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Jeff Marshak

Oboe Specialist

A native of Dayton, Ohio Jeff comes to MMI with more than 20 years of oboe experience. Jeff maintains an active performance career in and around the Twin Cities. Before arriving in Minnesota, he has performed with the Kentucky Symphony, Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, Westmoreland Symphony and in the Twin Cities performs regularly with the Quad City Symphony, The Duluth Symphony, St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, the Minnesota Orchestra, and currently holds the position of 2nd oboe/English horn with the Minnesota Opera. His performance career has also lead him to fellowships with several summer music festivals including the Hot Springs Music Festival, the Opera Theater and Orchestra festival of Lucca, and the National Orchestral Institute. He also has extensive experience as a pit orchestra musician including performances with the Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, The Arnoff Theater, Pittsburgh Playhouse, and Bloomington Civic Theater. Jeff has a BM from Wright State University in Dayton, OH, a MM from the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music in Cincinnati, OH, a Performance Certificate from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, PA and a DMA from the University of Minnesota. His primary teachers include Dr. Mark Ostoich, Dwight Parry, Cynthia Koledo-DeAlmeida, and John Snow.

Steven Maijala

Oboe Specialist

Steven Maijala is oboist and English hornist with the Chippewa Valley Symphony and Eau Claire Chamber Orchestras, both located in northern Wisconsin. His major teachers include Peter Cooper, Anna Mattix, Christa Garvey, and Leonid Sirotkin. He holds a masters degree from the University of Colorado at Boulder and dual bachelors degrees in oboe performance and biology from DePauw University. Steven has performed with the Minnesota Orchestra, Colorado Symphony Orchestra, Longmont Symphony Orchestra, and the Lafayette Symphony Orchestra. When he is not making reeds, performing, or helping customers at MMI, Steven is an amateur potter; he also enjoys cooking, cross-country running, and rock climbing.

Nick Ober

Having performed in a variety of settings and locales, Nick’s aspiration is to be as versatile of a bassoonist as possible. Although primarily experienced as a symphonic player, he has also performed in Opera pits, Theatre and musical productions, and new music ensembles. While obtaining his Master’s in bassoon at Northwestern, he helped launch the project Apres L’Histoire, a new music ensemble that performs and commissions works for the same ensemble used in Stravinsky’s L’Histoire du Soldat. He also co-founded the Seraphina Ensemble, a new music project focusing on living composers from underrepresented demographics. Most recently, Nick was in the cast for the Chicago Shakespeare Theater’s production of Nell Gwynn. He has also performed with the Northbrook Symphony in Northbrook, IL . With 5 years of experience as a barista, he is also excellent at recommending coffee to people. He has a keen interest in bringing the bassoon to genres it is not normally found in, such as jazz. Someday, Nick hopes to maintain a bassoon studio at the college level.

Tori Okwabi, D.M.

Clarinet Specialist

A native of Tallahassee, Florida, Tori joins MMI with more than 25 years of clarinet experience. Tori is an active performer and educator who regularly attends national and international music festivals where she serves as a clinician and guest performer.  She is the principal clarinetist of the Wayzata Symphony Orchestra where she won the 2015 WSO Concerto Competition. As an educator Tori maintains a private teaching studio in Minneapolis and Eden Prairie and loves teaching students of all levels--from beginners to adults.  She received a Doctor of Music degree in clarinet performance from Florida State University, a Master of Music from Michigan State University and a Bachelor of Music from the University of Wisconsin. She has studied under the tutelage of Frank Kowalsky, Elsa-Ludwig-Verdehr, Deborah Bish, Nathan Williams and Linda Bartley.

Brandon Wozniak

Saxophone and Clarinet Specialist

One of Minnesota’s most exciting saxophonists, Brandon returned to the twin cities in 2006 after six years in New York City and a six month stint in Shanghai, China. Wozniak studied music at Indiana University with David Baker and privately with Tom Walsh. Brandon performs regularly with Dave King’s (Bad Plus, Happy Apple drummer) Dave King Trucking Company with saxophonist Chris Speed, the Atlantis Quartet (City Pages Best Jazz Artist 2011, Star Tribune Best Jazz Artist 2012), the great drummer Eric Kamau Gravatt (Weather Report, McCoy Tyner), Bryan Nichols Quintet, Chris Bates Red 5 plus others. Brandon has also performed with singer Nellie McKay, toured with the Tommy Dorsey Jazz Orchestra and shared the stage with organ great Dr. Lonnie Smith and guitarist Jonathan Kreisberg.

