Paraguayan conductor Ernesto Estigarribia Mussi is highly regarded for his versatility and effervescent style on and off the podium. Hailed for his “expert direction” by Fanfare magazine, he is music director of the Sheboygan Symphony Orchestra and the Mankato Symphony Orchestra, becoming the first Paraguayan to be music director of a professional orchestra abroad. He holds the position of assistant professor of conducting at Vanderbilt University Blair School of Music and has previously served as associate conductor of the Quad City Symphony Orchestra.
Estigarribia Mussi has guest conducted the Minnesota Orchestra, La Crosse Symphony, Dubuque Symphony, St. Cloud Symphony, Rochester Symphony, Orquesta de Cámara del Centro del Conocimiento (Argentina), Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional-Paraguay, and is the most frequent guest conductor of the Orquesta Sinfónica del Congreso Nacional (Paraguay). In addition to symphonic performances, Ernesto has led numerous opera productions including Puccini's Gianni Schicchi, Mozart's Idomeneo, Britten's Albert Herring, Zimmermann's Weisse Rose, and Jake Heggie’s Two Remain.
He holds degrees from Pittsburg State University (BM) and the University of Minnesota (MM and DMA), where he studied conducting with Mark Russell Smith. In his free time he enjoys cooking vegan recipes with his wife Sabrina.
Violinist Sabrina Tabby, from Philadelphia, developed a fondness for music-making at a very young age, playing regularly with her twin sister. The two were featured on National Public Radio’s “From the Top” radio series and television show at Carnegie Hall and placed repeatedly at the Fischoff International Chamber music Competition. While earning her Bachelor’s of Music degree at Bard College Conservatory of Music, Sabrina performed across four continents, as concertmaster and soloist, in chamber groups, as well as in various baroque and new music ensembles. In addition to her studies in music, Sabrina also received a Bachelor’s degree in French Studies. While pursuing her Master’s Degree at Northwestern University, she continued to be recognized through scholarships and awards for her fine playing as a soloist and chamber musician.
A founding member (2010) of the NYC-based new music ensemble, Contemporaneous, she is prominently featured on Innova Recordings album “Stream of Stars: Music of Dylan Mattingly.” In 2016, she formed the crossover, mold-breaking string quartet ATLYS, representing, for a time, Lincoln Center in performances on Holland America cruise lines around the world. ATLYS continues to tour the country, recently performing at the Red Rocks and Gorge Amphitheaters. Their recordings have been streamed over 6 million times on Spotify.
Sabrina continues to travel the world actively seeking to play music of all styles, often with her husband, conductor and violist Ernesto Estigarribia. Recent highlights of the 2022 season include a solo appearance with the Orquesta Sinfonica del Congreso Nacional de Paraguay, and a world premiere of Michael Kropf’s violin concerto (written for her) with Contemporaneous in NYC. Sabrina has also been a proud member of the violin section of the Quad City Symphony Orchestra’s since 2018. When not performing, practicing, or teaching, Sabrina’s favorite activity is concocting (and devouring) delicious plant-based creations in the kitchen.
Three-time Latin GRAMMY®-nominated composer and conductor Juan Pablo Contreras (b. 1987, Guadalajara, Mexico) masterfully weaves Western classical and Mexican folk music into an exhilarating soundscape, crafting works with “orchestrations that bring [his] scores to splendid life” (Los Angeles Times).
His most popular orchestral piece, Mariachitlán, has garnered an impressive 120 performances worldwide, including a notable rendition by the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl. Contreras is the founder and conductor of the Orquesta Latino Mexicana, a two-time Latin GRAMMY®-nominated ensemble based in Guadalajara. He is renowned as the first Mexican-born composer to sign a record deal with Universal Music, to serve as Sound Investment Composer for Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, and to win the Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise.
