2026 Cascade Conductors and Composers Concert Series

We’re excited to invite you to the 9th Annual Cascade Conductors & Composers Workshop Concert Series, presented by Orquesta Northwest and hosted at the University of Puget Sound this June 19–21, 2026.

Since its founding, Cascade has become an internationally recognized training program for emerging conductors and composers. Thanks to the generosity of our donors and community, the workshop has awarded more than $90,000 in fellowships and scholarships to support the next generation of musical leaders. Cascade has welcomed emerging conductors and composers from across the United States and and from countries including Singapore, China, Canada, Brazil, Iran, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Australia, England, Canada, Argentina, Brazil, Venezuela, Israel, and Mexico.

Under the guidance of internationally acclaimed faculty Sarah Ioannides, David Serkin Ludwig, Geoffrey Boers, and welcoming Juilliard professor Daniel Ott as faculty the 2026 Composers Workshop, participants spend an intensive week refining their craft, collaborating with each other, and working with Symphony Tacoma musicians to present a series of electrifying final concerts.

These inspiring public performances offer a unique opportunity to experience the power of education, creativity, and international collaboration in action.

Premiere of New Orchestral Works

June 19th, 3pm

Join us in beautiful Schneebeck Concert Hall at the University of Puget Sound for the orchestral reading session of the 9th Annual Cascade Composers Workshop with David Serkin Ludwig. Experience an exciting afternoon of discovery and collaboration as emerging composers from around the world hear their brand-new works brought to life by the Cascade Composers Sinfonietta and conductors from the Cascade Conducting Masterclass. Featuring world premiere performances written exclusively for this event, the reading offers audiences a rare glimpse into the creative process as composers, conductors, and professional musicians shape new music in real time.

Choral Concert

June 120th, 7:30pm

Experience an inspiring evening of choral and orchestral music during the final concert of the 2026 Cascade Choral Conducting Masterclass with Geoffrey Boers. Held in the warm acoustics of Schneebeck Concert Hall at the University of Puget Sound, the performance features talented emerging choral conductors leading Symphony Tacoma Voices and the Cascade Conducting Chamber Orchestra in a program exploring artistry, collaboration, and expressive communication through music. Join us for a vibrant evening celebrating the next generation of choral artistry alongside professional musicians and singers from across the Pacific Northwest.

Orchestral Concert

June 21st, 3:00pm

Join us for the culminating event of the 9th Annual Cascade Conductors and Composers Workshop at the University of Puget Sound.

Led by Sarah Ioannides, the final orchestral concert features outstanding emerging conductors from around the world leading the Cascade Conducting Orchestra in a dynamic program of Stravinsky, Debussy, Farrenc, Strauss, Tchaikovsky, Granados, and Reinecke, and featuring soloist Mary Jensen. Performed by an orchestra led by Symphony Tacoma principal musicians, the concert celebrates a week of intensive collaboration, artistry, and mentorship at one of the Pacific Northwest’s premier conducting workshops.

Cascade Conducting

With the motto of "Excellence through Equity," Cascade Conducting is dedicated to bringing world- class musical education to talented and diverse musicians from the US and around the world. Conceived by Paula Madrigal, Sarah Ioannides, and Teo Benson in 2017, Cascade Conducting is officially a program of Orquesta Northwest, a 501(c)3 non-profit.

Since 2018, Cascade Conducting has given out 30 full tuition scholarships equaling more than $90,000 to exceptional young conducting and composing students, with a focus on engaging talented BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) musicians who may not have access to traditional avenues or opportunities.

Gaining truly international status, the Orchestral Masterclass has welcomed conductor's from England, Australia, Iran, China, Argentina, Mexico, Canada, Costa Rica, Israel, and Ecuador.

A unique pedagogical philosophy has formed the mission of Cascade Conducting, which seeks to provide a unique map for navigating the world of music and conducting, and to find balance between the demands of the business, and the preservation of one’s individual musicianship as a necessity to achieve excellence.

In 2020, in a partnership with Symphony Tacoma, Cascade Conducting teamed up with Symphony Tacoma composer in residence, and now Dean of the School of Music at Julliard, David Serkin Ludwig, to create the first Cascade Composers Workshop with David Ludwig, and culminated in the performance of "The Final Conquest" presented by Symphony Tacoma. Now in it's 4th full year, the Cascade Composers Workshop has welcomed composers from around the US and the World including composers from Venezuela, Hong Kong, Beijing, and Israel.

