Hailed as a “real virtuoso” by the late Ruth Laredo, pianist and conductor Michael Shane Wittenburg is the Music Director and Conductor of the Youth Opera at Sarasota Opera. He has served as vocal coach and assistant conductor with both Orlando Opera and Sarasota Opera. As an Assistant Professor of Music at Lee University where he served as Music Director of both the Chamber Orchestra and Opera Theatre, he led performances of Sousa’s El Capitan, Puccini’s Suor Angelica, Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Mikado, Johann Strauss Jr.’s Die Fledermaus, Mozart’s The Magic Flute, and Virgil Thomson’s The Mother of Us All. He has made solo appearances as pianist with the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, The Chattanooga Symphony and Opera, the World Youth Symphony Orchestra, the Eastman Wind Ensemble, and, most recently, the Ocala Symphony, where he will return to perform Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini in October. He has been a violinist and Principal Keyboardist with the Brevard Symphony Orchestra, and has served as interim Conductor of the Chattanooga Symphony Youth Orchestra. In 2002 he joined the faculty of the Heifetz International Music Institute in Wolfeboro, NH as a collaborative pianist and sonata coach, and has appeared in collaborative recital with such artists as Metropolitan Opera soprano Stella Zambalis and concert violinist Livia Sohn.

    A graduate of the Interlochen Arts Academy, Mr. Wittenburg’s training includes Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Piano Performance from the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY, where he studied with Fernando Laires and Alan Feinberg, and held a Fellowship in opera coaching. In 2001 he finished a second Master’s degree in Orchestral Conducting from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. His teachers include Henry Charles Smith, David Effron, Dr. Steven Bird, and, most recently, Michael Jinbo at the renowned Pierre Monteux School for Conductors and Orchestral Musicians, where he was awarded the 2007 Osher Scholar prize. He was named a 2008 Mary Ragland Young Artist at Nashville Opera, where he directed 66 performances of the world premiere children’s opera, The Ugly Duckling. He received a Superior Performance in Piano award upon his graduation from Interlochen in 1992, was awarded the prestigious Performer’s Certificate upon receiving his Bachelor of Music degree from Eastman in 1996, and has been granted inclusion in multiple editions of Who’s Who.

    Arnold Irchai was born into a musical family. His father worked at the Kirov Opera and Ballet Theater as a violinist for over forty years and his mother was a prominent piano teacher. Dr. Irchai began studying bassoon at the Leningrad Special Music School for Gifted Children and continued his studies at the State Leningrad Conservatory, USSR, where he received his masters and doctoral degrees. From 1974 to 1990, he was principal bassoonist of the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra under such world-renowned conductors as Kiril Kondrashin and Dmitry Kitaenko. Dr. Irchai taught bassoon at the Gnessins Music Pedagogical Institute in Moscow, Russia. He has toured Europe, Asia and the Americas with the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra and other world-class orchestras. His recent solo performances include appearances in Lincoln Center, NY, and Kennedy Center, Washington, DC. Until recently, Dr. Irchai was with the faculty of the Washington Conservatory of Music, Washington, DC, and Columbia Union College, Takoma Park, MD, and the the Principal Bassoon of Arlington Symphony, Arlington, VA, and Prince William Symphony, Manassas, VA.

    Currently, Dr. Irchai is the Principal Bassoon of the National Chamber Orchestra and the Program Director of the Mount Vernon Music Festival. He is also a faculty member of the Summit Music Festival, Tarrytown, NY.