PERFORMING ARTISTS IN RESIDENCE 2005 -2006 Season

LINDA LOWE
guitar, singing, songwriting, Kids in Concert performance group, microphone etiquette, Young Performing Artists, Women in the Round on the Road & WITR Main Stage Concerts

Linda is the founding Artistic Director of the Writers in the Round Concert series. She is a prolific poet/songwriter, producer, and recording artist who has released three books of poetry and six original albums which have won critical acclaim internationally. She won the 1984 Kerrville Folk festival with "Bahama Marna and Please Don't Run. Linda helped to launch concert series in Seaside, FL, Wilmington, NC, Little Rock, AR, Cotter, AR, Lafayette, IN, and Houston, Texas. She has hosted and performed in numerous radio and TV shows including Bob Hope's Telethon for the Healing, as well as in major concert venues across the country. She was the Music Designer for MST's production of "A Piece of my Heart" and the Assistant Producer/Director of Mid America Hot Springs National Parks production of Papa Bear Mama Bear". She has been teaching and performing for 35 years, and helps her students to record original albums, perform in concert and play music for the pure personal joy of it. Her teaching method is contemporary folk, rhythm, and blues, and she is well known for her finger-picking and laid-back, nurturing style. Linda helps kids to explore their creativity.
BILL ROYALL
 guitar, bass, songwriting
 Bill has been playing music for 20 years and has performed internationally. He is currently recording and performing with five bands. His first solo recording will be released this summer. Bill teaches classical, jazz, rock, and blues. Strangelight

STEVE CARR
guitar, piano, and bass
Steve, who studied classical piano In his youth, started playing music with local rock bands. He has played nearly every city between Texas and Florida. Steve has recorded several albums, and worked on production and recording. His teaching method Includes pop-rock-Eagles-Beetles and the music of the 60's. His latest CD Includes a cut used In the Made for TV Movie entitled Last Call with Carson Daily aired on NBC
JOE ROMANO
 guitar, bass, music theory
Joe has been a professional musician and actor for a million (36) years. He has performed all over the States and written music for several television programs, Including Sesame Street. He performs publicly In Houston area clubs with his wife Susan Elliott as the jazz duo, Mood Indigo, voted best jazz duo In Houston this year. Joe teaches jazz with an emphasis on structure and music theory.

SUSAN ELLIOTT
Voice
Susan Elliott began her professional career in 1984 when she teamed guitarist Joe Romano to form the jazz duo Mood Indigo (named "Best Vocal Ensemble" in the 1992 Public News Reader's Poll). An award winning studio singer, her recordings for Silver Burdett and Ginn have been used in public school systems throughout the world. Susan believes that everyone can sing and that singing should always be a joyful experience; she teaches with an emphasis on sensitivity to the music, proper breathing and developing good listening and sight-singing skills.

AL PAGLIUSO
congas, percussion
Al Is one of the most versatile studio musicians In Houston. He was a teacher at the Shepherd School of Music and has performed In jazz clubs throughout the States. His expertise Includes Brazilian, Cuban, and jazz styles. He has played with Diane Warwick, Lou Rawls, Tito Puente, Celia Cruz, Joan Rivers and Calvin Owens (music director for B.S. King 0 to name a few. He has also performed with some of the top Brazilian recording artists and traveled through the middle east performing at music venues Including The Red Sea Jazz Festival.
DAVID JOYCE, CORDT AKERS and WALKER LUKENS
student teachers - Drums. Piano, guitar
David Joyce has been a student of Jim Newhouses for over 4 years and he as been a working drummer in Houston. Cordt Akers has been a student with WITR for ten years, and was a counselor at WITIR summer camp for two years. Cordt has fronted various bands and now performs solo in the Houston area. He has an album out entitled, "Looking at Stars with Telescopes". Walker has been with WITR for three months, and has played guitar and piano for 8 years. He performs with his band Carousel
Shy throughout the U.S. and has cut four albums with them.

MARYANN WILLIS
Violin - special appointment only
Mary Ann wrote the book on violin - literally. She Is the author of seven books/ recording volumes of ethnic and classical music for Mel Bay Publications, as well as various articles for Strings, Strad, and American String Teachers magazines. Mary has played with numerous symphony orchestras throughout the United States, and has transcribed and studied recordings In Hungarian Gypsy, Romanian, Klezmer, Ukrainian, Russian, Polish, Czech, Scandinavian, Irish, Mexican, Texas Style, Old Time, Bluegrass, and Cajun styles.