Thursday Musical Artist Series
**on Zoom
Tickets $15
Link will be provided to the Zoom event 24 hours before.
Join us on Zoom for a Thursday Musical Artist Series Concert featuring:
Sofia Ardalan, soprano and Sonja Thompson, piano
Nicholas Susi, piano
Megan Schoenzeit, flute*
Dennis Eum, cello*
*2020 Young Artist Scholarship Competition Winners
Programming information coming soon.
Soprano Sofia Ardalan has appeared as a guest artist with the Bloomington Symphony Orchestra singing Strauss’ Vier letzte Lieder, with Dakota Valley Symphony and Chorus for Handel’s Meesiah, and as the soprano soloist in Verdi’s Requiem with the Minnesota Youth Symphonies and MN Chorale. She has sung recitals and concerts in Germany and Austria, where a reviewer said of her performances “with her beautiful legato, elegant tone, and commanding stage presence, this American soprano is world class.” An avid recitalist, Ms Ardalan has presented numerous recitals locally and internationally, most recently a program of Sibelius songs in the composers birth home in Finland. Ms. Ardalan studied voice with Oksana Bryn and Audrey Stottler, with additional training at the Lotte Lehmann Akademie in Perleberg, Germany. She teaches voice, piano, and violin in St. Paul, and is the director of the House of Hope Choir School.
Pianist Nicholas Susi enjoys a multifaceted career as performer, clinician, adjudicator, and lecturer. His artistry has been recognized through top prizes in such competitions as the NFMC Young Artist Award, while his research has been awarded prestigious grants from the Deutscher Akademischer Austausch Dienst amongst others. Noteworthy appearances include two concerts for the Princess von Hohenzollern, his semifinalist recital during the 2014 International Franz Liszt Piano Competition (Utrecht, The Netherlands), and concerto solos with several orchestras across the United States and Germany. His debut recording, Scarlatti Now, has received critical acclaim and international radio airplay.
Dr. Susi is currently based out of Duluth, Minnesota, where he is Assistant Professor at The College of St. Scholastica. He received his doctorate from the University of Michigan, with previous studies at the University of Kansas and Hochschule für Musik und Tanz Köln. Primary teachers include Zena Ilyashov, Jack Winerock, Nina Tichman, and Arthur Greene. For more information, please visit www.nicholas-susi.com
Dennis Eum is 16 years old and in 11th grade at Blake in Minneapolis. He is studying cello with Mina Fisher and also plays in the GTCYS Symphony orchestra. Previously, Dennis has won multiple competitions at YPSCA (2020), Thursday Musical High School (2020, 2019), Mary West (2019, 2018), and Schubert Club (2019). In addition, he was a finalist in the GTCYS concerto solo competition. Furthermore, he has participated in several masterclasses with Peter Wiley, Alban Gerhardt, Philip Borter (2016 and 2017) and Simona Barbu.
Outside of music, an avid mathematician and debater, Dennis has participated in the UMTYMP mathematics program at the University of Minnesota and was a top scorer in the Minnesota Math League from 2016 to 2019. He loves competitively debating nationally, and also enjoys computer programming, golf, and tennis. In his free time, Dennis likes cuddling with his cat, Semo, while reading books.
Flutist Megan Schoenzeit is a 12th grader at Orono High School. Megan previously studied with Sue Morrisey since the age of 10 and currently studies with Julia Bogorad-Kogan of the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra. Megan has played as principal flute and piccolo in Greater Twin Cities Youth Symphonies (GTCYS) and Minnesota Youth Symphonies (MYS) and is currently in both programs’ flagship orchestras, Symphony. This past year, Megan received first prize in the Senior Winds, Brass, and Percussion Thursday Musical Competition. She was recently named a 2020-21 MYS Symphony Solo Competition Finalist for performing Nielsen Flute Concerto, Mvmt I. Megan has participated in masterclasses with Lorna McGhee, Alberto Almarza, and Soo-Kyung Park. In addition to flute, Megan is an accomplished student. She was named a 2020 National Advanced Placement Scholar. After exhausting her high school’s mathematics offerings, Megan enrolled in the University of Minnesota through Post Secondary Enrollment Opportunities (PSEO). At the UMN, she will complete Linear Algebra, Multivariable Calculus, and Proof Analysis courses this year. She is also a member of the UMN Flute Studio and Symphonic Band. In her free time, Megan enjoys reading horror or sci-fi novels and playing board games with friends.