Bringing Broadway's incredible musicians from the pit to the stage!
Karen Bogardus - flute
Ms. Bogardus earned her Bachelor of Music degree from the New England Conservatory and Master of Music degree from Northwestern University. While living in Mexico, she held several principal flute positions and appeared as a soloist regularly. In New York, Ms Bogardus currently holds the principal flute positions with the Binghamton Philharmonic, Berkshire Opera Festival, Martina Arroyo Foundation Opera, and has performed with the Buffalo Philharmonic, American Ballet Theater Orchestra, Northeastern Pennsylvania Philharmonic, Gotham Chamber Opera, Teatro Grattacielo Opera Company, American Symphony Orchestra, Albany Symphony, New Jersey Festival Orchestra, Greenwich Symphony Orchestra, Allentown Symphony, Dorian Quintet, several Broadway Shows and dozens of other NY based orchestras. She can be heard on numerous TV and film sound tracks. Currently she teaches at the 92nd St Y, and the Stamford Music and Arts Academy. Ms. Bogardus is a prizewinner of the Myrna Brown and Artists International Competitions and won first place in the Continuo Arts Foundation Young Artists Competition with her chamber group, Emerald Trio. Emerald Trio recorded a CD of pieces written for them by New York City based composers, which was released on Naxos.
Orlando Wells - violin
Mr. Wells attended the State University of New York at Purchase as a double major on violin and viola and continued his studies at the Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers in the studio of Michael Tree.
Among the many ensembles he’s played with are; the Northeastern Pennsylvania Philharmonic, St. Luke’s Chamber Orchestra, Radio City Christmas Spectacular orchestra, Knickerbocker Chamber Orchestra, Musica Sacre, New York Oratorio Society, and the Ritz Chamber Players in Jacksonville, Florida. Mr. Wells was a featured chamber musician with the Walla Walla Chamber Music festival and the Sunflower Music Festival in Topeka Kansas. He has appeared as soloist with Manhattan Virtuosi, the Harlem Symphony, and Antara Chamber Orchestra.
Mr. Wells has performed and recorded with great artists such as Bruce Springsteen, John Legend, Rihanna, Harry Connick Jr., Johnny Mathis, Tony Bennett, and many others. He also has performed on dozens of the greatest shows on Broadway.
Currently, he is the principal violist of the New York Pops, holds the violin/viola chair at the Broadway show “Funny Girl”, and is violist of the critically acclaimed Sweet Plantain String Quartet.
Arthur Dibble - viola
Violist, violinist, and conductor Arthur Dibble enjoys a wonderful free-lance musician’s life in New York City. Diverse styles of music have taken him all over the world, from touring with Barbra Streisand, Led Zeppelin, various string quartets and the St. Louis Symphony to right here at home on the major stages of New York City and the surrounding region with orchestras, chamber groups and Broadway stars. He is currently music director for his lovely wife, mezzo-soprano Sishel Claverie, on theater/recital projects, and plays viola with the Leadlights Ensemble, performing hyper-locally to bring community together. Arthur enjoys teaching and performing for the Midori Foundation in inner city schools and is the Music Performance Manager for the Bronx Arts Ensemble. You can also often find him in recording studios during the day, Broadway show pits in the evenings, feeding his espresso obsession in a café, or chasing his son and daughter around the world.
Garo Yellin - cello
Garo Yellin (Cello) was born in NYC and grew up in Greenwich Village. His principal teachers were Frederick Wise, Jerome Carrington and Channing Robbins.
Mr Yellin performs regularly in chamber ensembles and orchestras including the Oratorio Society, Musica Sacra and the Parlando Chamber Orchestra. Broadway credits include more than 25 shows. He originated the on stage cello role in The Band’s Visit which received 10 Tony awards, a Grammy, and an Emmy. As a studio musician, Mr Yellin has hundreds of credits on classical, popular, and film recordings.
Jennifer Wharton - conductor & bass trombone
Jennifer Wharton is a low brass specialist based in New York City. Though getting her start classically, Jen has planted deep roots in jazz and commercial music. She can usually be found honking out low notes in a Broadway pit, a recording studio, on stage or in a big band section. Jen is a member of multiple Grammy-nominated jazz orchestras, Darcy James Argue’s Secret Society, Alan Ferber Big Band and the Terraza Big Band. Jennifer leads the trombone forward jazz septet, Bonegasm, and will release her third album on Sunnyside Records in October 2023. She has received a 2020 NYFA Women’s Grant and a 2023 Chamber Music America Grant. This is her conducting debut.
