HELEN HWAYA KIM (violin), made her orchestral debut with the Calgary Philharmonic at the age of six, and has gone on to become a respected and sought-after artist. She has appeared as a soloist with the Boston Pops at Boston's Symphony Hall, as well as with the Milwaukee and Atlanta Symphony Orchestras.

Ms. Kim earned her Bachelor and Master's Degree from the Juilliard School, where her teachers included Cho-Liang Lin and Dorothy DeLay. While attending Juilliard, she was a winner of the Juilliard Concerto Competition and served as concertmaster of the Juilliard Orchestra. She is the recipient of more than one hundred national and international awards. In 1992, she won the prestigious Artists International Competition in New York and, as a result, gave debut recitals at Carnegie Weill Hall and the Aspen Summer Music Festival.

A native of Canada, Ms. Kim has been engaged by many of Canada's leading orchestras, including the National Arts Center Orchestra, Montreal Metropolitan Orchestra, Vancouver Symphony, Calgary Philharmonic, McGill Chamber Orchestra, and the Windsor, Regina, Victoria and Prince George Symphonies. She has also appeared with the DeKalb, New Orleans, Aspen and Banff Festival Orchestras, and with orchestras in the United Kingdom, Germany and Poland.

Ms. Kim has toured extensively throughout Canada and the United States, including performances at Alice Tully Hall and the Sante Fe and La Jolla International Music Festivals, where she performed with Cho-Liang Lin, Gary Hoffman, Andre Previn, and the Orion String Quartet. She performed Bach’s Double violin concerto with Hilary Hahn at the 2002 Amelia Island Chamber music festival.

An avid performer of new music, she can be heard on the recent CD release of the works of Alvin Singleton on Albany records. Helen performed the world premiere of the “Concertino” by Chen Yi, scored for solo violin and orchestra that was commissioned especially for her and the KSU Orchestra and was recorded for future CD release in 2015.

Ms. Kim currently resides in Atlanta, Georgia, where she served as assistant and associate concertmaster for the Atlanta Symphony for three seasons. She is currently the assistant concertmaster of the Atlanta Opera Orchestra and associate professor of violin at Kennesaw State University.

In the last two decades, German organist DR. JENS KORNDÖRFER (organ) has established himself internationally as performer, educator and church musician.
Praised as “a virtuoso in the grand Romantic tradition” who creates “performances that are deeply musically satisfying as well as exciting” (The American Organist), Jens is regularly invited at the most prestigious venues and festivals around the world. Highlights include solo concerts at Davies Symphony Hall in San Francisco, Merrill Auditorium in Portland (ME), Duke University Chapel, the Cathedral-Basilica in St. Louis, the Montreal Bach Festival, the Cathedrals in Washington, Berlin, Paris, Salzburg, Oslo, and Moscow, Westminster Abbey in London, the Royal Chapel in Versailles, the Minster in Ulm, Suntory Hall and Metropolitan Art Space in Tokyo, Kyoto Concert Hall, and the Cultural Centre in Hong Kong.

Jens’ repertoire reaches from the Renaissance to the 21st century, including transcriptions, commissions and world premieres for organ solo, and organ with other instruments or choir. Widely recognized as a "prodigious technician" (La Presse, Montreal), his "effortless and poetic playing" (Susan Landale) “that is superior both technically and musically” (The American Organist), and his “well-planned, dramatic programming” (Nordbayerischer Kurier) delight both organ aficionados and first time visitors alike. In addition to frequently collaborating with other musicians, he has also performed with ensembles such as the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, the Sapporo Symphony Orchestra, and the Filarmonica Arturo Toscanini.

The eclectic nature of his interests is also manifest in his four commercial recordings on major instruments in Canada, Japan, and the USA. The recordings (one of them with the solo trumpeter of the Sapporo Symphony Orchestra) and Jens’ live performances have also been broadcast widely on dedicated radio channels such as Pipedreams, Organlive, and OrganRoxx.

Passionate about forming the next generation of organists, Jens taught first at Agnes Scott College (2014-19) and, since 2017, has been directing the successful rebuild of the organ program at Georgia State University. Designed to prepare students for a successful career in church and concert, the comprehensive program includes classes in improvisation, choral conducting, and harpsichord in addition to organ performance; graduate assistantships in partnership with major churches in the Atlanta area provide first-rate insights into the day-to-day business of a church musician.