​
Contreras’ music has been performed by 60 major orchestras around the world, including Los Angeles Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony, and National Symphony Orchestra (USA), Extremadura Orchestra (Spain), Jalisco Philharmonic and Minería Symphony Orchestra (Mexico), Córdoba Symphony (Argentina), National Symphony of Colombia, and Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela. His works have also been presented in prestigious venues such as Walt Disney Concert Hall, Carnegie Hall, and Hollywood Bowl. Contreras has received commissions from Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, California Symphony, North Carolina Symphony, Tucson Symphony, ROCO, Berkeley Symphony, Fresno Philharmonic, Chicago Sinfonietta, Las Vegas Philharmonic, and Richmond Symphony.
​
He has been honored with numerous awards, including BMI William Schuman Prize, New Music USA’s Amplifying Voices, Presser Music Award, Jalisco Orchestral Composition Prize, Brian Israel Prize, Arturo Márquez Composition Contest, ASCAP Morton Gould Young Composer Award, Dutch Harp Composition Contest, Nicolas Flagello Award, and two grants from Mexico’s National Fund for Culture and the Arts. Contreras has also served as Composer-in-Residence with Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music in Santa Cruz, soundON Festival of Modern Music in San Diego, Cactus Pear Music Festival in San Antonio, and Concerts on the Slope in New York.
He earned degrees in composition from University of Southern California (DMA), Manhattan School of Music (MM), and California Institute of the Arts (BFA). His most influential teachers include Richard Danielpour, Daniel Catán, Nils Vigeland, Andrew Norman, and Donald Crockett. Contreras’ music has been recorded on Universal Music Mexico, EMI, Albany Records, Epsa Music, and Urtext Digital Classics. With a deep commitment to championing the music of living composers, Contreras is the first Mexican-born member of New Music USA’s Board of Directors. He lives in Los Angeles and currently teaches at the USC Thornton School of Music.
The music of Hilary Purrington tells compelling stories through expressive lyricism and vibrant orchestration. Her work has received recognition from the American Academy of Arts and Letters; the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers; the International Alliance for Women in Music; and the National Federation of Music Clubs, among others.
​
Purrington’s orchestral and chamber works have been performed by many distinguished ensembles, including the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, American Modern Ensemble, and the Chicago Harp Quartet. Her orchestral work Likely Pictures in Haphazard Sky, premiered by the Yale Philharmonia, has been read by the Philadelphia and American Composers Orchestras and performed by the Minnesota Orchestra and the Phoenix Symphony, among many others. Recent commissions include new works for the Juilliard Orchestra, New York Youth Symphony, American Composers Orchestra, the Philadelphia Orchestra, and the River Oaks Chamber Orchestra. For the 2018–19 season, Purrington was named the Sioux City Symphony Orchestra's Composer of the Year and served as composer-in-residence for the Musical Chairs Chamber Ensemble. She is a 2020 recipient of an orchestral commission from the League of American Orchestras' Women Composers Readings and Commissions program, supported by the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation. Currently, Purrington is composer-in-residence for the Lone Tree Symphony Orchestra.
Also an accomplished vocalist, Purrington has developed a reputation as a skilled composer of solo and choral music. Recent vocal commissions include new works for The Thirteen, Yale Glee Club, Young New Yorkers' Chorus, and C4: The Choral Composer/Conductor Collective. She recently completed a new opera for New Camerata Opera, created in collaboration with librettist Hannah McDermott and animation studio Catarata. In 2022, mezzo-soprano Sasha Cooke's album how do i find you, which includes Purrington's art song That Night, received a GRAMMY nomination for Best Classical Solo Vocal Album. Most recently, Purrington's treble choir work Stars like goldfish won the Young New Yorkers' Chorus 2023 Competition for Young Composers.
​
Purrington has also composed several works for dance. In 2018, the Albany Symphony commissioned Patterns, a new work for chamber orchestra. Inspired by the life of fashion arbiter Ellen Louise Demorest, the piece featured the Albany Berkshire Ballet with choreography by Mary Talmi. Purrington also participated in Periapsis Music and Dance’s Emerging Artist Residencies and created a new work with choreographer Annalee Traylor, which premiered in May 2019. While attending The Juilliard School, Purrington collaborated with choreographer Stephanie Terasaki to create a new work for brass quartet and dance.
