Ms. Guaspari holds a Bachelor of Music degree from SUNY Fredonia as well as a Master of Arts degree in Music Education from Boston University School of Fine Arts and honorary doctorates from the New England Conservatory of Music, SUNY Fredonia and Mount Holyoke College. Roberta Guaspari began her remarkable teaching career in three East Harlem Public schools in 1981. She devised her own teaching method, combining the rudiments of traditional violin instructions, elements of the Suzuki method, with her own highly developed approach to the instrument. In response to severe budget cuts by the New York City Board of Education in 1991 when her teaching position was eliminated in all three schools, together with parents, teachers, and volunteers, Ms. Guaspari co-founded Opus 118.

The first benefit for Opus 118—Harlem Center for Strings was the Fiddlefest concert in Carnegie Hall. Ms. Guaspari received support from some of the biggest stars of the music world, including Quincy Jones, Dave Grusin, Mark O’Connor, Itzhak Perlman, Arnold Steinhardt, and Isaac Stern. A documentary, Small Wonders (Allan Miller), and a feature film, Music of the Heart (Miramax, starring Meryl Streep as Roberta) soon followed, depicting Ms. Guaspari’s passionate struggle to keep music in the Harlem Schools. Both films were nominated for the Academy Awards.

A dynamic and devoted teacher, Ms. Guaspari has received numerous awards and honors including the Petra Foundation’s annual award to “recognize and encourage unsung individuals who are making distinctive contributions to human freedom.” Manhattan Borough President, C. Virginia Fields issued a proclamation recognizing Ms. Guaspari “for her dedication in unlocking the potential for academic and artistic achievement in her students.” She was named Woman of the Year in 1994 by CBS This Morning and also was the recipient of the Heroes for Today Award by Readers Digest and the Outstanding Achievement Award by SUNY Fredonia Alumni Association. She will receive the Arison Award in 2003 presented by NFAA for her “significant influence in the development of young American artists.”

Opus 118 Harlem School of Music has grown to include a Community Music School, a teacher training program, and an annual String Training Workshop
for teachers.

Lynelle Smith , violin,
Master Teacher and Head of the String Department

Ms. Smith holds a Bachelor of Music Degree from the New England Conservatory and a Performance Diploma in Violin from The Juilliard School as well as an Associate Degree in Nursing from Atlantic Union College. She has performed across Europe and in Mexico as well as in the United States including performances at Carnegie Hall, Avery Fisher Hall, St. Martin-in-the-Fields, and Notre Dame Cathedral. She has participated in master classes and chamber coaching with Itzhak Perlman, Dorothy DeLay, Joel Smirnoff, Eugene Lanier and Louis Krasner. She teaches at the Lucy Moses School of Music and Art concurrent with her position as Master Teacher at Opus 118 Harlem School of Music, teaching in the Community Music School.

Charlene Bishop , violin

Charlene Bishop, an alumna of Opus 118, started her studies at the age of six with Roberta Guaspari. Soon after she was accepted to the Juilliard MAP (Music Advancement Program) program and began attending when she was eight years old. At eleven, Charlene participated at Kinhaven and Fredonia summer music camps and continued to attend for the next two years. She attended the Mannes Pre-College division at thirteen and then continued at the Mannes College of Music where she received her Bachelor’s Degree in Violin Performance.

During the course of her musical studies at these various programs, Charlene remained in touch with Opus 118 and has participated in performances with them in Germany, Switzerland, the Kennedy Center, Madison Square Garden and Yankee Stadium, VH1’s Save the Music with Madonna and N’Sync, and more. Charlene is currently a member of the One World Symphony and continues to be both a performer and teacher in New York City.

Christopher Bradshaw, piano

A native of Monticello, New York, Christopher Bradshaw graduated with distinction from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill before doing his graduate studies at the University of Cincinnati. He has studied with Francis Whang, Eugene and Elizabeth Pridonoff, and has played in master classes for Malcolm Bilson, James Tocco, Ruth Laredo, and William Bolcom. He has performed in solo and chamber music recitals in Spain, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, as well as in the United States.

Since 1992, Bradshaw has been performing regularly in a piano duo with Spanish pianist María José Parker. Together, they have performed a wide variety of four-hand and two-piano repertoire in the United States, Spain, Austria, and Germany. In 1997, they won the second prize in the International Competition Ciudad San Sebastián. They have performed with the Choral Arts Society of Philadelphia, with the Palisades Chamber Players in New York’s Steinway Hall, and as soloists with the Kennett Symphony. Recently, they performed four-hand recitals at Neumann College and at Hamilton College, where they also taught a master class.

