Biographies
Sergei Pavlov
Artistic Director
Sergei Pavlov is Associate Professor of Music at Edgewood College and Artistic Director of the Festival Choir of Madison.
Born in Sofia, Bulgaria, he studied at the National Academy of Music of his home country and holds a doctorate from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Previous positions include resident conductor at Teatro Nacional Sucrein Quito, Ecuador, music director of the National Mixed Choir of Ecuador, associate conductor of the Opera Department at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign, assistant conductor of Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris, France and assistant conductor at the Spoleto Festival in Charleston, SC, among others. He has been a member of the faculty at Eastern Illinois University and State Academy of Music in Sofia, Bulgaria.
In the past few years, Pavlov has offered masterclasses at Conservatorio Superior de Música de Canarias (Spain), Universidad de las Américas and Universidad Católica (Ecuador), Lamar State University in Texas, and yearly summer workshops for student conductors at the National School for Music and Dance in Plovdiv, Bulgaria.
David Huntsman
Concertmaster
David has served as the ECO concertmaster for over a decade and considers the group his musical home in Madison. Hailing from Madison where he began his musical journey at age four, he completed a double major in computer science and violin performance at UW-Madison and graduated with his master’s degree from the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University. After teaching professionally in Houston for several years, David returned to Madison in 2011 to develop software for Epic and now is a father of three, a mobile software engineer, and an active musician playing with several other groups in the area, including the Madison Symphony Orchestra, the Wisconsin Philharmonic, Candlelight Concerts by Fever, and the Festival Choir of Madison. He is thrilled to own and perform on a violin by Carlo Giuseppe Testore, made circa 1710.
Malia Huntsman
Principal Oboe
Malia is a prominent freelance artist based in Madison, Wisconsin. She has graced famous stages across the country, including Carnegie Hall, Colburn, and Tanglewood, and her performances have been featured on several radio stations and PBS. She has been the principal oboist of the Edgewood Chamber Orchestra for over a decade, is the principal of the Beloit Janesville Symphony, plays with several local chamber groups, and is a member of the Festival Choir Chamber Players. She studied oboe at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music with James Caldwell and Alex Klein, and English horn with Robert Walters. She holds a Masters of Music from Rice University, where she studied with Robert Atherholt.
Malia plays on a cocobolo Laubin oboe and is honored to be a current Laubin featured artist.
More members coming!
Our website is new and still under construction. Expect more bios in the coming Fall 2025 season!