FOUNDED in 1975 by Dr. Don V Moses, who directed the festival for the first 25 years, instrumental and vocal performers have been making a musical pilgrimage to Eisenstadt and Vienna, Austria to attend the Classical Music Festival and perform some of the greatest music ever written. Make this year the summer for your unforgettable experience as a participant in one of Austria's longest-running and most successful summer music programs. Over the years, festival orchestras and choruses have performed nearly all of the masses composed by Joseph Haydn as well as major works by Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Hummel and other masters of the Classical and early Romantic eras.
Under the direction of artistic director and conductor, Dr. Richard Zielinski, you will have the unique opportunity to study and perform in the same setting that fostered the genius of Joseph Haydn, Beethoven, Mozart and others. Performances are held in St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna, Bergkirche in Eisenstadt, and the Esterházy Palace, considered one of the great historic and acoustically perfect concert halls in Europe.
Recitals, lectures, tours and sightseeing are designed to enhance your knowledge of Austrian culture while complementing the busy festival schedule. You are invited to share in this wonderful and unique musical experience. It will be a privilege to welcome you to the city of Joseph Haydn, and we look forward to greeting you in August in the beautifully frescoed Haydn Hall of the Esterhazy Palace!
For the past 40 years, Zielinski has conducted orchestras, choruses and stage productions throughout Europe, Asia, and North America. Richard currently serves as Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of the 51st Classical Music Festival and Orchestra located at the Esterhazy Palace in Eisenstadt, Austria. He is also a recipient of the Gold Medal of Achievement for his artistic achievements and musical contributions in Eisenstadt, Austria as principal conductor and artistic director of the Classical Music Festival. In 2025 Zielinski was awarded the honorary badge “Meritorious for Polish Culture” from the Minister of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland for his 32 years of artistic work in Poland. In 2012, Zielinski and members of the city of Norman, Oklahoma, founded a professional orchestra, The Norman PHILharmonic. The PHIL’s mission is four-fold: to be an innovative and standard-setting orchestra, to commission new works from American composers, to collaborate with area arts programs, and to excite the youth of America about symphonic music. Throughout his career Zielinski has collaborated with composers Norman Dello Joio, Libby Larsen, John Mackey, Michael Daugherty, Samuel Adler, Eleanor Daley, Marek Jasinski, Rosephanye Powell, Jerod Impichchaachaaha’ Tate, James Oliverio, Stephen Paulus, Krystoff Penderecki and has commissioned numerous works from many of these composers. Richard has been invited to guest conduct numerous orchestras: The Florida Orchestra, Haydn Konservatorium Orchestra (Austria), Tampa Symphony Orchestra, Szczecin Philharmonic Orchestra (Poland), Cappella Istropolitano Chamber Orchestra (Bratislava, Slovakia), Zielona Góra Philharmonic (Poland), Danville Symphony Orchestra, Gorzów Philharmonic (Poland), and the Naples Philharmonic (Florida).
Cathy Griffin has served as the Administrative Director for the Classical Music Festival since 2008 and also serves as Executive Director of the Norman Philharmonic in Oklahoma. She has held marketing management positions with several major financial institutions in Washington and Arizona. In addition to receiving a masters degree from the University of Tulsa, she has performed with opera companies in Seattle, Phoenix, and Indianapolis.
Dean Luethi is Professor of Music and Director of Choral Activities at Washington State University, where he conducts the Concert Choir and Chamber Singers and teaches undergraduate and graduate choral conducting. Under his direction, WSU choirs have earned invitations to perform at state, regional, and national conferences, including multiple appearances at ACDA and NAfME conferences. An active conductor and clinician, he has enjoyed an extensive international career, serving as a guest conductor, festival conductor, and choirmaster throughout Austria, China, India, Cuba, South Korea, Poland, and Germany. His engagements have included leading the Guangzhou University Choir and Orchestra in China, conducting the Western Music Educators Association Festival Honor Choir in New Delhi, India, and guest conducting at the National Choir Festival of Cuba. A passionate advocate for new choral music, Dean regularly commissions emerging and established composers and is dedicated to creating meaningful musical experiences that connect singers, audiences, and communities.
