SA
SAN ANTONIO HARMONIE ENSEMBLE
MUSICIANS
Personnel
OBOES
Erin Mallard | Principal Oboe
Librarian
Erin Mallard is proud to have called the San Antonio area her home since 2014. She is a principal member of SA Harmonie, Alamo City Symphony Viva and Symphony of the Hills, and plays regularly with Mid-Texas Symphony and other regional ensembles. Her newest adventure is playing baroque oboe with Sonido Barroco San Antonio. She operates a thriving online reed business, selling her handcrafted oboe and English horn reeds to customers around the country, and maintains a private studio. She enjoys collaborating with friends and colleagues on projects, including performing recitals, commissioning new music, and regularly presenting at the annual International Double Reed Society conferences. When she isn't playing, teaching, or making reeds, Erin can be found in Boerne, sipping coffee, reading, befriending the local wildlife, and spending time with her amazing husband and their three cats.
Leo Benavides | Oboe
Leo Benavides is a registered nurse in San Antonio and graduate of the the UT Health Science Center. Although his career is in nursing, he has been an active musician throughout his studies and in recent years. He was a part of the Mezcolanza Reed Quintet which had the opportunity to attend the Chamber Music Institute at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. His experience with the Mezcolanza Reed Quintet is what gave way to his enjoyment of chamber music, as it is collaborative and diverse. He is excited and grateful for the opportunity to be a part of SAHarmonie and share the joy of music with others.
CLARINETS
Don Bierschenk | Principal Clarinet
Don Bierschenk has been an active performer for over forty years. He currently serves as principal Clarinet for the San Antonio Wind Symphony, is a member of the Prickly Pear Clarinet Ensemble, and has performed with numerous other South Texas musical groups, including San Antonio Symphony Viva, San Antonio Municipal Band, King William Winds, San Antonio Symphony, Austin Symphony, Mozart Festival Texas Orchestra and numerous other chamber, church and community groups. While obtaining a music education degree from the University of Texas, he was a four-year member of the UT Longhorn Band as well as the UT Wind Ensemble. Don has enjoyed a distinguished career in the educational sheet music industry. He was co-owner and vice president of RBC Sheet Music in San Antonio for 28 years, and most recently served as Regional Manager for RBC-JW Pepper Music for eight years. In 2021 he was awarded the Texas Bandmasters Association Industry Award, given for invaluable contributions to the education of young people through the band medium in Texas. Don retired from the sheet music industry in 2024, and is still an active performer, adjudicator and clinician. He has also arranged numerous selections for woodwinds, and several of his arrangements for clarinet ensemble are currently on the UIL Prescribed Music List. Don is also co-author of the Essential Elements series of band method books and supplementary materials.
Stephen C. Moore | Clarinet
Stephen Moore is an IT professional who happens to have a serious passion for all things clarinet.
He is the second clarinetist of Symphony Viva, the Eb clarinetist of the Heart of Texas Concert Band and the Prickly Pear Clarinet Ensemble, the latter of which has performed at several internationally-attended conferences. Recent solo appearances include the concertos of Weber and Mozart with local bands and orchestras. Stephen is equally passionate about chamber music and programs an annual summer recital. During the day, Stephen is a network engineer for Rackspace, involved with datacenter infrastructure design and migration. Stephen grew up in the El Paso area and performed with the El Paso Winds and the Las Cruces Symphony. He studied information systems and clarinet performance at New Mexico State University and his principal teachers were Laroy Borchert, Larry Mentzer, and Bradford Behn. Stephen is a Behn performing artist.
BASSOONS
Sarah Wildey-Richmond | Principal Bassoon
Social Media Coordinator
Dr. Sarah Wildey-Richmond is a sought-after performer and educator, teaching bassoon and music history and literature at the University of Texas at San Antonio. She formerly taught bassoon at Texas Lutheran University, bassoon and woodwind methods at Texas A&M University, Kingsville, and music appreciation at West Texas A&M University. Additionally, she maintains a private bassoon studio in San Antonio, Texas.
Picture of Sarah Wildey with her bassoon.
An avid orchestral musician, Sarah holds the contrabassoon chair with the Amarillo Symphony, a position she has held since 2013, and performs regularly with other orchestral groups throughout Texas, including the Kingsville Symphony, the Mid-Texas Symphony and Symphony Viva. Past engagements include the Indianapolis Symphony, Bloomington Camerata, Carmel Symphony, Columbus Philharmonic Des Moines Symphony, Waterloo-Cedar Falls Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra Iowa, Lubbock Symphony, Roswell Symphony, Midland-Odessa Symphony, Victoria Symphony, the San Antonio Symphony, and the Corpus Christi Symphony.
