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MM, Northwestern University

Donald Schleicher ’77 MMus is Artist-in-Residence and Director of Orchestras at the Bienen School of Music, where he conducts the Northwestern University Symphony Orchestra.

He previously served for 26 years as Director of Orchestras at the University of Illinois, where he was awarded the title of Daniel J. Perrino Professor Emeritus, School of Music, College of Fine and Applied Arts. Other previous positions include Resident Conductor at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, Music Director and Conductor of the Quad City Symphony Orchestra, and Music Director and Principal Opera Conductor for the Pine Mountain Music Festival. At the outset of his career, he spent seven years as a high school band director in Williamsville, New York, and two years as Director of Bands at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. In addition, he served as both Associate Director of Bands and Associate Director of Orchestras at the University of Michigan.

Schleicher has conducted the National Philharmonic of Ukraine, the Daegu (South Korea) Symphony Orchestra, the Incheon (South Korea) Philharmonic, the Gwangju Symphony (South Korea), the Guiyang (China) Symphony, the Orquesta Filarmonica de la UNAM of Mexico City, the South Dakota Symphony, and the orchestras of Bridgeport, Tallahassee, and Lansing. He has appeared as a guest conductor at the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival and served as a cover conductor for the Detroit Symphony Orchestra.

He is frequently invited to lead performances or provide conducting master classes at many of the country’s major music schools such as the Oberlin Conservatory, Eastman School of Music, Baylor University, University of Minnesota, Ithaca College, Ohio State University, and the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University. As an enthusiastic advocate of public school music education, Mr. Schleicher has conducted All-State orchestras, festivals, and youth orchestras in nearly every state of the United States.

As a conducting teacher, Mr. Schleicher regularly appears as conducting clinician and is currently engaged as a lead teacher for the International Conducting Workshop and Festival as well as the Conducting Master Class and Workshop Series. Many of his former conducting students have gone on to hold prestigious conducting positions with orchestras and opera companies across the globe.

Natalia Warthen is a blossoming young artist who treasures musical collaboration on all levels. An advocate for new music and diverse voices, she strives to uplift modern works while treasuring standards--all while engaging the saxophone and audiences in unique ways.

Originally a native of Newnan, Georgia, Natalia moved to Michigan to pursue her musical education with Joe Lulloff at Michigan State University. She graduated with a Bachelors of Saxophone Performance, a minor in Entrepreneurship and Innovation, and a minor in Arts and Cultural Management. Natalia is currently pursuing a Masters of Saxophone Performance at Northwestern University, working as a Graduate Assistant for the saxophone studio and studying under Taimur Sullivan.

A distinct feature of Natalia's time at MSU was her quartet Clap7--an ensemble that explored the intersections of close friendship and versatile forms of music-making. As the baritone chair and a founding member of the group, she saw Clap7 receive various accolades in competitions, including being named winners of the Barbara Wagner Chamber Music Competition, Coltman Chamber Music Finalists, Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition Quarterfinalists, and national finalists in the MTNA Chamber Music competition.

In the summer of 2022, Natalia co-formed the SiP (Saxophone in Progress) duo with Jacob Nance to continue extending her collaboration efforts into the musical and local community. With a goal of diversifying the classical canon, they commissioned eight underrepresented artists to write works for saxophone duo that were later recorded in March 2023 for an upcoming album. As part of these commissioning efforts and several other initiatives, Natalia has had new works written for her ensembles by a wide range of artists, including Katahj Copely, Minoo Dixon, Henry Dorn, Katerina Souponetsky, and Elena Specht. 

Throughout the creation of this project, SiP was awarded funding from organizations like the MSU Diversity Research Showcase, the Running Start Competition, and the East Lansing Cultural Arts Committee. SiP continues to play at various community settings to bring saxophone into unique places, educating people of all ages on the power of diverse and new music programming.

Aside from her collaborative work with chamber ensembles, Natalia also remains passionate in her solo classical saxophone playing and performing. Some of her latest accolades include winning the Michigan Music Teacher’s National Association solo competition, receiving an Honorable Mention award in the Elise Hall solo competition, and advancing into the semi-finals of the North American Saxophone Alliance Solo competition.

Most recently, Natalia traveled to Switzerland for the Arosa Saxophone Institute, and was selected as a winner of the Hans Schaeuble Award. She journeyed back to Arosa in March 2023 to put on a chamber music concert, collaborating in a myriad of chamber settings with accordion players and other saxophonists.

Natalia can usually be found getting a sweet treat (generally bubble tea--brown sugar boba), reading a good enemies-to-lovers book, or overthinking her next post on Instagram. You can listen to her on YouTube, or keep an ear out for her upcoming album with SiP, scheduled to be released in 2024.