Testimonials

HARPIST CAITLIN MEHRTENS is based in Houston, TX. She has performed numerous times as a concerto soloist, most recently with the Akademisches Orchester in Leipzig, Germany at the Gewandhaus, and also with the National Repertory Orchestra, the Texas Music Festival Orchestra, the Ocean City Pops Orchestra, the Stars in the Classics Concert Series, the Oberlin Mozart Players, and the Orchestra Society of Philadelphia.

An avid supporter and performer of contemporary art, Caitlin is the Harpist and Marketing Manager for contemporary music ensemble Loop38. Before moving to Texas, Caitlin was also the Outreach Director and Harpist for The Syndicate for the New Arts, a Cleveland-based non-profit, for 4 years.

In addition to performing with many professional orchestras such as the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra, Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra, Colorado Springs Philharmonic, the Fort Wayne Philharmonic, the Spokane Symphony, and the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra, Caitlin has participated in the National Repertory Orchestra, National Orchestral Institute, Texas Music Festival, Eastern Music Festival, and the Monteux School.

Caitlin graduated from Rice University's Shepherd School of Music, achieving a Masters of Music in Harp Performance with Paula Page. Previously, she graduated from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, achieving a Bachelor of Music degree in Harp Performance under Yolanda Kondonassis, and also a second Independent Major called “Communication through Multi-Cultural Music and Movement”.

Sharing her love of music through teaching is also very important to Caitlin; she has extensive experience working with musicians of all ages and experience levels. Her current students are through the Harp Mastery Certified Coaching Program and her own private studio in Houston. She is also a faculty member of the Houston Youth Harp Ensemble. Caitlin grew up in Thornton, Pennsylvania with a very musical family and is so grateful for the role music has played in every aspect of her life.

VIOLINIST/VIOLIST PAUL AGUILAR has won top prizes at the Banff, Bordeaux, Melbourne, Wigmore Hall, Fischoff, and the Manhattan International Competitions. He as made concert appearances on the Schneider Concert Series, the Dame Myra Hess Concerts, the Music Institute of Chicago Artist Series, the Ravinia Festival, ChamberFest Cleveland, La Jolla Summerfest, the Heidelberg String Quartet Festival, and the Emilia-Romagna Festival. Formerly, he held residencies at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music and the Escuela Superior de Música Reina Sofía School in Madrid, Spain. Most recently, he was selected through a competitive audition process as the newest violinist of the U.S. Army Band. His primary influences have been Jaime Laredo, Jan Sloman, Gunter Pichler, and Gerhard Schulz.

Hailing from a Venezuelan-American family in South Carolina, he began studying violin at age five. In addition to traveling around the world performing, Paul enjoys sharing music alongside his wife Rachel, at their church and throughout their community in schools and numerous other community centers.

Making her solo debut at the age of sixteen at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, MARY DUPLANTIER, HARP, continues to live an active career as an orchestral harpist, chamber musician, soloist, and educator. Mary holds a Master of Music from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and a Bachelor of Music from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She is the newly appointed Principal Harpist with both the Akron Symphony Orchestra and the Peoria Symphony Orchestra. In addition to her recent appointments, she has also been heard with several other orchestras including Louisville Orchestra, Kentucky Opera, Alabama Symphony, Illinois Symphony, Hilton Head Symphony, and Baton Rouge Symphony, among others. Mary has also cultivated a strong passion for chamber music, with a particular interest in new works. Mary joined the Cincinnati New Music Ensemble in 2020 where she has premiered several new works by both national and international composers. She is also the harpist in the Illumine Trio alongside trumpet player Chris O’Hara and Soprano Sarah Moyer, and has toured with them all across the U.S. In addition to her busy career as a performing musician, Duplantier has also nurtured a love and passion for education as well. Mary has served in the past as an adjudicator for the American String Teachers Associate Advanced Placement Program and currently serves as harp faculty at Walnut Hills High School. She also enjoys teaching the undergraduate students at Cincinnati Conservatory of Music as part of her Graduate Assistantship. During the summer months, Mary enjoys performing in Mackinac Island where she holds an artist residency at the Grand Hotel. Mary currently resides in Cincinnati, Ohio where she is pursuing her Artist Diploma at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music.

