Faculty Gallery

• laurenvaughn@scgsah.org
• Phone: 864.282.3760

Landon Baumgard is a vocal coach and collaborative pianist hailing from the Los Angeles area.  He has collaborated with all the preeminent Los Angeles musical organizations, including LA Opera, the LA Phil, and the LA Master Chorale.  Baumgard holds degrees from California State University, Northridge (BM), Indiana University, Bloomington (MM), and University of Michigan (DMA), where he studied vocal coaching in depth with Martin Katz. His prior teaching positions were at Pepperdine University, California State University, Northridge, and the Faber Piano Institute in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

• landonbaumgard@scgsah.org
• Phone: 864.282.3763 

A native of Westchester County in New York, Ian Bracchitta performs as a bassist in the classical, jazz and popular idioms. He is the assistant principal bassist of the Greenville (SC) Symphony Orchestra and the principal bassist of the Spartanburg Philharmonic. Ian performs in the bass sections of the Charlotte, Charleston and Hendersonville Symphony Orchestras. As a jazz bassist he has  performed with Dianne Schuur, Kevin Mahogany, Kate McGarry, Freddie Bryant, Pat Harbison, George Mesterhazy, Hod O’Brien, Chris Vadala, John Stowell, The Tommy Dorsey, Nelson Riddle and Cab Calloway Orchestras among many others.Additionally, he performs frequently in the southeast in duo, trio and quartet settings. Ian has performed extensively in musical theatre playing with the Broadway national tours of  Anastasia, Hello Dolly, Phantom of the Opera, Wicked, West Side Story, Beautiful-The Carol King Story, Legally Blond, A Chorus Line, Chicago, The Sound Of Music, The Producers, Young Frankenstein, The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess, Evita, Pippin, Grease, 9 to 5, Fiddler on the Roof, Camelot, My Fair Lady, Annie Get Your Gun, Something Rotten, A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder, Cinderella, Billy Elliot, Mary Poppins, The Drowsy Chaperone, Ragtime, The Boyfriend, Victor Victoria, Sweet Charity, White Christmas, Annie, The Scarlet Pimpernel among others. He has played orchestrally or as electric bassist for a host of performers including Edwin McCain, Celtic Woman, Burt Bacharach, The Fifth Dimension, Marvin Hamlisch, Shirley Jones, Carol Channing, Martin Short, Rich Little and Red Buttons among many others. Recording credits include Reflections with jazz guitarist Steve Watson, Canadian jazz guitarist Mark Guest’s Happy Together,  the duo of Garah and Gregory Landes- Synchronicity: Like Minds, Rebecca Nagle Synthetic Dances - Music for Oboe on Centaur records, Joe Burke Simply Romantic on Revere records, Oracle Evasive Actions and Peggy Haden I’m Glad There Is You among others. Additionally, he has performed on regional commercials and industrial soundtracks. A dedicated teacher, Ian’s students have distinguished themselves by attending many of the finest music schools in the country. Ian is on the adjunct faculties of the South Carolina Governors School for the Arts and Humanities, Clemson and Furman Universities. He was the visiting lecturer of Double Bass at the University of South Carolina’s School of Music from 2002-2006 and at UNC-Asheville from 2003-2013. Additionally, Ian maintains a private studio. He received a Bachelor of Music Performance degree from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, additional studies at the Berklee College of Music. He attended the Westchester Conservatory during high school. Ian is very thankful for his teachers Jack Budrow, Donald Palma, Orin O’Brien, Salvatore Macchia, Michael Moore, Anthony Beadle, Arnold Schnitzer and William Blossom.

