Winds/Strings/Brass

Jessica has studied flute and piano privately since she was in middle school. She holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in Flute Performance from Northwestern University and the University of Louisville. She also recently completed her Master of Music Education degree at Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music. Jessica performs on flute and piccolo with the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra and the Columbus Indiana Philharmonic. Jessica has been teaching piano and flute for the Stafford Music Academy since 2008.

Violinist Arianna Pope is a recent graduate of Oberlin Conservatory. A native of California, she enjoys a varied and dynamic career that centers around chamber music and community involvement. She was named the 2023 and 2024 Michael Davis Fellow of the Lancaster Festival Orchestra, and has appeared as a soloist with the Eastern Sierra Chamber Orchestra. She has performed at venues such as the Walt Disney Concert Hall and Carnegie Hall, has held the concertmaster position of the Oberlin Baroque Orchestra, and has performed with artists such as Elinor Frey, Brian Schuldt, Corey Cerovsek, and Steven Vanhauwaert. Arianna began her studies with Rebecca Hang of the Felici Trio, and continued her education with Stephanie Sant’Ambrogio and Francesca de Pasquale. Additional mentors include Marilyn McDonald, Kirsten Docter, and members of the Verona and Fry Street Quartets. Arianna is passionate about exploring the works of underrepresented composers, and recently performed Gabriella Smith’s Carrot Revolution and Paul Wiancko’s Lift with her quartet. In her free time, she enjoys hiking and skiing.

Korean-American violinist Hayne Kim leads a distinctive musical career as a performer and educator that has brought her around the world. She made her solo Carnegie Hall debut at the age of 16, and has performed as a soloist with the Lansing Symphony Orchestra (Michigan, USA) and Tuscia Operafestival orchestra (Viterbo, Italy). An active chamber musician, Hayne has collaborated with reputed artists, such as Alexander Markov and Clive Greensmith, and performed for diverse occasions ranging from ensemble performances at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center to intimate gatherings at the home of Thailand’s Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn.

Taking a special interest in contemporary music, Hayne is the violinist and co-founder of Círculo Trio, an ensemble dedicated to exploring and presenting new and/or underperformed works alongside standard repertoire. Projects that the trio has commissioned include The Triumph of Time, an adaptation of Shakespeare’s play The Winter’s Tale for actor and trio with original music, and a collaboration with Bangkok City Ballet for Thea Musgrave’s theatrical chamber work, Pierrot.

Hayne holds degrees from the Manhattan School of Music and Michigan State University. Her past mentors include Lyman Bodman, Grigory Kalinovsky, and Dmitri Berlinsky. Dedicated to sharing her experiences with up-and-coming generations of musicians, she served as a faculty member of Princess Galyani Vadhana Institute of Music in Bangkok, Thailand from 2017-2022. She is currently pursuing her Doctor of Music degree at Indiana Jacobs School of Music under the guidance of Kyung Sun Lee.

Abigayle is a clarinetist with ten years of experience and is currently pursuing a degree in Clarinet Performance at the Jacob’s School of Music. In addition to clarinet, she has been studying piano for the past three years, which has greatly expanded her understanding of music. She is passionate about music education and hopes to inspire the next generation of students to discover their love for it. Abigayle aspires to help students to become the best they can be, by encouraging them to connect emotionally to what they are playing and not by solely focusing on technique

Outside of performing and teaching, she is an avid music lover and enjoy a wide array of genres, from classical to jazz, and film scores to rock n’ roll. She loves listening to new music and discovering what each genre has to offer. When Gayle finds herself with some downtime, she loves spending time outdoors, walking her dog, or riding bikes with her siblings. She can also be found watching movies and reading books quite often.

Gennavieve is a Doctoral student in Oboe Performance at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, where she also earned her Master’s degree in 2024. At IU, she has performed with the University Philharmonic, Symphony, and Concert Orchestras, as well as the University Wind Ensemble and Concert Band. She is a recipient of the prestigious Jacobs Fellowship and has maintained a 4.0 GPA throughout her graduate studies.
She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Woodwind Performance from Florida State University, where she also completed certificate minors in Music Entrepreneurship and Classics. At FSU, she performed with the Studio Orchestra, University Philharmonia, Wind Ensemble, and Concert Band. She was an active member of Sigma Alpha Iota, serving as Chapter Treasurer and Fundraising Co-Chair, and worked as a woodwind consultant for the Javacya Youth Orchestra.
Passionate about both performance and education, Gennavieve is committed to sharing music in a variety of settings—from university ensembles to community performances and volunteer opportunities. She has been recognized on the Dean’s and President’s Lists and received the Lucilla Gumm and Wiley Housewright Memorial Scholarships, among other honors.
Coming from a musical family, she aims to make music meaningful and accessible to others. Her goals include performing in a professional orchestra and teaching at the collegiate level.

Nick Woods is a trumpeter who is interested in all genres of music, including classical orchestral performance, band, jazz, and commercial music. A student at the Jacobs School of Music, Nick has performed as the principal trumpet for the Jacobs Chamber Orchestra and has played with the Philharmonic Orchestra. Nick recently performed student composer’s works with the NOTUS contemporary vocal ensemble and participated in the Sewanee Music Festival in summer 2024. Nick plans to develop a diverse performing and teaching career, in which he can perform with orchestras, military bands, or as a session studio musician, as well as teach in higher education settings. When he’s not playing trumpet, Nick enjoys rock climbing, reading, snowboarding, hiking, and playing video games. Nick is currently studying under John Rommel.

Christopher Watson is a current Junior at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, studying music education. He is also an accomplished instrumentalist, studying bass trombone with Dr. Denson Paul Pollard. He has spent 2 semesters as a member of the IU Wind Ensemble and 2 semesters with the IU Marching Hundred, and has been selected to serve as a member of the Undergraduate Staff for the Marching Hundred. He has also played in a wide range of ensembles, including orchestras, bands, jazz bands, pit orchestras, and more.

