Dorothy Redwood Cooke Sutherland Concertmaster Chair

In his career as a soloist, chamber musician, orchestral leader, recording artist and pedagogue, Vahn Armstrong has established himself as a leading violinist of his generation. He is now in his twenty-sxith season as Concertmaster of the Virginia Symphony, an orchestra which has garnered national praise for its performances and recordings. Mr. Armstrong is also Concertmaster of the Virginia Opera, and during the summer he serves as Concertmaster for Chautauqua Opera and Associate Concertmaster of the Chautauqua Symphony in Chautauqua, New York.

Mr. Armstrong has appeared as soloist on many occasions with the Virginia and Chautauqua symphonies, as well as many other orchestras throughout the U.S. He is a member of Apollo, an ensemble whose premiere recording of John Luther Adams’ Clouds of forgetting, clouds of unknowing was recently released by New World Records. He is also a charter member of the Virginia Waterfront International Arts Festival Chamber Music Series, and leader of the Chautauqua String Quartet. For ten years, Mr. Armstrong performed with the award-winning New World String Quartet, concertising throughout the U.S. and Europe. The New World Quartet made several recordings; one of these, Ainsi la nuit by Henri Dutilleux, was awarded a Prix du disc.

Mr. Armstrong gave the world premiere of Larry Bell’s Book of moonlight for violin and piano in Boston in 1989. In fact, throughout his career he has been committed to performing music of this century. He includes in his repertoire not only works of Stravinsky, Schoenberg, Berg, Prokofieff, Bartok, and Barber, but also those of Ligeti, Dutilleux, Arvo Part, Elliot Carter, Richard Danielpour, Gwyneth Walker, and many others.

Mr. Armstrong has recorded for MCA Classics, New World Records, Musical Heritage Society, and others. He has been a frequent guest on NPR’s Performance Today, WGBH’s Morning Pro Musica, WNED’s Music from Chautauqua, and BBC London. He was also Artist-in-Residence at Harvard University, University of Michigan, Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara, California and MusicWest at Utah State University.

A native of Michigan, Mr. Armstrong holds BM and MM degrees from the Juilliard School, where he was a scholarship student of Dorothy DeLay. He now resides in Norfolk, Virginia, and enjoys sailing on the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries.

Yun Zhang began his violin studies under the tutelage of his father at the age of three and gave his first public performance when he was five years old. While studying in the renowned Shanghai Conservatory of Music, Yun Zhang was awarded the Fu Cheng Xian Memorial Scholarship for excellence in performance and artistic potential. In 1998, he arrived in Bloomington to study with Henryk Kowalski and Stephen Boe, the former teaching assistants of Josef Gingold at the Indiana University. In the 2001-2002 season, Yun Zhang was a recipient of the prestigious Helen F. Whitaker Fellowship and served as the concertmaster for the Civic Orchestra of Chicago under the direction of conductors Daniel Barenboim, Pinchas Zukerman, David Robertson, Anne Manson, William Eddins, Cliff Colnot, Giancarlo Guerrero, and Duain Wolfe. In 2002, Yun Zhang joined the Virginia Symphony Orchestra as Associate Concertmaster. He has performed frequently in recitals and chamber music series throughout the United States and Asia. Recent solo appearances with the Virginia Symphony Orchestra include the “Butterfly” Violin Concerto, Brahms Violin and Cello Double Concerto, Beethoven Violin Concerto, Haydn Symphony Concertante, and Mozart Violin Concerto in D major. His performances have been broadcasted on Classical 88.7 FM of Indianapolis, WFMT Radio Network of Chicago, WSVH of Savannah, Georgia and WHRO of Hampton Roads, Virginia. Yun Zhang is active in teaching. He holds the positions of guest professor of violin at Yunnan Arts Institute in China and the artist in residence at Christopher Newport University.

Hailed by the Washington Post for “…bringing real drama” to his performances, violinist Jonathan Richards has performed throughout the United States and Canada as both a chamber musician and soloist. He has won numerous competitions and has appeared as soloist with the Kishwaukee Symphony, the Orchestra of St. Vincent’s of Chicago, the Judson College Symphony, the Northern Illinois University Philharmonic, and the University of Maryland Symphony Orchestra. Richards has gained recent accolades in DC’s new music scene for his performances with the esteemed VERGE ensemble, the Grammy nominated Inscape Chamber Orchestra, and the New Music Ensemble of Towson. As an orchestral musician, he has performed regularly with the Fairfax Symphony, Annapolis Symphony, Alexandria Symphony, Chesapeake Symphony, and National Philharmonic along with the Concert Artists of Baltimore, Post-Classical Orchestra, Washington Soloists, and is now performing full-time with the Virginia Symphony Orchestra. An avid chamber musician, Richards was a founding member of the Adelphi String Quartet as well as a member of the critically acclaimed Excelsa Quartet. As a recording artist, Richards has recorded Walter Gieseking’s works for string quartet and string trio for the Naxos label with the Adelphi Quartet, and has recently recorded world premiers for the Sono Luminus label with the Inscape Chamber Orchestra.

Lee A. & Helen G. Gifford Principal Second Violin Chair

Elizabeth Coulter Vonderheide, originally from Lynchburg, VA, began violin studies at age 5. She studied with Dr. Svend Ronning at the University of Virginia while in high school, and earned the Bachelor of Music from The Indiana University Jacobs School of Music in the studio of the late Franco Gulli, Distinguished Professor of Violin, where she was a Dorothy Richards Starling scholarship recipient. While in Indiana she held contracts with the Camerata Orchestra, the Owensboro Symphony in Kentucky, and the Columbus Indiana Philharmonic. Elizabeth earned the Master of Music in the prestigious Orchestral Performance Program at the Manhattan School of Music, studying with Glenn Dicterow, Concertmaster of the New York Philharmonic.

While in New York she served as Concertmaster of both the Manhattan School of Music Philharmonia and Chamber Orchestras, where she had the opportunity to play under such renowned conductors as Kurt Masur, David Robertson, Pierre Boulez, and Julius Roudel. She also appeared as a soloist both with the Claremont Ensemble and in a live broadcast on Soundcheck with John Schaeffer on 93.9 WNYC FM, and performed regularly with Dicappo Opera and the Kalaiope Quartet. Elizabeth won the job of Assistant Principal Second Violin with the Virginia Symphony in 2003, and since then has also played a season as Acting Principal Second.

