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Bethany College is pleased to announce the Chamber Orchestra of the Smoky Valley (COSV) concert on Jan. 15, 2023, at 4 p.m. at Bethany Lutheran Church in Lindsborg, Kan. 

The performance will feature works by Igor Stravinsky, Edward Elgar, and Franz Schubert. 

Supported by Bethany College and the Lindsborg Arts Council, the COSV is an auditioned regional ensemble of professional musicians that includes not only Bethany faculty members but players from Wichita, Manhattan, Salina, and Kansas City as well. Under the musical direction of Keith Dodson, Assistant Professor of Music and Director of Instrumental Studies, and led by concertmaster Ann Samuelson, the ensemble seeks to educate and engage audience members through the performance of orchestral masterworks. 

While there are many symphonic orchestras in the Central Kansas area, this ensemble is unique in terms of its smaller size and consistently   maintains accomplished principle musicians from all over the region. 

“As a musician and connoisseur of classical music, I believe it is essential to support the COSV as it brings a high-quality performance and people to our local area together through their appreciation of music. Represented is a diverse host of faculty from the University of Kansas, Kansas State University, and Wichita State University. Alongside these players are members of the Salina Symphony, Wichita Symphony, Kansas City Civic, and Kansas City Symphony, as well as our Lindsborg musicians and Bethany College faculty. Keith Dodson has programmed a season of music that will provoke your thoughts, inspire your creativity, and, most importantly, bring us closer as a community that cherishes decorating our communal time with the sounds of music,” says President Elizabeth Mauch. 



Ann Samuelson is a recently retired Instructor of Music in Violin/Viola and Piano Proficiency at Bethany College. She is a member of the Wichita Symphony Orchestra and maintains a private studio of violin and viola students. She received her Bachelor of Music Education and Kodaly certification from Indiana University Jacobs School of Music and a Master of Music in Violin Performance from the University of Connecticut.

Nancy Johnson has been the principal second violin of the Wichita Symphony since 2000. She is also on the faculties of Bethel College and Hesston College teaching private violin students. Johnson holds degrees in violin performance from The University of Kansas and Virginia Commonwealth University with post-graduate work at the University of Northern Colorado.

Ricardo Cavalcante de Oliveira started his musical career as a violist at Pernambuco Conservatory in Brazil at the age of 13. Cavalcante de Oliveira graduated from The University of Kansas with a Master of Music with an emphasis in Viola Performance in 2022.

Meagan Dodson is currently the instructor of cello at Bethany College and a student in the Masters of String Pedagogy program at the University of Kansas studying under Hannah Collins. She was recently appointed to the cello faculty at the Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp in Michigan.

Andrew Book (double bass) is a 5th-12th grade orchestra teacher of 12 years in the Blue Valley West area of Overland Park, Kan. Book graduated from Wichita State University with degrees in Music Education and Double Bass, and completed his Master of Music Education, with an emphasis in String Pedagogy.

Colleen White is an Assistant Professor of Flute at Kansas State University. She has coordinated performance events for Grammy Award Winners, MacArthur Fellows, and Guggenheim Fellows for the Colorado Flute Association and Spoleto Festival USA. White regularly performs in a wide variety of solo, orchestral, and chamber music settings across North America, including performances with the Colorado Symphony Orchestra, as a soloist with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, and at Carnegie Hall.

Margaret Marco is the Professor of Oboe at the University of Kansas and principal oboist of the Kansas City Chamber Orchestra. She holds a bachelor of music degree from Northwestern University, a master of music education from The University of Iowa, and a doctor of music arts degree from the University of Illinois.

Susan Gustavson Maxwell is a teacher, performer, and reed maker. She currently, teaches Bassoon, History of Rock, Aural Skills, and Introduction to Music at Kansas State University and performs regularly with the Konza Wind Quintet and the Tallgrass Trio. Maxwell is the only named bassoon tool maker for her Bassoon Reed Profiler. This tool is in use at all major music schools around the country. Another area of expertise is the art of playing high notes on the bassoon. This has resulted in a High Note Studies published with three retailers.

Meri Jenkins completed her baccalaureate degree in music performance in her hometown at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and completed her master’s degree in music performance at Wichita State University. She owns and operates Intrepid Brass Wichita LLC, which creates work and opportunities for brass players through chamber brass gigs and the newly created community ensemble, Intrepid Brass Band. Jenkins teaches adjunct brass lessons at Bethel College and maintains a private studio of middle and high school students across Wichita.

Andrew Bishop holds a master’s degree in trumpet performance from the University of Missouri and studied trumpet performance at Wichita State University. In the spring of 2019, Andrew won the Principal Trumpet chair with the Des Moines Symphony. In the fall of 2021, Andrew was named Lecturer of Trumpet at Iowa State University.

Dan Hinman is an instructor at Kansas State University where he teaches applied trombone, the KSU Trombone Choir, and other academic music courses. Hinman holds a music education degree from North Dakota State University, a master of music degree from the University of Minnesota, and a Doctor of Musical Arts in trombone performance from the University of North Texas.

This concert is free and open to the public.

Bethany College, established by Swedish Lutheran immigrants in 1881, is a college of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The mission of Bethany College is to educate, develop, and challenge individuals to reach for truth and excellence as they lead lives of faith, learning, and service. At Bethany, students join a community of dedicated educators and caring mentors who walk alongside them as they discover, explore, and navigate the path to their purpose. Bethany College is online at bethanylb.edu and is located in Lindsborg, Kansas, the fine arts and crafts capital of the state.