Frequently invited as guest speaker and clinician, Jens has given master classes and presentations for chapters of the American Guild of Organists, at conventions, universities, and concert halls around the world. His research has been published in music journals such as The Diapason, La Tribune de l’Orgue, Musica Sacra, The Organ, and The American Organist, and he has served on the jury of competitions.

As Director of Worship and the Arts, and Organist at First Presbyterian Church of Atlanta, GA, Jens oversees a thriving music and arts ministry. Under his leadership, the sanctuary organ was not only renovated, but enlarged to 112 ranks in 10 divisions, equipped with a state-of-the art control system by Syndyne and completely re-voiced by organ builders Klais (Bonn, Germany) and Schlueter (Lithonia, GA). The church also just added a new Steinway Concert Grand Piano to its collection of instruments, and the concert series has expanded significantly in scope and attendance thanks to collaborations with major local cultural players (Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, HIGH Museum of Art, Atlanta Opera, Alliance Theatre).

Acutely aware of the arts’ responsibility towards our society, Jens began a highly successful partnership with Challenge the Stats, an organization that raises awareness for minorities in the classical arts scene, and helped create scholarship opportunities for children from minorities in the church’s School of Fine Arts. Through presentations and lecture series on inter-disciplinary topics in collaboration with FPC’s resident theologian, and through creative events such as multi-media tours of the organ and lecture-recitals with organ arrangements of popular works, Jens further increased the reach of the church’s music and arts ministry in the city of Atlanta and beyond.

A top-honor graduate from the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique in Paris, the Oberlin Conservatory, the Musikhochschule in Bayreuth and McGill University in Montreal, Jens’ teachers include Olivier Latry, Michel Bouvard, James David Christie, and Ludger Lohmann. His talent has also been recognized with numerous prizes and scholarship awards from the Canadian International Organ Competition, the German Academic Exchange Service, the Oberlin Conservatory (Dean’s Scholarship), McGill-University (Max Stern Fellowship) and the Government of Quebec (Quebec Merit Scholarship).
Among Jens’ many formative experiences, his tenure as organist in residence at the Concert Hall Kitara in Sapporo, Japan, in the 2005/06 season is of particular importance: In addition to a packed schedule with performances, recordings and teaching all over Japan, he was particularly inspired by the imaginative marketing and highly creative outreach efforts of the hall’s administration, which resulted in frequently sold-out organ concerts (a rare occurrence in the Western World) and a very diverse audience that included all age groups. Ever since, in his positions Jens has striven to make the arts and especially the organ as successful as they were in Sapporo.

CHARAE KRUEGER (cello), Principal Cellist for the Atlanta Opera Orchestra and the Atlanta Ballet Orchestra. She has been the Cello Artist-In-Residence at Kennesaw State University since 2005. Charae is an avid chamber musician and is a member of the Summit Piano Trio, the Peachtree String Quartet, the Leaptrott Piano Trio and KSU Faculty String Trio. She is a regular featured artist at the High-lands Cashiers Chamber Music Festival in North Carolina, the Grand Teton Music Festival in Wyoming and at the North Georgia Chamber Music Festival. Her solo and chamber music recitals have been featured on NPR’s Performance Today, WABE Radio Atlanta and WGBH Radio Boston. She plays frequently with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and the Charleston Symphony. Charae also enjoys recording studio work and has played on albums of Bruce Springsteen, Faith Hill and Natalie Cole.

Recent concerts include performances at Charleston’s Piccolo Spoleto Festival, concerts at Highlands-Cashiers Chamber Music Festival, solo recitals at the Blue Ridge Chamber Music Festival and All-Saints Church concert series in Atlanta, concerto performances with DeKalb Symphony Orchestra and the Atlanta Community Orchestra, chamber music performances at the Grand Teton Music Festival and the Emory Chamber Music Society of Atlanta. She has twice performed the entire Beethoven cycle of Cello Sonatas with pianist Robert Henry and has done a recital tour and accompanying live CD of the Southeastern US with pianist Stanley Yerlow.

Charae received her early cell training in Canada at the Regina Conservatory of Music. She went on to study at Brandon University and received her Bachelor of Music Performance degree from New England Conservatory in Boston. She also holds an Artist Diploma from the Longy School of Music in Cambridge, MA. She continued her training during the summers at the Banff Centre in Canada and did quartet training with the Juilliard Quartet at the summer program at the Juilliard School. Charae was also a participant in the New York String Orchestra Seminar under the direction of Alexander Schneider with concerts at Carnegie Hall. After graduating, she was a founding member of the award-winning Arden String Quartet, with national and international appearances at Merkin Hall in NYC, Brown and Hofstra Universities as well as radio programs throughout the US east coast.

