American Music Institute (AMI) will hold its annual fall concert on September 17, 2023 at

2:00pm with performances from AMI’s distinguished and award-winning college faculty. The

concert is free and open to the public and will be held at AMI’s Clarendon Hills campus

located at 60 55 th Street.

“We look forward to showcasing the amazing talent of our college faculty members and are

excited about the growth of our instructional team,” said Remus Badea, AMI’s Executive

Director.

“We hope that everyone in the community will attend the free concert and enjoy the

wonderful musical performances.”

AMI’s college faculty is comprised of faculty members who currently teach at prestigious

colleges and universities around the city of Chicago. The organization recently added seven

new faculty members who offer private lessons on classical, jazz, and world music

instruments for advanced musicians in the West Suburbs of Chicago and surrounding areas.

The new faculty members who will perform at the fall concert on September 17 include:

Olga Kossovich, Violin/Viola; Ola Rafalo, Voice; and Jennifer Gosack Darwell,

Flute/Piccolo.

Olga Kossovich received her Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Violin Performance from

Northwestern University. She has participated in several competitions, including the UFAM

Concours de Musique, Paris, France, in 2005 and 2006 where she won the 1st prize. She

has won many national and international prizes, including third prize in the Demidov

International Youth Violin Competition DeMYuKS-V in Yekaterinburg, Russia (2009) and the

XVII Togliatti International Competition for Musicians (2012). Olga has also participated in

the III Savely Orlov International Music Competition Festival (Samara, Russia, 2015, II prize)

and the First Rudolf Gummert International Young Performers Competition (Kazan, Russia,

2017, II prize) in addition to obtaining prizes in the GGFSO Young Artist Concerto

Competition (Grand Forks, ND, 2019, I prize), the BSO Young Artist Competition (Bismarck,

ND, 2019, I prize) and the Thursday Musical Young Artist Scholarship Competition (St.

Louis Park, MN, 2021, I prize).

Ola Rafalo received her Master in Music in Vocal Performance from Roosevelt University,

and Young Artist Programs at Opera Tampa, Sarasota Opera, and Palm Beach Opera. She

has earned critical acclaim in a variety of roles and venues. Her most celebrated role thus

far is Carmen, which she has sung with Syracuse Opera, the Lyric Orchestra, Gulfshore

Opera, New Jersey Verismo Opera, and highlights with the Pacific Symphony. She made

her debut at Carnegie Hall, singing the Vivaldi Gloria, and the Kennedy Center singing a

Verdi Gala. She has performed with the Springfield Symphony, Orlando Opera, Baltimore

Lyric, Opera Carolina, Teatro Curci di Barletta, Paderewski Symphony, Eugene Symphony,

Evanston Symphony, Opera Festival of Chicago, Columbus Opera Project, Florentine

Opera, Chicago Opera Theater. Ola received an award from UNESCO for her performance

as Alkmene in the Olympic Torch, by P.Karousos. She has also been a featured recitalist for

the Wagner Society of America and is the Maria Callas prize winner of the Giulio Fregosi

competition, 2020.

Jennifer Gosack Darwell D.M.A received her Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Flute

Performance from the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music. From 2012-2014, Jennifer was a

member of the flute faculty at the University of St. Francis in Joliet, IL. She is currently

principal flutist of the Southwest Symphony Orchestra. Jennifer has performed with the CCM

Philharmoina Orchestra, the CCM Chamber Winds, and the Queen City Chamber Opera.

Jennifer is also a member of the Volaré Trio, Duo Stiletto, and Sunflower Flutes. Most

recently, she received prizes in the 2016 South Carolina Flute Society Young Artist

Competition and the Inaugural 2015 Raleigh Area Flute Association Young Artist

Competition.

For more information on AMI special events and programs, visit www.amimusic.org.

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American Music Institute (amimusic.org) is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization with campuses in Clarendon Hills,

Downers Grove, St. Charles, and Geneva, IL. We are dedicated to enriching our community by offering access

to high quality music education programs through merit and financial need scholarships. AMI programs and

classes are for all levels, ages, instruments, and styles of music. For more information about AMI, please visit

www.amimusic.org or call (630) 850-8505