PLU Honor Orchestra for Strings
January 17-18, 2026
Mary Baker Russell Music Center
The annual PLU Honor Orchestra for Strings brings together outstanding high school string players from across the country, offering them the opportunity to perform exceptional string orchestra literature under the direction of a nationally recognized guest conductor. Nominated by their high school orchestra directors, these young musicians gain valuable experience through two days of intensive rehearsals and sectionals with expert string clinicians, culminating in a final performance by the Honor Orchestra.
Benefits of Honor Orchestra Attending:
- Prestigious Venue: Perform in Lagerquist Hall, one of Washington’s most prestigious concert venues, providing an exceptional performance experience.
- Fellowship and Networking: Spend two enriching days with string players from across the region in a supportive, non-competitive environment.
- Expert Guidance: Work with a nationally recognized guest conductor through daily rehearsals, enhancing your musical skills and experience.
- Skill Development: Improve your technical abilities through daily sectionals and an optional master class with distinguished members of Carpe Diem.
- Affordable Participation: Enjoy a low entry fee, making this opportunity accessible.
- Performance Broadcast: Receive a live stream link to the final performance.
- Masterclass Participation: Up to 9 students will be selected for a public masterclass based on a recorded audition submitted by the registration deadline. Each selected student will receive 20 minutes of stage time, divided into 5 minutes for performing a solo excerpt and 15 minutes for feedback and guidance during the masterclass.
Important Dates:
- Nomination Deadline: November 14, 2025, 11:59 pm — Please check with each student concerning their availability prior to nominating.
- Registration and Payment Deadline: December 17, 2025, 11:59 pm — There will be a non-refundable fee of $140 for each student musician participating in the Honor Orchestra for Strings. This fee includes dinner on Saturday and lunch on Sunday.
- Masterclass Audition Upload Deadline: January 12th, 2026 at 11:59pm
- Check in and Seating Auditions: January 17, 2026, 10:30 am
- PLUHO Final Performance: January 18, 2026, 6:00 pm
GUEST CONDUCTOR
Compelling interpretations, inventive performances, and an energetic stage presence are the hallmarks of American conductor Antoine T. Clark. He is the founding Artistic and Music Director of the Worthington Chamber Orchestra in Ohio and a passionate advocate for expanding access to classical music and fostering community engagement.
In the 2025–2026 season, Mr. Clark enters his thirteenth year leading the Worthington Chamber Orchestra with a Masterworks series titled American Crossroads. In celebration of the 250th anniversary of the United States, the series explores the intersection of American identity, heritage, and creativity through powerful symphonic works and multidisciplinary collaborations. This season features partnerships with the Worthington Historical Society, the King Arts Complex, the Worthington Resource Pantry, poet Jennifer Hambrick, sculptor Omar Shaheed, and visual ethnographer Tariq Tarey—highlighting Clark’s commitment to inclusive programming and interdisciplinary collaboration that reflects the cultural richness of the communities he serves.
Mr. Clark most recently served as Associate Conductor of the Wheeling Symphony Orchestra (2023–2024), following two seasons as Assistant Conductor. His upcoming and recent guest conducting engagements include the Long Bay Symphony (2026), Toledo Symphony Orchestra (2025), Juneteenth Festival Orchestra at UCLA (2024), Gateways Music Festival on a two-city New York tour, Walla Walla Symphony, South Carolina Philharmonic, Lima Symphony Orchestra, New Jersey Symphony, Symphony Tacoma, Spartanburg Philharmonic, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Elgin Symphony Orchestra, Dayton Philharmonic, Opera Columbus, and the Vermont Symphony Orchestra. In addition to his guest appearances, he has served as a cover conductor for the Lancaster Festival Orchestra, Dayton Philharmonic, and New Jersey Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Xian Zhang. His work has garnered critical acclaim, including recognition from the Chicago Tribune for his “balletic poise” during the premiere of Joel Thompson’s breathe/burn: an elegy with the Chicago Sinfonietta. His previous positions include Assistant Conductor of the Chicago Sinfonietta and the Gateways Music Festival Orchestra, Music Director of the Ohio Wesleyan University Chamber Orchestra and Ohio Northern University Symphony, and Assistant Conductor of The Ohio State University Symphony Orchestra.