Since 2008 she has been a regular substitute with the St. Louis Symphony, and has joined them for both their Opera Season and their Carnegie Hall tour. Elizabeth has soloed with the Virginia Symphony, the Lynchburg Symphony and the National Repertory Orchestra, and performed as a member of the National Symphony of the Dominican Republic, the orchestras of the Spoleto, Italy Festival, the American Institute of Musical Study (Graz, Austria), the Crested Butte Music Festival, The Colorado Music Festival, and the Conducting Institute at Waterville Valley, New Hampshire. An avid chamber musician, she is a regular performer on the Organ Swell Recital Series in Hampton Roads and the Midday Music Recital Series in Lynchburg, and has performed with the Ambrosia Quartet on the Feldman Chamber Music Series in Norfolk, with the Virginia Symphony Quartet featured on NPR’s Performance Today, and with the Quartet-in-Residence at Quisisana Resort in Center Lovell, Maine. She has also been a Guest Artist at Randolph College in Lynchburg. Elizabeth is married to VSO Principal Trumpet David Vonderheide, and they live in Portsmouth with their dog Marty.

Omari Abdul-Alim is one of the musicians taking part in the Virginia Symphony Orchestra’s African American Fellowship Program.

Jorge Aguirre was born in Lima-Peru. Following studies at the Conservatorio Nacional in Peru, Mr. Aguirre received a scholarship to study with Mr. Henryk Szeryng in Mexico and later with Mr. Szimzia Bajour. He received a scholarship to attend the Aspen Music Festival in Colorado to study with Ms. Dorothy Delay for two summers. Meanwhile he performed professionally with of orchestras in Mexico such as the Guadalajara Symphony, Guanajuato Orchestra, Estado de Mexico Symphony, and the Xalapa Symphony. He moved to Europe to play with The Sinfonietta de Roma (Italy), Royal Opera of Brussels (Belgium) Mannheim Opera (Germany) and later with Madrid Symphony, all in different title chairs. He had the privilege to play professionally under great conductors such as, Leonard Bernstein, Zubin Metha, Lorin Maazel and James Levine among them.

In the USA he began playing as Assistant Concertmaster in the Coronado Music Festival (Arizona) Colorado Music Festival (Boulder), South Florida Symphony (Fort Lauderdale), Miami Chamber Orchestra and briefly with the Florida Philharmonic. He was the Assistant Concertmaster for the New American Chamber Players based in Detroit.

After his wife Sherie Aguirre won the first oboe position in the Virginia Symphony, he came to Hampton Roads area to play with the Virginia Symphony where he has been heard as a soloist and a Concertmaster in several occasions. He plays with the Virginia Opera and serves as first violinist for the Hampton Roads String Quartet and the Four Seasons String Quartet. He is Concertmaster of the International Todi Festival in Virginia under the baton of Maestro Walter Atanassi and Associate Concertmaster of The Santo Domingo Music Festival under the baton of Maestro Philippe Entremmont.

As a teacher and conductor Mr. Aguirre has been an adjunct professor at Conservatorio Real de Madrid in Spain, Old Dominion University, Hampton University, and Christopher Newport Universities in Virginia. He has conducted orchestras such as The Bay Youth Orchestra, All City Orchestras in Norfolk and Newport News, the Governor’s School for the Arts and the College of William and Mary. He is presently the conductor of the acclaimed Hampton Roads Chamber Players.

Anna Bishop is a native of Virginia Beach who grew up behind the scenes of the VSO as the daughter of two musician parents in the orchestra. Prior to her time with VSO, she was a member of the Richmond Symphony from 2015-2018, Civic Orchestra of Chicago,  and Opera on the James. She continues to be a member of various groups in the area such as the Williamsburg Symphony and Williamsburg Opera.

Anna was an emerging artists at festivals such as the Garth Newel Music Institute, Brevard Music Center, Colorado Quartet Institute and the Nova Scotia International Young Artist Program. During her summer festival studies she was fortunate to study with leading concertmasters such as William Preucil, David Coucheron and Jonathan Carney.

Mrs. Bishop holds a B.M. from Virginia Commonwealth University as well as attended the graduate program at Chicago College of Performing Arts on scholarship. Her principal teachers have been Susanna Klein and MingHuan Xu.

Anna is also a studio violinist and teacher. Her playing is featured on the podcast, S-Town, created by Serial and This American Life. She resides in Richmond with her husband, two cats, and retired greyhound.

Recently Lesa began her professional bodybuilding career. In the 2006-2007 season, she won first place overall titles in the following: NASF 2006 Old Dominion Championships, NASF 2006 American National Championships, the 2007 North Carolina Open, the 2007 Virginia Open, the NPA Masters Universe Pro Qualifier, and the NPA Fall Pro Classic. Lesa combines the discipline of music and bodybuilding by guest posing at bodybuilding shows playing her violin. She was recently honored as the NPA top female pro athlete of 2007.

Mayu Kuroda Cipriano was born in Tokyo, Japan and began studying the violin at the age of five. At 12, she won the Special Prize in the All Japan Mainichi Competition; and at 13, played with the NHK second symphony. At the behest of Cho-Liang Lin, she came to the United States to study with Ms. Dorothy Delay and Masao Kawasaki at the Juilliard Pre-College. Mayu continued her undergraduate studies at Juilliard, earning a Bachelor of Music in 1998. In addition to Juilliard, she also attended the Aspen Music Festival for six consecutive summers beginning in 1991, earning second prize in the Nakamichi concerto competition. As a result, she performed in recital at the Wheeler Opera House Aspen.

Mayu joined the Virginia Symphony Orchestra in 2003. She is also regular substitute with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, joining them for their 2010 Carnegie Hall performance. She previously held positions with the San Antonio Symphony Orchestra, the Atlanta Ballet Orchestra, and has performed with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, the Alabama Symphony Orchestra, and the New City Ballet.

Mayu has been a member of the Ambrosia Quartet since 2005. In 2016, the quartet recorded the String Quartets of Adolphus Hailstork for Albany Records.  They have been also featured performers for the Virginia Arts Festival, the Feldman Chamber Music Society Series, and the Salon Series with the Virginia Symphony Orchestra.

Mayu has also performed numerous solo recitals in New York City and Japan with her sister Ai, also a Juilliard graduate in piano. The Sisters Duo have performed at the Cremona Exhibition at the Christoph Landon Gallery, Columbia University, the Russian Tea Room, Oji Hall in Tokyo, and were featured on Radio City 84.0 MHz Tokyo and the Japanese Television show Zoom In Asa live from New York. Mayu is married to James Cipriano, who is a tuba player with the United States Army Music program and resides in Norfolk, VA with their beloved cats Eddie and Velvet.

Virginia Native Brendon Elliott received his BM studying with Pamela Frank and Joseph Silverstein at The Curtis Institute of Music, and attained his master’s at The Juilliard School under Sylvia Rosenberg and Ronald Copes, then completed a fellowship with the New World Symphony. He began his violin studies under his mother’s tutelage at the age of three and made his solo debut when he was 10 years old.

