Cristian Macelaru
Assistant Conductor
The Philadelphia Orchestra

Romanian conductor Cristian Macelaru is also a violinist and composer whose accomplishments demonstrate his impressive capabilities as a multidimensional musician.

Most recently Mr. Macelaru was invited by the Philadelphia Orchestra to serve as a cover conductor for multiple weeks in the 2009-10 and 2010-11 seasons. A participant in the prestigious Malko and Donatella Flick International Conducting Competitions, he was also invited to conduct the Pittsburgh Symphony in their search for an assistant conductor. As assistant conductor for the Dallas Opera, he collaborated with Patrick Summers on the world premiere of Jake Heggie’s Moby Dick. During the 2010 season, Mr. Macelaru will conduct the Philadelphia Orchestra in two concerts and make his debut conducting the Houston Grand Opera in performances of Madame Butterfly.

Currently serving on the conducting staff of the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University, Mr. Macelaru recently completed a Master of Music degree in conducting with Maestro Larry Rachleff. In the summer of 2010, he was a conducting fellow at the Tanglewood Music Center and, in 2008 and 2009, at the Aspen Music Festival, where he studied conducting under David Zinman.

While completing his Bachelor of Music degree at the University of Miami, Mr. Macelaru was assistant conductor of the University of Miami Symphony Orchestra, associate conductor of the Florida Youth Orchestra, conductor and founder of the Clarke Chamber Players, and concertmaster of the Miami Symphony Orchestra. In 2006 he received a Master of Music in violin performance under the guidance of Sergiu Luca at Rice University, during which he also played for two years in the Houston Symphony’s first violin section. As a recitalist he has performed extensively throughout the United States, Europe and China. Mr. Macelaru started studying violin at the age of six in his native country. After winning top prizes in the National Music Olympiad of Romania (1994, 1996, 1997), he attended the Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan and furthered his studies in both violin and conducting.

Mr. Macelaru is a strong supporter of music education; in the past three years he has also served as a conductor with the Houston Youth Symphony, where he created a successful chamber music program. He is also the founder and artistic director of the Crisalis Music Project, an organization aimed at giving young performers chances to perform side-by-side with professional musicians.

Daniel Spalding

Daniel Spalding has appeared in concert and recorded with some of the world’s leading professional ensembles including the London Symphony Orchestra, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, London Mozart Players and the Guildford Philharmonic, the St. Petersburg State Cappella Symphony and the National Russian Philharmonic, the Bach Festival Orchestra and Mozart Choir and Orchestra of Paris, the Belgrade Philharmonic, Kolosvar Hungarian State Opera and the Chamber Orchestra of Romania’s “George Enescu” Philharmonic, as well as a number of American orchestras including the Sacramento Symphony, Chattanooga Symphony, and the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra. For seven seasons he served as principal guest conductor with the Romanian State Philharmonic in Cluj-Napoca and since 2004 has collaborated extensively with Poland’s Filharmonia Opolska, where he conducts each season. Recently appointed Music Director of the American Youth Philharmonic Orchestras, a nationally recognized youth orchestra program in residence at George Mason University and based in metropolitan Washington, D.C., his responsibilities include conducting the 120 member flagship American Youth Philharmonic and overseeing the conducting staff and coaches for 4 orchestras encompassing over 400 students. Since 1991 Daniel Spalding has been Music Director of the Philadelphia Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra, receiving international acclaim for his CD recordings on Connoisseur Society, Naxos, Arabesque, and New World Records, as well as touring performances at prestigious venues such as Lincoln Center, Weill Hall at Carnegie Hall, Columbia University’s Miller Theater, and the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts in West Palm Beach. He has led the Philadelphia Virtuosi on tour in 28 states including appearances in major metropolitan centers such as New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Portland, Chicago, Miami, and Phoenix. Internationally, he has taken the Philadelphia Virtuosi to the Bermuda Festival, to Mexico, on three extensive tours to South America where they performed at many important international festivals, and in 2010, with a grant from the U.S Department of State, to Europe, making their debut at the Nomus International Festival in Novi Sad, Serbia.

