MacPhail Presents: Mysticism, Legends, and Traditions: From Darkness to Light
Discover a captivating musical exploration of the human experience.
This evening is sure to be an unforgettable evening of music featuring the compositions of three talented young artists: Iván Rodríguez (Puerto Rico), Lora Al-Ahmad (Bulgaria/Jordan), and Marc Migó (Catalonia/Spain).
While their trios are based on subjects seemingly unrelated to one another, a common thread is the journey from darkness to light, the resilience of the human spirit, and the celebration of good over evil. This program’s diversity, combined with the universality of its themes, creates a space for multicultural dialogue and a unified human experience.
This concert, curated by MacPhail piano faculty Miryana Moteva, promises a unique and enriching experience.
Moteva will perform alongside MacPhail faculty Dr. Irina Elkina and Nina Olsen, with guest artists David Brubaker and Sonia Mantell.
Curator & Performers
Bulgarian-born pianist Miryana Moteva enjoys a versatile career as a soloist, chamber musician and educator. She has recently appeared with Linden Hills Chamber Orchestra in Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 1 and Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 24. Next season, shemakes her debut with Golden Valley Chamber Orchestra and Buffalo Community Orchestra performing Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 5 and Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No. 2.
Moteva collaborates regularly with members of the Minnesota Orchestra in concerts
across the US, including the Schubert Club Courtroom Concerts in Saint Paul, the Bulgarian Concert Evenings in New York, New Jersey’s Mozaika Music Series, University of Wisconsin, Hamline University, University of Minnesota’s Balkanicus Series, MacPhail Center for Music’s Spotlight Concerts, the Basilica of Saint Mary, the Fitzgerald Theater, and the Cowles Center, among others. She has concertized with the Isles Ensemble and 10th Wave Music Collective. Her performances have been featured on Classical MPR and NPR’s ‘From the Top.’
During the 2024-2025 season, Moteva can be heard on University of Saint Thomas’ Chapel Arts Series, on St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church’s ‘Concerts by the Creek’ Series, and at Westminster Hall in Minneapolis. She also appears as both a concert curator and a performer for the ‘Mysticism, Legends and Traditions’ Spotlight Performance and ‘The Catalan Tradition: Volume 2’ showcase at MacPhail Center for Music.
An ardent supporter of new classical music, Moteva has been an active commissioner of new works. Her most recent commission, in collaboration with duo-partner violinist David Brubaker, was Catalonian composer Marc Migó’s Sonata for Violin and Piano ‘Death and Spring.’ Following the work’s successful premiere at the Schubert Club in April 2023, the duo was invited to embark on a concert tour of Spain and record a Catalan Music CD on the IBS Classical Music Label in the summer of 2025.
Moteva has appeared at festivals such as ‘March Music Days,’ and ‘Music and Earth’ international festivals in Bulgaria, and ‘San Daniele International Piano Meeting’ in Italy. Currently, she is on the faculty of MacPhail Center for Music, where she serves as a staff pianist and maintains a thriving studio as a piano teaching artist.
Moteva holds Bachelor and Master of Music degrees in Piano Performance, and a Doctorate in Collaborative Piano from the University of Minnesota. A native of Bulgaria, she is a graduate of the National School of Music in Sofia, Bulgaria. Her principal teachers include Emma Tahmizian, Lydia Artymiw, and Timothy Lovelace.
Irina Elkina is an internationally recognized concert pianist, known particularly for piano duo performances with her twin sister Julia, with whom she brings brilliant interpretations of two-piano repertoire. Together with Julia she is a winner of the Citta di Marsala Competition in Italy and the 4th Murray Dranoff International Two Piano Competition. They have performed at venues such as the Ordway Center in St. Paul and Lincoln Center in New York, and have appeared at numerous festivals, including Ravinia, the Gilmore Keyboard Festival, and Minnesota Orchestra Sommerfest. The American Record Guide has praised Irina and Julia for their “truly remarkable oneness” while recognizing that “each is a formidable pianist in her own right.”
Irina is a graduate of the St. Petersburg Conservatory (Russia) and holds a doctoral degree in Piano Performance from the University of Minnesota. She has previously served as the chair of the Keyboard Department at the MacPhail Center for Music, where she currently teaches piano. Irina is also on the faculty of the University of St. Thomas. She has performed with conductors such as Hugh Wolff and Bobby McFerrin, and her recent solo projects include performing Beethoven’s Diabelli Variations at the Park Square Theater’s production of 33 Variations.
She is an active chamber music collaborator and has worked with various Twin Cities musicians on a wide variety of repertoire, ranging from baroque to contemporary music.
Tucson, Arizona native David Brubaker began his orchestral career with the Tucson Symphony at the age of 16, and has since performed with numerous orchestras including the Grand Rapids, Oregon, Pacific and Houston Symphonies. He joined the Minnesota Orchestra in 2003, where he has served as assistant principal second, associate concertmaster and is now in his 18th year as a member of the first violin section. During the summer season, Mr. Brubaker enjoys performing with the Grand Teton Music Festival orchestra in Jackson, Wyoming.
An active recitalist and chamber musician, David Brubaker performs across the Twin Cities and nationally. He has been a soloist with the Manhattan School of Music, the Tucson Pops Orchestra and the Mississippi Valley Orchestra. Most recently, he was proud to commission and perform the U.S. premiere of Marc Migó’s Sonata for Violin and Piano ‘Death and Spring’ at the Schubert Club Courtroom Concert Series in Saint Paul, Minnesota.
Mr. Brubaker earned a Bachelor’s degree from the Manhattan School of Music and a Master’s degree from Rice University Shepherd School of Music.
Sonia Mantell, cellist from Orland Park, Illinois, studied at New England Conservatory and DePaul School of Music under the tutelage of Natasha Brofksy and Brant Taylor. She was appointed co-principal cellist of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago in 2014-16. While attending DePaul, she won the Concerto Competition with violinist Ari Urban and performed the Brahms Double Concerto with the DePaul Symphony. She attended Tanglewood for five summers (‘15-‘19), the last two as the cellist of the New Fromm Quartet program. Sonia won a substitute position with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in 2016 and has performed with both the CSO and their MusicNow series of contemporary music. Sonia played with Lyric Opera of Chicago for a one year contract in their 2018/19 season and won a cello section position in December of 2018. Sonia is currently in her 4th year as a member of the Minnesota Orchestra.
Nina Olsen joined MacPhail’s clarinet faculty in 1991. Music is her source of expression and the place where she learned to achieve excellence. She loves working with a wide variety of students and hope to help each one teach themselves to achieve excellence.
Currently, Nina teaches at Carleton College, and previously at St. Cloud State and St. Olaf College.
She is a member of the Minnesota Opera Orchestra, an artist member of Thursday Musical, and an active freelance musician in the Twin Cities area. Nina is a frequent performer on faculty recitals at MacPhail Center for Music, Carleton College and the International Music Camp in North Dakota. She is co-president of the Minnesota chapter of the International Clarinet Society. She holds a DMA in Clarinet Performance from the University of Minnesota, a
Master’s of Music in Woodwinds, Clarinet Specialist from the University of Michigan, and a Bachelor’s in Clarinet Performance from the University of Denver.