Sarah most recently became a member of San Antonio’s Sonido Borocco, an early music ensemble where she performs on baroque and classical bassoon, as well as dulcian. As a chamber musician, Sarah is the principal bassoonist of The American Prize-winning group SA Harmonie and is active in chamber music with her colleagues.
Within Texas, Sarah is active in the Texas Music Educators Association, performing at the 2024 Texas Band Masters Association Clinic/Convention as part of a lecture recital on the benefits of chamber music in secondary education, and coached the 2025 TMEA Symphonic band All-State bassoonists. She chose the 2025-2026 All-State Bassoon Etudes, and has the honor of choosing the 2026-2027 All-State Contrabassoon Etudes. She has taught masterclasses across the state and enjoys working with band directors to strengthen basic knowledge of the bassoon, empowering band directors to have stronger, more successful bassoonists within their programs. In June of 2026, she was the bassoon artist faculty at the inaugural Fredericksburg Summer Music Institute, a orchestral festival focused on making summer music more financially accessible to college-level music students.
On the national level, Sarah is a member of The International Double Reed Society and this July will be part of a lecture and world premiere of Extant Flight, a double reed “flextet” written for the double reed students of UT San Antonio. Previously she performed at the 2025 Conference held at Butler University and was part of a world premiere for the 2024 Conference held in Flagstaff, Arizona. Additionally, Sarah performed at the 2025 Meg Quigley Vivaldi Competition and Bassoon Symposium in Salem-Winston, North Carolina, where she was also a member of the competition committee, and now she proudly serves as their Competition Co-Chair. In the summer of 2026, Sarah also started the nationally broadcast series, “The Meg Quigley Effect”, a YouTube and Podcast series interviewing semifinalists from the Meg Quigley competition.
Originally from Upstate New York, Sarah received her DMA from The University of Iowa under the tutelage of Benjamin Coelho. She also holds a MM degree from Indiana University where she studied bassoon with William Ludwig, and historical bassoon with Michael McCraw, and her BS in Music Education from York College of Pennsylvania.
Outside of music, Dr. Wildey is passionate about animal rescue and fosters primarily medical and special needs animals through Wayward Whiskers Foundation, San Antonio Feral Cat Coalition, and Second Chance Cavy rescue. She is the volunteer social media coordinator and website manager for Wayward Whiskers and also volunteers for video editing and social media with San Antonio Feral Cat Coalition. Dr. Wildey also enjoys volunteering with River Aid San Antonio (RASA) and the San Antonio River Warriors, a part of San Antonio River Authority (SARA), which seek to clean San Antonio’s waterways. During her free time, Dr. Wildey enjoys baking and cooking, and relaxes by knitting. She currently lives in San Antonio, Texas with her husband, Will, and far too many foster animals.
Meridith Wright Rupert | Bassoon
Meridith Wright is a bassoonist, educator, and reed maker based in San Antonio, Texas. She has spent more than a decade teaching young bassoonists and maintains a private studio of middle and high school students throughout the San Antonio area. An active orchestral and chamber musician, Meridith is principal bassoonist with Symphony Viva of San Antonio and second bassoonist with the San Antonio Harmonie Ensemble. She has also performed with the San Antonio Philharmonic, Mid-Texas Symphony, Round Rock Symphony, and other ensembles across Texas. She holds a Bachelor of Music in Bassoon Performance from Indiana University and a Master of Music in Bassoon Performance from the University of Texas at Austin.
More recently, Meridith added another chapter to her professional life, earning a Master of Science in Marriage and Family Therapy and becoming a licensed marriage and family therapist. While music and therapy may seem like very different worlds, she has found that both are rooted in many of the same things she values most: listening well, connecting with others, and helping people grow. Outside of work, Meridith loves any excuse to get outdoors. She enjoys running, hiking, and backpacking, especially alongside her husband and dog.
HORNS
Jeff Rowland | Horn
Steven Villanueva | Horn
PLUS
Danielle Aicher | Flute
After 18 years of band directing in Dallas and San Antonio, Danielle Aicher is excited to serve the music community in a new capacity as School Services Coordinator at Allegro Band Services, helping San Antonio-area musicians with their instrument repair needs. She is passionate about sharing her musical talents and remains active as a clinician, masterclass, and private lesson teacher. Danielle earned her Bachelor of Music Education degree from the University of Houston Moores School of Music where she studied instrumental methods with John Benzer and served as Principal Flutist in the University of Houston Wind Ensemble under the direction of Tom Bennett. During her time at UH, she had the privilege of performing in nearly every performing ensemble, including the Graduate Woodwind Quintet and AURA: Contemporary Ensemble. Through these experiences, she developed a particular appreciation for the close collaboration and keen awareness of others that chamber music demands. It has been an honor to earn a spot in SA Harmonie with such talented musicians, and she looks forward to making music again with them every season. In addition to all of her musical endeavors, she loves being a mother and enjoys outdoor adventures with her husband and two boys.
