Alumni News

This page is being updated with current news of our alumni.
If you are an alumnus, or a teacher or parent of one, and our current contact info (email address for you) is out of date, please send us your current information and whatever info you can about college, graduate school, and beyond. Thank you!

Camden Shaw, cello, Sophomore, Curtis Institute (full scholarship), solos with the Philadelphia Orchestra, January 24, 2009 in their annual fund raising concert.
Visit www/philorch.com. Former student of Toby Saks.

Michael Matlock- piano - composition - musical theatre
Summer 2008 - was the assistant musical director for THE SECRET GARDEN, the main stage KIDSTAGE production at the Village Theatre (a professional and highly reputed company).
Michael worked with a musical director who has been at the Village for years and really liked Michael. He even asked if he could stay an extra week and help him out with one of the new musicals that was presented during the New Music Festival at the Village – an opportunity to see six new shows in various stages of development. Michael hopes to have his own shows presented at the festival someday! Along with working on two shows, he also was the accompanist for three music camps at the theatre. The musical director and the KIDSTAGE director have already expressed interest in Michael working there again summer 2009, with one of the shows under consideration being Bernstein's WEST SIDE STORY! Former student of Willard Schultz.

Nathaniel LaNasa - piano -
Fall 2008 Will attend Yale Univ. for his graduate work.
Spring 2008 - Graduated BM - Manhattan SCM.
June -July 2008 attended the Bowdoin and the Aspen Summer Music Schools. Worked with his favorite piano quartet ensemble to date at Bowdoin.
Nov 28, 2007 Junior, Manhattan School of Music.
Performed in the Berg Kammerkonzert. The New York Times gave a rave review. Also, his duo won the MSCM chamber music competition that performed in the winners' concert.

Frank Huang, piano - Former Academy student of Piano Chair, Willard Schultz.
Spring 2009 will play a Benefit recital for the Academy at Nordstrom Hall.
Spring 2008: Graduated from the Masters Program at The Juilliard School.
January 2008- Appointed as a faculty member at The Piano School of NYC.
March 2008- auditioned and accepted by University of Michigan, Rice University, Cleveland Institute of Music, and Conservatoire de Musique Geneve. Decided after long deliberation to go to CIM for his DMA.
March 2008 - auditioned for Artists International Management. Selected as one of the seven pianists of 100 applications for a sponsored recital in Carnegie Hall, Weil Recital Hall. Recital is set for April 18th, 2009, 5:30PM
May 2008 -winner of 2008 Five Towns Piano Competition
June 2008 - was piano juror for the 2008 Cambridge Concerto Competition for Young Musicians and gave a masterclass to the finalists.
August 2008- will teach at the Nosis Music Institute in Boston. This one week program will include instructions on piano lesson, chamber music coaching, and a course on Ear Training I.
Will also accompany other faculty performers and perform Schumann Piano Quintet in E flat major and Dvorak Piano Quintet in A major with the faculty.
Also spent two years teaching a young, talented boy from the New Jersey area, who wanted to continue and further his education at Juilliard's Pre-college division, and who was accepted as one of the five pianists selected 2008 with a substantial scholarship.
2007 - Successfully auditioned for the Masters Program at Juilliard.
August 2007- Gijon, Spain: gave a concert with a favorable review at the Gijon International Piano Festival.
2004 - Frank auditioned at Juilliard and was accepted as the only sophomore and one of only 10 students accepted at Juilliard in Sept. 2003. Teacher: Julian Martin. Frank easily tested out of reguired basic theory and ear training classes.
2003 - First year as a scholarship student at the Peabody Conservatory, studying with Julian Frank, performed an invitational concert in NY, and was invited to perform and give a master class at the Westminster Choir School.
2002 At the Academy, Frank was a winner of the SYAMF Concerto Competition, and many others. Her performed in Academy benefits at the Four Seasons Olympic Hotel, with regional orchestras and in Brazil. He spent the summer in piano festivals/competitions in NY, Milan, Italy, and at the Chopin Festival in Poland.

Leah Ilem, Viola
2006 Became a member of Portland Symphony Orchestra
2004-05 Graduate school and Summer residency with the Portland Symphony (OR).
Fall 2003 graduate school and competitions.
August 2002 Senior this year at Cleveland Institute of Music (CIM) studying with Mr. Irvine.
Summer at Taos School of Music in
New Mexico.
2001 Encore School for Strings.
Principal viola of the CIM orchestra, participated in their intensive Quartet Seminar. Awarded the Horace and Marie Arnold Viola Award at CIM.
1999-2001 was awarded an instrument from the Virtu Foundation.

2002 Erin Conor (violin) - Junior at Oberlin in Sept 2002, attended on a scholarship and also received a substantial grant. She pursued a degree as a Music Archivist.

Dec 2004 Iyoko Okano with pianist daughters: Ayako Okano (Northwestern Univ.) and Yoko Okano, Stanford Univ., in Paris for the holidays. (Dad was taking the picture.)

Information on this chart is in the process of being updated.

AMN Graduate	Instrment / School / Level	All of our graduates thrive in their colleges of choice!
David Wish 1998	Violin & Composition Eastman Junior	2007-08 doing post grad. at a Conservatory in Paris, and performing in ensembles in France and Belgium. Won a major Eastman composition award (work f/violin & viola), and performed it with a violist. Has a full scholarship for a dual major in violin and composition, and is having great success in studies, performance, and composition. David was a student of Kent Coleman (violin) and Dorothy Klotzman (composition)at AMN. Received an ASCAP Young Composer Award in 1998 at age 17.
Ayako Okano 1999	Piano - Northwestern Univ. Sophmore	Chosen to accompany annual Spring Mens Chorus and Womens Chorus program (Spring 2000). Ayako was a student of Michiko Miyamoto at AMN.
Yoko Okano 2000	Piano - Stanford	Scholarship student - also took Taikwando and Liberal Arts. 2007-08 working at 'Google'. Yoko was a student of Michiko Miyamoto at AMN.
Leah Ilem 1999	Viola - Cleveland (CIM) Sophmore	Accepted with full scholarship to study with Jeffrey Irvine, Cleveland Institute Fall 1999. Also accepted by four other major music colleges & conservatories. Leah was a student of Scott Ligocki at AMN.
Rebecca Huber 1998	Violin - Oberlin Sophmore	2006 on: Living and performing in ensembles in Europe, recently in Belgium. At Oberlin - thrived with comprehensive violin and music studies and performance (solo, chamber, orchestra) plus Baroque studies. Formed the Rainier String Quartet, that had a sponsor for European performances summer 2000, performed January 2001, at SAM, The Frye, and in benefit recitals. Her ensemble 'cellist is also from the PNW. Rebecca was a student of Kent Coleman at AMN.