As a three-time concerto competition winner, Brendon was invited as a guest soloist with the Richmond Symphony Orchestra at age 17 on their Masterworks Series. He toured with the Virginia Symphony performing the Hailstork Violin Concerto as an opener for Natalie Cole and his performance of William Grant Still’s Mother and Child was broadcast on WMRA radio. Brendon has soloed with The Cleveland Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, Harlem Chamber Players, Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra, Music of the Baroque, and has performed in orchestras such as the Sphinx Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra, Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, and Chineke! Orchestra. The Charleston Post and Courier described his solo performance with the Colour of Music Virtuosi as; “Playing with grace and poise, displaying a fine technique and sweet tone.”

Brendon is currently touring as Joseph Bologne’s musical half in Bill Barclay’s play The Chevalier and is a member of the Virginia Symphony Orchestra.

She has participated in numerous summer music festivals including the Bowdoin International Music Festival, Meadowmount School of Music, The Castleman Quartet Program, Classical Music Festival in Austria, as well as summer studies at Indiana University. She has played in masterclasses for Rachel Barton Pine, Irvine Arditti, Charles Castleman, Sally Thomas, Cynthia Roberts, and members of the Chiara, Ying, and Takacs String Quartets.

As an avid orchestral musician, she has played with the National Academy Orchestra of Canada, the Strauss Symphony of Canada, Pronto Musica, Indiana University Festival Orchestra, National Orchestral Institute Festival Orchestra, McGill University Symphony Orchestra, and Eastman Philharmonia. Angelina has performed as guest soloist with the Concordia Symphony Orchestra in Edmonton, and is an Alberta Provincial Music Festival award recipient in the category of Strings, Voice, and Creative Music. Currently, Angelina maintains a private violin studio at the Virginia Beach School of the Arts. She lives in Norfolk with her husband, VSO trumpet player Adam Gandolfo.

Violinist Amanda Gates joined the VSO in 1996, and was appointed Assistant Concertmaster in 2002.  She was awarded a first violin position with the Chautauqua Symphony in upstate New York in 2001.

A native of Reston, Virginia, she graduated summa cum laude from Catholic University in 1996, where she studied with Robert Gerle.

She has appeared as soloist with the National Symphony Orchestra, the Catholic University Orchestra, and the Chautauqua Symphony Chamber Players. She has also performed as soloist in Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, Vaughn Williams’ The Lark Ascending, and John Adams’ Violin Concerto, all with the Virginia Symphony.

A versatile musician, she is proficient on guitar, mandolin, viola, cello, hammered dulcimer, and well versed in many styles of music. She has performed for the VSO on electric violin on several occasions, covering Eric Clapton’s “Crossroads,” and accompanying a beatbox track, featuring her own arrangement. She has also performed solo electric violin in Windborne Music’s  “The Music of Led Zeppelin” with the Phoenix, Minnesota, and Louisiana symphonies. She was commissioned to compose, arrange, perform and direct string arrangements for Portland-based punk band emberghost’s album, “Not Long for this Earth,”  released in 2012. More recently, she arranged and performed Bill Monroe’s “Scotland” for the Virginia Stage Company’s production of Honky Tonk Angels.  In addition, she has been featured as Celtic fiddle soloist in the Virginia Arts Festival’s International Tattoo on three separate occasions.

Ms. Gates performs on a violin by Pietro Giacomo Rogeri, Brescia, 1699, and a six-string fretted electric violin, “Viper” model by Mark Wood.

Born in Geneva, Switzerland, Kirsty Barnett Green has been a member of the Virginia Symphony Orchestra since 1996, where she has served as both core and Principal Second violin positions, and occasionally as concertmaster during the summer season. Ms. Green has appeared as soloist with orchestras in Germany, Austria, Italy, France, Switzerland and the United States, as well as with her own orchestra, the VSO. She has been featured on classical radio programs including the Vermont Public Radio and Radio Geneva and produced “The Violin music of Arthur Foote” recording for New World Records. Previously, Kirsty has played chamber music as a member of the Ghent Trio, and currently makes regular guest appearances with the Ambrosia Quartet as well as the Harbor Quartet. She has been a guest artist on the Virginia Arts Festival Organ Swell Series since 2003.

Kirsty began studying the violin at the age of six as a student of Judith Berenson, and graduated with honors from the Conservatoire Populaire. She then moved to the United States where she received her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from the North Carolina School of the Arts while studying with Kevin Lawrence. In addition she has had the opportunity to study with several of the great pedagogues including Josef Gingold and Arnold Steinhart during the course of various festivals and masterclasses. Ms. Green is a licentiate of the British Royal Schools of Music.

In addition to performing, Kirsty is a dedicated teacher. She began her teacher-training formation at an early age first as assistant to Judith Berenson, and then in college where she held assistantships at both the N.C. School of the Arts and the Killington Music Festival. Shortly thereafter she formed her own studio at the Tanglewood Academy of Music in Clemmons, N.C. and went on to teach at Norfolk’s Academy of Music. She has held adjunct positions at Christopher Newport University (where her position included teaching pedagogy, orchestral repertoire class and coaching the CNU orchestra), and Virginia Wesleyan College where she currently teaches. She has spent several summers performing and instructing at the Eastern Music Festival, and the Portsmouth Chamber Festival, and is a coach for Bay Youth Orchestras of Virginia as well as the Hampton Roads Chamber Players. Her students have won numerous awards, and many have gone on to successful careers in music.

Aubrey Holmes was a founding member of the Heimat Quartet (2014-2020), which gave their Carnegie Hall Debut in 2019.  In the fall of the same year, members joined the faculty at Shenandoah Conservatory in Winchester, VA (2019-2020) giving their final recital as an ensemble in February 2020 before disbanding after six years together.

Before the quartet, Mr. Holmes was based in Boston, Massachusetts where he was a principal player in Symphony Nova, a chamber music ensemble based in Boston.  In addition, he played with MetroWest Opera (Principal 2nd), Symphony Pro Musica (Principal 2nd), Boston Opera Collaborative (Associate Concertmaster), The Cape Ann Symphony (Associate Principal 2nd), Boston Modern Orchestra Project, The Vermont Symphony Orchestra, and The Cape Symphony Orchestra.  Mr. Holmes is also the former 1st violinist of the The Videri String Quartet based in Boston which specializes in the performance and recording of video game music.

