Full-Time Faculty


Dr. Mary C. Breden, Director of Choral Activities, is the Chair of the LMU Department of Music. She teaches courses in choral conducting, choral methods, and sight singing. During the summer of 1997, she conducted the LMU Concert Choir in a special concert at New York's famed Carnegie Hall. In the spring of 2000, the choruses toured the Boston area. Dr. Breden and the Department hosted the 2000 Western Division Convention of the American Choral Director's Association and the 2000 Pacific Southwest Intercollegiate Choral Association's Festival. Active as a choral clinician and guest conductor throughout the United States and Canada, Dr. Breden conducted the Arizona All-State Honor Choir in April, 1998 and the California Coastal Region Women's Honor Choir in 1999. She has served as President of the Western Division of the American Choral Directors Association. [Professor. B.A., B.M., Mount St. Mary's College, Los Angeles; M.M., D.M.A., Arizona State University]

Dr. Paul W. Humphreys is active as a teacher, performer, ethnomusicologist, and composer. His published articles and paper presentations have addressed such topics as non-western compositional practice, music and religion, and comparative music theory. Humphreys has composed a number of original works that reflect his involvement as a performer in traditional music from Indonesia, West Africa, East Asia, and Native North America. He has also been active–as a pianist and violist–in bringing these works to performance. His teaching reflects a commitment to integrating an awareness of world music within studies in traditional theory. Humphreys currently serves as a member of the Music Standards Committee of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards and as a member of the Advisory Board of the National Association of Composers USA, Southern California Chapter. He is also a Past President of the Southern California Chapter of the Society for Ethnomusicology and continues as an active member of the society. [Associate Professor. B.M., Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music; M.A. and Ph.D., University of California, Los Angeles]

Dr. Michael Miranda coordinates the instrumental music program at LMU, directs the LMU Guitar Ensembles, and teaches music history. He holds a Master's Degree in Guitar Performance and a Ph.D. in Historical Musicology. He has initiated a guitar series at LMU which includes master classes and performances by some of today's greatest guitarists. A lutenist and specialist in medieval music, he has performed as a member of the Gregorian Schola of Los Angeles, a group specializing in the performance of Medieval vocal and instrumental music, and has participated in chant classes at the famous Solesmes Abbey in France. Dr. Miranda also performs as a soloist on a variety of early plucked-strings including Renaissance & Baroque lutes and guitars, vihuela, and theorbo. He is currently Associate Editor of the Journal of the Lute Society of America and serves on the Board of Directors for the Lute Society. [Assistant Professor. B.A., California State University at Northridge; M.A., California State University at Los Angeles; Ph.D., Claremont Graduate University]

Dr. Mark Saya teaches music theory and composition. An active composer, his works have been performed throughout the country, including performances at the Great Hall of Cooper Union, Alice Tully Hall, the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and many major universities. Although he writes for a variety of genres, he specializes in vocal works, both solo and choral, and works for instrumental chamber ensembles, particularly percussion. Several of his works, including The Murphy Sonata, for solo vibraphone, and From the Book of Imaginary Beings, for three percussionists, have been published by The Media Press. He has received awards from ASCAP, BMI, New England Conservatory, the Ohio Arts Council, and the Society of Composers, Inc. [Professor. B.M., Indiana University; M.M. and D.M.A., University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music]

Dr. Virginia Saya holds a Ph.D. in Musicology, teaches music history, and is founding director and designer of the Sinatra Opera Workshop. As a lyric soubrette soprano, she performed numerous roles in opera and musical theater. Among the productions that she has directed and designed at LMU are Gianni Schicchi, scenes from The Marriage of Figaro, The Magic Flute, The Coronation of Poppea, and Amahl and the Night Visitors. She was for ten years, a contributing music critic to the Cincinnati Enquirer. Her research interests are opera and libretto studies and she has authored librettos for two operatic world premieres. She is published in The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, The Opera Quarterly, Opera Canada. She was historical consultant for the The Oratorio Anthology and co-editor of the popular 2003 release The Lieder Anthology, both published by Hal Leonard. Her entry on American composer Dominick Argento appears in The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, Second Edition. [Professor. B.M., Simpson College; M.M., and Ph.D., University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music]