Originally from Holiday Hills, IL, VIOLINIST RACHEL AGUILAR (Stenzel) grew up in a very musical family, beginning her formal training on the piano at age five and later on the violin at age nine. Currently residing in Houston, TX, she completed both her Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in Violin Performance at the Cleveland Institute of Music (CIM), where she also minored in both Music Theory and Business Management. Her primary teachers include Paul Kantor, Stephen Rose, Jan Mark Sloman, and Almita Vamos.
Rachel’s ensemble training began at Midwest Young Artists in Highwood, IL where she was actively involved in their orchestra and chamber music programs. Her orchestral experience has included five years as a member of the Canton Symphony Orchestra, concertmaster of the Suburban Symphony Orchestra, and a participant in the New York String Orchestra Seminar. During her time at CIM, Rachel was the recipient of multiple awards in both violin and chamber music; she also served as concertmaster of the CIM orchestra and was featured as a soloist with the orchestra.
Although she loves both solo and orchestral playing, Rachel’s true passion is for chamber music. As a founding member of the Callisto Quartet, Rachel has won top prizes in nearly every major chamber music competition, including the Banff International String Quartet Competition, the Bordeaux International String Quartet Competition, the Melbourne International Chamber Music Competition, and the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition. With the Callisto Quartet, she has participated in residencies at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, the Yale School of Music, Escuela Superior de Musica Reina Sofia (Madrid), and the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna. As quartet-in-residence from 2020-2022 at the Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts, the Callisto Quartet performed a complete Bartok String Quartet Cycle, the first time this was ever performed at Caramoor.
In addition to playing in orchestra and chamber settings, Rachel is committed to performing regularly at her church and in the community, and is also passionate about teaching music. Along with the Callisto Quartet, she helped to develop a chamber music curriculum for teaching high school ensembles, and she also maintains an active private studio of both piano and violin students in Houston. Rachel plays on an 1850 Chanot violin generously on loan from the Maestro Foundation, and a bow generously on loan from the Rachel Elizabeth Barton Foundation. In her spare time she enjoys running, cooking, all kinds of craft projects, and spending time with her family.

ETHAN BLAKE, CELLO, has played around the world for a variety of audiences. As a soloist, chamber, and orchestral musician, Ethan has performed a wide variety of repertoire in venues across the United States, Italy, and Japan. He is a two-time fellowship recipient at the Aspen Music Festival and School and has also received fellowships from the Colorado College Music Festival and the Accademia Musicale Chigiana in Siena, Italy He has also performed at festivals such as the Bowdoin International Music Festival, Innsbrook Institute, and Brevard Music Festival. Ethan was the first prize winner of the T. Gordon Parks Concerto Competition, the Pikes Peak Philharmonic Concerto Competition, and the University of Colorado Undergraduate Honors Competition, and was recently a prize winner at the Jefferson Symphony Young Artists Competition.

Before moving to Rochester, Ethan was an avid performer in the Front Range of Colorado and served as Assistant Principal Cello in the Boulder Philharmonic and as a member of the Boulder Chamber Orchestra. He has appeared as principal cellist with ensembles such as the Fort Collins Symphony, the Greeley Philharmonic, and the Aspen Conducting Academy Orchestra, and has also performed with groups such as the Colorado Symphony, Sphere Ensemble and Pro Musica Colorado. Additionally, he was a One-Year member of the Alabama Symphony in Birmingham for their 2022-23 season. As a teacher, Ethan has served as a cello instructor at the Boulder Symphony Music Academy and as a Teaching Artist at El Sistema Colorado, along with working frequently with middle and high school cello sections around the area.

A graduate of the University of Colorado Boulder College of Music, Ethan was a recipient of the Don & Maria Johnson Scholarship and Bixler Foundation Scholarship. His main teachers have included David Requiro, Alice Yoo, Matthew Zalkind, and Annemarie Dawson. Ethan is currently pursuing a Master’s of Music at the Eastman School of Music in the studio of David Ying. Outside of music, his other interests include cooking, basketball, and going on as many dog-walks as possible.

