LONG BEACH SYMPHONY - Key Persons
ANN BRENTON is a graduate of Cal State University Long Beach. She has played and toured with many performing arts organizations throughout the Southland, including The Pacific Symphony, The Bolshoi Ballet, Mozart Classical Orchestra, and the Laguna Beach Pageant of the Masters. She has recorded projects at Sony and Paramount Pictures and played on numerous recordings both in LA and in Nashville. Ann is a Board member of the Hennings-Fischer Foundation along with her husband, Eric, also a Board member and professional musician.
Ann has been on the Fine Arts Staff in the Garden Grove School District since 1994 as an educator, specializing in instrumental music development in the public schools. Each year, she gives 350 young students their first opportunity to learn a musical instrument and, as a string specialist, assists high school Directors with techniques for strings. She has fond memories of the wonderful school music programs and Arrowbear Music Camp that gave her a love for music.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
- Attorney & Managing Partner, Salusky Law
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- Community Leader
- Member of the Board of Directors
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- CEO / President of R.M. Cool Company
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- Member of the Board of Directors
- Director, Community Relations & Government Affairs, Valero Energy Corporation
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- Assistant Principal
- Member of the San Diego Symphony
Carolyn Osborn, violinist, has performed throughout the United States and Europe. From 1982-1985 Ms. Osborn's performances as part of La Duo Musica took her to the International Competition of the Bayerisch Rundfunk in Munich, where the Duo was selected into the semi-final round. Carolyn has been a member of both the Capriccio Chamber Players and the Vista Piano Trio, performing in numerous venues around the Southland and Arizona. She played on the Stotsenberg Chamber Music Series at Pepperdine University in a Horn, Violin & Piano Trio. In March 1997 she performed a violin-piano recital in which she premiered Fantasy Sonata; The Birthday of the Infanta by Maria Newman. She has also been a member of the Cuarteto Ysaÿe de Los Angeles, the Ariel Ensemble and a guest artist with the Westlake Chamber Ensemble. She performed with the Westlake Chamber Ensemble at the 1998 annual Music Teachers Association of California (MTAC) Convention. She is active as a judge and adjudicator for many of the music competitions around the southland. Carolyn made a CD of Violin/Viola Duos with her group LuminArias, featuring works by mostly living composers.
Ms. Osborn has been a member of the San Diego Symphony, the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, LA Mozart Orchestra, Chamber Orchestra of the South Bay and the LA Opera Orchestra. She is presently a member of the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, with whom she has been on tour and made several recordings. Carolyn was involved in engagements of Phantom of the Opera at the Pantages Theater where she played Concertmaster several times, and she was Concertmaster of the Civic Light Opera of South Bay for many years. Carolyn has also been Concertmaster for Michael Crawford when he has performed in the southland. Most recently she has played Concertmaster for The San Fernando Valley Symphony, Thousand Oaks Philharmonic and Principal Second in the New Valley Symphony. She is currently Assistant Principal Second of the Long Beach Symphony since 1991, Associate Concertmaster of the Los Angeles Jewish Symphony, Assistant Concertmaster of the Thousand Oaks Philharmonic, Concertmaster of the Burbank Philharmonic and has been Concertmaster of the Downey Symphony for the last 34 years. Carolyn has performed as soloist with the Downey Symphony, most recently the Beethoven Triple Concerto, and the San Fernando Valley Symphony. She has participated in the Oregon Bach Festival, Cabrillo Festival, the Seal Beach Festival, KUSC Sunday's at Four live broadcasts from the Bing Theater, and the San Luis Obispo Mozart Festival. She was in the 1996 Grammy Award Show on national television, and again as a member of the orchestra of The Three Sopranos, which was televised from Century City in 1996. She was also part of "The Three Tenors Live" Concert in Las Vegas in April 2000. She has performed on many of KCET specials including Monica Mancini, Vicki Carr. She was a member of the violin faculty at Pepperdine University in Malibu until 2002.
Currently Carolyn is active in the Los Angeles recording studios, most recently working on such movies as "Spiderman: No Way Home, COCO, Frozen 2, The War for The Planet of the Apes, Incredibles 2, Jurassic World, Moana, Star Trek Beyond", and many others, as well as many other recording and performing opportunities.
Kennedy is an alumnus of intensive chamber music programs at Tanglewood and Amelia Island where her quartet was coached by the American, Guarneri, Emerson, and Takacs quartets. While at Tanglewood, she served as concertmaster under Rafael Fruhbeck de Burgos and was broadcast live on New York's WQXR in Strauss's Ein Heldenleben. She has also spent summers at the International Holland Music Sessions where she studied with Hermann Krebbers, the Santander Master Courses in Spain with Zakhar Bron, and the London Master Classes where she studied with György Pauk and was chosen to have her lesson filmed by Online Classics for a television documentary on the master classes.
