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Mead Witter School of Music Guest Artist Series

Steven Darling, tuba
Shuk-Ki Wong, piano

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Program 

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Dr. Steven Darling serves as Assistant Professor of Tuba and Euphonium, and Tubist with the UTM Faculty Brass Quintet, at the University of Tennessee at Martin.

In demand as a soloist, Darling recently performed Michael Daugherty’s Tuba Concerto Reflections on the Mississippi with the Mason Wind Symphony at the National Concert Band Festival and at Windfest! 2019, at Cincinnati’s Music Hall. In 2019, Dr. Darling had the privilege of premiering his work At the Mountains of Madness for Tuba and String Orchestra with the Wright State University Chamber Orchestra. An award-winning performer, Darling’s performance abilities have garnered recognition in over a dozen competitions, including the International Tuba-Euphonium Conference Euphonium Artist Competition, Leonard Falcone Festival Tuba Artist Competition, and the American Prize in Instrumental Performance. In 2018, Darling was honored to make his debut Carnegie solo performance at the Weill Recital Hall.

A Miraphone Performing Artist, Darling has performed at the International Tuba-Euphonium Conference, Midwest Regional Tuba-Euphonium Conference, Southeast Regional Tuba-Euphonium Conference, Northwest Regional Tuba-Euphonium Conference, Kentucky Music Educator Association Conference, and universities throughout the country. Additionally, Darling has conducted the Wright State, Ohio University, Murray State, and University of Tennessee-Martin Tuba-Euphonium Ensembles at conferences and universities throughout the United States. An advocate of new music, Darling has commissioned and premiered works by award-winning composers Wayne Lu, Ian Lester, Ellen Ruth Harrison, Lawton Hall, Ben McMillan, Andy Francis, Sy Brandon, Daniel Harrison, Josh Oxford, Richard Wetzel, Michael Neumeyer, Joni Greene, Xenia St. Charles Gilbert, Julien Monick, and Katherine Bergman.

Dr. Darling’s debut album, Dualities, winner of two Global Music Awards and recipient of numerous grants, was released on the Emeritus Label in 2018. In 2020, Darling released his second award-winning album American Landscape. Darling’s original compositions have been premiered and performed at the International Tuba-Euphonium Conference, Regional Tuba-Euphonium Conferences, The United States Army Band Tuba-Euphonium Workshop, ClarinetFest, and various festivals and universities throughout the country. In 2019 Darling’s Eyeless in Gaza was recorded by NTEQ on their debut album Machines, as well as In a Landscape for clarinet and flute by Duo Cylindre, on their album Movers, Makers, and Shakers. Darling’s Concert Piece No. 1 for Euphonium, premiered by Adam Frey at the International Euphonium-Tuba Festival, was selected as a required work for the semi-final round of the 2020 Leonard Falcone Festival Euphonium Artist Competition and regional ITEA competitions.

As an adjudicator, Darling has served as a judge for the Leonard Falcone Festival Euphonium Young Artist Competition, International Tuba-Euphonium Association Tuba and Electronics Competition, International Tuba-Euphonium Association Euphonium and Electronics Competition, International Tuba-Euphonium Conference Student Competition, the 2020 and 2017 MWRTEC Euphonium Artist Competitions, 2017 NWRTEC Euphonium Artist Competition, the UT-Martin Concerto Competition, and for the recorded-round of the Ohio Music Educator Association All-State Band. Additionally, Darling has given lectures at various State Music Educator Conferences, the Midwest Trombone-Euphonium Conference, the International Tuba-Euphonium Conference, and served on a panel-discussion at the International Tuba-Euphonium Conference.

An active orchestral tubist, Darling has appeared with orchestras throughout the Midwest including the Paducah, Lima, and Richmond Symphony Orchestras, and in 2018 served as Guest Principal Tuba of the Lakeside Symphony Orchestra. From 2017 to 2019, Darling served as Co-Host, Guest Artist Liaison, and Competition Coordinator of the Wright State University Low Brass Festival. Since 2019, Darling has served as Co-Host of the UTM Brass Seminar. Dr. Darling primarily studied with Tim Northcut, Jason Smith, Mark Hoelscher, and Marty Erickson.

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Shuk-Ki (Suki) Wong holds doctoral degree in piano performance and pedagogy at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, under the supervision of Christopher Taylor and Jessica Johnson. Dr. Wong has taught applied piano and group piano from positions at UW-Madison, Madison College, Madison Conservatory of Music and Wisconsin Conservatory of Music. She was appointed as the Assistant Director of Purdue University’s vocal music department, Purdue Musical Organization, since 2021.

Dr. Wong has performed internationally in Hong Kong, Australia, Portugal and Germany, and has named as the prize winner of the Schubert Club Competition (MN), Robert Buchannan Beardsley Competition (IN), Millersville International Piano Competition (PA), UW Beethoven Competition and Concerto Competition (WI). As a collaborator, she was sponsored by Dr. Kato Perlman as a member of the UW Perlman Piano Trio. Other highlight includes the world premiere of Daniel Kessner’s Metamorphoses with Daniel Grabois, Associate Professor of Horn at UW. Another highlight is a recording of the complete bassoon works of Bitsch, including the never-before-recorded bassoon and piano works Partita, Passepied, and Rondoletto.

Dr. Wong’s research interest centers around intercultural pedagogy with an emphasis on Chinese keyboard literature and folk tunes. She has presented at piano pedagogy conferences such as Wisconsin Music Teachers Association Conference, Music Teachers National Association Piano Pedagogy Symposium, World Piano Conference (Serbia), and Intercultural Piano Pedagogy Symposium (Germany). She conducted workshops ranging from piano playing-related injuries, cross-cultural education, to creating quality learning experiences for students with learning disabilities. Wong has also given music lectures to a broad range of audiences––from students at UW student organizations, to scientists and researchers at Wisconsin Institute for Discovery. Upcoming 2022 conference presentations include College Music Society Regional Conference (IL), MTNA GP3 Conference (AZ), and MTNA Virtual Collegiate Chapters Symposium, where she presents topics of exploring underrepresented Chinese keyboard works, building intercultural competence in piano learning, and discovering new Chinese piano method.

In addition to research on diversity and inclusion, Dr. Wong’s research interest spans across areas involving two-manual keyboard repertoire, the Moór piano, and Hyperpiano––the newest innovation in piano design, featuring a double manual keyboard controller that is linked electronically to two subsidiary concert pianos. She explores performance practice of double manual keyboard repertoire, and the range of performance possibilities in existing musical repertoire on the Moór piano and hyperpiano. Dr. Wong published a research document on performance practice of two-manual keyboard repertoire, along with a recording of works of Couperin, Bach and Scarlatti on the Moór piano in 2021.

As an advocate in providing accessible piano instruction to the community, Dr. Wong is on faculty at Madison Conservatory of Music, UW-Madison Piano Pioneers Program and Community Music Lessons Programs, where she brings music education to high-risk youth, low-income families, students with disabilities, and underserved students in remote areas in Wisconsin.