Evening Recitals

(Information Subject to Change)

Sean Chen

Tuesday, March 19, 8:00 p.m.
Sean Chen, piano

Sean Chen, winner of the 2013 American Pianists Association’s DeHaan Classical Fellowship and bronze medalist of the 2014 Van Cliburn, is acclaimed for his “penetrating artistic intellect” (Audiophile Audition) and “ravishing tone and cogently contoured lines” (Gramophone).

Sean has appeared as soloist on return engagements with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, Fort Worth Symphony and Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra, made debuts with the Philadelphia Chamber Orchestra and with the orchestras of Milwaukee, Phoenix, Hartford, Santa Fe, Tucson, North Carolina, San Diego, the New West Symphony and many others in the U.S. and South America. Sean has worked with Gerard Schwarz, Leonard Slatkin, Miguel Harth-Bedoya, Karina Canellakis, Nicholas McGegan, Marcelo Lehninger, Michael Butterman, George Hansen, Michael Stern and many others. Solo and chamber music recitals have taken him to Jordan Hall in Boston, the Dame Myra Hess Series in Chicago, the Lied Center in Lincoln, New York City’s SubCulture, The Smithsonian, Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw and dozens of other venues throughout the world.

The Millsap artist-in-residence at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, Sean received undergraduate and graduate degrees at Juilliard. At the Yale School of Music, he earned an artist diploma as a George W. Miles Fellowship recipient, and a student of Hung-Kuan Chen and Tema Blackstone. His former teachers include Jerome Lowenthal, Matti Raekallio, and Edward Francis.


Saturday, March 16, 7:30 p.m.
Opening Session Concert

Sonya Headlam

Sonya Headlam, soprano

Soprano Sonya Headlam performs music that spans centuries, from the Baroque era to the present. Recent highlights include her solo debuts with the Philadelphia Orchestra, Apollo’s Fire, the North Carolina Symphony, the Milwaukee Symphony and the New World Symphony. Upcoming solo debuts include performances with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic and the National Arts Centre Orchestra in Ottawa, Canada.

Committed to contemporary repertoire, she has performed pieces such as Yaz Lancaster’s song cycle ouroboros, Tyshawn Sorey’s Monochromatic Light (afterlight) and Julia Wolfe’s Steel Hammer, among others. A passionate recitalist, Headlam performs a diverse array of art songs, from popular standards to lesser-known gems. Equally comfortable on the opera stage, her favorite role portrayals include Fiordiligi in Mozart’s Così fan tutte and Musetta in Puccini’s La bohème. Headlam holds a Doctor of Musical Arts from Rutgers University, where she received the Michael Fardink Memorial Award. She holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Miami University.

Martin Néron

Martin Néron, piano

Martin Néron is faculty at Westminster Choir College and artistic director of the Vocalis Consort, an ensemble which strives to showcase overlooked vocal works. He designed and managed the Canto Latino CyberChallenge Competition in 2021, which showcased vocal repertoire from Latin America. Martin has held residencies at Washington State University Pullman; SUNY Potsdam; University of Kentucky, Lexington; Tennessee Tech University and Fundación Armonía (Ecuador), and he led master classes and lectures at Princeton, Rowan and Butler Universities; Ohio State University, Columbus; NATS and Universidad Central del Ecuador among others. He was on the faculty at the Taos Opera Institute (2019–2021), and Vice President of the Joy in Singing Foundation (2017–2019). Praised as “an attentive partner” (Opera News), Martin has collaborated on several recordings of art songs. His scholarly work is featured in the Journal of Singing and Leyerle Publications. He holds degrees from the Manhattan School of Music (DMA), Westminster Choir College (MM) and Université de Montréal (BM).