Alif Laila is one of the few internationally performing female sitar players of the world. She was trained in Indian classical music through sitar in Dhaka, Bangladesh. By Mir Qasem Khan, nephew of legendary maestro, Allauddin Khan. During her final years of training, she attended the College of Fine Arts in Dhaka, where she graduated in 1981 with a bachelor’s degree and received several awards for her watercolor painting.
Mary Amato is the author of over 25 books for children and young adults. Her work for adults also includes poems, plays, essays, and short fiction. Amato's fiction has been translated into foreign languages, optioned for television, and produced onstage. She teaches workshops in creative writing, songwriting, and the creative process around the country and is a frequent presenter in Maryland schools. She is a former classroom teacher and also teaches a weekly online class for adults and teens who are serious about writing.
Dr. David Hildebrand is a specialist in early American music. He performs and lectures at museums, historical societies, and universities, solo and more frequently with wife/music partner of 35 years Ginger Hildebrand. David holds a B.S. from Dickinson College, and his M.A. and Ph.D. (both in Musicology) are from George Washington University and The Catholic University of America. He teaches American music history at the Peabody Conservatory and is an author for the Johns Hopkins University Press. David consulted on the PBS series Liberty!
Seaside Jimmy DiLorenzo
Guitar, Vocals and Other Extremes
Jimmy has played with the likes of Carlos Santana, Cat Stevens, Neil Young, Van Morrison, Paul McCartney, Jerry Garcia, Bruce Springsteen & other artists…while relaxing on the couch with his music collection, and hopes to perform with them for real, on stage someday. You’ll hear covers of these artists & many more, as well as original songs, in Jimmy’s solo set.
An avid performer and educator, pianist and composer Joshua Espinoza balances his time sharing music on the stage and off. As a performer, Joshua has played with renowned artists including Warren Wolf, Paul Bollenback, Miho Hazama, John D’earth, Mike Pope, Kris Funn, Todd Marcus, Chuck Redd, Ryan McGillicudy, Eugene Goss, and Gail Wynters, and on national stages including Piccolo Spoleto (Charleston), The Jazz Kitchen (Indianapolis), Blues Alley, the Smithsonian American Art Museum, Keystone Korner (Baltimore), and the DC Jazz Festival.
Jacqueline Pollauf, American harpist, is known for her sensitive performances, dedication to teaching, and beautifully-crafted compositions. Past performances include a premiere for voice and harp at Carnegie Hall and appearances at the Eleventh World Harp Congress and the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C. Her most recent recording, Beau Soir, with cellist Dariusz Skoraczewski, was lauded as “utter perfection” (The Harp Column).
Hailed by the Gramophone Magazine as "brilliant and intrepid", violinist Airi Yoshioka has concertized throughout the United States, Europe, Asia, and Canada as a recitalist, soloist and chamber musician. Deeply committed to chamber music, she is the founding member of the Damocles Trio and Modigliani Quartet and has performed and recorded with the members of the Emerson, Brentano and Arditti Quartets. Damocles Trio's debut disc of complete Piano Trios and Piano Quartet of Joquín Turina has won a four-star rating from the BBC Music Magazine, Le Monde de la Musique and Diapason.
For 40 years Karen Ashbrook has been an international pioneer and advocate for the hammered dulcimer. With Silver Spring, Maryland as home base, she has brought magic of the 76 resonating dulcimer strings to a wide audience, from the young children who attend her summer hedge schools in Irish culture to the elderly and infirm with whom she engages as a certified music practitioner in the healing arts. She has entertained at the John F. Kennedy Center, the Smithsonian Institution and the White House, as well as concert halls and festivals in the U.S. and around the world.
ADRIANE FANG is a dancer, teacher and choreographer with a keen interest in multidisciplinary collaboration. She was a member of the internationally renowned dance company, Doug Varone and Dancers, from 1996-2006 and has worked with several other choreographers including Colleen Thomas, Bill Young, Wally Cardona, Christopher K. Morgan and Nancy Bannon.