Amy Wilson Conductor Amy Wilson is a promising young conductor who has conducted orchestras throughout the United States, Mexico, and Europe. Currently, she is Conductor of the Mercer/Macon Symphony Youth Orchestra, Apprentice Conductor of the Macon Symphony Orchestra, and a Graduate Teaching Assistant for the Mercer University Orchestra. At Mercer University she is pursuing her second Master of Music degree in orchestral conducting. Teachers who have instructed Ms. Wilson include such distinguished conductors as Adrian Gnam, Music Director of the Macon Symphony Orchestra and Former Principal Oboe of the Cleveland Orchestra; Gustav Meier, world-renowned Conducting Faculty at the Peabody Institute, Former Director of Orchestras at the University of Michigan, and Former Conducting Faculty at the famous Tanglewood Music Festival; Jesús López-Cobos, Former Music Director for the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra; Anshel Brusilow, Former Concertmaster for the Philadelphia Orchestra under Eugene Ormandy and Former Music Director for the Dallas Symphony Orchestra; and Wayne Wyman, Artistic Director at Capital Opera Raleigh and Former Artistic Director at Lyric Opera San Antonio. In workshops she has worked with such world famous maestros as Marin Alsop, Gunther Schuller, Larry Rachleff, Christopher Wilkins, Kenneth Kiesler, Carl St. Clair, Daniel Lewis, and Leonid Korchmar. Ms. Wilson made her United States professional orchestra debut by guest conducting the Macon Symphony Orchestra in Macon, Georgia. She won this exciting opportunity as the grand winner in the competition portion of the International Academy of Advanced Conducting, a conducting workshop held at Mercer University in Macon, Georgia, in the summer of 2005. These world class teachers, who were experts in the technique of Ilya Musin, included Adrian Gnam and Leonid Korchmar, who teaches at the renowned St. Petersburg Conservatory and conducts at the Kirov in Russia. Ms. Wilson began her musical training early in the Tampa area of Florida where she grew up. Formal study in conducting began at the University of South Florida, and continued while studying at the prestigious University of Cincinnati, College-Conservatory of Music (CCM), where she earned her Bachelor of Music degree in clarinet performance. After graduation she moved to Baltimore, Maryland, where she worked at the Peabody Institute, studied conducting privately, and worked with several ensembles as a conductor in Maryland and Pennsylvania. These opportunities included being the assistant conductor to Victoria Bond at the Harrisburg Opera and guest conducting the Londontowne Symphony Orchestra in its inaugural season. Ms. Wilson pursued her first Master of Music degree at the University of North Texas, where she conducted the University of North Texas Repertoire Orchestra, an orchestra comprised of music majors. She also was the Associate Conductor of the Flower Mound Community Orchestras, where she conducted the Progressive Orchestra, which was comprised of musicians of all ages. Currently Ms. Wilson resides in Macon, Georgia, where she studies, conducts, guest conducts, cover conducts, plays the clarinet, and refines her conducting skills at workshops. Besides conducting, she has also studied clarinet performance, composition, piano, operatic acting, stage direction, and opera coaching. Her career goals include conducting professional orchestras and operas, as well as teaching conducting to upcoming generations. For more information on Ms. Wilson, feel free to visit her website at www.amymwilson.com. Connie Davis General Manager Connie Davis serves as the Personnel Manager and Grant Specialist for the Macon Symphony. She is in her fifth year as the General Manager of the Mercer/Macon Symphony Youth Orchestra and graduated from Mercer University in 2009 with a degree in Music Education. Connie teaches weekly piano lessons for more than 20 young pianists in Macon. Brandi Crosby Flute Choir Director Brandi earned a Bachelor of Arts, Music Performance degree from the University of Georgia and a Master of Music Performance from the University of California, Los Angeles. At UGA, Brandi participated in the UGA Philip Glass Ensemble, UGA Contemporary Ensemble, UGA Symphony Orchestra, UGA Wind Symphony, and various