Bradshaw teaches piano at the Opus 118 Harlem School of Music, the Little Red Schoolhouse in Greenwich Village, and has his own private studio. His students have received scholarships, honors,
and awards for their playing. In addition to teaching and performing, he also enjoys collaborating
with vocalists on the art song repertoire, in part due to his interest in and study of the Spanish,
French, and Russian languages.

Annette Espada , musicianship

Annette Espada has received a Doctorate in Cello Performance from the University of Miami, master's in music education and Kodaly Certification from New York University and bachelor's degree in cello performance from the Puerto Rico Conservatory of Music. Dr. Espada is also a dedicated cello/music teacher and a published author of two books on cello playing: "The Evolution of Cello Playing in Puerto Rico-The Legacy of Pablo Casals" and "Tips About Cello Playing I Learned From a Ladybug." She is currently teaching at PS 189 in Manhattan and is part of the faculty at Concordia Conservatory, Concordia College. Dr. Espada was inducted into the National Honor Roll’s for Outstanding American Teachers.

Nora Friedman , violin

Nora Friedman began studying the violin with Roberta Guaspari at Central Park East I Elementary School when she was six years old. When she was 13, she attended the Manhattan School of Music Preparatory Division, where she studied with Anna Pelekh through High School. She was a member of the New York Youth Symphony, the Inter-School Orchestras, and participated in a number of Ms. Guaspari's Fiddlefest Concerts, including Fiddlefest, Zurich. Ms. Friedman received her BA in Latin American studies from Wesleyan University in 2001. At Wesleyan she continued her musical training with Perry Elliot, and was an active member of the Wesleyan Orchestra, and chamber music program during her four years there. After graduating she went on to direct and implement the violin program at the High School for Violin and Dance in the South Bronx, where she taught for four years. She also teaches at the Elizabeth Morrow School Summer String Festival for students ages K–8th grade, under the direction of Amelia Gold. Ms. Friedman currently teaches at the Excellence Charter School in Bedford Stuyvesant, and she is working on a Masters of Performance at Brooklyn College, where she studies with Masao Kawasaki.

Carrie Dowell, violin

Violinist Carrie Dowell, originally from Pekin, Illinois, recently moved to New York from Boston. In New York she is freelancing with several groups including the Paragon Ragtime Orchestra, Astoria Symphony and One World Symphony. She is on faculty at Opus 118 Harlem School of Music, Hamilton-Madison House, Rye Arts Center and Interschool Orchestras of New York. In Boston, she freelanced with several orchestras, area musicals, and chamber music ensembles including the Baraka String Quartet. She was on faculty at the All Newton Music School and the Wellesley Public Schools extension program. She received her Bachelor’s of Music from Butler University, Master’s of Music from Kent State University with a string quartet graduate assistantship, and a Performance Diploma from the Longy School of Music. She is a member of the Missouri Symphony and also performs with the Bear Valley Festival Symphony. Ms. Dowell has participated in festivals including Yellow Barn Musical Festival, National Orchestral Institute, and Meadowmount School of Music. Ms. Dowell studied with Laurence Shapiro, Gregory Fulkerson, Eric Rosentblith and Joey Corpus.

Chihiro Fukuda, viola

Violist Chihiro Fukuda has performed with orchestral and chamber music ensembles in Japan, the United States, and Europe.  She made her Weill Hall debut as a winner of the Japanese-American Association’s Music Award in 2006. Recently, at the same competition, her string trio, The Onyx Chamber Players, won first prize, and gave a recital on December 20th, 2008 at the same venue. For six summers, Ms. Fukuda participated in the Aspen Music Festival as a fellowship recipient and has won runner-up in the Lower Strings Competition. During her studies at the Juilliard School, she performed Mozart’s Sinfonia concertante with conductor James DePriest and the Juilliard Orchestra.

Ms. Fukuda is a former assistant principal of the State Opera House Orchestra in Valencia, Spain. Currently, she performs in the Saito-Kinen Orchestra, the Iris Orchestra in Tennessee, and is assistant principal violist of the Allentown Symphony in Pennsylvania. She also teaches at the Kaufman Center, and at Opus 118 Harlem School of Music.