Mark Broschinsky - trombone
MARK BROSCHINSKY has performed with numerous orchestras, including the New York Philharmonic, the New Jersey Symphony, New World Symphony, the Utah Symphony Orchestra, and the Britten-Pears Festival Orchestra in England. He has been a featured solo recitalist at the University of California – Santa Barbara, Brigham Young University, Capital University, and Snow College. He also performed the Wagenseil Concerto for Alto Trombone at Westminster College in Salt Lake City, UT. He has appeared at such New York City venues as Le Poisson Rouge, Zankell Hall, Merkin Concert Hall, the Galapagos Art Space, the Tank, and John Zorn’s performance space, the Stone.
With an insatiable appetite for the new and unusual, Mark has commissioned and premiered numerous works. He is a core member of ensemble mise- en and has also performed with Wet Ink, Talea Ensemble, Argento New Music Project, Alarm Will Sound, and was a featured soloist at the New York Electronic Arts Music Festival. Mark actively participates in community outreach and is on the faculty of the Third Street Music School Settlement and Camp MSM in New York City. Mark earned his Bachelor’s degree from the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. He received a Master’s degree in trombone performance at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, and a Graduate Performance diploma with Norman Bolter at the Longy School of Music in Cambridge. He earned the Doctor of Musical Arts degree at the Manhattan School of Music.
Reginald Chapman - trombone
Dr. Reginald Chapman, Jr. resides in New York City as a low brass multi-instrumentalist, composer, and educator. He received his BA in classical bass trombone from Virginia Commonwealth University and his MM and DMA in jazz bass trombone from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign under the tutelage of Jim Pugh. Reginald enjoys interfacing with a variety of situations and genres; his career includes a long list of studio credits and extensive touring itineraries with brass bands (Lucky Chops, No BS Brass) and indie rock groups (Foxygen), as well as Broadway (Frozen) and classical and jazz performances (Hollenbeck, Argue). When not touring, Reginald teaches and schedules his own performances. In 2018, he released his debut album, Prototype, praised by Downbeat and Spotify’s State of Jazz and featured on FOX’s Empire. Reginald is a BAC artist and plays a custom prototype-model bass trombone that he worked to develop with Mike Corrigan.
Julie Dombroski - trombone
Julie is a New York City trombonist performing various genres with a focus in chamber music and Broadway. Known for her innovative spirit and versatile performance, Julie can be heard performing regularly in the Sweeney Todd Orchestra at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre and with the Heartbeat Trio. She has notably performed alongside Josh Groban (Sweeney Todd), Daniel Radcliffe (Merrily We Roll Along), Jonathon Groff (Merrily We Roll Along), Mary Testa (Most Happy - In Concert), and Billy Crystal (Mr. Saturday Night).
Nick Grinder - trombone
Nick Grinder, originally from San Francisco, CA, and has enjoyed a varied career since moving to New York City in 2011. He has shared the stage or recording studio with varied artists such as Lorde, Lady Gaga and Tony Bennet, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Patti Labelle, DMX, St Vincent, Paquito D’Rivera, Darcy James Argue, Arturo O'Farrill, and appeared on Grammy winning and nominated albums. He has performed in over two dozen Broadway pits, both as a substitute and chair holder, and held chairs in the Radio City Christmas Spectacular Orchestra. He has two albums of original music, and currently plays low brass in the pit of Parade.
Sara Jacovino - trombone
NYC based trombonist Sara Jacovino is an ambitious trombonist, composer, and arranger who has drawn the recognition of many of her peers nationwide. Hailed by the likes of David Baker as having a completely unique voice, she has been recognized with various awards from the BMI Foundation, Downbeat Magazine, the Airmen of Note, The International Trombone Association and other festivals and residencies.
