Vicki Boeckman (Jan 29) has been performing and teaching since the 1980s. She is embracing the new virtual world with enthusiasm, curiosity, and a sense of awe, finding it to be positive and rewarding amidst the challenges we are all facing. Pre-pandemic she was an internationally acclaimed performing and recording artist who traveled all over the US and to many other countries to perform and teach. Vicki resided in Denmark from 1981-2004 and had the opportunity to collaborate with some of the finest musicians of the day including Jaap ter Linden, John Holloway, René Jacobs, Lars Ulrik Mortensen, Pedro Memelsdorf and Markus Zahnhausen. Her Danish recorder trio Wood’N’Flutes had a fantastic 15-year run performing all over Europe and working with contemporary composers in addition to doing children’s theater. She was an adjunct professor at the Royal Danish Academy of Music in Copenhagen for 12 years and taught at the Ishøj Municipal School of Music for 23 years. Many of those students are now professionals, performing and teaching in conservatories in Denmark and around Europe. Locally, Vicki has been a featured soloist with the Seattle Symphony, Seattle Baroque Orchestra, Portland Baroque Orchestra, The Oregon Symphony, Portland Opera, Medieval Women’s Choir, Gallery Concerts, Philharmonia Northwest Orchestra, and the Skagit Symphony. She is currently music director for the Seattle Recorder Society, co-director for the Recorder Orchestra of Puget Sound (ROPS), and Artistic Director for the Port Townsend Early Music Workshop. She dearly hopes that these organizations can withstand the challenges of separation and continue to thrive.
Violinist Candice Chin (Jan 15, 22 & 29) enjoys a musical journey intertwined with a 19-year career in financial management. A Seattle area native, she studied with Steven Staryk while attending the University of Washington. She also pursued orchestral studies at the Eastman School of Music and University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. Candice holds a Bachelor of Arts in music and economics, and dual MBA/MA arts administration degrees. Her principal teachers include Walter Schwede, Martin Friedmann, and Jesse Mills.
Katie Hochman (Jan 15), soprano, can be heard regularly giving recitals with Ladies Musical Club of Seattle. She has also enjoyed singing opera and oratorio with Puget Sound Concert Opera (PSCO), Opera Theater Oregon, Portland Opera, Utah Opera, Columbia Chorale and Southwest Washington Symphony (SWS). Highlights include the title role of Massenet’s Cendrillon and Héro in Berlioz’s Beatrice et Bénédict performed with PSCO and Exultate, jubilate performed with SWS.
Emiko Hori (Jan 8), a native of Japan, graduated from renowned Indiana University Jacobs School of Music in Piano Performance. She studied with Shigeo Neriki, performed at numerous places including Banff Centre, Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival, Germany, and others. Emiko became fascinated with and continued her study in Computer Science at Boston University. Busy working in technology companies such as CommerceHub and Microsoft, Emiko thought she would never play the piano again. She was wrong; Emiko became one of the newest performing members of Ladies Musical Club. Emiko enjoys dividing her time between performing concerts, teaching piano, and working at Starbucks HQ’s Digital Commerce team.
Sharon Jung (Jan 29) was born and raised in the Pacific Northwest. She is a nurse practitioner, and works in a neurology practice in Tacoma, Washington. She freelances for numerous ensembles in the local area. She has been an LMC member since 1999. She is a former student of LMC member Gail Perstein and is also a former student of Bernard Shapiro.
Violinist Angie Kam (Jan 29) is an established performer and teacher in the Seattle area. She enjoys playing regular recitals as a performing chamber musician and soloist with the Ladies Musical Club of Seattle. As a professional orchestral violinist, she is assistant principal second violinist of the Yakima Symphony Orchestra, and a section player in the North Corner Chamber Orchestra. Angie has performed with many major pop groups including the Trans-Siberian Orchestra, Ramin Djawadi (Game of Thrones composer), Il Divo, Idina Menzel, Evanescence, Lindsey Stirling, Sarah Brightman, and Michael Bublé. She is also an active studio recording musician for movies and video games. When she’s not playing, practicing, or teaching, Angie enjoys mountaineering, skiing, hiking, running, eating, and spending time with her family (husband and dog).
