2021 Faculty Performers

This summer’s festival faculty will be:
Emi Ferguson, flutes
Barret Ham, clarinets
Hassan Anderson, oboe (Festival co-director)
Natalie Boberg, violin
Issei Herr, cello
Geoffrey Burleson, piano

Learn more about our featured performer faculty below.

Emi Ferguson, flutes

Hailed by critics for her “tonal bloom” and “hauntingly beautiful performances,” English-American performer and composer Emi Ferguson stretches the boundaries of what is expected of modern-day musicians.  Emi’s unique approach to the flute can be heard in performances that alternate between the Silver Flute, Historical Flutes, and Auxilary Flutes, playing repertoire that stretches from the Renaissance to today.​

Emi can be heard live in concerts and festivals around the world as a soloist and with groups including AMOC*, the New York New Music Ensemble, the Handel and Haydn Society, and the Manhattan Chamber Players. She has spoken and performed at several TEDX events and has been featured on media outlets including The Discovery Channel, Vox's "Explained" series on Netflix, Amazon's The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and Juilliard Digital's TouchPress apps talking about how music relates to our world today.  Her debut album, Amour Cruel, an indie-pop song cycle inspired by the music of the 17th century French court was released by Arezzo Music in September 2017, spending 4 weeks on the Classical, Classical Crossover, and World Music Billboard Charts. Her 2019 album Fly the Coop: Bach Sonatas and Preludes, a collaboration with continuo band Ruckus debuted at #1 on the iTunes classical charts and #2 on the Billboard classical charts, and was called “blindingly impressive...a fizzing, daring display of personality and imagination” by The New York Times. In addition to her solo recordings, Emi has also been featured on recordings for New Focus Records, Old Focus Records, Canteloupe Music, National Sawdust Tracks, Brontosaurus Records, Coro, and MSR Classics.

Barret Ham, clarinet (Macon, GA), served as clarinetist and bass clarinetist for the San Francisco Ballet Orchestra in its 2019-2020 season. He has appeared as soloist with the Charleston Symphony Orchestra and Atlanta Symphony Youth Orchestra, as well as the Borromeo String Quartet as winner of its Guest Artist Competition. His other summer festivals include the Boston University Tanglewood Institute, Brevard Music Center, and the International Summer Academy MDW, where he studied under Richard Haynes. Barret has played for Alea III and ECCE Ensemble in Boston. After studying under Montgomery Cole, he received his B.M from New England Conservatory as a student of Michael Wayne. Barret is currently pursuing a M.M at the University of Southern California as a student of Yehuda Gilad. Previous Yellow Barn musician (2019)

Natalie Boberg, violin

Violinist, Natalie Boberg, is a versatile soloist, chamber, and orchestral musician. Her playing has been noted by Vijay Gupta of Street Symphony and the LA Philharmonic as, “Beautifully personal, with instincts that are so on.” Natalie made her debut as a soloist with the Utah Symphony in 2018, performing Mark O’Connor’s Double Violin Concerto with Maestro Connor Covington. Natalie has also appeared as a soloist with the Colburn Chamber Orchestra alongside Anne Akiko Meyers, Lake Avenue Chamber Orchestra, and Gifted Music School Chamber Orchestra. In national chamber music competitions, Natalie placed second at University of Michigan’s MPrize Competition, and medaled bronze at Pasadena Conservatory of Music’s national competition. Her summer endeavors include time spent at the Aspen Music Festival and School, Meadowmount School of Music, BU Tanglewood Institute, and Interlochen Center for the Arts. Natalie also studied conducting at the Colburn School with Maxim Eshkenazy and performed and trained vocally for nine years in Los Angeles Children’s Chorus’ top Bel Canto choirs. Natalie currently performs on a 17th century violin made by the Italian master Tommaso Balestrieri.

Natalie’s mission is to share engaging musical experiences and the art of the violin with the world. She is particularly excited about contemporary music and collaborating with living composers and artists on new music projects. As a violinist, choral singer, dancer, and artist, she envisions unique programming that has wide-appeal and captures a new generation of classical music lovers. Alongside her work on the stage, Natalie maintains a studio of violin students, most recently as a Teaching Artist at the Boston Music Project through a Teaching Fellowship from the New England Conservatory of Music. Natalie is committed to nurturing the growth of new artists and aims to make classical music more accessible by creating inclusive, memorable experiences for all.

Hassan Anderson, oboe

A multitalented artist, American oboist Hassan Anderson is a soloist, chamber musician, and teacher noted for his clarity of tone, range of colors and energetic stage presence. A popular collaborator, amongst his numerous guest appearances with distinguished ensembles are performances with the American Ballet Theater, Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra, the Jupiter Symphony Chamber Players, Ecce Ensemble, Harlem Chamber Players and the Juilliard Orchestra.

Mr. Anderson has recorded an album of works by various artists including Schumann, Gershwin, Avner Dorman (world premiere) and Jonathan Keren (world premiere) with SHUFFLE Concert (in house label, October 2013). He is also featured on “Unremembered”, a song cycle by Sarah Kirkland Snider (New Amsterdam Records, September 2015). With SHUFFLE Concert, he can next be heard on their upcoming CD to be released in 2016-17, which will include the commissioned world premiere of Piotr Szewczyk’s Twisted Dances for Oboe, Violin, Cello and Piano.

Issei Herr, cello

Cellist Issei Herr is committed to a diverse array of music both old and new. A compelling soloist and a dedicated collaborator, Issei performs a scope of repertoire that ranges from the music of Bach, Babbitt, and Berio to Schubert, Schoenberg, and Stravinsky. Issei is a fierce advocate of the music of our time, working closely with living composers to develop emerging repertoire and presenting new works in the context of innovative concert programs.

Highlights of the 2018-2019 season included a collaborative performance art project with choreographer Mary Armentrout in San Francisco, the premiere of a solo cello work by Korean composer Jaehyuck Choi, and the development of a series of cello works by composer Peter Kramer. Past highlights include a series of duo concerts with distinguished violinist Rolf Schulte in Mexico and New York, solo concerts showcasing the music of Schumann, and a recording of the complete solo cello suites of Bach.

Committed to musical collaboration and cross-disciplinary endeavors, Issei is an active member of PinkNoise, a chamber ensemble dedicated to the juxtaposition of works of the core repertoire with musical improvisation. Issei is also the newest member of Unheard-of//Ensemble, a contemporary quartet dedicated to the development and performance of new music by living composers.  Issei is working on an ongoing project with composer and visual artist Julie Zhu.

Geoffrey Burleson, piano

Equally active as a recitalist, concerto soloist, chamber musician, and jazz performer, Geoffrey Burleson, pianist, has performed to wide acclaim throughout Europe and North America. The New York Times has hailed Burleson’s solo performances as “vibrant and compelling,” praising his “rhythmic brio, projection of rhapsodic qualities, appropriate sense of spontaneity, and rich colorings.” Current recording projects include Camille Saint-Saëns: Complete Piano Works, on 5 CDs, for the new Naxos Grand Piano label. Volumes 1 (Complete Piano Études), 2, 3 and 4 have been released to high acclaim from Gramophone, International Record Review, Diapason (France)and elsewhere, and have garnered International Piano Choice Awards from International Piano Magazine. Other noteworthy recordings by Burleson include Vincent Persichetti: Complete Piano Sonatas (New World Records), which received a BBC Music Choice award from the BBC Music Magazine, and AKOKA (Oxingale Records), featuring Messiaen’s Quartet for the End of Time, as well as companion works, for which Burleson was nominated for a 2015 JUNO Award for Classical Album of the Year.