Artistic Directors

  • Beth Ross Buckley is the Flutist, Founder, and Artistic Director of Camarada. For 29 years, Ms. Ross Buckley has produced groundbreaking chamber music events throughout San Diego, combining great music, cuisine, and art. Since Camarada’s inception, she has expanded the scope of the organization to include performances at diverse venues throughout greater San Diego, new commissions for concert repertoire, and an exciting roster of performing artists.

    Ms. Ross Buckley received her Bachelor of Music in Flute Performance from St. Olaf College and her Master of Music from the University of Minnesota. While she enjoys all genres of music, tango music is her passion. Ms. Ross Buckley boasts an extensive performance resume that includes a twenty-five-year tenure as principal flute of the former San Diego Chamber Orchestra/Orchestra Nova and engagements with a variety of musical theatre companies throughout Northern and Southern California. Ms. Ross Buckley also runs a portrait photography business, Beth Ross Buckley Photography.

  • Dana Burnett is currently the Associate Artistic Director of Camarada and has directed and performed with Camarada for over a decade. She has been on the faculties of the University of North Carolina, University of Wisconsin, and Vanderbilt University. Ms. Burnett was awarded the Alban Berg Fellowship at the Schubert Institute-Austria and received an Artist Diploma and accompanying prize from that institution. She has a Bachelor of Music from San Diego State University, a Master of Science in Piano Performance and Pedagogy from Vanderbilt University, and has completed post-graduate work at Indiana University with Michel Block and John Ogdon. A soloist and chamber musician, Ms. Burnett has performed at Carnegie Hall, New York City; the Frick Collection, Pittsburgh; Dame Myra Hess Series, Chicago; Academy of Music, Philadelphia; and the Kennedy Center, Washington D.C. Dana has been fortunate to have collaborated with Leonard Rose, Hilary Hahn, Nathaniel Rosen, Martin Chalifour, Benita Valente, Paula Robison, and many more musicians in her chamber music career. She has premiered chamber works including those by Jean-Michel Damase, Richard Wernick, Judith Zaimont, Gunther Schuller, and the last chamber work of Stephen Albert. She was also a yearly concerto soloist during her eighteen-year tenure as a member of the piano faculty at the Eastern Music Festival in Greensboro, North Carolina. Other festivals include Hidden Valley Seminars Flute Camp, Virginia Arts Festival, and the Skaneateles Music Festival. She has recorded for the Naxos and Arabesque labels and has been featured on WHYY, Philadelphia's “Fresh Air,” and NPR. Dana performs with California Chamber Orchestra and Classics 4 Kids and was the symphony pianist with the North Carolina and Virginia Symphonies. Ms. Burnett is on the music faculty at Cal State San Marcos and an active member of North San Diego MTAC, with a private piano studio in Carlsbad.

Season 29 Artists

  • Given 4 stars by Downbeat Magazine, multi-lingual vocalist, composer, and educator Allison Adams Tucker began singing before she could speak, and has performed many genres, from acappella and punk to folk and jingles. In 2005, she fell in love with jazz, and went on to release four critically acclaimed albums as well as three EPs: Come With Me (2008), nominated for Best Jazz Album 2009 by the San Diego Music Awards; April in Paris (2014), recorded in Paris on UNESCO's 1st Annual International Jazz Day; Wanderlust (2016), recorded in New York under GRAMMY-winning producer Matt Pierson, featuring an all-star band; and RETRO Trilogy (2023), again recorded with NYC producer Matt Pierson and another band made up of heavy hitters. RETRO Trilogy was rolled out as three EPs - 1977, 1988, and 1999 - before being released as one album. Ms. Adams Tucker’s voice can be heard in commercials and on The Saboteur video game soundtrack in the company of Nina Simone, Ella Fitzgerald, Madeleine Peyroux, and others. She has entertained audiences in Japan, Europe, Mexico, and the United States, including performances at the Blue Note New York, Ronnie Scott's London, Herb Alpert’s Vibrato Los Angeles, San Jose Jazz Fest, East Hawaii Jazz & Blues Fest, Lucca Jazz Donna Festival Tuscany, and Takatsuki Jazz Street Festival Osaka, among others.

