Community
Members
Derek Wesley Arnold
A native of Raleigh, N.C., Derek began playing piano at age four, teaching himself by ear and playing what he heard on the radio and around the house. Derek began his professional career as a drummer at age 15, and by 19 he was one of the most sought after bassists in the Triangle area of central North Carolina. After touring and recording with multiple acts across the United States and Canada, Derek could no longer suppress his craving to compose and his eagerness to learn as much as possible about the highest calibers of music and its performers. Derek has composed for a variety of ensembles at UNCSA—from large orchestras to numerous chamber groups, as well as several pieces for solo piano. Derek made his public conducting debut in the Fall of 2015 at the Chancellor's Convocation and at the Chancellor's Installation, when he assembled and conducted the Fighting Pickle Chorale in several performances of the UNCSA Alma Mater, which he wrote.
Derek graduated from UNCSA in 2016 with a Bachelor of Music degree in composition as a student of Dr. Lawrence Dillon. He is now pursuing a Master of Music degree at UNCSA as a student of Mr. Kenneth Frazelle.
Timothy Bachman
Tim is a saxophonist from Buffalo, N.Y., currently studying at UNCSA—where he is pursuing a M.M. in saxophone performance and serves as Teaching Assistant for the saxophone studio. As a performer, he works to promote and perform the music of living composers and deformalizing the classical concert experience. He has performed in several new music festivals, including Bang on a Can Summer Music Festival and Ethos New Music Festival. His current work at UNCSA includes restarting a concert series that features the music of several styles and genres of the 21st and the late 20th centuries. He also serves as the Financial Manager & Faculty Liaison for the Cross the Line Project.
Ebony Cawthorne
Born and raised in Queens, N.Y., Ebony moved to Greensboro, N.C., in 2008. She has always been a storyteller and became involved in the arts starting at a very young age. She delved into film as her main artistic medium in high school. Ebony is currently studying filmmaking with a concentration in producing at UNCSA. Ebony has written, directed and produced several short films during her time at UNCSA and is also working independently to create her own pieces outside of school. Aside from working in film, Ebony is passionate about involving herself with other art forms, such as improv dance and spoken word sessions, which provide inspiration for her own future works.
Quashawn Chadwick
Quashawn has been teaching since the age of 16 under the guidance of his childhood
teacher Laura Koontz. He also teaches students in Winston-Salem and Greensboro through
service with ArtistCorps. Through ArtistCorps, Quashawn offers arts exposure and instruction,
and integrates the arts into other areas of students’ studies. Quashawn has a Master
of Music degree from UNCSA and is currently pursuing a doctoral degree at UNC Greensboro.
Peyton Clifford
Raised in Charlotte, N.C., Peyton’s parents exposed him from an early age to everything from classical opera to The Rolling Stones to punk rock. Throughout high school he developed a serious interest in folk, jazz and classical music, leading him to study composition at UNCSA. He is a firm believer in music as both a political/social tool and as a basic human necessity. What excites him most about being a 21st-century composer is the ability to constantly explore new sounds, new interactions between acoustic and electronic music and new ways to collaborate with other artists. He enjoys cooking, playing accordion, learning about history, singing along poorly to David Bowie songs and a few other things.
Elizabeth Cook
Elizabeth is a student in the Professional Artist Certificate program, studying with Dr. Brooks Whitehouse. Originally from Durham, N.C., she received a bachelor’s degree in music from the State University of New York at Purchase College, where she studied with Julia Lichten.
In 2012, she moved to Israel to study with cellists Zvi Plesser and Michal Korman at the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance. She lived in Jerusalem for three years, where she freelanced, studied and taught privately. Elizabeth participated in the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance’s annual Chamber Music Competition and won first place in May 2012 and third place in May 2013. She also performed in a chamber music concert that was broadcast live on the Israeli classical music radio station “Kol HaMusica.”
In 2014, Elizabeth attended Mannes College of Music at The Newschool University, where she studied with cellist Marcy Rosen for two years. In the summer of 2017, Elizabeth worked with an organization called Sounds of Palestine, a community based music school that uses education to improve the lives of Palestinian children.
