LIN, Sheng-Hsin 
Music Educator/Clarinetist/Arranger  音樂教育者/單簧管演奏者/編曲者

「滿滿樂集」多元文化樂團

「滿滿樂集」多元文化樂團於2014年由來自台灣的林聖馨博士創立。林聖馨分別於印第安納大學布魯明頓校區 (Indiana University-Bloomington) 以及北德州大學(University of North Texas) 取得音樂碩士以及單簧管演奏博士學位。在學期間，聖馨結識了來自世界各地、以及不同背景的傑出音樂家：包括古典音樂、爵士樂、世界音樂、以及民族音樂學的演奏家以及學者。參與過此樂團的音樂家包括台灣、中國、韓國、泰國、日本、巴西、哥倫比亞、委內瑞拉以及美國傑出的樂手，尤其北德州大學音樂人才濟濟，擁有全美知名的古典演奏系、爵士音樂系以及民族音樂系，參與過的本計畫的團員有國際知名的獨奏家、UNT知名的One O' Clock Lab Band團員、以及傅爾布萊特獎學金 (Fulbright Scholar)得主。

「滿滿樂集」的演出曾獲Mu Phi Epsilon / Dallas Sunday Concert Series主席Susan Poelchau讚譽「....一群擁有卓越天份的音樂家，使用他們多元文化的脈絡，編織成一張富麗的音樂織錦，給予了觀眾十足的幸福感」 (“…a group of exceptionally talented musicians who have woven their various cultural threads into a rich musical tapestry, to the delight of their listeners…”）」，這個企劃也曾獲選進入Sherman/Barsenti 創新啟發獎 (Sherman/Barsenti Inspiration Award) 半決賽。「滿滿樂集」的曲風多元，並以全新編曲以及創作曲呈現來自每個音樂家家鄉的音樂，每位音樂家會於樂曲前解說介紹自己文化的音樂，讓觀眾能夠透過第一手資料深度理解該國的文化。

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「滿滿樂集」相信音樂是世界共同的語言，透過一起創作音樂的過程，樂團能夠為世界創作全新的聲音、並且打破國與國之間的藩籬和疆界。音樂的力量已被全人類所知，它是一個能夠跨越文化的橋樑，這也是「滿滿樂集」一直堅信的初衷。

滿滿樂集網站（英文）：https://menagerieproject.wixsite.com/menagerie

 

Menagerie Multicultural Ensemble
 

The Menagerie Multicultural Ensemble was founded in March 2014 on the principles of friendship and musicianship among differing countries, cultures, and languages. The ensemble aims to seek new possibilities in unorthodox performance formats and has benefited from the resources of one of the largest comprehensive music schools in the world, the University of North Texas. Musicians in the ensemble represent their home countries including Brazil, Thailand, Taiwan, China, Colombia, and the United States. They also encompass varying musicians such as classical performance, jazz, and ethnomusicology. The instrumentation is non-traditional and flexible with the incorporation of the clarinet, pipa, flute, a jazz rhythm section, and world percussion. The mission of Menagerie is to explore multicultural music making in an increasingly diverse world.

 

Collectively, Menagerie believes that music is the universal language of the world and can bring people together in common expression. Through the process of creating music together, the ensemble is able to create an innovative sound for the world to unlock the barriers of varying nations, histories, and beliefs. The power of music has been known to humanity at all points in time and to all peoples. It is the human language that bridges generations and is the originality of the ensemble.

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Musicians

 

Clarinet / Sheng-hsin Lin

 

Born in Tainan, Taiwan, Sheng-hsin Lin earned her Doctor of Musical Arts in Clarinet Performance from the University of North Texas (UNT) under the tutelage of Professor John Scott and held a Teaching Fellow position from 2010 to 2013. She has served as the assistant principal clarinet of both the Tainan and Chi-Mei Symphony Orchestras in Taiwan. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from National Kaohsiung Normal University in Taiwan and a Master of Music in clarinet performance from Indiana University at Bloomington where she studied with James Campbell. From 2010 to 2013, she was a Teaching Fellow at the UNT College of Music.

