COMPASS Concert: Welcome to the Program: Community Online Meditation Performance and Salon Series, An online Zoom concert presenting live music programming.

Margaret had early training as a classical pianist in the U.K. and the U.S., then pursued an academic career in German and French language and literature. She holds degrees from Tufts University and the University of Michigan, and taught at university level for several decades. In 2013 she added a graduate certification in Nonprofit Management to her professional portfolio, with a specialty in arts organizations, and currently works to help arts nonprofits, as a Board member, consultant and musician. Margaret is a Director and the Emcee of Classical Revolution PDX (CRPDX), a nonprofit in Portland, Oregon. CRPDX connects amateur and professional chamber musicians in non-hierarchical music-making, and brings both paid and free classical music to underserved audiences.

Margaret is active in Portland's classical music scene, playing for CRPDX, retirement communities, Portland Piano International, Friends of Chamber Music and Big Mouth Society, as well as playing, organizing and hosting house concerts. An avid tango dancer, Margaret also plays tango piano in ensembles for dancers. She co-directs a foundation benefitting underserved communities through arts, humanities, educational and health nonprofits.

Jory Debenham

Dr. Jory Debenham is a musicologist, musician, and educator who works on questions of musical meaning and interpretation. She is also very interested in personal development and performance psychology, incorporating mindfulness and movement analysis in her teaching and performing.

Currently based in Birmingham, UK, Jory’s research focuses on music composed in the Nazi camp of Terezín, where musicians used their music to bolster the spirits of their fellow inmates and express their own feelings of grief and loss, as well as to document their experiences within the camps. She has presented at more than twenty conferences throughout North America and Europe and has presented her work in lecture-recitals, in print, and in online and radio formats. A monograph about the final musical compositions of four composers from Terezín is forthcoming with Indiana University Press

In addition to her academic pursuits, Jory teaches private music students, presents on performance issues for adult learners, and is a practical examiner with the Royal Conservatory of Music (Canada). Jory is originally from Calgary, Alberta and she holds a BMus from the University of Calgary, an MMus from the University of Alberta, and a PhD from Lancaster University.

Nancy Good

Nancy has been playing clarinet for over 20 years and was also in a touring band (folk/classical/light rock) singing main vocals. Since 2012, her clarinet focus has been with tango orchestras and trios. She is a psychotherapist, working internationally in trauma healing and resilience, mother of 3 children and 2 grandchildren.

Nancy performs with Isabelle Haulin and other musicians who live close to Portland Oregon. They met through tango dancing, and have been playing tango music together for about 2 years. They particularly like playing for dancers, at local public events and small house parties.

Isabelle Haulin

Isabelle has been playing piano as a hobby since childhood, mostly classical music, until around 2016 when she decided to focus on tango music. She is a software engineer currently working for Nike, and mother of an 18 year old boy.

Isabelle performs with Nancy Good and other musicians who live close to Portland Oregon. They met through tango dancing, and have been playing tango music together since 2018. They have played for dancers and at house parties.

Mari Hwang

American pianist Mari Hwang believes in creating a safe world where people are inspired to live wholeheartedly. As a co-producer of The COMPASS Concerts (Community Online Meditation Performance and Salon Series), she and her partners, Shinichiro Inaji and Louis Yungling, have established a welcoming, safe environment for music performance where people from all over the world feel a sense of community, support, and healing.

Ms. Hwang’s earlier experiences and challenges with stage fright for solo performances has guided her to share mindfulness awareness practice, easing psychological tension, and connecting heart to music. She performs in variety of venues, in concert halls such as Carnegie Hall, DiMenna Center for Classical Music, Merkin Hall, Walt Disney Hall, and in cathedrals, hospitals, libraries, music schools, and private residences.

Her programming frequently shines light on works by unknown, undervalued, minor works of well known composers, and women composers. Her embodiment of often deeply personal storytelling resonates profoundly with audiences and leads to open and courageous dialogue.

In addition to her private teaching studio and being on the faculty for MSM Summer Program, she serves as a collaborative pianist at Manhattan School of Music in NYC.

Ms. Hwang has moved from a sunny suburb of Los Angeles, CA, to attend Manhattan School of Music, where she has received a Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance. Subsequently, she has received a Master’s in Music from Mannes School of Music and a minor in impact entrepreneurship from The New School.

Louis Yungling

Hello, my name is Louis Yungling and I'm the founder of COMPASS. I'm also a pianist and teacher.

Meditation, mindfulness and awareness exercises are an integral part of my teaching and practice. Musicians benefit greatly from these practices by being able to fine tune their focus and get more out of their practice as well as increase their responsiveness to sound and be more present and confident in performance.

I created COMPASS concerts to extend these practices to audiences and give everyone a moment to pause and go inward. We do this by sharing a brief contemplation exercise before every concert. In this way we practice being aware of one another and give ourselves a chance to feel and appreciate our unique contribution.

Preparing our minds and bodies to receive and make music allows us to be more receptive to the beauty and generosity that goes into a musical performance. And practicing this type of mindful preparation regularly can help us open our hearts more to the experiences of our day to day lives.

I am thrilled to share this journey with you and the very talented, generous artists who perform here. Thank you to all my musician friends for sharing your gifts and creating beautiful programs of music for our COMPASS community. And thank you to all who come and partake in these heart-warming community concerts.

I currently live and teach piano in Valencia, Spain. My teaching website: Yungling Piano Studio.