Melissa Brun is a professional cellist and freelance teaching artist based in the Greater Philadelphia area. She holds a Bachelor of Music and a Performer’s Certificate from SUNY Purchase College Conservatory and has served on faculty at Millersville University and the University of the Arts. She currently maintains a private studio and works extensively with young musicians and families.

Melissa has performed and soloed with various orchestras and choral associations throughout the Philadelphia region and served as Manager of the Chester County Youth Orchestra […]

Praised by South Florida Classical Review for her “vivacious” playing, harpist Zora Evangeline is a dynamic and multi-faceted musician. She currently studies at Boyer College of Music at Temple University, where she studies with Elizabeth Hainen, Principal Harpist of The Philadelphia Orchestra. In addition to her studies, Zora has a vibrant freelance career. She frequently performs with professional orchestras across the nation including the New World Symphony, North Carolina Symphony, Allentown Symphony, and Maryland Symphony, and has attended several prestigious music festivals including Orford […]

Clarinetist and bass clarinetist Sarah Connors is obtaining her Master’s Degree in Clarinet Performance at Temple University as a student of Paul R. Demers. She earned a Bachelor of Music in Music Theory/Composition and Clarinet Performance from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, studying with Bixby Kennedy, Romie de Guise-Langlois, and Salvatore Macchia.

Sarah can be heard on the album “Synchronous,” recorded by Greg Spiridopoulos and the UMass Wind Ensemble, and the upcoming. An avid supporter of new music, she […]

Tessa Ellis has been preoccupied with the sound of the trumpet since she first heard the instrument as a four-year-old. Inspired by a lifelong drive to create new and nuanced sounds, her work spans orchestral, chamber, and experimental music. Recent highlights include tours with Hans Zimmer Live, Star Trek: The Cruise, and performances with Seraph Brass, the Philadelphia Ballet Orchestra, Kennett Symphony, and the Delaware Symphony. She is a founding member of the Arcana New Music Ensemble and frequently collaborates across
genres with […]

Melissa Brun is a professional cellist and freelance teaching artist.  Holding a Bachelors of Music and a Performers Certificate from SUNY Purchase College Conservatory, she has recently been on faculty at Millersville University, UArts, and currently hosts her own private studio.  She has performed and soloed with various orchestras and choral associations in the Philadelphia area, and manages the Chester County Youth Orchestra.  Non-classically, she is a founding member of the chamber-folk sextet, The Sound Accord, and a former member of Irish […]

A Massachusetts native, Clarinetist Sarah Connors is obtaining her Master’s Degree in Clarinet Performance at Temple University as a student of Paul Demers. She earned a Bachelor of Music in Music Theory/Composition and Clarinet Performance from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, studying with Bixby Kennedy, Romie de Guise-Langlois, and Salvatore Macchia. She has participated in masterclasses with Steve Cohen, Alicia Lee, Philip Paglialonga, and Welsey Ferriera. Sarah can be heard on the album “Synchronous,” recorded by Greg Spiridopoulos and the UMass Wind […]

Philadelphia-area native Shannon Merlino began violin lessons at nine years of age. Immediately upon receiving her rental instrument (and before having had a lesson), she declared that she would become a professional musician, and the rest, as they say, was history. Dr. Merlino completed her Bachelor of Music degree in violin performance at Rutgers University as a student of Matthew Reichert and Lenuta Ciulei. She received her Master of Music degree in violin performance as a scholarship student at the Mannes College […]