A dedicated educator, Mr. Clark currently serves as conductor of the Cincinnati Symphony Youth Orchestra – Concert Orchestra and sits on the Columbus Symphony Orchestra’s Education Committee. In 2024, he founded the Music Academy of Worthington, a community-centered music school offering high-quality instruction to students of all ages and levels. He previously served as Music Director of the Philharmonia Orchestra of the Northern Ohio Youth Orchestra, leading the ensemble in a featured performance at the 2025 Ohio Music Education Association Conference. His educational work spans from young beginners to college-level music majors, and he continues to lead initiatives that support inclusive, community-centered engagement with classical music.
A frequent speaker on equity and access in the arts, Mr. Clark has participated in professional development events and panels hosted by the International Conductors Guild, Chicago Sinfonietta, and the Youth Orchestras Online DEI panel—a 2021 collaboration between the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Atlanta Symphony, and Columbus Symphony Youth Orchestras. He has also contributed to the Washington Musical Pathways Initiative’s “Careers in Music” panel and served as a clinician and mentor through the Columbus Symphony Youth Orchestra’s Workshop Academy. Through these and other initiatives, he works to promote inclusive practices, elevate underrepresented voices, and foster a more welcoming environment across the classical music field.
A strong advocate for new music, Mr. Clark regularly commissions and premieres works for symphonic and chamber ensembles. In the 2025–2026 season, he will lead the world premieres of a new violin concerto by Aaron Quinn; Old Worthington Suite: Life in a Pioneer Village by Marshall H. Barnes, originally a chamber work newly orchestrated by Jacob Reed; and a concerto for string quartet and orchestra by Ben Shirley. In the previous season, he conducted premieres by Korine Fujiwara and Evan Williams, and has collaborated with composers including Mark Lomax II, Michael Rene Torres, Matthew Saunders, Christopher Weait, Linda Kernohan, Ching-chu Hu, and Vera Stanojević.
Mr. Clark has participated in numerous prestigious conducting programs and festivals, including the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music, Monteux School and Music Festival, Baltimore Chamber Orchestra Conducting Workshop, and the International Conducting Workshop and Competition. He is a former Project Inclusion Conducting Freeman Fellow with the Chicago Sinfonietta and has studied in masterclasses and workshops with distinguished conductors across the country.
His artistry has been recognized through numerous national and regional honors. In 2025, Mr. Clark was awarded First Prize in Orchestral Conducting and Third Prize in Programming in The American Prize (Professional Division). He was also named a finalist in two additional categories: American Music Performance and Orchestral Performance. In 2024, he earned Third Prize at the Los Angeles Conducting Workshop and Competition and received the Columbus Symphony Music Educator Award. That same year, he was selected as a recipient of the Greater Columbus Arts Council’s Arts Elevated Award, honoring outstanding artistic contributions to Central Ohio. Previously, he was named the 2022 MAC Music Innovator by the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, leading education and outreach performances throughout the community.
CARPE DIEM STRING QUARTET
One of the most unique and sought-after ensembles on the concert stage today, the Carpe Diem String Quartet is a boundary-breaking ensemble that has earned widespread critical acclaim for its performances of traditional repertoire, new music, genre-bending collaborations, and community engagement. The Quartet appears regularly on traditional concert series stages like Carnegie Hall in New York City, Jordan Hall in Boston, The National Gallery of Art in Washington DC, The Accademia Chigiana in Siena, Suntory Hall in Tokyo, National Library Concert Hall in Beijing, and The BinHai Performing Arts Center in Tianjin, as well as in unconventional venues like Poisson Rouge in NYC, the Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society of Half-Moon Bay, CA, and the Mug & Brush in Columbus, OH.
Carpe Diem defies classification with programming and collaborations that encompass and blend new and old classical, tango, folk, pop, rock, jazz, and multicultural music. The Quartet has contributed to and premiered works by composers from a variety of backgrounds and traditions, including Korine Fujiwara, Jonathan Leshnoff, Reza Vali, and Erberk Eryilmaz. Carpe Diem has also appeared in concert playing original charts by folk icons Jeff Midkiff and Jayme Stone and rock singer-songwriter Willy Porter.