CATHERINE LYNN (viola) is Assistant Principal Violist of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra; she joined the ASO and the Atlanta Chamber Players in 2002. Ms. Lynn is on the faculty of Kennesaw State University and a viola coach for the Atlanta Symphony Youth Orchestra. In 2014, she will perform the Bartok viola concerto with the KSU Symphony Orchestra. Prior to coming to Atlanta, Ms. Lynn performed with the Rosseels String Quartet and was a frequent guest with the Michigan Chamber Players. She was Principal Viola of the Flint Symphony Orchestra in MI and taught at the Ann Arbor School for the Performing Arts. Ms. Lynn received her Bachelor of Music from the University of Alabama and her Master of Music and Doctorate of Musical Arts degrees from the University of Michigan.

Photo by J.D. Scott for the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra

ELIZABETH PRIDGEN (Artistic Director, piano) Pianist Elizabeth Pridgen has distinguished herself as a soloist and chamber musician and has appeared in concerts at Carnegie Hall's Zankel Hall, Merkin Hall, the Tilles Center on Long Island, Spivey Hall in Atlanta, and the "Rising Stars Series" at the Ravinia Festival. Ms. Pridgen has also performed at Alice Tully Hall, Carnegie Hall's Weill Recital Hall, and the Kosciuszko Foundation, and in recitals in London, Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Washington D.C., Miami, San Francisco, and throughout the Southeast and Caribbean.

Appointed Artistic Director of the Atlanta Chamber Players in 2014, Ms. Pridgen is leading the ensemble into its 41st season. Ms. Pridgen performs regularly at festivals including the Rome Chamber Music Festival in Rome, Italy, the Strings Music Festival in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, the Amelia Island Chamber Music Festival, the Aspen Music Festival, the River To River Festival, the Highlands-Cashiers Chamber Music Festival, the Water Island Music Festival, and the Madison Chamber Music Festival. An avid chamber performer, she has collaborated with artists such as Elmar Oliveira, Robert McDuffie, Yo-Yo Ma, Lynn Harrell, Hilary Hahn, Sarah Chang, Anne Akiko Meyers, Jennifer Koh, Nadja Salerno- Sonnenberg, the Diaz String Trio, Cuarteto Latinoamericano, and the American String Quartet. She performs regularly with violinist Amy Schwartz Moretti and cellist Julie Albers as a member of the Cortona Trio and with the Georgian Chamber Players.

Ms. Pridgen received her Master of Music degree at the Juilliard School where she studied with Joseph Kalichstein and earned her bachelor's degree at the Peabody Conservatory of Music as a student of Ann Schein.

BRAD RITCHIE (cello) Originally from Portland, Oregon, Brad Ritchie is currently in his 20th season as cellist with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Atlanta Chamber Players. He earned his Bachelor of Music at Indiana University where he studied with Tsuyoshi Tsutsumi and Janos Starker. In his senior year, his string quartet won the school's Kuttner Quartet Competition, which provided them with a year of recitals and trips to a number of chamber music competitions from Osaka, Japan to Evian, France. Following a summer of quartet concerts in Europe, Mr. Ritchie enrolled in the Musikhochschule in Freiburg, Germany and earned his graduate degree studying with Adriana Contino. After completing his studies in Germany, Mr. Ritchie played for two years in the New World Symphony in Miami under Michael Tilson Thomas. In 1997 he became a member of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, at which time he also joined the Atlanta Chamber Players. During his 17 years with the ACP, he has made recordings on the CRI, ACA Digital, and MSR labels, and toured extensively, including performances at Carnegie Hall, Boston's Jordan Hall, the American Cathedral in Paris, France, and in the International Chamber Music Festival in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. In addition to his commitments to the ASO and ACP, Brad has played with many other chamber music and new music ensembles in and around Atlanta including Riverside Chamber Players, Thamyris, Emory Chamber Players, Franklin Pond Quartet, GLO-ATL, and Bent Frequency, as well as annual concerts with faculty at Kennesaw State University and recitals with Robert Henry in Highlands, NC. He is a founding member of the contemporary music ensemble Sonic Generator, currently in its 8th season in residence at Georgia Tech University. A highlight of his past summer was to play for a wedding reception at which Clark Howard was in attendance. In his spare time, Brad likes traveling to distant lands, running through the woods, and finding new places to eat.