Cynthia Cukiernik
Cynthia is an artist and educator from Pfafftown, N.C. She has recently worked with
Peppercorn Theater at Kaleideum and Sawtooth School For Visual Art. She loves to teach
photography, as well as bookmaking, design, drawing, experimental painting techniques,
performance, story-building and more.
Cynthia loved art from an early age and attended the UNCSA High School Visual Arts Program. She has a B.A. in Cultural Anthropology from UNC-Greensboro and has studied photography
at Penland School of Crafts. Cynthia has photographed all over the world. She has
worked in both digital and film photography, as well as with historical processes
such as cyanotype, gum bichromate and daguerreotype. Cynthia is inspired by the inner
workings of the creative process and the joy of discovery.
Michael Culbertson
A native of Washington, D.C., Michael received his undergraduate degree in Psychology at UNC-Greensboro in 2017. He is now pursuing a Masters in Screenwriting at UNCSA.
Michael believes that everyone is a great storyteller, and believes storytelling can be a great outlet for creative energy. Since a young child, he’s had a fascination with poetry, films and television, and always fixated on how the story was told through a visual medium.
Before attending UNCSA, he assisted in writing screenplays for indie short films produced by his colleagues at UNC-Chapel Hill, and knew that he wanted to make a career of it. Michael believes that his extensive knowledge in the field of Psychology, paired with his passion for filmmaking, will help him dive deep into his characters and strive to bring magic onto the screen for audiences to love or relate to.
Amanda Goodwin
A Virginia native, Amanda has been playing the violin since she was nine years old. She received a Bachelor’s degree in String Performance at James Madison University, where she studied under Dr. Wanchi Huang. Currently, she is attending UNCSA to pursue a Master of Music in Violin Performance.
Amanda has attended several music festivals, most notably the Philadelphia International Music Festival, where she had the opportunity to study under members of the Philadelphia Symphony Orchestra. Orchestra rehearsals were led by renowned conductor Cristian Macelaru and chamber coachings were led by violist Renard Edwards.
Her past work experience includes employment at a stringed instrument rental shop, where she privately taught young violinists and was trained to perform minor repairs on instruments of the violin family. She aspires to teach violin as a college professor in the future.
Moriah Hall
Moriah is a native of Washington D.C., and moved to Charlotte, N.C. at the age of eight. In high school, she picked up a camera and decided within a month that filmmaking was the path for her. In addition to teaching herself how to edit movies, she fell in love with the idea of teaching youth how to tell their own stories through visual storytelling.
As a current fourth-year film producer, she's excited for her final year at UNCSA. When not in school, she enjoys going on new adventures around the Winston-Salem area. To date, her favorite adventure has been falling into a waterfall.
Tia Hicks
Tia was born in Asheville, N.C., but grew up in a small military town in Georgia. She is currently a screenwriter in the UNCSA Filmmaking program.
Tia spent most of her childhood getting lost in the world of literature. Her interest in stories led her to journalism and book clubs and eventually, she discovered a passion for storytelling through screenwriting. She’s written short films, feature films and spec scripts, but prefers working on her own original series.
A newcomer to ArtistCorps, Tia hopes to share the importance of story, and in the process, help students understand their own. When she’s not binge-watching classic series from the 90’s, she can be found in her room writing, reading or blogging about her latest Redbox pick.
Daniel Kane
Daniel Kane was born and raised in Matthews, North Carolina. He began playing trombone at the age of eight through an after school program at the Matthews Playhouse. Daniel started playing in the Charlotte Symphony Youth Orchestra at age 10 and continued until he graduated high school. Throughout his primary schooling Daniel was involved in numerous ensembles both in and out of school, including: jazz bands/combos, Charlotte Youth Wind Ensemble, Community School of the Arts ensembles, and bands with his friends. Before beginning at UNCSA Daniel studied with Tom Burger of the Charlotte Symphony and Chair of the Brass Department at the Canberra School of Music at the Australian National University. Daniel began studying with John Ilika at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts in Winston-Salem in 2014. He plans to complete his bachelor of music degree in music performance in May of 2018. Daniel is a self-proclaimed audiophile and when he isn’t practicing he can be typically be fund perusing the bins of local record stores.