Throughout her time in NYC, Sara has performed along side many jazz and pop greats such as: The Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, The Mingus Band, Michael Feinstein, Darcy James Argue's Secret Society, Johnny Mandel, Lou Marini, Claudio Roditi, Dafnis Prieto, Idina Menzel, Adele, Aretha Franklin, and Frank Ocean, amongst others. Sara has established herself as an active musician in the Broadway scene and currently holds the lead trombone/euphonium chair in the musical “Some Like it Hot” at the Shubert Theatre. In addition to live performances, Sara is a sought after session musician as both a lead trombonist and soloist for studio and television work. Credits include, amongst others, The Macy's 4th of July Firework Show and Thanksgiving Parades, South Park, the Colbert Show, Disney Theatrical, NBC, Hulu, and numerous cast albums and demos.
Sara can be heard performing as a bandleader of her own quartet as well as member of several well respected NYC institutions including: The Birdland Big Band, The Diva Jazz Orchestra, David Berger and the Sultans of Swing, The Afro-Bop Alliance as well as countless other composers' orchestras. Her writing and playing is often featured by the Birdland Big Band, The Diva Jazz Orchestra, and can be heard on numerous albums by the University of North Texas One O'Clock Lab Band amongst others. Sara is sought after for commissioned works of music in various styles and ensemble configurations. Sara is an XO Performing Artist and plays Doug Elliot Mouthpieces.
Burt Mason - trombone
Burt Mason performs regularly with the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, serves on faculty at the Juilliard School’s Music Advancement Program and is principal trombone of the Chamber Orchestra of New York. He has appeared as guest artist with the NY Philharmonic and as soloist with numerous ensembles, performing worldwide. As an advocate for diversity in the arts, he is founder and director of Ovation Concerts, an organization dedicated to balanced diversity in orchestral music. He has appeared as a guest on WQXR’s "Conducting Business" with Naomi Lewin to discuss the history and future of classical music and American orchestras.
Mr. Mason holds a BA in Music from the Crane School of Music studying with Mark Hartman, an MBA in Arts Administration from Binghamton University, and an MM in Orchestral Performance from the Manhattan School of Music studying with David Finlayson. He has had additional studies with Joseph Alessi and Weston Sprott. Mr. Mason is a Yamaha Performing Artist and Clinician and will make his Carnegie Hall solo debut in March 2018.
Matt Melore - trombone
Trombonist Matt Melore is an active freelance musician based in New York City. Performing on alto, tenor, and bass trombones, euphonium, and tuba, he has performed as a member of the Radio City Music Hall Orchestra for the “Christmas Spectacular” show for the past eleven years, frequently performs on numerous Broadway shows, has recorded on Broadway cast albums, and has appeared on The Late Show with Steven Colbert and Late Night with Seth Meyers. Orchestras he has performed with in the NYC area include the Princeton Symphony, American Ballet Theater, Reading Symphony, Czech National Symphony, Riverside Symphony, New Jersey Festival Orchestra, Harlem Chamber Players, NY Opera Society, and League of Composers Orchestra, among others. An active chamber musician, Matt has performed at the “Bang On A Can” Festival and as a guest artist at the Eastern Trombone Workshop with the Guidonian Hand Trombone Quartet. Matt also performs with the Tilt Brass Ensemble and has performed with the Wet Ink Ensemble and Deviant Septet.
As a soloist, Matt was the winner of the Sidney Langston Brass Soloist Competition in London, U.K. in 2009 as well as a performer on NPR's “From the Top”. Matt is currently on faculty at Princeton University as the Lecturer of Classical Trombone. Matt is a graduate of the Royal Academy of Music, London and the Manhattan School of Music.
James Rogers - bass trombone
James Rogers can be found playing bass trombone in New York any night of the week performing in a wide variety of styles. He has held positions in the orchestras of hit Broadway shows such as 'Mean Girls' and 'Groundhog Day: The Musical' as well as winning auditons for Radio City's 'New York Spectacular' and 'Christmas Spectacular' orchestras. He can also be heard on J Cole's platinum selling, and Grammy nominated, Hip-Hop album '2014 Forrest Hill Drive'. Performing with Revive Big Band, James has backed up Queen Latifah, Busta Rhymes, Gregery Porter, Esperaza Spalding, Ashanti, Big Daddy Kane, Slick Rick, Bilal, Pharoahe Monch, and Jadakiss.
Mr Rogers received his BM and MM from Manhattan School of Music and is on faculty at Hofstra University.