Susan Grace has performed solo and chamber recitals, and has appeared as soloist with orchestras in the United States, Europe, the former Soviet Union, China and Korea. She has, in addition, performed in numerous series and festivals, including the Phillips Collection in Washington, D.C., the Grand Teton Festival, Music at Oxford, and the Helmsley Festival in England. In addition, Ms. Grace and her husband, Michael, have toured with a concert titled Piano Music and Painting; these programs, which include slides of the paintings upon which the piano compositions are based, have been presented on numerous series, including those at the University of Lüneburg, Florida International University, Bucknell University, the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, South Dakota State University and the Loveland Civic Music Association. These programs have also been chosen for presentation at national meetings of the College Music Society and the American Musicological Society. As a collaborative artist, Ms. Grace has performed with cellist Janos Starker, violinists Martin Chalifour, Glenn Dicterow and Jose-Luis Garcia, clarinetist David Shrifrin, soprano Martile Rowland and many other internationally known musicians.

Ms. Grace is Artist-in-Residence and Lecturer in Music at Colorado College, and Music Director of the Colorado College Summer Music Festival. She is a member of Quattro Mani, a two-piano ensemble that recently completed critically acclaimed tours of Spain and Asia and has performed with orchestras in Fort Worth, Colorado Springs, Cheyenne, Wyoming, and Chico, California. Their first recording was released in October, 2000, by Klavier Music Productions and a second CD of George Crumb's two-piano compositions was released in April, 2001, by Bridge Records.  Both recordings have received national and international critical acclaim. Quattro Mani made their New York debut in Carnegie Recital Hall in January, 2001 on the MidAmerica Productions Series. They returned for the 2001-2002 season and have been invited back for a third time in 2002-2003.

Prior positions include principal accompanist and coach for the Central City Opera, the Colorado Opera Festival and the National Affiliate Artist Program. Ms. Grace has recorded for the Belgium National Radio, WFMT in Chicago, the Society of Composers, Wilson Audio, Klavier International, Klavier Music Productions and Bridge Records. She studied at the University of Iowa with John Simms and with Benjamin Kaplan in London

Carol Wilson is currently the organist at First Christian Church in Colorado Springs.  She received her Bachelor of Music degree in organ and piano performance at Colorado State University in 1973, studying with Robert Cavarra and Wendell Diebel.  Her Master of Music degree, also in organ and piano performance, was earned at the University of Kansas in 1989 with James Higdon and Jack Winerock.  She has served as organist and given organ and piano concerts in Texas, Colorado, Wyoming, Missouri and Kansas.  While in Kansas, she taught organ and piano at Ottawa University and was university organist.  In addition to playing at First Christian Church, Carol teaches piano and organ, accompanies in the community, manages the First Christian Church Concert Series, and is an active performer on organ and piano.  She is the dean of the local chapter of the American Guild of Organists, and is a member of Pikes Peak Music Teachers Association. She is an avid gardener, both at home in Woodland Park and at First Christian Church, and joins her husband in his activities as a ham radio operator.

Linda Weise is the Executive Director of the Colorado Springs Conservatory.  She along with her husband, Keith Wells, founded the school in 1994.  She is a native of Buffalo, New York, and a graduate of Oberlin Conservatory and the Juilliard School in both piano and vocal performance. 

She has concretized across the nation, but is recognized for her work in the Pikes Peak region.  She has performed with the Colorado Springs Philharmonic and the Chamber Orchestra of the Springs.  She has also made appearances in various productions that have included  the conservatory, such as Noye’s Fludde by Britten and Amahl and the Night Visitors, The Medium, The Telephone, and Martin’s Lie, all by Menotti.

During his lengthy career, Herbert Beattie served as Professor of Music at Syracuse University, Pennsylvania State University, the University of Buffalo, and Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York.  He also enjoyed a full-time career as a leading basso with the New York City Opera and numerous other opera companies in the United States, Canada and Europe.

As a concert singer, he appeared with many major symphony orchestras in the United States, singing with Bernstein, Ormandy, Steinberg, Krips and others.  He was a favorite soloist with Pablo Casals and sang his El Pessebre Cantata throughout the US and Central America.  He has premiered the compositions of many well-known composers, including Igor Stravinsky, Frank Martin, Darius Milhaud, Elie Siegmeister, David Diamond, Lou Harrison, Aaron Copeland, Jack Beeson and Carlton Gamer.

As a composer, he published many choral works with Lawson-Gould (Robert Shaw's company) and his works have been performed locally by The Colorado Vocal Arts Ensemble and the Colorado Springs Chorale.  Last September, Beattie's latest work for chamber players, organ and speaker - "Sailing to Byzantium" - premiered at First Christian Church.

Mr. Beattie appeared with the Colorado Opera Festival as a singer and stage director and performed as principal artist in many summer seasons with The Central City Opera.  In Colorado Springs, he has sung recitals devoted to the music of Schubert, Brahms, Wolf, Mahler, Schumann, Ives, modern Russian songs and American works.  

He has recorded for Columbia, Desto, Heritage and Cambridge records.

Mr. Beattie has a BA degree from Colorado College, a MM degree from Westminster Choir College and an honorary Ph.D. from Colorado College.   He retired to Colorado Springs in 1980 and has been associated with Graham Advertising in Colorado Springs since 1982.

Dale Backus - April 19 & 20, 2008

Dale Backus is a Mechanical Engineer by trade, but his true passion is being a concert pianist.  Last year, he competed in two international amateur piano competitions.  He received 1st prize Press, Jury and Audience awards in the 5th Rocky Mountain International Piano Amateur Competition.  He also received 4th place honors in the inaugural Berlin International Piano Amateur Competition with a performance of the Prokovief piano concerto No. 1 in the Berlin Philharmonic Hall.  

Dale, a native of Ohio, began taking formal piano lessons prior to his 4th birthday and was able to read music before reading the abc’s.  Throughout his high school years, he won several solo and ensemble competitions.  He was awarded a full athletic scholarship (football) to Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC, where he was a punter for the Demon Deacons.  He received a Bachelor of Arts in Music degree (1990).  He was also awarded a full music scholarship to the University of Michigan School of Music, Ann Arbor, MI, where he received his Masters in Music degree in Piano Performance (1993).  In addition to his music studies, Dale received an academic scholarship to Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, Terre Haute, IN, where he was appointed Artist-in-Residence and football coach and received a Bachelors of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering (1995).

Dale currently works as a System Safety Engineer for MEI Technologies on a government contract here in Colorado Springs .  He is married to Laura, who is a professional equestrian.  They have two children, Madeline and Charlotte, who are 11 and 9 respectively.  They live in Larkspur, CO, and take care of a large equestrian center where Laura and the kids enjoy the outdoor lifestyle of horses and Colorado .