Hadley James
At eight years old, Hadley decided that she wanted to be a writer. Since then, she has doggedly pursued her dream. Hadley earned a B.A. at Hollins University in Roanoke, Va. She graduated with honors and earned the coveted Hollins Fiction Prize, awarded to the student with the best short story. She has continued to thrive in UNCSA’s B.F.A. Screenwriting program. She is currently working on a wide variety of creative projects in different genres and formats.
Hadley also has a passion for helping people and served as an AmeriCorps VISTA volunteer in her hometown. As a VISTA volunteer, she worked for a center that provided service for children and adults with disabilities. Hadley looks forward to working creatively with children of all skills and abilities.
Joohyun Lee
Joohyun has been recognized as an emerging artist of fine collaborative intuition and a deep passion for music. Lee made her Carnegie Hall recital debut in 2013, after earning prizes in the American Fine Arts Festival and American Protégé competitions. She earned a B.M. in violin performance from Ithaca College, under the tutelage of Susan Waterbury (founding member of the Cavani String Quartet). During her time at Ithaca College, she received an award at the James J. Whalen Academic Symposium for her original research on Felix Mendelssohn’s 1834 concert aria “Infelice!” for soprano, violin obbligato and orchestra.
An aspiring chamber musician, Lee has worked with members of the Shanghai and Manhattan String Quartets, Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, A Far Cry and the Scheherazade Trio. She has studied at the Castleman Quartet Program, Taconic Music and at Laura Bossert and Terry King’s LyricaFest. She has also worked with members of the Berlin Philharmonic, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Metropolitan Opera, Rochester Philharmonic and Louisiana Philharmonic orchestras.
Lee recently completed a M.M. degree at the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami. She is continuing her studies at UNCSA as a part of the Chrysalis Chamber Music Institute and the studio of Ida Bieler.
Andrew Licht
A native of Massachusetts, Andrew started violin in his public elementary school. In high school, he was involved in both the Boston Youth Symphony Orchestras and the Joy of Music Program Chamber Orchestra. Andy currently holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Violin Performance from the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, and a Masters degree in Violin Performance from UNCSA. At the University of Massachusetts, Andy studied with Elizabeth Chang, and received regular chamber music coachings with Astrid Schween (cellist of the Julliard String Quartet), Gilles Vonsattel (pianist) and Kathryn Lockwood (Lark Quartet). The past couple of years, while pursuing a Master of Music at UNCSA, Andy was a student of Kevin Lawrence, and received regular chamber music coachings from Dmitri Shteinberg and Eric Larsen.
Andy is part of the Winston-Salem Academy of Music and Arts through the Winston-Salem Symphony, serving as an assistant teacher to their youth violin program. They will be serving at Diggs Latham Elementary School, Old Town Elementary School, and Jefferson Elementary School. Andy is also a violinist for the Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra. During the summers, he has been a participant at a number of different festivals, including the Green Mountain Chamber Music Festival in Vermont and the National Music Festival in Maryland.
Ana Maria Locke
Florida native Ana Maria Locke holds a Bachelor in Music Education from Troy University, where she studied clarinet under Dr. Timothy Phillips. She has performed for world-renowned clarinetists including Jon Manasse, Jean-Francois Bescond, Jan Jakub Bokun and Sabine Grofmeier.
Locke is currently attending the University of North Carolina School of the Arts and pursuing her Master of Music in clarinet performance. She has taught private lessons to both high school and middle school clarinetists throughout Alabama and Florida.
While at Troy University, she served as principal clarinetist with the Troy University Symphony Band. The ensemble has an active commissioning schedule and regularly participates in commissioning consortia. In March 2014, the Symphony Band performed the opening concert at the 80th annual convention of the prestigious American Bandmasters Association.
She has performed in a number of settings including Troy University Clarinet Day, the United States Air Force Band and was selected to participate in the Alabama Intercollegiate Band.