With the formation of the quartet, from 2015-2017 Mr. Holmes lived in Kent, Ohio where they were the graduate quartet-in-residence at Kent State University as well as quartet-in-residence at Western Reserve Academy in Hudson, Ohio.  From 2017-2019 they were the graduate quartet-in-residence at Montclair State University in Montclair, New Jersey under the tutelage of the famed Shanghai Quartet.  Other notable appearances and engagements include faculty positions at Interlochen Center for the Arts High School Division Advanced String Quartet Seminar (summer sessions 2017) as well as quarterfinalists at the 2017 Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition.  The quartet also competed internationally at the 2019 Joachim International Chamber Music Competition held in Weimar, Germany where they also finished as quarterfinalists.  Other international appearances include the International Mendelssohn Festival in Hamburg, Germany, The Esmeraldas International Music Festival held in Quito, Ecuador, and the Lunenberg Academy of Music (LAMP) in Lunenberg, Nova Scotia.

His primary mentors have included Dr. Blanka Bednarz, Dr. Irina Muresanu, Cathy Meng Robinson, Yi-Wen Jiang, and Daniel Kurganov, as well as members of the Miami String Quartet, Shanghai Quartet, and the Audubon Quartet.

Currently, Mr. Holmes is living and working in Suffolk, VA.

Violinist Yu-Chia Hsiao has been with the Virginia Symphony Orchestra since 2014. Miss Hsiao, born in Taiwan, began studying violin at the age of seven. As a top prize winner of the Academy of Taiwan Strings Concerto Competition, she made her solo debut with the Academy of Taiwan Strings at the age of thirteen. In 2006, she performed Sarasate’s Carmen Fantasy with Fu-Jian Dance Drama and Opera House Orchestra in Fu-Jian, China. She also gave well-received solo recitals in Taiwan in the summers of 2007 and 2010. Miss Hsiao’s numerous awards include the first prize in the Taiwan Music Competition, the Hsing-Tien Temple Competition, and the 5th International Tchaikovsky Competition for Young Musicians—Taiwan Pre-Audition; the finalist for the 7th Junior Arts of Toshiya Edo Violin Competition in Japan.

Miss Hsiao has participated in several festivals and master classes, including the Christian Tetzlaff Master Class in Library of Congress, the 38th Tibor Varga International Music Festival, the Taiwan Music Festival, and the Shuan-Yin International Music Festival where she studied with Victor Pikayzen, James Buswell, Christian Tetzlaff , Dmitri Berlinsky, and Tanaka Chitashi.

Miss Hsiao enjoys sharing classical music with a wide range of audience. She engages herself in various community outreach concerts. In 2010, she performed for the Elderhostel Program at the Peabody Conservatory as well as the “Wednesdays at Weinberg” at Johns Hopkins Medical Institute, Kimmel Cancer Center. Through these experiences, she witnessed the magical powers of music: uplifts spirits and brings peace to mankind. In 2011, at the invitation of the Piatigorsky Foundation, Miss Hsiao toured with violinist Keng-Yuen Tseng and musicians in Montana where they brought concerts to audiences that would not have the opportunities to attend such performances otherwise. In the same year, she also participated in the Taiwanese American Charity Education Association (TACEA) annual concert at the Terrace Theater, Kennedy Center. Miss Hsiao holds Master of Music and Graduate Performance Diploma degrees from the Peabody Conservatory where she was awarded a full scholarship to study with Keng-Yuen Tseng.

Bio Coming Soon

Allison Kim began playing the violin after receiving a quarter size violin as a gift from her grandfather for her eighth birthday. She grew up in Asunción, Paraguay and Busan, South Korea before moving to Colorado, where she began her formal training under the tutelage of Jesse Ceci, former concertmaster of the Colorado Symphony Orchestra and the Minnesota Orchestra. She received her Bachelor of Music at the University of Colorado at Boulder, Master of Music at Indiana University, and Advanced Music Studies certificate at Carnegie Mellon University. During the summers, she attended numerous festivals including Aspen Music Festival as an Orchestral String fellow, National Repertory Orchestra, Brevard Music Festival, Eastern Music Festival, Garth Newel Music Center, Encore School for Strings, and Madeline Island Music Camp. She is a substitute of the Colorado Symphony and New World Symphony and has been a member of various regional orchestras in Indiana and Colorado. In addition to Jesse, her teachers have included Lina Bahn, Ik-Hwan Bae, Yumi Hwang-Williams, and Andrés Cárdenes. During her free time Allison loves playing with dogs and cheering on Denver sports teams.

Simon Lapointe was born in Quebec, Canada, in 1979. He showed interest in the violin at the age of 2, and received his first violin lesson 2 years later. He obtained his Bachelor’s of Music from the Conservatoire de Trois-Rivières in 2000, studying with Helmut Lipsky and Joanne Pothier. He then went on to get his MM at the Peabody Conservatory of Music with soloist and now Tokyo String Quartet 1st violinist Martin Beaver.

Simon joined the Virginia Symphony Orchestra as Principal Second Violin in 2005. He previously played with the Orchestre Symphonique de Québec and the West Virginia Symphony, as Assistant Principal Second Violin and Concertmaster, respectively. He served as Assistant Concertmaster of the Richmond Symphony Orchestra during the 2009-2010 season, and since 2010, is also Assistant Principal Second Violin of the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra.  He is also a substitute violinist with the Baltimore Symphony and the Washington National Opera.  His chamber music experience includes being first violin for the Montclaire String Quartet and the Ambrosia Quartet.  He is Adjunct Professor of Violin at the Virginia Commonwealth University.

Simon was a prizewinner of many competitions in the US and Canada. He is regularly invited as a soloist and recitalist in Baltimore, Quebec and Hampton Roads, as well as at the Lanaudière Festival.  He also offers masterclasses, chamber coachings and orchestral exerpt coaching for the Bay Youth Orchestras, Richmond Youth Symphony, and the Hampton Roads Chamber Players.

Bio coming soon.

Violinist Nicole Oswald joined the Virginia Symphony Orchestra core violin section in 2022. Prior to this position, Nicole was concertmaster of The Orchestra Now and a member of the West Virginia Symphony Orchestra. She is also the violinist in Ensemble 1828, a piano trio based in northern California. Other notable collaborations include performances with Gil Shaham, Andrés Cárdenes, Charlie Castleman, Chauncey Patterson, Heidi and Laura Wilcox and the Bergonzi String Quartet among others. In addition, she has appeared as a soloist and chamber musician across the United States and abroad since the age of 10 when she debuted near her hometown of Boise, Idaho.

As an educator, Nicole’s students have gone on to study at some of the country’s top conservatories and music schools. As faculty at the Miami Youth for Chamber Music, she taught lessons, coached chamber music and gave masterclasses and performance workshops. Nicole has also been a guest artist/lecturer at the Castleman Quartet Program in NY and the Modern School of Music and Dance in Santiago, Chile.

