The Trillium Trio:
Emma Locarnini, clarinet, William Geiler, piano and Joshua Lee, violin
The Mezza string quartet:
Cassie May and Joshua Lee, violins
Nathan Gaynor, viola
Ellery Schade, cello
Named after the tri-petaled flower native to Pittsburgh, the Trillium Trio was formed in Fall of 2025 at Carnegie Mellon University. The members—William Geiler, Joshua Lee, and Emma Julia Locarnini—are all graduates of Carnegie Mellon University, and coached by international violin soloist Callum Smart.
Since its conception, the group has performed regularly at CMU and the greater Pittsburgh community, being awarded honorable mention at the Carnegie Mellon Chamber Music Competition, and named winners of the 2026 Pittsburgh Concert Society auditions. The trio has also been featured in the 2026-2027 Johnstown Concert Series and frequently records music together.
Joshua Lee has performed as a soloist with the Burlington Symphony, the Chamber Orchestra of Pittsburgh, and the London Community Orchestra. He was presented in concert as a Major Winner in the Pittsburgh Concert Society competition in 2024. He was awarded First Prize in
the Keynotes Music Scholarship audition, and the Chamber Orchestra of Pittsburgh Concerto Competition. He has been interviewed several times by Jim Cunningham on WQED FM Pittsburgh, where he performed live on air. In Canada, he has won the Burlington Symphony Concerto Competition and was the winner of the 2018 and 2019 Rose Bowl Competitions in London, Ontario.
Emma Julia Locarnini holds a bachelors of Music Performance and a bachelors in Medical Laboratory Diagnostics from West Virginia University, and a Masters of Music from Duquesne University. She is currently studying at Carnegie Mellon University with Victoria Luperi of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. As an active soloist, chamber musician, and freelancer, Emma was awarded the 2023 Stanley Drucker prize at the Buffet Crampon Summer Clarinet Academy, and has performed with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. Outside of music, she enjoys hiking and cooking for close friends and family.
William Geiler is a pianist and composer based in Pittsburgh, and a recent alumnus of Carnegie Mellon University’s collaborative piano and composition departments where he studied with pianist Rodrigo Ojeda and composer Nancy Galbraith.
The Mezza Quartet
Since its inception, the Mezza Quartet has been dedicated to the performance of a great variety of musical styles, from baroque to bluegrass.
Founded in 2025 by Carnegie Mellon students Cassie May, Joshua Lee (violins), Nathan Gaynor (viola), and Ellery Schade (cello), the award-winning quartet has been noted for its energetic, lively, and beautiful performances.
Passionate about new music, the quartet performed with the Carnegie Mellon Contemporary Ensemble with conductor Robert Frankenberry. The Mezza Quartet were winners of the Pittsburgh Concert Society Major Artists competition, and have performed for the Juilliard
String Quartet.