Dr. Matthew Myers is Assistant Professor of Music and Associate Director of Choral Activities at Washington State University, where he conducts the University Singers and Treble Choir and teaches choral methods, conducting, and vocal pedagogy. He also serves as artistic director of the Palouse Choral Society. He has led choirs to performances at state and regional conferences and has conducted numerous all-district and all-state choirs. He had his conducting debut at Carnegie Hall in 2025, leading singers and orchestra in performance of J. S. Bach’s Magnificat. International conducting engagements include performances in England, France, Switzerland, Germany, and Austria. He was a featured conductor in the 2026 Concerto Luso-Americano in Leiria, Portugal. He sings professionally with the Sedona Academy of Chamber Singers and Male Ensemble Northwest, serves on the Northwest board of the American Choral Directors Association, and is co-host of the Choir Fam Podcast. He is a frequent choral clinician presenter, and adjudicator. He believes strongly in the power of choral music as a means of self-expression and community building.
Xiaocheng Jia is associate professor of violin at the Shenyang Conservatory of Music in China, a position she has held since 2004. This is her third year as concertmaster for the Classical Music Festival after having served two years as assistant concertmaster. A frequent soloist and active chamber musician, she has performed in recital and concert with many well known orchestras throughout China, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and the United States. In 2016 she was Visiting Scholar and Artist-in-Residence at Indiana State University, performing several collaborative recitals in the U.S., including with Trio Bella Voce, with whom she recently released a CD recording. She is active as a guest teacher and clinician and was part of the highly acclaimed Orchestra Kids program in Beijing. A recipient of several national violin competitions, Xiaocheng studied at the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing for nine years before receiving her Bachelor's degree (2002) and Master's degrees (2004) in Violin Performance from the Shenyang Conservatory of Music. She is also a member of the Chinese Musician's Association.
Originally from the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area, Dr. Brian T. Kilp joined the faculty of Indiana State University in 1998 where he is Professor of Music. Dr. Kilp is Principal Horn of the Terre Haute and Danville (IL) Symphonies, a member of the THSO Brass Quintet, and is a busy freelance hornist Brian has performed and presented master classes inn Thailand, Singapore, China, and Vietnam. Dr. Kilp is a founding member of the the Ambassador Brass, which has toured in Vietnam, Thailand, China, Croatia, Hungary, and Austria. Brian has been Principal Horn since 2000, and is currently Orchestra Manager and Board member of the Classical Music Festival Orchestra in Eisenstadt, Austria. A champion of new music, he has commissioned over 15 works featuring or including the horn. He was appointed Visiting Guest Professor of Horn at the Shenyang and Dalian Conservatories of Music, Visiting Guest Professor at Rajabhat Maha Sarakham University in Thailand, and was awarded Honorary Doctorates from Rajabhat Maha Sarakham University and Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University.
Libby Vanatta, a native of Middle Tennessee, joined the faculty of East Texas State University in 2010. She currently oversees the undergraduate and graduate piano pedagogy degrees as well as coordinates the class piano curriculum. Ms. Vanatta typically performs with ETAMU faculty and students in over 100 events per year and collaborates throughout the country in recitals, conferences, and competitions with guest artists. She appears on three recordings that include newly commissioned works for cimbasso with Jeff Baker, newly commissioned works for trumpet with Daniel Kelly, and the previously unrecorded music of Christopher Wolff (conducted and organized by Dr. Jessica Stearns). Designated a Nationally Certified Teacher of Music the the Music Teachers National Association, she is the current advisor for ETAMU Collegiate Chapter and Treasurer for Hunt County Music Teachers Association. She currently serves on the Texas Music Teachers Association board as Vice President for Business Activities with past appointments including Awards Director, Activities Director II, and Collegiate Chapter Chair. She received the TMTA Collegiate Teacher of the Year for 2020 and the ETAMU Collegiate Chapter Advisor of the Year in 2016. Ms. Vanatta holds a Bachelor of Science in piano performance from Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, Tennessee, and a Master of Music in piano pedagogy from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.