Ms. Oswald’s primary mentors are Charlie Castleman and Andrés Cárdenes. She attended the Eastman School of Music, Frost School of Music and Carnegie Mellon University. As a teenager, Nicole studied abroad at the Utrechts Conservatory in The Netherlands. Nicole currently resides in Virginia’s Hampton Roads community.

Seiko (Sato) Syvertsen grew up in a music-loving family who listened to not only classical music, but all different kinds of music, such as jazz, big band, and the Argentina Tango.

Ms. Syvertsen started piano lessons at age 5, violin at age 7, and music dictation/solfeggio at age 10. During her senior year at Kyoto City University of Arts & Music in Japan, she was invited to the Tanglewood Music Festival as a scholar of the Festival Orchestra conducted by Leonard Bernstein, Seiji Ozawa, Oliver Knussen, and Leon Fleisher, and to join their European tour.

After receiving her Bachelor of Music in Kyoto, she moved to the United States to enter the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University and studied violin with Yuval Yaron. She studied string quartets with Rostislav Dubinski, who was a member of Borodin Quartet.

While she was working on a Master of Music degree, Ms. Syvertsen started her career as an orchestra player, and started having more passion for larger ensembles. She auditioned for the Civic Orchestra of Chicago and was chosen by the concertmaster and a principal violinist of Chicago Symphony to be its concertmaster of two seasons.

Besides performing there under the baton of Daniel Barenboim, Sir George Solti, Pierre Boulez, Placido Domingo, and Pinchas Zukerman, Ms. Syvertsen also received a full scholarship from the Music school of DePaul University of Chicago. There she received a Performer Diploma. She also served as a concertmaster for the University Orchestra, took violin lessons with Joseph Genualdi, viola lessons with Rami Solomonow, and was chosen to be their concert soloist.

After a short period of time serving as an assistant concert master for the South Bend Symphony, Ms. Syvertsen joined the Virginia Symphony and resides in Chesapeake, Virginia with her husband, two boys, and a Boston terrier, “Fenway”.

H. Lee Kanter, Principal Flute Chair

Debra Wendells Cross has held the position of Principal Flute in the Virginia Symphony and Virginia Opera, and made Norfolk her home since 1980.  The Seattle native graduated with honors from the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, where she studied with Boston Symphony member James Pappoutsakis.  From there she went on to study with Michel Debost in Paris, France under the auspices of the Harriet Hale Woolly Scholarship.

Ms. Cross serves on the faculty of Old Dominion University, and for many summers was Principal Flutist of the Eastern Music Festival in Greensboro, North Carolina. She spent the 2004-2005 season as interim Principal Flutist of the Buffalo Philharmonic. She has participated in many other festivals including Tanglewood, the Colorado Philharmonic, the Music Academy of the West, the Skaneateles Festival, and the Virginia Arts Festival. She is a founding member of The Virginia Chamber Players, a chamber music group that has released several recordings of the works of American composers, and has been broadcast on NPR’s Performance Today.

With the Virginia Symphony’s Principal Harpist, Barbara Chapman, she recorded American Mosaics for Flute and Harp, a Christmas CD entitled Love’s Pure Light, and a lullaby CD called Dream Sweet Dreams.  She can also be heard with JoAnn Falletta and Robert Allemany on a two recordings of chamber music entitled Schubert’s Guitar and Borrowed Treasures, and with the Miami String Quartet on a Musical Heritage Society recording of two Mozart Quartets. Her solo appearances with the Virginia Symphony include Mozart’s Concerto in G, Mozart’s Flute and Harp Concerto, the Faure Fantasy, Halil by Leonard Bernstein, and the Flute Concertos of Carl Nielsen, and Lowell Lieberman.

Ms. Cross is interested in musical research and has prepared several concerts of historical significance including a program called American Flute Music of the 1920’s for the National Flute Association, and a chamber concert of American composers for the Jamestown 2007 Celebration. Debbie’s other interests include yoga, and her Labrador Retrievers, Rusty and Charlie whom she enters in dog sports trials, and takes on pet therapy visits to nursing homes and schools. She is married to Virginia Symphony Principal Percussionist and Virginia Arts Festival Director, Robert W. Cross.

Joanne Meyer White plays Second Flute with the Virginia Symphony, a position she has held since 1996. A native of Massachusetts, Joanne began her career in the New England area most notably as principal flute of the Vermont Symphony. She has performed with many orchestras including the Atlanta Symphony, Grant Park Orchestra, Richmond Symphony, Albany Symphony, Williamsburg Symphonia and Opera in Williamsburg. She completed her musical training at Boston University and McGill University in Montreal, earning her bachelors and masters degrees, respectively. She teaches at The College of William & Mary, The Governor’s School for the Arts and in her private studio. Joanne served as Coordinator of The Hampton Roads Flute Faire for six years and continues to serve on its Advisory Board.

Rachel Ordaz has held the position of Third Flute/Piccolo with the Virginia Symphony Orchestra since 2012. In 2011, she earned her Bachelor’s degree from Carnegie Mellon University under the instruction of Jeanne Baxtresser and Alberto Almarza. Ordaz completed her Master’s degree in Piccolo Performance from the Peabody Conservatory of The Johns Hopkins University in 2013, where she studied with Piccoloist Laurie Sokoloff. In 2016, Ordaz took 2^nd place in the National Flute Association’s Piccolo Artist Competition, and was recognized for having the best performance of the newly commissioned work with the Carl Hall Prize. An avid soloist, she was featured by the Virginia Symphony Orchestra in a performance of Vivaldi’s Piccolo Concerto in C Major, RV 443. Ordaz has performed with numerous orchestras including the Richmond Symphony, the Florida Orchestra, and can be heard on the Oregon Symphony’s CD release, Aspects of America: Pulitzer Edition (2020).  Committed to Hampton Roads music education, she maintains a private studio and is adjunct faculty at Virginia Wesleyan University. As a community-focused musician, she currently employs her talents as the coordinator of Piccolo Competitions for the National Flute Association, while also serving on the Advisory Board of the Hampton Roads Flute Faire.