Born in New York City and raised in Japan, Ms. Fukuda began playing the violin at the age of six and the viola at the age of seventeen. She received her Bachelor of Music degree at the Tokyo Geidai as a student of Junji Suganuma, and her Master of Music degree as a student of Masao Kawasaki at the Juilliard School .

Cordelia Hagmann, violin

Violinist Cordelia Hagmann appears frequently as a chamber musician, recitalist, and concertmistress in Europe and the US. She won a top prize and the audience prize at the Chesapeake Chamber Music Competition in 2004 with the Moirae Trio, the Kiwanis Prize in Zürich in 2001, the concerto competition in Winterthur in 1998, and other prestigious scholarships in her native Switzerland. Currently based in New York, Cordelia has performed in venues such as Carnegie Hall, Merkin Hall, and Alice Tully Hall, as well as the Tonhalle in Zürich and KKL in Luzern, the Tel Aviv Conservatory and the Jerusalem Music Center. As a soloist, Cordelia has performed among others with orchestras such as the Musikkollegium Winterthur and the Temple Symphony Orchestra, performing works by Bach, Beethoven, Chausson, Dvorak, Mozart, Sarasate, Saint-Saens, and Vivaldi. Radio broadcasts have included the Swiss National Radio.

Cordelia began playing the violin at age five with Matthias Steiner in Switzerland. She continued her studies at the conservatory in Winterthur-Zürich with Nora Chastain (BM with honors) and Rudolf Koelman. In 2002 she moved to the USA where she completed her studies with a Performer Diploma with Prof. Miriam Fried at Indiana University in Bloomington. While in Indiana, Cordelia was a member of the Moirae Piano Trio under the guidance of Prof. Menahem Pressler (founding member of the Beaux Arts Trio). With the Moirae Trio she performed, among other works, Beethoven’s Triple Concerto with orchestra and was invited to perform at Mr. Pressler's 80th birthday celebration.

Cordelia has lived in New York City since 2004, where she plays with chamber music groups and orchestras like the Mark Morris Dance Group, the Onyx Chamber Group, String Orchestra of New York City, and the American Symphony Orchestra, and performs as concertmistress of the New England Symphonic Ensemble regularly in Carnegie Hall. Recent engagements have included the Kaprizma Ensemble in Israel. Cordelia is on the violin faculty
at Lucy Moses School and Opus 118 Harlem School of Music, and teaches chamber music for New York Youth.

David Harris, choir

David Harris (b. 1974), BSE, MM, DMA is a freelance musician living in Manhattan.  He is the director for the Columbia Glee Club, a member of  C4 the Choral Composer/Conductor Collective, assistant director for Canticum Novum and teaches at Opus 118 Harlem School of Music.  In addition to conducting and teaching, David also composes a variety of music and is currently working on several projects, among them a musical, a ballet, and some choral pieces. This year he released three CDs:  I Want To Be Ready, a live recording of Jubilate in Carnegie Hall, Old Time Religion, gospel favorites and St. Bartholomew and The Frail Stag, a live recording in Denver of the premiere of three of his multi-movement works.  Each is available on iTunes and CDBaby.

He moved to New York from Colorado where he began and directed Jubilate, a 55-voice a cappella choir, for 8 years. Prior to that, he lived in Birmingham and taught high school in addition to working with the Birmingham Boys Choir. David often serves as a clinician and fulfills composition commissions throughout the year. He is a current member of the American Composers Forum and the American Music Center. David co-authored the book In The Good Old Summer Time with Thomas Riis in 2006. He holds degrees from the Universities of Alabama, Oklahoma, and Colorado. He received the Marinus Smith Recognition Award for Teaching Excellence in 2003 from the University of Colorado Parents Association for his work with the CU Collegiate Chorale.

Steve Jabas, guitar

Steve has taught guitar, bass, and music technology for fifteen years. In addition to teaching, he is a performer, composer/arranger, recording engineer, and producer. He recently composed scores for the short film “A Family Portrait” and the independent feature “Shadowboxer”.

Originally from Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota, Steve received a BFA in Music from the University of Minnesota. Afterward, he performed and traveled to over 30 countries with Premier Cruise Line and Norwegian Cruise Line, working as guitarist and Music Director.

