In recognition of the important relationship between SUNY Oneonta and the local region, a week of special events has been planned to highlight President Cardelle’s inauguration theme, "Community Connections."

"Sounds of Oneonta" is open to the public and we encourage all members of the SUNY Oneonta and surrounding communities to attend on Wednesday, October 12, 6–8:30 p.m., B Side Ballroom (One Clinton Plaza Drive).

Catskill Symphony Trio

Adam Kent

Professor of Music at the State University of New York at Oneonta since 2016, pianist Adam Kent has performed in recital, as soloist with orchestra, and in chamber music on four continents. A winner of the American Pianists Association Fellowship and Simone Belsky Music Awards, Dr. Kent also received top prizes in the Thomas Richner, the Juilliard Concerto, and the Kosciuszko Foundation Chopin Competitions, and is a recipient of the Arthur Rubinstein Prize and the Harold Bauer Award. His solo and chamber music recordings are available on the Bridge and Claves labels, and a newly released recording of the Pulitzer-Prize winning Cuban-American composer Tania León’s piano music has garnered rave reviews in the The New York Times and elsewhere.

A recipient of Spain’s Orden al Mérito Civil, Dr. Kent has long been noted for his expertise in Spanish music. The Consulate General of Spain in NYC, the Foundation for Iberia Music at the CUNY Graduate Center, the Spanish Ministry for Education and Culture, and the King Juan Carlos I Center at NYU have all underwritten his Spanish-themed projects.

Dr. Kent received a D.M.A. from The Juilliard School where his dissertation, “The Use of Catalan Folk Materials in the Works of Federico Mompou and Joaquin Nin-Culmell” received the school’s Richard F. French Award. His playing was praised in The New York Times for its “wonderful sense of authority and technical flair.”

On 10/12, Adam offers several musical evocations of Cuba by composers from Spain, along with a few works from his newly released CD Tania León: Teclas de mi piano.

More about Adam Kent

Janet Nepkie

Janet Nepkie is the Principal Cellist of the Catskill Symphony and the Glimmerglass Opera Orchestra. She has also served as Principal Cellist for the Binghamton Symphony, the Tri-Cities Opera Company, the Albany and Schenectady Symphonies, the Clinton Symphony, and several other musical organizations throughout New York State. Janet is a SUNY Distinguished Service Professor who teaches Music Business and Copyright Law and is the Coordinator of the Internship program for SUNY Oneonta’s Music Industry program. 

Jeremy Wall and Colby Thomas

Jeremy and Colby have been collaborating for several years, and have put together an eclectic mix of songs for voice and piano. Their program consists of all-time favorites, from Tin Pan Alley jazz, contemporary pop, classical arias, along with some of Jeremy’s original compositions.

Jeremy Wall is best known as founding member, pianist, composer and producer of the landmark jazz-fusion group Spyro Gyra. He has recorded extensively as producer, keyboardist, composer and arranger in all genres of music and has released over 70 of his own compositions. Served as an Adjunct Professor at Ramapo College and Purchase College. Has been nominated for several Grammy's as a producer, pianist and composer. His composition "Shakedown" was nominated for Grammy award for "Best Pop Instrumental." He was the featured soloist at the Shenandoah Bach Festival in 2004.

Ms. Thomas is originally from Huntington, New York and has been an actress and singer in the US and in Europe for more than seventeen years. She joined the SUNY Oneonta Music Department in 2004, directing, and teaching voice, History of the American Musical, and a vocal performance workshop, which includes coaching repertoire from opera to the contemporary musical. She received a Masters in Vocal Performance from Syracuse University and a BA in Music, and minor in Speech, Communications, and Theatre from SUNY Oneonta. Her professional training also includes: The Roger Hendricks Simon Studio for Actors, Directors and Playwrights, the Riverside Shakespeare Company, Bob Sills Improvisation Workshop, and Nico Costell’s Master Class Series.

