The Ember Winds Project is Valerie Nuzzolo, Heather O’Gara, and all of their clarinets.
This duo, born in 2023, aims to spark excitement for new music and innovative performances.
Valerie Nuzzolo
Clarinetist and co-founder of the Ember Winds Project, Valerie Nuzzolo is an enthusiastic performer and teacher. She holds a DMA from Michigan State University and a Masters from Ithaca College, both in Clarinet Performance, and a Bachelors in Music Education from Lee University. Primary teachers are Guy Yehuda, Richard Faria, Peter Cain, and Mindy Dragovich.
In 2020, Valerie performed in Kolkata, India as one of the Spartan Winds as guests of the Pitch Pipe Foundation, alongside its founder Jennifer Heemstra. In addition to performing as a soloist and chamber musician, she has also performed with the Ithaca New Music Collective, Cayuga Chamber Orchestra, and Kingsport Symphony Orchestra,
Currently, she is based on Long Island in New York and the Adjunct Professor of Clarinet at Five Towns College.
Heather O’Gara
Clarinetist and co-founder of the Ember Winds Project, Heather enjoys an exciting and evolving international career. An active performer and teacher of the clarinet in the NY metropolitan area, Heather has also performed in Canada, Belgium, and The Netherlands, most recently premiering new works for bass clarinet in Nova Scotia at the June 2023 LampNOW concert series.
In November 2023, Heather performed Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto with the West Islip Symphony Orchestra. She regularly appears with the Staten Island Philharmonic on E-flat clarinet, and has been a bass clarinetist with the Long Island Festival Orchestra, New York International Virtuosi Orchestra, Island Symphony Orchestra, and Park Avenue Chamber Symphony.
Heather holds multiple degrees in Clarinet Performance from The Royal Conservatory of Brussels (KCB) in Belgium, and a Bachelor of Science in Music Education from Hofstra University on Long Island. Her primary teachers include Benjamin Dieltjens (principal clarinetist, Antwerp Symphony Orchestra), David Van Maele (E-flat clarinetist, The Royal Symphonic Band of the Belgian Guides), and Laurie Friedman-Adler (founder, Hevreh Ensemble).