Education

• B.M., University of Massachusetts-Amhearst
• Additional Studies, Berklee College of Music

Training Under:

• Salvatore Macchia, University of Massachussetts-Amhearst
• Bruce Gertz and William Curtis, Berklee College of Music
• Winston Jack Budrow, Donald Palma, Orin O'Brien, Michael Moore and William Blossom, Independent study

• ianbracchitta@scgsah.org
• Phone:864.282.3758

Over the last 25 years, Alisa Caldwell has created and perfected an amazing blend of African dance, contemporary movements, and creative choreography, performed to the captivating power of drum rhythms. This technique exercises both mind and body, and also feeds the spirit. She has a strong personal and professional desire to share the beauty, culture, and passion of West African dance. In 1988, Alisa began her primary dance training at the Imani School of Dance in Greenville, South Carolina, where she eventually began instructing and choreographing creative and traditional African dance routines. She performed in the opening and closing ceremonies of the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia. She also trained with Chris Thompson and the Cultural Ensemble and Nubian Roots Cultural Center under the direction of Gerri Chisolm in Charlotte, North Carolina. Having the desire to perfect her art, Alisa continued her training with The Larocque Bey School of Dance Theatre under the direction of Master Dancer/Drummer Baba Jerome Hunter in New York, New York. Alisa has performed in numerous cultural and international festivals and has served as instructor, choreographer, lecturer, and judge at various dance conferences, workshops, and competitions. Through her extensive experience in African, Creative, and Liturgical dance, she is now a much sought-after teacher, performer, and choreographer.

• alisacaldwell@scgsah.org
• Phone:864.282.3758

Originally from Lake Mills, Wisconsin, violist Kathryn Dey is active as a soloist and chamber musician and has performed extensively throughout the United States and Europe. Ms. Dey is a Surdna Foundation fellow and was awarded a grant from that organization to study and perform works for unaccompanied viola by Lillian Fuchs. She performs regularly with organist David Turner as The Lila Duo and recent projects include performances at Bruton Parish Church in Williamsburg, Virginia,  and a series of recitals in France and Germany. Together the duo founded the Haiti Music Project, an outreach program connecting musicians in the United States and Cange, Haiti. 

Active as an educator, her teaching has been recognized by the American String Teacher Association, Strings Magazine, Music Teachers National Association, the American Viola Society, the South Carolina Alliance for Arts Education, and the South Carolina Music Educators Association.  Students from her studio are now performing and teaching around the world. Ms. Dey has given workshops to teachers and students throughout South Carolina and helped build rural string programs in Chester, Fairfield, Jasper, Laurens, and Pickens Counties. She is a frequent presenter at music teaching conferences and has been recognized nationally for her interdisciplinary work in the fields of music, creative writing, and acting. Ms. Dey is on the faculty of the South Carolina Governor’s School for the Arts, the Eastman Summer Viola Workshop, and the Swannanoa Chamber Music Festival. She earned degrees in viola performance from the University of Wisconsin-Madison as a student of Sally Chisholm, and at the Eastman School of Music, where she served as teaching assistant to John Graham. Ms. Dey speaks fluent German, practices hatha yoga daily, and together with her husband, cellist Robert O’Brien, has been renovating a historic home in downtown Greenville, South Carolina, for the past twelve years.

• kdey@scgsah.org
• Phone:864.282.3764

Thomas Dickinson received his Master of Music degree from the Yale University School of Music where he was a student of Richard Cross. He also holds an Artist Diploma and a Bachelor of Music degree from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music where he was a student of Richard Miller. At Oberlin he served on the staff of OBSVAC, a cutting edge vocal arts lab that utilizes technology to illuminate the art of singing and was awarded the Ruth Cogan scholarship for excellent service to the Lab. Mr. Dickinson also served as an Associate Instructor of Voice at Indiana University while studying with Giorgio Tozzi. His Studies have taken him to Europe where he was enrolled at the Salzburg Summer Festival. Mr. Dickinson spent two years in residence with the Seattle Opera Young Artist Program where he performed the roles of Don Magnifico in La Cenerentola, Masetto and Commendatore in Don Giovanni and in concerts throughout the northwest. Other operatic roles include Pistola in Falstaff, Schaunard in La Boheme, Collatinus in Rape of Lucretia, Escamillo in Carmen and Melchoir in Amahl and the Night Visitors. Mr. Dickinson’s career had taken him across the United States including appearances with Opera Theatre of St. Louis, Glimmerglass Opera, Hartford Symphony, Yakima Symphony, Norwalk Symphony and as an apprentice with the Santa Fe Opera. He has performed locally with the Greenville Symphony, the Augusta Chorale and Greenville Light Opera Works. 

