Imani Winds Offers Panel Conversation With CMS Music Students

University of Arkansas

Imani Winds

RefleXions Music Series presents the first series of activities led by Imani Winds, spring guest artists in residence. The RefleXions Music Series and virtual residency are sponsored by the Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, the Department of Music, KUAF 91.3 and the Women's Giving Circle.

On March 18, 6-7 p.m. CT, Imani members will be holding a panel conversation with students from the U of A Community Music School and all others interested. This is an opportunity to interact with RefleXions guest artists and hear about their experiences through music, excellence, leadership and diversity.

These activities are free and open to the public and registration in advance is required. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

• Conversation with Community Music School students, March 18, 6-7 p.m. CT, registration here  

All events will be delivered via Zoom and are free and open to the public, but advance registration is required. After registering, participants will receive a confirmation email containing log-in details. For a more detailed description of events and to learn more about the RefleXions Music Series, visit Reflexionsmusic.org.

CMS (Community Music School) is an outreach program of the U of A Music Department that provides fun and student-driven music programs for all in a safe and inclusive environment.

Brandon Patrick George
Brandon Patrick George is a leading flute soloist and chamber musician with an adventurous repertoire extending from the baroque to today. He is the flutist of the Grammy-nominated Imani Winds and has made appearances as a concerto soloist with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Albany Symphony Orchestra and the American Composers Orchestra, among others. He has been hailed by The New York Times as "the elegant Brandon Patrick George," as a "virtuoso" by The Washington Post, and called a "knockout musician with a gorgeous sound" by The Philadelphia Inquirer. His debut album, featuring works by Kalevi Aho, J.S. Bach, Pierre Boulez and Sergei Prokofiev, was released by Haenssler Classics in September 2020; The New York Times has described it as "a program that showcases the flute in all its wit, warmth and brilliance."

Toyin Spellman-Diaz 
Oboist Toyin Spellman-Diaz grew up surrounded by her parent's enormous record collection in Washington, DC. It was there she absorbed the many layers of classical music's beauty and the inspiring and uniting potential of the world's diverse cultural landscape.

Spellman-Diaz earned her Bachelors of Music degree from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music and her Master's and Professional Studies degrees at the Manhattan School of Music. Her orchestral career includes performances with the New York Philharmonic, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Chicago Civic Orchestra, Orchestra of St. Luke's and the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra.

Hailed by The Washington Post for her "smooth, controlled tone and excellent technique," Toyin has performed concertos with the Chicago Civic Orchestra, Manhattan Virtuosi and the Kennedy Center Youth Orchestra.

An original member of Imani Winds, Spellman-Diaz has built her career as a champion of contemporary chamber music. Along with her Imani Winds colleagues, she is devoted to discovering new and diverse musical voices and cultures to increase and enhance the woodwind quintet repertoire. She has also collaborated with some of today's most influential chamber music ensembles, including Alarm Will Sound, the Antara Ensemble and Camerata Pacifica. Spellman-Diaz teaches at Brooklyn College and NYU Steinhardt School of Music and currently serves on the Board of Directors of the American Composers Orchestra.

RefleXions Music Series was conceived as a celebration of music, musicians, advocates and audiences, as a series of events that foster creative justice and diversity through opportunities to reflect, learn, grow, change and teach. RefleXions team is a collective of U of A individuals from different backgrounds that bring unique perspectives and commitment to the highest standards of scholarship, research and aesthetic diversity: Erika Almenara, Department of World Languages, Literatures, and Cultures; Rogelio Garcia-Contreras, Walton College of Business; Antoinette Grajeda and Leigh Wood, KUAF; Helen Becque, Ronda Mains, Catalina Ortega, Eric Troiano and Lia Uribe, Department of Music; along with students Olga Khokhryakova, Tatianna Mendoza, Miranda Pham and Bailey Ross.