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- Branch Manager ( Ret. ), Massingham & Associates
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- Member of the Executive Committee
- Treasurer / Director, Huron Consulting Group
Dr. Jake Saunders is a cellist, educator, and collaborative artist based in Boise, Idaho. He is active within the contemporary-classical, chamber, symphonic, and popular music realms.
An omnivorous cellist, Saunders approaches music both contemporary and historical with creativity and commitment. He is the founder and Artistic Director of 208 Ensemble, the first professional contemporary music ensemble in Idaho. Since 2014, 208 Ensemble has presented Idaho the premiere of more than 50 chamber works to diverse audiences. The ensemble's flagship project, Avant-Garden, commissions new chamber music from emerging and historically underrepresented composers. As cellist of The Playground Ensemble and Sphere Ensemble, Jake is also on the vanguard of the contemporary scene in Denver, CO.
As a recording artist, Saunders is featured on the soundtrack for the film The Social Dilemma. He has also collaborated on forthcoming studio releases by LA-based artists The Naked and Famous and Luna Shadows. Saunders can be heard on recent releases by Idaho-based artists East Forest, LED, Quiet Arrows, and Tispur. His forthcoming solo album, One by One, includes works for cello by Bright Sheng, Nathalie Joachim, Nina Shekhar, and Sarah Kirkland-Snider.
Additionally, Saunders serves as Associate Principal with the Boise Philharmonic, Section Cellist with the Long Beach Symphony Orchestra and is a substitute cellist with the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Orchestras he's previously held principal positions in include Symphony Tacoma and Opera Idaho. Saunders received his Doctor of Musical Arts degree from University of Colorado Boulder in 2021, where he served as teaching assistant for Prof. David Requiro.
Job Titles:
- Music Director
- about Us History Music Director
A Los Angeles native, Melia Badalian is an active performer across California. She is principal horn of the Long Beach Symphony and the Modesto Symphony, and holds section positions with the Santa Barbara Symphony, Symphony San Jose, and the Stockton Symphony. Melia has also appeared with the San Francisco Symphony, Los Angeles Opera Orchestra, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Pacific Symphony, New World Symphony, John Williams, Danny Elfman, and Josh Groban, among others.
She has spent her summers performing as a fellow with the National Repertory Orchestra and at the Aspen Music Festival. Melia earned degrees from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music (BM) and the University of Southern California (MM), where she studied with Robert Ward and Dr. Kristy Morrell, respectively.
Gary Long is Principal Timpanist of the Long Beach Symphony, Principal Timpanist of the Mainly Mozart Festival (San Diego), and Principal Percussionist of the San Bernardino Symphony. He is also on the teaching staff of California State University, San Bernardino as Lecturer in Percussion.
Gary has performed the Philip Glass Fantasy for Two Timpanist with The Los Angeles Philharmonic, The San Francisco Ballet, and The Long Beach Symphony. He has freelanced in Southern California orchestras such as The Los Angeles Philharmonic, San Diego Symphony, Pasadena Pops, Pacific Symphony, Santa Barbara Chamber Orchestra, Symphony in the Glen, and Redlands Bowl Orchestra presentations. Gary teaches private percussion lessons and is frequently heard in chamber music concerts throughout San Bernardino, Los Angeles, and Orange counties. In 1987 and 1988 Mr. Long was Principal Timpanist of the Nova Filarmonia Portuguesa, a chamber orchestra based in Lisbon, Portugal.
He received his musical training at the Juilliard School in New York City where he studied with Roland Kohloff and Buster Bailey, of the New York Philharmonic, receiving his Master of Music degree. He earned a Bachelor of Music from the University of Oregon in 1985 and was a student of Charles Dowd.
Gary resides in Redlands with his cellist wife Becky, who teaches elementary music in the Redland's School District, and his two aspiring musician daughters: Madeline and Hannah. He looks forward to future days when he'll be able to continue to perform, but also spend more time pursuing his other interests: Percussion Instrument Refurbishing, golfing, gardening, woodworking, and collecting as many percussion instruments as he can fit into his garage!
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
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- President, Matson Development Company
Jennifer Olson is an active orchestral and chamber music performer in the Los Angeles area. She is currently principal flute with the Stockton Symphony and second flute with the Long Beach Symphony and Santa Barbara Chamber Orchestra. Jenni also teaches flute at Citrus College and Music Appreciation at Pasadena City College. You can hear her on recent soundtracks such as The Cape, The Event, Night at the Museum 2 and Sex in the City 2. Jenni received her BA from California State University, Stanislaus where she studied with Caryl Mae Scott and received her MM and DMA from University of Southern California where she studied with Jim Walker. When she is not playing the flute she likes to conquer physical challenges.