​
A versatile collaborator, Purrington worked with children’s author Mo Willems to compose an original piece that appeared in the book Because (Hyperion Books for Children, 2019). Illustrated by artist Amber Ren, Because tells the story of a young girl who devotes herself to studying music and grows up to become a professional conductor and composer. The book reached The New York Times’ Best-Seller List and continues to charm and inspire young readers across the world.
​
Originally from western Massachusetts, Purrington lives in Washington, DC, with her husband and rescue dog. She holds degrees from the Yale School of Music, The Juilliard School, and the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University. A dedicated educator, she currently serves as chair of Juilliard Extension's composition program.
Samuel Dangerfield started cello lessons at age 5 with Carolyn Mead, and currently studies with Mina Fisher. A member of Minnesota Youth Symphonies (MYS), he won their Symphony Solo Competition last fall, which gave him the opportunity to perform at Orchestra Hall in February 2026. Other honors include performing in the Mary West Solo Competition Winners Recital (2024 & 2025), 2nd prize in the 2025 Schubert Club Student Scholarship Competition (Strings I Division) and being named the Claire Givens Grand Prize Winner in the 2025 Mary West Solo Competition, which awarded him a performance with the Bloomington Symphony Orchestra in April 2026. Samuel participates in a piano trio at Artaria Chamber Music School, and attended their Stringwood Chamber Music Festival in Summer 2025. He also enjoys making music with his family. For Summer 2026, Samuel looks forward to being a part of the National Youth Orchestra of the United States of America (NYO-USA).
Winner of YPSCA’s 69th Annual Concerto Competition, Lorelei Schoenhard studies violin with Marion Judish, professor emeritus of St. Cloud State University. On most Monday nights, Lorelei can be found here at Orchestra Hall, where she serves as concertmaster of the Greater Twin Cities Youth Symphony (GTCYS).
​
As a soloist, Lorelei has performed with the Saint Cloud, Minnetonka, and Bloomington Symphonies, after winning their concerto competitions. In addition, she has won solo competitions sponsored by the Schubert Club, Minnesota Music Teachers Association, Minnesota String & Orchestra Teachers Association, and Music Teachers National Association. Twice, she has been featured on National Public Radio’s From the Top.
A devotee of chamber music, Lorelei has participated in the St. Paul Chamber Music Institute, Stringwood Chamber Music Festival, and Artaria Chamber Music School. As principal violin of Quartet Selene under the guidance of Nancy Oliveros, she was a medalist in the St. Paul String Quartet Competition. This fall, she has started rehearsals with her latest string quartet, coached by Kyu-Young Kim and Pitnarry Shin.
​
In summer 2024, Lorelei toured France and Spain with GTCYS, then attended Boston University’s Tanglewood Institute, where she was concertmaster of the Young Artists’ Orchestra. In summer 2025, she performed at Carnegie Hall, then toured Japan, China, and Korea with the National Youth Orchestra. In summer 2026, she toured Australia and New Zealand with GTCYS, then spent the duration in Switzerland, where she was concertmaster of the Verbier Festival Junior Orchestra and principal second violin of the Menuhin Festival Youth Orchestra. Now back home in Minnesota, Lorelei is a junior at St. John’s Preparatory School.
​
She studies piano and music theory with Bonnie Sorensen-Ernst at the Saint Germain Music Studio. When she isn’t practicing her violin or piano, Lorelei loves to read novels, build LEGO, and downhill ski.
Praised by The New York Times for performances that "traversed the palette of emotions" with "gorgeous tone and an edge-of-seat intensity," GRAMMY® nominated Spanish-American composer and cellist Andrea Casarrubios has been commissioned by world-class orchestras and ensembles, and has appeared as a featured soloist throughout Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas. The title work from her album SEVEN was nominated for a 2025 GRAMMY® Award for Best Contemporary Classical Composition.
Casarrubios' compositions have been programmed by organizations including Carnegie Hall, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, Charlotte Symphony Orchestra, National Philharmonic, and have been broadcast on NPR as well as national radio stations in Argentina, Brazil, France, Sweden, Australia, and Spain. Recent works include Afilador, commissioned by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and Herencia for String Orchestra, a "stirring creation" (The Strad) and “a bond of humanity through music” (The Boston Musical Intelligencer). Herencia was premiered at Carnegie Hall's Stern Auditorium in 2023, and featured on Sphinx Virtuosi’s 2025 album American Mirrors, released on Deutsche Grammophon.
