clarinetist Scott Wright is the Professor of Clarinet at the University of Kentucky, a position he has held since 2002. He is also a member of the esteemed McCracken Faculty Wind Quintet, and Chair of the Winds—Percussion—Jazz Division in the School of Music. In a career spanning nearly three decades, Dr. Wright has performed and taught in a wide variety of settings including the public schools, universities, chamber and orchestral ensembles, and as a soloist. He has been featured as both a conductor and clarinetist the conferences of the International Clarinet Association, National Band Association, College Band Directors National Association, the International Double Reed Society, the National Collegiate Choral Organization, the Midwest Clinic, and the American Choral Directors Association. Since 1997, he has appeared frequently with pianist Linda Halloin (Duo Pegasus) as a guest artist, and has presented numerous concerts and masterclasses at colleges and universities throughout the country as well as in Europe, Canada, and Asia.
Dr. Wright keeps busy as a conductor and soloist with high school and middle school bands and serves as clarinet instructor and band director at music camps and festivals in Wisconsin, Oregon, and Kentucky, as well as a clarinet instructor and consultant for the American Band College-Sam Houston State University. Dr. Wright holds degrees from the University of Michigan and Arizona State University, and he is a Selmer Performing Artist.
SOPHIA TEGART
FLUTE INSTRUCTOR
As a Yamaha Performing Artist, Sophia Tegart has performed throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia, including at National Flute Association conventions, Florida Flute Association conventions, College Music Society conferences, the China ASEAN Music Week, the International Conference on Women’s Work in Music (Wales, UK), the Interharmony International Music Festival (Italy), and the Thailand International Composition Festival. Currently, Sophia is flutist in the Pan Pacific Ensemble, a wind quintet dedicated to the advancement of music by Asian and Asian-American composers. The Pan Pacific Ensemble has released two albums through Albany Records; one of which, “Feng,” was labeled one of 2019’s “Top Ten Albums of the Year” by the Daffodil Perspective. Sophia’s flute and piano duo with pianist Michael Seregow was a finalist for the 2019 American Prize in Chamber Music, and their album of works by women composers, “Palouse Songbook,” was released through Centaur Records in 2020.
Sophia received her Doctor of Musical Arts in Flute Performance from the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music and Dance where she held the flute fellowship in the Graduate Woodwind Quintet. She graduated from the University of Oregon with a Master of Arts in Music History and a Master of Music in Flute Performance. Sophia received a Bachelor of Music in Performance degree and a Bachelor of Arts in History degree from Washington State University. She joined the faculty at her alma mater, Washington State University, in 2016 as Assistant Professor of Flute, Career Track. In 2020, Sophia was awarded the WSU College of Arts and Sciences Early Career Achievement Award. Because of her interest in music history, Sophia regularly joins YMA instructor of violin, Casey Bozell, as the resident music historian on Bozell’s podcast Keep Classical Weird.
RYAN ZWAHLEN
OBOE INSTRUCTOR
Since arriving in Northern California in 2014, Ryan has quickly become a fixture in the music scene. He currently holds positions as second oboe of the Santa Cruz Symphony and the Pacific Chamber Orchestra, and is co-principal oboe of One Found Sound. Ryan performs regularly with Opera San Jose, San Jose Chamber Orchestra, New Century Chamber Orchestra, Santa Cruz Ballet, and Symphony Silicon Valley. He’s also performed with the Oakland Symphony, Marin Symphony, Santa Rosa Symphony, California Symphony, Merced Symphony, among others. While in Southern California, he performed with the Los Angeles Philharmonic multiple times, recorded and performed with the San Diego Symphony among many others. He’s had concerto appearances with the Idyllwild Arts Academy Orchestra, Les Sauvages Americains, and Definiens.
An avid chamber musician, Ryan has been a member of the Vientos Trio (winner of the 2011 Beverly Hills Auditions), West Coast Wind Quintet (Finalist in the 2013 San Diego Chamber Music Competition), Definiens, Santa Monica Symphony Wind Quintet, and many more. Ryan’s devotion to music education was demonstrated while serving as the Music Department Chair of the Idyllwild Arts Academy from 2010-2014. He also taught through the Idyllwild Arts Summer Programs, ChamberFest, and Songwriting Workshop. Currently, Ryan runs MidPeninsula Music Academy in Redwood City, CA, is oboe faculty for Young Musicians and Artists, a summer arts camp in Oregon, and is the Applied Oboe Faculty at West Valley College.
Ryan studied oboe with Nancy Ambrose King, Martin Shuring, and Marion Kuszyk. Additional studies/masterclasses with Russ DeLuna, Rebecca Henderson, Kathryn Greenbank, Diana Doherty, Fred Korman, and Bert Lucarelli.
DR. Adam Farmer
Bassoon Instructor
Dr. Adam Farmer is an active performer of orchestral and chamber music and a recent transplant to Salem, Oregon. As a bassoonist, Adam has performed with orchestras across the Pacific Northwest and Midwest including the Oregon Symphony, Oregon Festival Orchestra, Walla Walla Symphony, Newport Symphony Orchestra, Lansing Symphony Orchestra, Jackson Symphony Orchestra, and the West Michigan Symphony.
Adam is also an enthusiastic proponent of community outreach and audience engagement. Before moving to Oregon, Adam regularly performed at public parks, elementary schools, museums, and assisted living facilities with his woodwind quintet, the Verdant Winds. The Verdant Winds quickly became known as innovative and thoughtful presenters of interactive concert programs and were featured in a presentation on educational engagement strategies at the Michigan Music Conference in 2018.
Adam received his Doctor of Musical Arts in Bassoon Performance from Michigan State University and also holds degrees from Kent State University and the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. His primary instructors include Michael Kroth, David DeBolt, William Winstead, and Martin James.
owen evans
saxophone instructor
Owen Evans is a saxophonist, clarinetist, flutist, composer, and educator located in Portland. He has a B.M. in Music Education from Central Washington University and is currently pursuing his Master’s degree in jazz studies from Portland State University. Owen has performed saxophone and flute in various ensembles, from traditional jazz big bands to bluegrass string bands. He hails from Seattle where he performed with Tinkham Road, recorded on their latest release Tomorrow Brings Another, and appeared on Battlestar Kalakala's latest release Live at the Skylark. Owen believes in finding creative approaches to skill development and incorporating improvisation, composition, and fun in all types of music learning.