EMA Board Members are passionate about early music, are committed to equity in the arts, and have the time and energy to devote to the mission, vision, and values of Early Music America.
Staff
David McCormick, Executive Director
(davidmccormick@, ext. 202, ET)
Dina Bash, Assistant Director
(dina@, ext. 201, ET)
David Simmons Wood, Programs Director
(davidwood@, ext. 203, CT)
Pierre Ruhe, Publications Director
(pierre@, ext. 204, ET)
Amanda Gookin, Administrative Assistant
(amanda@, ext. 205, ET)
All staff email addresses begin with the name@ as identified in the staff list above and end with earlymusicamerica.org.
To leave staff members a voicemail, please call 412-642-2778 and use their extension number in the list above. We will endeavor to return your call as soon as possible, within 24-48 hours during the work week. Our staff are located throughout North America and their timezones are listed next to their extension number.
Board Officers 2024-2025
Karin Cuéllar Rendón, President
Amit Joshi, Vice President
Vijay Chalasani, Secretary
Linda Clifford, Treasurer
Board Members 2024-2025
Sallynee Amawat
Cathy Barbash
Joe Chappel
Joyce Chen
Kathryn Cok
August Denhard
Michele Kennedy
Kevin Leong
Helen McConnell
Patrick D. McCoy
Ingrid Matthews
Holly Maurer
Reginald Mobley
Garrett Murphy
Patricia Ann Neely
Sian Ricketts
Byron Schenkman
Andrew Sheranian
Nina Stern
Carrie Sykes
Catherine Turocy
Dana Whiteside
Councils and Task Forces
Emerging Professional Leadership Council (EPLC)
Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Access (IDEA) Task Force
David McCormick
Executive DirectorI’m thrilled to be at the helm of EMA as its sixth Executive Director, with the ambition of creating a more inclusive, equitable space for all who engage with historical performance. In recent years, I served as executive director of Shenandoah Valley Bach Festival and Charlottesville Chamber Music Festival. I play vielle and baroque violin, serve as artistic director of Early Music Access Project, and I’m a founding member of Brooklyn-based medieval ensemble Alkemie.
Dina Bash
Assistant DirectorI have been with EMA for over 10 years. I have a background in Public Relations, English & International Studies from Penn State University. Prior to my work with EMA, I served as the Donor Relations Director for the United Way of the Lower Eastern Shore of Maryland. I reside in Pittsburgh, PA with my husband and two children.
David Simmons Wood
Programs DirectorI joined the EMA staff in 2015. I teach on the faculty of Kansas State University’s School of Music, Theatre, and Dance in Manhattan, KS, where I direct the early-music ensembles and teach music theory, history, world music, and performance practice. I’m also the artistic director the Blue Earth Camerata.
Pierre Ruhe
Publications DirectorMy career has been multi-faceted, as a writer, editor, and arts administrator. I’ve been a critic and cultural reporter for the Washington Post, London’s Financial Times and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, worked as an editor at NPR, and was founding executive director of the Atlanta-area arts website ArtsATL.org. For seven years I served as director of artistic planning for the Alabama Symphony Orchestra.
Sallynee Amawat
I am a Baroque violinist originally from Chicago and studied in Bangkok, Hong Kong, and Montreal, which is now home. I enjoy the life of a musician with many hats: freelancer, teacher, researcher, creator, and arts administrator. I am also the Executive Director and Co-Artistic Director of Infusion Baroque.
Cathy Barbash
I’m a specialist in cultural diplomacy and creative industry development, a consultant, and an independent producer with over 25 years of experience working with the People’s Republic of China, Cuba, and with performing arts organizations in the United States and abroad.
Vijay Chalasani
I am a South Asian-American performer of modern and historical violas, scholar, teaching artist, and an advocate for diversity and equity. I am a founding member of Sinfonia Spirituosa and perform with ensembles on the west coast and in Colorado, and contribute to groundbreaking research in 19th century viola playing and performing styles. One of my greatest joys is sharing repertoire and playing styles that have been lost or ignored, and I look forward to continuing to open the field of early music to those who have been historically excluded with the EMA IDEA Taskforce.
Joe Chappel
I am a bass-baritone based in New York City and hold degrees from Eastman School of Music and the Brooklyn College Conservatory of music. I’ve had a diverse career in opera, choral ensemble, and liturgical music and enjoy singing early music and standard rep, as well as new music. I believe we as artists should always be in conversation with the larger world around us. This has been a regular part of my own work as a producer and performer and I look forward to working with the board to insure that the early music community regularly engages in conversations concerning diversity, equity, inclusion, accessibility, and social justice. It is my deep honor to join the board of directors.
