Leslie Stifelman
Peabody Award–winner Leslie Stifelman enjoys a varied musical career as a conductor and pianist, in addition to her work as a producer and educator. Ms. Stifelman is currently the Music Director for the Tony- and Grammy-winning Broadway hit musical Chicago. As the show’s conductor, she has been responsible for many performances of the longest-running revival in the history of Broadway and has worked with many stars of the show. In her role as conductor and pianist, Ms. Stifelman has worked with The Philadelphia Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, Seattle Symphony Orchestra, Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, The Colorado Symphony, and many others. She has performed with some of the world’s leading musicians, including Marin Alsop, Dawn Upshaw, Mark O’Connor, and Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg.
Ms. Stifelman most recently joined Maestra Alsop and the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra as Music Supervisor for the orchestra’s Carnegie Hall and Kennedy Center production of Bernstein’s Mass in honor of the composer’s 90th birthday. She also collaborated with the BSO last season in developing a community engagement component for the orchestra’s Too Hot to Handel presentations at Meyerhoff Symphony Hall in Baltimore.
A fervent advocate for arts education, Ms. Stifelman is the President and Creative Director of Symfunny Toons Inc., a company dedicated to the development of television programs and interactive products to help children learn about music. In this role, Ms. Stifelman served as executive producer for the Peabody Award–winning HBO documentary television series The Music in Me.
Bob Christianson
Bob Christianson is a composer, arranger, keyboard player, and conductor. This past year, he has been busy writing and recording his newest concert piece, entitled A Christmas Carol— The Concert, with his collaborator, lyricist, and book writer Alisa Hauser. It is a new version of the timeless Dickens ghost story, written expressly for the concert stage. It uses a full orchestra and chorus, three male soloists, a narrator, and a rock-pop rhythm section. It is due to release this month.
Mr. Christianson was the most called-upon composer for the HBO series Sex and the City, was nominated for an Emmy Award for his music for ABC Sports, and has scored many series for the Discovery family of networks, including Secrets of the National Parks and Blue Angels: A Year in the Life. His television credits also include this season’s Mysteries at the Museum (Travel Channel) and the “NCAA Basketball Theme” for CBS.
As a successful studio synthesist, Mr. Christianson has recorded with such artists as Aretha Franklin, Chaka Khan, Jan Hammer, Judy Collins, Diana Ross, and Rupert Holmes. His orchestra works have been performed by the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, The Colorado Symphony, The Concordia Orchestra, Florida Orchestra, and others.
Clifford Carter
Keyboardist and composer Clifford Carter has performed and recorded with legendary artists ranging from Art Garfunkel, James Taylor, Linda Ronstadt, Natalie Cole, Bette Midler, Carly Simon, and Patti Scialfa to Chris Botti, Dolly Parton, Paul Simon, George Benson, Narada Michael Walden, Betty Buckley, and Paul Shaffer’s Late Show with David Letterman band. From 1990 to 2001, Mr. Carter was a member of singer-songwriter James Taylor’s touring and recording band. He worked on numerous Taylor releases, including the 1997 Grammy Award–winning Hourglass. He released a solo CD, Walkin’ Into the Sun, in 1993, which featured original instrumental and vocal compositions. His keyboard work has contributed to numerous film scores, including You’ve Got Mail, A Chorus Line, The Object of My Affection, The Muppets Take Manhattan, the remake of Shaft, and the recently filmed Peace, Love, and Misunderstanding, featuring Jane Fonda and Catherine Keener. Every year since 1993, Mr. Carter has been a featured pianist in performances of Too Hot to Handel.
Mike Pope
Since 1993, Mike Pope has become a fixture on the New York jazz scene. He has performed or recorded with some of the world’s most venerated musicians, including Michael and Randy Brecker, Mike Stern, Joe Locke, Chuck Loeb, Steve Smith, and Jeff “Tain” Watts. He has toured internationally as a member of several high-profile projects, including Chick Corea Elektric Band, David Sanborn’s band, The Manhattan Transfer, and Bill Bruford’s Earthworks. Playing acoustic upright and electric bass, he has released two albums: Walk Your Dogma and The Lay of the Land. Mr. Pope provides instruction through clinics and his own jazz camp. He has appeared as a special guest artist at events such as Steve Bailey’s Bass at the Beach, Victor Wooten’s Bass/Nature Camp, Bass Day, and Euro Bass Day alongside bass titans Matthew Garrison and Dominique Di Piazza. He is a former faculty member of the Bass Collective.
Clint de Ganon
Clint de Ganon has played on more than 1,000 recording sessions and 75 tours. His versatility is reflected in his work with artists, including Bill Preston, Kid Rock, Christopher Cross, Orleans, Phoebe Snow, John Tropea, Tom Scott, Edgar Winter, Bob James, The Blues Brothers, Chuck Loeb, David Pack, Linda Eder, Dionne Warwick, Mark Cohn, Art Garfunkel, Fantasia, Burt Bacharach, Christine Ebersole, Cissy Houston, Elvis Costello, Cornell Dupree, Brook Benton, Ann-Margret, Warren Hill, Michael Franks, and the Saturday Night Live band. He also created the drum parts for four original Broadways shows, including the Grammy- and Tony-winning hits Hairspray and Footloose. For more than a decade, Mr. de Ganon has been the featured drum soloist in annual performances of Too Hot to Handel.
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