CATALIN ROTARU
Double Bass

Catalin Rotaru, joined the School of Music at Arizona State University, in 2005. Mr. Rotaru is in demand as a performer and clinician throughout the world. He is a graduate of the National University of Music from Bucharest, Romania and holds a Master’s degree in music performance from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Previously he was Associate Professor of Double Bass and Jazz Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, taught at Millikin University and at the University of Illinois at Urbana –Champaign. He served as associate principal bass in the Romanian National Radio Orchestra, principal bass in the Sibiu Philharmonic Orchestra, Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra of Bucharest, associate principal and principal bass in Sinfonia Da Camera, and principal bass of the Orchestra Sinfonica Europea. He received the second prize at the 1997 International Society of Bassists Solo Division Competition and the Jury's Special Award for the best performance of the required piece at that competition. He was the winner of the Krannert Center for the Performing Arts Debut Recital Award in 1997, the Central Illinois Chapter of the National Society of Arts and Letters Award in 1996 and in 2013, was honored with the “Recognition award for Solo Performance” by the International Society of Bassists.

Mr. Rotaru’s debut solo CD, entitled “Bass*ic Cello Notes” was released by Summit Records in March 2007 and in 2010 released his second CD entitled “Juliana D’Agostini + Catalin Rotaru” which was recorded in Sao Paulo, Brazil. In 2012 Mr. Rotaru recorded his third CD, in collaboration with the National Symphony Orchestra of Paraguay, which includes the world premiere of a double bass performance of the famous violin concerto no. 5 by W.A. Mozart and in 2014 he released a special CD/DVD package with works by Frank Proto which includes the world premiere recording of Proto’s Sonata no. 2 dedicated to him. In 2017 Mr. Rotaru had the great honor of recording a world premiere historical CD entitled “The Lord of the Basses – Bottesini’s Testore” performing on Bottesini’s double bass made by Testore in 1716 and in the same year he released another CD album entitled “Sonic Bridges vol. II” recorded with the National Symphony Orchestra of Paraguay. This album includes a few world premiere works dedicated to him as well as the first rendition of Mozart’s “Sinfonia Concertante” where the solo viola part is played on double bass. More recently, in 2018, he released his 7th CD album recorded in Italy featuring two prominent sonatas from the violin and cello repertoire.

Professor Rotaru has been a frequent solo performer as recitalist or guest soloist with numerous symphony orchestras and gave master classes at many prestigious institutions and festivals in United States, Asia, Europe and South America. Mr. Rotaru performs on a modern instrument made in Italy by Luciano Golia and a bow made by Marco Pasquino, and is a Pirastro Strings endorsing artist.

ALLYSON WUENSCH
Viola

Allyson Wuenschel, viola, is a member of West Valley Symphony and is honored to be a part of Phoenix’s thriving musical and cultural life. She believes in music as a means for connection, communication, and expression; her greatest joy is sharing this passion with others. Allyson received her bachelor’s from Boise State University, her master’s from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and her doctorate from Arizona State University, where she studied with Nancy Buck. She holds teaching positions at Arizona School for the Arts and Phoenix College. An active freelance musician in the Valley, she also performs with MusicaNova Orchestra and is a founding member of the Oracle Piano Quartet and the Burn City String Quartet. This is her first year at Arizona Musicfest.

WAN-TING YU
Piano

Wan-Ting Yu, born in Taiwan, is an accomplished collaborative pianist and double bassist whose versatile artistry spans chamber, orchestral, and operatic performance. She holds degrees in piano and double bass performance from National Taiwan Normal University and Taipei National University of the Arts, and is currently a doctoral candidate in Collaborative Piano at Arizona State University. Yu has performed internationally across Europe, Asia, and the Americas and has collaborated with prestigious festivals such as the Prince Claus Conservatory in the Netherlands, the Arcada Festival in Portugal, and the “Lan Yang” Double Bass Summer Camp in Taiwan. She has also contributed to three CD albums by acclaimed double bassist Catalin Rotaru.

Yu’s passion for opera has led her to serve as a rehearsal pianist for Arizona Opera’s productions of Zorro and Mozart’s The Secret Gardener, as well as Hansel and Gretel, Sanctuary, and Storm at Arizona State University. She has also performed as a double bassist with Valley Opera in La Traviata and Carmen. From 2015 to 2020, she was a member of the Taipei Symphony Orchestra and is currently active playing with the Phoenix Symphony and various chamber ensembles throughout Arizona. In 2022, she was featured as a soloist with the Tchaikovsky Conservatory Chamber Orchestra in Moscow and has presented double bass masterclasses at major international festivals, including the Biarritz International Bass Academy in France, the “Grzegorz Olkiewicz” International Music Festival in Poland, and the International Double Bass Festival in China. In 2024, she earned a Guinness World Record for participating in the world’s largest double bass ensemble.