Amelia Smith, D.M.A.

Originally from a small suburb west of Minneapolis, Amelia holds degrees in clarinet performance from the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University, the University of Memphis, and the University of Minnesota. She most enjoys collaborating with others through chamber music and performs frequently with groups here in the Twin Cities as well as in Memphis, Tennessee. Amelia has been an audition finalist with the President’s Own Marine Band in Washington, D.C. and was recently awarded first prize in the Schubert Club Scholarship Competition. Her past instructors include Howard Klug, Robyn Jones, Alexander Fiterstein, and Timothy Zavadil. Amelia is also a very passionate and dedicated educator herself, having taught private and group clarinet lessons to students of all ages for several years. She currently teaches at Wayzata High School, Anoka High School and Anoka Ramsey Community College. Most recently she has completed a brief appointment at the University of Mississippi serving as interim clarinet faculty for the first part of Fall semester 2018.

Eric Anderson

Instrument Repair Technician

Eric Anderson graduated with a degree in musical instrument repair in 2005 from Minnesota State College SE tech. He has been repairing wind instruments since, with a primary focus in Bassoon and Oboe. As a member of NAPBIRT, he continues to further the education of his career, by attending annual conferences and sharing knowledge and techniques amongst other technicians in the craft. His support of music on a local and national level is a driving factor for both his professional and personal life.

Allen Mannes

Instrument Repair Technician

Allen Mannes attended Waldorf University and received his B.S. in Music Education in 2011. After teaching beginning band for 3 years he returned to school at Minnesota State College SE Tech to pursue a career in instrument repair. Upon receiving his diploma from SE Tech Allen began his career at Midwest Musical Imports. Allen enjoys learning and is thrilled to be working with the wonderful technicians at MMI. Allen is an avid MPR listener, an enthusiast of random facts, and in his free time is learning how to make trumpet bells.

Caleb Rasmusson

Instrument Repair Technician

Caleb Rasmusson has been repairing instruments professionally since graduating from Minnesota State College SE Tech in 2013. After graduation, he began working at Coles Music Service in southern New Jersey where he honed skills working with both brass and woodwind instruments. After two years, he began repairing at Brook Mays in Dallas, Texas. While he still repaired all instruments he focused most of his time on repairing saxophones and clarinets. In July of 2016 he joined the repair staff at MMI. When he is not repairing instruments you can find him exploring the Twin Cities, tinkering on cars and motorcycles, or belting out Aerosmith at karaoke bars.

Brian DeGayner

Brian DeGayner graduated from Southeast Technical in Red Wing with a diploma in band instrument repair in 2016. Prior to joining the repair team at MMI, Brian worked for Twin Cities Instrument Repair in Edina, focusing on flute and double reeds. He is a member of the National Association of Professional Band Instrument Repair Technicians (NAPBIRT), and attends state and regional conferences. Brian spends most of his free time outdoors, or playing in local orchestras.

Jeff Dorman

Jeff has been professionally repairing woodwind instruments since graduating from Minnesota State College SE in 2017. After graduating he moved from his native state of Minnesota to the west coast, working as a woodwind technician at Best Instrument Repair Company in Oakland,  California. He returned to Minnesota in February of 2019 to join the repair team here at Midwest Musical Imports. In his free time Jeff enjoys rock climbing, listening to a wide range of music and spending time with good friends and family.

Carianne Newstat

Carianne graduated from Southeast Technical College in May 2019. She is extremely excited to begin her career as a Repair Technician at MMI, and looks forward to many years fixing musical instruments. She lives in south Minneapolis with four cats, one roommate, and her extensive collection of sci-fi comic books.