• tdickinson@scgsah.org
• Phone:864.282.3762

Conductor Nse (EN-say) Ekpo enjoys a varied career as a performer, educator, and content creator throughout the United States and abroad. Recent engagements have taken him to Berlin, Germany where he conducted the Berlin Sinfonietta, and Pazardjik, Bulgaria where he has guest conducted the Pazardjik Symphony Orchestra. In 2018, Ekpo was named a finalist in two categories of The American Prize: Professional Orchestral Conducting, and the Ernst Bacon Award for the Programing of American Music (Professional Division). In the summer of 2018, Ekpo was invited along with 17 other creative artists from the US and abroad to be a resident at Rockland Woods Artist Residency Pilot Program in Illahe, Washington.

Prior to his arrival at The SC Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities, Dr. Ekpo was the Concert Band Director at Lakeside School in Seattle, Washington. While at Lakeside, Ekpo created Music Among Friends: A faculty chamber music series, the Middle School Flash Festival, which was one of Lakeside’s first live-streamed events, and the Business Club at the Upper School. While in the Seattle area, Ekpo guest conducted the Puget Brass, West Seattle Community Orchestra, Issaquah Philharmonic, Boeing Orchestra of Flight, Seattle Pacific University Symphony Orchestra, Seattle Wind Symphony, the Lake Union Civic Orchestra, and the Lake Washington Symphony Orchestra. A champion of diversity in the concert hall, his 2015 doctoral dissertation was on the orchestral music of Black American composers. In 2020, Ekpo spearheaded a commission by composer James Lee III for the Issaquah Philharmonic. Winner of the Outstanding Graduate Teaching Assistant Award, Dr. Ekpo earned his doctoral degree from the University of South Carolina upon completion of his document, Expanding the American Canon: The Orchestral Music of Black American Composers (https://scholarcommons.sc.edu/etd/3098/).

Prior to his appointment to Lakeside, Ekpo taught Music Appreciation at the University of South Carolina, and applied clarinet lessons at Lander University (SC).

A GOMAP fellow at the University of Washington, he conducted the University of Washington Wind Ensemble on its tour of Japan in 2007. He has also conducted the Beijing Opera Company, the Xian Conservatory Orchestra while on tour as a conducting fellow at the Conductor’s Institute of South Carolina. As a scholar, Ekpo has twice presented at the Northwest National Association for Music Education (2011, 2017) and has been published as an assistant editor and contributor to Merideth Music’s A Composer’s Insight series (volumes III, and IV respectively).

He completed coursework at the University of Washington while concentrating on wind band conducting and repertoire with Tim Salzman. While at the University of Washington, Ekpo conducted the Concert Band, the Symphonic Band, and the Wind Ensemble. Ekpo was also the Graduate Assistant Director of the University of Washington Husky Marching Band for the 2007-2008 season where he was the chief architect of the 2007 Washington vs. Washington State Apple Cup halftime show. He received his master’s degree in orchestral conducting and his bachelor of music in music education from the University of South Carolina. 

Primary conducting teachers include Donald Portnoy, Timothy Salzman, Peter Eros, and Lee Mills. He has also attended conducting master classes led by Colin Metters, former head of conducting at the London Royal Academy of Music, Gustav Meier at The Peabody Institute, and Sarah Ioannides, Music Director and Conductor of Symphony Tacoma. In addition to his musical training and accomplishments, Dr. Ekpo also holds a master of business administration (MBA) from the Darla Moore School of Business.

