Wesley Ferreira has been praised by critics for his “beautiful tone” and “technical prowess” (The Clarinet Journal) as well as his “remarkable sensitivity” (CAML Review). Fanfare Magazine notes, Ferreira is “clearly a major talent.” Ferreira’s recent performances have taken him to Portugal, Canada, China, Italy, France, Germany, Austria, Hungary, Slovakia, and Spain. Upcoming engagements include performances in Poland. Born in Canada to parents of Portuguese heritage, he received his musical training at the University of Western Ontario (B.M) and Arizona State University (M.M and D.M.A) studying with Robert Riseling and Robert Spring, respectively. He joined the music faculty at Colorado State University in 2011 as Associate Professor where he maintains a thriving clarinet studio. Ferreira is a dedicated music educator and pedagogue. Passionate about teaching, he mentors students towards the achievement of their career goals, with emphasis placed on striving for professional and personal growth. His innovative teaching methods are acclaimed, including the development of the breath support training program for musicians, Air Revelation®. Ferreira is frequently invited to give performances, workshops, and masterclasses at high schools, colleges, and universities throughout North America. In addition, he has been invited to perform at national and international academic conferences, including the International Clarinet Association’s annual ClarinetFest ten times. He will be the artistic director of ClarinetFest 2023 in Denver, Colorado. Ferreira’s industry endorsements include positions on the Performing Artist rosters of Selmer Paris, where he performs exclusively on the new Muse clarinets, and with Vandoren, performing on their mouthpieces and reeds. To learn more about Wesley Ferreira, please visit his website: www.wesleyferreira.com



Canadian Jana Starling joined the music faculty at Western University in London, Ontario in 2011. She previously taught at Arizona State University, Mount Allison University, and Brandon University. Her debut CD Inflection earned a 2007 East Coast Music Award nomination in Canada for Classical Recording of the Year and was hailed a "true listening pleasure" in the Clarinet magazine (March 2008). Dr. Starling is an active commissioner and performer of contemporary works and has performed at the International ClarinetFest (2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011). She has performed with the Arizona Opera company, Phoenix Symphony, ProMusica Chamber Orchestra, and at the Belgian Clarinet Academy. Dr. Starling has degrees in Music Education and Performance from Brandon University, and graduate degrees from Arizona State University. Her primary teachers have been Ron Goddard and Robert Spring. Her diverse teaching career has led her to the wilds of Paraguay, South America where she spent two years teaching woodwinds and instrumental ensembles. She was a guest artist/clinician at the Belgian Clarinet Academy in 2008, and today as an educator, she is active throughout Canada and the US. Currently, Dr. Starling is working on a CD of new clarinet duos with clarinetist Robert Spring and plays Eb clarinet in the recently formed Ironwood Trio. Her second solo CD, Mythos, was released by Potenza Music in the summer of 2011. Visit www.janastarlingclarinet.com for more information. 

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Alan R. Kay is Principal Clarinetist and a former Artistic Director of Orpheus Chamber Orchestra and serves as Principal Clarinet with New York’s Riverside Symphony and Little Orchestra Society. Mr. Kay’s honors include the Classical Recording Foundation Samuel Sanders Award, the C.D. Jackson Award at Tanglewood, a Presidential Scholars Teacher Award, and the 1989 Young Concert Artists Award with the sextet Hexagon featured in the prizewinning film, “Debut.” A founding member of the Windscape Quintet, he is a regular guest in chamber music venues throughout the world, including the Yellow Barn, Orlando (Holland), Bowdoin, and Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society Festivals, and the Cape May Music Festival, where he curated a concert series for 25 years. Mr. Kay taught at the Summer Music Academy in Leipzig, Germany in 2004 and teaches at the Manhattan School of Music, The Juilliard School, and Stony Brook University, where he also serves as Executive Director of the Stony Brook University Orchestra. A virtuoso of wind repertoire, Mr. Kay has recorded with Hexagon, Windscape, and the Sylvan Winds. His transcriptions for wind quintet are available from Trevco Music Publishing and International Opus. Mr. Kay’s recent CD, “Max Reger: Music for Clarinet and Piano,” on Bridge Records with pianist Jon Klibonoff, won the Classical Recording Foundation’s Samuel Sanders Chamber Music Award. He has also recently recorded Perry Goldstein’s Quintet with the “M” Prize-winning Calidore String Quartet and reductions for chamber ensemble of Mahler’s Kindertotenlieder and Das Lied von der Erde, and Max Reger’s Romantic Suite in The Netherlands with Gruppo Montebello, Henk Guittart conducting. He has served on the juries of international chamber music competitions in Trapani, Italy and Rolduc, Holland, Young Concert Artists International Auditions, Concert Artist Guild Auditions, and the Fischoff Chamber Music Competition.

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