Rachel Ordaz has held the position of Third Flute/Piccolo with the Virginia Symphony Orchestra since 2012. In 2011, she earned her Bachelor’s degree from Carnegie Mellon University under the instruction of Jeanne Baxtresser and Alberto Almarza. Ordaz completed her Master’s degree in Piccolo Performance from the Peabody Conservatory of The Johns Hopkins University in 2013, where she studied with Piccoloist Laurie Sokoloff. In 2016, Ordaz took 2^nd place in the National Flute Association’s Piccolo Artist Competition, and was recognized for having the best performance of the newly commissioned work with the Carl Hall Prize. An avid soloist, she was featured by the Virginia Symphony Orchestra in a performance of Vivaldi’s Piccolo Concerto in C Major, RV 443. Ordaz has performed with numerous orchestras including the Richmond Symphony, the Florida Orchestra, and can be heard on the Oregon Symphony’s CD release, Aspects of America: Pulitzer Edition (2020).  Committed to Hampton Roads music education, she maintains a private studio and is adjunct faculty at Virginia Wesleyan University. As a community-focused musician, she currently employs her talents as the coordinator of Piccolo Competitions for the National Flute Association, while also serving on the Advisory Board of the Hampton Roads Flute Faire.

Virginia Symphony League Principal Oboe Chair

Sherie Lake Aguirre has been the Principal oboist of the Virginia Symphony Orchestra and the Virginia Opera since 1987. She graduated from Indiana University with a Bachelor’s degree in Performance and continued her graduate studies with Ray Still at Northwestern University.

Ms. Aguirre has held principal positions with the Singapore Symphony, La Sinfonica de Maracaibo, La Sinfonica de Tenerife, and La Sinfonica de Madrid. She appears regularly as soloist with the Virginia Symphony Orchestra and performs frequently in the Chamber Music series of the Virginia Arts Festival as well as the Norfolk Chamber Consort programs.

From 1990 to 1997 she spent her summers in Boulder, Colorado performing with the Colorado Music Festival. For the past 15 summers, Ms. Aguirre has performed and recorded several CD’s with the Palm Beach Chamber Music Festival in Florida. Ms. Aguirre also maintains a private teaching studio full of young, local, talented oboe students in addition to fulfilling adjunct faculty positions at William and Mary College and Old Dominion University.

In addition to being a symphonic musician, Mr. Corbett is also an active soloist, recitalist and chamber musician. In concert with keyboardist Tom Marshall, the Washington Post heralds their performance as a model of elegant restraint and level headed shaping. Solo performances with Concerto Soloists include Mozart’s Symphonia Concertante for Winds, J. S. Bach’s Double Concerto for Oboe and Violin, Vivaldi’s Concerto for Two Oboes in d minor, and the world premiere of Arthur Cunningham’s Adagio for Oboe and Strings. With Riverside Symphonia he was a featured soloist for Franciax’s L’horloge de flore and Marcello’s Oboe Concerto in c minor. The Virginia Symphony presented him to perform three selections: Debussy’s Rhapsodie and Donizetti’s Concertino for English Horn as well as the recent world premier of Kenneth Fuch’s Eventide for English Horn, Strings and Percussion. His playing has been highlighted by the Virginia Gazette as “marked (with) expression and feeling, superbly displaying his rich tone, musicianship, virtuoso skills and sensitivity.”

A graduate of Eastman School of Music New England Conservatory, Mr. Corbett has been on faculties of notable schools such as Lehigh University (Pennsylvania), Moravian College and Music Institute (Pennsylvania), and has appeared during the summers at Kinhaven Music School (Vermont), Summertrios (New York), Music at Gretna (Pennsylvania) and the American Institute of Musical Studies (Austria). He began playing oboe in the 8th grade under the instruction of Judith Famous, sitting next to her in the Susquehanna Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Sheldon. Amongst his instructors were James Ostryniec, Peggy Pearson, John Mack, Richard Kilmer, Al Genovese, Johathan Blumenfeld and Keith Underwood, to name a few.

Intensive studies in yoga and breathwork have led Mr. Corbett to teach workshops for professional and amateur performers alike in developing a higher level of body awareness, especially of the breathing mechanism, for performance enhancement and injury prevention. During the summers he hosts OBOE HOLIDAY, a camp for young oboists in teaching all aspects of oboe performance. He currently resides in Norfolk, Virginia.

From 2010-2013, Garcia performed across the United States and Canada with the 25th Anniversary Tour of Les Misérables. He has also been heard in concerts at the Library of Congress, the Phillips Collection, and during the summer at the Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts. Radio broadcasts include: WETA 90.9 Front Row Washington and NPR’s Performance Today as principal oboist of the New Orchestra of Washington (NOW) and guest principal oboe of the Maryland Symphony Orchestra, respectively.

A CD released in March 2015 with the NOW features Garcia as the solo oboe/English horn in Klaus Simon’s arrangement of Mahler’s Symphony no. 4 for chamber orchestra on the Acis label. In the spring of 2016, he had the privilege of performing Wagner’s Ring Cycle with the Washington National Opera at the Kennedy Center under the direction of Maestro Philippe Auguin.  Garcia received his Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Texas at Austin and his Master of Music degree from the Peabody Conservatory. His teachers include Katherine Needleman, Erin Hannigan, Robert Atherholt, and John Snow.

In addition to being a symphonic musician, Mr. Corbett is also an active soloist, recitalist and chamber musician. In concert with keyboardist Tom Marshall, the Washington Post heralds their performance as a model of elegant restraint and level headed shaping. Solo performances with Concerto Soloists include Mozart’s Symphonia Concertante for Winds, J. S. Bach’s Double Concerto for Oboe and Violin, Vivaldi’s Concerto for Two Oboes in d minor, and the world premiere of Arthur Cunningham’s Adagio for Oboe and Strings. With Riverside Symphonia he was a featured soloist for Franciax’s L’horloge de flore and Marcello’s Oboe Concerto in c minor. The Virginia Symphony presented him to perform three selections: Debussy’s Rhapsodie and Donizetti’s Concertino for English Horn as well as the recent world premier of Kenneth Fuch’s Eventide for English Horn, Strings and Percussion. His playing has been highlighted by the Virginia Gazette as “marked (with) expression and feeling, superbly displaying his rich tone, musicianship, virtuoso skills and sensitivity.”

A graduate of Eastman School of Music New England Conservatory, Mr. Corbett has been on faculties of notable schools such as Lehigh University (Pennsylvania), Moravian College and Music Institute (Pennsylvania), and has appeared during the summers at Kinhaven Music School (Vermont), Summertrios (New York), Music at Gretna (Pennsylvania) and the American Institute of Musical Studies (Austria). He began playing oboe in the 8th grade under the instruction of Judith Famous, sitting next to her in the Susquehanna Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Sheldon. Amongst his instructors were James Ostryniec, Peggy Pearson, John Mack, Richard Kilmer, Al Genovese, Johathan Blumenfeld and Keith Underwood, to name a few.

