Meet Our Staff

Felix is pursuing a B.A. in Music Education at California State University, Northridge, where he studies with renowned flutist Larry Kaplan. A 2022 honors graduate of Santa Monica High School, he received the Louis Armstrong Award from the school's Jazz Program. Felix has also studied at the Colburn School with Lee Secard, participated in Colburn's Jazz workshops, and studied saxophone and chamber music with Harvey Pittel. He is a longtime student of legendary flutist, saxophonist, and composer Katisse Buckingham. When not studying, teaching, or performing in LA, Felix enjoys reading, swimming and spending time with his family and dog, Johnny, in Santa Monica.

Chris Parise is a professional drummer and percussionist born and raised in Los Angeles California. He has performed throughout the world with a variety of artists including Grammy-Winning Vocalist Dionne Warwick and South Florida Rapper Denzel Curry. After attending Santa Monica High School, Chris went on to receive his B.A. in Percussion Performance at UCLA in 2010. When he is not performing and recording, Chris teaches out of his studio in West LA where he has helped hundreds of students, young and old, archive their musical goals. He currently is the percussion coach at SMMUSD Dream Winds program and frequently teaches drum circle classes throughout LAUSD.

Bassoonist Matthew Rasmussen fancies himself a performer, composer, educator, activist, and musician extraordinaire.

Ensembles Matthew has performed with professionally include the Sacramento Philharmonic, Bakersfield Symphony, American Youth Symphony, and Solano Symphony, where he performed the Weber Bassoon Concerto. Currently the principal bassoonist of the Santa Monica Symphony and a fellow with the Civic Orchestra of Los Angeles, Matthew recently completed his tenure as the principal bassoon fellow of the California Young Artists Symphony, culminating in a performance of Igor Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring.

Matthew is currently the bassoonist for Fivemind Reeds, a professional Los Angeles-based reed quintet striving towards presenting accessible and equitable classical music performances. A strong advocate for music education, new music, and social justice in the arts, Matthew has commissioned new bassoon works and works for Fivemind by professional composers, and actively includes pieces by women, BIPOC, and LGBTQIA+ composers in his repertoire. Matthew has a private teaching studio in West Los Angeles, serves as the bassoon coach at Lincoln Middle School in Santa Monica, and is on the faculty at Moorpark College. He hopes to continue to expand the bassoon’s repertoire, and teach students not to fear the bassoon, but instead love and appreciate it as he does.

Matthew holds bachelor’s degrees in music and linguistics from UC Davis, studying bassoon with David Granger and composition with Laurie San Martin, and a Master of Music degree in bassoon from UCLA’s Herb Alpert School of Music, studying with John Steinmetz. At UCLA, Matthew performed Heitor Villa-Lobos’ Ciranda das sete notas with the UCLA Philharmonia as a winner of the school’s concerto competition.



Dr. Ellen M. Shinogle is an international award-winning trumpet performer and educator who has become distinguished in her field. She regularly performs as a soloist, chamber musician, jazz musician, and in operas, orchestras, studios, and musical theater productions both internationally and domestically. Dr. Shinogle was recently a guest artist with Seraph Brass and Juneau Symphony’s Holiday Brass, and has performed with MUSE/IQUE, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Dream Orchestra, Southern California Brass Consortium, LALA Brass, Brighton Symphony Orchestra, New Valley Symphony Orchestra, Downey Symphony Orchestra, Rio Hondo Symphony, Antelope Valley Symphony Orchestra, and Wild Up. She can be heard regularly performing as the principal trumpet in the Santa Monica Symphony and the Westside Chamber Orchestra, in multiple productions at the Disneyland Resort, SeaWorld, and in films and television shows, such as Jimmy Kimmel Live!

As an educator, Dr. Shinogle coaches trumpet and French horn at John Adams Middle School, Lincoln Middle School, and St. Matthew's Parish School. She is the brass coach for the Palisades Charter High School Marching Band and also teaches at Elemental Music. Additionally, she maintains a large private trumpet studio where her students have won auditions to perform in the California All-State Ensembles, SCSBOA Honor Ensembles, and have been nominated to perform in the LASMTA Honor Band. 

Dr. Shinogle is a graduate of the Eastman School of Music, where she received Bachelor of Music degrees in Trumpet Performance and Music Education and won the Performer’s Certificate of Distinction. She earned her Master of Music degree at the University of Southern California, Thornton School of Music. Dr. Shinogle was a Teaching Associate of both the Brass Department and Trumpet Studio while she pursued her Doctor of Musical Arts degree at the University of California, Los Angeles, Herb Alpert School of Music.

International clarinetist Amanda Walker studied with British legend, Dame Thea King at the Royal College of Music, famed clarinetist Gary Gray at UCLA and the revered Yehuda Gilad at USC. Amanda has freelanced with many orchestras in Los Angeles, including the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Los Angeles Music Center Opera Orchestra and has played for many shows as part of the Pantages Theatre Orchestra.

Critically acclaimed, Amanda’s playing has been celebrated for its “virtuoso technique which provided moments of unforgettable illumination”.

An accomplished Chamber Musician and member of Viklarbo and the European Trio, Amanda has participated on various series. Notable highlights include Camerata Pacifica, the Getty Summer Series and performances within the opulent ambience of Greystone Mansion.
Amanda has recorded for over forty films such as, Pirates of the Caribbean, Castaway, Peter Pan, Team America, Gattaca, South Park, City Slickers II, Atlantis,What Women Want, and America’s Sweethearts to name a few.

Appearing on the Tonight Show with the four Tenors, “Il Divo” was a career highlight. Additional credits include the series, “Legends of Chima” and Visa commercials enriched with the iconic voice of Morgan Freeman.
As an esteemed educator, Amanda’s expertise is in high demand. Currently on the faculty of UC Irvine entering her twenty-fifth year, her influence has guided former students to excel at esteemed institutions like Cincinnati, Minnesota and New England Conservatories, as well as prestigious universities including Michigan, Northwestern, Princeton, Stanford and her alma mater, UCLA. Her private studio nurtures top-tier talent, frequently earning Principal positions in honor ensembles such as CBDA and SCSBOA, a testament to her unwavering commitment to nurturing emerging talents. Her dedication is mirrored in the achievement of her students, such as the exceptional Junior, Hannah Webb, who was recently a finalist for the International Clarinet Association’s High School Solo Competition, an honor accentuated by her selection for Tanglewood’s prestigious Symphony Orchestra, from a pool of 75 plus applicants.

Sought after as a coach, Amanda spends the summer at the Idyllwild School for the Arts and most recently, the Montecito International Music Festival. During the year she coaches for Elemental Music, Junior Chamber Music and Los Angeles Youth Orchestra. She resides in Santa Monica with her husband Randy and is very proud to be Mum to their son, London, who is a French Horn player. Through her unwavering commitment to the world of music, her life resonates with passion and artistry.