  • Fred Benedetti is a Professor of Music Emeritus at Grossmont College, where he was Chair of Guitar Studies for thirty-eight years. He is currently a member of the guitar faculty at San Diego State University and is a 2023 Inductee for the San Diego Music Hall of Fame. Mr. Benedetti has performed throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, England, Germany, the Czech Republic, Japan, and Taiwan. In 1986, he was one of twelve performers chosen worldwide to perform in the prestigious Andrés Segovia Master class. As a BMI-affiliated composer, Mr. Benedetti has written numerous contemporary pieces for the international CD library company Network Productions, and his forty years of work as a studio musician and composer has resulted in 150 digital and vinyl recordings, along with numerous radio recordings, television programs, and feature films. Mr. Benedetti has shared the stage with Dave Brubeck and Luciano Pavarotti, and has performed for dignitaries such as the King and Queen of Malaysia, Mikhail Gorbachev, and Ravi Shankar.

  • Andrés Bravo is a talented dancer, instructor, and choreographer who began dancing Argentine Tango at age eleven. He has studied with world-renowned Tango Masters such as Miguel Ángel Zotto, Martín Ojeda, Roberto Herrera, Julio Balmaceda, and Gabriel Misse. In 1999, his performance career launched when he became a part of the Tango Festival Colombo Argentina in a tour throughout Colombia, produced by impresario Walter Davis. In 2000, following the end of his tour, he spent two years as a member of the Tango company Una cita con el Tango, directed by Alexander Giraldo in the city of Pereira, Colombia. In 2002 he joined the cast of Argentine Tango Show, touring the United Emirates and performing for six consecutive months at the prestigious Jumeirah Beach Hotel in Dubai. Throughout the years, Mr. Bravo has been seen in several well-recognized World Tango Competitions and Festivals. In 2006 he was the National Stage Tango Champion in Tangovia, a Tango Competition held in Manizales, Colombia, and in 2009, he won the National Stage Tango Competition in the city of Bogotá. He continued on to represent Colombia at the eighth World Tango Summit, held in San Carlos de Bariloche, Argentina.

    In addition to his achievements, Mr. Bravo has dedicated a great part of his career to teaching tango to people from all walks of life in a unique and effortless way. During the past year, he taught and performed with the show Three to Tango, along with Jorge Nel and Milena Buitrago, touring several cities in the United States and abroad. As a choreographer, he is in high demand for his innovative and unique style of choreography. In 2011, he was asked to choreograph the show Por amor al Tango, directed and produced by musician Erskine Maytorena in Albuquerque, New Mexico. In 2019, Mr. Bravo became the official US Tango Salon Champion and won first place in the SoCal Tango Championship. Andrés Bravo’s genuine, warm personality and years of experience as a choreographer, instructor, and dancer of salon and stage Tango continue to lead him to great success. He is currently based in New York City, where he teaches and performs.

  • David Buckley is an experienced chamber musician, soloist, and orchestral player. He is the Co-Concertmaster of the La Jolla Symphony and has been a featured soloist on several occasions. With Camarada, he has been featured during each of its twenty-eight seasons and is a member of the Tango Camarada Quartet. Dr. Buckley is the immediate past president of Radiology Medical Group and has served as chief of radiology at Scripps Mercy Hospital. He is a summa cum laude graduate of St. Olaf College, where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa, and received his MD from the University of Minnesota, where he was elected to the Alpha Omega Alpha medical honor society. Dr. Buckley has been honored twice as a top doctor by the members of the San Diego County Medical Society and enjoys travel, golf, and relaxing by the lake in his home state of Minnesota.