STEVEN SCHUMANN is a CELLIST and composer based out of Nashville, Tennessee, where he regularly performs both live and in the studio. In addition to his abilities as a classical cellist, he has studied with renowned multi-style performers such as Billy Contreras and Tracy Silverman, and is known for blending classical performance technique with modern styles such as bluegrass and jazz. Steven also composes for TV and film, and arranges music for string sessions throughout Nashville. Some of his credits include working with; Trans Siberian Orchestra, Cole Chaney, Kip Winger, Disturbed, Gayle, Phillip Bowen, and Hannah Ellis. Steven holds an M.M. in Commercial Performance from Belmont University, as well as a B.F.A in Cello Performance and a B.A. in Music Education from Marshall University.

One of North America’s premiere young classical harpists, RACHEL LEE O’BRIEN (formerly Rachel Lee Hall) has captured the ears of audiences nationwide. The 2019 Gold Medal winner of the Houston Symphony Orchestra’s Ima Hogg Competition, O’Brien is in high demand as a harp soloist and chamber musician, as well as a respected music pedagogue and author.

Praised for her “fluid technique…and expressive musicality,” (The Chestnut Hill), Rachel Lee O’Brien has appeared as a concert soloist with such esteemed orchestras as the Houston Symphony Orchestra, members of The Philadelphia Orchestra, the West Virginia Symphony Orchestra, the National Repertory Orchestra, and the Cleveland Institute of Music Symphony Orchestra. Her career has landed her in many well-known concert halls, including Philadelphia’s Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, Houston’s E. Jones Hall for the Performing Arts, Cleveland’s Severance Hall, and Blossom Music Center.

A winner of Astral Artists’ 2017 National Auditions, O’Brien has received top prizes from such competitions as the Lyon & Healy Awards, the Cleveland Institute of Music (CIM) Concerto Competition and the Saratoga Harp Colony “Play with the Pros” Competition. She is also the recipient of the Alice Chalifoux Award, and was the 2015 CIM Presser Scholar.

O’Brien is a member of the Astralis Chamber Ensemble, with whom she regularly tours along the East Coast, commissions new works, and reaches communities of all backgrounds through music. She has also performed as a guest orchestral harpist with the Cleveland Orchestra, the Akron Symphony Orchestra, the Roanoke Symphony Orchestra, Opera Roanoke, and as a fellow with the National Repertory Orchestra.

O’Brien is most passionate about inspiring the next generation of young classical musicians. To that end, she authored the popular book, “Purpose in Practice: 26 Rules for the Practicing Musician,” which was designed to inspire and motivate musicians to achieve their highest practice room goals, along with a corresponding practice journal. O’Brien also serves locally on the board of Claritas Arts, a Christian nonprofit for Roanoke-based creatives. She also maintains a significant following on social media, with more than 40,000 followers on Instagram.

As an educator, O’Brien also maintains a private studio comprised of harp students both local and worldwide. Many of her students have been accepted to major music conservatories such as the San Francisco Conservatory, the Cleveland Institute of Music, University of Michigan, Oberlin College, New England Conservatory, and University of North Carolina School of the Arts. In addition to preparing aspiring musicians for music conservatory, O’Brien also loves teaching beginning harp students as well as adults. She has training in Dalcroze Eurhythmics, an approach to rhythm through movement, which she incorporates in her private lessons in addition to masterclasses and workshops.

O’Brien holds both a Bachelor and a Master of Music degree from the Cleveland Institute of Music, where she studied harp performance under Yolanda Kondonassis. When not performing, Rachel Lee O’Brien may be found with her husband, Jeremy, and their son in Roanoke, Virginia, a small valley nestled in the heart of Appalachia.