Joyce Chen
I am a Taiwanese harpsichordist based in Philadelphia while pursuing a PhD in Historical Musicology at Princeton University. My research interests include acoustics, musical instruments, aesthetics, and performance practice; I am currently preparing for an online opinion piece for EMA on Asian practitioners of early music. As an avid performer, I was one of the featured soloists in the 2019 Early Music America Emerging Artist Showcase in Bloomington.
Linda Clifford
Alongside my law practice in Madison, Wisconsin, I’ve fostered a secret life as an amateur organist and harpsichordist and early music supporter. I helped establish what is now the Historical Keyboard Society of North America. I’m the current president of the board of Madison Bach Musicians, and I co-founded “The Neighborly Consort,” enjoying weekly practices that culminate in occasional house concerts for neighbors and friends.
Kathryn Cok
I divide my professional time between two continents, pursuing a varied career as a historical keyboardist and academic on both sides of the Atlantic. A soloist and continuo player with the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra since 2001, I teach at the Royal Conservatoire in The Hague and head the Master Research Department. Early Music member organizations are the key to engagement and continuing development in our field, and I currently serve as Vice President of the Historical Keyboard Society of North America.
Karin Cuéllar Rendón
I am a Bolivian historical violinist and scholar interested in researching and presenting non-euro centered early music while recognizing the syncretism and connections with traditional music. I studied Historical Performance at Case Western Reserve University, Royal Academy of Music and currently pursue a PhD in Musicology at McGill University with a research focus on 19th c. performance practices in South America using as a case study the music of Peruvian composer Pedro Ximenez Abrill Tirado.
August Denhard
I perform on lute and guitar family instruments from Europe, Asia, and Latin America and am a cofounder of the Eurasia Consort (NYC) and Trío Guadalevín (Seattle). I’ve served as Executive Director and Artistic Director of Early Music Seattle since 2000. In working to expand the definition of early music, I connect global ancient music traditions to recognize the cultural ties we share. I do this through artistic planning, concert presentation, research, teaching, writing, advocacy, and community service.
Amit Joshi
I am a practicing surgeon at Cooper University Healthcare where I also oversee the postgraduate training of 440 residents and fellows in 45 specialties. I lead the national curriculum for surgery (SCORE) at the American Board of Surgery. Prior to medical school, I studied music history at Brown and participated in numerous ensembles as a pianist and chorister. My wife and I are raising two young musicians (a harpsichordist and organist).
Michele Kennedy
My career as a soloist and ensemble singer spans the ages from Medieval to Modern, with a healthy emphasis on oratorio, art song, and the early repertoire. I fervently believe that there is room on the concert stage for folks of all backgrounds, and am committed to using my voice to open doors for composers, directors, and performers deserving of wider recognition in the field. Alongside music, my greatest loves in life are Redwood groves, wide coastal vistas, and delicious home cooking, especially when enjoyed with my husband Benjamin, and our adventurous daughter, Audra May.
Kevin Leong
I’m a choral conductor in the Boston area currently serving as Music Director of the Masterworks Chorale, the Concord Chorus, and the Jameson Singers. I’ve also conducted and taught at Harvard University and Boston University, where I received my doctoral degree and researched the Vespers hymn settings of Ludwig Senfl. Although I have always been a musician, I began my career as a life scientist, so I know how important music can be to nonprofessionals. My work focuses on educating amateurs through the choral arts and making every chorister into a better singer, musician, and performer.
Helen McConnell
An avid amateur harpsichordist, I enjoy the challenge of learning and performing solo and ensemble repertoire. I also teach piano to adult students. I serve as President of the board of Amherst Early Music and chair of the Governance Committee of the Washington Bach Consort. I divide my time between Washington, DC and Raleigh, NC and am actively involved in the early-music scene in both locations.
Patrick D. McCoy
From the early years of my youth, I was introduced to glorious musical works such as the Monteverdi Vespers, the towering Bach Mass in B minor and Handel’s Messiah. Serving in music ministry for more than 20 years, I am currently the Organist and Choirmaster at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Beltsville, MD. These experiences continue to be an integral part of my musicianship. During my term, I hope to add to the conversations surrounding diversity in early music and amplify artists of color who continue to excel in this arena.
Ingrid Matthews
I teach Baroque Violin, Baroque string literature, and Bach Interpretation at the Historical Performance Institute of Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music, as well as leading the IU Baroque Orchestra. With harpsichordist Byron Schenkman, I co-founded the Seattle Baroque Orchestra and served as its Music Director from 1994-2013, and I’ve performed widely as a soloist, orchestra director and chamber musician. I’m a first-prize winner of the Erwin Bodky International Competition for Early Music (1989) and have done lots of CD recording, notably of the Sonatas and Partitas of J.S. Bach.
