Mitchell Giambalvo

piano

Mitchell Giambalvo is a recent transplant to the Salt Lake City area from the East Coast. Moving here in late August of 2019, Giambalvo is currently employed by the University of Utah where he coaches and collaborates with the University Graduate Vocal Quartet. Aside from that, Giambalvo is a freelance pianist at the university where he coaches more than 20 singers weekly, and works with instrumental students and singers on their degree recitals.

Giambalvo has been quite active in the area with recent performances at BYU for their Trumpet Festival Artist Recital, playing a guest artist Trumpet recital at the University of Utah with artist Jean Laurenz, and working with flutist Gina Luciani for the Utah Flute Associations flute day at Westminster College.

Upcoming performances include playing a recital with the winners of the recent Utah Flute Association Sonata Competition, three recitals for the clarinet faculty search at the University of Utah, as well as a trombone recital with guest artist John Sipher.

Giambalvo grew up in Pennsylvania and has spent the last 15 years in Florida. He received his Bachelors in Piano Performance from Florida State University, his Masters from Eastern Michigan University, and his Doctorate from FSU. After finishing his DM, Giambalvo returned to FSU to complete a second Masters in Collaboration. He has been on faculty at Troy University in Alabama. During the summers Giambalvo teaches on piano faculty at Red Lodge Music Festival in Montana as well as Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp in Michigan.

Bix Hollenbach

trumpet

Dwayne “Bix” Hollenbach is an in-demand studio musician and has performed with the Utah Symphony, Ballet West, Reno Philharmonic, and Reno Chamber Orchestra, and toured the country for 5 years with Broadway productions. He has performed at the Grand Ole Opry as well as other wonderful venues across the United States. Mr. Hollenbach holds a Master’s Degree in Trumpet Performance from Manhattan School of Music, and spent 7 years in New York City as a freelance trumpet performer and teacher, and pursued Doctoral studies at University of Kentucky.

He previously taught trumpet at Temple University and University of Nevada Reno. In addition to being an active performer and teacher, Mr. Hollenbach is the brass caption head at American Fork High School. He is a dedicated father to a musical family including his wife Emily and their four children.

Michael McCawley

tuba

Born in England and raised in Canada, Michael has called Utah home since 1990. He began playing tuba at the age of 12. Michaels first choice was trombone but as he was the only student tall enough to hold the tuba the choice was made for him. He earned a degree in Music Education from the University of Saskatchewan and a Masters Degree in Performance from BYU. Michael is Principal Tuba with the Ballet West Orchestra (1993-present) and is a regular substitute and extra with the Utah Symphony (1990-present). A founding member of both the Utah Premiere Brass (a British style Brass Band) and the Utah Wind Symphony, Michael’s performance interests are diverse. In addition to teaching at the Utah Valley University. Michael also teaches Tuba at the University of Utah. Previously he has taught at Weber State and Utah State Universities and maintains a large private studio. Michael is also an active chamber musician and has also played for numerous recording projects.

Craig Moore

bass trombone

Craig Moore earned the Bachelor of Music Degree in trombone performance from the Elder Conservatorium (Australia), the Master of Music and Post-Masters Certificate in trombone performance from DePaul University. His primary teachers were Charlie Vernon, Floyd Cooley, Robert Hower and Howard Parkinson. Craig has performed with the Utah, Virginia and Richmond Symphonies, the Utah Chamber Orchestra (Ballet West), the Adelaide and Queensland Symphonies in Australia, the Auckland Philharmonic in New Zealand, and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra?s MusicNOW series. He was also a regular member of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago. Craig is the adjunct trombone professor at Utah Valley University and Westminster College, and formerly was a member of the brass faculty at Christopher Newport University.

Ryan Nielsen

trumpet

Praised for the "breathtaking singing quality of his sound" by jazz icon John McNeil and as a "musician of the highest order" by renowned orchestral trumpeter Charles Daval, Ryan Nielsen began performing professionally at 17, and has since been a guest artist at concerts and festivals throughout the United States.

His debut album, a joint project with his mentor, Ra Kalam Bob Moses, is called Gift of Breath. It was named a 2017 Recommended New Release by the New York City Jazz Record. Ra Kalam, whose previous work has been selected by the Smithsonian as a landmark in jazz history, called Gift of Breath, "One of the deepest, most soulful and creative recordings I've ever done."

In 2016, Nielsen was named trumpeter in the Kobie Watkins Grouptet. Their first album, "Movement," was released on Origin Records to international critical acclaim. The Chicago Tribune named it one of the ten best albums of 2018, alongside artists like Joe Lovano, Stefon Harris, and Dave Douglas.

As a classical artist, Nielsen co-founded the Teton Brass Quintet with renowned trumpeter Charles Daval (formerly Assistant Principal, Boston Symphony Orchestra). He has also performed and recorded with the internationally acclaimed Summit Brass.

While at Arizona State University, Nielsen studied with David Hickman, Mike Kocour, and Mike Crotty. He received the Doc Severinsen award for outstanding classical and jazz trumpet. He completed his doctoral studies at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, where he studied with John McNeil, Ra Kalam Bob Moses, and Tom Rolfs.

Maddy Tarantelli

horn

Dr. Maddy Tarantelli is Assistant Professor of Horn and the Brass Coordinator at Utah Valley University where she teaches private lessons, brass performance class, brass techniques, pedagogy & literature, music theory, and introduction to music.

Since moving to Utah in 2019, Dr. Tarantelli has performed with the Utah Symphony, Ballet West, the Boise Philharmonic. As a chamber musician, Dr. Tarantelli is a founding member of the Trilogy Brass Trio based out of Kansas City and has performed with Trilogy at the International Women’s Brass Conference. Dr. Tarantelli has received grants from the UMKC Womens Council and American Scandinavian. She spent her summers teaching theory and performing with faculty ensembles at Interlochen Arts Camp from 2015-2017. She aged out of DCI in 2011 playing mellophone with the Glassmen Drum & Bugle Corps.

Dr. Tarantelli earned a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in horn performance from the University of Missouri-Kansas City, a Master of Music in horn performance from the University of Miami, and a Bachelor of Arts in Music Education from Florida Gulf Coast University. Her primary teachers include Marty Hackleman, Sam Pilafian, and Kirsten Bendixen-Mahoney. Additionally, she has studied intensively with Julie Landsman, Frøydis Ree Wekre, and Denise Tryon.