NEMPAC - The North End Music and Performing Arts Center

Meet NEMPAC's Faculty

Hilary Noble Saxophone	Hilary Nobleunconventional melding of progressive jazz and Afro-Cuban rhythm flows naturally from the reconciliation of his two instrumental voices: tenor saxophone and congas. His first CD as a leader, Noble Savage, was released in September 2002 on Whaling City Sound. It was co-produced by Bobby Sanabria and features Sanabria and guest saxophonist Charles Neville. He has performed all over the U.S., as well as in the Netherlands, Austria, France, and Switzerland. Artists he has played and recorded with include Bobby Sanabria's Ascencion, Charles Neville, Bo Diddley, Eric Krasno, Entrain, Max Creek, Bob Moses, Robin Kenyatta, Clifford Thornton, and Alvin Queen.
Greg de Bourgknecht Guitar & Bass	Greg de Bourgknecht Guitar, Bass and Theory instructor, received his bachelors of music degree from Berklee College of Music in 1993 and has been teaching professionally ever since. Greg's students have gone on to study at Berklee, Julliard and MI, and on to performance and music industry careers in the U.S., Europe, Israel and Asia. Greg's teaching styles address traditional conservatory methods and Rock methods as well as more informal methods and teaching methods from various cultures focusing on the student's personal growth and development through music. Greg is a multi-instrumentalist whose instruments include Oud, Diatonic Accordion and Tres Cubano and Greg has lectured on the musics of the middle-east and eastern Europe at Emerson College 2001-2004.
Gary Fieldman Percussion	Gary Fieldman, (garyfieldman.com), currently lives in Boston Massachusetts where he is active in a musical community both diverse and eclectic. He is a faculty member of the Preparatory and Continuing Education Divisions of the New England Conservatory of Music, as well as the North End Music and Performing Arts Center. Mr. Fieldman has written and recorded numerous compositions. As a founding member of Know Trio, he recorded his CD length narration with music composition, Ratty's Loving Surprise, and has also recorded a collection of shorter compositions on compilation project Dimension Traveler. Gary can be found on numerous labels including Biba, Sachimay, Innova, and also on Rotary Records with "Field Effect", the Gary Fieldman Quartet. Mr. Fieldman's formal education began with Warren Myers, with whom he later played next to for many years as section percussionist with the Springfield Symphony Orchestra, Springfield, Massachusetts, and then earned a bachelor's degree in performance at Boston University, studying with Tom Gauger. Private studies in composition with Karen Tarlow were significant, and later, he received a master's in jazz studies from the New England Conservatory of Music. There he studied with Bob Moses, Fred Buda, and Bevan Manson. Personal investigations of the great jazz masters, and the music of the European classical tradition have been mainstays in Mr. Fieldman's approach, which attempts to define commonality in seemingly diverse arenas.
Sarah Glenn Violin	Violinist Sarah Glenn regularly performs with the New England Philharmonic and the Park Street Chamber Players. Sarah works in the Education and Community programs department at the Boston Symphony Orchestra, which provides musical opportunities for underserved families and communities. Sarah holds a Master's of Music in Violin Performance and String Pedagogy from the Longy School of Music and a Bachelor's of Music from Baldwin-Wallace College. Her primary teachers have included Eric Rosenblith, Julian Ross, David Russell and Steve Majeske. Sarah lives in the North End and coordinates private music lessons for NEMPAC. She enjoys teaching students of all ages and ability levels in private and group settings.
Ashleigh Gordon Viola	Violist, Ashleigh Gordon, has performed throughout the United States, Paris, France and Florence, Italy on Radio Papesse. She is an active performer of classical and contemporary music with a solo and chamber music repertoire ranging from Bach, Schubert and Debussy to Cage, Gubadulina and Andreissen. Ashleigh has performed with the Callithumpium Consort in Jordan Hall, Juventas New Music Ensemble, New England Philharmonic and "Ensemble l(a," all of whom specialize in contemporary music. Her strong desire to promote new music has led her to work with such composers as Steve Reich, David Lang, Augusta Read Thomas, Christian Wolff, Frederic Rzewski and Krzysztof Penderecki. Off stage, Ashleigh maintains an active violin and viola studio at the South Shore Conservatory and North End Music and Performing Arts Center located in Boston's own Little Italy. Also active in the orchestral field, Ashleigh has performed with the Aspen Music Festival Orchestra (CO), Atlantic Symphony (MA), Pierre Monteux School Orchestra (ME), Ohio Light Opera Company and Glens Falls Symphony (NY), with whom she has recorded under Mode Record Label. Ashleigh is a recent graduate of the New England Conservatory where she earned her Masters Degree. Her primary teachers have included Carol Rodland, Louise Zeitlin and Jeffrey Irvine with supplemental solo and chamber music studies with Peter Slowik, Karen Ritscher, Eric Rosenblith and Mai Motobuchi of the Borromeo String Quartet.
