July 13, 7:00PM: Ho Yin Kwok is described by Classical Voice of North Carolina (CVNC) as an “impressive conductor…outstanding in his attention to detail and his command of the big picture.” Kwok is a three-time winner of the American prize, as well as the winner of Vincent C. LaGuardia, Jr. Conducting Competition and International Conductors Workshop and Competition. He is currently Director of Orchestral Activities at Ithaca College, New York, and Artistic Director of Mississippi Valley Orchestra in Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota. Kwok has guest conducted the New World Symphony (FL), Gwinnett Symphony Chamber Orchestra (GA), Arapahoe Philharmonic (CO), Eastern Festival Orchestra (NC), among other ensembles. Previously, he served as Assistant Conductor of the Duluth Superior Symphony Orchestra, Assistant Conductor of Collegium Musicum Hong Kong, Director of the Duluth Superior Youth Symphony, Music Director University of Minnesota Opera Theatre, and Cover Conductor of Minnesota Orchestra.

July 20, 7:00PM: Erin Aldridge is a highly sought-after performer and pedagogue performing throughout the US, Europe, Asia, and South America. She has won numerous awards as both soloist and chamber musician, and has been featured throughout Europe, South America, and the United States. She has been broadcast on NPR, BBC, Minnesota Public Radio, and Wisconsin Public Radio. She holds degrees from Indiana Universty, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her primary teachers include Mimi Zweig, Josef Gingold, Nellie Shkolnikova, Rostaslav Dubinsky, Efim Boico, and Vartan Manoogian. In 2003, Dr. Aldridge joined the music faculty at the University of Wisconsin-Superior. She is the Concertmaster of the Duluth Superior Symphony Orchestra and Lyric Opera of the North Orchestra, was a long-time faculty member of the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music Summer String Academy and is a member of the bluegrass/Americana/folk-based band Danny Frank and the Smoky Gold.

July 27, 7:00PM: Lorena Suarez, a doctoral candidate specializing in orchestral conducting at the University of Arizona Fred Fox School of Music, holds a Master of Music degree in orchestral conducting from the University of Minnesota Duluth. During her time at Minnesota she served as assistant conductor of the Duluth Superior Symphony Orchestra under the mentorship of Dirk Meyer and in 2020 took on the role of chorus master for Tosca at the Northern Lights Festival. The following year, she served as assistant conductor for a full production of Die Fledermaus at the Berlin Opera Academy in Kandersteg, Switzerland. In May 2022, Suarez conducted the Children-Youth Philharmonic Orchestra at the SINFIN Armonía Music Festival in Loja, Ecuador. Additionally, she conducted a masterclass during her residency. Suarez earned a bachelor’s degree in orchestral conducting from Conservatorio Luigi Cherubini di Firenze in Italy. She conducted the Piccola Orchestra delle Favole, an ensemble that accompanied theatrical productions for children. She was assistant conductor to Johanna Knauf at Coro ed Orchestra Desiderio da Settignano. In her native Ecuador, Suarez achieved a bachelor’s degree in jazz piano performance from Universidad San Francisco de Quito and holds diplomas in classical piano and guitar from Conservatorio Jaime Mola in Quito.