Applied Faculty


Guitar

Kate Lewis began her guitar studies at the Trinity School of Music in London, England. Continuing her studies at the University of Southern California, Kate studied with Scott Tennant and James Smith. Graduating with a Masters Degree in Guitar Performance and Music Education, Ms. Lewis was recognized with an Outstanding Graduate Award in 2000. An active performer and educator, she has taught at USC and Los Angeles City College in addition to LMU. She also has a large studio of private students of all ages and levels. Kate performs regularly as a soloist. An avid chamber musician, she is a member of the Out-Strung duo [cello and guitar] and guitarist-in-residence for the Southern California Welsh Choir. Her rock project Chamber Pop have just released their second CD. [B.M. and M.M., University of Southern California]

Dr. Martha Masters won 1st prize in the Guitar Foundation of America International Solo Competition in October of 2000, with the prize including a disc with Naxos, a concert video with Mel Bay, and an extensive North American tour. Masters was the only American prizewinner in both the 1998 Tokyo International Guitar Competition and 1997 Guitar Foundation of America International Solo Competition, and was recently awarded a Menci—n especial execuo at the 1999 Concurso International de Guitarra in Granada, Spain. Since beginning the guitar at the age of six, she has or been a finalist in numerous competitions, including both the Junior and Senior divisions of the American String Teachers Association National Soloist Competitions. Before moving to Los Angeles, Martha was a member of the Carlson/Masters guitar duo, winning first prize in the National Guitar Summer Workshop Competition for Guitar Duos and Trios. The group was also a finalist in the Baltimore Chamber Music Awards Competition. Recently concerts and have taken Martha from coast to coast, with programs often including discussion and performance on an original 19th century guitar. In the spring of 2000, Martha completed the Doctor of Musical Arts degree at the University of Southern California, where she studied with Scott Tennant. As a student of Manuel Barrueco, she received both Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore, Maryland. Martha's successes as a soloist and chamber musician have earned her appearances at music festivals and on recital series across the country, as well as three appearances at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. [B.M. and M.M., Peabody Conservatory; D.M.A., University of Southern California]

Tom McDermott is a part-time faculty member currently teaching Fundamentals of Music. He has been with the Department of Music since 1996, and has taught Fundamentals, Beginning Guitar, Theory I and II, and Enjoyment of Music. He is active as a songwriter and guitar player, and as a film composer with partner Tom Hite (LMU Music, '92). Recent projects include music for promotional videos at U.S.C. and music for the full-lentgh film "Chao Phraya". [ B.A. Loyola Marymount University; M.A. Bowling Green State University, Ohio. ]


Percussion

Aaron Smith is a freelance percussionist in Southern California where he plays with such groups as the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the Pacific Symphony. He has been the principal timpanist of the New Mexico, Downey, Santa Monica, and American Youth Symphonies. In addition to orchestral music, Aaron plays in the pits of operas and musical theatre. He is the co-founder of the Los Angeles Percussion Collection, a group dedicated to chamber music featuring percussion. While a student at UCLA, Mr. Smith studied with Mitchell Peters, Principal Timpanist of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra; he has also studied with Raynor Carroll, Principal Percussionist of the LAPO. [B.A. University of Southern California; M.F.A. University of California, Los Angeles]