Photo by J.D. Scott for the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra

ALCIDES RODRIGUEZ (clarinet), a native of Venezuela, was appointed bass clarinetist with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra in September of 2005. Before joining the ASO, Alcides was the second and bass clarinetist with the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra. He received his Masters Degree in Music Performance from Northwestern University. He studied clarinet with Russell Dagon, bass clarinet with J. Lawrie Bloom and chamber music with Larry Combs. He holds a Bachelors Degree in Music from Baylor University, where he studied with Richard Shanley.

Alcides began his musical training in 1987 in the Youth Symphony Orchestra of his hometown of Guanare, Venezuela. He continued his clarinet studies at the National Conservatory of Music of Venezuela with Professors Valdemar Rodriguez and Luis Rossi. While in Venezuela, he also studied with distinguished clarinetists Jorge Montilla, Daniel Granados, and Carlos Mujica, and participated in master classes with Walter Boeykens, Paul Meyer, and Eddy Vanoosthuyse. As a soloist, he has been featured on many occasions with the Portuguesa State Symphony Orchestra in Venezuela, the Northwestern and Baylor University Orchestras, performing works of Mozart, Rossini, Weber, Nielsen, Francaix and Copland. His festival engagements have included the New Hampshire Music Festival, the National Repertory Orchestra, the National Orchestral Institute, and the Pacific Music Festival in Japan. Alcides also has an avid interest in the folk music and instruments of Venezuela. In 2005, he was featured with the Jacksonville Symphony performing the Concerto for Maracas and Orchestra by Ricardo Lorenz. Mr. Rodriguez is an Artist Clinician for Rico and Buffet Crampon and plays Buffet clarinets exclusively.

Photo by J.D. Scott for the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra

As a distinguished soloist and concert artist, DR. TIA ROPER (flute) has several credits to her name. They include holding the principal flute positions of the New York String Orchestra at Carnegie Hall, the Boston Civic Symphony Orchestra, and the Pacific Music Festival Orchestra in Japan. She also won grand prize in the Artists International Debut Recital Award and received critical acclaim for her Carnegie Hall recital debut. Dr. Roper has performed as a soloist with the Queens Symphony Orchestra and as a substitute player with the New York City Ballet Orchestra, Brooklyn Philharmonic, New England Philharmonic, and Westchester Philharmonic.

A winner of the New York Flute Club Competition, Tia was also awarded first-runner up in the Frank Bowen Young Artists Competition and was a finalist in the renowned Pappoutsakis Flute Competition. She has been a featured guest on Boston's cable television show "It's all about the Arts" as well as Houston's KUHF 88.7 radio station where her collaboration as a member of Aperio Music of the Americas has been broadcast. Her debut album, The Magic Flute, on the Albany Records label has received glowing reviews and was submitted by the head of Albany Records for Grammy nomination consideration. It successfully advanced to the first round ballot in the category of Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance in collaboration with pianist Mitchell Vines. She can also be heard on singer/songwriter Jann Klose's album MOSAIC. Ms. Roper has given concert performances in Russia, Switzerland, the Barbados, Japan, Venezuela, England, and throughout the United States.

Tia Roper was a student at the Juilliard Pre-College where she graduated with honors. She received her Bachelor of Music Degree from the Manhattan School of Music, her Masters Degree in Music Performance from Boston University, and Doctorate of Musical Arts from Rutgers University. An avid music educator, Dr. Roper most recently served as the University of North Georgia Flute Professor. She is currently Band Director at Mill Springs Academy.

TODD SKITCH (flute). Hailing from Canada, flutist Todd Skitch joined the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra (ASO) in September 2013. He is also a member of the Atlanta Chamber Players and is the Artist-in-Residence at Kennesaw State University. Mr. Skitch started his orchestral career with the Memphis Symphony Orchestra in 1997 after completing degrees at the University of Toronto and McGill University in Montreal, where his principal teachers were Timothy Hutchins and Nora Shulman. Mr. Skitch’s distinguished career as a teacher and symphony musician includes many credits: an original member of the IRIS Orchestra with Michael Stern; Bellingham Festival of Music; Memphis Chamber Music Society; Tanglewood Music Center; Blossom Music Festival at Kent University, where he received the Maurice Sharp Award for outstanding flute applicant; Spoleto Festival USA; and the National Repertory Orchestra.While in Memphis, Mr. Skitch served as the Chair of the Board of Directors and the Orchestra Manager for the Memphis Youth Symphony. He also specialized in preparing young flutists for All-State competitions and college auditions. Mr. Skitch has been heard on CBC Radio-Canada, WKNO-Memphis, and as a soloist with the Memphis Symphony and IRIS Orchestra. In 2003 Todd joined the Canadian group Ensemble Noir on a historic, three-nation African tour to Ghana, Nigeria, and South Africa.

