About Us
Maestro Performance’s tour specialists stand on the shoulders of more than a century of industry leading wisdom. We are proud of our timeline, and look forward to continued success, providing memorable and curated travel experiences, and collaboratively working with our clients in a respectful and appreciative manner to ensure the best performance tours possible.
1906
Alfred Kuoni established Kuoni – with a strong footprint in Switzerland and Central Europe, global leadership in customer service standards, and experts at handling complex group itineraries
1972
Tumlare is founded in Denmark – authorities in Scandinavia, Russia, Balkans, and Eastern European destinations, staffed by creative and passionate professionals, with solution-oriented approaches
2011
Tumlare inaugurates Maestro by Tumlare – building upon decades of achievement with thematic travel, the new team specializes exclusively in performance tours
2020
Kuoni Tumlare is launched – bringing together the best of Kuoni GTS and Tumlare to form a stronger, more valued brand, featuring deeper experience, focused local offices across Europe, greater competitive buying power, and premier support…
Maestro Performance is reimagined – Maestro by Tumlare has been renamed to reflect our greater value, benefitting from the rich talent and expertise of Kuoni Tumlare, while continuing to offer the high quality service of our niche operation, and reflecting our distinct heritage and passion for providing the best performance travel opportunities and arrangements in conjunction with all of our destination offices in Europe.
We are enthusiastic advocates of performance and travel, and are committed in our attention to every detail of your tour. Maestro Performance is led by a dedicated team of professionals in our Waltham, Massachusetts office, and supported by each of our Kuoni Tumlare European offices.
We like what we do, and look forward to collaborating on your endeavors to share the stages of Europe with your ensemble. Our well-traveled specialists appreciate the importance of each concert, tour manager, meal, and hotel room, and work diligently to provide the best quality and value for your curated itinerary.
Allow us to make introductions to Our Staff
Joseph Green
Head of Sales and Sales Operations Europe and Americas
Joseph shipped out to sea 40 years ago as a cruise ship photographer, where he caught the travel bug and learned the importance of composition—for both pictures, and itineraries. He has extensive group travel experience that includes an amazingly creative imagination for product development. A strong leader and client advocate, Joseph takes this responsibility to heart and it shows in his relationship to each tour. While he continues to travel extensively, Joseph has dropped anchor in Sudbury, MA with his wife and five children. As a family, they breed and raise champion Portuguese Water Dogs.
David Michael Gagne
Director of Performance Tours
Dave is well experienced in working with group performance and cultural tours, having spent more than two decades customizing specialized programs, initially at Encore Tours, and joining Tumlare in 2011. His passion for excellence and attention to detail are driven by the desire to make each performance tour an inspirational and memorable event for every musician, music director, and participant involved. Rounding out Dave’s resume are stints at both Trans World Airlines and Sentient Jet, where he explored his love for aviation. Dave found his voice as a child while playing the clarinet, and was a member of a choir, while dabbling as a punk and new wave bassist in a band that never left the garage. It was a college instructor who inspired Dave to travel the world, and 39 countries later he is still planning several trips into the future.
Nora Sereg
Operations Manager
Nora is from Hungary, birthplace of Zoltan Kodaly, the famous Hungarian composer and creator of the Kodaly method. She became acquainted with music very early in school, and at the age of eight first learned to play the cello; continuing to play for 16 years in a classical orchestra, and singing in the school choir. Upon graduation with a degree in Tourism, Nora discovered the world as an employee of Hungarian Airlines. She joined Tumlare’s Budapest office in 2005, creating tours with a focus throughout Central and Eastern Europe, before moving to the United States where she brings her musical and cultural knowledge, and operational expertise to the Maestro experience.
Andrea Fiasco
Product Director, Cultural Exchange & Thematic Travel
Born in Rome, Andrea has over 25 years of experience organizing concerts, festivals, and music and sports related events; meetings and exchanges between Italian and other European performance and athletic groups and their equivalents from all over the world. Andrea has always been an advocate of cultural exchange as being a value added “experience” to any tour. His best quote remains, “Choirs, orchestras, and bands are different from any other group of travelers. To be able to organize their concerts and tours, ability, professionalism, and attention is just not enough. You also need to have a passion for the art.”
Darin Minghella
Director of Sales
Darin has been assisting groups traveling internationally for over twenty years, the last fifteen with Kuoni Tumlare. Darin understands that travel is a learning experience, and he is driven to help create positive memories that will last a lifetime. He has toured throughout the world and has a wealth of experience helping groups design itineraries that will both meet their goals, and exceed their expectations. He loves Norway’s spectacular scenery and charming people; it is a country filled with awe inspiring beauty and culture. Darin lives in Rhode Island with his wife and three children.
Stefanie Porter
Senior Tour Coordinator
Stefanie has been working in various aspects of the travel industry for over 20 years including marketing, inventory management, flight and land operations and customer service. With this knowledge, she offers extensive experience in establishing and reinforcing operational processes to ensure service excellence. Stefanie spontaneously took her first transatlantic flight solo to Germany to meet friends following college and then was hooked. Her current favorite destination is the Greek Islands, but there is so much more of the world to explore. A lover of the arts, she dabbles in photography while living in southern Massachusetts with her husband and three boys.
Mihaela Damian
Executive Coordinator for Thematic Travel
A native of Romania, Mihaela moved to Italy as a young child. Here she completed her studies, and discovered a true passion for travel. Her commitment to customer service and client satisfaction was honed at a variety of hotels in central Rome, before joining the JTB family in 2009. Mihaela has been an integral member of the Maestro operation since its inception, assisting in extraordinary events across Europe to guarantee our high standards and the success of our ensembles. Her earlier experience working with leisure groups from the United States and Asia provided her a good foundation for her conscientious and exacting efforts with musical and thematic tours, making her a true Maestro milestone. Favorite travel destinations include the Greek Islands and Turkey.
Giulia Sismondo
Executive Coordinator for Thematic Travel
Giulia joined the Kuoni Tumlare family in 2011 and began working as operations staff for the Japanese clientele for her first two years. Her passion for the land of rising sun continues within the Maestro Performance team, being able to answer clients’ needs thanks to her deep knowledge of different cultures and languages. She has managed the organization of kimono shows, cultural events, and concerts for choirs from Japan and the United States. Of course, it is not all about Japan, as thanks to her great travel experience and love for music, she is a member of the Maestro team responsible for performance tours throughout Europe. Giulia is married to a Spanish mother-tongue and has two (bilingual) kids; together with her family, she often travels to Spain, a country she loves in every aspect.
Monica Thomas
Project Manager Performance and Specialist Tours
Hailing from Genoa, Italy, and a resident of London, Monica has always loved traveling, and learning about different cultures and languages. Having also lived and studied in Japan for several years, she is a multi-cultural member of the Maestro team. Monica joined JTB and then the Kuoni Tumlare family in 2000, and has become instrumental in working closely with her colleagues and clients in organizing unforgettable performances, making lifetime connections, and engaging with wonderful talents while visiting amazing places and listening to beautiful music in the British Isles. Her passion has brought her to every corner of England, Ireland, and Scotland, gaining a great knowledge of these destinations. But she has never said goodbye to her roots, and enjoys promoting her beloved region of Liguria to international ensembles.
Waltham, MA 02452