Maria Khavin (Jan 8) is a pianist, teacher, and music education enthusiast. Starting her formal education at age six, she subsequently earned her degree in Piano Performance and Pedagogy from Rimsky-Korsakoff State Music College in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Since moving to Seattle in 1992, Ms. Khavin continued to be an active performer and became a passionate educator. She appeared in numerous piano solo performances, and accompanied hundreds of instrumentalists and vocalists. She made her orchestral debut performing Mozart’s G major piano concerto with Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra. In Seattle, she worked with Lyric Opera Northwest, NOISE (Northwest Opera in Schools, Etc.), and Mahler’s Festival, among others. Recently, she became a Ladies Musical Club performing member, presenting several concerts a year. Ms. Khavin holds a Master of Music degree from the University of Washington.
Jeffrey Moidel’s (Jan 22) song cycle— Neruda Love Sonnets received “First Place for the Nation: USA” representing Washington State in the International Ravel Composition Competition held in Bergamo, Italy in 2015 and was advanced to the Semi-Finals. The song, “And now you’re mine…” was singled out by the NATS Art Song Composition Award panel of judges and given the award of “Stand-Out Song,” the first song ever to receive such mention in the ASCA competition’s history. Actually, they created the category specifically to honor this song! The Paul Taylor Dance Company and the Aspen Dance Connection have featured his compositions with Jeff at the piano. As both piano soloist and collaborative pianist Jeff has performed throughout the United States, Europe and South America. He also gave a private concert at Gracie Mansion in New York City for Mayor Koch and his guests. In addition, Jeff has performed and recorded with popular artists including Ann Hampton Calloway and John Denver. A graduate of the Mannes College of Music in New York City, Jeff has been a vocal coach and instructor for Seattle Opera’s Young Artist Program, the Aspen Music Festival, the Vocal Institute at the University of California at Santa Barbara, the Peter Harrower Opera Program at Georgia State University, the Perry Mansfield School for the Performing Arts in Colorado, the Marrowstone Music Festival in Bellingham, Washington and was an Assistant Professor at Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle. In addition, Jeff has served as the Assistant Music Director and Chorus Master for Tacoma Opera and Skagit Opera and has also been chair of the music department at the Washington Academy for the Performing Arts. He believes it is important for children to develop an early appreciation for the arts and has written six children’s musicals and other concert works for young audiences.
Erika Pierson (Jan 22) earned her bachelor’s in Cello Performance from Indiana University and her master’s in Performance from the University of Michigan. Between her degrees, Erika studied in Berlin, at the Hochschule der Kunste, and in London under Eileen Croxford, FRCM. Her other teachers included Richard Aaron, Tsuyoshi Tsutsumi, Markus Nyikos, and Erling Blondal Bengtsson. Erika has given solo recitals in England, Germany, Spain, and in the United States, and has soloed with orchestras in Berlin, Ann Arbor, and Everett, WA. On the less classical side of things, she has also performed with Mannheim Steamroller, Rod Stewart, The Walkmen, and Deltron 3030. Currently Erika performs regularly as the cellist in Bella Sala String Quartet, NOCCO Chamber Orchestra, and freelances and teaches in the Seattle area.
Julie Shankland (Jan 15) has played clarinet since marching band in the Ohio snow. Since moving to Washington, Julie has played in the UW Concert Band, Eastside Symphony, West Seattle Community Orchestras, Rain City Symphony, and various chamber music camps. Julie is an adult student of Jennifer Nelson and recently learned to play bass clarinet. Julie works in the Office of General Counsel at the Washington State Bar Association.
