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John Larry Granger Conductor Back to Staff

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Stewart Robinson Conductor Back to Staff

Artistic Staff Alan Truong Music Director Alan Truong — conductor, educator, presenter — is a rising force in the sphere of American music, connecting music with the experiences of performers and listeners alike. He was recently Cover Conductor for the New York Philharmonic’s Art of the Score concert series and has made public appearances with the Juilliard Lab Orchestra and the Aspen Conducting Academy Orchestra. With the Juilliard Orchestra, he has assisted some of the leading conductors of this generation, including Bertrand de Billy and Donald Runnicles. In 2023, he served as Assistant Conductor for the Aspen Festival Orchestra, in addition to being a fellow at the Conducting Academy. In the Winter of 2022, he stepped in on 48 hours’ notice to conduct AXIOM, Juilliard’s New Music Ensemble in a concert of world premieres. In 2025, Alan came full circle when he was named the first alumni Music Director of Youth Music Monterey County, having spent formative years in the orchestras as an adolescent playing the Bassoon. A Salinas native, he is a galvanized advocate for music education in under-resourced communities, a result of being raised in his hometown’s Youth Orchestra of Salinas, an El Sistema-inspired program. He continuously serves as a Teaching Artist, actively forming the future generation of the musical community in a city historically afflicted by an arts drought. In the past, he has worked extensively with the Juilliard Pre-College Orchestra, the Northern Ohio Youth Orchestras, and is a regular guest conductor with the Rochester Youth Philharmonic Orchestra. He has participated in masterclasses with some of today’s foremost conductors and pedagogues, including Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Bertrand de Billy, Robert Spano, Cristian Măcelaru, and James Ross. Alan was a recipient of the Benzaquen Career Advancement Grant and the Bruno Walter Memorial Scholarship. As of 2024, he holds a Master of Music in Orchestral Conducting from the Juilliard School under the auspices of David Robertson. He also holds a Bachelor of Music in Bassoon Performance from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music. Back to Staff

Artistic Staff Igor Poklad Director, Woodwind Chamber Ensembles A native of Odessa (Ukraine), Igor Poklad began his musical studies at the Odessa State Conservatory of Music (Clarinet Performance). Having moved to the United States, he continued his education at the San Francisco State University (BM Magna Cum Laude in Clarinet Performance and MM in Music History). While studying at SFSU, he excelled as a chamber music performer and soloists, winning Fremont Symphony Orchestra’s Solo Competition with his performance of Claude Debussy’s Premiere Rhapsody . Following the completion of his studies, Mr. Poklad joined the US Air Force Band of the Golden West and performed extensively throughout the United States. Additionally, Mr. Poklad has performed with a number of the Bay Area orchestras and ensembles (Napa Valley Symphony, San Francisco Concerto Orchestra, Vallejo Symphony, North Bay Philharmonic). Later, he was stationed in Germany as a member of the United States Air Forces in Europe (USAFE) Band, where he was in charge of the Clarinet Quartet. While performing with the USAFE Clarinet Quartet, Mr. Poklad toured throughout Europe and the Middle East. Some of the highlights of his performances overseas include appearances at musical festivals and subscription concerts in Belgium, Great Britain, Italy, Poland, Latvia, Israel, Serbia and Bulgaria. In addition to performing on clarinet and bass clarinet, Mr. Poklad enjoys playing Renaissance and Baroque music on a variety of recorders. Back to Staff

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Artistic Staff Aleksey Klyushnik Chamber Players Aleksey Klyushnik holds the Master of Music degree from Yale University and both the Bachelor of Music degree and the Artist Diploma from Colburn Conservatory in Los Angeles. Aleksey has always had great passion for chamber music. He has performed in the most elaborate instrumentation ensembles where he played music ranging from medieval to newly composed works. As a chamber musician he collaborated with many top artists. Aleksey was invited to Chamber Music Northwest for two consecutive summers as Protégé Project fellow. Also, Aleksey had been a member of the Maestro Chamber Music Academy in Santa Monica, and participated in the Yellow Barn Chamber Music Festival. As an orchestral musician Aleksey participated in Pacific, Verbier and Lucerne music festivals performing in venues throughout Europe, US and Japan. Aleksey has collaborated with many great conductors, some of which include Pierre Boulez, Valeriy Gergiev, Charles Dutoit, Andrew Davis, Mikhail Pletnev, Esa-Pekka Salonen and Zubin Mehta. Aleksey has performed regularly with several orchestras in Southern California, including San Diego Symphony, Opera Pacific Orchestra and Long Beach Symphony. Currently he serves as Assistant Principal Bass with Santa Cruz and Stockton Symphonies and has played with multiple ensembles and orchestras in the Bay Area and Central California including San Francisco Symphony and Opera. In addition to his performance career Aleksey is a dedicated teacher and maintains a private studio of over 20 cello and double bass students. Back to Staff

