Susan Glass, artistic director
Artistic Director
Susan Glass has enjoyed a rich and varied career as a music educator, having taught children and adults in many diverse settings. She began her career at Little Red School House & Elisabeth Irwin High School, where she taught music and founded three children’s choruses, and an adult chorus, which became The Glass Menagerie. She was a longtime member of the faculty at the New York University Summer Kodály Institute. For several years she taught at the Gateway School of New York — a special setting for children with learning disabilities. She has returned to LREI as a Middle School and High School vocal teacher and choral director. Over the years, her students have participated in concerts with Pete Seeger and with Peter, Paul and Mary at Carnegie Hall, Avery Fisher Hall, and on PBS television. Susan is a frequent clinician and guest conductor throughout the United States. She is co-founder of the Kodály Organization of New York and has served two terms on the national board of the Organization of American Kodály Educators (OAKE). She was honored to receive the 2015 OAKE Outstanding Educator Award, and she conducted the OAKE National Women’s chorus at their 2017 conference in Philadelphia. She holds a doctorate in Music Education from Teachers College, Columbia University. She sings with Cerddorion, a vocal chamber ensemble.
Julius Akira Mauldin, accompanist
Accompanist
A resident of Jersey City, Julius Akira Mauldin is currently a third year undergraduate student at the Mannes School of Music in New York City, studying Orchestral Conducting under David Hayes. He is an assistant conductor for the Mannes Orchestra, and has led performances with the Mannes Orchestra, Mannes Opera, Mannes American Composers Ensemble and Valerie Coleman’s Mannes Flute Ensemble. Julius was also a finalist in the LA Conducting Competition, and in 2022 founded the Westside Chamber Players, an orchestral ensemble made up of conservatory students based in New York. Passionate about new music and particularly works by Asian American composers, Julius has conducted many premier performances of pieces, including Martinu Prizewinning piece A Truce Within by Jiaying Li, and recently commissioned a new piece for his graduation recital in 2024. An accomplished choral musician, Julius participated in many productions of major works, including performances with Yannick Nézet-Séguin and the Philadelphia Symphony Orchestra, and as a featured soloist in a Lincoln Center production of Berg’s Wozzeck with Esa-Pekka Salonen and the London Philharmonia Orchestra. As a pianist, Julius started lessons with Cecilia Cho at age 16, and is now accompanist for the Mannes Prep Choruses, The Glass Menagerie, and the orchestral pianist for the New York Youth Symphony.
Accompanist
Josh Mauldin is a pianist, organist, and educator. He studied at Manhattan School of Music, receiving a Master’s Degree in Piano Performance. Josh has been the director of music at All Saints Episcopal Church in Hoboken, N.J. for 15 years. He is also honored to be on the faculty of Saint Benedict’s Prep in Newark, N.J. Saint Benedict’s was recently featured in the New York Times for their unique and challenging program that takes students on a five-day excursion on the Appalachian Trail. He resides in Jersey City with his wife, two kids, and two cats.