Dr. Kirsten Ann Blair

Dr. Kirsten Ann Blair, soprano, enjoys a vibrant musical lifestyle as a singer and educator. Dr. Blair is a versatile performer, having recently participated in opera, classical, and contemporary performances on both national and international stages. She has presented recitals at Arizona State University, the Eastman School of Music, San Francisco Conservatory, James Madison University, Loyola University, West Virginia University, Lisbon (Portugal), Athens (Greece), East London, White River and Nelspruit (South Africa), Harare (Zimbabwe), and in her home states of Maine and Alaska. She has played principal roles with Opera Fairbanks, Anchorage Opera, Varna International Music Academy, and internationally with Théâtre Roger Barat (France), International Summer of Opera Festival of Morelia (Mexico), and the Lowveld Chamber Music Association (South Africa). Selected roles include Micaëla (Bizet's "Carmen"), Rose (Weill's "Street Scene"), Lucy (Menotti's "The Telephone"), and Roxy LaRue in the World Premier of "The Color of Gold."

She has performed as a featured soloist with the Arizona Women's Collaborative, the University of Alaska Fairbanks New Music Festival, the Collaborative Piano Institute at the University of Michigan, the Hawai'i International Music Festival, the Vianden Festival in Luxembourg, and two consecutive sessions in Zimbabwe for Music Inspire Africa. Recently, she sang with the Fairbanks Ragtime Club, Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival Jazz Combo, Blue & Gold Alumni Celebration rock/pop cover band, and Golden Heart Performing Arts' circus artists as a singing aerialist. 

A passionate teacher, Dr. Blair maintains a diverse private studio inclusive of a wide range of singing styles and appreciates working wtih singers in group environments. She is a sought-after adjudicator for Regional Solo & Ensemble and National Association of Teachers of Singing competitions in both Classical and Musical Theatre categories, and was the 2024 Nelspruit Eisteddfod Vocal Division adjudicator in South Africa. She was a recipient of Arizona State University's Graduate and Professional Student Association Teaching Excellence Award in 2020 and was selected for the prestigious National Association of Teachers of Singing 2024 Internship Program. Dr. Blair previously served the University of Alaska Fairbanks Music Department as a voice instructor, as well as her Fairbanks community as Board Vice-President of Fairbanks Light Opera Theatre, Director of the Great Land Sounds Barbershop Chorus, Vice-President of the NATS Alaska Chapter, and Artistic Director of the 2025 Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival Opera & Musical Theatre Program. Dr. Blair is a voice instructor at the American Institute of Musical Studies in Graz and James Madison University.

Dr. Dario Martin

A native of Havana, Cuba, Dr. Dario Martin is a dynamic and versatile pianist whose international career spans solo performance, chamber music, and collaborative piano. A prize-winning artist, Dr. Martin has earned first prizes in prestigious piano competitions in Costa Rica, Cuba, Mexico, and the United States. Highlights include winning the 2018 Concerto Competition at Indiana University with a performance of Ligeti’s Piano Concerto and securing First Prize at the 2014 José Jacinto Cuevas Yamaha Piano International Competition in Mexico.

Dr. Martin has performed extensively across Europe, Asia, and the Americas. His appearances as a soloist include performances with the National Symphony Orchestra of Cuba, the Havana Chamber Orchestra, and the Yucatán Symphony Orchestra. Recent engagements feature recitals at the Young Pianist Series in Knoxville, the Wakkerstroom Music Festival in South Africa, masterclasses and concerts in Costa Rica, performances in France, and Austria—including Lieder recitals in Salzburg.

Currently on the piano faculty at the University of Tennessee – Knoxville, Dr. Martin teaches Applied Piano Lessons, Piano Literature, Piano Pedagogy, Chamber Music, and Keyboard Skills. He previously taught at the University of Alaska Fairbanks from 2023 to 2025. During this time, he collaborated with the Fairbanks Symphony Orchestra, the Northern Lights String Orchestra, and both faculty and guest artists. Since 2022, he has served as music director, conductor, and collaborative pianist at the Austrian-American Mozart Academy in Salzburg.

Dr. Martin earned his Doctor of Music in Piano Literature and Performance from Indiana University–Bloomington, studying under Arnaldo Cohen, with minors in Collaborative Piano and Music Education. He also holds a Performer’s Diploma and Master of Music from Southern Methodist University, where he studied with renowned pianist Joaquín Achúcarro, and a Bachelor of Music from the Instituto Superior de Arte in Havana.

An acclaimed recording artist, his debut album El Álbum de la Ciudad Celeste (2011) won the Cubadisco Award for Best Classical Solo Album. Additional recordings include Netzaj, in collaboration with trumpet player Fadev Sanjudo, and Up into the Silence, with singer Diana Fuentes. His second solo album, Juegos de Agua, was released by FT Music in Mexico. He is a recognized legacy pianist of the Joaquín Achúcarro Foundation.

Dr. Beth Chandler Cahill

Beth Chandler Cahill, Professor of Flute, enjoys an active career as a soloist, chamber musician, orchestral player, and teacher. Praised for her musical versatility and colorful sound, Dr. Cahill has performed and presented at festivals throughout the United States and abroad, including engagements at National Flute Association Conventions, Mid-Atlantic Flute Conventions, the Midwest Clinic, and Música no Museu Festival Internacionale de Flauta, Oboé e Fagote in Rio de Janeiro, as well as universities nationwide.

