Studio Sessions is a performance series designed to showcase NEC students' musicality in an intimate setting that amplifies their unique artistic style and individuality. Students from all musical disciplines and backgrounds bring their personalities into the studio, from the pieces they choose to perform to the objects they display on our set, a customizable backdrop designed in collaboration with Massachusetts College of Art and Design.
As a member of the NEC community, the studio is open to you! No matter your program of study, the opportunity to share your music with the world in a future episode of Studio Sessions is within your reach.
Stellan Bettany
Composition student Stellan Bettany ’25 joins us in the studio for a composer-led episode of NEC Studio Sessions! Here, he conducts NEC students Darwin Chang ’25, Caroline Smoak ’25, Sarah Campbell ’25, and Jonathan Fuller ’26 in a performance of his original piece, “Hungarian.”
NEC Ceol (Irish Music) Ensemble
The newest episode of NEC Studio Sessions features NEC's Irish Music Ensemble, led by renowned Irish fiddler and faculty member Liz Knowles. The ensemble comprises banjoist Roman Barten-Sherman ’26, guitarist G Korth Rockwell ’24, violinists Bella Navaro ’27 and Michele Zimmerman ’24 GD, violin/violists Jacqui Armbruster ’24 GD and Maureen Sheehan ’25 GD, and vocalist Serena Bixby ’24.
moon.unit
The new episode of NEC Studio Sessions showcases original music from moon.unit, NEC’s talented Jazz Honors Ensemble comprising trumpeter Koki Renwick ’26, pianist/bassist/rapper Jake Walters ’25, and drummer Dom Vance ’24.
Josie Larsen, Hyungjin Son, and Sujin Choi
In honor of Valentine's Day, we are excited to share a special opera edition of NEC Studio Sessions! Watch soprano Josie Larsen ’23 MM, ’25 AD, baritone Hyungjin Son ’24 MM, and pianist Sujin Choi ’23 GD, ’24 GC perform Puccini, Frank Bridge, and Mozart in today's romance-themed episode. Fun fact: Hyungjin and Sujin are married and met at a music rehearsal in South Korea.
Alex Romanov
Classical guitarist Alex Romanov ’21, ’23 GD joins us in the studio for a new episode of NEC Studio Sessions! Alex performs classical pieces from Agustin Barrios, Antonio Lauro, and Juaquin Rodrigo before switching things up with an original electronic piece called "Down Under (Barrios)" featuring baritone Nicholas Ottersberg-Enriquez ’24. Alex recently earned his Bachelor’s and Master of Music at NEC, studying with faculty members Jérôme Mouffe and Eliot Fisk.
Trio Gaia
The first NEC Studio Sessions episode of 2024 features the talented Trio Gaia, NEC’s Piano Trio in Residence, comprising pianist Andrew Barnell ’20, ’23 MM, ’24 GD, cellist Yi-Mei Templeman ’22, ’23 GD, ’24 MM, and violinist Grant Houston ’20, ’23 MM, ’24 GD. The trio performs compositions from Haydn and Schumann and an original piece by Yi-Mei titled “Hey, you.”
Matthew Shifrin
Matthew Shifrin ’21, ’23 MM is a musician, entrepreneur, and podcaster passionate about providing accessible entertainment to blind audiences. Matthew is the founder of LEGO for the Blind, an online collection of building instructions to help blind people build LEGO structures. He is also the host of the podcast "Blind Guy Travels," and his one-person show in Yiddish and English, "My Grandma's Mind is Like an Ocean," premiered this spring. Between all of this, Matthew found time to join us in the studio for Episode 4 of NEC Studio Sessions, where he performed selections from his one-person show.
Joshua Brown
Between his studies and performances, we were lucky to have the prodigiously talented and exceptionally kind Joshua Brown ’22, ’24 MM join us in the studio for Episode 3 of NEC Studio Sessions, performing Bach and Ysaÿe. Joshua has performed with dozens of orchestras in the United States and abroad in concert halls worldwide, continually garnering praise from critics. He has won numerous prestigious awards, including being the top prize winner at the Tenth International Violin Competition of Leopold Mozart and a prize winner of the 11th Quadrennial International Violin Competition of Indianapolis. At NEC, Joshua earned his Bachelor of Music in 2022 and is now pursuing his Master of Music with studio teacher Donald Weilerstein.
Delfina Cheb
“My songs are my way of meditating, reflecting, and pouring out everything that I have learned here and in life so far," says Argentinian singer-songwriter and Contemporary Musical Arts doctoral student Delfina Cheb '21 MM, '24 DM, who joined us in the studio for Episode 2 of NEC Studio Sessions.
Jonathan Paik Trio
The inaugural episode of NEC Studio Sessions featured pianist Jonathan Paik '23, bassist Will Mabuza '23, and drummer Noah Mark '25, a jazz trio who brought us compositions from Andrew Hill and Lowell Davidson, along with an original piece. Keep an eye out for the objects they used to decorate!