YOUNG ARTISTS

PRESTON ATKINS

Preston Atkins is seventeen-years-old and is currently pursuing studies at the Curtis Institute of Music under Daniel Matsukawa. Previously Preston studied at the Idyllwild Arts Academy under Martin Kuuskmann. Among accolades, Preston participated at the 4th International Muri Bassoon Competition (2023). Preston began musical studies at the age of four on piano, and at the age of eleven on bassoon. As an orchestral musician, Preston has been a member of the National Youth Orchestra of the United States of America (NYO-USA) and the New York String Orchestra and has performed under conductors such as Daniel Harding, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, and Osmo Vänskä throughout America and Europe. Preston also is a member of the inaugural chamber music academy of the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence. Influences have also included artists such as Dag Jensen, Sophie Dervaux, Guilhaume Santana, Marco Postinghel, Bence Bogányi, Václav Vonášek, William Short, Judith LeClair, Kim Laskowski, Fei Xie, Philippe Tondre, Stephen Williamson, Kirill Gerstein, Stefan Dohr, Noah Bendix-Balgley, Demarre McGill, and others. Preston has appeared as soloist with ensembles such as the La Crosse Symphony Orchestra and the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra USA with standard concertos by Hummel, Weber, etc. He has also given solo and chamber music recitals in venues such as the New World Center, Field Concert Hall, and the Hôtel Maynier d’Oppède.

YouTube: Preston Atkins Music

NATHAN SHEPHERD

Nathan Shepherd is an eighteen-year-old musician and creative from Lanesville, Indiana. He began playing piano at the age of six and bassoon at 10. An aspiring orchestral and solo bassoonist, he studies bassoon with Francisco Joubert, Matthew Karr, and Roger Soren and piano with Dr. Anna Petrova and Dr. Louie Hehman. In the summer of 2023, Nathan will spend a month under the baton of Maron Alsop at the National Orchestral Institute and in 2021 was in residence with the National Youth Orchestra of the United States (NYO-USA). He also took part in the 2019 NYO2 program, traveling to Miami to perform at the New World Center and finishing the tour at Carnegie Hall. Additionally, Nathan appeared on NPR’s From the Top show #397, hosted by Peter Dugan. Nathan has shared the stage with the Louisville Orchestra to perform Mozart’s Bassoon Concerto and recently won second prize at The President’s Own Marine Band Concerto Competition. He has served as principal bassoonist of the University of Louisville Wind Ensemble, Indiana All-State Orchestra, and traveled with the Kentucky Ambassadors of Music European tour in 2016 and 2018. He has also played in masterclasses for bassoonists such as Miles Maner, Andrew Bradey, Catherine Chen, Gabriel Beavers, Ben Hoadley, and Alex Eastley. This fall Nathan is excited to begin studying bassoon performance with Barrick Stees at the Cleveland Institute of Music. Beyond music, Nathan is passionate about visual design, including calligraphy and hand lettering, as well as creating logos and visual identities.

Instagram @thenathanshepherd
YouTube: Nathan Shepherd Music