Holly Maurer
I teach and perform in Charlotte, NC and around the southeast. My primary instrument is the viola da gamba, although with a woodwind background I also play recorders, flutes and an occasional crumhorn. I was a member of the music faculty at Central Piedmont Community College in Charlotte where I taught a Renaissance Consort class, Baroque Performance, and Viol Consorts. I enjoy working with adults in the workshop setting, especially in mixed ensembles.
Reginald Mobley
I’m a countertenor and Southern transplant bringing the gift of music and hospitality to frigid New England. I’ve been singing as a professional soloist for the better part of this century. Not only Bach and other 17th c. cats, but also everything from Jazz to Barbershop. I’m also a director with the Handel and Haydn Society also serving as their first ever Programming Consultant. I also sling a mean Manhattan.
Garret Murphy
Based in Utah, I currently serve as Director of Development at Utah Symphony | Utah Opera and Executive Director of Bach Akademie Charlotte. Previously, I held the roles of Senior Development Officer and Director of Alumni Giving and Engagement at Walnut Hill School for the Arts, Executive Director of Back Bay Chorale, Festival Administrator at the Savannah Music Festival, and Associate Director of the Heifetz International Music Festival. A composer, baritone, and conductor by training, I received my education at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, Cleveland Institute of Music, and Walnut Hill School for the Arts.
Patricia Ann Neely
I’m an early-bowed string player and teacher who, for several decades, has specialized in the viola da gamba, violone, vielle, and baroque bass. I’ve played with many early-music ensembles here and abroad, and I currently direct Abendmusik – New York’s early-music string band. I am also member of the Board of Viola da Gamba Society of America.
Sian Ricketts
I am an early wind player (recorders and double reeds) and singer in Brooklyn, NY who is deeply invested and interested in the ways in which early music can bridge connections between teachers, students, amateurs, professionals, and listeners. I am a founding member and co-managing director of Alkemie, which specializes in medieval and new music, and a core member of the Renaissance wind band, Piffaro.
Byron Schenkman
I am a Queer Jewish keyboard player based in Seattle where I direct the chamber series Sound Salon. I have recorded on historical keyboards in the National Music Museum, Boston Museum of Fine Arts, and private collections. I have also premiered works by Jean Ahn, Garrett Fisher, Damien Geter, Jonathan Woody, and most recently Caroline Shaw’s Concerto for Harpsichord and Strings which was dedicated to me. I am honored to join the board of EMA.
Andrew Sheranian
Since 2010 I have served as the organist and music director at the Parish of All Saints, Ashmont, in Boston. In 2017, I founded The Bach Project at Ashmont Hill Chamber Music, an ensemble of instrumentalists and vocalists aiming to present the full spectrum of Bach’s music in the Boston area. I hold degrees in music from New England Conservatory of Music and Yale University, and I maintain a busy schedule as guest conductor, choir trainer, organ recitalist and accompanist, and pianist, in addition to time devoted to teaching a growing studio of organ students.
Nina Stern
A native of New York City, I fell in love with the recorder in the third grade and have been playing early music since I can remember. As a performer of recorders, chalumeaux, and historical clarinets, as an educator, and as the Founder and Artistic Director of the mission-driven educational non-profit, S’Cool Sounds, I have enjoyed a great variety of opportunities to play, teach, and share music. With my ensembles East of the River and Rose of the Compass, I have had the good fortune to explore music of many diverse traditions, in the company of extraordinary musicians.
Carrie Sykes
I am President and Owner of Schwalbe & Partners, a highly-respected artist management company representing both world-renowned artists and emerging stars in the early-music world. Originally from Minnesota, I joined S&P in 1993 and became the owner in 2014.
Catherine Turocy
My work is in historical dance with a focus on the 17th and 18th centuries. As Artistic Director and co-founder of The New York Baroque Dance Company, I am thankful to the many artists who have joined us in exploring the depths of historical performance practice since 1976. I wear many hats including dancer, choreographer, stage director, teacher, lecturer, mentor, administrator, producer, fundraiser and writer. Commitment to the art form both on and beyond the stage is important to me. Community is everything.
Dana Whiteside
A native of Boston, I am a soloist and ensemble member with Boston Baroque, Handel and Haydn Society, Emmanuel Music, and Skylark Vocal Ensemble. I also enjoy satisfying work as Deputy Director for Economic Development in Boston and as President of the Board of Emmanuel Music.