Stephen Mulvahill
Stephen is a pianist, collaborative artist and teacher from Houston, Texas. Stephen entered the Professional Artist Certificate program in Piano Performance at UNCSA in the fall of 2016, as a scholarship student of Dr. Dmitri Shteinberg. He has taught piano in the Piedmont Triad area for the past two and a half years, while also working as a church musician and musical theater accompanist and giving solo and chamber music performances locally and around the state.
Some of Stephen’s recent highlights include winning second prize at the Rosen-Schaffel Concerto Competition, performing with the Giannini String Quartet in a master class at Lincoln Center in New York City, and participating in the Chrysalis Chamber Music Program at UNCSA. He has performed with the UNCSA symphony orchestra and UNCSA wind ensemble on several occasions, as well as the school’s contemporary music group, the nu ensemble.
Stephen is interested in both academic and practical musical research, and for his latest project he is developing an instructional video series on the piano music of Hungarian composer Béla Bartók. Stephen holds a M.M. degree in piano performance from UNCSA and a B.M. in piano performance from the University of Houston.
Kali Poore
Kali is a M.M. student and Graduate Assistant at UNCSA, where she studies oboe with Professor Jaren Atherholt. She frequently plays with the UNCSA Symphony Orchestra, Wind Ensemble, Opera program and was the oboist of the award-winning Quiescent Quintet of the Chrysalis Chamber Music Institute. When not in class or rehearsal, she enjoys actively participating in bringing classical music to the Winston-Salem community as the Events Manager for the Cross the Line Project.
She is a graduate of Middle Tennessee State University, where she received a B.M. while studying with Laura Ann Ross. While at MTSU, she played principal in their symphony orchestra, chamber orchestra, wind ensemble and in various chamber ensembles. During her time in undergraduate studies, Kali developed a studio of students where she discovered her passion for teaching.
Kali hails from the Nashville, Tenn., area and attributes most of her desire to becoming a performing artist from living there. When not playing, Kali loves to travel and can be found constantly looking up her next adventure. She enjoys spending time hiking and exploring the Winston-Salem area. Most of all, Kali loves when she gets a few rare hours to herself so that she can do her favorite activity, napping.
Mayra Rodas
Mayra was born in Venezuela, where she developed a passion for the world of art. She began ballet and other forms of dance, such as flamenco and folklore, at the age of seven. She also expanded her interests in music during those years. Mayra moved to the United States at the age of 15. She attended high school in New York, where she was able to obtain a career and technical education certificate in Corporate Communications/ Digital Imaging. Through this program she received training in animation, the composition of visual images and video production, among other things.
She fell in love with video editing and storytelling. The skills she acquired provided her the opportunity to attend a SkillsUSA competition for two consecutive years. In 2014 she won third place in video production at SkillsUSA. After one and a half years studying television and radio production at Mercy College, she realized that her heart was in film editing, so she is currently an aspiring film editor student at UNCSA.
Mayra wishes to inspire young students through art and diversity. She believes that giving youth the opportunity to explore their creativity will have a positive impact they will carry through the years to come, just as it did for her.
Dylan M. Scroggins
A native of Pontotoc, Mississippi, Dylan graduated from the University of Southern Mississippi with a degree in Music Education. His diverse performance experiences include numerous recitals in a multiplicity of styles from the repertoires of Weber, Poulenc and Mozart to Bela Kovacs. He has played with the University of Southern Mississippi Symphony Orchestra, PRIDE of Mississippi Marching Band and the University of Southern Mississippi Symphonic Winds.
During his undergraduate career, Dylan performed across the United States and studied music history and opera in Vienna, Austria. He has performed in masterclasses with Julian Bliss, Dr. Julie Detweiler, Dr. Kip Franklin and Dr. Frank Kowalsky. In the Summer of 2017, Dylan participated in the Lift Clarinet Academy at Colorado State University, where he was selected to perform in a Masterclass for Dr. Robert Spring. Dylan has also developed interest in learning strategies and performance psychology, and began to research how the brain works for better use of musician practice time and mental awareness. This will be the focus of his upcoming blog and website.
He is pursuing a M.M. in clarinet, studying with Dr. Oskar Espina-Ruiz at UNCSA.
