Join us on Sunday, June 14, at 5:00 pm for Winds Under the Stars, a special live performance by the world-class musicians of Long Island Chamber Music inside the Reichert Planetarium at the Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum.
This unforgettable program will feature selections from Holst’s iconic masterpiece The Planets, along with works by Bach, Debussy, and more, performed by a brilliant wind quintet of flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, and French horn.
(Photo at left: flutist Ashley Cho.)
Enhanced through the planetarium’s immersive sound system and surrounded by breathtaking panoramic views of the stars across the 60-foot dome, this one-of-a-kind concert will transport audiences through an evening of music, atmosphere, and celestial beauty.
Hae Jee (Ashley) Cho, flute
Flutist Hae Jee (Ashley) Cho enjoys a multi-faceted career as soloist, chamber musician and orchestral player. Ashley received her Doctor of Musical Arts degree (2022) at The Stony Brook University. She also holds both Bachelor of Music (2018) and Master of Music degree (2019) as an accelerated student at The Juilliard School, under the tutelage of Carol Wincenc.
An avid orchestral musician, Ashley served as principal flute of the New York String Orchestral Seminar, performing at Carnegie Hall’s Stern Auditorium, for two consecutive years. She has been heard at the Round Top Music Festival, National Orchestral Institute, Norfolk Chamber Festival, Tanglewood Music Festival, and the Eastern Music Festival. As principal flute under the baton of David Alan Miller, at the 2017 National Orchestral Institute, Ashley recorded John Harbison’s Symphony No.4. The recording, in partnership with the NAXOS label, became part of the American Classics album and was nominated as “Best Orchestral Performance” for the 2018 GRAMMY awards.
A devoted chamber musician based in New York City area, she has performed in several of New York’s most distinguished museums. As a member of the New Juilliard Ensemble, she has performed in 2017 MoMA Summergarden Series and premiered works by 21st century composers Donald Crockett, Roberto Sierra, and Herbert Vázques. In 2019, Ashley participated in a project with NYC Ballet Choreographic Institute and composer Saad Haddad to premiere a work inspired by the life of Frida Khalo, the Mexican surrealist painter. She was also involved in a virtual recording project with Claire Chase, performing Vijay Iyer’s piece “Five Empty Chambers” in 2020. The recording was premiered live on The Kitchen. As the member of a wind quintet named SOOM, she was featured on WQXR Radio Station’s Midday Masterpiece Series and Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center.
Ashley is currently one of Long Island Chamber Music’s (LICM) performing artists and an Outreach Coordinator of New Jersey Flute Society. She maintains a private flute studio in New Jersey and New York City, where she shares her love for the flute with students of all ages.
Lillian Copeland, oboe
A sought-after chamber music and orchestral musician, oboist Lillian Copeland is an active NYC freelancer who performs with the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, American Ballet Theater, Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, and the International Contemporary Ensemble, among others. Lillian holds the position of Principal Oboe with the Princeton Symphony Orchestra, the Northeastern Pennsylvania Philharmonic, and the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music in Santa Cruz, CA.
After receiving degrees from Oberlin Conservatory and Rice University, Lillian spent eight seasons as Principal Oboe with the Santiago Philharmonic Orchestra in Chile. Aside from the diverse opera, ballet, and symphonic repertoire, Lillian performed a variety of chamber music, toured the south of Chile with her woodwind quintet, and collaborated with the Ensamble Filarmónico. A supporter of new music, Lillian premiered new works at the annual Contemporary Music Festival in Santiago.
Lillian has performed as a concerto soloist with the New Baroque Soloists, the Northeastern Pennsylvania Philharmonic, and in Chile with both the Philharmonic and the Conservatory of Music’s Chamber Orchestra, where she also held the position of Professor of Oboe.
An avid proponent of music education, Lillian is a faculty member at the Juilliard School Music Advancement Program (MAP), Mannes Prep, and Manhattan School of Music pre-college divisions. She has given masterclasses in the United States, Argentina, Brazil, and Chile, and maintains a private teaching studio in NYC. Her students have been accepted at major music schools and conservatories across the United States and Europe.
Born in Lexington, VA, Lillian earned her DMA at Rutgers University. Her principal teachers include James Caldwell, Robert Atherholt, and Nathan Hughes.
Alec Manasse, clarinet
Alec Manasse enjoys a lively and varied professional life. As an alum of The Juilliard School, Alec performs regularly with many of New York City’s top ensembles, including the Met Opera, American Ballet Theater, American Symphony Orchestra, and the Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra. He also frequently performs in the orchestra for Sweeney Todd on Broadway. Alec has made solo appearances with the Rochester Philharmonic, San Jose Chamber Orchestra, Eastern Festival Orchestra, St. Barts Music Festival Orchestra, the Symphony of Westchester, and others. He participates as a featured guest artist at the Bard Music Festival and regularly tours with the Frisson Ensemble around the United States.
Steven Palacio, bassoon
Dynamic Colombian-American bassoonist Steven Palacio invites audiences to reimagine the classical music concert experience through energetic presentations of the instrumental repertoire, thought-provoking lectures, and experimentation with cross-genre programming. Steven is committed to bringing the works of living composers to life with the commissioning of solo and chamber music repertoire. He has performed with the League of Composers Orchestra and is a member of AXIOM, a new music ensemble that is devoted to performing masterworks of the 20th and 21st centuries. This season, AXIOM will be working with Steve Reich on a performance of Tehillim (1981) that will be featured in a documentary for the BBC.
Steven has held assistant principal bassoon positions with the Georgian Bay Symphony Orchestra (Canada) and the Northwest Florida Symphony Orchestra. As a New York-based musician, he enjoys an active freelance career, making guest appearances with the Symphony Orchestra of the Americas, the St. Jean Baptiste Orchestra, and the League of Composers.
Steven holds a Master of Music degree from The Juilliard School under the direction of Kim Laskowski. He holds an Artist Diploma from the Glenn Gould School of The Royal Conservatory of Music (Canada) under Frank Morelli, a Bachelor of Science in International Affairs and a Bachelor of Music with honors from The Florida State University under the direction of Jeffrey Keesecker.
Eric Huckins, horn
Eric Huckins is a Long Island-based horn player and music educator passionate about using music to communicate and connect. As a performer known for his “sparkling, crystal clear sound” (Brass Legacy) Eric is a winner of Astral Artist’s 2018 National Auditions becoming the first horn player to be a part of their roster. Eric has performed internationally as a chamber musician, soloist, and with orchestras in Europe, Asia, and across the United States including The Philadelphia Orchestra, Kanye West, New York City Ballet, as Principal Horn of Symphony in C from 2018 – 2022 and in numerous pit orchestras on Broadway.
An advocate for expanding brass repertoire, Eric regularly arranges and commissions new works, most recently leading a consortium to commission composer, Jeff Scott. Eric’s debut album ‘Drifter’ which features 8 new works for horn was released on Summit Records in April 2021. As a believer in bringing classical music to his local community, Eric is the Executive and Artistic Director of Long Island Chamber Music and Director of Band and Instrumental Music at The Green Vale School. Eric received his Bachelor’s Degree from Curtis Institute of Music and his Master’s degree from The Juilliard School. Outside of his musical life, Eric loves spending time with his wife and violinist, Gergana, their dog, Scuttles, and is an avid guacamole enthusiast.