Bassoon
Margaret McShea hails from Texas, where she received her degree in Bassoon Performance from the University of Texas in Austin. She and her trombonist husband moved to the Pacific Northwest long enough ago to have a native Oregonian son and are never moving again!
Margaret plays both bassoon and contrabassoon with regional symphonies such as the Vancouver (WA) Symphony and Oregon State University Orchestra, and she is also a chamber music specialist, performing regularly with several groups in the area. She has a soft spot for vocal works, and has enjoyed being in the “pit” for countless musical theater and opera productions, as well as on the stage with local choral groups Portland Gay Men’s Chorus, Oregon Repertory Singers, Willamette Master Chorus, Bravo Vancouver, Portland Vocal Consort and Portland Symphonic Choir. In the past few years, she has also branched out into studio recording and music videos with groups such as ARCO-PDX.
When not playing music, Margaret can be found in the great outdoors, gardening or camping and hiking with family and friends.
Margaret McShea’s chair is sponsored by Steve & Diana Gordon.
The Bassoon section is sponsored by Bill & Diana Dameron.
Nicole Buetti has composed extensively for chamber ensembles and large ensembles of various configurations, as well as children’s music and music for media. She spent several years in the Los Angeles area working as a composer in the film and television industries, and has had music commissioned and licensed for use all over the world. She has been honored for her film score work at the Wild Rose International Film Fest, Dodge Grant Association, and Telly Awards Association.
Nicole co-owns Goes to Eleven Media, a music and media company specializing in recorded music for film and television and children’s educational songs. In 2017, she released her 6th album of songs for kids called Just Be You! which was honored with both a Parent’s Picks Award for Top 5 Best Preschool and Elementary Music CD’s of 2018 and a 2017 Educational CD of the Year by Creative Child Magazine. Her song “Halloween Masquerade Waltz” won Fan Favorite in the 10th Annual Independent Music Awards’ Best Holiday Song category.
In addition playing contrabassoon and bassoon in Orchestra Nova Northwest, Nicole performs in the Vancouver (WA) Symphony, Oregon East Symphony, and the Oregon Coast Music Festival, and is an active freelancer in both Oregon and Washington as well as abroad. She has performed with the Haydn Music Festival Orchestra in Vienna, and as a soloist and chamber music artist with the Assisi Performing Arts Festival in Italy, where she was appointed Composer in 2013. Nicole has also published several works for chamber groups and wind bands, which are available from Forton Music, Brotons-Mercadal Publishing and JW Pepper.
When she is not composing or performing, Nicole teaches bassoon at the University of Portland and has her own private teaching studio. She believes aspiring musicians should be open to different musical experiences – embrace the weird and whimsical. She loves being involved in all styles and genres of music especially music for children.
The Bassoon section is sponsored by Bill & Diana Dameron.