Vanessa Renee Williams, a resident of Upper Marlboro, Maryland, was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. She is the very proud mother of one daughter, Lisa J. Locke, Esq.
After earning her Bachelor of Arts in International Politics, Economics and Business from Aoyama Gakuin University in Tokyo, Japan, Rie Moore worked for global corporations, including Microsoft, Starbucks, and Nissan Motor in Tokyo as a marketing and communications professional prior to her move to Maryland in 2007.
Cynthia Marie Dillard is a pianist, songwriter, & teacher with a background in classical, jazz, blues, and folk music. She is a Honolulu Symphony Best and Brightest concerto competition winner, Berklee College of Music summer performance program songwriter showcase artist, and a graduate of the University of Washington School of Music in Seattle, WA with a Bachelor of Arts in Music. She studied classical piano with Bonnie Litten and Ann Tanabe, boogie-woogie piano with Caroline Dahl, and jazz piano with Debbie Poryes.
The High & Wides play string band music from an alternate timeline, one where Bill Monroe's "Rocky Road Blues" made him an international superstar and the rock'n'roll revolution was led by fiddlers and banjo players. With roots in urban Baltimore and the rural Delmarva peninsula, they draw on bluegrass backgrounds and weave in influences from new wave to old time to make music that defies boundaries while evoking the era when country, bluegrass, western swing, and early rock'n'roll mingled freely.
Multifaceted guitarist Meng Su is captivating audiences around the world with her stunning virtuosity and refined artistry. A soloist, also an avid chamber musician, Su tours regularly with orchestras and with her partner Yameng Wang as the Beijing Guitar Duo. This past season, Su performed with China Philharmonic Orchestra, the Mulhouse Symphony Orchestra and the Adelaide Symphony in addition to more than 40 recitals in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia. Su has released four recordings to critical acclaims.
Multi-instrumentalist and composer Russell Kirk is a native of Baltimore. Russell studied at Towson University and The Peabody Conservatory. While earning his master’s degree at New York University, Russell was an adjunct faculty member at The Steinhardt School of Culture, headed a music outreach program in Harlem, and interned at Saturday Night Live.
Saxophonist, Tae Ho Hwang is dedicated to diversifying classical music by sharing eclectic programs to a wide range of audiences. He is praised for his interpretation that has a delicate sensitivity yet a solid power underneath.