Music for Winds and Piano: Requiem for a People

William Hurlstone (1876-1906) at age eighteen, two years after his father's premature death from smallpox, won a scholarship to study piano and composition at the Royal College of Music, after writing a Trio for Clarinet, Bassoon and Piano, performed at his local church. Hurlstone was one of Sir Charles Villiers Stanford's students, among Vaughan Williams, Holst, Coleridge-Taylor, and many more highly recognized British contemporaries. Although being seen as one of the most talented in his class, he died of bronchial asthma from which he suffered his whole life. He was only 30 years old.

Florence Price (1887-1953) was a prolific American composer whose race and gender made it difficult for her contributions to join the widely accepted musical canon in the decades following her life. A trailblazer, Price is considered the first Black woman recognized as a symphonic composer and was the first to have her music performed by a major American orchestra when the Chicago Symphony Orchestra gave the world premiere of her Symphony No. 1 in 1933. Originally conceived as a work for solo organ, Adoration was one of the last works Price wrote, but hearkens back to Price’s early work as an organist accompanying silent films.

Stephen Nicholas Key (b. 1981) - I wrote this sextet for winds and piano over the last two years. So much has been going on in the world that often gets neglected in the arts in favor of performing timeless gems that say nothing about our current state of affairs. While escapism has its time and place, I just got tired of that being the overwhelming majority of our artistic output. In my Requiem for a People, I am seeking musical language to process the pain and suffering in the world. How does a musical ensemble help each other and their audience learn to sit with difficult questions in introspection? How do we learn to sit with grief? Many of the 7 movements confront some underlying condition that I see as leading to some of the great challenges of humanity, while also recognizing the beauty that runs concurrent to the devastation. At times nostalgic, at times iconoclastic, this 35-minute work was a big stretch in my compositional style. Additionally, it requires great virtuosity of all of the players on stage. Writing this work was one of the more cathartic experiences I have had in my life, and I truly hope it brings some amount of enrichment to all who hear it.

Known for her “bold and dramatically characterized playing” (Dallas Morning News), Julietta Curenton has established herself as a leading flute soloist, chamber musician, professor and clinician. 

Julietta won Premiere Prix at the Journées de les Harpes Competition in Arles, France (along with Bridget Kibbey) and first prize at the National Flute Association’s young artist competition and Astral Artists’ national auditions. She has made solo guest appearances with The National Symphony Orchestra, Baltimore Symphony, The Kennedy Center Institute Orchestra, Temple University Orchestra, Black Pearl Chamber Orchestra and others. More recently, Julietta premiered Dr. James Lee III’s evocative flute concerto, “Niiji Memories” to glowing reviews at the 2025 National Flute Association convention. 

Julietta has collaborated extensively with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra as well as Imani Winds, JACK Quartet, Ritz Chamber Players and Orchestra 2001. Collaborations have led to premieres for the Shanghai Contemporary Music Festival, Beijing Modern Music Festival, Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, Chamber Music Northwest, Dallas Chamber Music Society, Mostly Mozart Festival of Lincoln Center, among others. She frequently plays principal flute for the New Orchestra of Washington, American Composers Orchestra in New York City and Soulful Symphony - a Baltimore based ensemble acclaimed for its performances of classical, jazz, gospel and popular music.

Dr. Curenton is the Assistant Professor of Flute at Shenandoah Conservatory in Winchester, Virginia and holds a Bachelor of Music degree from The Juilliard School, Master of Music degree from The Royal Northern College of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts degree from Stony Brook University. She plays on a silver elite model Burkart Flute and is a proud Burkart Flutes & Piccolos artist.

Stephen Key is an Oboist, Composer, Arranger, and Pedagogue in the Washington DC Metro area. A member of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, Key began on piano when he was 3. Choosing the oboe at 11, he made his solo debut at the Kennedy Center at 15. Stephen serves as Principal Oboe for the New Orchestra of Washington and the Shenandoah Valley Bach Festival, and is the adjunct Associate Professor of Oboe at Shenandoah Conservatory. As a recording artist, Professor Key recently released his adaptation of Lili Boulanger’s Clairières dans le Ciel for Oboe and Piano with pianist Matteo Cardelli, recorded with the DF Recordings Label. His orchestral work includes regularly performing with the Kennedy Center Opera House Orchestra. He has also performed with the National Symphony, Austin Symphony, Richmond Symphony, and the New World Symphony. As a composer, his works have been performed throughout the Washington DC region, from the Shenandoah Valley to NYC, and in Europe. He has two premieres on four concert series this season. Key reaches beyond his role at the conservatory with a highly regarded private studio training students to get into top conservatories, festivals, and even performances at Carnegie Hall; in addition to co-directing Shenandoah Double Reed Camp. He has led master classes at Universities of Michigan, Maryland, and Texas, as well as at Höchschule für Musik - Trossingen.

A native of Alexandria, VA, Mr. Zoeter received his bachelor’s degree from the Juilliard School and his master’s degree from Yale University. He has won numerous competitions as a soloist including the International Clarinet Society International Clarinet Competition, as well as prizes in chamber music – the Grand Prize in the Fischoff, Coleman, and Yellow Springs chamber music competitions, the silver medal in the 1997 Osaka International Chamber Music Competition and first prize in the 2002 Concert Artists Guild competition.  

