Sat April 6^th 7:30pm / Sun April 7^th 3:00

Born in Minnesota to Danish immigrant parents, his family moved to California in the early 1960’s. Torsten Juul-Borre began his training in the North County of San Luis Obispo County with pianist Dorothy Renton McBain. In his teens he attended on full scholarship the Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara where he studied with Dr. Reginald Stewart. He won first place in the Alice Nelson Scholarship Competition and performed with the San Luis Obispo Symphony at the age of sixteen. At the age of seventeen he was accepted at the Royal Danish Music Conservatory in Copenhagen, Denmark. An intense seven-year course of study included all facets of music and piano performance with advanced studies in chamber music, accompaniment, vocal and instrumental coaching, and a minor degree as organist. At the Conservatory he studied with Arne Skjold Rasmussen, renowned interpreter of Beethoven and Carl Nielsen, and with the internationally known pianist and accompanist Kjell Olsson. Engagements in Denmark include the Tivoli Gardens Concert Hall and the Copenhagen Summer Music Festival at Charlottenborg Palace. Mr. Juul-Borre is an active concert artist both in Europe and in the United States. His versatility and education have also opened doors to playing on the fine pipe organs of historic Europe. Music is the language of the soul, able to reflect every nuance of life’s experiences, and Torsten Juul-Borre distills music’s essence into powerful, unforgettable performances. “Music is wrought with beauty and with logic,” he believes, and during his concerts he strives to relate “the joy, the depth, and the vitality as I’ve experienced it”. His virtuosity is able to entrance the listener from the first few bars to the finale, causing the audience to wonder where the time has gone.

Sat Feb 23^rd 7:30pm / Sun Feb 24^th 3:00pm

Brynn has toured and performed world-wide sharing her exhilarating style with audiences from Boston to the Netherlands. A graduate of the Peabody Conservatory of Music, her first great musical memory was that of concertmaster for the University Orchestra on a tour to the former Soviet Union in 1987. She has also served as concertmaster and soloist for the Tanglewood Festival Orchestra, Boston Philharmonic, and as principal second and soloist of the Boston Pops Esplanade Orchestra. After seven years of living in the Netherlands and performing with various Dutch Orchestras, Brynn found herself longing to come back to California in search for personal and musical serenity. Brynn currently teaches violin and is an orchestral coach for the Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Symphony. Performing virtually all styles of music, she travels extensively recording for various artists. At home she has a full private teaching studio as well. She regularly presents recitals with pianist Lynne Garrett forming the duo, The Parlor Performers. She has been a soloist with the San Luis Obispo Symphony for their Youth Concerts and has will be teaching at the San Luis Obispo Youth Symphony Camp Ocean Pines Summer Youth String Program. Brynn is a fearless musician unrestrained by a single discipline. She relishes the opportunity to discover and uncover musical and non-musical experiences in all areas of life.

Steven Gross is Professor of Horn and Director of the Wind, Brass, and Percussion Program at the University of California–Santa Barbara. Dr. Gross is also a former member of the Atlanta Symphony, National Symphony, Santa Fe Opera Orchestra, and the Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra. His international solo appearances include the Orchester der Stadt Vöcklabruck in Austria, Moscow Conservatory, L'Abri International Arts Festival in Switzerland, Nairobi Symphony in Kenya, NTUA Wind Ensemble in Taiwan, and the Camerata Filarmonia Bohemia of Prague. His Carnegie Hall debut was described by the New York Concert Review as, "offering some of the cleanest articulation and purest musicality.”  Dr. Gross has released four solo CDs with orchestra on the Summit label. Gramophone Magazine praised his playing for its “subtle flair and vibrant character,” as well as its “suave and poetic conversation.” Reviews from the American Record Guide describe his playing as “outstanding, striking the right balance between thoughtfulness and verve, planning and spontaneity…an excellent tone and the ability and temperament to play heroically.” Horn Call magazine states that the “soloist plays technically flawlessly and highly expressively throughout…Highly recommended.”