ELIZABETH KOCH TISCIONE (oboe), a native of Hamburg NY, began her position as Principal Oboe of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra in 2007 and made her chamber music debut a few weeks later with the ACP at Spivey Hall. Mrs. Tiscione has been playing the oboe since the age of nine. She studied at the Interlochen Arts Academy under Daniel Stolper and the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia under Richard Woodhams. In addition to her position in the ASO, Mrs. Tiscione has performed as soloist with the Great Lakes Chamber Orchestra, the Colorado College Summer Music Festival, the World Youth Symphony, Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, and the Atlanta Symphony. She has also performed with the orchestras of Buffalo, Rochester, St. Paul, St. Louis, Baltimore, and Philadelphia. An avid chamber musician, Mrs. Tiscione has performed with many groups, including the Atlanta, Ritz, and Georgian Chamber Players. She has participated in the Cape Cod, Amelia Island, Twickenham, and Tannery Pond Chamber Music Festivals, and has been a guest artist with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. In the summers she is a member of the Grand Teton Music Festival Orchestra. Mrs. Tiscione is on the faculty of Kennesaw State University and has presented masterclasses all over the country. Her love for teaching has taken her as far as Colombia where she is a faculty member with Festicamara, in Medellin. Recently married, Elizabeth and Michael Tiscione live in Smyrna/Vinings with their dog and two cats and they share a love of California wine.

Photo by J.D. Scott for the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra

KENN WAGNER(violin) has been a first violinist with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra since 1995, and has also served as acting assistant concertmaster of the ASO for one season.

Outside of the ASO he has also appeared abroad as guest soloist with the Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra in China, and Christ Church Symphony string section, in New Zealand. Nationally he has soloed with the New Orleans Symphony, Arlington symphony and the Wintergreen Music Festival Orchestra. Locally, Wagner has also appeared as soloist with the Atlanta Community Symphony Orchestra, the Dekalb Symphony, Clark/Spellman Symphony, Atlanta Philharmonic, and the Atlanta Musicians' Orchestra.

In addition to his solo work and position with the ASO, Wagner enjoys playing chamber music and has performed with groups such as the Riverside Chamber Players, Leaptrott Trio (Trio in residence at Brenau University), Atlanta Chamber Players, Awadagin Pratt’s Next Generation Festival, and National Chamber Players with special guest Kenneth Slowik of the Smithsonian Chamber Players. Last season he also made his debut at the Piccolo Spoleto festival with the Orlando Chamber Soloists and later that summer performed with members of the Grammy Award winning Cuerteto Latino Americano in Mexico. Wagner has also performed chamber music with former IU faculty member, Csaba Erdelyi and this summer with Alan Morrison, keyboard faculty member of the Curtis institute.

Wagner is a graduate of Indiana University where he trained with Joseph Gingold, former Concertmaster of the Cleveland Orchestra Before completing his undergraduate degree at Indiana University, Wagner won a position with the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, with coaching from Vernon Summers of the National Symphony and former Concertmaster of both Atlanta and National Symphonies, William Steck.

Wagner is currently on faculty at both Kennesaw State University and Morehouse College.

SUSAN WELTY (horn) joined the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra as Associate Principal Horn in 1988.

The Illinois native received her Bachelor of Music in Music Performance from Northwestern University, where she studied with Dale Clevenger, Norman Schweikert and Richard Oldberg. Welty was a member of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago while studying there.

In addition to being a featured artist at the 1999 International Horn Workshop, she also served as a guest artist at the 2011 and 2012 National Brass Symposiums. Welty has been a member of the Bellingham Music Festival Orchestra since 2009, and she has performed at the Grand Tetons, Highland Cashiers, Astoria and Amelia Island Music Festivals.