ALEX KREW, CELLO hails from Baltimore, Maryland and is a ten-year veteran of Nashville’s recording industry, lending his talent to hundreds of high-profile projects including John Wick 4, Halo Infinite, Sony PlayStation’s Spider-Man series, and Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. He is a top-call substitute with the Nashville Symphony where he has performed in many high-profile concerts including Messiaen’s Turangalîla-Symphonie, a sold-out concert with Andrea Bocelli at Bridgestone Arena, and the premier of Hannibal Lokumbe’s The Jonah People. Alex has also performed with the Indianapolis Symphony and the New World Symphony in Miami Beach. As a core member of Fever’s Candlelight Concerts, Alex presents weekly chamber concerts at Nashville’s historic Parthenon, performing everything from Bach to the Beatles. He is a member of Evansville Philharmonic, Owensboro Symphony, and the Gateway Chamber Orchestra.
Alex began his musical studies at the age of 5 at Peabody Conservatory’s Preparatory Division, continuing on to Vanderbilt University on a full-tuition Cornelius Vanderbilt Scholarship. At Vanderbilt, he won the concerto competition and was a member of the acclaimed Aurelius Quartet, a Fischoff laureate and MTNA national silver-medalist. After becoming the first music major in Vanderbilt’s history to also earn a Master of Business Administration in his fifth year, Alex earned his Master of Music degree from Indiana University. While at Indiana, Alex was solo cellist for the IU New Music Ensemble on a tour of Mexico City. Influential teachers include Eric Kim, Felix Wang, Alison Wells, Bai-Chi Chen, Darrett Adkins, and Brinton Smith. Summers have seen Alex performing around the world, at such prestigious festivals as Aspen, Bowdoin, Brevard, YellowBarn, and Music Masters Course Japan. He has been honored to share the stage with a myriad of modern masters, including Joyce Yang, Joshua Bell, Johannes Moser, Leonard Slatkin, principal players of the New York Philharmonic, and Yo-Yo Ma.
Alex resides in East Nashville with his wonderful wife Allie and their dog, Bodhi. When he is not immersed in music, Alex enjoys biking, climbing, photography, and rooting on his Baltimore Orioles.

Meet TIM RICHARDSON, VIOLA, a Nashville-based classical musician who walks the line between humility and edginess. With a passport full of stamps from Prague, Vienna, Budapest, Rome, and all the way back here to the United States from Aspen to Los Angeles, he's no stranger to the spotlight. His affinity for chamber music has led him to collaborate with renowned figures like Midori Goto, Robert McDuffie, and Amy Schwartz-Moretti, proving that he's as comfortable sharing the stage as he is commanding it.
But Tim's sonic adventures don't stop there. Beyond the confines of tradition, he's lent his expertise to the realms of motion pictures, indie films, television series, video games, and an eclectic array of artists including Lorde, Logic, Chief Keef, and Damian Marley. His diverse repertoire extends to some of the biggest music festivals on the planet, including Coachella, Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza, and the New York City Governors Ball.
In the musical tapestry of middle Tennessee, Tim's notes continue to resonate. From Rhose Studio Strings to Nashville Music Scoring, Nashville Chamber Music Society to Entertain!, and from the Paducah Symphony Orchestra to the Huntsville Symphony Orchestra and the Gateway Chamber Orchestra, he's woven himself into the very fabric of the region's soundscape.
Armed with a BM from the Robert McDuffie Center for Strings at Mercer University and a MM from the University of Southern California, Tim's journey is a testament to the guidance of his former teachers including Becca Albers, Che-Yen Chen, Larry Dutton, Michael Tree, Sabina Thatcher, and Paul Murphy. With a foundation in classical roots and an unapologetically audacious approach, Tim Richardson's narrative is one where humility dances harmoniously with an irresistible edge.

ANYA GARIPOLI, HARP is committed to bringing the harp into the 21st century by forging a new artistic identity for her instrument.

A versatile musician, Anya is just as comfortable performing solo classical harp recitals as she is playing on stage with orchestras or experimenting across different genres of music. Anya has performed with various symphony orchestras, including the London Symphony Orchestra, the Juneau Symphony, the Oakland Symphony, and other regional orchestras all across the nation. She is an associate member of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, and is currently Principal Harpist of the Venice Symphony in Florida, splitting her time between LA and Florida.