  • Gilad Cohen is an active composer, performer, and theorist in various genres including concert music, rock, and music for theatre. His music adapts features from a wide range of musical realms and explores possible interactions among them, bringing to his creative table influences from rock, impressionism, grunge, klezmer, Arabic music, and the avant-garde. Dr. Cohen has received commissions from the Barlow Endowment, Chamber Music America, ASCAP, Concert Artists Guild, Parlance Chamber Concerts, and the Jerusalem Music Center, among others. His music has been performed in North and South America, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East by artists such as the Israeli Chamber Project, Nash Ensemble of London, Brentano Quartet, Mivos Quartet, PUBLIQuartet, and principal players of both the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and the Budapest Festival Orchestra. His works have been released on Albany Records, Naxos/Delos, and Navona Records. Dr. Cohen’s notable awards include the Barlow Prize, the Israeli Prime Minister Award for Composers, and top prizes in international competitions in the United States, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. He has played piano, bass guitar, and guitar with various ensembles at venues in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Israel, including New York’s Merkin Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center, and Symphony Space. An Associate Professor of Music at Ramapo College of New Jersey, Dr. Cohen holds a Ph.D. in composition from Princeton University. His research on the music of Pink Floyd has resulted in publications in books and academic journals (such as Music Theory Spectrum), lectures in the United States and Israel, and the first-ever academic conference devoted to the band, which he produced in 2014 at Princeton University in collaboration with composer Dave Molk. www.giladcohen.com

  • Stefan Cwik began his musical studies in composition and guitar performance with composer/guitarist Dušan Bogdanović at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music (SFCM). He finished his undergraduate studies in composition at SFCM studying with David Conte and his graduate studies with John Corigliano at The Juilliard School. Mr. Cwik is dedicated to the collaborative process of composition. He held the post of Composer-In-Residence for San Francisco-based orchestra Symphony Parnassus, directed and conducted by Stephen Paulson, who is also the Principal Bassoonist of the San Francisco Symphony. During his time working with Parnassus, Mr. Cwik composed five orchestral works, which premiered in San Francisco. He has also worked with Camarada and Beth Ross Buckley on multiple occasions. The ensemble has performed his work, Eight Miniatures: Homage to Igor Stravinsky, as one of their favorites, and their performance of his work received high praise in the 2022 Mosaics concert at Mingei Museum in San Diego,

    Throughout his professional life, Mr. Cwik has received numerous awards including the 2010 Bassoon Chamber Music Composition Competition and the 2013 BMI Student composer award. He was the two time winner of the Juilliard Orchestral Composition Competitions, and received honorable mention at the 2013 ASCAP Morton Gould Young Composer Awards. Recently, Mr. Cwik was commissioned by Brass Over Bridges to compose a new concerto for brass quintet and orchestra. This work premiered on June 11th of 2023 at Herbst’s Theatre with the San Francisco Civic Symphony. Mr. Cwik is a professor of Orchestration and Music Theory and Musicianship at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. He is a member of ASCAP (American Society of Composer, Authors, and Publishers). Representative examples of his music can be found on his website, https://www.stefancwik.com/

  • Over the past decade, jazz pianist and Origin Records recording artist Danny Green has earned recognition as a bandleader and as a composer with a gift for spinning lyrical, absorbing narratives. Mr. Green’s growing portfolio of vibrant sounds – an enchanting mix of jazz, classical, and Brazilian rhythms – has captured the attention of critics around the world, including DownBeat Magazine, Jazziz, The San Diego Union-Tribune, The Boston Globe, and Public Radio International. It’s no small wonder that Green has earned two San Diego Music Awards for Best Jazz Album and an additional award for Best Jazz Artist. His long-time trio includes bassist Justin Grinnell and drummer Julien Cantelm, noteworthy musicians in their own right, and together they have developed a nearly psychic connection as they perform both Green’s original compositions and jazz standards. Mr. Green takes listeners on a journey that is equal parts introspective and exuberant, but always compelling. His talents have taken him from the Blue Note in New York City to the Blue Whale in Los Angeles. According to JazzReview.com, “Danny Green is what evolution in jazz is all about, expressing the traits of those that came before him, with a style and panache that is all his own…an individual who expresses what is inside of him.”