Devoted to expanding the reach and impact of community engagement, Carpe Diem has been awarded six transformative outreach grants from the PNC Foundation ArtsAlive Awards. The Quartet’s outreach performances incorporate diverse and eclectic repertoire tailored to specific audience demographics; use cameras, video, and artistic contributions to enrich presentations visually; rely on communication from the stage to introduce music and engage the audience; and explore fun, imaginative, and thought provoking themes to connect audiences to chamber music. These carefully crafted performances have allowed the Quartet to reach underserved audiences including The Apache Nation, Ohio Women’s Reformatory residents, and families at the Columbus Museum of Art.
Sam Weiser, violin, formerly a member of the award-winning Del Sol Quartet, is a lifelong chamber musician and advocate of contemporary music. Sam has performed all over the country, from the Herbst Theater and the Kennedy Center to a raft floating along the Yampa River. He has premiered over 150 new works by composers such as Vijay Iyer, Huang Ruo, and Chen Yi. Sam is the violinist in sfSound, a member of One Found Sound, and the Assistant Concertmaster of the California Symphony. He studied with Ian Swensen, Lucy Chapman, James Buswell, and Patinka Kopec. He holds bachelors’ degrees from Tufts University (computer science) and the New England Conservatory (violin), as well as a master’s degree from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music (chamber music).
Dr. Marisa Ishikawa is a performer, entrepreneur, and educator located in Houston, TX. She serves as the second violinist of the internationally recognized Carpe Diem String Quartet. She has performed nationally in venues such as Carnegie Hall, The Kennedy Center, and Jordan Hall, and internationally in Italy, Switzerland, and China. With degrees in both music and business administration, she co-founded the nonprofit chamber music organization Austin Camerata. Since 2016, Austin Camerata has been dedicated to broadening the audience for chamber music through creative artistic collaborations, performing in unique venues, and inclusive concert experiences. She is also the co-founder of Opus 1 Chamber Music School, Houston’s chamber music program for pre-collage and adult students. Dr. Ishikawa holds music and business administration degrees from the University of Colorado Boulder and University of Texas Austin. In her free time, Dr. Ishikawa enjoys yoga and cooking her favorite recipes from NYT Cooking.
Korine Fujiwara is professor of violin, viola, and composition at Pacific Lutheran University. She served for many years on the music faculty of Ohio Wesleyan University and is in great demand for master classes and clinics throughout the United States. She is a founding member of the Carpe Diem String Quartet, a devoted and sought-after chamber musician and teacher, and a gifted composer and arranger.
Named as one of Strings Magazine’s “25 Contemporary Composers to Watch,” Korine has received multiple commissions including works for opera, chamber ensembles, chorus, concerti, and music for modern dance. Her works have been performed throughout the United States, Canada, Great Britain, Italy, The Netherlands, Switzerland, Spain, Australia, China, and Japan.
Critics have remarked of Ms. Fujiwara’s music, “The ear is forever tickled by beautifully judged music that manages to be sophisticated and accessible at the same time” (Fanfare Magazine); “She knows how to exploit all the resources of string instruments alone and together” (Strings Magazine). “Fujiwara beautifully meets the challenge of weaving together different emotions across generations that make sense musically while delighting the ear.” (WOSU Classical 101 by Request) “Fujiwara’s music is rich and beguiling throughout.” (The Columbus Dispatch) “Artfully layered and knitted together” (The Wall Street Journal).
Korine is a recipient of an Opera America Commissioning Grant from the Opera Grants for Female Composers program, made possible through the generosity of The Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation, for her award-winning composition “The Flood,” with Stephen Wadsworth, librettist, premiered in full production by Opera Columbus and ProMusica Chamber Orchestra in February 2019.
Ms. Fujiwara holds degrees from The Juilliard School and Northwestern University and began her orchestral career with the Brooklyn Philharmonic and the ProMusica Chamber Orchestra of Columbus. She was also a member of the Columbus Symphony Orchestra, where she held the position of Acting Assistant Principal Second Violin.