• nseekpo@scgsah.org
• Phone:864.282.3900

Bassoonist Jake Fowler has been regarded by American Conductor Mark Powell as possessing “deeply committed musical eloquence tied to singularly mad technical skills.” Formerly a bassoonist with The Arkansas Symphony Orchestra, Fowler is currently serving as 3rd bassoon and contrabassoon with the West Virginia Symphony Orchestra. Fowler has acted as guest musician with such organizations as The Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, The Richmond Symphony, The Charlotte Symphony, The Nashville Symphony, The Lexington Philharmonic, The Atlanta Ballet Orchestra and The New World Symphony. Fowler attended the Eastman School of Music for his Bachelor’s as well as his Master’s Degrees where he was also unanimously awarded the prestigious Performer’s Certificate. While at Eastman, Fowler had the privilege of winning the Eastman School Concerto Competition and performing the Mozart Bassoon Concerto with orchestra. He also appears on various published recordings with the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra as well as the Eastman Wind Ensemble that are commercially available wherever you enjoy listening to music. Fowler’s education at the Eastman School was deeply driven by his time studying under the mentorship of Professor George Sakakeeny to whom he is deeply grateful. During the summers, Fowler spends much of his time teaching as well as attending festivals of music such as the Artosphere Festival Orchestra comprised of hand-picked musicians from symphony orchestras across the globe.

• jakefowler@scgsah.org
• Phone: 864.282.3758

An active performer, Karen Hill is currently the Principal Clarinetist of the Spartanburg Philharmonic, Principal Second Clarinetist of the Asheville Symphony and a member of the Arbor Wind Trio. She has appeared as a soloist with the Spartanburg Philharmonic, Brevard Chamber Orchestra, Calgary Philharmonic, Music Academy of the West Festival Orchestra, Hunan Symphony Orchestra, Yellow River Symphony Orchestra, the Converse Symphony Orchestra, and collaborated with the American Chamber Players. She has also served as Principal Clarinetist with the Hendersonville Symphony, the Brevard Chamber Orchestra, and the French Broad River Woodwind Quintet. A freelance musician in the area for over 20 years, Mrs. Hill also has performed with the Asheville Lyric Opera Company, Augusta Symphony Orchestra, Augusta Opera Company, Charleston Symphony, Charlotte Symphony, Greenville Symphony, North Carolina Symphony and the South Carolina Philharmonic. Mrs. Hill has traveled to China multiple times as a performer and teacher in cities such as Hangzhou, Wenzhou, Zhengzhou, Changsha and Qingdao.

Mrs. Hill has been on the faculty at Converse since 2000. She also serves as Special Assistant to the Provost for International Programs, promoting and coordinating Converse’s partnership programs in China. Prior to 2000, she taught at Brevard College, Mars Hill College, Clemson University, the University of South Carolina, Union, and the School for Gifted Students in the Arts. A high school graduate of the Interlochen Arts Academy, Mrs. Hill holds degrees in clarinet performance from Northwestern University and the University of Michigan, where she was a full-tuition Fellow. She is a former student of the world-renowned clarinetist Robert Marcellus.

A summer music enthusiast throughout high school and college, Karen spent her summers at music festivals such as the Banff Center, Brevard Music Center, Interlochen, Music Academy of the West, and the School of Orchestral Studies, a summer affiliate of the Philadelphia Orchestra. She has also performed at Piccolo Spoleto, the Cullowhee Music Festival, and at Wild Acres, as a Woodwind Quintet Artist-in-Residence. She currently spends her summers at the MasterWorks Festival at Converse University. 

• karenhill@scgsah.org
• Phone: 864.282.3758

Shannon Hoover, from Greenville SC, is a freelance performer, composer, music educator, and music director / co-founder of The Greenville Jazz Collective (501c-3 nonprofit). He plays electric and acoustic bass, piano, and brass. A graduate of Anderson University (SC), Shannon has a B.A. in Double Bass Performance (minors in piano and music education) and will earn a M.M. in Music Education in the fall of 2023. He teaches private and virtual lessons in Greenville at Music on Mitchell. He has taught music for over 20 years to students of all ages and levels, including adjunct positions at the university level for 15 years. Shannon is currently an adjunct music instructor at Furman University.