Piano

Dr. Tania Fleischer, pianist and Chamber Ensemble coach, has performed extensively in the United States and Germany as a soloist and collaborative artist. She has been a recipient of the Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst Award, as well as a winner in the German Hochschule Piano-Cello Duo Competition. Ms. Fleischer has also taught piano, coached voice and directed the Chapman University School of Music Accompanying Program. Ms. Fleischer is a founding member of the Los Angeles based Canta Español, dedicated to the performance of Spanish Zarzuela. She performs frequently as a recitalist and artistic collaborator throughout Southern California, and can be heard on CD in a recording of choral music by Ned Rorem and William Hall with the Chapman University Singers. [B.M., University of Michigan; M.M. University of Southern California; Solistendiplom, Freiburg Musikhochschule, Germany; D.M.A., University of California, Los Angeles]

Dr. Wojciech Kocyan was born in Poland. He studied piano with Krystyna Moszynska in Gliwice and with the renowned Professor Andrzej Jasinski at the Karol Szymanowski Academy of Music in Katowice, from which he graduated with the highest honors. He received the Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Southern California where he studied with Master Teacher John Perry. Dr. Kocyan serves on the faculty of Loyola Ð Marymount University in Los Angeles. Mr. Kocyan is the First Prize and Special Prizes winner of the Paderewski Piano Competition in Bydgoszcz and a laureate of several international piano competitions, including the Busoni in Bolzano, Viotti in Vercelli, and Bellini in Sicily as well as of the Wideman Piano Competition in United States. He has received special prizes at the XI Chopin International Piano Competition in Warsaw and awards from the Minister of Culture of the Republic of Poland and from the Barbara Piasecka-Johnson Cultural Foundation. His concerts have taken him to all continents. He has performed in solo recitals, chamber music and with orchestras. He has participated in music festivals such as Musica Antiqua Europae Orientalis, Capri Festival, Bydgoszcz International Music Festival, H.M.Gorecki Festival, Paderewski Festival and the Chopin Festival in Paris. He was honored to be the final gala concert soloist of the Festival of Polish Pianism, and performed the Paderewski Piano Concerto with Maestro Jerzy Maksymiuk at the opening concert of the Fourth International Paderewski Piano Competition. Mr. Kocyan has recorded for the Hungarian Radio and Polish Radio, Television and film. His live performances were broadcast in the United States, Poland, France and Australia. His recordings of music by Schumann can be found on the Studio Classics label. His chamber music CD ÒHommage a Carlos Guastavino Ò with clarinetist Jan Jakub Bokun was released in 2001 on the DUX label. A solo CD with works by Rachmaninoff, Scriabin and Prokofieff , released on the same label in October 2002, was nominated for the ÒFryderykÓ Awards in the Best Solo Album of the Year category. The ÒFryderykÓ Awards are a prestigious Polish Recording Academy Award, similar to the ÒGrammy AwardsÓ. His recording of Liszt, Schumann, Mompou and Saya will be released by Dux this year.

Kristi Lobitz has distinguished herself as an exceptional artist, drawing warm plaudits from audiences in England, Canada, Mexico, and Hawaii. Her numerous local appearances have included performances with the Conejo Valley Symphony of Thousand Oaks, and Pasadena's Repertoire Chamber Orchestra. Miss Lobitz received her education at California Lutheran University, California State University at Northridge, and the University of Southern California. She has also studied at Schiller College in Berlin with Hans Erich Riebensahm, a long time faculty member of the Berlin Conservatory. The first prize winner of the National Recording Competition, sponsored by the National Music Teacher's Association, Miss Lobitz has served as pianist at the well known Interlochen Arts Camp in Michigan, and currently is a member of the piano faculty of both LMU and El Camino College. [B.A. , Schiller College, West Berlin, Germany/ California Lutheran University; M.M., University of Southern California]


Strings

Constance Deeter teaches double bass and pursued both undergraduate and graduate studies at the Juilliard School of Music in New York where she studied with David Walter. Deeter has played with the Pasadena, San Diego, Long Beach, and Santa Barbara Symphonies, as well as many other groups in Southern California. She is currently a member of the Pacific Symphony. In addition to her work at Loyola Marymount, Ms. Deeter teaches double bass at Pepperdine University. [B.M. and M.M., Juilliard School of Music]