Her acclaimed piece SEVEN "an intense and elegiac tribute to the essential workers during the pandemic" (The New York Times) received its Carnegie Hall premiere in 2021 and has been performed in more than 36 countries since. SEVEN was nominated for a GRAMMY® Award following its release on the 2024 album of the same name, which featured Casarrubios as cellist and composer in seven of her most recent works including collaborations with Manhattan Chamber Players and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. First Prize winner of numerous international competitions and awards, Casarrubios has appeared multiple times at Carnegie Hall, Beijing’s National Center for the Performing Arts, and the Ravinia and Verbier Festivals.
As a guest soloist, engagements include the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra’s world premiere of Casarrubios’ Concerto for cello and orchestra, MIRAGE, led by conductor Christopher James Lees, as well as concerts at the Brussels Cello Festival, Festival Internacional de Violoncello León in Mexico, and the George Enescu Festival in Romania. In 2026, Casarrubios premieres The Book of Signatures, her own Double Concerto for cello, percussion, and orchestra in New York led by conductor Peter Askim. In the same season, she serves as Composer in Residence at La Rioja Festival in Spain, and during the 2026-2028 seasons Casarrubios is the Resident Composer of Harmonium of Texas, a new symphony orchestra under the artistic leadership of conductor Jeffrey Kahane.
Casarrubios has taught masterclasses in Mexico, Brazil, South Africa, Spain, China, as well as at numerous festivals and institutions in the United States, including The Juilliard School, University of Colorado Boulder, University of North Carolina, Missouri State University and City University of New York. Her cello teachers have included Maria de Macedo, Lluis Claret, Amit Peled, Marcy Rosen, and Ralph Kirshbaum. She is an alumna of Carnegie Hall’s Ensemble Connect, and as part of her Doctoral degree in New York, Casarrubios also studied composition with John Corigliano.
Internationally renowned cellist, conductor, and pedagogue Amit Peled is acclaimed as one of the most exciting and virtuosic instrumentalists on the concert stage today. Having performed in many of the world’s most prestigious venues, including Carnegie Hall and Alice Tully Hall in New York, the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., Salle Gaveau in Paris, Wigmore Hall in London, the Seoul Arts Center in Korea, and the Konzerthaus Berlin, Peled has released over a dozen recordings on the Naxos, Centaur, Delos, and CTM Classics labels.
​
A passionate advocate for the music of our time, Peled has collaborated closely with leading composers including Krzysztof Penderecki and Jonathan Leshnoff, and has premiered numerous works written for him both as a cellist and conductor. These include compositions by Laura Auerbach, James Lee III, and his former student, Grammy-nominated composer and cellist Andrea Casarrubios.
​
Peled is Professor of Cello at Johns Hopkins University’s Peabody Institute in Baltimore, Maryland, and has performed and presented master classes around the world, including at the Marlboro and Newport Music Festivals in the United States, the Heifetz International Music Institute, the Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival in Germany, the International Musicians Seminar Prussia Cove in England, and Keshet Eilon in Israel.
​
As a conductor, Peled is the Founder and Artistic Director of the Mount Vernon Virtuosi, an innovative chamber orchestra dedicated to artistic excellence, mentorship, and community engagement. Central to its mission is the Music House Initiative, a pioneering residency program that provides musicians with housing and financial support while they serve as community music ambassadors. Through teaching, performing, and building meaningful relationships with local residents, these artists become active members of the communities they serve rather than visitors to them. The initiative reflects Peled’s belief in the power of music to strengthen communities, foster human connection, and inspire future generations.
​
Peled is also the former Music Director of CityMusic Cleveland and enjoys a growing international conducting career, guest conducting orchestras across the globe.
Mr. Peled is represented worldwide by CTM Classics.
