Administration
Co-Founder and Executive Director
Brian Dallow, composer, studied at the Royal College of Music, the Royal Academy of Music, the London School of Economics, Brandeis University, and Rutgers University. He holds degrees in performance, composition and theory, and musicology. Brian taught music theory and composition at Rutgers University in New Jersey and at Temple University in Philadelphia. He is the co-author of “Elemental Music Craft.,” a music theory textbook published by Rutgers University Press and his compositions include chamber music, incidental music for theatre and film, as well as musical scores for four musicals. Brian is the President and Executive Director of Music For All Seasons, Inc.®, an organization created to bring the therapeutic power of live music to underserved audiences, which he and his wife, Artistic Director Rena Fruchter, founded in 1991. Brian was instrumental in launching an innovative new MFAS program, Voices of Valor®, which uses the writing of lyrics and music to address issues of trauma and stress in veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. Voices of Valor, has received major grants from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Johnson & Johnson, the Blanche & Irving Laurie Foundation, and PNC Bank. He was a founding co-chair of the Alliance for Arts and Health New Jersey, and serves on the Research Committee of the Global Alliance for Arts and Health. In addition to Music For All Seasons, Brian is the co-founder of two orchestras, the New York Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra and the Philharmonic Orchestra of New Jersey (now The Discovery Orchestra). In April of 1997 he was awarded a Certificate for “Outstanding and Invaluable Service to the Community” by the United States Congress.
Co-Founder and Executive Director
Co-Founder and Artistic Director
Rena Fruchter is the co-founder and Artistic Director of Music For All Seasons, an organization that presents musical programs for people confined in institutions including hospitals, nursing homes, prisons and special facilities for children. The organization runs the acclaimed “Voices of Valor” project. Music For All Seasons was co-founded by Rena and her husband, Brian Dallow, in 1991.
Ms. Fruchter is a distinguished pianist, writer and educator. Her performances have taken her throughout the United States, Europe, Australia and the Far East in both solo and ensemble appearances. With long-time friend and colleague Dudley Moore, Rena toured the United States and Australia in duo-piano performances.
A Philadelphia native, she made her solo debut with the Philadelphia Orchestra at the age of six, performing the Haydn Piano Concerto in D Major. At age eleven, she gave her first performance with the Boston Pops under Arthur Fiedler at the Esplanade, later returning to perform the Schumann Piano Concerto with the Boston Pops in Symphony Hall.
A graduate of Brandeis University, Rena also holds degrees in both piano performance and pedagogy from the Royal College of Music in London, England, where she studied with Louis Kentner and Lamar Crowson.
For twelve years, Rena Fruchter was a music columnist for The New York Times/NJ Weekly, and music critic of the Central New Jersey Home News. She was also a music critic and an arts commentator for New Jersey Public Television, a critic and London Music Correspondent for the Boston Herald and a contributor to many other publications. She hosted the radio interview program, “Backstage Portraits.”
Ms. Fruchter is the author of three critically acclaimed books—two in the biographical genre—Dudley Moore—An Intimate Portrait, and I’m Chevy Chase…and you’re not. Her most recent book, The Orchestra Murders—A Cynthia Masters Mystery, was released the United States and throughout the world.
Co-Founder and Artistic Director
Dana Daddio is the Director of Operations at Music For All Seasons. Dana is a graduate of Montclair State University, holding a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Theatre Studies with a minor in Vocal Performance.
Dana is excited to be working with Montclair State University once again through MFAS’ partnership with the John J. Cali School of Music’s new Cali Collective Ensemble program. The program mentors MSU graduate students in live MFAS programs in various facilities. Dana enjoys working closely with the students and all musicians on the Music For All Seasons and Voices of Valor rosters.
In addition to her duties at MFAS, Dana is currently a working vocalist who tours New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire with several bands and tribute acts. She is represented by leading New Jersey talent agencies Horizon Event Group and Beatgig, which has presented her performances at Met Life Stadium for NFL game pre-shows, Penn State University, Rutgers University, and theatres and casinos across the East Coast, including Caesar’s Palace, The Larcom, The Cutting Room and Majestic Theatre of Massachusetts. Her other passions include reading, attending Broadway shows, and being an active donor and member of the ASPCA guardian program, assisting adoptions and securing foster homes for animals in need of FURever homes.