Frances Moore, violin/viola instructor and Director of the LMU Chamber Orchestra, has displayed her talent as a soloist for the Claremont Chamber Orchestra, as a featured soloist on CBS Sunday Morning, and as Concertmaster for the Los Angeles Mozart Orchestra. She has extensive experience in the orchestral setting as leader and section player with groups like the Los Angeles Mozart Orchestra, Los Angeles Music Center Opera Orchestra, Pasadena Chamber Orchestra, Santa Barbara Symphony, and the Salzburg Mozarteum Orchestra. She currently also serves as Concertmaster for the Annual Spring Chorale presented by the LMU Choruses in Sacred Heart Chapel. Her chamber music experience includes membership in the Orion Quintet (prizewinner at the Carmel Chamber Music Competition), study with the Cleveland Quartet at SUNY Buffalo, study with M. Pressler at the Banff School of Fine Arts, and piano trio study with Edith Oppens at the Aspen Music Festival. She has studied conducting with Daniel Lewis at the University of Southern California. [B.A., University of California at Santa Barbara; M.M., University of Southern California; pursuing a D.M.A. at Claremont Graduate University]

Andrew Picken, violin/viola and Coach of the LMU String Quartet, teaches violin and viola from his private studio and is on call for studio work in the Los Angeles area. He was Concert Master of the West Valley Symphony from 1982-1988. Mr. Picken is currently principal viola for the Los Angeles Baroque Orchestra (since 1984) and Glendale Symphony (since 1997). He also currently has engagements with the Los Angeles Music Center Opera Orchestra, Pasadena Symphony, Los Angeles Master Chorale Orchestra, and Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. He participates in the Lake Chelan Bach Feste and the Seal Beach Chamber Music Festival. Mr. Picken has also lent his talents in the past to the Los Angeles Mozart Orchestra, Santa Barbara Symphony, Pacific Symphony Orchestra, and Oregon Bach Festival. [B.M., University of California at Los Angeles; M.M., Northwestern University]

Sevan Pogosyan is a native of Egypt and received most of his formal music education in the former USSR, graduating with honors from the Yerevan Conservatory and doing post-graduate work at the Moscow State Conservatory under the direction of Mstislav Rostropovich. Mr. Pogosyan served as principal cellist for the Georgia Philharmonic Orchestra and the Georgia Chamber Orchestra. Upon his arrival in the United States, Sevan acquired positions as principal cellist with several orchestras including the Beverly Hills Symphony Orchestra, the Westchester Symphony Orchestra, and the Master Symphony Orchestra. Mr. Pogosyan also served as principal cellist for the Los Angeles run of the hit musical Phantom of the Opera from 1989 to 1993. He has done extensive work as a studio musician for several network television series and major recording studios including Disney. In addition, he has performed with the American Ballet Theater Orchestra, the Harlem Ballet Orchestra, the Kirov Ballet Orchestra, and the Bolshoi Ballet. Orchestra. Mr. Pogosyan is a member of the music faculties of both LMU and California State University at Los Angeles. [M.M., Yerevan Conservatory of Music, USSR; Postgraduate Studies, Moscow State Conservatory, USSR]


Voice

Dr. Barbara Dyer, soprano, solos regularly in the South Bay area in concerts, on recitals, and in churches. Recently, she performed with the Beach Cities Symphony singing the Knoxville: Summer of 1915 by Samuel Barber. As part of the Faculty Artist Series at El Camino College she performed a solo recital singing an all English program of Purcell, Walton, Hoiby, and Barber. Other singing engagements include singing the Mother in Amahl and the Night Visitors by Gian Carlo Menotti and soloing at local churches. Tenured at Moorhead State University, Moorhead, Minnesota, in 1981, Dr. Dyer has taught voice for over twenty years at various colleges and universities, and currently teaches both at LMU, and since 1985, at El Camino College. Dr. Dyer has been active in her professional society, the National Association of Teachers of Singing, having been the First Vice President in charge of Programming in 1991-1992. Dr. Dyer won the Minnesota State Contest of the National Association of Teachers of Singing Artist Award, has won numerous monetary awards for her teaching, and has lectured at the Los Angeles Music Center on the Educational Opera Series. Dr. Dyer also maintains a private voice studio. [B.M., College of Wooster; M.M. University of Illinois; D.M.A., University of Southern California]