Shannon plays many styles, focusing on jazz, classical, commercial, and world music. Recently, Shannon has had the opportunity to play with Victor Wooten, Glenn Miller Orchestra, Branford Marsalis, Harry Kim, Ike Stubblefield, Vincent Gardner, Lizz Wright, Jiggs Whigham, John Ellis, Kobie Watkins, Ron McCurdy, Jason Marsalis, Col. Bruce Hampton, Craig Wagner, Adam Nitti, Justin Stanton, Bob Moses, Ranky Tanky, Chris Vadala, Terreon Gully, Geoff Achison, Buzz Amato, Jeff Sipe, Derek Trucks, Mondre Moffett, Edwin McCain, Delfeayo Marsalis, Bobby Lee Rodgers, Veronica Swift, Pharez Whitted, Dionne Warwick, Yonrico Scott, Bill Evans, Kofi Burbridge, Chris Bullock, Scotty Anderson, Walter Blanding, Jr., Roy "Futureman" Wooten, Jason Marsalis, Mondre Moffett and Clarence Clemons.

Shannon has been busy the last few years building a foundation for jazz in Greenville, SC with educational programs and performances with the Greenville Jazz Collective since 2012. The organization promotes jazz awareness and education in the Greenville area, visiting local schools and offering concerts, camps, and clinics.

Along with being a recording artist for other musicians, Shannon released a CD entitled "Follow Me" in October 2012, featuring original compositions. He has been working on several new projects including a Jaco Pastorius Tribute Band, transcription and recording projects, a second studio album of original compositions, a solo electric bass album, and an electric bass
method book.

Find out more about Shannon Hoover and the Greenville Jazz Collective:

www.ShannonHooverMusic.com

www.GreenvilleJazzCollective.com

Education

• B.A. in Double Bass Performance (minors in piano and music education)  Anderson University
• M.M. in Music Education 

• shannonhoover@scgsah.org
• Phone:864.282.3758

Walter Hundt received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in piano performance from Bob Jones University and continued graduate study at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music working as a pianist in the opera department. Walter is a staff pianist at the SC Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities as well as music director/organist at Holy Cross Episcopal Church in Simpsonville. He accompanies various soloists and ensembles throughout the area and has worked with the Greenville Symphony Orchestra, the South Carolina Children’s Theatre, the Greenville Little Theatre, the Warehouse Theatre, and the Greenville Opera. 

• walterhundt@scgsah.org
• Phone:864.282.3758

Deirdre Hutton has enjoyed a varied career as a teacher, chamber musician and orchestral player.  Many of her violin students have gone on to study at prestigious music schools throughout North America including: The Juilliard School, Eastman School of Music, Manhattan School of Music, Oberlin Conservatory, Cleveland Institute of Music, University of Texas at Austin and the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music.  In addition, her students have been featured on the radio show From the Top and have participated in such summer festivals as the Heifetz Institute, Aspen School of Music, Bowdoin Music Festival, the New York String Seminar, National Youth Orchestra, National Repertory Orchestra, Meadowmount and National Orchestral Institute.

Deirdre completed her Bachelor of Music in Performance at the Eastman School of Music as a student of Oleh Krysa.  At Northwestern University she was teaching assistant to Almita and Roland Vamos while earning a Master of Music degree. Additional studies included intensive private study with Itzhak Rashkovsky, Royal College in London.

She has given masterclasses through the US and internationally. Deirdre has been violin coach for the Greenville County Youth Orchestra’s Young Artists Orchestra for the last ten years, as well as leading violin sectionals for numerous South Carolina Regional and All State Orchestras.