  • Lars Hoefs is a professor of cello and music history at São Paulo State University in Campinas, Brazil, and regularly performs and teaches in South America, the United States, and Europe. He has performed concerts and taught courses in Chile, France, Poland, Germany, and Spain, and has made solo appearances with Brazilian Orchestras in Espírito Santo, Londrina, Sorocaba, and Valinhos. Dr. Hoefs has established himself as a leading expert on the cello repertoire of Brazilian composer Heitor Villa-Lobos. Originally from Appleton, Wisconsin, Dr. Hoefs earned his high school diploma at the North Carolina School of the Arts, his bachelor’s degree at Northwestern University, where he studied with Hans Jorgen Jensen, and both his master’s and doctorate degrees at the University of Southern California, where he studied with former Los Angeles Philharmonic Principal Cellist Ronald Leonard.

  • Holly Hofmann spent evenings at age five playing standards on the flutophone from the Great American Songbook with her father, a jazz guitarist. It was an auspicious beginning for the woman who would find satisfying partnerships with renowned jazzmen including Ray Brown, Frank Wess, Cedar Walton, and Kenny Barron. Today, Ms. Hofmann has made the flute a front-line instrument in jazz, earning praise and respect from musicians and jazz aficionados for her bluesy, bebop-based improvisations on an instrument that many once regarded as definitely not a jazz horn.

    She studied with the Cleveland Orchestra’s principal flutist Maurice Sharp, and went on to earn her Bachelor of Music from the Cleveland Institute of Music and her Master of Music from the University of Northern Colorado. Ms. Hofmann moved to San Diego in the late ‘80s, recording her first national CD in 1989 and booking her first of many jazz series at the Horton Grand Hotel in downtown San Diego, which presented hundreds of nationally acclaimed artists including Diana Krall, Tommy Flanagan, Joe Henderson, and Benny Carter. In the mid-’90s, she began performing with pianist Bill Cunliffe, a partnership that led to several duo recordings on Azica Records. They also recorded the critically acclaimed Live at Birdland with bassist Ray Brown and drummer Victor Lewis. Hofmann began working with the legendary Brown at New York’s Village Vanguard in the late ‘90s and later toured throughout the U.S. and Europe as a guest artist with Brown’s trio.

    Hofmann and the highly respected pianist/arranger Mike Wofford married in 2001 and the two began touring and recording together with Peter Washington and Victor Lewis, as well as with Flutology, an all-star sextet featuring Frank Wess, Ali Ryerson and Hofmann on flutes, with Washington and Ben Riley. Their recent recordings include 2013’s Turn Signal, featuring trumpet great Terell Stafford, and 2015’s Low Life: The Alto Flute Project. Ms. Hofmann also teaches jazz and flute and conducts master classes at schools and universities around the country, and has been Music Director at the Oregon Coast Jazz Party for thirteen years. Alto legend Phil Woods, while describing her performance at the Telluride Jazz Festival, said “Along with Hubert Laws, Holly is frankly the best jazz flute player today.”