In 2022, Cascade Conducting added a Choral Conducting Masterclass, led by Director of Choral Activities, and Music Director of Symphony Tacoma Voices, Dr. Geoffrey Boers. This year's Choral Conducting Masterclass is comprised of 13 talented and emerging choral conductors from all across the US and Canada.

The Orchestral Masterclass with Sarah Ioannides, Third Annual Choral Masterclass with Geoffrey Boers, and fourth Annual Cascade Composers Workshop will run from June 15th- June 21st, 2026, giving participants from each class the opportunity to learn from all of the faculty and disciplines at the Eighth Annual Cascade Conducting Masterclass with Sarah Ioannides.

About Orquesta Northwest

Led by primarily Latinx staff and board, Orquesta Northwest has worked to promote a sense of belonging and empowerment in Seattle-area Latino community members, beginning with the arrival of Paula Nava Madrigal, professional cellist, and conductor from Guadalajara. In collaboration with a local nonprofit providing instruction, without charge, to under-served youth, she launched the World Youth Orchestra program the same year. In 2015 Ms. Madrigal and Teo Benson, professional violinist and founder and Director of Halcyon Strings Music School, co-founded the Ballard Civic Orchestra and began offering annual Latino arts and culture concert series featuring Latinx guest artists and composers. In 2019 Orquesta Northwest became a 501c3 nonprofit organization, presenting World Youth Orchestra and Ballard Civic Orchestra arts and culture programs and projects and offering an annual Master Class by a new Cascade Conducting program in partnership with Symphony Tacoma. Orquesta Northwest collaborates and partners with other Seattle-area Latino organizations, such as the Consulate of Mexico in Seattle, Casa Latina, Latino Community Fund, and SeaMar Museum of Chicano/a Latino/a Culture, to present Latino arts and culture events and youth educational programming without charge.

The programs and projects of Orquesta Northwest serve as a bridge to excellence in every dimension of life by celebrating Latino arts and culture, empowering marginalized community members, especially youth, and building partnerships and deepening ties with the Latino community. In 2022 Orquesta Northwest social justice projects include voter education, community messaging about the pandemic and vaccination, a celebration of Latinx essential workers, youth cultural education, and capacity-building to achieve equitable access to space in Seattle.

Orquesta Northwest is supported by city, county, state, and federal grants as well as foundations and individuals, including the National Association of Latino Arts & Culture (NALAC), National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), Tides Foundation, 4Culture (King County), ArtsWA, Seattle’s Office of Arts & Culture and Neighborhood Matching Fund, and Equitable Communities Initiative.About Orquesta Northwest

Led by primarily Latinx staff and board, Orquesta Northwest has worked to promote a sense of belonging and empowerment in Seattle-area Latino community members, beginning with the arrival of Paula Nava Madrigal, professional cellist, and conductor from Guadalajara. In collaboration with a local nonprofit providing instruction, without charge, to under-served youth, she launched the World Youth Orchestra program the same year. In 2015 Ms. Madrigal and Teo Benson, professional violinist and founder and Director of Halcyon Strings Music School, co-founded the Ballard Civic Orchestra and began offering annual Latino arts and culture concert series featuring Latinx guest artists and composers. In 2019 Orquesta Northwest became a 501c3 nonprofit organization, presenting World Youth Orchestra and Ballard Civic Orchestra arts and culture programs and projects and offering an annual Master Class by a new Cascade Conducting program in partnership with Symphony Tacoma. Orquesta Northwest collaborates and partners with other Seattle-area Latino organizations, such as the Consulate of Mexico in Seattle, Casa Latina, Latino Community Fund, and SeaMar Museum of Chicano/a Latino/a Culture, to present Latino arts and culture events and youth educational programming without charge.

The programs and projects of Orquesta Northwest serve as a bridge to excellence in every dimension of life by celebrating Latino arts and culture, empowering marginalized community members, especially youth, and building partnerships and deepening ties with the Latino community. In 2022 Orquesta Northwest social justice projects include voter education, community messaging about the pandemic and vaccination, a celebration of Latinx essential workers, youth cultural education, and capacity-building to achieve equitable access to space in Seattle.

Orquesta Northwest is supported by city, county, state, and federal grants as well as foundations and individuals, including the National Association of Latino Arts & Culture (NALAC), National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), Tides Foundation, 4Culture (King County), ArtsWA, Seattle’s Office of Arts & Culture and Neighborhood Matching Fund, and Equitable Communities Initiative.

Cascade Conductors and Composers 2026 Concert Series

Purchase tickets for a single concert, or a three day All Access Pass