Clifford Tam
An active soloist, chamber and symphonic musician, Clifford Tam has been a soloist with several symphony orchestras in the West, making appearances with the Livermore-Amador Symphony, Utah State University Symphony Orchestra and the New American Philharmonic, as well as maintaining a regular recital schedule. In addition to his solo career, Clifford has performed in numerous ensemble settings, including wind, pit and symphony orchestras, clarinet ensembles, woodwind quintets and jazz combos. He is currently a member of the Chrysalis Chamber Music Institute, a collaborative program between the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and UNCSA.
In 2015, he was a founding member of Future Bucket, a jazz combo that frequently performed in the local area. Clifford is on two commercial releases by the Utah State University Chamber Singers, collaborating on the album “On a Cold Winter's Night” as a soloist, and as a member of the Utah State University Wind Orchestra on the album “Aggie Songs.”
In 2014, he headed a project that aimed to replicate the music of John Cage in a digital medium, which was presented to several students, faculty and members of the community. In 2016, Clifford presented a lecture recital that was funded by Utah State University’s Undergraduate Research and Creative Opportunities program – A Comparison of the German System and the French/American Boehm System Clarinet.”
Brittany Thomas
Born and raised in North Carolina, Brittany enjoys a variety of ensemble settings, including pit and symphony orchestra, wind ensemble and brass and woodwind quintets. Brittany is a member of the Chrysalis Brass Quintet as part of the Chrysalis Chamber Music Institute, a partnership between Chamber Music Society of the Lincoln Center and UNCSA. As an aspiring educator, Brittany has volunteered with public and special education programs in North Carolina. Her favorite recent performances have included “The Nutcracker,” “Guys & Dolls,” “Der Fledermaus” and Shostakovich’s “Symphony No. 5.”
Brittany has performed in master classes taught by Stefan Jezerski, Radovan Vlatković, Zohar Schondorf, Dr. Joseph Falvey and Rebekah Daley. Other notable performances include collaborations with Zéphyros Winds and the Exploring Brass in Greece program in Thessaloniki. Brittany recently graduated from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts with a bachelor's degree and is pursuing a master's degree. Her primary teachers included Bob Campbell, David Jolley, and Dr. Maria Serkin.
Kayana Joelle Waller
Kayana is a filmmaker, born in New Jersey and raised in Charlotte, N.C. She is currently
pursuing a B.F.A. in Filmmaking at UNCSA. She comes from a family mixed with educators,
social servants, businesspeople and artists. This has had a strong influence on her
desire to be educated, be a trailblazer and always give back. Kayana is active in
her hometown community and hopes to put her artistic talents and experience to use
in Forsyth county.
Charles Witosky
Charles was born in Dallas, Texas, and since then has lived in Mexico City, Mexico, and Raleigh, N.C. He has been writing and illustrating stories since the age of four, and at the age of 12 transitioned to making movies. Films he has written, directed or produced have played at the Austin Film Festival, Atlanta Underground Film Festival and at the Santa Fe Independent Film Festival. He hopes to continue his trend of making films that are personal to him yet also reach a wider audience.
At present, Charles is a fourth-year student at UNCSA, studying filmmaking with a concentration in producing. While at school he has managed to work on upwards of twenty-three school films while also writing freelance magazine articles and other writing of his own.
Ann-Louise Wolf
Ann-Louise grew up in Charlotte, N.C. She received a B.F.A. in Stage Management from UNCSA in 2011, where she also participated in the Cantata Singers and became a special student in the School of Drama to take voice and speech classes. During and after completing her undergraduate degree, she worked for opera companies around the nation, including three seasons on the stage management staff of the San Diego Opera.
She completed the M.F.A. Voice Studies program at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama in London, and is now returning for her third year teaching and coaching voice, speech and accents for the UNCSA School of Drama. Ann-Louise designed and taught an original course of Voice for the Stage Manager for her research, and presented on this topic on a panel at the 2016 conference for the Voice and Speech Trainers’ Association (VASTA) where she was the recipient of the Clyde Vinson Memorial Scholarship. She also continues to work as the stage manager for Piedmont Opera’s MainStage productions.
In her free time, Ann-Louise is an avid cook, baker and voracious consumer of audiobooks and podcasts.