A Cultural Crosswinds

Four Shepherd School faculty members join CAYO’s inaugural Mexico exchange, connecting young musicians through performance and education.

Photo of a Benjamin Kamins, professor of bassoon, in a room playing the bassoon among other bassoon students
Shepherd School professor of bassoon, Benjamin Kamins, joined faculty and students from the Eastman School of Music, DePaul University and the Oberlin Conservatory of Music for a week of collaboration that moved from classrooms to concert halls. Photos courtesy of CAYO

By Brandi Smith

In Guanajuato, a Mexican city known for its color, history and music-filled streets, four Shepherd School faculty spent a week this spring making music with young musicians — a master class that doubled as an act of cultural connection.

Photo of horn professor holding a french horn while instructing a student that is playing a french horn
Shepherd School professor of horn, Elizabeth Freimuth, works with a student during CAYO’s Woodwind Week Mexico.

The Rice faculty were part of the Cuban American Youth Orchestra’s inaugural Woodwind Week Mexico, a cultural exchange that brought wind musicians from the U.S. and Mexico together for classes, rehearsals, school visits and public performances.

The trip marked the first Mexico program for CAYO, a Minneapolis-based nonprofit founded by clarinetist Rena Kraut ’01. The organization promotes U.S.-Cuba cultural diplomacy through education, exchange and performance, though original plans to hold the program in Cuba were redirected due to the current geopolitical landscape.

Representing Rice were Benjamin Kamins, the Lynette S. Autrey Professor of Bassoon; Erin Hannigan, professor of oboe; Elizabeth Freimuth ’98, professor of horn; and Janet Rarick, recently retired associate professor. Shepherd alumna and flutist Marisela Sager ’01 also served as a teaching artist.

They joined faculty and students from the Eastman School of Music, DePaul University and the Oberlin Conservatory of Music for a week of collaboration that moved from classrooms to concert halls.

Photo of Erin Hannigan, professor of oboe, holding an oboe and instructing a student playing the oboe.
According to Shepherd School professor of oboe, Erin Hannigan, the experience reflected the culture of collaboration she sees at Rice.

“Through school visits, house concerts and lessons, the faculty lived out our motto, ‘The world is a better place when you know your neighbors,’” Kraut says.

The faculty visited two institutions during the week. At Academia Renacimiento, which Kamins calls an “extraordinary community music school,” American faculty and students rehearsed with local ensembles before leading individual master classes. At Conservatorio de Música de Celaya in the nearby city of Celaya, the combined group rehearsed and performed Richard Strauss’ Serenade in E-flat major, Op. 7, and Joachim Raff’s “Sinfonietta,” in addition to holding two public performances in Guanajuato.

For the Shepherd faculty, the exchange was both musical and personal.

“We could barely communicate with each other through language, but we were able to form deep connections through music,” Freimuth says. “I am certain that I am a better person, teacher and musician having had this experience.”

Hannigan says the experience reflected the culture of collaboration she sees at Rice. “We have a special culture at the Shepherd School, and sharing this experience alongside my fellow faculty members and one graduate made the collaboration especially meaningful,” Hannigan says. “The warmth and musical spirit of Guanajuato inspired all of us.”

From the Fall 2026 issue of Rice Magazine