Outside of music, Welty has a passion for houses, interior design and furniture. She was the winner of the 2013 “Kitchen of the Year” award in Atlanta Homes & Lifestyles. Susan Welty lives in Atlanta with her husband Brice Andrus and their two longhaired dachshunds.

Benjamin Horne (b.1995) is a composer/arranger, low brass performer, and music educator residing in Indiana. He earned his Master's degree at the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University and his Bachelor’s at the Schwob School of Music at Columbus State University (GA) with degrees in Music Education, Music Performance, and a Certificate in Music Composition.

Horne studied composition with Dr. James Ogburn, Dr. Don Freund, and Dr. Sky Macklay. His works and arrangements span various styles. Horne’s works and arrangements have received many honors and have been performed around the world including at the Latzsch Trombone Festival in Germany, as well as performances at other events such as the International Tuba and Euphonium Conference and the International Trombone Festival. Mr. Horne has collaborated on works with several renowned classical artists such as Demondrae Thurman and Charles Vernon.

Horne's primary instrument is the euphonium, having studied with Dr. Adam Frey, Dr. Martin Cochran, Andrew Miller, Dr. Ian McCollum, Bernard Flythe, and Dr. Demondrae Thurman. Horne is a past winner of the Mid-Atlantic Regional Tuba Euphonium Conference Solo Artist Competition. He has also been a finalist in the South Eastern Regional Tuba Euphonium Conference Solo Artist Competition and the International Euphonium Tuba Festival Solo Artist Division. Horne was a member of the Columbus State University Trombone Choir under the direction of Dr. Bradley Palmer. He was among the ensemble members on the Choir’s 2017 CD, Full Tilt. Horne was a member of the Teal Sound and Bluecoats Drum and Bugle Corps including the latter’s 2016 Drum Corps International World Championship corps. He currently performs as a member of the Sequence Euphonium Quartet (where he is their composer-in-residence) and with the Albireo New Music Collective as principal euphonium and trombone.

Mr. Horne's conducting mentors include Dr. Jamie Nix, Paul Hostetter, Dr. Jason Nam, and Dr. Rodney Dorsey. He has worked with various ensembles as a conductor and educator including the Georgia Brass Band. At Indiana University, Horne was an associate conductor for the IU Brass Choir and Brass Band. As an educator, Mr. Horne served as a middle and high school assistant band director at Holcomb Bridge Middle School and Centennial High School in Roswell, Georgia where he also led the jazz program. Horne is also a part of the brass staff at the Sacramento Mandarins Drum and Bugle Corps. He has also worked as an instructor and clinician across the United States teaching sectionals, private lessons, masterclasses, and marching band at all levels from beginners to university students.

BRIAN RAPHAEL NABORS (b.1991, Birmingham, AL) is a composer of emotionally enriching music that tells exciting narratives with its vibrant themes and colorful harmonic language.

Nabors won the Rapido! National Composition Contest in 2019 has been commissioned by the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, and has worked with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. His music has been performed at many events across the US, including the Texas Music Educators Association Conference (TMEA), the Midwest Composers Symposium, and the International Double Reed Society Conference (IDRS). He has also been performed by artists such as the Detroit Chamber Winds & Strings and the Atlanta Chamber Players. His work has been featured in masterclasses with composers such as William Bolcom, John Harbison, and Lowell Liebermann.

With an eclectic musical palate and crafty compositional technique to match, Nabors’ music draws from combinations of Jazz Funk, R&B, and Gospel with the modern flair of contemporary classical music. This interesting blend of sound worlds is one that continues to craft his unique musical voice.

He was named the 2018-19 Composer-in-Residence with the Castle of Our Skins organization in Boston, MA; a 2019 composer fellow in the American Composer’s Orchestra Earshot program with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra; a 2019 composer fellow with the Nashville Symphony Orchestra’s Composer Lab; and 2019 cycle five grand prize winner of the Rapido! National Composition Contest by judges Robert Spano, Jennifer Higdon, and Michael Gandolfi. Nabors is also a 2019-2020 Fulbright scholarship recipient to Sydney, Australia, studying with composer Carl Vine at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music.

Nabors earned both a Doctor of Musical Arts and Master of Music degree in Composition at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM), where he studied with Douglas Knehans, Ellen Ruth Harrison and Miguel A. Roig-Francolí. Prior to graduate studies, he obtained a Bachelor of Music Theory & Composition degree from the School of the Arts at Samford University in Birmingham, AL, where he studied composition with Sarana Chou and piano with Kathryn Fouse.