In addition to her work as a teacher Deirdre is an active chamber musician. As violinist and founding member of the Poinsett Piano Trio she has performed concerts throughout the US, Germany and New Zealand over the last decade. http://poinsettpianotrio.com

Deirdre has performed in numerous orchestras in the US and Europe including the New World Symphony (Miami, Florida), the Schlossfestspiele Chamber Orchestra (Heidelberg, Germany), the North Carolina Symphony, the Charleston Symphony (South Carolina), the Knoxville Symphony (Tennessee), and the Greenville Symphony (South Carolina). She was Assistant Concertmaster of the Roanoke Symphony (Virginia) and was Assistant Concertmaster for the last two seasons with the Spartanburg Philharmonic.

Prior to joining the SCGSAH faculty in 2019, Deirdre taught as Adjunct Professor at Furman University for 14 years.

• deirdrehutton@scgsah.org
• Phone: 864.282.3759

Kristen Whitworth Ironside is an active collaborative pianist, whose work has given her performance opportunities both across the United States and Europe. Kristen has been on the collaborative piano faculty at the MasterWorks Festival, and has been a collaborative pianist at both the Vianden International Music Festival in Vianden, Luxembourg, and the Saarburger Serenaden International Music Festival in Saarburg, Germany.

Kristen is based in Greenville, South Carolina, where she collaborates with guest artists, faculty, and students at the South Carolina Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities (SCGSAH), Furman University, and other universities around the state. She has recently performed with visiting professors from Oberlin Conservatory, the Eastman School of Music, and New England Conservatory, and performed a concerto with the Bob Jones University String Orchestra. An avid supporter of contemporary music, she has also worked with composers Jon Grier and Lance Hulme to premiere and record new works. She currently coaches chamber music at SCGSAH, and has served on the faculty of Presbyterian College, in Clinton, SC. Kristen is a member of the Hendiatris Piano Trio, and frequently performs with her husband, violinist Brandon Ironside, as part of the Ironside Duo.

• kristenironside@scgsah.org
• Phone:864.282.3758

Troy Jones began playing percussion at age 14 in his hometown of Louisville, Kentucky. While working toward a degree in Percussion Performance at Eastern Kentucky University, Troy performed in all major music ensembles including indoor drumline, African Drum and Dance ensemble, and the EKU steel band. During this time, he toured the country with Drum Corps International (DCI), and later embarking on a music and cultural tour of Brazil. Upon graduation, Troy made Nashville, TN his home base, performing professionally across the southeast with bands from varying genres. In 2014, Troy settled in Greenville where he now owns and operates a private teaching studio. With his 25+ years of dedication to music education and performing, Troy mentors aspiring percussionists of all ages and abilities. He still enjoys performing live any chance he gets!

• troyjones@scgsah.org
• Phone: 864.282.3758

Craig lives in Greenville, SC enjoying and active and varies performing and teaching career. He has degrees in trumpet performance from Yale University School of Music (MM) and Furman University (BM). He performs frequently with the Greenville Symphony Orchestra, GAMAC Orchestra, West End Brass Quintet, GSO Quintet, Greenville Jazz Collective Big Band, and on occasion the Asheville Symphony, Spartanburg Philharmonic, and South Carolina Philharmonic. Past highlights include performances at Avery Fischer Hall and New York City's Lincoln Center and the Moscow Chamber Orchestra, Broadway shows on local stops, Ringling Bros Circus, opening band for Wilco, and orchestras with Johnny Mathis, Edwin McCain, and Bela Fleck. 

In addition to teaching trumpet and coaching brass ensembles at SCGSAH, Craig teaches trumpet at Converse College, Lawson Academy of Arts, and North Greenville University, where he also serves as Director of Jazz Band. Craig recently released an album of his original music, Blue Metropolis, on vinyl, CD, and streaming services. In his off time, Craig is painting portraits, cooking, and roasting coffee.

• craigking@scgsah.org
• Phone:864.282.3758

Michelle Moeller is an avid performer and dedicated teacher for the next generation of oboe students. She has studied with Linda Strommen, Oboe Professor at Indiana University, Julia DeRosa, Principal Oboe of the New York City Ballet, and currently studies with Dr. Reid Messich, Oboe Professor at the University of Georgia. She is pursuing a Doctorate of Musical Arts at UGA, and is eager to share all the knowledge she has learned from her teachers with her new students.