Earlier in his career, Daniel Spalding served on the faculty at several universities. He has conducted and coached for the New Jersey Governor's School of the Arts and the Philadelphia International Music Festival at Bryn Mawr College. He has been invited several times to be a pre-concert lecturer for the Philadelphia Orchestra and has guest lectured on conducting at City University of London, Westminster Choir College, and other leading institutions. In 2007 Mr. Spalding traveled to Uganda, where he gave conducting master classes for the Kampala Music School and helped organize and conduct the first orchestral/massed choir concert ever to take place in that city. As a clinician and adjudicator, he has participated in over 250 music festivals throughout North and South America and Europe.

Born in Kansas, Daniel earned his B.M.E. and M.M. degrees at Northwestern University School of Music, concentrating in percussion and composition. After additional graduate work at the University of Illinois, he pursued orchestral conducting studies in Austria at the Salzburg “Mozarteum” with Ferdinand Leitner, in Romania with Mircea Cristescu of the "George Enescu" Bucharest Philharmonic, in the USA with John Shenaut and Max Rudolf, and participated in master classes with Leonard Slatkin and Pierre Boulez. He also served for one season as an assistant conductor to Sergiu Comissiona at the Houston Symphony Orchestra. Daniel currently lives in New Jersey with his wife, Romanian born concert pianist Gabriela Imreh, dog Jenny, and cat Rusty.

Philip A. Draganov

The German violinist and conductor, Philip A. Draganov, is founder and artisic director of "Youth Classics International Music Festival and Masterclasses".

He was in born in Hamburg and enthralls his audiences in Europe, Asia, and the USA with his "...impulsive virtuosity and exuberant musical power..." (Hamburger Abendblatt). He had his debut as a soloist with the Hamburg Symphony Orchestra in the Laeiszhalle in Hamburg at the age of only twelve and has since enjoyed a multifarious international career including performances in Carnegie Hall/New York, the Tonhalle/Zürich and the Philharmonie/Cologne, and at major festivals such as the "Aspen Music Festival" or the "Schleswig-Holstein-Musik-Festival". A much sought-after chamber musician, he performs regularly in varying formations from duo to octet. With the "Duo Lusingando" he is "Recording Artist" for the "Acustica Records" label. He is artistic director and conductor of the "Konsi Strings Zurich," an orchestra with highly talented young instrumentalists.
Draganov teaches at the Zurich Conservatory and is guest professor at various music colleges such as the renowned "Rimskij-Korsakow Conservatory" in St. Petersburg or the "Tbilisi State Conservatoire" in Georgia.  Draganov's students are first prize winners of national and international violin competitions. Moreover, Philip Draganov is member of the European String Teachers Association and judge for international competitions.

Following his private tuition with Roland Greutter in Hamburg, Philip A. Draganov received his musical education from Uwe-Marin Haiberg at the Berlin University of the Arts while still in school. He then studied at the Juilliard School in New York with Margaret Pardee, Masao Kawasaki, Robert Chen, and chamber music with Felix Galimir. After returning to Europe, he then studied with Herman Krebbers in Amsterdam, Ida Bieler in Duesseldorf, Jens Ellermann in Hannover, and Nora Chastain in Zurich. Master classes with Ana Chumachenco, Thomas Brandis, and Rosa Fain proved to be particularly stimulating.

At the age of ten, he won first prize in the German National Competition "Jugend Musiziert" overall Germany. In the years that followed, he won numerous awards and competitions, such as the "Wettbewerb zur Förderung junger Künstler" (a competition for the promotion of young artists), and was awarded a scholarship from the "Oscar und Vera Ritter Foundation." Besides solo performances, recitals, and chamber music concerts, Draganov is regularly approached by important orchestras and also acts as concertmaster or Principal Violinist. Moreover, in recent years he has frequently performed as conductor. Philip A. Draganov plays a violin made by the Italian violin maker Tomaso Balestrieri in 1769 as well as a violin by the German violin maker Peter Greiner. He lives near Zurich/Switzerland.

