Meet the Winners of the Memphis Composers Institute

On February 4, 2026 The Memphis Symphony Orchestra will premiere works by three extraordinary composers selected from an international call for scores:

Fulya Kapucugil (Leaving the Nest)

Dede Ondishko (Singing Strength)

Ethan Soledad (Cages of Jade)

Their music will debut alongside a new work by Walden faculty member Caroline Mallonee in an inspiring concert celebrating the next generation of orchestral music: Memphis Composers Institute 2026 Concert Information and Tickets.

The selection committee also wishes to acknowledge a composer whose compelling work received honorable mention: Aidan Gold (Do We Have the Same Heartbeat?).

About the Artists
Fulya Kapugucil, composer

Fulya Kapucugil is a composer currently pursuing her Master’s degree at University of Memphis. Originally from Türkiye, she continues to develop her compositional practice while engaging with the city’s rich musical and cultural environment. She works with a modern musical language, and her music often grows out of small, motif-based ideas. Before focusing primarily on composition, she studied and performed on the oboe and piano, experiences that continue to inform her approach to writing for instruments and ensemble balance. Her background as a performer contributes to a detailed sensitivity to instrumental color, range, and articulation. Alongside her graduate studies, Kapucugil remains active as a composer. Her artistic perspective is shaped by cross-cultural experiences and a commitment to clear, expressive musical writing.

 

Dede Ondishko, composer

Denise (Dede) Ondishko, Ph.D. was born in 1960 in Bremerton, Washington. She started her musical training at the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore, Maryland with piano lessons when she was seven, soon followed by violin, then viola, cello, and bass. She quickly developed an interest in composition, which she nurtured as a teenager at Walden School in Dublin, New Hampshire in their intensive summer program. Ondishko chose to do her undergraduate work in conservatory piano and composition at Carnegie-Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She completed both her master’s and doctoral degrees at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York. Her teachers include Joseph Schwantner, Samuel Adler, Warren Benson, Leonardo Balada, Paul Dvorak, and David Hogan.

After graduating in 1986, Ondishko raised a family while working for twelve years in computer-networking at several large institutions. She changed careers in 1999 to become a public-school music teacher, earning the distinctive National Board Certification. She has taught music to every grade from pre-school to college in Arizona, California, New York, Ohio, South Carolina, and Virginia.

In addition to her two other careers, Ondishko has composed for orchestra, wind ensemble, solo instruments, saxophone with digital audio, chamber ensemble, and choir. Her commissioned works for saxophone with digital audio have been recorded and performed extensively by Kyle Horch and other professional concert performers. She has received commissions from ensembles in the USA and UK, including CityMusic Cleveland Chamber Orchestra and the Royal College of London. Ondishko has received prizes and awards from BMI, United States Federation of Music Societies, the Eastman School, and Northern California Viola Society, among others.  Ondishko is affiliated with BMI and her works are available at: www.jwpepper.com/myscore/ondishko.

 

Ethan Soledad, composer

With music described as a “tour de force” (Phoenix Boys Choir New Works Rising) and “impressive…volatile” (Classical Voice America), Ethan Soledad (b. 1999) is a Filipino-American composer who aims to use music as a vehicle to connect with others. With an extensive background in singing, martial arts, and dance he imbues his music with a distinct sense of physicality and viscerality. His musical style is marked by unapologetic expression, dynamic extremes, and the ability to do more with less but never shying away from doing more with more. His music has been performed and commissioned by organizations such as the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music, the Washington Gay Men’s Chorus, the Phoenix Boys Choir, the Young New Yorker’s Chorus, The Choral Project, the San Francisco Contemporary Music Players, Musiqa, Hub New Music, True Concord Voices and Orchestra, DACAMERA Houston, the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival, Seattle Chamber Music Society, and Chamber Music Northwest among others.

He is a former teacher at the Shepherd School of Music pre-college program, teaching music theory, composition, and aural skills to advanced high school students. Additionally he is a former young artist at DACAMERA Houston, engaging in outreach programs with Harris county elementary and middle schools. He graduated with his Bachelor of Arts in Music at Florida State University 2021 studying under Liliya Ugay and his Master of Music in Composition at Rice University 2024 studying under Pierre Jalbert, Shih-Hui Chen, and Karim Al-Zand. He is currently pursuing his Doctorate of Musical Arts in Composition at the University of Michigan where he has studied under Kristy Kuster and Roshanne Etezady.

 

Caroline Mallonee, composer

American composer Caroline Mallonee finds inspiration in visual art, science, languages, and musical puzzles. Her music has been programmed across the United States including at New York’s Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Symphony Space, Merkin Hall, Bargemusic, and National Sawdust, as well as further afield at the Long Leaf Opera Festival (NC), Carlsbad Music Festival (CA), Bennington Chamber Music Conference (VT), Jordan Hall (Boston, MA), Cambridge Music Festival (UK), and Tokyo Opera City (Japan).  Mallonee has been commissioned to write new works for the New York Philharmonic, Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, Spektral Quartet, Firebird Ensemble, Present Music, Wet Ink Ensemble, Antares, PRISM Quartet, Ciompi Quartet, Ethos Percussion, and the Buffalo Chamber Players, for whom she serves as composer-in-residence. Carrie has been on the faculty of The Walden School since 1998 and is the director of the Walden School Creative Musicians Retreat. She first came to Walden as a student when she was 12 and has hiked Mt. Monadnock more than thirty times. She holds degrees from Harvard, Yale and Duke, and held a Fulbright Fellowship to the Netherlands, where she studied with Louis Andriessen. For more information, please visit www.carolinemallonee.com.

 

Kyle Dickson, conductor

American conductor Kyle Dickson is celebrated for his dynamic presence on the podium. He is Assistant Conductor of the Memphis Symphony Orchestra and Music Director of the Memphis Youth Symphony. From 2021-2023, Dickson was a Salonen Fellow with the San Francisco Symphony and Assistant Conductor of the Chicago Sinfonietta.

Dickson has appeared as Guest Conductor with the National Symphony, Minnesota Orchestra, Detroit Symphony, Calgary Philharmonic, Portland (ME) Symphony, and Oakland Symphony with recent debuts with the Louisville Orchestra, Pasadena Symphony, and the Grant Park Music Festival. As Cover Conductor, Dickson has been engaged by the New York Philharmonic, St. Louis Symphony, and the San Diego Symphony as well as serving as Assistant Conductor for concerts with the NDR Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, Orchestre de Paris, and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.

A champion for youth and diversity in the arts, Dickson created the award-winning MUSIC REPRESENTS series and was Assistant Conductor for Carnegie Hall’s NYO2 in 2022. He has worked as guest conductor with youth orchestras across the country including ICYOLA, Colburn Academy Virtuosi and the Chicago Youth in Music Festival.

Memphis Composers Institute 2026 Concert Information

Wednesday, February 4, 2026 | 7:30 PM
University of Memphis, Harris Hall
BUY TICKETS
$20 General Admission/$5 Youth/Pay What You Can ($5+)