In the summers, Michelle enjoys attending orchestral festivals. She was recently a Fellow at the National Orchestral Institute+Festival, and was Principal Oboe under Marin Alsop performing Mahler 1 with select members of the Chicago Symphony. This ensemble went on tour, and she had the privilege to perform this same concert at the Ravinia Festival in Chicago. While Michelle was in Chicago, she also served as a Young Artist Mentor for the oboe students of the National Seminario: Orchestras for All. She also has a passion for chamber music and will be attending the Imani Winds Festival at Juilliard later in the summer. While pursuing her Masters degree, she had the honor to be coached by world renowned composer and flutist of the Imani Winds, Valerie
Coleman. When Michelle is not in school, she enjoys performing with regional orchestras in the area, and hopes to one day play professionally full time, while continuing to teach students of all ages.

Michelle is eager to begin her teaching journey at the Governor's School and Furman University starting in the Fall of 2024, and hopes to pass on the joy of performing and sharing music with her students.

• michellemoeller@scgsah.org
• Phone: 864.282.3758

Amanda Montgomery, DMA, NCTM, enjoys a diverse career as a pedagogue and pianist. Her students consistently perform well in competitions and auditions, including a winner in the South Carolina MTNA Young Artist Competition. Amanda’s teaching has been recognized by the Music Teachers National Association, Piccolo Spoleto, and the National Federation of Music Clubs. She is frequently an invited adjudicator at regional, national, and international competitions, including the Arthur Fraser International Piano Competition , Northwest MTNA Division Piano Competition, and the South Carolina MTNA State Competition.

Amanda is a strong advocate for music education within the state of South Carolina and currently serves as the President of the South Carolina Music Teachers Association. Through this role, she is focused on bringing classical music to a wider, more diverse audience, as well as providing quality educational experiences and programming to music students and independent music teachers throughout the state. Previous offices include Vice President for Competitions and President-Elect for SCMTA, as well as Northwest District II Chair and State Junior Counselor for the South Carolina Federation of Music Clubs.

Amanda completed the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Piano Performance with a minor in Piano Pedagogy from Louisiana State University as a student of Michael Gurt. She was a teaching assistant throughout her graduate studies as a pedagogy student of both Steve Betts and Victoria Johnson. She also holds degrees from James Madison University and Furman University. Her former piano teachers include Eric Ruple and Derek Parsons.

Amanda currently serves on the music faculty at the South Carolina Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities in Greenville, South Carolina teaching piano to gifted high school students. She previously served as Adjunct Professor of Piano at Furman University. 

• amandamontgomery@scgsah.org
• Phone: 864.282.3761

• sethrussell@scgsah.org
• Phone: 864.282.3758

Elliott Smith, D.M.A. was born and raised in Greenville, SC where he attended Furman University and earned a degree in piano performance. From 2005-2010, he attended the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music where he received graduate degrees in piano and conducting. He recently received his doctorate in conducting from the University of Notre Dame, where his research interest was continuous practice of the Baroque and Classical eras; further, his thesis examined W.A. Mozart's "Great" C-minor Mass. His primary teachers include Ruby Morgan and Elisabeth Pridonoff, piano and Elmer Thomas, Earl Rivers, Brett Scott, Annunziata Tomato, and Carmen-Helena Téllez, conducting. 

• elliottsmith@scgsah.org
• Phone:864.282.3758

Michael Taylor serves on the faculties of Anderson University, Lenoir-Rhyne University and North Greenville University where he teaches tuba, euphonium, chamber ensembles, and brass methods. He is also the coordinator and conductor of the annual Hickory, NC Tuba Christmas event. Past teaching appointments include Furman University, Brevard College, Presbyterian Association of Music and Musicians, and the South Carolina Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities.

