Shepherd Spotlight concerts highlight the breadth of student talent across departments: conducting, composition, instrumental, and vocal. The evening opens with the world premiere of Gavin Sol Goodrich's A Breathing Work of Art, written in honor of his mother. Following a showcase of orchestral songs featuring standout vocalists, Shepherd School Concerto Competition winner Samantha Washecka takes the spotlight for Brahms’s Violin Concerto, a Romantic-era masterpiece with sweeping lyricism and formidable technical demands.
*This performance will not have an intermission
Tickets required, reserved seating
Repertoire
Gavin Sol Goodrich (MM ’26): A Breathing Work of Art (World Premiere)
Orchestral songs featuring Shepherd School vocal students
Brahms: Violin Concerto in D Major
Artists
Violinist Samantha Washecka is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Music from the Shepherd School of Music studying under Dorothy Richard Starling Chair in Classical Violin Kathleen Winkler. Samantha was a 2026 Shepherd School Concerto Competition Winner.
Ana Spasovska, Kyle Haake and Clayton Hinton are currently pursuing master’s degrees in Orchestral Conducting under Professor Miguel Harth-Bedoya. In addition to their roles as assistant conductors of Shepherd School Orchestra ensembles, they are also Associate Conductors of Rice University's Campanile Orchestra.