She has been to the top Mt. Whitney twice and has hiked up Half Dome. She has completed several sprint distance triathlons and will attempt her first half marathon in August 2011.
Job Titles:
- Principal, Blumberg Law Corporation
Joseph Stone is a full-time freelance oboist/woodwind player performing in the Los Angeles area on oboe, flute, clarinet, saxophone and recorders. He joined the Long Beach Symphony in 1980 during the premiere season of music director Murry Sidlin, initially performing on saxophone at Maestro Sidlin's first Long Beach Symphony Classical Series Concert. In 1982 he won the 2nd oboe position and in recent years has been playing Principal Oboe on the Long Beach Symphony POPS! performances. Along with his wife and fellow oboist, Laura Stone, he co-founded and plays flute for the Long Beach Symphony Woodwind Quintet since 1993, which has performed for thousands of LBUSD students as part of the Long Beach Symphony Ensembles in Schools program. As a studio musician he has played on as many as eight different woodwind instruments on movie scores for The Incredibles, Ratatouille, Star Trek, Wall-E, Cars 2, Super 8, and Bad Santa to name a few, including the Academy Award winning score for Pixar's Up. He performed on the latest albums for Neil Diamond, Ray Charles, Johnny Mathis, and Barry Manilow, plus numerous TV shows, commercials and theme park attractions for Disney. He is Principal Oboe in both the Chamber Orchestra of the South Bay in Palos Verdes and the Long Beach Municipal Band. For more than 20 years he played in the Laguna Beach "Pageant of the Masters" orchestra, spent many years working with the Long Beach Opera and Ballet, and was in the pit for quite a few productions of the Long Beach Civic Light Opera. In 2008 he toured Japan for a month with the Percy Faith Orchestra and in September 2010 he performed live on National television with Neil Diamond for the Stand Up to Cancer Telethon.
Mr. Stone is a graduate of University of Southern California with a B.M. and a M.M in Oboe Performance where he studied with William Criss and Harvey Pittell. He is currently an adjunct Professor of Oboe at California State University Long Beach and teaches oboe, clarinet, and saxophone at Whittier College.
Julie Feves is a graduate of the Juilliard School of Music. She has performed extensively as a soloist, chamber performer and orchestra principal in music ranging from the baroque to the avant-garde. The New York Times has praised her "virtuosic flair" and The San Francisco Examiner admired "the sureness of her pitch and the tenderness of her phrasing." Ms. Feves has appeared with numerous orchestras throughout the United States, including the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, the American Symphony, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and the Aspen Festival Orchestras. Currently Ms. Feves serves as principal bassoonist with the Long Beach Symphony. She has performed contemporary music with the New Century Players, Speculum Musicae, and the Contemporary Chamber Ensemble. Performing on early bassoons, she has worked with the Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, the Los Angeles Baroque Orchestra, the Mozartean Players, and the Pernucio Ensemble. As a chamber music artist, Ms. Feves performs regularly her Baroque group, Bach's Circle and with the new Long Beach Chamber Players. She appears regularly with Chamber Music Northwest in Portland, Oregon. She has also appeared with Music from Angel Fire in Angel Fire, New Mexico, with the Bravo Colorado Music Festival in Vail, Colorado and as a guest artist with the Lincoln Center Chamber Music Society. She has recorded for Delos, Columbia Records, Nonesuch, Harmonia Mundi, Leonarda, Nine Winds, and the AudioQuest labels. She is also active as a recording musician for major motion picture and television studios in Los Angeles. Currently Ms. Feves serves as Associate Dean and Director of Instrumental Performance programs in the School of Music at the California Institute of the Arts.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
- Analyst, the SCAN Foundation ( Ret. )
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- Member of the Board of Directors
- Owner, Pohlmann Piano
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- Member of the Board of Directors
- President, Farwell Associates
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- Regional Public Affairs Manager, Crown Castle
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- Honorary Board Member
- Member of the EMERITUS
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- Member of the Executive Committee
- Secretary / Senior Vice President, U.S. Trust, Bank of America Private Wealth Management
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- CEO & President, Mix & Match Solutions ( Ret. )
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- Principal, Granite Group, Inc
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- Chairman of the Executive Committee
- Chairman / Chief Operating Officer ( Ret. ), InspiRD, Inc.
