erforming rts enterC A P
university at albany State University of New York
2022-23
Di Santo, clarinet
Mao, violin
Sonatina for Violin and Piano in D major, Op. 94a…………..…...……….Sergei
I. Moderato
II. Scherzo: presto
III. Andante
IV. Allegro con brio
Sonata for Clarinet and Piano, Op. 184…Francis
I. Allegro tristamente
II. Romanza (Très calme)
III. Allegro con fuoco (Très animé)
Suite for violin, clarinet and piano, Op. 157b………………………...Darius
I. Ouverture
II. Divertissement
III. Jeu
IV. Introduction et Final
About the Performers
Dr. Christopher Di Santo, a native of Columbus, Ohio, joined the faculty of Stockton University in January 2012 as Associate Professor of Music in the university’s School of Arts and Humanities. His duties at Stockton include teaching courses in music appreciation, music theory, form & analysis, conducting, and directing instrumental ensembles. Former teaching positions include appointments on the music faculties of Moravian College, Swarthmore College, and West Chester, Lehigh and Rowan Universities.
Recent career highlights include invitations to lecture at the 7th Annual International Arts, Humanities, Social Sciences & Education Conference in Honolulu, Hawaii (January 2018) and presenting a keynote address at the PASMAE/ISME (PanAfrican Society for Musical Arts Education/International Society for Music Education) international music conference in Swaziland, Africa (July 2017) and the NAfME (National Association for Music Education) Eastern Division Conference in Atlantic City, NJ (April 2017). Additionally, Dr. Di Santo was invited to appear as guest conductor of the Atlantic Cape Honor Band (December 2016), and accepted an invitation to China where he performed as soloist with the Shanghai Conservatory Symphony Orchestra and conducted a series of masterclasses with the Shanghai Conservatory of Music’s highly talented and advanced clarinet students (December 2006).
Dr. Di Santo is currently the Principal Clarinetist of the BayAtlantic Symphony; a position he has held since 1991. He has participated in music festivals in both North America and Europe, and has performed throughout venues in the United States, Canada, Austria, Germany and Italy. His clarinet playing and commentary were highlighted on NPR’s Morning Edition on October 9, 2004, later broadcast in translation over Voice of America, throughout Europe and the former Soviet Republics. Publishing credits include articles in The Clarinet (the official journal of the International Clarinet Association), and the International Alliance for Women in Music journal.
Dr. Di Santo earned his Doctor of Musical Arts degree from Temple University, where he held a Conwell Fellowship, a
Master of Music degree from the University of Illinois and a Bachelor of Music Education degree, cum laude, from The Ohio State University. Dr. Di Santo was chosen for inclusion in the ninth edition of Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers, 2005. His clarinet teachers include Anthony Gigliotti, Alan Hacker, Howard Klug, Dr. Donald E. McGinnis, and Dr. Robert A. Titus.
Violinist Ruotao Mao, a native of Beijing, China, started learning the violin at the age of six under the guidance of his father and gave his first public performance at the age of nine in Shanghai. Now an active soloist and chamber musician, his playing was described by THE CLASSICAL NEW JERSEY as "… virtuoso display of world-class magnitude." and "…the level of playing has reached far beyond mere technical competence."
As a concerto soloist, Mr. Mao has performed with the Jupiter Symphony, the Riverside Symphonia, the New England Conservatory Symphony Orchestra, Rutgers University Orchestra, Corelliard Chamber Orchestra, TCNJ Orchestra, Edison Symphony, Acadiana Symphony, Bay-Atlantic Symphony and Delaware Valley Philharmonic Orchestra among others. In 2004, Mr. Mao premiered a violin concerto by Ernest Stires in the Stern Auditorium of Carnegie Hall.
As a chamber musician, Mr. Mao is one of the founding members of the Amabile String Quartet and the Beijing Piano Quartet. Both groups have established extensive performance histories. His piano quartet has appeared in Alice Tully Hall, Bruno Walter Auditorium and Weill Recital Hall of Carnegie Hall as a winner of Artists International Chamber Music Series in 1994. His string quartet has performed with the Muir String Quartet and has appeared in many concert series on the east coast and heard on several radio stations nationwide. In years 2000 to 2002, the Amabile String Quartet served as the quartetin-residence at Rutgers University. It was praised by THE CLASSICAL NEW JERSEY as "(Their) performance was luminous, raised to that level by exceptional precision of ensemble."
Internationally, Mr. Mao has had performance tours in Korea and Colombia, South America. He also has played on WNYC Radio Station, WETS public radio serving Tennessee, Virginia
and North Carolina and WDVR-FM radio station serving the Delaware Township and Lawrenceville, Princeton and Trenton in New Jersey. As recording artist, Mr. Mao has recorded under CRI and Beijing Broadcast CD labels.
Mr. Mao came to Boston on a full scholarship offered by the New England Conservatory of Music where he studied with Dorothy Delay, Paul Kantor, and Masuko Ushioda. While in Boston, Mr. Mao won numerous prizes and graduated with distinction in performance. He also attended prestigious music festivals such as the New York String Seminar with Alexander Schneider and the Tanglewood with Boston Symphony Orchestra where his performance of Bartok’s String Quartet No. 1 received an honorary mention. Mr. Mao started working with violinist Arnold Steinhardt of the Guarneri String Quartet in 1989 at the Mason Gross School of the Arts where he received the Master’s degree. While at Rutgers, Mr. Mao won numerous competitions and formed the highly praised Beijing Piano Quartet and Amabile String Quartet.
Mr. Mao currently serves as the concertmaster of the BayAtlantic Symphony, Riverside Symphonia and the Glimmerglass Opera Orchestra. Mr. Mao teaches violin and chamber music at The College of New Jersey and served as Area Instructor at Princeton University.
Michael Sheadel has performed in the United States and Europe as both soloist and collaborative pianist. An avid chamber musician, he has performed with the Chestnut Brass Company, Encore Chamber Players, Hamilton Duo, Philadelphia Virtuosi, Network for New Music, Orchestra 2001, and the Settlement Contemporary Players. As a performer of contemporary music, he has participated in the regional and world premieres of numerous new works. He appears on recordings with the Hamilton Duo, violinist Timothy Schwarz, composer Cynthia Folio, and Orchestra 2001. Dr. Sheadel earned degrees in piano performance from the Eastman School of Music, the Peabody Conservatory, and Temple University. Based in Philadelphia, he teaches piano for the University of Pennsylvania and the Main Line Conservatory, and is a former faculty member of the Blue Mountain Chamber Music Festival.