  • Carolina Jaurena's journey as a performer and artist began at an early age, ignited by an unwavering passion for the arts. With over 20 years of experience teaching and performing, she has become a multifaceted talent, excelling not only as a dancer but also as a certified RYT Yoga Instructor and Mandala Dot Artist. During her career as a dancer and performer, Carolina reached new heights when she graced the screen as a primary dancer in the feature film Random Hearts, directed by the legendary Sidney Pollack. Her contributions to the arts have been nothing short of extraordinary. Ms. Jaurena's performances have spanned a wide range of exceptional productions, including Eternal Tango, alongside Héctor del Curto, and the shows Tanguero and Tango! Soul and Heart, where she mesmerized audiences at the Kennedy Center with the Choral Arts Society of Washington. Her artistry extended to the acclaimed off-Broadway production Tango House, produced by the renowned Juan Fabbri, and she showcased her talents in several unforgettable seasons at the esteemed Thalia Spanish Theatre in New York. Beyond her performances in the United States, Ms. Jaurena's talent has been recognized internationally, as she has graced stages and conducted workshops across the globe. She taught a special Tango workshop at the Canarias Tango Festival in Spain, performed at the Solis Theater in Uruguay in 100 años de Tango, and left a lasting impression in Germany with performances at prestigious venues such as The Theaterhaus in Stuttgart and the Alte Synagoge in Hechingen.

    Ms. Jaurena’s teaching style has been sought after at the Landesakademie in Ochsenhausen, where she conducted workshops that left a lasting impact on aspiring artists. Her prowess as a performer and instructor has earned her a well-deserved reputation for precision of movement, professionalism, and undeniable charisma. She has also been an integral part of San Diego’s Tango Camarada Quartet for the past four years. Her artistry extends beyond dance, as she is also a certified RYT Yoga instructor, guiding others toward physical and mental well-being through the practice of yoga. Today, Ms. Jaurena stands as a respected and sought-after performer, teacher, and artist, leaving an indelible mark and captivating hearts wherever she graces the stage. Her journey is a testament to the power of passion, dedication, and a profound connection to the arts.

  • Native Hawaiian soprano Tasha Hokuao Koontz has lent her “accurate, powerful voice” (Broadway World) to a gallery of leading operatic ladies and has been recognized by Opera Wire for her “secure silvery high notes.”

    In the 2022-23 season, she returned to San Diego Opera to perform the roles of Nella in Gianni Schicchi and Suor Genovieffa in Suor Angelica. A company favorite, Koontz debuted with San Diego Opera as Annina in La Traviata in 2017, and subsequently performed the roles of Edith in Pirates of Penzance, Frasquita in Carmen, and High Priestess in Aïda. She also sang the role of Catrina in a 2019 workshop performance of El último sueño de Frida y Diego, written by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Nilo Cruz and Latin GRAMMY® Award-winning composer Gabriela Lena Frank. A frequent concert soloist, Ms. Koontz has sung with the San Diego Symphony, San Diego Festival Chorus & Orchestra, California Chamber Orchestra, Chicago Arts Orchestra, and the orchestras of Newfoundland, Coeur d’Alene, Spokane, and Northwestern University. She also performed the role of Violetta in La Traviata with the FF Collective, an organization Koontz co-founded in 2021 to create performance opportunities for women and artists from underrepresented communities in Southern California. She was awarded first place in the Musical Merit Foundation Awards competition and the La Jolla Symphony & Chorus Young Artist Competition, and has received awards and recognition from the Susan and Virginia Hawk Vocal Scholarship Competition, the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, the Coeur d’Alene Symphony Competition, the Bel Canto Foundation Competition, and the Brava! Opera Theater Competition. Ms. Koontz earned her Master of Music from the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University, where she studied with acclaimed soprano Carol Vaness, and received her Bachelor of Music from Northwestern University.

  • Abe Liebhaber, from Santa Barbara, California, holds a tenured position with the Arizona Opera and enjoys performing chamber music at home and abroad. In addition to being a cellist, Mr. Liebhaber is a professional bowmaker and restorer of fine bows, with a successful business in San Diego on Adams Avenue.