Intensive studies in yoga and breathwork have led Mr. Corbett to teach workshops for professional and amateur performers alike in developing a higher level of body awareness, especially of the breathing mechanism, for performance enhancement and injury prevention. During the summers he hosts OBOE HOLIDAY, a camp for young oboists in teaching all aspects of oboe performance. He currently resides in Norfolk, Virginia.

Kriner Family Principal Horn Chair

Jacob Wilder completed both a Bachelor’s degree and an Artist Diploma in French Horn performance at the Colburn Conservatory of Music in downtown Los Angeles. During his time in Los Angeles, Jacob played substitute french horn with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, and the Santa Barbara Symphony. Jacob has also served as a full time section member in the Colburn Orchestra, American Youth Symphony, the Industry Opera Company, Festival Mozaic in San Luis Obispo, and Colorado College Music Festival. Beyond making music, Jacob enjoys being outdoors biking, hiking, or playing basketball.

Everett Burns joined the Virginia Symphony as Third/Associate Principal Horn in 2016. Prior to this, he was active as a freelance musician, performing with groups including the Houston Symphony, Toledo Symphony, Hawaii Symphony, and Sarasota Orchestra. He was a member of the Columbus Indiana Philharmonic for four years, first as Second Horn and later as Principal Horn.

In 2012 he was a member of the pit orchestra for the tour ofShrek the Musical, which performed in the United States, Canada, China, and Malaysia. As a soloist,Everett was awarded first prize in the International Horn Society’s Premier Solo Competition in 2009.Everett holds a Bachelor of Music Degree from Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music, where he studied with Jeff Nelsen, Richard Seraphinoff, and Dale Clevenger.

He received his Master of Music Degree at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, where he studied with William VerMeulen. He grew up in Richardson, Texas.

John Shawger joined the Virginia Symphony as 4th horn in the fall of 2015. He served as principal horn for the VSO’s2016-17 season and 2nd horn for the 2018-19 season. He has performed as guest principal horn with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra and Filarmonica de Jalisco, in Guadalajara, Mexico. John has also performed as an extra musician with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Milwaukee Symphony.

Originally from Milwaukee, John completed his undergraduate degree in horn performance at Northwestern University in Illinois, also earning a minor in computer science. He continued his studies in the Masters program at the Colburn School in Los Angeles.

John has been featured as a chamber musician in the Hampton Roads area with members of the Virginia Symphony. While attending the Colburn School, John performed regularly on the Colburn Chamber Music Society series, collaborating with clarinetist Joaquin Valdepeñas and pianist Jon Kimura Parker. As a member of the LA-based 2nd Street Brass Quintet, John performed in venues across Los Angeles and California and in the spring of 2014 traveled to Bellingham, Washington for a week-long residency in association with the Bellingham Music Festival. John’s principal teachers include Andrew Bain, Gail Williams, and William Barnewitz.

*Denotes a leave of absence

French horn player Stephen A. Slater is currently Assistant Principal/Utility Horn with the Virginia Symphony Orchestra, Horn Instructor of the New England Music Camp, and Adjunct Professor of Horn at Christopher Newport University. Mr. Slater was most recently Second Horn (one-year) with the Richmond Symphony Orchestra, Assistant Principal/Utility Horn (one-year) with the Harrisburg Symphony Orchestra, and kept solo engagements with the Blue Bell Symphony in Pennsylvania and Manhattan Virtuosi in NYC, where he has performed concerti from Mozart, Britten, Gliere, and Glazunov. Stephen was
Assistant/Utility horn of the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra, Guest Principal horn with the Israel Chamber Orchestra of Tel Aviv, and Substitute horn of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. He has also performed as Principal horn of the Daejeon Philharmonic Orchestra, Third horn of the Macau Symphony Orchestra, and Second horn of the Boulder Philharmonic. Mr. Slater was Solo horn of the ensemble Tales & Scales, spinning music, story, theatre, and dance into over 200 ‘musictelling’ performances.

He received a Graduate Performance Diploma at the Peabody Institute, a master’s degree at the University of Colorado, and undergraduate degree at the Manhattan School of Music. Instructors have included Denise Tryon, Michael Thornton, David Jolley, Richard Deane, Jerome Ashby, John Cerminaro, and John Zirbel. He was guest artist at the 31st Annual International Horn Symposium and grand prizewinner of the Sixth Annual Sister Mary Faustina Memorial Concert Competition in Marylhurst, Oregon.

More information can be found at www.stephenaslater.com

Horn Player Hirofumi Tanaka, originally from Tokyo, Japan, joined the Virginia Symphony as 4th horn at the beginning of 2022-23 season. Prior to this, he has performed as one-year 4th horn with the Tucson Symphony Orchestra during 2021-22 season. As a freelancer, he has performed with ensembles including the Arizona Opera, Colorado Springs Philharmonic, Columbus Symphony, Houston Symphony, New Mexico Philharmonic, and San Antonio Symphony.

He holds Bachelor of Music degree from University of Cincinnati, and Master of Music degree from the Rice University.

Horn Player Helen Wargelin is the newly appointed Second Horn of the Virginia Symphony Orchestra. She has previously appeared with groups including the Seattle Symphony, Boston Modern Orchestra Project, and the New World Symphony, and spent a year as an associate member of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago. She was a Horn Fellow at Tanglewood Music Center in the summer of 2022 and, over previous summers, attended the Aspen and Brevard Music Festivals. In 2021, she won the Aspen Horn Concerto Competition.

A native of Concord, MA, she holds a Master of Music from New England Conservatory and a Bachelor of Music, magna cum laude, in Horn Performance from Northwestern University’s Bienen School of Music, along with a minor in Musicology. While at NEC, she was an Edward Hyde Cox Presidential Scholar. Her principal teachers include Gus Sebring, Gail Williams, and Jonathan Boen.

Marc & Connie Jacobson, Principal Trumpet Chair

A native of Madison, Indiana, David Vonderheide began trumpet studies at the age of twelve. After studying with John Rommel, former Principal Trumpet with the Louisville Orchestra and current Indiana University professor of trumpet in Louisville, KY, he was admitted to Northwestern University in the prestigious studio of Vincent Chicowicz, former Second Trumpet of the Chicago Symphony. It was there that he received his Bachelor of Music in 1996.

David joined the Virginia Symphony in 1998 as Second Trumpet, a position he held until 2009 when he stepped into the role of Principal Trumpet. As principal he can be heard in the VSO’s most recent recordings, The Music of Adolphus Hailstork, and on Mahler’s Eighth Symphony on the Naxos label. With the VSO, he has been featured several times as a soloist, including a performance of Haydn Trumpet Concerto during the 2012-2013 season.