Mr. Taylor has served as principal tuba with the Hendersonville Symphony Orchestra since 2002. In addition to his duties with the HSO, he has performed with several symphony orchestras throughout North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Indiana, Ohio, and Kentucky. Mr. Taylor has also performed and toured with Mr. Jack Daniel’s Original Silver Cornet Band, the Harvey Phillips Tuba Company, and the Tuba Santas while maintaining an active schedule as a performer and clinician in the southeastern United States.

Mr. Taylor received his Bachelor of Music degree from Western Carolina University and his Master of Music in Performance degree from the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University-Bloomington where he was awarded the William Bell Memorial Scholarship for Tuba. His principal instructors are Dr. Harvey Phillips, Dan Perantoni, Dr. Ken Kroesche, and D. Wynn Justice.

Michael Taylor currently resides in Morganton, NC with his wife, Kimberly and their daughter, Savannah Lee.

• michaeltaylor@scgsah.org
• Phone:864.282.3758

Anne Kelly Tromsness has worked as a theatre educator and teaching artist for over 20 years.  A veteran actor and director, she regularly works in regional theatre and consults on productions in higher education as well. Anne formerly served as the Education Director at Greenville’s The Warehouse Theatre where she developed and implemented local and regional programming in theatre education, performance, and community engagement, building a nationally recognized Shakespeare touring program. Most recently, she served as the ARMES Drama and Theatre Foundations instructor at the Fine Arts Center, where she was recognized as the SC Theatre Association Outstanding Theatre Educator for 2020, and the 2021-22 District Teacher of the Year for Greenville County Schools. She has taught at Christ Church Episcopal School, SC Children's Theatre, served as lead teacher for the SCGSAH IGNITE program, a summer intensive in creative process for middle school students, and as a teaching artist for the Metropolitan Arts Council's SMART ARTS. She worked with the SCGSAH outreach department and the SC Arts Commission, developing  SPARK!, a program using theatre arts integration to boost literacy in  elementary students in Williamsburg and Jasper counties. In 2020, the program was recognized with a research initiative award through the Arts Schools Network, and has since been expanded to a year-round program in additional districts statewide, as part of the SC Arts Commission's Arts Grow SC initiative. Anne was a founding Co-Artistic Director for The Distracted Globe Theatre Company, in residence for ten years at The Warehouse Theatre. She previously served as the Director of Outreach, and Community Service and Service Learning Coordinator at the SCGSAH. Anne holds a BA in Women’s Studies from the University of South Carolina, and an MA in Arts Administration from Winthrop University. Other areas of special interest include collaborative practice, improvisation, arts integration, and applied theatre. In 2018, Anne completed her teacher certification in the Michael Chekhov Technique for Acting and Directing, through the Great Lakes Michael Chekhov Consortium. She is a member of Actors' Equity Association, the union representing professional actors and stage managers in theatre in the United States. 
 

• annetromsness@scgsah.org
• Phone:864.282.3742

• petreawarneck@scgsah.org
• Phone: 864.282.3758

• stevewilson@scgsah.org
• Phone: 864.282.3758

Anneka Zuehlke-King currently serves as Principal Horn of the Greenville Symphony Orchestra, Principal of the Spartanburg Philharmonic, as well as Third Horn of the Asheville Symphony Orchestra. On her free weeks, Anneka also performs with the Charlotte Symphony, the Hendersonville Symphony, the GAMAC Orchestra and Symphony Orchestra Augusta. She is also a member of several chamber ensembles, including Triptych Musica, the West End Brass Quintet and the Converse Faculty Wind Quintet. In addition to teaching horn at the South Carolina Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities, Anneka is the Adjunct Horn teacher at Converse College and Furman University. Anneka is proud to have studied with Sylvia Alimena in high school, Myron Bloom and Jerome Ashby at the Curtis Institute of Music where she received her Bachelor’s of Music, and William Purvis when studying for her Master’s from the Yale School of Music.

• annekazuehlke@scgsah.org
• Phone:864.282.3758