Udi Bar-David is widely considered as one of the most versatile cellists in the world today.  Equally at home as a classical cellist and an innovative improviser of music of all genres, Udi has enjoyed performing on international stages with both classical and ethnic musicians from all over the world. Udi’s classical music training began at the age of seven in Tel-Aviv, studying with Uzi Wiesel, supported by the American Israel Cultural Foundation. Later he came to the U.S. to study with Leonard Rose at the Juilliard School, and conducting at the Curtis Institute of Music with Max Rudolph.Winner of the 1976 International Villa Lobos Competition in Brazil and the 1984 WFLN Young Instrumentalist Competition, Udi has appeared as a soloist with the Philly Pops under Peter Nero, and given recitals in Spain and California, appeared on the TODAY show and radio broadcasts with Network For New Music.  He has also been represented by Astral Artistic Services and the Center for Jewish Culture and Creativity. An acclaimed soloist, Udi performed with leading orchestras in Israel and recorded at the Jerusalem Music Center founded by Pablo Casals; served as the principal cellist in the International Youth Orchestra, the National Orchestra of New York, and with the American Ballet Theatre.  He was a member of the Concerto Soloists of Philadlephia, and joined the Philadelphia Orchestra in 1987, of which he served on the Board of Directors and as the Artistic Coordinator for the Hear O Israel concert at the Core States Center. As a chamber musician, Udi has collaborated with Christoph Eschenbach, Leon Fleisher, Jaime Laredo, Rudolph Buchbinder and others, and taught at the Eastern Music Festival.

Inspired by visits to Arab, Jewish and Buddhist villages, in 2003, Udi became the founder, president, and artistic director of Intercultural Journeys, a non-profit organization based in Philadelphia which is committed to presenting performances, conferences, master classes, lectures, and other interactions that provide opportunities for musical dialogue and understanding among a variety of cultural traditions. In partnerships with the Philadelphia Orchestra in 2007-08, Intercultural Journeys presented multi-media concerts, including Arab/Jewish cross-cultural presentations, and paid homage to native American music, and its influences on Dvorak’s New World Symphony. Spreading the messages of hope, understanding and co-existence, Udi continues to work tirelessly to perform and create opportunities for open dialogues, bringing people together from difference cultural backgrounds at universities, public venues, and peace loving communities. His unique genre of cross-cultural music has been heard all over the world. In the last few years, Udi has traveled as far as Spain, Italy, Palestine, Israel, and across the U.S. with the international group of Intercultural Journeys’ artists, including Jie Bing Chen, Nawang Khechog, Hanna Khoury, Wu Man, Diane Monroe, R. Carlos Nakai, Kareem Roustom, and Simon Shaheen. Together, they have made numerous appearances on international radio and TV, and collaborated regularly with WHYY and WRTI in Philadelphia.

Mark Gigliotti started his professional career as Solo Bassoon of the Hague Philharmonic Orchestra in the Netherlands.  He was also Principal Bassoon with the Pittsburgh Symphony and is currently Co-Principal Bassoon with the Philadelphia Orchestra.  He has appeared as soloist with orchestras in the United States, Europe and Asia, including solo appearances with the Philadelphia Orchestra.  In 2001, he recorded the Weber Bassoon Concerto and Andante and Hungarian Rondo, the Mozart Bassoon Concerto, and the Richard Strauss Duet-Concertino with the Taipei Symphony Orchestra available on the Bravo Label. After graduating from the Curtis Institute of Music, Mr. Gigliotti studied conducting in Europe with Dutch conductor Kees Bakkels and most recently with Philadelphia Orchestra Resident Conductor Luis Biava.  He has gleaned extensive knowledge of conducting through performing with the world’s greatest conductors, including Eugene Ormandy, Leonard Bernstein, Riccardo Muti, Wolfgang Sawallisch, Raphael Fruhbeck de Burgos, Loren Maazel, Simon Rattle, and James Levine.  Mr. Gigliotti has conducted in Philadelphia at the Curtis Institute and the Settlement Music School and was appointed Music Director and Conductor of the Lower Merion Symphony in 2005.  Mr. Gigliotti’s musical ties extend to his family, having studied with his father, former Philadelphia Orchestra Principal Clarinetist Anthony Gigliotti, his mother, pianist Amelia Gigliotti, and his grandfather, well-known clarinet teacher Joseph Gigliotti, and he is married to Philadelphia Orchestra bassoonist Holly Blake.  When not occupied with musical activites, he is a certified ski instructor at Hunter Mountain in New York State, an enthusiastic golfer, plays jazz guitar, and sails his boat, “The Sea Sharp,” off the coast of New Jersey.

