Ladies Musical Club: Woodwind Duos, Soprano Songs, & Violin Sonata

• Julie Shankland, clarinet
• Eric Shankland, bassoon
• Gail Perstein, English horn
• Bernard Shapiro, oboe
• Julia Bezems, soprano
• Emily Acri, violin
• Li-Cheng Hung, piano

About Ladies Musical Club of Seattle

http://www.lmcseattle.org/

About Julie Shankland, clarinet

Julie Shankland has played clarinet since marching band in the Ohio snow. Since moving to Washington, Julie has played in the UW Concert Band, Eastside Symphony, West Seattle Community Orchestras, Rain City Symphony, and various chamber music camps. Julie is an adult student of Jennifer Nelson and recently learned to play bass clarinet. Julie works in the Office of General Counsel at the Washington State Bar Association.

About Eric Shankland, bassoon

Eric Shankland has been playing bassoon since age 15. He played in the NCR band and the Youth Philharmonic in Dayton, Ohio. He studied with Arthur Grossman and played in the University Symphony at the University of Washington, and currently studies with Paul Rafanelli of the Seattle Symphony. He was principal bassoon in the Eastside Symphony (Redmond) for fifteen years. Eric is a research scientist at the University of Washington.

About Gail Perstein, English horn

Gail Perstein has a Bachelor of Science from Springfield College, a Bachelor of Music from PLU, a Master of Music from UW (both in oboe performance) and a Master of Arts in Historical Musicology, also from UW. She splits her time between teaching oboe privately, performing on oboe/English horn, and performing early music. She played in both early and classical music groups at PLU and UW, and continues performing in various settings, ranging from Tacoma Opera to local church services. Ms. Perstein performed for many years with her own medieval group, Chansonnier, using period instruments. She was a member of the Board of Trustees of the Ladies Musical Club of Seattle for 22 years and chair of the Frances Walton Competition Committee for 23 years.

About Bernard Shapiro, oboe

Bernard Shapiro was principal oboe of the Seattle Symphony and Seattle Opera from 1961-2004, participating in over 80 Seattle Symphony recordings. He appeared as soloist with the Seattle Symphony, Philadelphia Quartet, Balamian Quartet, Seoul Symphony, Korean Broadcast Symphony, and Bellevue Symphony. He was co-founder of the New York Baroque Quintet, English horn with the Royal Ballet Touring Orchestra (London), and received the Fromm foundation Fellowship for Contemporary Music Performance at Princeton University and Tanglewood (1960). Mr. Shapiro has been a member of the faculty at University of Washington, Cornish School, Pacific Lutheran University, Western Washington University, and Seattle Pacific University. At PLU, he participated in many programs as a member of the faculty wind quintet, the Camas Quintet. He graduated from the Music and Art High School of New York City, and holds both a Bachelor of Music and Master of Music Education from Manhattan School of Music. In addition to oboe, he also enjoys playing cello.

About Julia Bezems, soprano

Julia Bezems is excited to join the Bellevue Chamber Chorus for their 2023-24 Season as Student Assistant Conductor. Hailing from Allentown, PA, Julia holds Bachelors degrees in voice performance and computer science from the University of Michigan, and she is now active as a choral conductor and ensemble singer in the Seattle area. While at the University of Michigan, she performed frequently as a soprano with the Chamber Choir and as a soloist with the University Baroque Orchestra. Since moving to the Seattle area in 2022, she has sung with Seattle Pro Musica, Opus 7 Vocal Ensemble, and Northwest Symphony Orchestra, and Radiance vocal ensemble. She serves as the co-leader of the Seattle branch of Crescendo North America, an international organization for Christian musicians, and she freelances as a choral conductor for projects with Crescendo and other community engagements. Julia works as a software engineer at Microsoft, and she enjoys hiking and studying theology.

About Emily Acri, violin

Violinist Dr. Emily Acri was born and raised in Chicago's North Shore. She received her undergraduate training from Indiana University, studying with Mimi Zweig. She studied with Danielle Belen at the University of Michigan to earn her Master's, and completed her Doctorate of Music with Ron Patterson at the University of Washington. Throughout much of the pandemic, she worked as an ArtistYear Fellow in the Roaring Fork Valley of Colorado, integrating music into the academic school day. She worked as an Elementary Music Educator and was a violin teacher with Aspen Music Festival and School's AfterWorks Beginning Strings Program. She performed as concertmaster of the High Country Sinfonia Ensemble, and performed in various chamber ensembles that provided concerts for the community. Emily regularly performs solo and ensemble works from the Baroque era to the music of today. Her teaching experience spans from beginning students to young artists, with specific interests in coaching chamber music and orchestral repertoire. Emily attributes her musical inspiration to her late Grandfather, Robert Acri, a legendary Chicago pianist.

About Li-Cheng Hung, piano

https://www.lichenghungpiano.com/