Garrett Byrnes gained his Doctorate from Indiana University, where he served as Associate Instructor of Composition. He began his studies at the Boston Conservatory, earning a Bachelor of Music in 1995, and continued his education in Baltimore, receiving his Masters from the Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University in 1999. His principal composition teachers include Sven-David Sandstrom, Don Freund, David Dzubay, Chen Yi and Larry Bell. Mr. Byrnes’ music has been heard in France, Switzerland and Japan as well as throughout the United States. His compositions have been read and performed by such organizations as the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, Indiana University New Music Ensemble, Contra Costa Chamber Orchestra, Chesapeake Youth Repertory Orchestra and CYSO Flute Choir, Aspen Summer Festival Orchestra, the Peabody Symphony and Concert Orchestras, Tonus Percussion Group, Tarab Cello Ensemble, and the Kylix New Music Ensemble as well as notable soloists. He has received honors and grants from the American Music Center, National Association of Composers, Southeastern Composers League, Boston Conservatory, residencies at Yaddo and the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, and has served as composer in residence at St. Mary’s College of Maryland. Recent compositions include Aphorism for solo harp and Triptyclysm for percussion trio. His Concerto for Piano Chamber Orchestra, commissioned by David Dzubay and the Indiana University New Music Ensemble,  the ensemble and pianist Ji-Hye Chang. Among Byrnes' most performed compositions are his works for harp. Valley of Butterflies was recently given its full premiere by Yumiko Endo Schlaffer at the American Harp Society in Dallas' 50th Anniversary concert. Villanelle for violin and harp was commissioned for the Dutch duo of Tjeerd Top and Lavinia Meijer, premiered at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, has been performed by numerous duos, and will be released on an upcoming CD. Visions in Twilight (harp solo) continues to be a very popular work, and performed often by harpists in an array of countries. Meijer herself has given performances of the work in numerous cities across the globe, including Amsterdam, Athens, Birmingham, Brussels, Cologne, Dublin, New York, Paris, and Vienna among others, and features the composition on her CD "Visions" (Channel Classics). The work is also featured on the recording "Ceren Necipoglu: Bir Kitap Gibi" (Kalan Müzik) along with another harp solo work by Byrnes, Amhrán Slán.

Mischa Zupko received a Bachelor’s degree in piano performance from Northwestern University in 1994 and a Master’s and Doctorate degree in composition from Indiana University. He is currently on the faculty at DePaul University School of Music and serves as the composer-in-residence at the Music Institute of Chicago. His teachers have included his father, Ramon Zupko, Eugene O’Brien, Fredrick Fox, David Dzubay, Augusta Read Thomas, and Don Freund. Mr. Zupko has since received several awards and commissions. Among these are first place in the Pacific Symphony Orchestra’s American Composers’ Competition, Dean’s Prizes at Indiana University (1998, 1999 and 2001), and there ASCAP Morton Gould Young Composers Awards (1999, 2000, 2001), one of which was the first place Kaplan Award. He is the winner of the Jacob Druckman prize from the National Federation of Music Clubs (2000). He also holds awards from the Bloomington Chapter of the National Society of Arts & Letters (1998, 2000, 2001), is the co-winner of the USA International Harp Competition Contest (2003) and the winner of the Lee Ettelson Prize (2004). In May 2004 he was a finalist in the Rome Prize Competition. Mr. Zupko has an impressive list of commissions from the Pacific Symphony, the Fromm Foundation (2002), the Gilmore International Keyboard Festival (2003) and the New York Youth Symphony and the Minnesota Orchestra (2004), and from several instrumental soloists. Mr. Zupko’s works have been performed at Carnegie Hall, Merkin Hall, Segerstrom Hall at the Orange County Performing Arts Center, the Aspen Music Festival, the Moscow Conservatory, where Mr. Zupko was invited to perform his work Shunt (for piano and electronic tape). In March 2002, he was selected to take part in the Minnesota Orchestra at Minneapolis’ Orchestra Hall. His works have also been performed in numerous solo instrumental competitions, including the Israel International Harp Competition at the SUNY Potsdam School and the Grace Welsh piano competition. In November 2003, Mr. Zupko’s Harpichord Concerto for harpsichord and string quartet was premiered by Bradley Brookshire and the Corigliano Quartet at Merkin Hall. Mr. Zupko remains active as a performer through his work as a guest pianist with the Kylix New Music Ensemble and has performed with the Indiana University New Music Ensemble.