Current Trustees
Nicholas Mann, President (Ossining, NY) – Yellow Barn faculty violinist and violist, Nicholas was a founding violinist of the Mendelssohn String Quartet, and member for 31 years. He currently teaches at The Juilliard School and The Manhattan School of Music where he is Chair of the String Department. A much-admired performer and teacher, his festival positions, in addition to Yellow Barn, include NAC in Ottawa, Aspen, and Ravinia.
Margaret Anderson, Vice-President (Chesterfield, NH)—After retiring as a social worker, Margi has devoted her time to vounteer activites. She has served on the boards of the Domestic Abuse Partnership and the Academic Lecture Series of the Darien Community Association and worked with Tiny Miracles, an agency that assists families with premature children.
John Leppman, Secretary and Treasurer (Bellows Falls, VT)—John has been a primary care physician in Bellows Falls since 1976. He is employed by the Springfield Hospital and is medical director of Southern State Correctional Facility. He is president of the Rockingham Meeting House Association and has served as president of the Genealogical Society of Vermont and of the Vermont Medical Society. John has been involved on the board of Yellow Barn since 1980. He is a graduate of Johns Hopkins University and the University of Vermont.
Daniel Chong (Somerville, MA)—Daniel, a violinist and Yellow Barn alumnus, has garnered wide recognition for his performances in such venues as Carnegie Hall, Library of Congress, Musikverein, Concertgebouw, and Wigmore Hall as the founding first violinist of the Parker Quartet. The quartet is currently the Blodgett Quartet-in-Residence at Harvard University where they serve on the faculty of the Department of Music. In addition, the Grammy award-winning violinist is a member of the East Coast Chamber Orchestra and Ensemble DITTO.
Jean-Michel Fonteneau (West Hartford, CT)—Jean-Michel, a Yellow Barn faculty cellist, is a founding member of the Ravel String Quartet, winner of two prizes at the Evian International String Quartet Competition, and recipient of Les Victoires de la Musique Classique Award for best French chamber music ensemble. He has taught at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique in Lyon, France, and is currently on faculty at San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Jean-Michel’s recordings are available from Musidisc-France and Albany Records.
Steven Frucht (New York, NY)—Steve is a movement disorders neurologist at NYU, Professor of Neurology at NYU Grossman School of Medicine and Director of the NYU Movement Disorders Division. He has authored two texts and co-authored 200 peer-reviewed papers, lectured nationally and internationally for the Movement Disorders Society, and pursued clinical research to improve the treatment of patients with unusual movement disorders such as posthypoxic myoclonus, vocal tremor, spasmodic dysphonia and musicians' dystonia. His principal violin teachers were Christine Dethier, Sophia Vilker, and Masuko Ushioda, and he attended the Tanglewood Music Center as a fellow in violin from 1988 to 1990. His daughter Emma attended Yellow Barn from 2017-2020.
Marka Gustavsson (Red Hook, NY)—Marka, a Yellow Barn Young Artists Program faculty member, joined the Colorado Quartet in 1999. She has held positions at the Bard, Mostly Mozart, Skaneateles, and Newport chamber music festivals. Marka is a faculty member at Bard College and Conservatory, where she oversees the chamber music program and performs as a member of the Bardian Ensemble; with the Colorado Quartet she served fourteen seasons as faculty and co-artistic director at Soundfest Chamber Music Festival and Quartet Institute.
Evelyne Luest (New York, NY)—Evelyne is an accomplished piano soloist and chamber musician. Her many collaborations include such noted musicians as cellist Truls Mork, flutist Emmanuel Pahud, cellist Joshua Roman, the Lark Quartet, and the Daedalus string Quartet. Evelyne’s long list of premieres includes compositions by Ned Rorem, Joan Tower, Aaron Jay Kernis, and Lisa Bielawa. She studied with Gilbert Kalish at SUNY/Stony Brook, where she received an M.M. and D.M.A. in piano performance. Evelyne's son Jonah is a cellist and has been an ardent participant in the YAP program at Yellow Barn for several years.
Tom Novak (Boston, MA)—An active chamber and freelance bassoonist in New York for 10 years, Tom was a founding member of the Amerigo Ensemble and a former member of the Quintet of the Americas. A member of the NEC administration since 2001, Tom held a number of positions including Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid, Provost and Dean of the College, and Interim President. After the arrival of President Andrea Kalyn, his title was revised to Vice-President and Provost, a position that he held until July 2021. He holds degrees from Eastman School of Music (BM and Performer’s Certificate) and Yale University (MM), with additional studies The Juilliard School.