As a teacher he has been on the faculties of Christopher Newport University and The College of William and Mary. At W&M he has had occasion to appear as a faculty guest soloist with several ensembles. In 2012 he performed the world premier performance of Brian Hulse’s Margins, Afterwards, a piece for solo trumpet and chorus. This work was re-imagined as a piece for trumpet, organ and percussion which David recorded in 2013. Along with another Hulse composition to be recorded in the spring of 2014, these works will be featured on a cd for national release. He is also scheduled to be the featured soloist on the Wind Ensemble’s tour of China with a preceding performance in the Kennedy Center in the spring of 2015.

In 2012, he won the job of Interim Principal Trumpet of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra for the 2012-2013 season. While in the ASO, David had a prominent role in many concerts, and received consistently favorable reviews, including their performance in Carnegie Hall, October 2012, where David was mentioned by name in a positive review for his many solos in Copland’s Appalachian Spring and Walton’s Belshazzar’s Feast. While in Atlanta, David took part in two exciting recording projects. He performed on the ASO’s latest CD featuring the music of Sibelius, and recorded commercial music for Coca-Cola.

Recently, David has been asked to contribute to a series of books about the teaching philosophy of his teacher Vincent Chicowicz. As one of his prominent former students, David has written segments for the books and recorded material for a companion CD recording.

Proven to be an in-demand player, David has been a candidate for several Orchestral Principal chairs, He has also played as a substitute musician in some of the country’s best orchestras and has performed in festivals in the US, Asia and Europe.

He currently resides in Portsmouth, Va. with his wife, Virginia Symphony violinist Elizabeth Vonderheide.

As a soloist, he has been featured with the Boston Civic Orchestra, the Texas Christian University Symphony, the Houston String Quartet, and the Fort Worth Sinfonietta. In 2011, Jeremy won a position with the YouTube Symphony Orchestra, and performed in a series of concerts to audiences in Sydney, Australia, as well as to over 32 million viewers online.

Trumpet Player Mark Nixon joined the Virginia Symphony Orchestra as 3rd trumpet for the 2022-2023 season. From Mount Vernon, Ohio, he graduated from Bowling Green State University with a Bachelor of Music in Music Education and a Master of Music Performance. His primary teachers included Carol McCutcheon, Todd Davidson, and Dr. Joel Treybig (Belmont University). Mark retired from the United State Air Force in March of 2022 after serving 21 years. He performed as Principal Trumpet of the USAF Heritage of America Band and Brass Quintet as well as playing Lead Trumpet with the USAF Rhythm and Blue Jazz Band. He was a frequent soloist, performing such works as Bruce Broughton’s Excursion for Trumpet and Band, James Curnow’s Concert piece for Cornet and Band, and Herman Bellstedt’s Napoli for Cornet and Band to name a few. As an educator, He serves on the music faculty of Christopher Newport University and Old Dominion University teaching applied trumpet as well as having a private studio in Williamsburg, Virginia.

Dr. Ralph R. & Barbara Stephens, Principal Timpani Chair

Originally from Pittsburgh PA, Mike received his Bachelor’s and Master’s degree from Carnegie Mellon University studying with Timothy K. Adams, Jr., Principal Timpani with the Pittsburgh Symphony (retired) and Paul Evans, Percussionist with the River City Brass Band. Postgraduate studies included a drum set performance certificate from Los Angeles Music Academy and Cleveland State University where he studied with Tom Freer, Assistant Principal Timpani/Percussion with the Cleveland Orchestra. Mike has performed with the Baltimore Symphony, Buffalo Philharmonic, Charlotte Symphony, Dayton Philharmonic, Erie Philharmonic, Fort Wayne Philharmonic, Toledo Symphony, and West Virginia Symphony Orchestras. Mike Currently lives in Virginia Beach with his wife Alice and son Valentine.

J. Scott Jackson has a uniquely balanced background in the Arts as a performer, teacher/arts education advocate, and administrator.

As an Arts Administrator, Scott is currently the General Manager of the Virginia Arts Festival. Scott joined the Festival in 1996. He became Director of operations in 1998 and General Manger in 1999. As General Manger, Scott is involved in all aspects of the management of the Festival. The four largest areas of focus are Fundraising/Development, Education outreach, Office Management, and Production and Direction of the Virginia International Tattoo.

Scott has an extensive background as a performer. He is a magna cum laude graduate of the Eastman School of Music with a Bachelor’s degree in music performance and also holds a Masters Degree in applied music from Temple University. He has performed for such conductors as Leonard Bernstein, Andre Previn, Lorin Maazel, Seji Ozawa, Leonard Slatkin, and Simon Rattle and is currently a member of the Virginia Symphony under the direction of JoAnn Falletta. Prior to joining the VSO in 1995, Scott was a member of the New World Symphony under the direction of Michael Tilson Thomas for three years.  Former CNU composer in residence Dr. Jennifer Barker recently featured him performing marimba on a compact disk of her music.

As an educator, Scott has served on the faculty of Florida International University, Old Dominion University, Hampton University, and Christopher Newport University.  He was a founding member of the SouthBeat percussion group in Miami, Florida which was known for its innovative educational programs.

Scott was the first director of the Virginia Arts Festival’s Education and Community Outreach Department. In that role, he created the Rhythm Project program, an after school program designed to provide positive experiences for at-risk students through the arts. That program, which began with 13 students in Portsmouth, now serves 100+ students in four Hampton Roads cities.  Scott is married with three children and lives in Norfolk.

A native of Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Will McVay is a percussionist and educator in the Norfolk and Virginia Beach area. Will spent the last three years in Boston, MA, where he earned a Master of Music with Honors from New England Conservatory under the tutelage of Boston Symphony Orchestra Section Percussionist, Will Hudgins, and spent one year at Boston University under the guidance of Boston Symphony Orchestra Principal Timpanist Timothy Genis and Boston Symphony Orchestra Section Percussionist Kyle Brightwell. Before Will’s time in Boston, he spent four years in Los Angeles where he received a Bachelor of Music from the University of Southern California studying with Los Angeles Philharmonic Section Percussionist, Jim Babor, and Principal Timpanist, Joe Pereira.  While primarily a symphonic percussionist, Will is equally at home in jazz and Latin settings.

Throughout his tenure in Boston, Will performed with many orchestras and ensembles in the greater Boston area. An avid performer of new music, Will attended Tanglewood Music Center twice as a fellow where he premiered pieces for orchestra, including operas, brass ensemble, percussion ensemble, and mixed chamber ensembles.  During his time in Los Angeles, Will also attended Music Academy of the West as a fellow where he performed L’Histoire du soldat with the long-tenured concertmaster of the Minnesota Orchestra, Jorja Fleezanis.  While in Los Angeles, Will also participated in the Modern Snare Drum Compeitition and won finalist honors.