Kara Morgan is a singing actress seeking out and lending her artistry to projects that broaden minds and inspire others. Her dedication to studying the art, languages, and characters of opera has been showcased on stages across the United States. Career highlights include apprenticeships with the Charlottesville Opera, Santa Fe Opera, and Merola Opera programs; mainstage credits with Minnesota Opera, Sarasota Opera, Opera Tampa, and Pacific Opera Project; and recognition from the Jensen Foundation, D'Angelo Young Artist Vocal, Luciano Pavarotti Foundation Opera Naples International Voice, Schubert Club and Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competitions.
​​
As a Resident Artist with Minnesota Opera in the 2024-25 & 2025-26 seasons, Kara debuted as a "scene-stealing" Stéphano in Roméo et Juliette, Rosina in Il barbiere di Siviglia, and a "remarkably compelling" Tigrana in a rare performance of Puccini's Edgar. She also created the role of Jane in the world premiere of B.E. Boykin's My Name is Florence and reprised Dorabella in Così fan tutte. In addition to her mainstage assignments, Kara was featured on several MNOp+ recital programs performing works like Santoliquido's I canti della sera, Korngold's Abschiedslieder, and a solo half-recital of Florence Price songs.
In Spring 2026, Kara made a role and company debut with Opera Tampa as Zweite Dame in Die Zauberflöte, made debuts as the mezzo soprano soloist in Verdi's Messa da Requiem with the Fox Valley Symphony Orchestra and with the Madison Symphony Orchestra as the alto soloist in the Finale of Beethoven's Symphony No.9, and was named a Winner of the Luciano Pavarotti Foundation Opera Naples International Voice Competition and a Co-Winner of the Facing Forward Grant for the best performance of a 21st-century aria in the 26th annual Jensen Foundation Vocal Competition. After spending the first half of the summer with Charlottesville Opera as an Ader Emerging Artist, Kara was named a Co-Winner of the inaugural Joanne Blakemore Rising Artist Award, recognizing outstanding talent and distinguished character.
​​​
The 2026-27 season begins with a mainstage debut at Sarasota Opera as Hansel in Hansel & Gretel, a debut with the Mankato Symphony Orchestra as the mezzo soprano soloist in Mahler's Symphony No.2, and a return to the Fox Valley Symphony for Beethoven's Symphony No.9.
​
Recently, Kara graduated from the Master of Musical Arts program at Yale University, where she was a member of the opera studio. Roles performed include Cherubino, Romeo (I Capuleti e i Montecchi), Charlotte (Werther), Isolier (Le comte Ory), Lucretia, Mother Goose (The Rake's Progress), and Anna 1 in Kurt Weill's Die sieben Todsünden. As a winner of the 2023 Woolsey Concerto Competition, she enjoyed the privilege of performing Mahler's Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen with the Yale Philharmonia. Before graduation, she placed first in the D'Angelo Young Artist Vocal Competition and made her title role and company debut with Salt Marsh Opera in Ravel's L'enfant et les sortilèges. ​She joined the world-renowned Merola Opera program in 2024, singing scenes from Cendrillon and Werther.
​
Kara returned to Sarasota Opera as a Resident Artist for the 2021 winter festival as pandemic restrictions began to ease. During this residency, she appeared as Mercury in Purcell's Dido & Æneas and sang in Resident Artist productions of Dido (in the title role) and Rossini's one-act farce, Il signor Bruschino (as Marianna). In October 2021, Kara made her west coast and company debut with Pacific Opera Project as Hansel in Hansel & Gretel. The following April, she was home in Minneapolis debuting the title role in The Rape of Lucretia with An Opera Theatre.
​
Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, Kara was a Young Artist with Fargo-Moorhead Opera, debuting the roles of Dorabella in Così fan tutte and Mercédès in Carmen with the company. Following the residency in Fargo, Kara covered Dorabella in Mill City Summer Opera's summer production of Così staged in the Mill City Museum ruins in Minneapolis. She also sang with Lakes Area Music Festival in Brainerd, MN covering the the title role of Offenbach's La belle Hélène, before returning to Fargo Moorhead Opera to make her mainstage and role debut as Hansel.