An outstanding member of the Northwest musical community for over 20 years, Regina Thomas (Jan 8) has performed with a variety of companies including Kitsap Opera, Willamette Concert Opera, Bellevue Opera, Puget Sound Concert Opera, Seattle Opera, and the Seattle Opera Guild. Currently LMC’s trustee of concerts and Artistic Director of Puget Sound Concert Opera, Regina has served as Seattle Opera Guild’s VP of Education and is a past President of LMC. Favorite operatic roles include Adriana Lecouvreur, Suor Angelica, Tosca, and Judith (Bluebeard’s Castle). Concert work includes Schumann’s Frauenleibe und-leben, Elgar’s Sea Pictures, and Wagner’s Wesendonck-Lieder; soprano solos in Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, Fauré Requiem, and Berio’s Folk Songs for voice and chamber ensemble.
Nicole Truesdell (Jan 15) is a pianist and composer living in Seattle, Washington. She chairs the Ladies Musical Club Composers’ Group and enjoys cultivating community and creating performance opportunities for past and present LMC composers’ works. While in college, Nicole became intrigued with the audible and visual relationship possibilities of composing for a smaller, chime-like toy piano and a larger, dynamic full-sized piano. She has written several pieces for this duo including the pieces on this program. Nicole graduated summa cum laude from Cornish College of the Arts in 2007 with an emphasis in music composition. She currently studies composition privately with composer John Muehleisen.
Gwen Trussler, (Jan 22) mezzo-soprano, holds Performance degrees from Florida State University (BM/MM) as well as ARRT Certification in Radiography, Computed Tomography, and Magnetic Resonance Imaging. She has appeared with Tacoma Musical Playhouse, Heavier Than Air Theatre, Evergreen Performers, TMP Family Theater, Amici Opera, Operesque, South Georgia Opera, and Florida State Opera. A Wagner enthusiast, she was chosen to perform in the inaugural year of the Baldwin-Wallace Wagner Intensive where she coached with Jane Eaglen, Timothy Mussard, and Nancy Maultsby. Gwen works with MultiCare and Franciscan Health as an MRI Technologist and is also a Voice Over artist specializing in audiobook narration.
Asta Vaičekonis (Jan 15 & 22) holds her MM in Piano Performance from the University of Washington and her Bachelor’s degree from the Lithuanian Academy of Music. Asta was granted a diploma for best accompaniment in the International Competition of Chamber Music in Kaliningrad (Königsberg), Russia (1992). She was a soloist with the Port Angeles Symphony Orchestra (2002), performed in the University of Washington Summer Arts Festival (2001, 2003), the Bach Fest (2001, 2002) in Lake Chelan, Washington, accompanist for Ladies Musical Club of Seattle’s Awards Tours (2000, 2004, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2018), and the Bumbershoot Festival (1999) in Seattle. Asta served as an accompanist and coach in the Summer Chamber Music Seminars in Berlin, Germany (1992, 1993), and has performed with the Chamber Dance Company. She has played many recitals and chamber music programs in various cities of the United States, Lithuania, Latvia, Germany, Russia, and Israel, and made several recordings for the Lithuanian Radio and Television (1993). She was the first solo pianist to play in Seattle’s own Benaroya Hall. Asta is on the piano faculty at Music Works Northwest, has been staff accompanist at Western Washington University, and is currently on the faculty at Seattle Pacific University.
Violist Yi Zhou (Jan 22) is pursuing a diverse career as a violin/viola teacher, chamber musician and soloist. She has appeared in many music venues across North America, Europe and China. Yi has been featured at Benaroya Hall, Nordstrom Recital Hall, Meany Hall for the Performing Arts, Chinese Embassy in France Université de Poitiers, and others. She has played the principal viola in a number of orchestras including the UW Symphony. She has also performed at a number of master classes, including those given by Garth Knox, Yizhak Schotten, and Manchin Zhang, among others. Yi received her Master’s degree in Viola Performance from the University of Washington, supervised by Professor Melia Watras. She has another Master’s degree in Violin Performance from Wuhan Conservatory of Music. Before coming to the U.S., she was faculty member of the School of Music in Nanchang University.