  • Mackenzie Leighton is a bassist, composer, and educator from San Diego, California. He works regularly with Southern California jazz heroes Peter Sprague, Gilbert Castellanos, and Kamau Kenyatta, and has worked with jazz legends such as Donald Brown, Geoffery Keezer, and Sammy Figueroa. He has performed at the Carlsbad Music Festival, Ensenada Jazz Festival, Tijuana Jazz and Blues Festival, and Idyllwild Jazz in the Pines, and also works with local theaters including The Old Globe, Cygnet Theatre, and Lamb’s Players Theatre. Mr. Leighton is adjunct faculty at California State University San Marcos, Palomar College, and MiraCosta College, and holds a Master in Music from San Diego State University. He recently performed in Million Dollar Quartet at Lamb’s Players Theatre in Coronado to rave reviews and sold-out audiences.

  • Travis Maril is the String Area Coordinator at San Diego State University’s School of Music and Dance, and the Co-Founder of its String Academy for pre-college students. He is also an innovative online educator; through his online programs, he has worked with hundreds of violists worldwide. (www.travis-maril.com)

    A passionate chamber musician, Mr. Maril has been praised for his “persuasive, stylish ardor” (San Diego Reader) and was a winner of the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition. His chamber music partners include principal players of the Cleveland Orchestra; the Los Angeles and Rochester Philharmonics; and the Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, and San Diego Symphonies, as well as members of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. Mr. Maril was a Trustee Scholar and Outstanding Graduate at the University of Southern California and earned his master’s degree at Rice University.

  • Andrés Martín is an arranger and composer native to Buenos Aires, Argentina. He has performed with orchestras, chamber ensembles, and as a soloist in Argentina, Costa Rica, Venezuela, Uruguay, Chile, Brazil, Mexico, England, Germany, Italy, Spain, Denmark, and the United States. Since his arrival in Tijuana, Mexico, Mr. Martín has been immersed in teaching and performing as both a soloist and chamber musician. He has been a member of the Orquesta de Baja California since 2002 and also organizes and directs Contrabajos de Baja California A.C., an academy for double bass that celebrates an international double bass festival and chamber music course held annually in Tijuana. In addition to his work as a soloist and chamber musician, Mr. Martín is an accomplished composer who has had works performed and commissioned by renowned soloists, chamber ensembles, and orchestras around the world. In collaboration with the Eastman Strings Company, he is currently designing a new double bass tailored to his specifications that can serve as a modern solo instrument.

  • Elena Mashkovtseva has won attention as one of the world’s outstanding harpists through her numerous appearances as a soloist and chamber musician. She has enchanted audiences throughout the world with her virtuosity, grace, and elegance. Ms. Mashkovtseva is a graduate of the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory, where she studied with celebrated harpist Vera Dulova. She was awarded first prize at the International Competition in Moscow and held the Principal Harp position with the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra after graduation. Since leaving Moscow, she has appeared with the Orquesta de Baja California, Orquesta de Cámara de Bellas Artes, Orquesta Filhármonica de la UNAM, San Diego Chamber Orchestra, San Diego Symphony, Orchestra Nova, St. Petersburg Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra under Valery Gergiev, Chamber Orchestra Kremlin under Misha Rachlevsky, The Hutchins Consort, Camarada, and the San Diego Opera. Ms. Mashkovtseva is a professor of harp at San Diego State University and the University of San Diego, and she also maintains a private harp studio in San Diego.

  • Duncan Moore grew up in Des Moines, Iowa, and began drum studies at the age of eight. He majored in music at the University of Iowa and studied with percussionist Tom Davis while playing with local jazz groups until he moved to San Diego in 1977.

    Over the last thirty years, he has performed and/or recorded with a number of national and local artists, including Gerald Albright, Mose Allison, Karrin Allyson, Ray Brown, Kenny Burrell, Joe Chambers, Billy Childs, Joe Farrell, Nnenna Freelon, Curtis Fuller, Mike Garson, Holly Hofmann, Rickie Lee Jones, Geoffrey Keezer, Steve Kujala, Kenny Loggins, Les McCann, Pat Metheny, Art Neville, Houston Person, Shorty Rogers, Bud Shank, Bob Sheppard, Bobby Shew, Tom Scott, Peter Sprague, Tierney Sutton, Ernie Watts, and Mike Wofford.