Anya graduated with an Artist Diploma from the Colburn Conservatory in 2023 under the tutelage of JoAnn Turovsky and is currently working towards a Professional Studies Certificate at the Colburn School in Los Angeles, CA. She received her Bachelor of Music from Oberlin Conservatory of Music in 2019. Throughout her schooling, Anya has attended some of the country’s premier classical summer music programs, including fellowships to attend the Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara, CA and the Roundtop Music Festival in Roundtop, TX.

Splitting her time between graduate school and professional work, Anya is active within the Los Angeles freelance music scene. She performs with orchestras, does recording session work, and plays harp for weddings and other private events. She has done commercial work as a harpist for several corporations, including Target and HGTV. Upcoming engagements for the 2023 year include performances with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and harp duet concert series, including the world premier of a harp duet written by composer Gilad Cohen, commissioned for Anya’s harp duo with Alyssa Katahara, Duo Synth.

MADELINE CAWLEY, FLUTE, is a passionate performer, collaborator, painter, and teacher. She has been a prize winner of multiple national young artist competitions sponsored by organizations including the Florida Flute Association, National Federation of Music Clubs, and National Society of Arts and Letters. Madeline earned her Bachelor of Music and Bachelor of Science in Education degrees from The University of Alabama and a Master of Music degree in flute performance from the New England Conservatory of Music. There she met harpist Hannah Johnson. The duo competed in and won the NEC concerto competition, granting them the opportunity to perform the Mozart Concerto for Flute and Harp with the NEC Symphony in Jordan Hall. In 2021, they were selected as finalists in the international Piazzolla Music Competition with their performances of Histoire du Tango and Oblivion. In December 2021 they released a duo album titled “Merry”, featuring 13 original arrangements of Christmas classics. Madeline plays with the Nashville Music Scoring orchestra in Ocean Way recording studio in Nashville, TN and is the founder and Creative & Artistic Director of Harvest Arts, LLC, an arts organization that creates beautiful artistic works and experiences for the increased flourishing of communities for the glory of God.

​PAUL HALBERSTADT, VIOLIN, is quickly establishing a versatile identity as an orchestral violinist, cross-genre arranger, folk fiddler and an educator. He currently holds the position as the Associate Concertmaster of the Alabama Symphony in Birmingham. Prior to this, he was acting Concertmaster of the Canton Symphony Orchestra. He has frequently served as concertmaster of the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra, the Cleveland Institute of Music Orchestra, the Eastman Philharmonia, the Brevard Sinfonia, and the National Festival Orchestra at the National Orchestral Institute (NOI). At NOI, he led the orchestra in a critically-acclaimed, Grammy-nominated performance, recorded for the Naxos label, in which the Washington Post referred to him as “the really wonderful Concertmaster, Paul Halberstadt” with playing full of “energy and ardor.” He has won a Grammy award with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra for their new Album American Rapture, recorded for the Azica label. Paul is in demand as an orchestral performer and has performed with ensembles including the Minnesota Orchestra, ProMusica Chamber Orchestra of Columbus, the Cleveland Pops Orchestra, Glens Falls Symphony, and the Symphoria Orchestra of Syracuse. As a soloist, Paul is the third prize winner of the Darius Milhaud Competition in Cleveland. He has also participated in the Hudson Valley International String Competition, the Aspen Philharmonic Concerto Competition, and the Eastman Dvorak Violin Competition. He has collaborated with artists such as David Zinman and Joshua Bell in the 2019 Eastman Presents Series, as well as William Preucil in the 2018 Brevard Camerata. Paul has studied with many leading Concertmasters including Sheryl Staples, Malcolm Lowe, Jonathan Carney, William Preucil, Eric Wyrick, and Jessica Mathaes. Other important teachers include Paul Kantor, Ida Kavafian, Jaime Laredo, Zoya Leybin, Bonnie Bewick, Kimberly Kennedy, Jason Horowitz, and Paul Arnold.