Stephanie Hulsey | Flute
A native of southeast Texas, Professor Stephanie Hulsey is an active performing flutist throughout the greater San Antonio area, frequently requested as a lesson and masterclass instructor in addition to her positions as Lecturer of Flute at Texas Lutheran University and the University of the Incarnate Word. During the summer, she is the flute instructor for the TLU Summer Music Academy and Texas State University Band Camp. As of August 2026, Ms. Hulsey is pursuing a PhD in Music and Human Learning at the University of Texas at Austin. Ms. Hulsey holds bachelor’s degrees from McNeese State University (2013) in Music Education and Music Performance, minoring in piano, and a master’s degree in music from Texas State University (2016). During her time at McNeese, she earned 3rd place in the Louisiana Flute Society for her piccolo solo and performed in the Baylor University Flute Seminar for Francesca Arnone, Marianne Gedigian, and Jim Walker. While attending Texas State, Ms. Hulsey’s adjusted degree track laid the foundation for the now-conferred Master of Music - Performance and Pedagogy. She performed with the Silver Voices flute ensemble 2014-2017, premiering new works at the 2014 National Flute Association Convention in addition to holding regular concerts and accompanying at weddings. In 2015, Ms. Hulsey was selected and received funding for travel to Plovdiv, Bulgaria’s Musicartissimo music festival to study with Prof. Lydia Oshavkova. For the 2015-16 season, she was requested to play principal flute with the Starlight Symphony Orchestra.
Currently, Ms. Hulsey performs with the South Texas Symphonic Orchestra (principal flute), SA Harmonie Chamber Ensemble (National Winner for the American Prize in Band/Wind Ensemble Performance, 2023), and the Brazos Breeze Flute Choir (selected to perform at the NFA Convention, 2020 and 2024). She has subbed and collaborated with numerous groups throughout Texas such as Symphony Viva, San Antonio Wind Symphony, San Antonio Chamber Choir, Adelante Winds, and the Composer’s Alliance of San Antonio to name a few.
Outside the orchestral and chamber worlds, some of her most memorable musical and opera performances include Ragtime, Speed Dating Tonight, Dialogues of the Carmelites, The Sound of Music, and most recently, Disney’s Frozen. She has also served as a scheduling administrator for RMT Music, a lesson-staffing company (2020 to 2024) followed by an internship with Allegro Band Services as an instrument repair technician from mid-2024 to 2025. The internship focused on beginner to intermediate-level common band instruments with an emphasis on woodwinds. Today, she continues building her flute repair skillset to better assist local students and the community. Her flute professors include Dr. Judy Hand and Dr. Adah Jones. She has also participated in masterclasses and lessons with Leone Buyse, Keith Underwood, Patti Adams, Daniel Pardo, Susan Milan, Ian Clarke, Patricia George, and Sheryl Cohen.
In her free time, Ms. Hulsey enjoys cooking, baking, going to CrossFit a few times a week, and visiting with friends and family.
George Fahlund | String Bass
George Fahlund, double bassist, is the director of the Texas Hill Country Bass Collective and the Austin Bass Workshop. He is an active musician, performing with the San Antonio Philharmonic, SA Harmonie, The Dallas Opera, the Mid-Texas Symphony, Symphony of the Hills, and many other ensembles across Texas.
In addition to his performance career, Mr. Fahlund has over thirty years of experience as a music educator. He has worked with numerous young musicians at the primary, secondary, collegiate, and semi-professional levels. His students consistently earn top chairs and high ratings at TMEA and UIL-sanctioned events. He has trained nearly seventy young bassists to become TMEA All-State performers, with twenty achieving first chair or the principal position in their ensembles.
Mr. Fahlund has also been a featured lecturer at the Texas Music Educators Association, Texas Orchestra Directors Association, and International Society of Bassists conventions. He is a member of several organizations, including the International Society of Bassists, the American String Teachers Association, the Texas Music Educators Association, and the American Federation of Musicians, Local 23, where he currently serves on the executive board. In his spare time, he enjoys cooking and spending time with his wife, Janet, and their two dogs and cats.