Ms. Lin is an active performer and participates in various ensembles and performances. Some of her appearances include a clarinet and guitar duo recital at La Casa de la Cultura Azcapotzalco, a lecture recital presenting Taiwanese folk music at El Colegio Azcapotzalco in Mexico City, and Trio Indiana Concert (IU Faculty Chamber Concert/Bernard Portnoy Memorial Concert). In addition to traditional clarinet repertoire, Ms. Lin enjoys contemporary works and has premiered many Taiwanese compositions. Important performances include Dr. Sansan Chien’s Dolly's Family for solo clarinet at the International Conference on Musical Arts and Pedagogy, Dr. Chien’s Overture to Medusa as the clarinet soloist with the NKNU Music Department Orchestra, and Tsen-Ling Lin’s The Memory of Clarinet, Interactive Music for Clarinet and Computer. At UNT, she has performed with the Center for Chamber Music’s Graduate Woodwind Quintet, the Symphony Orchestra, the Wind Ensemble, NOVA (New Music Ensemble), and has participated in CEMI (Center for Experimental Music & Intermedia) Concerts.

 

She was awarded the first place at the Taiwan Arts Cup Competition, a winner of the Concerto Competition at the NKNU Music Department for her performance of Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto, and the Tainan Young Musician Competition. Other accolades include the Music Merit Award, the Earl O. Bates Scholarship, and the Dean’s Scholarship from Indiana University at Bloomington. She also won the George and Sandy Papich Chamber Music Scholarship, the Marceau C. Myers Memorial Scholarship, and the Woodwind/Percussion Scholarship from UNT. She is also the semi-finalist of Sherman/Barsenti Inspiration Award and the winner of Toulouse Graduate School Travel Grant from UNT in 2015.

 

Dr. Lin has participated in a series of recording projects and has performed at the national conferences of symphonic bands and ensembles such as WASBE (World Association for Symphonic Bands and Ensembles) and CBDNA (College Band Directors National Association) under the baton of Eugene Corporon with the UNT Wind Symphony. Lin seeks to use her clarinet as a method to build friendships between people from different cultures and origins.

 

Pipa / Yuxin Mei
 

Yuxin Mei, a Pipa performer, is a current graduate student of Ethnomusicology in UNT. Ms. Mei completed a bachelor and a master degree of Pipa Performance and Education in China Conservatory of Music, Bei Jing, and Xing Hai Conservatory of Music, Guang Zhou, in China. From 2006-2012, she was a faculty member teaching in Xing Hai Conservatory of Music. Before that, she was an Artistic Director and Soloist of Chinese Music Chamber Orchestra, Zhu Hai.

 

Ms. Mei started her career as a professional musician when she became the soloist of Chinese Music Chamber Orchestra, Zhu Hai. From 1997 to 2012, Mei performed the concerts in China, Portugal, Singapore, France, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Macau and other countries and regions. She taught the master classes in Macau Art School and Chong Hong Chinese Music Association, Macau. As a Chinese Culture Promotion Ambassador, Mei performed concert tours in Norway, 2012, 2013 and 2014.

 

Flute / Daniel Pardo
 

After 10 years of service as a US military musician, Daniel Pardo completed studies in classical performance (B.M. at Texas State University and M.M. at the University of North Texas), and also a Master Certificate in Music Production from the Berklee College of Music. Representing Texas State University, he toured Italy, performed at the White House, was awarded Outstanding Soloist at the North Texas Jazz Festival, and presented at the International Society for Improvised Music held in CalArts 2009. In the same year, Daniel presented an educational clinic at the Texas Music Educators Association convention. Now working on a DMA at the University of North Texas, Daniel continues to explore the sounds and possibilities of native flutes from different cultures.  This process started with South American quenas and zampoñas but has continued with the immersion into Chinese dizi and xiao, Japanese shakuhashi, Irish whistles, Persian nei, Romanian chromatic pan flute, "Keita" (a new Colombian hybrid between gaita de San Jacinto and quena) and the EWI (Electronic Wind Instrument). As a result of this process, Daniel has released his debut album Joy to the Other World and leads the world-music group From a Land Far Away.  In 2012 and 2013, Daniel appeared as soloist with members of the Fort Worth Symphony and East Dallas Christian Church's Chancel Choir featuring his arrangements of Christmas carols under the direction of Keith Critcher. Daniel is also a member of Steve Wiest's Eclectric Band and is co-producer for the Concerto for Folded Space where members of the legendary rock group Chicago and saxophonist Bob Mintzer (Yellowjackets) are featured.