Woodwind Ensemble The 2019-2020 Woodwind Ensemble. The YMMC Woodwind Ensemble program consists of woodwind duo, trio, quartet, and quintet ensemble groups that meet on a weekly basis. Open to all woodwind musicians in the YMMC orchestras, participating students gain exposure to classical chamber music repertoire in an environment that encourages musical development. Students will develop team-based leadership skills, critical thinking skills, and deepen their ability to imagine and express themselves musically. Musicians involved in the woodwind ensembles program are considered YMMC ambassadors, and as such are enthusiastic performers in interactive outreach concerts that are typically organized toward the end of the season. Performance venues continue to evolve and currently include Carmel Bach Festival, assisted-living residences, and an end-of-season Woodwind and Brass Ensembles Recital. As with all our chamber music programs, all woodwind students enrolled in the YMMC orchestra are eligible – and encouraged – to participate in the Woodwind Ensemble. There is no additional fee for participation. Audition

South County Strings Call (831) 375-1992 for Registration Information Youth Music Monterey's South County Strings program brings free instruction and string instruments to students in grades 3-8 in southern Monterey County. A team of music instructors provides violin, viola, and cello instruction in group lessons during the school day. Students are not charged for the lessons and instruments are provided by YMMC. Music classes begin in September and run throughout the school year through June. The program is designed to introduce new students to music and string instruments and to help intermediate students develop their skills. Students receive a minimum of two hours of instruction per week, give in-school and after-school performances for their peers, and perform at community venues. Students also receive free or subsidized tickets to concerts throughout Monterey County and attend workshops with visiting musicians—such as the YMMC Chamber Players, who visit the schools to perform for and work with young string students. Youth Music Monterey's South County Strings program is a partnership with the Soledad Unified School District and Bradley Union School District to provide students to study cello, viola, and violin in areas where music education and performance opportunities are sparse.

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Administrative Staff Candis Badgley Carlson Programs Director Clarinetist Candis Badgley Carlson enjoys a multifaceted career as a sought-after chamber musician, educator, freelancer, and arts administrator. Currently, she is the Program Assistant at Youth Music Monterey County. Previously, she has been the Woodwinds Teaching Artist with Youth Orchestra Salinas as well as a faculty member at California State University Northridge, teaching clarinet and chamber music. In demand as a chamber musician, Candis has performed with numerous chamber groups, including the LA Chamber Music Company, the Felici Trio, N’Cinq Woodwind Quintet, Exploration Music Project, CSUN ChamberFest, and most recently with the Monterey County Pops Woodwind Quintet. Mrs. Badgley Carlson also founded Valley Chamber Ensembles, a Los Angeles-based non-profit that strives to enrich the community by providing an experience and an education through chamber music. Through four seasons, she programmed several unique concerts and became a grantee of the Los Angeles County Department of Arts and Culture. An active orchestral musician, Mrs. Badgley Carlson has performed with several orchestras including OperaSLO, Mission Opera, Lompoc Pops Orchestra, Ventura Symphony Orchestra, Sierra Nevada Pops Orchestra, Valencia Philharmonic, Moorpark Ballet Company, and Monterey County Pops. She has performed as a soloist with the CSUN Symphony Orchestra as a winner of the 2016 Concerto Competition. Additionally, Candis has recorded for motion pictures, several short films, and can be heard on the Marks Record recording “Music from the Heart from the Heartland.” Additional experience includes recording for the BMI program Uni Music Mentors with Emmy-nominated composers Cindy O’Connor, Rebecca Kneubuhl, and Tony Morales. Most recently she can be heard on bass clarinet on the motion picture soundtrack SICK. Mrs. Badgley Carlson received her Bachelor of Music from Wichita State University under Dr. Suzanne Tirk and her Master of Music from California State University Northridge under Dr. Julia Heinen. Back to Staff