Rong Huey Liu is hailed by her colleagues as "a most expressive oboist with a beautiful dark sound" and by conductor Tomasz Golka as "…. a phenomenal oboist." Taiwanese-American Rong-Huey Liu is currently the principal oboist for the Long Beach Symphony, Fresno Philharmonic, Reno Chamber Orchestra, and the Riverside County Philharmonic. She also performs with orchestras such as the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Los Angeles Opera, New West Symphony, Pacific Symphony, Pasadena Symphony, Reno Philharmonic, San Diego Symphony, and the Santa Barbara Symphony. As a Hollywood studio musician, Dr. Liu has performed with Jackie Evancho and is the principal oboist for Andrea Bocelli's annual west coast touring orchestra. Her playing can be heard on recordings with Andrea Bocelli, Josh Groban, David Benoit, Bright Eyes, Ron Isley, Mariachi Champaña Nevín, Laura Pursell, Paul Steel, Calico Winds and movie sound track "Fireflies in the Garden", to name a few.
At age seventeen, Dr. Liu won first place in the Taichung Regional Oboe Competition and the Taiwan National Oboe Competition, which lead her to study in the United States. Upon arrival, she continued to win the performance award from the Taiwan National Symphony Orchestra, scholarships from Taiwanese College Music competition, first prize award from the Harvard Musical Association, scholarships from the Foundation for Chinese Performing Arts, and the Spotlight Awards from Los Angeles Philharmonic Association.
Dr. Liu earned a Bachelor's and Master's in Music from the Manhattan School of Music and a Doctorate of Musical Arts from the University of Southern California with an award from Phi Beta Kappa and a membership of Pi Kappa Lambda. Among her teachers are Rong-Yi Liu, Joseph Robinsons and David Weiss. She is currently an Adjunct Professor of Oboe at the La Sierra University, Riverside City College and California State University Fullerton.
As an avid chamber music soloist, Dr. Liu has been invited to perform in the Sundays Live, Grand Performance, Ojai Summer Music Festival, Bruman Chamber Music Summer Festival, Cactus Pear Music Festival and a guest artist for Unbound Chamber Music and FOOSA. Rong-Huey has performed Marcello Oboe Concerto in Weil Recital/Carnegie Hall, Kalliwoda Oboe Concertino at Taichung Chung- -Shin Concert Hall, Mozart Oboe Concerto, Handel Concerto Gross and Mozart Sinfonia Concertante at the Holt Memorial Hall and Riverside Municipal Auditorium, Corigliano Concerto for Oboe and Orchestra at the Fox Theater with Riverside County Philharmonic and at the Nightingale Concert Hall with Reno Chamber Orchestra, Bach Concerto for Oboe and Violin with Grammy nominee violinist, James Buswell for the Neveda Chamber Music Festival and violinist Limor Toren-Immerman with Mozart Classic Orchestra. She also performed Mozart's Oboe Concerto in 2014 as a last minute step in for the missing soloist with the Reno Chamber Orchestra. In December 2014, she has recorded Rhapsody for Oboe and Orchestra by Walter Saul under the direction of Theodore Kuchar with the National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine and it will be released by Naxos.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Redlands Symphony Orchestra
Job Titles:
- Chairman of the Executive Committee
- Vice - Chairman / Secretary & Shareholder, Keesal, Young & Logan
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- Senior Vice President & Chief Investment Officer, Farmers and Merchants Trust Company
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- Member of the Board of Directors
- Attorney, Susan Wise Law Offices
Sérgio Coelho, an accomplished clarinet player and educator based in Los Angeles, collaborates with prestigious ensembles from around the world such as the Los Angeles Philharmonic, The Cleveland Symphony, Los Angeles Opera, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra (New Zealand), Toronto Symphony Orchestra (Canada), among others. He performs regularly with chamber music series and festivals like Chamber Music Palisades, South Bay Chamber Music Society, Ojai Music Festival, and Mainly Mozart, to name a few. His talent has been recognized internationally, including winning 1st prize in the AYS and USC Concerto competitions and achieving 3rd prize in the 8th Saverio Mercadante International Clarinet Competition (Italy). Sérgio's music education journey under mentors like Ms. Luisa Marques, Mr. Nuno Silva, and Mr. Yehuda Gilad has shaped his artistry. Currently, he serves as a dedicated clarinet faculty at Youth Orchestra Los Angeles - Torres and holds the position of principal clarinet in the Bakersfield Symphony Orchestra. His passion for music continues to inspire audiences worldwide.
Job Titles:
- Co - Founder & COO, Dabble & Dollop
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board of Directors
- CEO, Farmers and Merchants Bank