Family Concert: Composing our City

Hannah Davis

Soprano

Hannah Davis, soprano, is a versatile vocalist whose artistry spans classical, jazz, musical theatre, pop, and gospel music. Originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, she earned a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance from West Virginia University and a Master of Music degree from the Peabody Institute of The Johns Hopkins University.

Ms. Davis serves as a soprano vocalist with The President's Own United States Marine Band, where she performs at some of the nation's most distinguished ceremonial and public events. Her career has afforded her the opportunity to perform throughout the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area for high-profile audiences and distinguished leaders, earning recognition for her exceptional musicianship, vocal artistry, and commanding stage presence.

In addition to her performance career, Ms. Davis is a dedicated educator who offers private voice lessons and vocal coachings throughout the DMV area. She is passionate about helping singers of all levels develop healthy vocal technique, musical confidence, and expressive artistry, drawing on her extensive training and professional experience to mentor the next generation of performers.

Known for her expressive performances and remarkable stylistic versatility, Ms. Davis brings both technical excellence and heartfelt interpretation to every performance. Whether presenting beloved classical repertoire, captivating jazz standards, inspiring gospel selections, contemporary pop, or musical theatre favorites, she connects with audiences through artistry, authenticity, and passion.

Patrick Morgan

Clarinet

Patrick Morgan’s playing has been praised by the Washington Post as “riveting” and “...a mystical experience.” He has been performing in the DC area since 2008. Patrick accepted a position with the United States Marine Band and Chamber Orchestra at the age of 22; he was appointed Assistant Principal Clarinet in 2012 and has been the Principal Clarinet since 2015. As a frequently featured soloist he has performed many works, including his live recording of Carl Nielsen’s Clarinet Concerto. He was appointed Principal Clarinet of the Fairfax Symphony Orchestra in 2019. He was a Featured Artist for the 2021 virtual ClarinetFest.

As a teacher, he has given masterclasses at prestigious universities across the country, including Indiana University, Eastman School of Music, and Louisiana State University. He received a Bachelor of Music degree in Clarinet Performance from Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music in 2008, where he was a student of Howard Klug. Patrick is a Yamaha  Performing Artist and performs exclusively on their clarinets.

Meredith Riley

Violin Meredith Riley enjoys a varied career as an orchestral player, chamber musician, teacher, jazz violinist, and musical collaborator. She recently served a one year contract position with the National Symphony Orchestra (NSO) in Washington, She has maintained a freelance career playing with the NSO, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, and Pittsburgh Symphony. Prior to her freelance work, Meredith was Associate Principal second violin of the Richmond Symphony Orchestra in Virginia for four years. She completed graduate studies at Carnegie Mellon University under the direction of Andrés Cárdenes, and received her BMus in Violin Performance at the University of Texas. Riley also served as an adjunct professor of violin at Virginia Commonwealth University from 2021-2023. Since 2016, Ms. Riley has been toured with Sphinx Virtuosi throughout the US, each year performing in the country’s most renowned concert halls and venues including Carnegie Hall, Ordway Concert Hall, The Kimmel Center for Performing Arts, Chicago Symphony Hall, The Kennedy Center, The New World Center and more. In February of 2024, Riley joined the NSO on their European tour to Spain, Germany, and Italy, performing in the world’s most impressive concert halls including Berliner Philharmonie, and Kölner Philharmonie in Germany, Auditorio de Zaragoza in Spain, and La Scala in Italy. As a devoted chamber musician, Riley has performed with the Smithsonian Chamber Players on the Axelrod Stradivarius violins at the National Museum of American History in Washington, DC. Ms. Riley’s accolades include first place winner of the string division of SOPA’s excerpt competition [Sphinx Orchestral Partners for Audition] in 2022, and again in 2023. She has received recognition in the Young Texas Artist Awards, Crescendo Music Awards, and National Sphinx Competition. She was a Bank of America Fellow for the National Alliance for Audition Support, and a recipient of a Sphinx MPower Grant in 2015. Solo appearances include those with the Cayuga Chamber Orchestra, Syracuse Symphony Orchestra, New England String Orchestra, both University of Texas Symphony ensembles, the Wintergreen Festival Orchestra, Sunflower Festival Orchestra, and Washington Metropolitan Philharmonic.

Carrie Bean Stute

Cello

Cellist Carrie Bean Stute is co-founder and co-artistic director of the Washington, DC-based Chiarina Chamber Players, a chamber music series and flexible ensemble that has won critical acclaim for its artistry and innovative programming. Carrie’s chamber music performances have been broadcast on Classical WETA’s Front Row Washington. In DC, she performs with the National Symphony Orchestra, has served as an adjunct professor of music at George Washington University, and is currently assistant principal cellist of “The President’s Own” Marine Chamber Orchestra, where she performs in such diverse settings as the White House, area public schools, and for events hosted by the United Nations and State Department.

A performer who seeks out the voices of today, she collaborates with a growing set of composers, including Reinaldo Moya, Mary Kouyoumdjian, Juhi Bansal, and Kennedy Center composer-in-residence Carlos Simon. Carrie authored a doctoral dissertation on the cello works of Pēteris Vasks and in 2021 performed as soloist in the North American premiere of his Cello Concerto No. 2. She took part in the Carnegie Hall workshop “New Voices, New Music” and has performed chamber music at such venues as the Phillips Collection, Zankel Hall, Le Poisson Rouge, Roulette, and an in-house educational residency at the 92nd Street Y.

Carrie holds degrees from The Graduate Center at the City University of New York (Doctor of Musical Arts), Indiana University, and the Eastman School of Music. She was a fellow at the New World Symphony and Tanglewood Music Center. Forthcoming in 2024-25 are recordings of chamber music by Carlos Simon (with Domenic Salerni, Efi Hackmey, and Carl DuPont) and clarinet trios by Brahms and Beethoven (with Robert DiLutis and Rita Sloan).

Efi Hackmey

Piano

Praised for his highly personal interpretations and “feather-light pianism” (Washington Classical Review), Efi Hackmey is recognized for his lyricism and beauty of tone. As Co-Founder and Co-Artistic Director of Chiarina Chamber Players he performs regularly on Chiarina’s concert series, which has won critical acclaim for its artistry and innovative programming, called “some of the most compelling chamber programs in town” by the Washington Post.

Efi has performed at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center’s Rose Studio, the Kennedy Center and Bargemusic, and in the Friends of Mozart series in NYC. In his native Israel he performed as soloist with the Haifa Symphony Orchestra, as well as at the Tel Aviv Museum of Art and Jerusalem Music Center. Efi is often featured on WETA Classical’s Front Row Washington.

A passionate chamber musician, Efi has collaborated with the Attacca Quartet, Imani Winds, clarinetists Ricardo Morales and Charles Neidich, baritone Randall Scarlata, cellist Marcy Rosen and violinists Catherine Cho, Todd Phillips and Nurit Bar-Josef, among others.

Efi’s recordings include the 2025 release of The Best Cuisine: Music of Carlos Simon on the Azica label, and the 2013 album Polish Violin Music on the Naxos label, among others.

Efi has served on the piano faculty at DePauw University, and he also taught at the Indiana University system. He holds a Doctor of Music degree from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, and degrees in piano and conducting from Tel Aviv University. He studied with Menahem Pressler, Pnina Salzman and Dina Turgeman, and has had additional coaching with Lazar Berman, Emanuel Ax, Richard Goode, Janos Starker and Jaime Laredo.