Dr. Hyun-Joo Kim, soprano, has been an active member of the Los Angeles Master Chorale and Long Beach Camerata Singers. She has performed as a soloist in Southern California at the Music Center, the Hollywood Bowl, and at the Long Beach Performing Arts Center. Her European appearances include Vienna, Prague, Leipzig, Dresden, and Berlin. She has presented numerous solo recitals in Los Angeles and Seoul, Korea. Her studies at the University of Southern California included vocal studies with Margaret Schaper and Minors in church music, early music performance, and music history. Aside from her duties at LMU, she also currently teaches at Antelope Valley College and the University of Southern California. [B.A., Seoul National University, Korea; M.M. and D.M.A., University of Southern California]

Dr. Karl Snider, baritone, teaches voice and other related courses Also on the music faculty at Mount St. Mary's College, Dr. Snider has been active as a vocal director for several musical theater productions throughout Los Angeles. He sings with Orange County's Opera Pacific and Pacific Chorale, and is the Director of Music Ministries for the First United Methodist Church of Whittier. [B.A., Pomona College; M.A., Eastman School of Music; D.M.A., University of Southern California]

Staff (In Alphabetical Order)

Paul C. Holliday is a full-time staff member who holds the position of Administrative and Production Coordinator for the Department of Music. He works with the Chair, the faculty, students, and campus offices to facilitate all aspects of the music program. Mr. Holliday graduated from Loyola Marymount's Television Production program in 1999 while completing much of the music minor curriculum with an emphasis in piano. Paul has worked as the Music Editing Assistant for the television shows "Ally McBeal", "ER", and "Profiler", along with the motion pictures "Love & Basketball" and "Boys and Girls". He has also spent time as the Finance and Distribution Coordinator at Lion's Gate Film Studios and the Information Technologies Coordinator at iBlast Networks, Inc. Paul is currently pursuing his M.B.A. from Loyola Marymount's School of Business/Administration. [B.A. Loyola Marymount University]

Peter Hutchings, pianist, Peter Hutchings is the performance accompanist for the choral ensembles of Loyola Marymount University and Long Beach City College in Southern California. He also is musical director and organist for the Montebello United Methodist Church. Mr. Hutchings has performed extensively in the New England region as soloist and chamber musician. While living on MarthaÕs Vineyard he was the composer in residence for Island Theatre Workshop, writing over a dozen original musicals and operas. He also served as music director and organist in several churches including Grace Episcopal and Edgartown Federated Church. Hutchings studied at Ithaca College, Boston University and the New England Conservatory of Music. He holds a Bachelors and Masters degree in piano. His major teachers include Victor Rosenbaum (piano), Helen Keaney and Daniel Pinkham (organ) and Karel Husa (composition).

Valeriya Morgovskaya, pianist, a graduate of the Kiev State Conservatory, immigrated to the United States in 1990. Since 1991, she has been the official accompanist of the Piatigorsky Cello Seminar. Ms. Morgovskaya is currently on staff at Loyola Marymount University as an accompanist and is often engaged in that capacity at the University of Southern California and the Idyllwild School of Music and the Arts. She has provided accompaniment for many major competitions, including those held in Montreal, Munich, and Paris. Ms. Morgovskaya has performed on the KUSC weekly broadcast concert series "Sundays at Four" on numerous occasions.