Local Musicians for Hire in Cleveland

Brendon Phelps is forging a path as an engaging cellist and collaborator, characterized by his sense of individuality, depth of expression, and expansive palette of color. His playing has been described by The Strad as “...rich but clear sound and beautiful shaping and leading.”

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As a collaborator, recent notable highlights include performing the Mendelssohn Octet with the Shanghai Quartet at the Tilles Center, as well as his Carnegie Hall debut, premiering string quartet commission from composer Anthony Vine. International concerts have included North and South America as well as Europe in venues such as Casa de la Musica in Quito, Ecuador, and the International Mendelssohn Festival in Hamburg, Germany. Other recitals have included Princetown University, Boston Conservatory, Lunenburg Academy of Music Performance in Nova Scotia, Marilyn Horne Museum, and the Boston Early Music Festival.

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Phelps coached chamber music as part of a one-year residency at Shenandoah Conservatory. He also taught and performed at the Interlochen Academy as a chamber music teaching fellow. He maintains a fully online cello studio with students throughout the US and Canada. A firm believer in outreach, he has frequently visited grade schools to introduce young students to string instruments, present classical music in an engaging manner, and work with the school’s orchestra programs. 

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Phelps received his Bachelor's and Master in music from the University of Akron and the Cleveland Institute of Music, respectively. He also received an Early Music Performance Certificate from Case Western University and an Artists Diploma and string quartet fellowship from the Shanghai Quartet at Montclair State University. His primary teachers were Melissa Kraut and Nick Tzavaras. 

Kyoungmin (Maria) Beyens, from Seoul, South Korea, holds a Bachelor’s degree in violin performance from the Cleveland Institute of Music under the tutelage of Ivan Zenaty, and a Master’s degree from Carnegie Mellon University under the tutelage of Andres Cardenes. Previously, Maria attended Kyungwon University in South Korea and the Windsor Young soloist program in England.

During her CIM years, Maria was a member of the Commodore Quartet which made it to the semi-finalist at the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition. As a chamber musician, Maria has worked and performed with members of the Cleveland, Juilliard, Tokyo, Brentano, Emerson, Takács, Daedalus quartets, and Albers Trio. Maria also performed for NPR’s radio show “Say’s You” and with her quartet received the James Lola Faust Chamber Music Scholarship from Mu Phi Epsilon in 2014. Maria has attended Banff Chamber Music Residency, Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, and National Repertory Orchestra for summer festivals. 

After pursuing her Master’s degree from Carnegie Mellon University, Maria moved back to Cleveland. Maria plays with Firelands Symphony, Erie Philharmonic, Cleveland Pops Orchestra, Mansfield Symphony, Stars in the Classics, and many other groups and organizations around the Cleveland area. In addition to music, she is also a professional chef and has worked with a James Beard-awarded chef. Maria also enjoys playing piano and dancing.

Born in Montréal, Maude Cloutier redefines what it means to be a versatile young musician in the contemporary classical music scene. At only 20 years old, Maude upholds a steady performing career in northeast Ohio and across America, in addition to recently completing the coveted Artist Certificate program at the Cleveland Institute of Music as a full scholarship student under the tutelage of Malcolm Lowe and Jaime Laredo.

Highlights of her spring 2023 season focused on her original, innovative solo violin program designed as time travel from today’s music to Bach: this project was featured in her debut solo recital as part of the Church of the Western Reserve Concert Series in February, her return to the All Seasons Communities in Michigan with a solo concert tour in March, and several other solo performances in the greater Cleveland area.

In addition, she and her duo partner, Steinway Artist Hechengzi Li, formed the Synergy Duo and presented recitals at the Harkness Chapel in Cleveland as well as in Miami and Naples with an original program featuring American, British and Estonian living composers. She also premiered half a dozen new works, notably a piece for violin and piano by Julián Fueyo commissioned by Musical Upcoming Stars in the Classics. She also continued to work with Musical Upcoming Stars in the Classics (M.U.S.i.C.) as their Artist-in-Residence and is excited to collaborate on upcoming concert programs. 

Her season culminated with a thrilling graduation recital in Mixon Hall, featuring all contemporary music and included a special centerpiece: a performance of Arvo Pärt's stunning work for two violins, chamber orchestra, and prepared piano, Tabula Rasa, which she performed with violinist John Fawcett and in collaboration with several CIM students and alumni.

Micaela Murphy is a violist and a violinist in the Northeast Ohio area and holds a Bachelor’s Degree from the Cleveland Institute of Music, under the tutelage of Jeffrey Irvine and Lynne Ramsey of The Cleveland Orchestra. At age 4, she started playing the violin and at age 13, she picked up the viola and completely fell in love with the instrument. She has received first prize at several competitions and has won performances soloing with orchestras across the Midwest Region, including the Springfield Drury Orchestra, Ozarks Youth Orchestra, and Ozark Festival Orchestra, and received an honorable mention at the Ohio Viola Society Competition. She has participated in several summer music festivals, including Boston University Tanglewood Institute, Encore Chamber Music Festival, and the Bowdoin International Music Festival, and received a fellowship at the National Orchestral Institute. In addition to her performance career, she is also an avid orchestral musician and currently holds the principal viola position at the Suburban Symphony Orchestra and section violist with the Snowbelt Symphony Orchestra.

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Additionally, Micaela has devoted herself to being a dedicated violin and viola instructor, studying pedagogy under Jeffery Irvine and Suzuki Pedagogy with Kimberly Meier-Sims at the Cleveland Institute of Music. She has been teaching privately for over ten years and has been invited as a guest teacher to instruct masterclasses with the Ohio Viola Society Convention. With this pedagogical focus, Micaela is certified under the Suzuki Association of the Americas with the Suzuki Pedagogy Method. She has a passion for teaching and sharing her love for music with students of all ages from young as 5 to 67 years, as well as all levels from pre-twinkler to advanced.