Steve currently performs with several groups in the NYC area, including The Stingers, the improvised comedy-musical “Baby Wants Candy,” singer-songwriter Allison Scola, Hot Peas ‘N Butter (seen on Noggin TV and winner of the 2006 & 2008 “Parent’s Choice Award” by Family Magazine Group). Steve also produced the song “Healing Time” by Josh Charles, for which all proceeds are being donated to the Preservation Resource Center for the rebuilding of New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina.

Laura Metcalf , cello

Cellist Laura Metcalf is active in New York City as a soloist, chamber musician, orchestral musician, and teacher.

Laura devotes much of her focus to performing chamber music. She is cellist of the Sybarite Chamber Players, a unique string ensemble dedicated to eclectic programming and bringing about new works specifically written for the group. Sybarite has been featured on local and international television, was invited to perform for Secretary of State Condolezza Rice, and was the first-ever quintet to take part in the Advanced Quartet Studies program at the Aspen Music Festival. With pianist Monica Chung, she has attended the 2008 International Musicians Seminar in Prussia Cove, and given recitals at the Shandelee Music Festival and Faust-Harrison Pianos in New York. She is a member of Ten O’Clock Classics, a touring collective of soloists committed to performance and outreach. She is a member of the Tarab Cello Ensemble, a group of eight cellists with whom she has performed in the U.S. and abroad. She has appeared on the Festival Chamber Music series at Weill and Merkin Concert Halls, and with the Elysium Chamber Ensemble at the Tenri Institute, collaborating with members of the New York Philharmonic and the Metropolitan Opera. With acclaimed cellist Sonia Wieder-Atherton, she performed in the French Institute Alliance Française 2008 Fall Festival. She has also performed chamber music in Carnegie Hall’s Stern Auditorium, the Chateau de Fontainebleau in France, le Poisson Rouge, the French Consulate of New York, the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, Bruno Walter Auditorium, and many others.

She has performed as a soloist with the Ensemble 212 Orchestra of New York and the Orquesta Sinfonica Sinaloa (as a member of the Tarab Cello Ensemble). She has been the winner of Boston University’s Bach Competition and a semi-finalist in the Hudson Valley Philharmonic Competition, and her trio was the highest-ranked North American ensemble in the ARD Competition in Munich, Germany.

Laura is assistant principal of the Chamber Orchestra of New York, and has repeatedly been invited to perform as a member of Michael Tilson Thomas’s New World Symphony.

Laura has been invited to such festivals as the IMS Prussia Cove’s masterclasses and Open Chamber Music, the
Taos, Aspen, and Sarasota Music Festivals, and the American Conservatoire in Fontainebleau, France.

Laura serves on the faculty of Opus 118 Harlem School of Music, and also maintains a private teaching studio.
She received her Master of Music degree fromthe Mannes College of Music in 2006, where she studied with
Timothy Eddy and received the James Hughes Award for excellence in performance upon graduation. She
graduated summa cum laude in 2004 from Boston University’s College of Fine Arts.

Adriatik Sefa , violin

A graduate from two well-known universities Eastman School of Music and New York University is the founder of the “Youth music competition”. Mr. Sefa received his first lesson in a small town of Albania called Elbasan. After finishing the High school at the “Onufri” music school he continued his study at the Academy of Arts in Tirana, Albania. He has performed throughout the world, Europe, Africa, Middle East, and USA. Mr. Sefa is a member of Brooklyn Conservatory of Music, Harlem Center for Strings, and a full time music teacher at Kappa II public school. Winner of several international prices Mr. Sefa always dreamed on creating a competition for young talented musicians. Mr. Sefa in cooperation with Mr. Melo and Ms. Adams made it possible to organize this great competition.

Curtis Stewart , violin

Curtis Stewart is a New York City based freelance violinist. A recent graduate of the Eastman School of Music, Curtis has performed as a soloist with the National Repertory Orchestra and with Akua Dixon in her Hip-Hop Blues project at Aaron Davis Hall. He has made chamber music appearances in the Rochester International Jazz Festival and the Beethoven Institute at the Mannes College of Music. Curtis’ eclectic background has led him to concerts in many different realms of music, from the avant-garde jazz Vision Festival and MTV specials with Wyclef Jean, to appearances at Carnegie Hall with the New England Symphonic Ensemble, and stints at the Jazz Gallery with Jason Lindner. Curtis is excited to continue expanding his stylistic and expressive range in New York's boundless music scene.