The centerpiece for our 2024 season will be the presentation of a new work by MONICA HOUGHTON, commissioned by the Toiyabe Chamber Music Society to celebrate our new name. This composition will feature Dustin Budish, viola, Aaron Hill, Oboe, and Emily Montoya Barnes. harp.
The new work will anchor a concert that will include additional works performed by this unusual ensemble. Ms. Houghton chose this instrumentation in part to facilitate “portability,” allowing us to schedule additional concerts in rural Nevada for our first “Toiyabe Tour.”
May 11: World Premiere Performance at St. Thomas Aquinas — 310 W. 2nd St., Reno NV
May 24: The Fallon Theatre — 71 S. Main St., Fallon NV
May 25: Eureka Opera House — 31 S. Main St., Eureka NV
Monica Houghton, Composer
Award-winning American composer Monica (Niki) Houghton grew up in Reno, Nevada. She earned A.B. and A.M. degrees from Harvard University, and an M.M. in Composition from the Cleveland Institute of Music, where she served on the faculty for nine years before moving back to Nevada in 2011.
Among the many ensembles which have commissioned and performed her works are the Cleveland Chamber Symphony, San Francisco Choral Artists and the Reno Philharmonic. Nevada Chamber Opera presented the world premiere of her opera The Big Bonanza in April 2016. A collection of recordings of her chamber music ‘Of Time & Place’ was released on the Navona label in 2018.
Houghton works have been performed widely in recitals and at music festivals around the country and the world, including the AKI Festival of New Music, Ernest Bloch Festival, Oregon Bach Festival, Virginia Arts Festival, and Shanghai Spring International Music Festival.
Ms. Houghton’s music has been described as “evocative” and “full of feeling.” A glance at her catalog reveals a wide range of influences inspiring her works including nature, poetry, the visual arts, language, science and world events. She appreciates and often draws inspiration from live performances by living artists for her compositions.
For further information about the composer, please visit MonicaHoughton.com
Emily Montoya Barnes, harp
Emily Montoya Barnes is a harpist, educator, and advocate for the arts. She has been a featured soloist with Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional (Panamá), The Nevada Chamber Orchestra, and Junges Sinfonieorchester (Germany). She has also toured the United States and Germany as part of a flute and harp duo.
Emily enjoys working with diverse art forms, and has collaborated with dancers and visual artists to introduce audiences to music in new and unconventional formats. With funding from state and national grants, Emily has worked closely with composers to commission and premier a number of pieces that feature the unique nature of the harp.
Emily has held the position of principal harpist with the Nevada Chamber Orchestra, the Henderson Symphony, the El Paso Symphony, Boise Philharmonic, and the Las Cruses Symphony. She received her Bachelor of Music in Harp Performance from Manhattan School of Music, and her Master of Music in Harp Performance from the University of Las Vegas, Nevada. Emily can often be found hiking and climbing in the nearby mountains with her intrepid husband and kids.
Aaron Hill, oboe
Aaron Hill is an Assistant Professor specializing in oboe and classical saxophone at the University of Nevada, Reno. He boasts an extensive career, having held positions at prestigious institutions like the University of Wisconsin-Madison, University of Virginia, and James Madison University. His musical talents span various orchestras, including engagements with the Reno Philharmonic, Reno Chamber Orchestra, Charlottesville Symphony, Wintergreen Music Festival Orchestra, and Flint Symphony. Hill’s expertise extends beyond performance, with active involvement in chamber music, collaborations with living composers, and appearances at notable conferences and podcasts.
His performing career encompasses a diverse range of styles, from premiering contemporary works to exploring Baroque oboe performances with the Madison Bach Musicians. A decorated soloist, Hill has received recognition through awards like the Grand Prize in the Mu Phi Epsilon Society for Musical Arts Competition and the Leche Trust Prize at the Barbirolli International Oboe Competition. Notably, his artistic pursuits also include meaningful engagements with Street Symphony, collaborating with musicians in Los Angeles experiencing homelessness and incarceration.
In addition to his performance achievements, Hill is highly educated in music, holding degrees from the University of Michigan and the Yale School of Music, among others. His academic journey has been enriched by certifications from esteemed institutions like the Gordon Institute of Music Learning and Marianne Ploger’s Institute for Musical Perception. His commitment to music education and his rich, varied musical experiences position him as a versatile and accomplished musician in the world of oboe and saxophone performance.
Dustin Budish, viola
A native of Reno, Nevada, Dustin Budish studied at Oberlin College and the Cleveland Institute of Music with Jeffrey Irvine where he received his BM in Viola Performance and then received his MM with honors at the New England Conservatory with Martha Katz. While in college, he worked with and perfom1ed alongside members of the Cavani, Tokyo, Vermeer, and Cleveland Quartets and received the Russell Award at the Coleman Chamber Music Competition in 200 I. As a chamber musician, he has performed at the Ravinia, Norfolk, and Cactus Pear festivals and at the Nevada Chamber Music Festival. As a member of the Verbier Festival, Mr. Budish traveled across the globe for performances in Europe, Asia, and India and was invited to Israel to perform with Maxim Vengerov’s Mozart Project with the Verbier Festival Chamber Orchestra.
As a member of the New World Symphony in Miami Beach, he perfom1ed in Carnegie Hall with Michael Tilson Thomas and Yo-Yo Ma and later was featured as soloist with the orchestra as a winner of the concerto competition under Maestro Alasdair Neale’s direction. Also, while in Miami, he served as the founding artistic director for the “Friends” of New World, where he catered custom innovative fusions of classical music with hip-hop, electronica, reggae, and funk for private events.
Mr. Budish is the Principal Viola of the Reno Philharmonic and the Reno Chamber Orchestra. In 2015 he was a featured soloist with the Reno Philharmonic where he performed the Walton Viola Concerto. He has also frequently substituted with the San Francisco Symphony and was a Sun Valley Summer Symphony member for ten years.
Dustin has been on the faculty of UNR for the last 5 years teaching viola and playing with the Argenta Trio and has a passion for nurturing the next generations of young musicians and has mentored many young violinists and violists in the Reno area, many of whom have received numerous awards and honors. He is also the conductor for the Reno Youth Concert Orchestra and regularly programs fun and challenging repertoire ranging from Bach to The Legend of Zelda video game music.