We’ve made it through (what we sure hope was) the worst part of the past year, and we’re planning on going forward with a brand-new season of music-making with our students this fall. There are some fun new developments, and we’ll keep you in the loop as we finish making our plans. But for now, we’re thinking ahead to orchestra auditions for our two main orchestras at LLA—Concert Orchestra and Sinfonia.
Sinfonia Orchestra, directed by Mrs. Stephanie Popa, will be the new Symphony Orchestra, our highest-level ensemble, and it is open to the community. This ensemble will be strictly for strings, and will feature works from Baroque, Classical, Romantic, and modern eras for string ensemble and string quartet literature. We have had to put off our scheduled international tour for two years, unfortunately, for those “2020” reasons we all know about, but we’re hoping and planning toward being able to travel next summer again!
If you would like to audition for Sinfonia or Concert Orchestra, please contact Mrs. Popa at llaorchestras@gmail.com. Auditions will be held August 2-3, 2021.
Along with the rest of the world, we are learning to adapt to our temporary new environment this spring. Although we are sad that we can’t collaborate with each other like we’re used to, our stay-at-home time is broadening our experience of what we can create individually, yet together.
Liz Arbus, (violin) is an SAA Sanctioned Teacher Trainer. Liz received her Bachelors Degree in Music Education at Illinois State University and her Masters Degree in Violin Performance at Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville where she studied with the renowned Suzuki Teacher Trainer, John Kendall. She became director of Suzuki Talent Education in Pasadena (STEP) in 2002. She enjoys teaching at Suzuki Institutes all over the United States. Liz studies Baroque performance practice along with continuing musical education at independent and Suzuki workshops . Ms. Arbus has also taught in the Joliet, Il. Public Schools (1978), Suzuki violin in Berkeley, Calif. 1980-1985 and with the Pasadena Suzuki Music Program 1985—2004. In teaching children I see the hope and joy that learning brings. In learning the violin, children do a step-by-step process of discovery which carries over into every aspect of life. The Suzuki Method aids in this growth process with consistent nurturing from both parent and teacher. Suzuki Institutes provide an enjoyable environment to motivate students, parents and teachers. Being able to produce music can create self-assurance and an inner joy. Listening to music can soothe our hearts and minds. I hope through my teaching I can create a lifelong connection to a marvelous musical tradition.
Megan Shung Smith, (violin and improvisation) graduated with a Bachelor of Music in violin performance from the Cleveland Institute of Music with honors, studying under David Updegraff, and also earned her Suzuki pedagogy certifications with Kimberly Meier-Sims. Upon graduation, she continued her studies with Paul Kantor in Houston, TX for two years. Past mentors include Richard Schwabe and Henry Gronnier at the Colburn School of Performing Arts. Megan’s honors include the 2011 Dr. Jerome D. Gross Prize in Violin from the Cleveland Institute of Music and 2008 International House of Blues Foundation Ambassador Scholarship.
Kathleen Spring, (violin) a 1974 graduate of Walla Walla University, has also studied at the Universität für Musik und Darstellende Kunst, Vienna with Eduard Melkus and with Alan Bodman at Washington State University. She received a M.Mus. in Violin performance with James Maurer from the Lamont School of Music at the University of Denver.
A native of North Carolina, Elizabeth Wright received her B.A. in Cello Performance from the University of California, Los Angeles in 1996, where she studied with Ronald Leonard.
Nancy Yamagata (cello) began her cello studies in Los Angeles with Eleonore Schoenfeld. She received a Bachelor Degree in Music Education from the University of Southern California where she was awarded Outstanding Graduate. In 1986 she was awarded the SHAR Distinguished Young Teacher Award by the Suzuki Association of the Americas. Ms. Yamagata has concertized extensively as a chamber musician with the Young International Trio, winning prizes in the 1974 and 1975 Coleman Chamber Music Competition. She is a founding member of the Marina Ensemble and is the cello coordinator of the Suzuki String Program at the Colburn Community School of Performing Arts. Ms. Yamagata was formerly the director of the Chamber Music Workshop at the Los Angeles Suzuki Institute and has served on the
Alvaro G. Diaz Rodriguez (conductor) studied music at the Centro de Estudios Musicales de la Universidad Autónoma de Baja California (UABC) and the Escuela Nacional de Música de la Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), having as main teachers Boris Glouzman, Susan Barret, Carmen Thierry and Julio Estrada. He also holds a BA in History from the Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, a specialty in Cultural Policy and Management from the UAM-Iztapalapa, a Masters in Teaching and is currently a PhD candidate in Music with a specialty in Historical Musicology from the Universidad Católica Argentina.
LLA Concert String Orchestra (Stephanie Kime Popa, director) is our intermediate-level string orchestra (violin, viola, cello, bass), designed to be an introduction to orchestral
Jared Ballance will be teaching cello masterclasses, as well as Dalcroze classes for all instruments. Dalcroze is a method of teaching concepts of rhythm, structure, and musical expression through movement, solfège, and improvisation. Dr. Ballance comes to us from Kent, Washington, where he teaches cello along with his wife, Ruth Marie, who will also be joining our violin faculty. Dr. Ballance holds performance and education degrees from Cleveland Institute of Music and the Eastman School of Music and the Dalcroze certificate from Juilliard. He has taught cello at ENCORE School for Strings, the University of Rochester, Samford University, Oakwood University, and given master classes at Andrews University, the Eastman School of Music, and at cello workshops.
She has previously been on faculty at Samford University, where she was a member of the Samford University Quartet; University of Alabama—Birmingham; STEP Birmingham; Hochstein School of Music and Dance in Rochester, NY; Cleveland Institute of Music and Broadway School of Music and the Arts in Ohio; Credo Chamber Music at Oberlin College; and Austin Chamber Music Center Summer Workshop. Ruth Marie studied violin with Leonard Posner, Linda Cerone, David Russell, and Paul Kantor among others, and received the Cleveland Institute of Music Jerome Gross Prize in Violin in 2001.
Charles Krigbaum, violin/viola teacher, is a Suzuki Talent Education specialist and is the founder and Director of the North Texas School of Talent Education, a Suzuki violin and viola program located in Plano, Texas. Mr. Krigbaum studied at the Schwob School of Music, University of Texas at Arlington, and Indiana University, where he studied String Pedagogy with Mimi Zweig. In 2014, Charles became a registered Teacher Trainer with the Suzuki Association of the Americas. He has taught at workshops and Institutes throughout the United States, Canada, England, and Germany; he is also past President of the North Texas Suzuki Association, a Chapter Affiliate of the SAA.
Losey grew up as a Suzuki student and has been an active Suzuki teacher for over twenty years. She has taken extensive teacher training in both violin and viola, continuing to be passionate about finding ways to inspire kids to learn. Ms. Losey graduated with a M.M. in Viola Performance from Arizona State University, a B.A. in Music from Washington Adventist University, and has studied privately with Donald McInnes. In addition to freelancing throughout the Los Angeles area, April is a member of the Redlands Symphony Orchestra and San Bernardino Symphony Orchestra. She is the director of the Los Angeles Suzuki Institute and Chamber Music Workshop, is a registered SAA viola teacher trainer.
Loma Linda Academy String Program 