Piano Alumni

Lindsay Garritson, D.M.A. ’20 recently gave her Carnegie Hall Recital Debut featuring the world premiere performance of Carl Vine’s Piano Sonata No. 4, a work written for her in 2019. In January  2020, she gave the U.K. premiere of Vine's Piano Sonata No. 4 at the Royal College of Music in London in addition to leading a workshop of Vine’s piano music.

Concurrently, Lindsay released an album titled "Aphorisms: Piano Music of Carl Vine," which has received great critical acclaim. Gramophone magazine praised the album with "Garritson’s dazzling technique, poised assurance, rhythmic suppleness, and clarion sonority are exactly what this repertoire needs. She makes child’s play out of all the bravura passages, from rapid counterpoint at opposite ends of the keyboard to the torrential climaxes of both the First and Fourth Sonatas." American Record Guide wrote "Ms. Garritson is a superb pianist with beautiful touch and phrasing in the slow music and stunning technique in the faster music. It's worth the investment just to hear her."

A veteran of the concert stage with an extensive repertoire, Lindsay intends to continue her passion for performing as a recitalist, chamber musician, and commissioning new works.

Marina Radiushina, D.M.A. ‘10 was accepted into a two-year residency at Carnegie Hall called The Academy, where she performed regularly in chamber settings and worked with world-renowned artists. A competition winner and finalist, she has been described as a virtuoso whose playing is distinguished by the rare depth of interpretation and understanding of style and a pianist with enormous temperament and maturity.

The Academy selects up to 20 of the world’s finest young professional musicians to be part of the program and provides them with varied professional experiences including ensemble performances in Carnegie Hall, The Juilliard School, and Skidmore College; school partnerships within the New York City public school system; residencies at Skidmore College; and the opportunity to propose and develop community-based group projects. It provides support and benefits for the fellows while part of The Academy and a professional network. Radiushina majored in keyboard performance at the Frost School of Music.

Misha Dacic, B.M. ‘07, recorded an album titled Liszt: Piano Music for a Dutch record label. Listeners have said "this is one of the finest and most important recordings of Liszt’s music ever made," and "the engineering of this CD is absolutely first-rate."

Dacić has played in numerous international competitions including several Yugoslav regional piano competitions, the First Piano Competition in Novi Sad Yugoslavia, and the Liszt Competition in Budapest. In 2002, he won top honors at the Premio Silvio Bengalli Competition for Pianists in Piacenza, Italy. Dacić made his American debut at the Miami International Piano Festival in 2003. Dacić also appears in solo recitals and as a guest soloist, in Central and South America, Europe, the Middle East, and Japan. In 2009, he joined the legendary violinist Ida Haendel on a tour in Japan, performing with her all over the world ever since.

Dacić studied with Professor Frank Cooper at the Frost School of Music, where he majored in keyboard performance.

Martin Camacho Zavaleta, D.M.A. ‘06 was appointed Dean of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences of the Community College of Rhode Island, the largest community college in New England, in Fall 2010. In addition, he performed piano recitals in Italy and released his first album with Ruiz Armengol’s Cuban Dances under the Digital Urtext label in late 2010. He majored in keyboard performance at the Frost School of Music.

Armen Shaomian, D.M.A. '08, M.M. '05 started his own arts and business consulting company, Armenize Inc., specializing in helping non-profits and businesses reach their goals while staying true to their mission. He was the national program manager and associate producer of the YoungArts program at the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts.  During his time with NFAA, he was instrumental in logistical and strategic planning for the Foundation, helping them fiscally while enhancing their programming.  He was the NFAA liaison for the Smithsonian American Art Museum and The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC as well as the Baryshnikov Arts Center in New York. His book on Swedish National-Romantic Music was published by VDM Verlag and is available on Amazon. He majored in keyboard performance at the Frost School of Music. 

Maria Halloway, D.M.A. ‘03, was invited by the National Foundation for the Advancement in the Arts to participate as a collaborative pianist for YoungArts Week. She was invited to participate again in 2012, which was held at the New World Symphony venue in Miami Beach. 

In Summer 2011, Holloway taught piano classes at the Greater Miami Youth Symphony summer camp. She performed Rachmaninoff's second piano concerto with the El Salvador National Symphony Orchestra. Her piano playing was featured in the soundtrack of the documentary film “Portraits of the Malecon,” which was shown at the MiamiDoc Film Festival.

Holloway maintains an active career as a freelance collaborative pianist, playing for various auditions, recordings, and recitals in South Florida.

Holloway majored in keyboard performance at the Frost School of Music.

Music Director and Bandleader for Cirque du Soleil’s Amaluna, Christianna Crowl, launched an online mentorship program for aspiring musicians called “Musician to Music-preneur”; all while serving as Musical Director at the prestigious Stagedoor Manor Training Center and Project Change’s Youth Leadership Initiative.

From 2017-2018, she performed with the Maryland Symphony Orchestra, San Diego Symphony, and keyboards for Englebert Humperdinck’s The Man I Want to Be Tour.

"The level of musicianship of both my teachers and peers at UM was unparalleled. So much talent – it was a high bar to learn from and one I am so grateful to have had."

Impressaria Judy Drucker, B.M. ‘48 was named University of Miami Frost School of Music 1986 Distinguished Alumna. She was responsible for establishing the Concert Association of Florida as one of the state’s most formidable artistic presenting organizations. For four decades under her leadership, the Concert Association of Florida never wavered in its mission to present world-class orchestras, classical artists, and dance in South Florida.

Drucker founded the “Great Artists Series,” presenting a host of internationally eminent classical musicians that included Luciano Pavarotti, Plácido Domingo, José Carreras, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Zubin Mehta, Beverly Sills, Cecilia Bartoli, and Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, among others. She brought in renowned orchestras such as the New York Philharmonic, London Symphony Orchestra, Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Boston Pops, and the Israel Philharmonic. A pioneer in bringing world-class dance companies to South Florida, Drucker presented the American Ballet Theatre, the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, The Dance Theatre of Harlem, the Bolshoi Ballet, The Royal Ballet of Covent Garden, and the Joffrey Ballet, among others.

Drucker frequently arranged master classes and performances for young people in the community, working with such artists as Twyla Tharp, James Galway, Yo-Yo Ma, Wynton Marsalis, and André Watts. She joined the Florida Grand Opera in 2009 as Senior Artistic Advisor to present their Superstar Concert Series.

Drucker was a recipient of the Governor’s Award for the Arts and served on the Florida Fine Arts Council. A musician herself, she studied piano at the New York College of Music, as well as voice at The Juilliard School and the Curtis Institute of Music. Drucker performed on Broadway and with the Greater Miami-Dade Opera (now Florida Grand Opera).

She passed away on March 30, 2020.