Current Faculty
Telegraph Quartet, quartet in residence
The Telegraph Quartet, consisting of violinists Eric Chin and Joseph Maile, violist Pei-Ling Lin, and cellist Jeremiah Shaw, was formed in 2013 with an equal passion for the standard chamber music repertoire as well as contemporary and non-standard repertoire, alike. Described by the San Francisco Chronicle in 2017 as “…an incredibly valuable addition to the cultural landscape” and “powerfully adept… with a combination of brilliance and subtlety,” the Telegraph Quartet was most recently awarded the prestigious 2016 Walter W. Naumburg Chamber Music Award. Past prizes include the Grand Prize at the 2014 Fischoff Chamber Music Competition. The Quartet has since gone on to perform in concert halls, music festivals, and academic institutions from Los Angeles and New York to Italy and Taiwan, including Carnegie Hall, San Francisco’s Herbst Recital Hall and the San Francisco Conservatory of Music Chamber Masters Series and at festivals including the Chautauqua Institute, Kneisel Hall Chamber Music Festival, and the Emilia Romagna Festival. In 2016, the Quartet was invited as one of a handful of emerging professional string quartets from around the world to perform in Paris, France at the Biennale de quatuors à cordes, a showcase for major concert presenters of Europe and Asia taking place at the Philharmonie de Paris.
Jeffrey LaDeur, piano
Jeffrey LaDeur is known for his “delicate keyboard touch and rich expressivity” (San Francisco Chronicle) and playing described as “deeply moving, probing, felt entirely in the moment” (Eduard Laurel) Much sought after for his rare blend of insight, spontaneity, and approachable, communicative stage presence, Jeffrey has captured the hearts and minds of audiences from the Kennedy Center and Carnegie Hall to the Shanghai Conservatory and the Orlando Festival in the Netherlands.
Having inherited a rich tradition of pianism and interpretation from Annie Sherter, student of Vlado Perlemuter and Alfred Cortot, LaDeur has established himself as a compelling exponent of the French masters from Couperin to Ravel in addition to a diverse repertoire of canonical and alternative masterpieces. In March of 2018, LaDeur made his solo recital debut at Carnegie Hall on the centennial of Claude Debussy’s death, performing the composer’s complete Etudes with works by Couperin and Chopin. His acclaimed solo album, The Unbroken Line[MSR Classics) is devoted to music of Rameau and Debussy and has been hailed as “a masterpiece of understatement, simplicity, and ‘old school’ chord-playing where every note sings out with meaning” (Gramophone). In 2017, LaDeur founded the San Francisco International Piano Festival for which he serves as artistic director.
As a pianist, LaDeur integrates solo performance and collaboration, blending the intimacy of chamber music with the brio of concertante works. As founding member and pianist of the Delphi Trio, Jeffrey toured internationally with the ensemble for a decade and premiered William Bolcom’s first Piano Trio, written for the ensemble. With mezzo soprano Kindra Scharich he recently recorded To My Distant Beloved, an album exploring the relationship between Beethoven’s An die ferne Geliebte, Schumann’s Frauenliebe und -Leben and his epic Fantasy in C for solo piano, to be released on MSR Classics spring of 2020. Jeffrey has collaborated with distinguished artists such as Robert Mann, Bonnie Hampton, Ian Swensen, Axel Strauss, Geoff Nuttall, Anne Akiko Meyers, David Requiro, and Scott Pingel.
Dedicated to the principle that solo pianists thrive together, rather than as competitors, Jeffrey founded New Piano Collective, an artistic alliance of pianists, dedicated to uniquely personal artistry, collaboration, and ground-breaking programming. In 2017, LaDeur expanded the Collective and founded the San Francisco International Piano Festival, now in its fourth season, for which he serves as artistic director. The festival has quickly become of the most exciting and engaging music festivals in the country.
An active educator, Jeffrey enjoys giving regular masterclasses as a visiting artist to universities across the United States. LaDeur coaches gifted pre-college piano and string ensembles at Young Chamber Musicians in Burlingame, California.
LaDeur holds degrees from the Eastman School of Music and San Francisco Conservatory of Music in piano performance and chamber music, respectively. Jeffrey counts among his teachers Mark Edwards, Douglas Humpherys, Yoshikazu Nagai, and Robert McDonald.
Maggie Parkins, cello
Maggie Parkins is equally at home in chamber music, orchestral music and the avant-garde. She has performed throughout the Americas and Europe and her work currently ranges from concert recitals to multimedia, multi-genre collaborations. Always an advocate for new and experimental music, Parkins, along with the Eclipse Quartet, has commissioned or premiered numerous works from composers, including Carla Kihlstedt, Zeena Parkins and Fred Frith. As a chamber musician, in addition to the Eclipse String Quartet, she also is a member of the Mojave Piano Trio and Brightwork newmusic. In the orchestra world she has performed under the batons of Seiji Ozawa, Leonard Bernstein, Simon Rattle and Andre Previn performing with the Brooklyn Philharmonic, the Syracuse Symphony, the Los Angeles Master Chorale, the Pasadena Symphony, the Riverside Symphony and the Santa Barbara Chamber Orchestra. She was cello professor and coordinator of chamber music at UC Irvine from 1997-2016.
