Katherine Young Steele is the principal oboe of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, a position she has held since 2012. Of her recent performances of Richard Strauss’ Oboe Concerto with Music Director Edo de Waart, Steele was praised for her “engrossing performance…with a ringing, beautifully centered sound and elegant interpretive direction.” (Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, 2/15) Steele was principal oboe of The Florida Orchestra from 2007-2012, where she appeared as soloist and collaborated on the orchestra’s multi-year cultural exchange with musicians in Havana, Cuba. She has also served as guest principal oboe in the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, the San Diego Symphony and the Sarasota Orchestra. Ms. Steele currently serves on the faculty of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. A native of Lancaster, Ohio, Steele holds a Bachelor of Music degree and the prestigious Performer’s Certificate from the Eastman School of Music, and a Master of Music degree from Rice University’s Shepherd School. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ashley Ertz is an oboist, educator and arts administrator in the Chicago metropolitan area. Ertz is Principal Oboe with the Jackson Symphony Orchestra and English Horn/Second Oboe with the Northwest Indiana Symphony Orchestra. She is also the Artistic Director/Founder of 5th Wave Collective and Program Manager with Classical Music Chicago. Ertz has performed with numerous ensembles including the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, Civic Orchestra of Chicago, Quad City Symphony Orchestra, New Philharmonic, Orchestra Iowa, Southwest Michigan Symphony Orchestra and more. While living in San Francisco she also performed with the San Francisco Symphony, Green Music Center’s ChamberFest with Jeffrey Kahane and Jennifer Koh. Ertz holds degrees from DePaul University, San Francisco Conservatory of Music and San Francisco State University. 

Trevor O’Riordan, Clarinet 1

Claire Werling, Clarinet 2

William Buchman, Bassoon 1

Liam Jackson is a Chicago-based Bassoonist and Music Educator with a passion for performing new music and expanding the bassoon repertoire. Liam recently won the Principal Bassoon position with the Billings Symphony Orchestra. After graduating from the University of Michigan with dual degrees in Bassoon Performance and Music Education, and DePaul with a master’s degree in Bassoon Performance in 2020, Liam joined the Civic Orchestra of Chicago Bassoon Section from 2021-2023. In addition to his work with the Civic Orchestra, Liam has performed with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the Musicians of the Chicago Symphony MusicNOW in addition to the Detroit Opera, International Chamber Artists, Rockford Symphony Orchestra, Kenosha Symphony Orchestra, Folks Operetta, Michigan Philharmonic, and the 5th Wave Collective. Originally from Detroit, Michigan, Liam’s primary teachers were Robert Williams, Dr. Jeffrey Lyman, William Buchman and Keith Buncke.

Susanna Gaunt joined the Chicago Symphony Orchestra horn section in January 2006.

Just before joining the CSO, Gaunt performed regularly with the San Francisco Symphony, LucasArts Productions (recording movie soundtracks), the California Symphony and the Santa Rosa Symphony. She has held various positions in other orchestras across the country, including third horn in the San Diego Symphony, third/associate principal horn in the San Antonio Symphony, and both third and fourth horn in the North Carolina Symphony. Gaunt also has been a member of the San Diego Chamber Orchestra and the New World Symphony. In addition, she has performed and recorded with the Boston Symphony Orchestra A native of New England, Gaunt completed a bachelor of music degree in 1992 at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, where her principal teachers were Richard Sebring, Norman Bolter and Richard Mackey. Her primary mentor and inspiration is former teacher Nedo Pandolfi.

Abby Black, Horn 2

 

 

 

Canadian French horn player Emily Whittaker is an active soloist, freelance musician, and educator in the Chicagoland area. She has performed with many orchestras and ensembles, including the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Music of the Baroque, Omaha Symphony, Victoria Symphony Orchestra, and the Pacific Opera Victoria. Performing as a soloist both with ensembles and as a recitalist, this year’s highlights include solo performances with the Joliet Symphony Orchestra, Kankakee Valley Symphony Orchestra, and Summer Music Festival Winds. As an educator, Emily serves on the faculty as the Horn Instructor at Elgin Community College and is a guest lecturer for colleges and universities across the country presenting her research and benefits for Audition Data Tracking and leading masterclasses. In 2021, Emily was the founding director of Sunshine Horn Camp, an annual summer horn camp dedicated to young horn players to instill knowledge and confidence in playing the horn. Emily holds a Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Toronto with a minor in Indigenous Studies, and both a Master of Music and a Performance Diploma from DePaul University.

Renee Vogen, Horn 4

Lindsey Sharpe, Cello

 

 

 

Originally from Milwaukee, Olivia Reyes is currently a member of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Fellowship program and the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, where she has performed as a section and rotating principal bassist since 2021. Reyes has also been a substitute principal bass for the Opera Festival of Chicago and a substitute bass with the Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra and the Camerata Chicago. In 2021, Reyes was principal bass of the National Repertory Orchestra in Breckenridge, Colorado. She is also active as a mentor for the Negaunee Music Institute at the CSO’s ongoing partnership with Chicago Public Schools and a substitute mentor and coach for the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestras. Bassist Olivia Reyes graduated in 2021 with a bachelor of music degree in bass performance from the Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University, where she studied with Jon McCullough-Benner, principal bass of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra.