Michael Brofman, Chamber Music Program Coordinator

Pianist Michael Brofman has earned a reputation as one of the finest vocal accompanists of his generation. He has performed hundreds of songs, from Schubert’s earliest lieder to premieres of new songs by today’s most-recognized composers. He was hailed by the New York Times as an “excellent pianist” and
Feast of Music recently praised his “elegant and refined playing… exhibiting excellent touch and clean technique.”

Mike has championed new works and has fostered relationships with many living composers, including Katherine Balch, Lembit Beecher, Tom Cipullo, Michael Djupstrom, Daniel Felsenfeld, Herschel Garfein, Daron Hagen, Jake Heggie, James Kallembach, Libby Larsen, Lowell Liebermann, David Ludwig, James Matheson, Reinaldo Moya, Harold Meltzer, Russell Platt, Kurt Rohde, Glen Roven, Andrew Staniland and Scott Wheeler. In all, he has premiered over 100 songs, many of them dedicated to him.

Mike is the founder and artistic director of the Brooklyn Art Song Society, an organization dedicated to the vast repertoire of poetry set to music now in its eighth season. His first CD “New Voices” on Roven Records includes four world-premiere recordings and was number one on Amazon’s new releases for Opera/Vocal and debuted in the top 10 of the Traditional Classical Billboard Chart. In this capacity, Mike has curated and performed in surveys of art song repertoire that have included the complete songs of Henri Duparc and Charles Ives, lieder from the last year of Schubert’s life, a survey of all the members of Les Six and much more.

An eloquent and passionate advocate for art song, Mike has been interviewed by Russell Platt for Opera News, for Caught In the Act on Brooklyn Public Television, on the WQXR radio show Soundcheck, on Seattle KING FM 98.1, and for the Linked Music blog. He also hosts his own internet show “Song and Wine.” His writings on music have been published by GPR Records, Sparks and Wiry Cries, and the Linked Music Blog. He is also earning a reputation as a gifted educator and has presented masterclasses at the University of Chicago, the University of Notre Dame and the University of Southern Maine.

Mike holds a bachelor of Music from Northwestern University where he studied with James Giles. There he was awarded the Frida A. Pick Award for Piano and featured on Chicago’s classical radio station. He spent several summers at the Aspen Music Festival as a student of Rita Sloan and continues his studies with Robert Durso of the Golandsky Institute. He resides in Park Slope, Brooklyn with his wife, violinist Stanichka Dimitrova, and daughters Julia and Lillian.

Johnna Wu

Johnna Wu is an active performer, improviser, and educator in North America, Europe, and Asia. Based in Brooklyn, Johnna is the founder of the electro-acoustic chamber ensemble PinkNoise, which uses improvisations to meld her interests in contemporary music, Chinese folk music, jazz, tango, and musical theatre. She received her Bachelor of Arts from Columbia University, with degrees in Biology and Musicology, and obtained a Masters of Music degree in violin performance at The Juilliard School under the tutelage of Joseph Lin. In 2015, she was the only artist awarded the Fulbright Scholarship to study in Germany, and was sponsored by the State Department of the United States and the Federal Republic of Germany for studies at the Universität der Künste Berlin.