Mr. Zoeter is the founding member of the acclaimed multi-award-winning clarinet, violin, cello, piano quartet Antares. From 1997-2014 with Antares, he annually gave performances around the United States at such prestigious venues as The Kennedy Center, La Jolla Chamber Music Society, Aspen Music Festival, Ensemble Music Society of Indianapolis, Carnegie Recital Hall, The Library of Congress, The Los Angeles Museum of Modern Art, and Cincinnati Chamber Music Society. 

Mr. Zoeter is also a frequent performer with such diverse groups as Trio Solisti, the Paragon Ragtime Orchestra, the University of Buffalo's Slee Sinfonietta, The Post Classical Ensemble, the Monadnock Music Festival, and the New Orchestra of Washington. Recent performances have included Donald Martino’s Triple Concerto in Buffalo, NY, and chamber music appearances in Strasbourg, France, and Medellin, Columbia, as well as an appearance at The Cactus Pear Music Festival in San Antonio, TX.

A committed teacher as well as performer, Mr. Zoeter serves as the Anna Lee Van Buren Professor of Clarinet at the Shenandoah Conservatory. His students from Shenandoah include numerous competition winners and can be found performing in professional ensembles such as the President’s Own Marine Band, teaching in university and public-school positions, and serving as music therapists throughout the country and abroad. In the summers he serves on the faculty of the Chamber Music and Composers Forum of the East at Colgate University.

Come visit him at his YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/SUclarinets

Bassoonist and educator Ryan D. Romine serves as Associate Professor of Bassoon and Music Theory at Shenandoah Conservatory (Winchester, VA, USA). An in-demand orchestral bassoonist, he regularly performs with the Roanoke Symphony Orchestra, Opera Roanoke, and the Maryland Symphony Orchestra. As a solo performer and avid researcher, he has dedicated himself to a career of presenting rediscovered works to audiences worldwide. His debut solo album of French contest pieces, Première, was hailed as “an absolutely brilliant CD…bringing back from oblivion some truly beautiful music, played with precision and lyricism…” and his rediscovery of Jacques Ibert’s Morceau de lecture for bassoon and piano in 2018 made international news. An active supporter of contemporary composers, Ryan has premiered numerous works—including his own—for audiences worldwide. Stemming from these interests, in 2019 he published Bassoon Reimagined, a comprehensive bassoon extended technique resource designed for both performers and composers. Ryan contributes to the academic side of his profession through his role as bassoon editor for the International Double Reed Society's quarterly journal, The Double Reed. Originally from Newark, OH, Ryan holds his undergraduate degree in music education from The Ohio State University and his MM and DMA in bassoon performance from Michigan State University. His primary teachers include Christopher Weait and Michael Kroth. For more info about Ryan and his musical endeavors, visit www.ryanromine.com.

Geoffrey Pilkington was appointed Principal Horn of the Washington National Opera at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in 2014, after ten years as Fourth Horn. From 2011 to 2023, he also served as Associate Principal/Third Horn of the Harrisburg Symphony Orchestra.

Geoffrey has appeared as Guest Principal with leading ensembles including the New York Philharmonic, Philadelphia Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony, and Auckland Philharmonia, where he spent six months in 2021. His orchestral appearances also include the Metropolitan Opera, National Symphony Orchestra, Cleveland Orchestra, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, and Seattle Symphony.

A graduate of The Juilliard School, Geoffrey studied with Julie Landsman and later at London’s Royal Academy of Music with Michael Thompson and Richard Watkins. He has been a grand-prize winner at the International Horn Competition of America, the Royal Academy of Music, and The Florida Orchestra Young Artist Concerto Competition.

An active soloist and chamber musician, Geoffrey has performed Schumann’s Konzertstück with the Harrisburg Symphony and appeared in multiple Wagner Ring cycles at the Kennedy Center and San Francisco Opera. His festival appearances include the Stellenbosch International Chamber Music Festival in South Africa. Geoffrey serves on the faculty of Shenandoah Conservatory and, during the summers, on the faculty of Brevard Music Center. He also regularly performs chamber music with The Van Buren Winds, Market Square Concert Series, and Kingston Chamber Music Festival.

Geoffrey lives in Fairfax, Virginia, with his wife Kathryn, Co-Artistic Director of Washington, D.C.’s Company E, and their two sons.

Hailed by the Washington post as “A pianist’s pianist”, Ryo has established himself as one of Canada’s shining artists. His success includes winning the gold medal at the 10th San Antonio International Piano Competition, where he was also given special recognition for a performance of the complete Chopin Ballades. Ryo has made concerto appearances with orchestras around the world including the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, the Montreal Metropolitan Orchestra, San Antonio Symphony, Minnesota Orchestra, Hartford Symphony Orchestra, the Moroccan Symphony Orchestra, and the Tokyo Kioi Symphonietta. 

A recipient of many scholarships and awards, Ryo has been endowed twice by the Canadian Arts Council with a grant as an Emerging Artist, and is a recipient of the Arthur Foote Scholarship from the Harvard Musical Association. He was also awarded the Sony Foundation of America Career Grant through the Salon de Virtuosi of New York, and a Washington Award by the S&R Foundation of Washington DC. 

Ryo Yanagitani received his Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the Yale School of Music and an Artist Diploma from the Cleveland Institute. He was an instructor for the Chamber Music Program at Yale, and was a visiting Assistant Professor of Piano at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. He is currently a Visiting Adjunct Assistant Professor of Collaborative Piano at Shenandoah Conservatory in Winchester, Virginia, and is Artistic Director of The Listening Room, a new concert series based in Washington DC.