 

Guitar / Marcelo Melo

Marcelo Melo is a guitarist and composer from Brazil. He began his jazz guitar studies at Musicians Institute – GIT, California. Since then, he has played and recorded with many Brazilian musicians. Marcelo is currently attending the Jazz Studies Program at the University of North Texas. Since coming to UNT in Fall 2013 he has played with the Super 400 and the L-5 Jazz Guitar Ensembles. He currently performs with the Six O’Clock Lab Band.

 

Piano / Sopon “Jokobo” Suwannakit
 

A current student from the University of North Texas, Sopon “Jokobo” Suwannakit is pursuing Master of Music in Jazz Studies at the College of Music with merit-based jazz scholarship. He studies jazz piano with Prof. Stefan Karlsson and classical piano with Assoc. Prof. Gustavo Romero. Sopon received his Bachelor of Music in Jazz Studies with secondary emphasis in Classical Performance and Composition (1st class honors) from the Conservatory of Music, Rangsit University from Thailand, in 2013. He primarily studied jazz piano with Asst. Prof. Dr. Denny Euprasert; classical piano with Aree Kunapongkul; and music composition with Boonrut Sirirattanapan. Sopon performed Mendelssohn Piano Concerto No.1 and Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No.2, as a soloist, with Rangsit University Symphony Orchestra in 2010 and 2012 respectively and performed under the baton of Maria Schneider with Rangsit University Jazz Orchestra in September 2010. In early 2012, he performed the world’s premier performance of Gandis (a Thai composer) Piano Concerto with Royal Thai Navy Orchestra. For years, Sopon participated in many music festivals. His classical contemporary work "Conjugation" for viola and piano was performed in Thailand International Composition Festival 2012 and his large jazz ensemble piece "Schrödinger" was performed in Shanghai Jazz Education Festival 2012, Thailand International Jazz Conference 2013 and RSU Jazz Orchestra Monday Night Live 2013. His arrangements for double quartet, the combination between jazz quartet and string quartet, were performed in Thailand International Jazz Conference 2012. His combo had opportunities to perform in various international jazz festivals, e.g., the 5th JEN Conference (USA) and the Celebration of Jazz 2013 (Malaysia); and also local jazz festivals, e.g., Hua Hin Jazz Festival, Thailand International Jazz Conference, Bangkok City of Jazz, Sawasdee Jazz Festival.

Jokobo's personal website: http://jokobomusic.com/Jokobo/Home.html

Percussion/Nicholas Rothouse
 

Nicholas Rothouse was born and raised in DFW, Texas and now lives in Denton, Texas where he studies music at The University of North Texas. While at UNT, he has performed in various regards with premiere ensembles including the North Texas Symphonic Band, UNT Percussion Ensemble, 2:00 Steel Band, Afro-Cuban Ensemble, Brazilian Ensemble, the award-winning Green Brigade Marching Band, and the UNT Latin Jazz. He has studied privately with Christopher Deane, Mark Ford, Dave Hall, Jose Aponte, among others. As an educator, he is currently the front ensemble director at Hebron High School in Carrollton, TX and maintains an active private teaching studio in the LISD area.

 

Upright/Electric Bass/Christopher Wright
 

Christopher Wright began playing bass at age 15, and played in both the All Region and All State jazz ensembles in his home state of North Carolina. He later received a bachelor's of music at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is currently working to complete a Masters degree at the University of North Texas in jazz bass performance. He currently performs with the Three O’Clock Lab Band and several groups based within Denton.