As a soloist, she has performed at major venues throughout the world, including solo recitals at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., and the Portuguese Embassy in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. She has won numerous awards and honors, including the top prize of the Flute Talk Competition, for which she was featured on the cover and in an interview in Flute Talk Magazine. Dr. Chandler has been a semifinalist in the Concert Artists Guild International Competition in New York City, National Flute Association (NFA) Piccolo Artist Competition, and the NFA Young Artist Competition, in addition to being a prizewinner in the NFA Masterclass Performers and Orchestral Audition Competitions. She has performed at the NFA Conventions in Orlando, Minneapolis, Washington, D.C., Las Vegas, Charlotte, New York City, Kansas City, Albuquerque, Pittsburgh, Columbus, Phoenix, Orlando, Boston, and Los Angeles. She has also been a featured performer at the Florida Flute Fair, Texas Flute Festival, and the Staunton Music Festival. She was the winner of the Myrna Brown Artist Competition and a recipient of the Mary Louise Remy Endowed P.E.O. Scholar Award. As a Fulbright Scholar, Dr. Chandler studied with Trevor Wye in Kent, England, as one of six students selected internationally. Other solo performances have included concerto appearances with the Dallas Chamber Orchestra, and closer to home, the James Madison University Symphony Orchestra, JMU Jazz Ensemble, and JMU Wind Symphony.

Prior to her faculty position at JMU, Dr. Cahill served on the faculty of the University of Florida, as a teaching assistant at the University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music, and held teaching positions at the New England Conservatory Extension Division and the Boston Music Education Collaborative. Dr. Chandler maintained active private studios in Cincinnati, Boston, Waco, and Austin, Texas, in addition to presenting masterclasses and workshops throughout the United States. Her current and former students have enjoyed successes in regional, national, and international competitions, prestigious masterclasses and fellowships, as well as highly competitive summer programs, and have been accepted to top graduate programs. Many former students have attained college faculty and military band positions, jobs in public and private music education around the country, as well as internships and employment at arts centers and symphony orchestras nationwide. Dr. Chandler was honored to receive the 2016-17 JMU College of Visual and Performing Arts Distinguished Teaching Award.

She is a member of the Bluestone Winds, the faculty woodwind quintet in-residence at James Madison University. The ensemble performs both on and off campus, presents clinics in public and private educational settings, and has been featured at The Midwest Clinic in Chicago, the Virginia Music Educators’ Association Conference, and in concert at the Kennedy Center. She frequently performs in various other chamber and large ensembles, including the Valley Wind Ensemble, as well as with regional orchestras.

She served as President of the National Flute Association from 2012 to 2014, having also served previously two years as Vice President. In addition to serving as a past member of the National Flute Association’s Board of Directors, she has also served as chair of the Commercial Members Committee, Nominating Committee, as a member of the Strategic Planning, Endowment, and Finance Committees, and as a judge for several of the NFA's annual competitions. She is the advisor for the JMU Flute Club and is also an active member of the Flute Society of Washington, for which she has served as Program Chair for the Mid-Atlantic Flute Convention.

A native Texan, Dr. Cahill received a Bachelor of Music magna cum laude from Baylor University as a student of Helen Ann Shanley, a Master of Music with Academic Honors from New England Conservatory, where she studied with Paula Robison, and a Doctor of Musical Arts in Flute Performance at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, with a cognate area in Arts Administration. Her other principal teachers include Jack Wellbaum (piccolo) and Trevor Wye.

She recently released TIME PLACE SPIRIT on the MSR Classics label, an album of music for flute and piano, with pianist Paulo Steinberg, which is widely available online and on CD. The stylistically broad program includes poignant works by Amirov, Chaminade, Karg-Elert, and Frazelle.

Beth Chandler Cahill joined the JMU School of Music faculty in 2001. She lives in the Harrisonburg, Virginia, community with her husband and twin teenage sons.

Please see bethchandler.com.

Dr. Šarūnas Jankauskas

Clarinetist Šarūnas Jankauskas enjoys a rewarding performance and teaching career. Most of his professional activities take place at James Madison University in Virginia, where he guides an enthusiastic group of aspiring young musicians, teachers and entrepreneurs. Jankauskas joined the faculty in 2016 and is dedicated to exploring new ways of addressing playing techniques, expanding teaching literature and maintaining a highly positive learning environment. He is a recipient of the 2023 Madison Vision Teaching Award, a campus-wide recognition that is solely decided by the students.

His performance engagements have taken him through Europe, Canada, Brazil and various regions of the United States. Jankauskas appeared as a concerto soloist with Boulder Chamber Orchestra, Round Rock Symphony, numerous collegiate ensembles and collaborated with accomplished artists, including St. Petersburg and Jasper String Quartets, pianists Domenico Codispoti and Johan Botes. He participated at International Conservatory Week Festival (St. Petersburg, Russia), Musicalis Daunia (Italy), SoundSpace at Blanton, Chamber Music at the Barn, KNOB Festival of New Music, Electroacoustic Barn Dance, International Clarinet Association’s ClarinetFests®, College Music Society’s National Conference and various composer/new music symposiums. He also has been a fellow in prestigious summer programs: Sarasota Music Festival, New Music Workshop of Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, Round Top Festival-Institute and Texas Music Festival. His recent commissioning project focused on works for clarinet in various duo-partnership roles. After numerous premieres, it culminated in a digital and CD album Duos, released by Soundset Recordings in 2020. As a developing composer, Jankauskas has premiered a couple of his own works.

Dr. Jankauskas previously taught at Texas Lutheran and Wichita State Universities, in addition to serving as principal clarinetist of the Wichita Symphony Orchestra. He studied at the Academy of Music and Theatre in his native Lithuania, and, after moving to the U.S., received degrees from Grand Valley State University, Rice University and The University of Texas at Austin.

Visit Dr. Jankauskas’ YouTube playlist.