UGA new music ensembles. Brandi has won the Phi Kappa Si Scholarship Competition, the Mimi Alpert Feldman Competition, and the UGA Concerto Competition. At UCLA, Brandi enjoyed playing flute for student and local films, Gluck Chamber Music Outreach programs, the UCLA Symphony Orchestra, UCLA New Music Ensembles, Musical Diaspora, Brentwood Presbyterian Church as a soloist and ensemble member. She also studied in France for the Courcheval Music Festival, and studied music abroad in Alessandria, Italy. She has participated in master classes with Julius Baker, Philip Dunigan, Heather Clarke, and Paul Edmond-Davies, and has studied privately with various teachers including: David Shostac, Anne Zentner, Monica Daniel-Barker, Christina Smith, Carl Hall, Carol Wincenc, Michael Hasel, Lisa Bartholow, Sheridon Stokes at UCLA, Angela Jones-Reus at the University of Georgia, and as a high school graduate of Interlochen Arts Academy in 2001, Tyra Gilb. Brandi currently plays with the Mercer Flute Choir under the direction of Macon Symphony Orchestra’s piccoloist, Kelly Via, teaches flute lessons, and repairs flute and piccolos. Ann Letsinger String Orchestra Director String Quartet Director/String Sectional Coach Ann Letsinger received her undergraduate degree in music from Mercer University in 2007 and a Master of Music in Education degree from the University of Tennessee in 2010. Before moving to Macon, she was a member of the Oak Ridge Symphony and a sub in the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra. Ms. Letsinger currently teaches orchestra at Miller Magnet Middle School. Jonathan Baker Brass Quintet Director/Brass Sectional Coach Mr. Baker holds a Master of Music degree from the New England Conservatory of Music, Boston, MA, and a Bachelor of Music degree from the Chicago College of the Performing Arts, Chicago, IL. He has studied with the leading trombonists in the country including Douglas Yeo, of the Boston Symphony Orchestra; Joseph Alessi, of the New York Philharmonic; and Charles Vernon of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Mr. Baker has been an active trombone teacher and freelance player in the Atlanta, Hartford, New York and Boston metropolitan areas and has held teaching positions with several area secondary schools as a brass coach and trombone instructor, including two years at the University of Connecticut as bass trombone professor. Mr. Baker is currently the Director of Bands at the First Presbyterian Day School in Macon, GA where he leads six bands. Mr. Baker is currently bass trombonist with the Ocmulgee Symphony Orchestra in Hawkinsville, a member of the Mabel White Baptist Church Orchestra, a substitute player with the Macon Symphony Orchestra and a substitute player with the Georgia Big Band jazz ensemble. Mr. Baker can also be heard playing shows regularly at Macon Little Theatre. He resides in Macon with his wife Juciene, from Brazil. They have two beautiful daughters, Isabella and Sophia. Maggie Hollis Woodwind Quintet Director/Woodwind Sectional Coach Maggie Hollis holds a Bachelors of Music in Music Education from Furman University in Greenville, SC, and Masters of Music in Music Education from the University of South Carolina. She has been an active camp instructor and private lessons teacher since 2002, working with various middle and high schools in the upstate of South Carolina and the middle Georgia area. Mrs. Hollis spent the previous 6 years as Band Director at Crawford County Middle School and Crawford County High School in Roberta. Currently, she has a sizeable private studio of woodwind students, working with both public and private schools in the area, and she also participates in the worship team at Ingleside Baptist Church as a flutist in the orchestra. She resides in Roberta with her husband, Jason, an IT support specialist at Georgia Farm Bureau in Macon. Emily Odum Percussion Quartet Director/Percussion Sectional Coach Emily Odum is a senior at Mercer University, earning her Bachelor of Music degree in Percussion Performance. She currently studies percussion with Dr. Marcus Reddick, and she also studies piano with Dr. Ian Altman. Emily is the president of the Delta Tau chapter of Mu Phi Epsilon, the professional music fraternity. She plans to attend graduate school in the fall. |
