Digital Dragonetti draws heavily from the Hans Moldenhauer collection in the Music Library and the Charles Deering McCormick Library of Special Collections and University Archives at Northwestern University. Biographical information and contextual information was also gathered from Fiona M. Palmer’s Domenico Dragonetti in England (1794-1846): the career of a double bass virtuoso which makes extensive reference to the Moldenhauer archive.
The exhibit was funded by a grant from the Northwestern University Office of the Provost.
Meet the Curators
Greg MacAyeal
Curator of Music Collections, Northwestern University Libraries; Lecturer, Bienen School of Music
Greg MacAyeal is Senior Librarian and Curator of the Northwestern University Music Library where he oversees all collections and services related to music materials. Additionally, MacAyeal holds adjunct teaching appointments at Northwestern University’s Bienen School of Music and Dominican University (River Forest, IL). Previous appointments include Roosevelt University in Chicago, IL, and Augustana College in Rock Island, IL. MacAyeal holds degrees in music composition from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (BM) and DePaul University (MM). His MLIS from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
Jerry Fuller
Early Music Historian and Period Instrument Performer
Jerry Fuller was invited to join the Lyric Opera of Chicago orchestra at the age of 19, and within two years he was promoted to first desk of the double bass section. Since then, Fuller has performed with the Santa Fe Opera, the Musikkollegium Winterthur, Switzerland, and is presently principal double bassist of the Haymarket Opera Company, Bella Voce Sinfonia, and Callipygian Players.
His recordings on the Musical Arts Society, Cedille, Naxos and Centaur labels have been hailed by both critics and colleagues. Fuller has also written on period instruments and performance practice for The Strad, Double Bassist, and Bass World magazines, and has served on the editorial board of the Online Journal of Bass Research.
Fuller served as an officer of the Board of Directors of the International Society of Bassists, and was founding Editor of Rumblings, a column featuring articles about historical performance and the double bass for Bass World Magazine.
Fuller was awarded the Early Music America Outreach Award for Excellence in Early Music Education, and he received a Special Recognition Award for Historically Informed Performance from the International Society of Bassists. This award is given to a bassist who has demonstrated and achieved the highest level of excellence in historically informed performance.
Meet the Performers
Dr. Stephen Alltop
Director of Music, Alice Milllar Chapel
A conductor, harpsichordist, and organist, Stephen Alltop ’96 DMus is director of music for Alice Millar Chapel, conductor of the Baroque Music Ensemble, and an instructor in conducting, harpsichord, and oratorio. A specialist in oratorio performance, he has conducted over 100 oratorio and operatic masterworks. He also serves as music director for the Apollo Chorus of Chicago, and the Elmhurst Symphony Orchestra. Under his direction, the Apollo Chorus has expanded its collaborations to include appearances with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Chicago Opera Theater, London Symphony Orchestra, Ravinia Festival, Peninsula Music Festival, Josh Groban on Tour, and The Oprah Winfrey Show.
In demand as a speaker about music, Dr. Alltop lectures frequently for the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Northwestern University Alumnae Continuing Education Series, and other musical organizations. In 2014-15, he gave presentations on leadership for the Advanced Management program of the Kellogg School of Management. He is represented by Joanne Rile Artist Management.
Ian Hallas
Lecturer, Bienen School of Music
Ian Hallas currently holds an appointment with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and previously served as as Principal Bass of the Lyric Opera Orchestra of Chicago. He holds a bachelor’s degree with Distinction in Research and Creativity from Rice University where he studied with Paul Ellison as well as a master’s degree from the University of Southern California under David Moore. He has also been heavily influenced by Chris Hanulik and Todd Seeber and has worked extensively with master luthier Mike Shank. In addition to the Lyric Opera, Ian has performed with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Detroit, Atlanta and Milwaukee Symphonies and the Grant Park Orchestra.
Andrew Raciti
Lecturer, Bienen School of Music
Andrew Raciti is the Associate Principal Bass of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra. He is also the head of the double bass studio of the Bienen School of Music at Northwestern University. Before joining the Milwaukee Symphony in 2006, Mr. Raciti was Associate Principal Bass of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra in Australia. He has also performed with the Detroit Symphony, the Minnesota Orchestra, the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, the Utah Symphony and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. In the summers he performs as Principal and Tutti Bass at the Grand Teton Music Festival as well as Orford Musique in Canada. He has also played as Principal Bass of the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra. In South America he has been a regular professor for the Filharmonica Joven de Colombia. Numerous solo performances include the United States premiere of the Concerto for Double Bass and String Orchestra by the Macedonian composer, Zivoin Glisic. A recognized authority in bass pedagogy and performance, Mr. Raciti has published various articles in the quarterly for the International Society of Bassists. His principal teachers were Richard Davis and Paul Ellison.
Nomin Zolzaya
Principal Cellist, Illinois Symphony Orchestra
Nomin Zolzaya is a Mongolian cellist based in Chicago. Since 2019, Nomin has served as the Principal Cellist of the Illinois Symphony Orchestra, substitute cellist at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, regularly performing as both a soloist and chamber musician with her fellow orchestra members. Passionate about non-classical and classical music alike, Nomin has collaborated with renowned artists and bands including Renée Fleming, Ben Folds, Midori Goto, and Mannheim Streamroller. As a previous member of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago from 2017-2018, Nomin performed alongside musicians including Yo-Yo Ma, Jaap van Zweden, and Christoph Eschenbach. Nomin received her Performer’s Diploma from Southern Methodist University in 2014, studying under Andrés Díaz, her Bachelor’s Degree at the Eastman School of Music in 2017, studying under Steven Doane and Rosemary Elliott, and her Master’s Degree at the DePaul School of Music in 2019, studying under Brant Taylor.
Acknowledgments
The curators give thanks to the following people for making Digital Dragonetti possible: musicians Andy Raciti, Ian Hallas, Nomin Zolzaya, and Stephen Alltop; Chicago Bass Works for the conversion of Jerry Fuller’s bass; Keenan Recording LLC for audio and video production; Justin Barbin for still image photography; WFMT radio; Dr. Jesse Rosenberg, Dr. Andrew Talle and Prof. Fiona M. Palmer for musicological research; the entire department of Repository and Digital Collections at Northwestern University Libraries; the Conservation Lab at Northwestern University Libraries; & Drew Scott and Cory Slowik for exhibit assistance. Funding made possible by the Northwestern University Office of the Provost.