Heidi Fivash (Keeping Afloat, January 8) completed her Bachelor’s of Music in Composition at Western Washington University, where she earned several awards and scholarships including the prestigious Presser Scholarship, awarded to one outstanding music major each year. In 2016 she released an indie rock EP titled “Out With The Old.” She has also had several concert pieces performed in the Seattle area, including two works for string quartet that were finalists in the Seattle Composers Alliance Call For Scores concerts. Heidi currently lives on the Olympic Peninsula where she performs solo concerts for voice and piano at local retirement communities and is studying with the Music for Healing and Transitions Program to become a Certified Music Practitioner in Therapeutic Music.
John Muehleisen’s (Apparitions, January 15) 150+ vocal and choral works have been described as “masterful …imaginatively harmonized…beautifully realized…and brilliantly crafted.” He has been Composer-in-Residence for Opus 7 Vocal Ensemble since 1996, for the Dale Warland Singers (2003-2004), and for Choral Arts Northwest (2011-2012 and 2016-2017). He has also received commissions from Conspirare, The Esoterics, Harvard Glee Club, Northwest Girlchoir, Seattle Girl’s Choir, Seattle Pro Musica, and Volti. More than 80 of his compositions have been recorded commercially, and his works have been performed throughout North America, Europe, and Asia by esteemed conductors including John Alexander, Anton Armstrong, and Craig Hella Johnson, and his oratorios about compassion (Pietà) and WWI (But Who Shall Return Us Our Children – A Kipling Passion) have received more than 20 performances. Awards include the 1988 Louisville Orchestra Composition Prize, Third Place in the 2013 American Prize in Professional Choral Composition, and the 2014 Dale Warland Singers Commissioning Award. 
Jeffrey Moidel’s song cycle— Neruda Love Sonnets (Jan 22) received “First Place for the Nation: USA” representing Washington State in the International Ravel Composition Competition held in Bergamo, Italy in 2015 and was advanced to the Semi-Finals. The song, “And now you’re mine…” was singled out by the NATS Art Song Composition Award panel of judges and given the award of “Stand-Out Song,” the first song ever to receive such mention in the ASCA competition’s history. Actually, they created the category specifically to honor this song! The Paul Taylor Dance Company and the Aspen Dance Connection have featured his compositions with Jeff at the piano. As both piano soloist and collaborative pianist Jeff has performed throughout the United States, Europe and South America. He also gave a private concert at Gracie Mansion in New York City for Mayor Koch and his guests. In addition, Jeff has performed and recorded with popular artists including Ann Hampton Calloway and John Denver. A graduate of the Mannes College of Music in New York City, Jeff has been a vocal coach and instructor for Seattle Opera’s Young Artist Program, the Aspen Music Festival, the Vocal Institute at the University of California at Santa Barbara, the Peter Harrower Opera Program at Georgia State University, the Perry Mansfield School for the Performing Arts in Colorado, the Marrowstone Music Festival in Bellingham, Washington and was an Assistant Professor at Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle. In addition, Jeff has served as the Assistant Music Director and Chorus Master for Tacoma Opera and Skagit Opera and has also been chair of the music department at the Washington Academy for the Performing Arts. He believes it is important for children to develop an early appreciation for the arts and has written six children’s musicals and other concert works for young audiences.
Karen P. Thomas (Jan 8), composer and conductor, is the Artistic Director and Conductor of Seattle Pro Musica. Her compositions are performed and broadcast throughout the world, by groups such as The Hilliard Ensemble, NOTUS, and Cathedra. Recipient of the 2018 Mayor’s Arts Award (Seattle), she was also awarded the 2015 Dale Warland Singers Commission Award from Chorus America and the American Composers Forum. She has received grants from the NEA, American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters, and Meet the Composer, among numerous others. Her compositions have been awarded numerous prizes, and her commissions include the Grand Jubilee 2000 in Rome, American Guild of Organists, Goodwill Arts Festival, Association of Anglican Musicians (for the Washington National Cathedral chamber choir), among many others. Ms. Thomas is an active conductor, with guest appearances in the US and Europe. She has produced ten critically-acclaimed CDs, and received the Margaret Hillis Award for Choral Excellence and the ASCAP-Chorus America Award.