Korine performs on a 1790 Contreras violin, 2004 Kurt Widenhouse viola, and bows by three of today’s finest makers, Paul Martin Siefried, Ole Kanestrom and Charles Espey, all of Port Townsend, WA, USA. Outside of her musical endeavors, she enjoys chocolate, ramen, and geocaching.
Ariana Nelson, cellist, is primarily based in Houston where she was a member of the Houston Grand Opera Orchestra. She frequently performs with other ensembles in the Houston area, including the Houston Symphony, Houston Ballet, and is a core member of the new music collective Loop38. She is an avid proponent of new music and loves experimenting with different styles, including improvisation and folk music. Her eclectic tastes have led her to appearances at Jazz at Lincoln Center, performances for patients recovering in Mount Sinai Hospital’s transplant ward, and a performance with Yo-Yo Ma’s Silk Road Ensemble at Tanglewood.
In recent summers Ariana has performed at Grand Teton Music Festival, Strings Music Festival, Fontainebleau Conservatoire Américain, Spoleto Festival USA, Tanglewood Music Center, Aspen Music Festival and School, Le Domaine Forget Chamber Music Festival, the Olympic Music Festival and the Zephyr International Chamber Music Festival in Italy.
A graduate of the Juilliard School and Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, Ariana is an adjunct faculty member at Texas Southern University, maintains a private cello studio, and is a coach for AFA’s Chamber Music Academy. She is originally from Seattle, Washington, and when not making music enjoys hiking, yoga, and podcasting.
FACULTY CLINICIAN, BASS
Todd Gowers has performed, toured, and recorded with the Seattle Symphony as a substitute bassist since 1991. He has been principal bassist with the Bolshoi Ballet, Luciano Pavarotti, The Moody Blues, Yes, Tacoma Symphony and Opera, Fifth Avenue Theater, and Paramount Theater. He has performed with Seattle Opera, Pacific Northwest Ballet, Northwest Sinfonietta, Northwest Chamber Orchestra, and Anchorage Symphony.
In the summer of 1990 Todd was chosen by audition to be one of 50 American musicians to perform with 50 Soviet musicians in the American/ Soviet Youth Orchestra. The Orchestra, conducted by Leonard Slatkin, toured and recorded in the former Soviet Union, Europe, and the United States as part of the cultural exchange ushered in by Glasnost.
As a recording bassist, he has performed on film soundtracks, commercials and with artists including Dave Matthews and Evanescence since 1992. He also plays jazz, performing with the Island Jazz Quintet and the Hammon/Esvelt Quintet.
He worked with composer Phillip Glass for the opera “In The Penal Colony” in 2000-2001. Featuring music by Glass, the opera, based on a short story by Franz Kafka, was performed in Seattle, Chicago, and New York City.
Mr. Gowers has been teaching the bass privately since 1986. He is a former bass coach for the Seattle, Cascade, and Tacoma Youth Symphonies, and taught orchestra in the Edmonds and Northshore School Districts’ elementary and middle schools. Todd has been coaching for the Endangered Instrument Program for Seattle and Shoreline school districts since the program’s inception in 1988. He is also a frequent adjudicator at State and Regional Solo Contests.
Mr. Gowers is Adjunct Professor of Double Bass at Seattle Pacific University, where he has taught since 1998. Every June at SPU he organizes one of the largest bass camps in America, the Hammond Ashley Memorial Double Bass Workshop.
Nominations:
High school directors or youth symphony directors, please use the link provided below to nominate and recommend your outstanding students to participate in the PLU Honor Orchestra for Strings. There is a participant fee of $140 for each student participating in the Honor Orchestra.
- The window for Nomination Forms will open on September 5, 2025 at 8:00 am.
- Nomination deadline: November 14, 2025, 11:59 pm
Notification of Results:
We are delayed in making final selections for the festival. High school directors will receive notifications of selected students accepted by December 5, 2025. The payment deadline will be extended to Wednesday, December 17, 2025.
Registration:
Honor Orchestra Registration will be made available following the designated nomination period.
Once nominations have been reviewed, participants will be notified of acceptance via email and provided access to the online Registration form. Once received, please complete registration and payment using the link provided by the deadline. Each student must register on their own even if the payment is going through the school.