Sepp Hammer Voice	Baritone Sepp Hammer, originally from California, resides in Boston where he enjoys a growing career in opera and oratorio. Most recently, Sepp was a member of the Young Artist Program of Opera New Jersey, where he covered the role of Dandini in La Cenerentola. Last spring he appeared as Aeneas in Weston OperaFest's spring production of Dido and Aeneas and as David in Barber's A Hand of Bridge with Opera Boston Underground. With Intermezzo Chamber Opera, he created the role of Otto ten Broek in the world premiere of The Inman Diaries. Other training includes the Bonfils-Stanton Young Artist Program of the Central City Opera. While at Central City, Sepp was heard in the role of a Guest in that company's production of The Saint of Bleecker Street. Sepp completed his master's degree at New England Conservatory, where he performed the roles of Gideon March and Dashwood in the New England premier of Mark Adamo's Little Women with NEC Opera Theatre. He is also an experienced singer of Mozart, having performed the roles of Papageno, Masetto, Leporello, Don Giovanni, Count Almaviva, Nardo in La Finta Giardiniera, and Don Alfonso. Equally at home in oratorio, Sepp has performed in Bach's St. Matthew Passion as the First Pontifex under Kent Nagano in Sao Paolo and Rio de Janiero, Brazil, and had appeared as a soloist in two Bach cantatas with the Brookline Chorus.
Megan Roth Voice & Piano	Megan Roth, mezzo-soprano, made her debut with Boston Midsummer Opera this August as Dorabella in Cosi fan tutte. Prior to that engagement, Ms. Roth spent the 2008-2009 season presenting recitals of art song, cabaret, and opera throughout the northeast and in New York. She also performed as the alto soloist in the Handel Messiah, Mozart Requiem, and Mozart Vesperae solennes de confessore with the Old North Senior Choir & Festival Chorus in Marblehead, MA. Additionally, she placed 3rd in the Lakes Region Opera Vocal Competition in Concord, NH. Finally, in August 2008, she performed the title role in Rossini's La Cenerentola, with Opera del West in Natick, MA. She enjoys teaching voice and piano to students of all ages and ability levels!
Xiaolan Ruan Piano	Xiaolan Ruan, piano, graduated from the Longy School of Music with a graduate diploma in piano performance. She has taught for 18 years in the greater Boston area. She teaches students of all ages and ability levels.
Jeremy Sarzana Guitar	Jeremy Sarzana graduated from Berklee in 2001 as a guitar principal. He is currently a substitute teacher for Boston Public Schools as well as a counselor at an after school program at the Nazzaro Center. He's given private music instruction for several years as well as at NEMPAC for nearly a year. As lead guitarist, Jeremy has played in some Boston area based bands.
Ginevra Ventre Cello	Cellist Ginevra Ventre appears most frequently as a member of the cello-piano ensemble, the Elegua Duo, specializing in bringing classical music performances to unconventional settings across the United States. Recent concert highlights include a 2008 Elegua Duo summer tour of the Adirondacks, and Malcolm Peyton's Composers' Series in Jordan Hall. Ms. Ventre's highly diverse solo and ensemble repertoire ranges from Cavalli to Bach, Chopin, Reich and the music of contemporary American singer/songwriters. Especially active on the contemporary music scene, she has worked with some of today's most distinguished composers, such as Krzysztof Penderecki and William Bolcom. Ginevra's recording credits include Elliott Carter's songs for soprano and orchestra for Bridge Records, and tracks for the Cleveland folk band Expecting Rain's album Saint Cecilia Sound System. Hailing from Silver Spring, Maryland, Ms. Ventre moved to Italy at 16, studying cello for three years at the Conservatorio Nazionale di Santa Cecilia. In 2007, she received her Bachelor of Music degree summa cum laude from Baldwin-Wallace College, where she was music director of the contemporary music group Ensemble L)a. Ms. Ventre is a master's degree student and Community Performances and Partnerships Fellow at the New England Conservatory, studying with cellist Yeesun Kim, and has coached with renowned soloists and chamber musicians such as Anner Bylsma and Bernard Greenhouse. Beyond music, Ms. Ventre is currently interning with the Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts of Massachusetts.
Ben Xia Piano	Ben Xia has more than 10 years experiences in teaching piano. Born and brought up in a musical family, Xia studied and practiced piano since 6 years old. He received his professional piano education from East China Normal University, and had been a private student of Prof. Zheng Shuxin, one of the best piano educators in China. Xia combines the modern and classical teaching methods, and customizes them for different students.