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Clarinetist Jože Kotar became principal clarinetist of the RTV Slovenia Symphony Orchestra in 2007 after serving in that role at the Slovenian Philharmonic Orchestra for 12 years. He is also a tenured professor at the Academy of Music in Ljubljana.
As a soloist, chamber musician and member of various chamber ensembles, Kotar performs in Slovenia and abroad (Europe, USA, South America...), leads seminars for the clarinet and chamber music (Croatia, Serbia, Italy, Hungary, Belgium, Ireland, Israel, Brazil), and participates in the jury of international competitions.
He has recorded many CDs: four as an independent soloist – with the Slovenian Philharmonic String Quartet (RTV Publishing, Slovenia, Ljubljana, 1998), COLLAGE with harpist Nicoletto Sanzin Fabbri (RTV Publishing Slovenia, Ljubljana, 2002), SOLO with compositions exclusively for solo clarinet (Sound-tech, 2005) and most recently with the Slovenian Philharmonic Orchestra (Slovenian Philharmonic, 2006); and other ensemble CDs – three with the Ariart Wind Quintet: ARIART (RTV Publishing Slovenia, Ljubljana 1997), COCKTAIL (Ariart, 2004) and EPISODI CONCERTANTE (Sound-tech, 2005), CLARINETTING with the Slovenian clarinet quartet (Samozaložba, Ljubljana, 1999), FAMILY with the Slovenian Clarinet Sextet (Sound-tech, 2003), three with the MD7 Contemporary Music Ensemble: MUSIC OF OUR TIME (RTV publishing Slovenia, Ljubljana, 2005), MODERN (Society of Slovene composers, 2009), COLOUR CIRCLE (RTV publishing Slovenia, Ljubljana, 2009) and one with THE SLOVENIAN PHILHARMONIC WOODWIND TRIO (Society of Slovene composers, 2007). His performance of Rossini’s Theme, Introduction and Variations was released on a CD of the Slovenian Police Orchestra (Ljubljana, 1994), as well as a live performance from The Netherlands on a CD of the Trbovlje Workers Band.
Kotar is a member, co-founder and artistic director of the Slovenian Clarinet Orchestra and a member of the Ariart Wind Quintet and the MD7 Contemporary Music Ensemble. As a clarinetist, he collaborates with the Slovenian Chamber Orchestra, the Academie Ars Musicae Orchestra, etc. Since 2010 he is a conductor and artistic director at the Trbovlje Workers Band.
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Dash Point native Jennifer Nelson is currently Principal Clarinet with the Pacific Northwest Ballet and the Auburn Symphony Orchestras. She also has a very active freelance career, including playing Broadway-style shows at the Fifth Avenue and Paramount Theaters, occasional extra with the Seattle Symphony and Opera Orchestras, and recordings for various television and motion picture scores. She is also Lecturer in Clarinet at the University of Washington, and Affiliate Artist Faculty in Clarinet at the University of Puget Sound, in addition to having several students in her private studio in Seattle for many years. Ms. Nelson has also traveled throughout the United States with the national touring companies of Phantom of the Opera and New York City Opera. In addition to her stateside concerts, Jennifer's orchestral and recital performances have also taken her to Mexico, Japan, Germany, Liechtenstein, Austria, Honduras, and most recently, India.
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Sean Osborn has traveled the US, Canada, Europe, and Japan as soloist and chamber musician, and traveled the world during his eleven years with the
Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. He has also appeared as guest principal clarinet with the New York Philharmonic, Pittsburgh Symphony, Seattle Symphony, and the American Symphony Orchestra.
The New York Times dubbed him "...an excellent clarinetist," the Boston Globe called him "...a miracle," and Gramophone "...a master."
Sean is also an award-winning composer whose chamber works have been played by members of the New York Philharmonic, Metropolitan Opera, Marlboro Music Festival,
Los Angeles Philharmonic, and the Juilliard School, among others.
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Mary Kantor received her Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Washington and graduated from the Academy of Music in Vienna with Honors in clarinet performance,
class of Rudolf Jettel. She is currently principal clarinetist with the Bellevue Philharmonic and the Seattle Choral Company, a member of the Shalom Ensemble, and plays with the
Temple B'nai Torah musicians for Friday night Shabbat services.
As a soloist, she has performed the Mozart Concerto and Richard Strauss' Duet-Concertino with Philharmonia Northwest. She has also performed with the Seattle Symphony,
Seattle Opera, Pacific Northwest Ballet, and the Northwest Chamber Orchestra, as well as on numerous movie soundtracks. As an educator, she coaches both the Seattle Youth
Symphony and Cascade Youth Symphony clarinet sections, and is Professor of Clarinet at SPU. She also appears in Who's Who in America, 59th and 60th editions.
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The Jazz Review calls saxophonist, clarinetist, and composer Steve Treseler "a bona fide big player in the arena of straight-ahead jazz who provides just enough of other ingredients to keep it all fascinating and fresh." Treseler has performed with jazz artists Kenny Wheeler, Bob Brookmeyer, George Russell, Wayne Horvitz, Benny Green, John Medeski, Bob Curnow, Ingrid Jensen, Darcy James Argue, and Donny McCaslin. Steve attended the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston where he studied with jazz legends Jerry Bergonzi, Bob Brookmeyer, George Garzone and Steve Lacy. In 2003, Steve graduated with a distinction in performance and was named "Outstanding Soloist" in the college division by Down Beat magazine. In 2008, he released his debut album Resonance, which has received critical acclaim and international radio airplay. The University of Idaho and Central Washington University are currently using Treseler’s new textbook The Living Jazz Tradition: A Creative Guide to Improvisation and Harmony. Steve is a member of the Jim Knapp Orchestra and Wayne Horvitz's WACO, and he leads the Steve Treseler Group.
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William Blayney is a Buffet Crampon Performing Artist. He has performed with the Seattle Symphony, Seattle Opera, Pacific Northwest Ballet, 5th Avenue Theater and this year has been asked to play Principal Clarinet with the Seattle Philharmonic.
Mr. Blayney is an authority on historical clarinet recordings and has given lectures and master classes at ICA conventions, the Eastman School of Music, University of Florida, and LSU in Louisiana. Mr. Blayney also conducts the
Northwest Clarinet Choir, All City Clarinets, and the Greenwood Concert Band.
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Active in Seattle as a collaborative performer with singers and instrumentalists, Rhonda Kline's current passions include serving as music director/general manager for Northwest Opera In Schools, Etc. (NOISE, an opera education organization), and music director for Black Box Opera Theater (an ensemble company dedicated to performing new operatic and vocal works). She is opera coach and coordinator of accompanying at the University of Washington School of Music, and pianist/coach with Canta in Italia, a summer program for singers based in Florence, Italy. 2010 performances included a European tour with Metropolitan Opera soprano Joyce Guyer, a recital tour in New York with soprano (and UW alumnus) Kimberly Giordano, and a cabaret of songs by Sondheim, Newman and Weill with Black Box Opera Theater at Bumbershoot Festival in Seattle.
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