Kindra Scharich, mezzo-soprano
Mezzo Soprano Kindra Scharich has been praised by The San Francisco Chronicle for her “exuberant vitality”, “fearless technical precision”, “deep-rooted pathos” and “irrepressible musical splendor.” As a dedicated recitalist, she has performed over 200 art songs in 12 languages and given solo recitals at the The American Composer’s Forum, La Jolla Athenaeum, The Wagner Society, Lieder Alive and the acclaimed Sala Cecília Meireles in Rio de Janeiro. In 2018 Ms. Scharich sang the U.S. Premiere of new songs of Anno Schreier as a co-collaboration between Deutsche Oper Berlin and Lieder Alive. She also continued her partnership with Brazilian pianist Ricardo Ballestero in performing and recording the non-Portuguese repertoire of the great Brazilian composer Alberto Nepomuceno.
A great proponent of Lieder and Chamber Music, she and Jeffrey LaDeur recently recorded “To my distant beloved”, music of Beethoven and Schumann, also to be released in 2020. She has collaborated extensively with the Alexander String Quartet, and in 2018 “In meinem Himmel: The Complete Mahler Song Cycles”, a recording of new transcriptions by Zakarias Grafilo, was released on the Foghorn label. In the world of opera, Ms. Scharich has sung over 30 roles ranging from Monteverdi to Philip Glass. She has taught and given master classes at the Yehudi Menuhin Seminar and Festival for Chamber Music at San Francisco State, Point Loma University and the University of São Paolo, among others. See kindrascharich.com for more information and upcoming concerts.
Rachel Huang, violin
Rachel Huang, violinist on the Scripps College faculty, performs locally and abroad with The Gold Coast Trio, The Mei Duo and Duo 209; recent engagements have ranged from Quito, Ecuador to Xiamen, China. She also performs with Trio Lykos and Quartet Euphoria, ensembles in residence at Scripps College. Holding degrees from Harvard University and SUNY at Stony Brook, she has received grants for performance and scholarship from the NEA and the NEH. Her scholarly interest in music analysis extends to Jazz: with Hao Huang, she has co-authored published articles on the performance practice of Billie Holiday. For the past 30 years, she has had the privilege of sharing with her violin students the legacies of three great teachers, with whom she studied: Ivan Galamian, Dorothy DeLay and Robert Koff, all of them both late and lamented.
Clara Kim, violin
Adventure and collaboration are at the heart of NYC-based violinist Clara Kim’s multi-faceted career as new music performer, chamber music artist, and educator.
By commissioning, premiering, and championing the works of living composers, Clara has quickly established herself at the forefront of her generation in the interpretation of contemporary music. She has collaborated with some of today’s most celebrated and imaginative musical voices such as Christopher Cerrone, Stephen Hartke, Andrew Norman, Kaija Saariaho, Juri Seo, Chris Theofanidis, and Augusta Read Thomas, and continues to actively premiere works through her solo and chamber music projects. Towards her commissioning efforts with her quartet, Clara has received support from organizations such as Chamber Music America, The Koussevitzky Foundation, Concert Artists Guild, and Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts.
As a performer, Clara concertizes regularly and loves connecting with audiences, people, and communities across the world. Her significant engagements include performances at Carnegie Hall, Jordan Hall, Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall, Merkin Hall, and Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw. Clara is a recipient of the St. Botolph Club Foundation Emerging Artist Award and a first prize winner of the Cremona Solo Violin Competition, in addition to a first prize winner at the MPrize Chamber Arts and Concert Artists Guild Competitions as a member of the Argus Quartet.
Also dedicated to community engagement and education, Clara directs Midori’s Orchestra Residencies Program, where she coaches and performs alongside violinist Midori. During the summers, she spends her time teaching at places like Interlochen, Greenwood, and Hawaii’s Pacific Music Institute.
Clara holds diplomas from Tufts University (English Literature), New England Conservatory, the Royal Conservatoire of The Hague, The Juilliard School, and a doctoral degree from the University of Southern California’s Thornton School of Music.
Susan Freier, violin/viola
Susan Freier, violin/viola, and co-Artistic Director of the Ives Collective, earned degrees in music and biology from Stanford University as a Ford Scholar and continued her studies at the Eastman School of Music where she co-founded the award-winning Chester String Quartet. The Chester went on to win the Munich, Portsmouth (UK) and Discovery Competitions and were the quartet-in-residence at Indiana University, South Bend.
In 1989 Susan returned to her native Bay Area and joined the Stanford faculty and the Stanford String Quartet. She performs with the San Francisco Contemporary Music Players and has been an artist/faculty member at the Newport Music Festival, Garth Newell, Music in the Mountains, Rocky Ridge Music Center, and the Schlern and Orfeo Music Festivals (Italy). Susan teaches and performs at the Mendocino Music Festival, the SoCal Music Workshop and the Telluride Chamber Music Festival.
