Uploaded September 2023 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
This is a recording of the FY24 Fellowship Panel Review for applicants of Music. These panels were recorded on August 31, 2023. A list of all the public meetings can be found here: nvartscouncil.org/about/public-meeting-notices
About our Panelists:
Raj Rahmen
A prize-winning graduate (BM, MM) of The Juilliard School, Canadian pianist Raja Rahman has performed worldwide with the likes of Sir Georg Solti, Valery Gergiev, and Iona Brown. Winner of several concerto competitions, Juilliard’s Vladimir Horowitz Scholarship, Artists International competition, and numerous other awards, Raja’s career has taken him all over the world in concert as both soloist and chamber musician. Collaborations have included performances with cellist Matt Haimovitz, and members of the Juilliard String Quartet and the San Francisco Symphony. Mr. Rahman’s Carnegie (Weill) Hall debut took place while still at Juilliard, followed by his Lincoln Center debut (Alice Tully Hall) shortly thereafter. Sir Georg Solti became an ardent supporter of Raja’s after they performed together in Germany. Raja’s major teachers have included Seymour Lipkin, Jerome Lowenthal, Lev Vlassenko and Byron Janis.
Passing down this great teaching tradition, Raja is Director of Piano Studies at Nevada School of the Arts. Raja began his teaching career at The Juilliard School’s Music Advancement Program shortly after graduation. He is regularly invited to teach masterclasses across the country.
In 2018, Raja made his highly anticipated Moscow Conservatory debut. For the 2019/20 season, Mr. Rahman has been engaged to play concerts at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, the University of Nevada Las Vegas and a tour of Canada. He returns to a busy concert schedule mid 2022, post pandemic. With support from Steinway, he is recording his next solo piano album at Sono Luminus Studios at the same time.
Jay Stebley
Jay Stebley is Danubius’ cymbalom (large hammered dulcimer) master, as well as its only cellist. He has been featured as a guest cymbalom artist with the San Francisco Symphony over the last few years. He is also a well-known composer and french horn player. In 1999 he performed on Mr Bungle's California. He currently works with the San Francisco Opera in Marketing.
Marlysse Simmons
Marlysse Rose Simmons-Argandoña is a first-generation Chilean-American pianist, composer and educator based in Richmond, Virginia. She is the band leader, arranger and pianist for the globally renowned indie-salsa band Bio Ritmo and the bolero-inspired project Miramar. With her projects she has toured North America, Europe, Russia, and Georgia. She is a recipient of the Mid-Atlantic Touring Arts grant, recorded for Brooklyn’s Daptone, Barbès, and Spain’s Vampisoul Records. She studied composition under Grammy Award-winning artist Arturo O’Farrill and has traveled the world to make independent studies of various musical traditions including Brazil, Cuba, Chile, Puerto Rico and country of Georgia. Simmons also works as a commissioned arranger, educator and lecturer.
This is a recording of the FY24 Fellowship Panel Review for applicants of Music. These panels were recorded on August 31, 2023. A list of all the public meetings can be found here: nvartscouncil.org/about/public-meeting-notices
About our Panelists:
Raj Rahmen
A prize-winning graduate (BM, MM) of The Juilliard School, Canadian pianist Raja Rahman has performed worldwide with the likes of Sir Georg Solti, Valery Gergiev, and Iona Brown. Winner of several concerto competitions, Juilliard’s Vladimir Horowitz Scholarship, Artists International competition, and numerous other awards, Raja’s career has taken him all over the world in concert as both soloist and chamber musician. Collaborations have included performances with cellist Matt Haimovitz, and members of the Juilliard String Quartet and the San Francisco Symphony. Mr. Rahman’s Carnegie (Weill) Hall debut took place while still at Juilliard, followed by his Lincoln Center debut (Alice Tully Hall) shortly thereafter. Sir Georg Solti became an ardent supporter of Raja’s after they performed together in Germany. Raja’s major teachers have included Seymour Lipkin, Jerome Lowenthal, Lev Vlassenko and Byron Janis.
Passing down this great teaching tradition, Raja is Director of Piano Studies at Nevada School of the Arts. Raja began his teaching career at The Juilliard School’s Music Advancement Program shortly after graduation. He is regularly invited to teach masterclasses across the country.
In 2018, Raja made his highly anticipated Moscow Conservatory debut. For the 2019/20 season, Mr. Rahman has been engaged to play concerts at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, the University of Nevada Las Vegas and a tour of Canada. He returns to a busy concert schedule mid 2022, post pandemic. With support from Steinway, he is recording his next solo piano album at Sono Luminus Studios at the same time.
Jay Stebley
Jay Stebley is Danubius’ cymbalom (large hammered dulcimer) master, as well as its only cellist. He has been featured as a guest cymbalom artist with the San Francisco Symphony over the last few years. He is also a well-known composer and french horn player. In 1999 he performed on Mr Bungle's California. He currently works with the San Francisco Opera in Marketing.
Marlysse Simmons
Marlysse Rose Simmons-Argandoña is a first-generation Chilean-American pianist, composer and educator based in Richmond, Virginia. She is the band leader, arranger and pianist for the globally renowned indie-salsa band Bio Ritmo and the bolero-inspired project Miramar. With her projects she has toured North America, Europe, Russia, and Georgia. She is a recipient of the Mid-Atlantic Touring Arts grant, recorded for Brooklyn’s Daptone, Barbès, and Spain’s Vampisoul Records. She studied composition under Grammy Award-winning artist Arturo O’Farrill and has traveled the world to make independent studies of various musical traditions including Brazil, Cuba, Chile, Puerto Rico and country of Georgia. Simmons also works as a commissioned arranger, educator and lecturer.