As an early childhood music educator, Christopher has studied with Dr. Brent Gault, an expert in early childhood and elementary music education. He has taught lessons in local Bloomington schools.

Mary Allen-Lynch has an extensive musical background with over 40 years in music education and music performance. Having taught piano, flute, voice lessons, and Music History for over twenty years at Culver Academies, a college preparatory boarding school in Northern Indiana,  she brings a wealth of teaching and performing experience to her current students at Stafford Music Academy. Her teaching philosophy has always been that of an artist-teacher, as well as being student centered. She believes wholeheartedly in meeting students where they are in terms of individual learning styles and their personal goals for studying music. Mary believes in using a variety of methods, techniques, and technology to help students learn and grow as musicians. She includes elements of music theory as a natural part of the early learning process.

Mary Allen-Lynch holds a Bachelor of General Studies from Indiana University with a focus on Music, Folklore and German. She also holds a Masters in Music and Arts Technology from Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis. She is a seasoned professional and has played the piano for over 50 years since the age of 6. She studied privately with Purden Lausten and Thomas Lawston in her early years of piano. In addition to piano, Mary Allen-Lynch began studying flute at the age of 10. She continues performing on both flute and piccolo in the Bloomington Community Band and the Bloomington Community Band Flute Choir. She was also very active in teaching, coaching and performing with the Music Theater program at Culver Academies. In 2012 she traveled with and coached a student theater group’s musical production during performances at The Fringe Festival in Edinburgh Scotland. She has accompanied extensively and enjoys working with and supporting soloists.

In addition to teaching at Culver Academies, she has also maintained a private teaching studio working with both children and adults of all ages throughout her professional life. She has worked extensively as a musician within various worship traditions and spaces, playing piano, organ, flute and as a song leader.  Locally, she currently sings in the soprano section of the choir at the Unitarian Universalist Church in Bloomington, as well as accompanying the choir at Beth Shalom on occasion.

Another part of Mary’s musical life is volunteering locally with music and memory sessions, utilizing the power of music within the brain to positively impact the lives of those with dementia and Alzheimer’s, their families, and caregivers. She currently volunteers at Better Day Club and Gentry Park’s memory care residence. Mary Allen-Lynch has traveled and lived abroad for long periods of time, including Malaysia and Japan. She counts her years of living in many diverse cultures as a hugely formative factor in her education. She teaches music so that others may find their voice and enjoy the many benefits that music lessons and education bring to the quality of life.

Born and raised in Hong Kong, Cynthia is a soprano who recently graduated from Indiana University Jacobs School of Music with a Master of Music in Voice under the tutelage of Professor Tichina Vaughn. Prior to her graduate studies in the States, Cynthia obtained her Bachelor of Arts in Music with a minor in French and German from the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

Apart from solo singing, Cynthia is active in choral activities and has been a passionate chorister since she was 6 years old. During her undergraduate and graduate studies, she participated in numerous choral concerts and was often invited as a soloist. Cynthia appeared as the soprano soloist for Mozart’s Requiem with IU University Singers in 2022. She was the soprano soloist for Saint-Saën’s Christmas Oratorio and Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 in Hong Kong. She also appeared in the opera chorus of Bellini’s Norma and was Pamina in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte when she was studying in Hong Kong.

Cynthia is keen in teaching voice, piano, harp and music theory and has 7 years of teaching experience. Her students obtained excellent results in music exams and competitions. Cynthia is interested in learning languages and speaks 7 languages, including Cantonese, English, Mandarin, French, German, Italian and Korean.

Zach Walter is a trumpeter and violinist based in Bloomington, IN. Having started music at a young age, it quickly developed into a deep passion. Following the footsteps of his first trumpet teacher, Zach received his Bachelor of Music from West Chester University of Pennsylvania, where he specialized in music production. He is currently finishing his Master of Music at Indiana University.

Zach began teaching in 2019 with the philosophy that anyone can learn an instrument. It is never too late, and the love of music should be a universal experience. He has helped students of all ages and skill levels along their musical paths through personalized, student-centered instruction.

While classically-trained, Zach is also immersed in the jazz/commercial realm as a lead trumpet player. He has a diverse performance history spanning a variety of genres and ensembles, including solo work, chamber music, orchestras, wind bands, jazz ensembles, and mariachi bands. His performance has been recognized at the national level, having placed in the quarterfinals of the National Trumpet Competition in 2022 and 2024.

Zach has an extensive background in the marching and pageantry arts communities, having toured nationally for two years with the Bluecoats Drum and Bugle Corps in the Drum Corps International circuit. Previously a brass instructor with the Hawthorne Caballeros Drum and Bugle Corps, he remains active in the community teaching various high school marching bands in Indiana and southeastern Pennsylvania.

Sean Burdette is a trumpeter, educator, and entrepreneur based in Bloomington, Indiana. Primarily a classical performer, Sean is also proficient at jazz and baroque styles. He holds an a Doctor of Music degree from Indiana University.

As an active performer, he has played with the West Virginia Symphony, Bourbon Baroque Orchestra, and Columbus Indiana Philharmonic and has performed with prominent artists such as Joshua Bell and Nicole Parker. While at Indiana University, he was a student of John Rommel, Edmund Cord, Marie Speziale, and Kris Kwapis. In 2019 Dr. Burdette published a series of method books titled Brass in Color, that uses an innovative, color-coded tablature to teach young students how to play brass instruments. Brass in Color was a Finalist in the 2019 Music Teacher Awards for Excellence in London. In addition to being a performer and educator, he founded Songburd Music Publishing, an independent music publishing company that provides publishing services for new composers.