CHRISTOPHER CREVISTON
Saxophone

Saxophonist Christopher Creviston has been performed in Carnegie Hall, Paisley Park and the Apollo Theater. As soloist and with the Capitol Quartet, Creviston has been showcased internationally with outstanding ensembles, including the National Symphony Orchestra, the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, the Czechoslovakian National Symphony Orchestra, and others. As a recitalist and clinician, he tours globally with the Capitol Quartet, and with pianist Hannah Creviston.

Creviston is featured on premiere recordings of the Soprano Saxophone Concerto by Pulitzer Prize Finalist Carter Pann, and the Concerto for Soprano Saxophone and Band by Pulitzer Prize Winner William Bolcom. Over the coming year, he is scheduled to premiere new concerti by Robert Paterson and Mischa Zupko, and to release the premiere recording of a concerto by Jaromír Weinberger. 

Now at Arizona State University, Creviston has been faculty at the Crane School of Music, Greenwich House of Arts, the University of Windsor, and the University of Michigan, and he serves as faculty for the Great Plains Saxophone Workshop. His students have won top prizes at some of the world's most prestigious competitions, including The Fischoff Chamber Music Competition, the Plowman Chamber Music Competition, the American Prize, the MTNA National Competitions, the Coltman Chamber Music Competition, and many others. In addition to maintaining performing careers, many of Creviston’s former students hold positions in US military bands and at internationally at universities. Creviston is formerly president of the North American Saxophone Alliance. 

HANNAH CREVISTON
Piano

Described as “impressive and expressive” (Fanfare Magazine) and “superb...[with] great dexterity, rhythm, and touch” (American Record Guide), Hannah Creviston is Clinical Professor of Piano Pedagogy, Director of the ASU Community Music School, Keyboard Area Coordinator and Coordinator of Class Piano at Arizona State University. She received her B.Mus. in Piano Performance and Music Education with a Piano Pedagogy concentration from the Crane School of Music at SUNY Potsdam, studying with Eugenia Tsarov. She holds an M.M. in Piano Performance and an M.MuED in Early Childhood/Elementary Music Education from the University of South Carolina where she studied piano and piano pedagogy with Dr. Scott Price and music education with Dr. Wendy Valerio. Prior to joining the faculty at ASU in Fall 2012, Creviston was on the faculty at the Crane School of Music.

As a collaborative pianist, she regularly performs in festivals and competitions throughout the United States and abroad. An avid performer of contemporary music, Creviston has been part of numerous commissions and premieres. Workshop topics include Music Learning Theory, teaching music to children with special needs, the importance of movement in teaching rhythm and music by composers killed in the Holocaust. Her articles and compositions appear in Piano Pedagogy Forum, Clavier Companion, Music Play II, ECMMA’s Perspectives and others.

She performs regularly in a duo with her husband, saxophonist Christopher Creviston. Together, they have recorded Phoenix Rising on the Blue Griffin label, Snell Sessions and Columbia Sessions, both on the Albany Records label, and Sunday Afternoon and Breaking, available through CD Baby. Their recordings have been described as “engrossing” (Fanfare Magazine), “highly imaginative and expressive” (composer Denis Bédard), “a good blend of the standard and the new” (American Record Guide), and “sensitive, transparent, powerful music making that causes one to hold their breath often” (Donald Sinta). Their newest CD, reminiscences, featuring music centered around the Holocaust, is available through Blue Griffin.

AMANDA DEMARIS
Soprano

Amanda DeMaris, soprano, has been heard on opera, recital, and concert stages singing a range of repertoire including Lucy in The Telephone, Papagena in The Magic Flute, and soprano solos in Handel’s Messiah and Mozart’s Vesperae. She holds a B.M. in vocal performance from Ithaca College, M.M. in vocal performance from New England Conservatory, and Ed.D. from Columbia University’s Teachers College.

DeMaris has taught at Cornell University as a visiting lecturer, Ithaca College as a lecturer and assistant professor, and at Columbia University and the New England Conservatory as a teaching assistant. DeMaris is skilled teaching a variety of styles from classical and opera, to musical theatre and popular. She earned her Level 1 certification in Sheri Sanders’ Rock the Audition, and also participated in the musical theatre vocal pedagogy workshop, Bel Canto can Belto at Penn State University. Her students have gone on to perform Off-Broadway, with Forbidden Broadway, Vocal Essence Ensemble Singers, The Glimmerglass Festival, Walt Disney World, Phoenix Theatre, Childsplay Theatre, Phoenix Theatre, cruise ships, and numerous regional theatre and summer stock companies. She joined the faculty of Arizona State University as clinical assistant professor of voice in 2015.

DeMaris is a member of the National Association of Teachers of Singing, New York Singing Teachers Association, and Pi Kappa Lambda. She recently taught a masterclass at the Classical Singer National Convention. Her conference presentations have included the NATS National Conference, the Voice Foundation's Annual Symposium, ISME’s World Conference in Bologna, Italy, CalWestern Regional NATS Conference, and Arizona Music Educators Association. Her research interests include musicianship for singing, and self-directed learning in the applied voice studio. Her work has been published in the Journal of Singing.