Stephen Harrison, cello
Stephen Harrison, cellist has been on the Stanford University faculty since 1983. A graduate of Oberlin College and Boston University, he has been solo cellist of the San Francisco Contemporary Music Players since 1985.
Stephen has been on the faculty of the Pacific Music Festival, the Orfeo and Schlern International Music Festivals (Italy) and the Rocky Ridge Music Center. He is currently principal cellist at the Mendocino Music Festival, and performs and teaches at the SoCal Chamber Music Workshop and the Telluride Chamber Music Festival.
Daniela Mineva, piano
Hailed by critics as a “vibrant and expressive performer who could steal the show in every concert” (New York Times) and “energetic and lively pianist who displaces power and delicacy in nuanced sensitivity along with virtuoso technique” (The Baltimore Sun), DANIELA MINEVA’s unique approach to standard repertory, combined with the performance and dedication of works by living composers has taken her career throughout Europe, Asia, North and South America.
Daniela has been the winner and finalist in numerous international and national competitions including 2007 Jean Francaix piano competition in Paris, France, 1998 Steinway International Piano Competition, the International Competition " Music and the Earth " Sofia, Bulgaria among many others. During the Piano Meeting Festival 2007 in San Danielle, Italy, she was awarded with the prize “Highest Artistic Level of Performance” for her solo recital at the festival. In collaboration with the composer Vera Ivanova, the 8th International Competition for new music, Orléans, France awarded them with the “Prix André CHEVILLION- Yvonne BONNAUD sous l’égide de la FOUNDATION DE FRANCE” for the solo piano piece “Aftertouch”, written for Daniela Mineva.
Ms. Mineva maintains an active performing career. She has appeared as orchestral soloist, chamber music collaborator and solo artist at some of the most prestigious venues in Bulgaria, USA, China, Italy, France, Greece, Russia, Germany, Thailand and Costa Rica. A strong proponent of new music, Ms. Mineva has collaborated with many young and established composers as well as collaborating with new music ensembles like Speculum Musica, New York, NY; Earplay, San Francisco, CA; OSSIA, Eastman School of Music, and Twenty One, Rochester, NY. Dr. Mineva has also served as the president of the International Society for Pianists and Composers in USA from 2011-2016.
Ms. Mineva has collaborated with many young and well-established composers like William Bolcom, Lucas Foss, Kaija Saariaho Libby Laresen, Chen Yi, Bright Sheng, Frederic Rzewski, Julia Wolf, Krassimir Taskov, Vera Ivanova and Carlos Sanchez Gutierrez. Her first CD “Volume One” presents Daniela’s passion for the music of our time and its connection to the past masters. In 2013, the Society of Composers on the Capstone Records also featured her recording. Some of her performances have often been heard on WXXI 91.5, Bulgarian National Radio, TV-Chanal 1, TV-SAT, Bulgaria and Radio France Musique.
As an accomplished and versatile chamber musician, Ms. Mineva has participated in many music festivals and summer programs, including Tanglewood Music Festival, Institute for Contemporary Music, New York and San Danielle Piano Meeting, Italy. Ms. Mineva’s passion for chamber music led to organizing the concert series “Humboldt Chamber Music Concert Series at Morris Graves Museum”, Eureka, CA. Highlights of the season 2018-19 include concert tours in Asia and Europe with program by C. Debussy and O. Messiaen.
A devoted teacher herself, Dr. Mineva has given master classes and workshops throughout USA, Europe, Asia and South America. She has taught at Atlantic Music Festival, Russalka Piano Festival and Music and Earth Festival and Competition (Bulgaria). Currently, she is Professor of Music and Director of Keyboard Studies at Cal Poly Humboldt, California where in 2012 she won the “McCrone promising faculty award.” Previously, Dr. Mineva has taught at Eastman School of Music where in 2007 she was awarded “TA excellence of teaching” and Concordia University- Chicago. From 2013-2018, she was appointed as the Artistic and Executive Director of the Sequoia Chamber Music Workshop, Arcata, CA. She is also Co- Director of the North Coast Piano Festival and Competition where she serves on the faculty as well.
Born in Bulgaria, Daniela began piano lessons at the age of five with her mother as her first teacher. She graduated from Sofia Music Academy with the Bachelor of Music degree in Piano Performance and the Master of Music degree in Choral Conducting. Dr. Mineva also holds the Master of Music degree in Piano Performance and the Outstanding Graduate Diploma from the University of North Texas as well as Artist Certificate from Northwestern University and Doctor of Music Arts degree, and the Performer’s Certificate from the Eastman School of Music. Her principal teachers include Natalya Antonova, Ursula Oppens, Pamela Mia Paul, Geni Zacharieva and Julia Girginova. She has also worked closely with Emmanuel Ax, Pamela Frank, Paul Bodura-Scoda, Vladimir Tropp, Joseph Kalichstein, and Sherrill Milnes.