​
Kara earned her Bachelor of Music Degree from Drake University and her Masters in Voice Performance at the New England Conservatory. As a student, she was heard as Mrs. Soames (Rorem's Our Town), Katisha (The Mikado), Dritte Dame (Die Zauberflöte), Madame de Croissy (Dialogues des Carmélites), Grimgerde (Die Walküre), and Ottone (Agrippina).
​
A lover of art song, Kara enjoys programming lesser-heard and contemporary works with a focus on songs written by and about women. Past recitals have included repertoire by Montsalvatge, Debussy, Mahler, Hahn, Heggie, Margaret Bonds, Mel Bonis, Clara & Robert Schumann, Alaina Ferris, and Cheryl Frances-Hoad, among others. In Summer 2022, Kara partnered with longtime collaborator Carson Rose Schneider and Minnesota nonprofit organization, OOPS MN (Opera-Oriented Project Sponsorships), to create Ladies, Lyrics, & Lagers: a recital that was taken on tour to three popular Twin Cities breweries with the purpose of promoting song sets by two living women composers based in Minnesota, Linda Tutas Haugen and Edie Hill, and bringing well-sung art to a more relaxed, casual setting. In August 2026, Kara joined friend and pianist Jared Mikach on Pianistico: An Art Song Exploration, a recital series benefitting four nonprofits local to Minnesota. 100% of proceeds from this particular recital went to SHE Shed (Supporting Healthy Escapes), a nonprofit based in the Twin Cities dedicated to supporting women escaping domestic abuse. The recital featured song cycles by Libby Larsen, Anna Cazurra, and Irma Urteaga.
​
Kara also enjoys collaboration in choral and orchestral works, appearing as a soloist with the Oratorio Society of Minnesota, the Bach Roots Festival, the CBA Orchestra, the Minnesota Saints Chorale & Orchestra, the Drake Choir, and singing Alcibiades and Phaedrus in an unconducted performance of Erik Satie's Socrate with the New England Conservatory Chamber Orchestra in Boston's historic Jordan Hall.
​
Kara is based in Minnesota with her partner and dogs. Outside of music, she enjoys hiking, crafting, and cooking. Her name can be found in the credits of Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War (2020) as a Quality Assurance playtester.
Praised as "vocally and dramatically powerful" by the Washington Post and “radiant” by the Saint Paul Pioneer Press, soprano Linh Kauffman enjoys an active career in opera, oratorio, new music and recital. Her recent performances include Orff’s Carmina Burana for the Prague Choral Festival, Carmina Burana and Mahler's Symphony No. 2 with the Minnesota Orchestra, Ariadne auf Naxos with Minnesota Opera, Handel’s Acis and Galatea for Antiqva Panamá, and appearances at Festival Musica Antica Urbino, Festival Musica Antigua Panamá, and Festival Musique en l’Île de Paris.
A prolific concert artist, Ms. Kauffman has appeared with the Pittsburgh Symphony, Akron Symphony, Richmond Symphony, Quad City Symphony, and Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra. She has been a festival artist at the Oregon Bach Festival, soloing under Helmuth Rilling in Mendelssohn's Elijah, Bach’s Mass in B Minor, Beethoven's Choral Fantasy, Haydn's Heiligmesse and throughout a tour of Germany with Festival Ensemble Stuttgart.
Ms. Kauffman made her Latin American debut in Mozart’s Apollo et Hyacinthus at the Teatro Nacional de Panamá. Other appearances include Esther with Lyra Baroque Orchestra, Mitridate for Metamorphosis Opera Theater, Pocahontas: Woman of Two Worlds for Duluth Festival Opera and West Side Story with Sierra Repertory Theatre.
An active chamber musician of both early and contemporary music, Kauffman has appeared with Seraphic Fire, Spire Chamber Ensemble, Consortium Carissimi, The Rose Ensemble, and Piffaro.
A native of Connecticut, Ms. Kauffman earned music degrees from Carnegie Mellon University, University of Maryland, and University of Minnesota where she completed her Doctorate and Certificate in Vocal Pedagogy. She also studied at the Weill Institute at Carnegie Hall and the Salzburg Mozarteum. She teaches at Macalester College, is Associate Artistic Director of Antiqva Panamá and serves on the Artistic Committee of the Minnesota Bach Ensemble.