Stephen Paulus (b. 1949) is a prolific composer of over 400 works. He is fluent in all genres, including  orchestra, opera, chorus, chamber ensemble, solo voice, concert band, piano and organ. Born August 24, 1949 in Summit, New Jersey, Paulus has lived most of his life in Minnesota. He co-founded the American Composers Forum in 1973 and continues to work on behalf of his colleagues  as the Symphony and Concert representative on the ASCAP Board of Directors. His music has been commissioned,  recorded and performed by such varied performers as The New York Philharmonic, Cleveland Orchestra, Atlanta Symphony  Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, Washington Opera, Los Angeles Master Chorale,  The Dale Warland Singers, VocalEssence, Doc Severinsen, Thomas Hampson and Deborah Voigt.

Alex Shapiro (b. New York City, 1962) composes acoustic and electroacoustic pieces known for their lyricism and drama. Published by Activist Music, her music is heard daily in concerts and broadcasts across the U.S. and internationally, and can be found on over twenty commercially released CDs from record labels around the world. Educated at The Juilliard School and Manhattan School of Music as a student of Ursula Mamlok and John Corigliano, Ms. Shapiro's honors and awards include those from The American Music Center, ASCAP, the American Composers Forum, Mu Phi Epsilon, Meet the Composer, The California Arts Council and The MacDowell Colony. An enthusiastic leader in the new music community, Alex advocates for other artists through her speaking appearances and her published articles. She currently serves on the Board of Directors of the American Music Center and The MacDowell Colony, sits on ASCAP's Symphony & Concert Committee and the ASCAP Board of Review, and is the past President of the Board of Directors of the American Composers Forum of Los Angeles. Raised in Manhattan and later a longtime resident of Malibu, California, Alex now lives on Washington State's remote San Juan Island. When she's not composing she can be found communing with the sea life, as seen on her music and photo-filled blog, www.notesfromthekelp.com and her website, www.alexshapiro.org.

The Fountain City Ensemble has performed throughout the USA and Japan at such prestigious events as the North American Saxophone Alliance National Conference, the International Clarinet Fest, and the joint national conferences of the American Musicological Society and Society for Music Theory.  Based at the Schwob School of Music at Columbus State University in Columbus, Georgia, the group’s members are: Andrée Martin, flute; Lisa Oberlander, clarinet; Amy Griffiths, saxophone; and Paul Vaillancourt, percussion.  The group frequently performs re-imaginings of modern works from a variety of disciplines such as composer Terry Riley's In C and director Fritz Lang's Metropolis.

Suzanne Sorkin (b. 1974) is active as a composer and educator.  She has received awards and commissions from the Fromm Music Foundation at Harvard University, Chamber Music Now, Third Millennium Ensemble, counter)induction, ASCAP, and others.  Her work has been programmed on Piano Spheres in Los Angeles, Washington Square Contemporary Music Society, Denison University New Music Festival, Chamber Music Quad Cities, Florida State University Festival of New Music, and Vassar Modfest.  She has written for ensembles including the Mannes Trio, Cabrini Quartet, Cleveland Chamber Symphony, Third Angle, and Aspen Contemporary Ensemble.  She has been a composition fellow at the Wellesley Composers Conference, the Ernest Bloch Composers Symposium, the Advanced Masterclasses in Composition at the Aspen Music Festival, and the Oregon Bach Composers Symposium.  Residencies include Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, Ragdale Foundation, Artists’ Enclave at I-Park, Kimmel Harding Nelson Center, and Atlantic Center for the Arts.  She received her Ph.D. in composition from the University of Chicago through the support of a four-year Century Fellowship in the Humanities.   In Fall 2005, Suzanne Sorkin joined the faculty at Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia as Assistant Professor of Music where she teaches composition, theory, and history.