Music at Monta Vista

Audition results for Chamber Orchestra and wind ensemble are now POSTED!

MVHS Instrumental Audition Information

Monthly Music Boosters Meetings

All parents of Band, Choir, Orchestra, and Color Guard students are encouraged to attend. Learn more about how you can support your child's success in music. Our meetings are typically held the 2nd Tuesday of the month, in the Band Room (F-114), at 6pm. See the Music Department Calendar for this month's details.

MV Instrumental Music Handbook

Music Department Handbook

Meet the Directors!

John Gilchrist - Instrumental Music Director 

John Gilchrist currently serves as the instrumental music director at Monta Vista High School. Born and raised in Pacifica, CA, John is a native of the San Francisco Bay Area. Mr. Gilchrist earned his BM in Music Education from San Jose State University, where he also studied percussion under the mentorship of Galen Lemmon. During his time at SJSU, Mr. Gilchrist served as principal percussionist of the SJSU Wind Ensemble and won several awards for his playing. Notably among them: First prize in the California PAS Marimba Competition, and First Place in the 2016 SJSU Concerto Competition. Following his undergraduate studies, Mr. Gilchrist would later go on to complete his student teaching at Homestead and Lynbrook High Schools. Before settling at Monta Vista, John spent one year teaching band and percussion at Milpitas High School. In his time at Monta Vista High School John has taken his groups to perform at the Royal Conservatory of Music in London England, the Royal Scottish Symphony Hall in Glasgow, and the internationally acclaimed Midwest Clinic in Chicago, Illinois. In 2023, John was presented the Gilbert T. Freidas Award by the California Music Educators' Association (CMEA) Bay Section for outstanding music educator with under 7 years of teaching experience. In 2024, he was awarded the Richard L. Levin Orchestra Educator Award by the California Music Educators Association. In addition to teaching, John stays an active performer, playing regularly with San Jose Wind Symphony and as a regular performer with numerous professional ensembles throughout the Bay Area.

john_gilchrist@fuhsd.orgRoom F-1141 (408) 366-7635

Amy Young - Vocal Music Director 

Amy Young is a native of Florida, where she attended high school as a 4 year All-State Musician. She then attended Florida State University, earning a Bachelor of Choral Music Education. She taught elementary and middle school music before teaching at a high school for 5 years, then moved to the Bay Area to get her Master's in Choral Conducting from SJSU with Dr. Jeffrey Benson. Ms. Young has been singing for about 25 years, involved in a choir of some kind every year since the age of 6, including collegiate and professional ensembles. She has performed in over 20 stage musicals, including several at equity houses, and holds several awards for performance based scholarships and competitions over the years, including NATS (The National Association for Teachers of Singing) and the SJSU Music Study Club.

Ms. Young had the opportunity to sing backup for Josh Groban on his Bridges tour last year, and performed with Game of Thrones on tour at Shoreline Amphitheatre as well as the SAP Center. 


amy_young@fuhsd.orgRoom F-1111 (408) 366-8825