Rebecca appears on Show 454.

Rebecca Marchan (mezzo-soprano), 17, from Astoria, New York, initially began her musical journey playing the cello when she was just four years old. After switching to the violin at the age of five, she studied for seven years in various El Sistema-inspired programs, such as United Children’s Music Project (New Jersey) and Opportunity Music Project (New York). At the age of twelve, Rebecca found her love of classical singing through lessons with her very first voice teacher, Maria Brea.

Rebecca has now been studying classical voice for six years and is a senior vocal major at the Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts in New York City. As of September 2023, she is now also under the tutelage of Lorraine Nubar as a student in the Juilliard Pre-College voice program.

Rebecca has won several awards, including Classical Singer Magazine’s 2023 All-State Singer Award as well as First Prize at the 2022 Charleston Romantic Music Competition. She has previously participated in several musical theatre productions and is excited to soon perform in her first operatic on-stage role as Tessa in The Gondoliers at LaGuardia High School.

In addition to performing, Rebecca serves as the Choral Director for the not-for-profit East River Children and Youth Orchestras program (ERCAYO), bringing music to her local Chinatown and giving back to her community.

Receiving the Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist Award will cover the travel and lodging costs related to Rebecca’s upcoming college auditions. The Award will also allow Rebecca to attend an intensive summer music program as well as take consultation lessons with potential new vocal instructors.

Peter was named Host of From the Top in January 2020.

Peter Dugan’s position is sponsored by Susan and Gerald Slavet.

Peter first appeared on From the Top Show 158, recorded in April 2007, at age 18.

Peter Dugan prizes versatility as the hallmark of today’s musician and advocates for a classical music culture that is inclusive and welcoming to all. That approach has manifested in a multifaceted and dynamic career as a pianist, composer, collaborator, and radio host.

A musician equally at home in classical, jazz, and pop idioms, he has appeared as soloist, recitalist, and chamber musician across North America and around the world. His performance of Ives’ Fourth Symphony with the San Francisco Symphony and Michael Tilson Thomas was described by the Los Angeles Times as “stunning” and by the San Francisco Chronicle as “fearlessly athletic” and was recorded for release; he subsequently performed the work with the Houston Symphony with Andrés Orozco-Estrada. Other orchestral appearances include the Delaware, Kansas City, New Albany, Johnstown and Mankato symphonies; Philadelphia Youth Orchestra and the Annapolis Chamber Orchestra.

Peter is heard on radios nationwide weekly as host of NPR’s From the Top, which aims to celebrate and empower young musicians. His approach stems from his commitment to sharing classical music through his warm-hearted openness to young voices; in addition to hosting the show, he leads inspiring collaborations, conversations, and performances with the young artists.

Peter is an active and passionate collaborator who has toured extensively with violinists Joshua Bell and Charles Yang, and baritone John Brancy—partnerships which have resulted in recording projects, documentaries, and music videos, and a first-prize win at the Montreal International Music Competition.

Recent and upcoming highlights include Yang & Dugan Duo appearances at Kristupo and Rheingau music festivals, with the Malaysia Philharmonic and on tour in China; a European tour with Joshua Bell including performances at London’s Wigmore Hall and Amsterdam’s Royal Concertgebouw; collaborations with clarinetist Mark Dover, violinist Tessa Lark, and baritone John Brancy, among others, at the Moab Music Festival, Carmel Music Society, Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Cliburn Festival America 250,  Café Carlyle and Kaufman Music Center.

As a composer, Peter has performed his own works everywhere from Carnegie Hall to Joe’s Pub, and his arrangements have been released by Disney+. Peter co-wrote his first concerto with his brother Leonardo Dugan. The jazz-inflected, improvisation-laced “Brothers Concerto” was commissioned and premiered by the Kalamazoo Symphony and Boston Conservatory at Berklee respectively with Peter as soloist in Spring 2026.

He is head of the Artist in Residence program at pianoSonoma and a founding faculty member of the Resonance and Soundboard Institutes at Honeywell Arts Academy.

Peter Dugan holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from The Juilliard School, where he studied under Matti Raekallio. He resides in Montclair, NJ and is a Yamaha Artist.