    Mr. Moore also teaches students from his private percussion studio.

  • Frank Renk is a clarinetist and bass clarinetist with the San Diego Symphony Orchestra. He is also the principal clarinetist of the San Diego Chamber Orchestra, and was formerly the principal clarinetist of the Sacramento Philharmonic and the California Symphony. His performance history includes a number of movie and commercial soundtracks, mostly recorded at the famed Skywalker Ranch in Marin County. Mr. Renk continues to perform occasionally with the San Francisco Symphony, the San Francisco Opera Orchestra and the San Francisco Ballet Orchestra. He also performs numerous chamber music concerts throughout the West Coast and has appeared as soloist on occasion. Music Festivals that Mr. Renk has attended include the Mainly Mozart Festival in San Diego, the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, the La Jolla SummerFest chamber music festival, the Carmel Bach Festival, the “Music from Bear Valley” Music Festival, and the Cascade Music Festival of Oregon.

    Mr. Renk completed his music education at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and San Francisco State University where he studied with Donald Carroll. He continued studying the clarinet with Rosario Mazzeo, formerly of the Boston Symphony. Mr. Renk teaches a large number of students in the San Diego area, and was profiled in the San Diego Union-Tribune In November 2006.

  • Richard Sellers has been playing drums professionally for over thirty years and has performed with countless groups and ensembles in a variety of styles, including straight-ahead jazz, avant-garde jazz, Brazilian, Latin, funk, and hip-hop. In addition, he has worked extensively as a teacher, applying his unique rhythmic approach and meticulous technical methods to his teaching. A native of Valencia, California, Mr. Sellers received early training from Stewart Fischer, Earl Palmer, and Joe Porcaro. The support of such greats prepared him for his move to San Diego, at which point he began to make frequent appearances in San Diego and gigged incessantly with the best professionals in town. This experience includes a lasting musical liaison with bassist Rob Thorsen and vocalist Ruby Presnell, forged while working on the release of Ruby Blue. Richard is now regarded as one of the premier drummers in Southern California, and has found himself sharing the stage with world-class artists such as Hubert Laws, Terell Stafford, Kenny Rankin, Kamau Kenyatta, Mike Wofford, Bob Magnusson, Marshall Hawkins, Clare Fischer, Gary Foster, Andy Simpkins, and Jackie and Roy. Mr. Sellers is respected by his colleagues for his uncanny talent with brushes, his undeniable energy, and his strict attention to dynamics and groove. He has also made high-profile appearances at the NAMM Show, an internationally recognized musical and technological convention.

  • Peter Sprague is a highly acclaimed musician and composer. With thirty-plus years as a professional guitarist under his belt, he has evolved into a musical powerhouse, having produced and played on over 190 recordings. He has also published eleven songbooks of his own music. Mr. Sprague conducts the majority of his endeavors in Southern California, where he can stay close to his family, and where he is, without dispute, San Diego’s premier jazz talent. His numerous awards include Best Jazz Artist in San Diego, and his list of collaborators include musical greats such as Dianne Reeves, Chick Corea, Al Jarreau, David Benoit, and many others. Mr. Sprague’s full performance list and discography can be found on his website, www.petersprague.com

  • Tripp Sprague is a jazz saxophonist based out of the San Diego area. He also plays flute, chromatic harmonica, and EWI. Mr. Sprague has performed extensively with the area’s top jazz musicians, including his brother, guitarist Peter Sprague, as well as bassist Bob Magnusson and pianist Geoffrey Keezer. His musical versatility has led him to perform with international acts such as jazz singer Mose Allison, Kenny Loggins, and Motown legend Smokey Robinson. Recently, Mr. Sprague co-produced and performed on the self-titled CD from the group Blurring the Edges, which won Best Pop-Jazz Album at the San Diego Music Awards. He also runs a recording studio from his home, where he has produced and recorded CDs for numerous local artists.