Professional credits include a nine-year stint as ‘Christine Daae’ in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s PHANTOM OF THE OPERA at the Neue Flora Theater in Hamburg, Germany. She appeared on tour throughout Europe, including Paris, Nice, , Gothenburg, Munich, and Basil, as Laurey in Rodgers and Hammerstein’s OKLAHOMA! Off-Broadway, regional, and national tour credits include, Beatriz in Offenbach’s CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS, musical director, Jonathan Tunick; Maria in WEST SIDE STORY; Luisa in THE FANTASTIKS; Josephine in HMS PINAFORE; Mabel in THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE, starring Sir John Reed, Anne in A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC, and Princess Tuptim in THE KING AND I, directed by Jamie Hammerstein, son of Oscar Hammerstein II.

Ms. Thomas continues to perform in the New York area, as her teaching schedule allows. She appeared in the title role in the premiere of the new opera, MOLLY OF THE MOHAWKS; for which she was nominated for a Native American Music Award. She also performed at the Baseball Hall of Fame, singing the role of Lili in COOPERSTOWN, a Jazz Opera by composer Sasha Matson. Ms. Thomas has worked with the Chenango River Theater in Greene, NY, appearing as Felicia in I HATE HAMLET and Mrs. Van Dann in THE DIARY OF ANNE FRANK.

Her concert appearances as the Soprano Soloist include, Carl Orff’s CARMINA BURANA and the Poulenc STABAT MATER with the Catskill Choral Society; the Poulenc GLORIA, and Samuel Barber’s KNOXVILLE, SUMMER OF 1915 with the Catskill Symphony; most recently, in Handel’s Messiah with The Voices of Cooperstown; and sung the role of Lola in CAVALLERIA RUSTICANA with the Schenectady Symphony at the Proctor Theater, and at the Stanley Theater, with the Utica Symphony.

SUNY Oneonta Faculty Jazz Trio

Members of the SUNY Oneonta Faculty Jazz Trio have been performing together for over a decade. The group features all types of jazz and performs regularly in the greater Oneonta area. Members of this year’s ensemble are:

Rob Roman-Piano

Robert Roman joined the SUNY Oneonta faculty in 2005. He is a pianist, educator and has worked extensively in arts management. Prior to joining the faculty at Oneonta, he held a position as Director of Education at San Jose Jazz, where he produced the San Jose Jazz Festival. He serves as a faculty member for the New York Summer Music Festival (NYSMF) and is an active performer in the area of jazz piano. 

Rich Mollin-Bass

International bandleader, performing and recording artist RC Mollin has been a part of the music industry since 1980. He has been a leader of modern musical groups including show bands, Rock, Jazz, R&B, Blues, Funk, and Free Improvisation ensembles. Sideman and Bandleader on Norwegian Cruise lines, Costa lines, Holland America, and Carnival lines, Rich worked on stage with hundreds of headline acts. As Bandleader for Michael Carney Music in Manhattan, Rich led a Jazz trio 6 nights a week for 9 years with many of New York's finest pianists and drummers. His trio performed for dignitaries, heads of state, and jazz fans in venues throughout the east coast. He currently heads one of the largest bass studios in the SUNY system teaching String Bass and Electric Bass. He also began the jazz improvisation studies class and performs regularly in the area now in a variety of genres with The Catskill Symphony Orchestra, Orpheus Theatre, Mask and Hammer Productions and innumerable jazz settings and recording as house Bassist with Sonart recording studios in Woodstock, NY. As well as other projects.

Blake Fleming-Drums

Blake Fleming is a percussionist, author and educator known for his involvement with several influential experimental bands. His first book, The Book of Rhythm, is an unprecedented encyclopedia of over 5,000 meticulously organized rhythms for all instruments. The book has been sold in over 20 countries worldwide, was a top 5 instruction book in the 2020 Modern Drummer Reader’s Poll and has also been released as an e-book by music publishing giant, Hudson Music. He was included in SPIN’s 100 Greatest Drummers of Alternative Music and has recorded and toured extensively, working with luminaries in the jazz, rock and avant-garde worlds. Fleming’s drumming has been written about in such major publications as The New York Times, NPR.com, Spin, Rolling Stone, MOJO, Modern Drummer, DRUM!, Dangerous Minds, and Pitchfork.  Alongside a variety of studio work, he also enjoys teaching students worldwide with live online lessons and is an adjunct professor at The State University of New York at Oneonta.