- Participant fee: $140 (non-refundable)
- Payment Deadline: December 17, 2025, 11:59 pm
Please note that no refunds will be allowed after registration has been completed, and no registration or payment will be accepted following the deadline of December 17, 2025.
Performance Attire:
For the final performance, students should plan on wearing standard black concert attire that they would normally wear for school performances. Aside from the concerts, casual dress is appropriate.
Music and Audition Material:
Seating will be determined by auditions just before the first rehearsal. The audition material will be chosen from the repertoire for the orchestra. The passages have been bracketed in each part. It is important that everyone have all of the parts prepared in their entirety. A list of the program, as well as parts, will be added soon.
Program:
- Asturias by Isaac Albéniz
- Novelletten by S. Coleridge-Taylor
- Russlan and Ludmilla by Mikhail Glinka
- Erotik by Edvard Grieg
- Andante Commodamente by Vasily Kalinnikov
- Blue-Fire Fiddler by Soon Hee Newbold
PLU HO Seating Audition Excerpts:
Violin I:
- Albéniz: “Asturias” 41 (E) to 49 (4 before G)
- Coleridge-Taylor: “Noveletten” Mvt II, measures 72-95
- Coleridge-Taylor: “Noveletten” Mvt IV, measures 21-56; 91-106; 233-260
- Glinka: “Russlan and Ludmilla” measures 1 to 58
- Newbold: “Blue-Fire Fiddler” measures 61 to end
Violin II:
- Albéniz: “Asturias” E to H; L to O
- Coleridge-Taylor: “Noveletten” Mvt II, measures 14 – 40
- Coleridge-Taylor: “Noveletten” Mvt IV, measures 21- 52; 91-106; 173-193
- Glinka: “Russlan and Ludmilla” measures 1-46
- Newbold: “Blue-Fire Fiddler” measures 53 to the end
Viola:
- Albéniz: “Asturias” K to P; B to H
- Glinka: “Russlan and Ludmilla” measures 1-46
- Grieg: “Erotik” measures 14 to 22
- Coleridge-Taylor: “Noveletten” Mvt II, measures 19-30; 61-80; 101-116
- Coleridge-Taylor: “Noveletten” Mvt IV, measures 1-17; 61-106
- Newbold: “Blue-Fire Fiddler” measures 37 to 45; 57 to the end
Cello:
- Albéniz: “Asturias” K to N
- Newbold: “Blue-Fire Fiddler” measures 37-40
- Grieg: “Erotik” measures. 14 – 24
- Coleridge-Taylor: “Novelletten” Mvt II, measures 41- 55
- Glinka: “Russlan and Ludmilla” measures 1-19; 16-89
Schedule:
A detailed schedule will be available soon.
The two-day event culminates in a public performance in the Lagerquist Concert Hall in the Mary Baker Russell Music Center. A link to the live stream performance will be shared with participants. Admission is free and no tickets are required.
More Information:
Performance
PLU Honor Orchestra for Strings
January 18, 2026 at 6:00 pm
Lagerquist Concert Hall
Mary Baker Russell Music Center
Featuring: Carpe Diem String Quartet and Todd Gowers (Bass), Guest Artists
For Questions:
Svend Ronning, Professor of Music, Coordinator of String Studies
School of Music, Theatre & Dance; Pacific Lutheran University
(253) 535-7605 e-mail: svend.ronning@plu.edu
Abby Deskins, Coordinator of Educational Outreach Programs
College of Professional Studies; Pacific Lutheran University
(253) 535-7877 e-mail: adeskins@plu.edu
Korine Fujiwara, Lecturer, Violin and Viola
School of Music, Theatre & Dance; Pacific Lutheran University
(253) 535-7602 e-mail: korine.fujiwara@plu.edu
School of Music, Theatre & Dance
Mary Baker Russell Music Center
(253) 535-7602 e-mail: music@plu.edu
Music at PLU Additional Information:
School of Music, Theatre & Dance
Music participation and study is open to all students at PLU, regardless of major.
String Studies
String majors and non-majors alike have access to a rich culture of opportunities.
PLU Orchestras
The Orchestras at PLU have long been an important centerpiece of a stunningly rich musical calendar.
2026-27 Scholarship Auditions
Application deadline: February 12, 2026
Social Media