  • Rob Thorsen maintains a diverse and busy schedule in Southern California as a performer, educator, clinician, and composer. He has found his true voice in the upright bass and performs regularly in San Diego with artists such as the Mike Wofford/Holly Hofmann Quartet, Charles McPherson, Steph Johnson, Gilbert Castellanos, Mundell Lowe, and a host of others. Mr. Thorsen has released four recordings as a bandleader, with the most recent, Lasting Impression, featuring an array of jazz talents including pianist Geoffrey Keezer, pianist Josh Nelson, and saxophonist Ben Wendel. In addition to performing with his own quartet, he has also created “Jazz: An American Art Form,” a hugely successful jazz educational program that has been presented to over 8,000 students this year alone. “When I began playing the upright bass, the fact that I felt the sound as much as I heard it had a profound effect on me,” says Mr. Thorsen. “I was hooked for life.”

  • Mike Wofford was born in San Antonio, Texas, and raised in San Diego. He studied piano as a child and became interested in jazz as a teen. He is well known as the pianist and music director for singers Sarah Vaughan (1970s) and Ella Fitzgerald (1989-1992). However, he was known in the jazz community of Los Angeles from the 1960s onward for his first albums, Strawberry Wine and Summer Night, and for his work with Shorty Rogers, Teddy Edwards, Bud Shank, Chet Baker, Joe Pass, Quincy Jones, Oliver Nelson, Shelly Manne, and Zoot Sims, among many others. During his years in Los Angeles, he was the pianist on dozens of films and for both live and recorded television shows. In the 1970s, he toured Europe with Shelly Manne and Lee Konitz; in the 1980s, he toured Japan with Manne, Harry “Sweets” Edison, and Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis, as well as Japan and Brazil with Benny Carter. After resettling in San Diego, Mr. Wofford performed with Kenny Burrell, Benny Golson, Art Farmer, Charlie Haden, Slide Hampton, Clifford Jordan, Ray Brown, and others at San Diego’s nationally acclaimed jazz club, Elario’s. He also took part in non-jazz session work, including John Lennon's 1975 release, Rock 'n' Roll, and in 1973, he briefly toured with former Byrds front man Roger McGuinn. On August 13, 2012, Mr. Wofford was given the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 22nd Annual San Diego Music Awards. He currently tours and records with his wife, flutist Holly Hofmann, with their quartet and their Jobim with Strings project.

  • Angela Xing has performed all around the globe. She was a prize winner of the Oleh Krysa International Violin Competition and semi-finalist of the Heida Hermanns International String Competition. Ms. Xing has worked as a professional violinist in the Rochester Philharmonic, Symphoria, Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra, Oklahoma City Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Chinese National Opera House Orchestra in Beijing. She has participated in the Aspen Music Festival, where she studied under Paul Kantor, David Halen, and Robert Lipsett. She also served as the concertmaster for the Aspen Philharmonic Orchestra. Additionally, Ms. Xing has over seven years of teaching experience, encompassing a broad range of skills. Her students include graduate-level music majors at a music conservatory, undergraduate non-music majors, and beginners of all ages.

    Born in Taiyuan, China, Ms. Xing began studying violin at the age of five with Lingwei Xu, the preeminent violin educator of the Shanxi province. After high school, she moved to Beijing to study with Xiaowei Chen at the Renmin University of China. During that time, she served as associate concertmaster of the Asian Youth Orchestra for three years, with which she toured Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Taipei, and Seoul. Ms. Xing received her Master of Music from the University of Oklahoma, where she studied with Gregory Lee. She went on to receive her Doctor of Musical Arts with a minor in Music Education from the Eastman School of Music, where she studied with Oleh Krysa.

Camarada Around Town!

Camarada Jazz @ Mingei International Museum

Camarada Jazz @ The Conrad

Featured Past Performances

Check out the Camarada Video Library on YouTube by clicking below.