A flexible, creative and highly accomplished conductor, Rosalind Erwin is welcome on podiums both in the USA and abroad. Her credentials include performances with the Sofia Philharmonoc in Bulgaria; in concert under the auspices of NATO in Zagreb, Croatia; performances in Western Europe; and at home where, in six years, she built a fledgling regional orchestra in the suburbs of Philadelphia to one attarcting international attention, record executives and European solo artists.
Born in Great Falls, Montana, Rosalind Erwin began her musical studies as a child on the clarinet and piano, and made her conducting debut at age 13. She received her Bachelor's Degree in Performance from the New School of Music in Philadelphia where she received an NEA Fellowship, and her Masters in Performance from Esther Boyer College of Music at Temple University where she studied with Anthony Gigliotti, Principal Clarinet of the Philadelphia Orchestra and was appointed Resident Conductor of the Composition Department. Rosalind Erwin is an accomplished instrumental performer, having appeared as clarinet soloist with the Pittsburgh Symphony and having performed with the Philadelphia Orchestra. She has studied with and been mentored by some of the great names in the conducting world, including Loren Maazel, Riccardo Muti, Leonard Slatkin, David Zinman, Joseph Barone, Sidney Rothstein and William Smith. She has been honored by the Leopold Stokowsky Memorial Conducting Competition sponsored by the Rittenhouse Square Women’s Committee of the Philadelphia Orchestra.

Rosalind Erwin was the founder and creative force behind Musica 2000 – The Symphony Orchestra (2000 - 2005). Erwin commissioned works by emerging American composers, presenting world premieres both in the USA and abroad. Unique to Musica 2000, Erwin developed effective educational outreach programs, which introduced not only instruments and music styles, but also involved students in the actual art of composition .

During her tenure as Music Director of the Pottstown Symphony Orchestra (2002-2008), Rosalind Erwin elevated the orchestra to exceptional artistic heights, expanded educational outreach via collaboration with other regional arts organizations and brought contemporary music into the mainstream of concert programming. Among other works, Erwin commissioned and premiered the overture simple by Guggenheim Fellow and internationally respected composer, Robert Maggio, as well as Alabanza by Philadelphia composer Kile Smith. Erwin conducted the regional premiere of Joan Tower’s ASOL/Ford Foundation commissioned work, Made in America, in 2006. Beginning in 2005, Erwin and the Orchestra’s concerts were rebroadcast on Philadelphia NPR station WHYY’s Symphony Space, to critical audience acclaim. During Erwin’s tenure the PSO was offered a rare recording opportunity with American independent label Newport Classics. Her guest conducting engagements have included orchestras in Portugal, the Czech Republic and Bulgaria, as well as throughout the USA. She was featured conductor in 2003 during American Music Week with the Sophia Philharmonic in Bulgaria. In 2009 Erwin guest conducted Sinfonijski orkestar Hvratska vojske, performing the Croatian premier of David Gillinghams’ Marimba Concerto No. 2 with soloist Ivana Bilic.

Rosalind Erwin has been highly acclaimed as a conductor and educator by the legendary composer and author Samuel Adler of the Eastman School of Music.Erwin has been invited by both Pennsylvania and New Jersey Music Educator Associations to guest conduct All-State, Regional and District Festival Orchestras to great acclaim. Erwin is the former Music Director and Conductor of the Delaware County Youth Orchestra, Luzerne Music Center Orchestras and Settlement Music School Advanced Studies Chamber Orchestra and Ensemble, with which she performed at The Kimmel Center in Philadelphia. Erwin has served as guest lecturer for Arcadia University's Community Scholars program, and Guest Lecturer and Celebrity Guest for the Philadelphia Orchestra Lecture/Luncheon Series.

Rosalind Erwin is currently a member of the Music Faculty of The College of New Jersey. In conjunction with C&K Artists management, Erwin has created and developed Music ad hoc, a wind band/orchestra package succesfully used by non-profit organizations as major fund raising tool. Among engagements for the coming year will be her debut appearance with the Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra in concert in Bratislava.