Guest Flute and Piano Recitals in the Chapel

The Saint Mary's College Music Program welomes two guest artists who will be joining us for FREE recitals in the Chapel in February.

Experience an unforgettable evening of musical brilliance on Friday, February 16, at 7:30 p.m. as "The Rockstar of the Flute" (Informador de Guadalajara), Ráyo Furuta, teams up with acclaimed pianist Hiroko Mizuno for a dynamic performance featuring contemporary and classical works by composers Valerie Coleman, Sergei Prokofiev, and Philippe Gaubert.

On Sunday, February 18, at 4 p.m. in the Chapel, we also welcome professional pianist Scott Holden. Commitment, lyricism, and fearless acrobatics characterize Holden’s career. A solo pianist, champion collaborator, devoted teacher and adjudicator, Scott Holden’s dedication to the art and study of pianism is prevalent across the scope of his work. His recital will include works by Liszt, Schubert, Scriabin, and Lisa DeSpain.

No reservations are necessary. Parking is available to the left of the gate at the Visitor's Parking kiosk for 50 cents per hour (credit card only). Limited accessible parking is available in front of the Chapel (arrive early).

About Ráyo Furuta

Mexican-Japanese American flutist Ráyo Furuta stands as a captivating artist and performer of global acclaim with command over the classical, contemporary, world, jazz, and pop realms.

At the remarkably young age of 25, Furuta was officiated as a cultural ambassador to the United States of America. Since then, he has showcased his virtuosity as both a performer and educator on the international stage, gracing audiences in Mexico, Japan, Austria, the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, and across the Middle East and North America. His prestigious performances include those with Yo-Yo Ma's Silkroad Ensemble, American Composer's Forum, The United Nations, and the celebrated Annapolis, Banff, Icicle Creek, Mainly Mozart, Opera en la Calle, Okayama, Saarburg, Sarasota, Silicon Valley, and Yellowbarn Music Festivals to name only a few.

Furuta's dynamic presence extends to solo performances, frequently appearing as a concerto soloist specializing in the contemporary concerti by composers Gabriela Lena Frank, Yuko Uebayashi, and Paul Schoenfield. As a touring solo recitalist and alongside is longtime duo partner Michelle Cann, he has masterfully interpreted the cornerstones of the flute repertoire, while simultaneously building it with his own arrangements and compositions.

As a dedicated chamber musician he has performed alongside luminaries like Jon Nakamatsu, Peter Frankl, and members of acclaimed string quartets like Avalon, Brooklyn Rider, Kronos, Mendelssohn, and Emerson. Additionally, his passion for global music has led to performances with superstars Van Anh Vo (Danh Tranh), Sandeep Das (Indian Tabla), Vijay Gopal (Bansuri), Merima Kljuco (Accordion), Ghassan Sahhab (Qanun), and Christina Pato (Galacian Bagpipe) to name only a few. He is also a member of the Mexico-city based Contemporary Mexican Jazz Band, Toktli, and is a leading-artist-member of the Common Sounds ensemble.

Furuta serves as a Professor of Flute and Chamber Music at San Jose State University and as a Lecturer of Performance Practice and Community Engagement at Santa Clara University, where he was recently honored with a distinguished faculty award for his commitment to serving marginalized communities. He has also shared his expertise through residencies and master classes at esteemed institutions worldwide, including the Oberlin Conservatory, San Francisco Conservatory of Music, Stanford University, Lebanese American University of Beirut, University of Guadalajara, and many more. Additionally, he has served as a Visiting Professor of Flute at the Cleveland Institute of Music.

Ráyo Furuta has channeled his passion for community and civic engagement into a substantial part of his musical journey. Through his "Mas Amor Arts" initiative, he has consistently undertaken initiatives aimed at underserved communities, including involvement in local juvenile detention centers and collaborative endeavors benefiting homeless women of color and California's Farmworkers. Furthermore, he has instituted an annual project in marginalized areas of Tijuana, Mexico, offering music education to youth as a means of diverting them from the streets. His commitment extends globally, as he has also delivered performances to Syrian refugees in the Middle East.

Recognized as a distinguished curator, Furuta assumes the role of Executive Artistic Director for Chamber Music Silicon Valley, a preeminent arts organization in California. Additionally, he oversees the weekly Music@Noon concert series at Santa Clara University. His innovative spirit and commitment to advancing the arts earned him the 2024 Music Teacher's National Association Power of Innovation Award, the prestigious Silicon Valley 2018 X-Factor Arts Prize, which lauds entrepreneurial and creative ideas in the arts sector, as well as the 2019 “On the Stage” Artist Laureate of SVCreates, a recognition that identifies Silicon Valley's foremost artists based on their exceptional work quality and dedication to enriching the community.

A recipient of the prestigious Staller Scholar and distinguished alumni “40 under 40” awards, Ráyo Furuta holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from Stony Brook University, where he was a direct pupil of Carol Wincenc and the Emerson String Quartet. He was also heavily influenced by other mentors such as flutists Isabelle Chapuis, Jill Felber, and Elena Yarritu, harpsichordist Arthur Haas, and violinist Philip Setzer and is also an alumnus of the Multicultural Artist Leadership Institute (MALI).

Ráyo Furuta is a Burkart Artist and exclusively performs on a Lilian Burkart 9k gold flute.

About Scott Holden

“Scott Holden plays with obvious commitment…and limpid lyricism…he tackles the keyboard acrobatics fearlessly,” writes Fanfare Magazine.

Holden debuted in Carnegie Hall after winning first prize in the 1996 Leschetizky New York Debut Piano Competition. He has performed in over 40 states (including at The Kennedy Center and Alice Tully Hall), Canada, Mexico, England, Russia (Svetlanov Hall), throughout Europe, and in multiple Asian countries including China, Singapore, and Vietnam. He has been broadcast on NPR, NBC, CBC, as well as numerous local networks. His enthusiastic support of contemporary music has led to a variety of premieres, including William Wallace’s Second Piano Concerto with Keith Lockhart and the Utah Symphony of which The Salt Lake Tribune wrote, “Mr. Holden secured the stage in a virtuosic performance…We were torn between examining every new note passing by our ears, and Holden’s pianistic acrobatics. It was a wonderful dilemma.”  Holden returned to Carnegie Hall to play a solo recital in June 2018, featuring multiple world premieres. Holden has recorded for Parma, Bridge, Tantara, and NAXOS Records. His most recent CD, Beyond Vernon Duke, was given the highest five-star rating and received praise, “Holden exhibits profoundly musical readings with obvious commitment and great attention to detail.”

A sought-after pedagogue, Holden has taught students who have been prizewinners in numerous competitions, including top prizes at MTNA and Gina Bachauer. His students are regularly accepted to the leading graduate programs in the nation. He travels extensively to adjudicate and give master classes at festivals and pedagogy workshops around the world and has contributed to various publications, including both volumes of “The Pianist’s Craft,” which has been published domestically and, more recently, in China.

Holden holds degrees from the University of Michigan (BM), The Juilliard School (MM), and The Manhattan School of Music (DMA). He studied at The Liszt Academy in Budapest as a Fulbright Scholar. Major teachers have included Arkady Aronov, Martin Canin, Charles Fisher, Arthur Greene, András Kemenes, Nina Lelchuk, and Ferenc Rados. He currently chairs the Keyboard Studies department at Brigham Young University and is a faculty member at Summer Performing Arts with Juilliard in Geneva, Switzerland.

Holden lives in the mountains of Utah with his wife and four children. When not at the piano, he can be found cycling, building things with wood, and adventuring among the red rocks of the Southwest.