Community Outreach

Julie Rogers grew up in Houston, Texas, where she began playing violin in grade 1. After graduating from the High School for Performing and Visual Arts, she studied with Sally O’Reilly at Louisiana State University and the U of Minnesota. She then moved to Los Angeles to begin a career in the recording industry and the southern California orchestra scene. She has played on hundreds of soundtracks for motion pictures, television, commercials, and albums. She is the featured violin soloist in the movies Brooklyn, Into the Wild, and Perks of Being a Wallflower.

During the covid lockdown, she began to learn to sew via YouTube, as a way to pass the time. This unexpectedly grew into something bigger, and she now has had dresses on red carpets, notably the 2021 Venice Film Festival where Shirin Neshat was on multiple best-dressed lists wearing one of Julie’s gowns. She also has a “Concert Black” line made specifically for orchestral musicians, which is gaining momentum in the music world.

Amy Hershberger served as Concertmaster of the Santa Barbara Chamber Orchestra for sixteen years under Music Director Heiichiro Ohyama until its dissolution in 2017.

She is currently the Associate Concertmaster of the Pasadena Symphony, plays regularly with the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, and is a busy recording musician, having played on many hundreds of motion picture, television, and record soundtracks.

At USC, she studied with Robert Lipsett under a full scholarship and became his assistant at the Colburn School. Her students went on to study at the Colburn, Juilliard, and Curtis Schools of Music, among others.

Italian-born pianist RODOLFO LEONE is the First Prize Winner of the 15th International Beethoven Piano Competition Vienna (2017). Described as “a true sound philosopher” (Oberösterreichische Nachrichten), Leone released his debut album on Gramola Records Vienna in May 2018. His playing has been described as having “impeccable style” and “absolute technical control” (Il Nuovo Amico). A 2018-19 Performance Today Young Artist in Residence, Leone’s current season includes debuts with the San Diego and Pasadena symphonies; a performance of Beethoven’s Triple Concerto in Walt Disney Concert Hall with the Colburn Orchestra; an Austrian recital tour, culminating in a performance at the Musikverein’s Brahms-Saal; and recital and chamber music performances in Los Angeles and Florida. Leone holds a Master of Music degree from the Colburn Conservatory of Music in Los Angeles, where he continues to study with Fabio Bidini as an Artist Diploma candidate.

Flutist Susan Greenberg enjoys a versatile career as soloist, chamber musician, symphony player, and recording artist. The Los Angeles Times has described her playing as “brilliant,” “elegant” and “supple.” She was a member of the LA Chamber Orchestra for 36 years, where she was a frequent soloist on both flute and piccolo and even alto flute. She has also appeared as guest soloist with the San Francisco and Oakland Symphonies, the Santa Monica Symphony, the Napa Valley Symphony, and at the Hollywood Bowl. She has performed with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, L.A. Opera, New York City Opera, American Ballet Theater, Joffrey Ballet, as well as at the Casals, Ojai and Martha's Vineyard Music Festivals. Ms. Greenberg was the principal flutist for the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra's tour of Japan, and has received the "Most Valuable Player" award on the flute from the National Association of Recording Arts and Sciences. She received both her B.A., cum laude, and her M.A. from UCLA, and is presently the flute professor at Pepperdine University. Ms. Greenberg is principal flute with the Santa Monica Symphony, the Vicente Chamber Orchestra and the Westside Chamber Orchestra. She is also the Artistic Director of Chamber Music Palisades, now celebrating its 28th season. Ms. Greenberg has recorded for over 500 motion pictures and many television shows.

Clarinetist Michele Zukovsky recently retired from the Los Angeles Philharmonic, an orchestra she joined at the age of eighteen. Zukovsky has appeared many times as a soloist with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, at the Hollywood Bowl, the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion and the Walt Disney Concert Hall. She has been a guest soloist with many orchestras around the world, including the world premier performance of John Williams’ Clarinet Concerto with the Boston Pops. Zukovsky also performed regularly as a member of the L.A. Philharmonic’s Chamber Music concerts and as a member of the orchestra’s New Music Group. She is active as a teacher of master classes throughout the world and she is currently on the faculty of the USC Thornton School of Music and the Pasadena Conservatory of Music. She studied with her father, Kalman Bloch, himself a former principal with the L.A. Philharmonic. Zukovsky has collaborated with numerous chamber ensembles, most notably the Angeles and St. Petersburg String Quartets and has appeared frequently at the 92nd Street Y’s “Concerts at the Y”, as well as at Ravinia, Lincoln Center, Mostly Mozart, Lockenhaus, Schlieswig-Holstein, and Marlboro festivals. She has recorded for London/Decca, Avant, Nonesuch, Phillips, and Summit Records. Her recent Summit recordings include works by Martinu and transcriptions of pieces by Simeon Bellison, the former clarinetist of the New York Philharmonic.

Pierre Long-Tao Tang, DMA is a pianist-conductor from Hong Kong. Tang currently serves as the Director of Music at the Pacific Palisades Presbyterian Church and staff collaborative pianist at UCLA. Tang completed a doctoral cognate in collaborative piano at University of Illinois. As a vocal coach and collaborative pianist, he has worked with such renowned musicians as Roberto Abbondanza, Alois Glaßner, Jacques Mauger and Eric Aubier etc. Recent performances as keyboardist include St. Michael’s Church (Vienna), Lincoln Center (New York), and Chicago Symphony Center. As a conductor, Tang served as director of instrumental ensembles and conducted annual musical theater and opera productions at Pepperdine University. Tang is a sought-after guest conductor, adjudicator and clinician for instrumental and vocal ensembles internationally. In his recent guest appearance with Diamond Bar High School from California, Tang conducted Berlioz's Symphonie Fantastique at the newly renovated David Geffen Hall at Lincoln Center, New York City with a positive critical review. As a passionate contributor to the field of orchestra directorship, he serves as advisory board member of the California Orchestra Directors Association. Tang also regularly leads conducting workshops and directorship seminars in Hong Kong. Tang's scholarly research on conducting studies has brought him to present at international conferences including the 2019 Oxford Conducting Institute International Conference (Sydney) and the 2022 World Association for Symphonic Bands and Ensembles Conference (Prague).

Born in Odesa, Ukraine, Irina Voloshina had her first violin lesson at 6 years old. She studied at the Odessa Music School, the famous institution founded by Professor Stolyarsky early in the 20th century that brought to the world some of the greatest violin masters, such as Nathan Milstein and David Oistrakh. From there, Irina advanced into Odessa State Conservatory.

Graduated from the Conservatory with a master’s degree in Violin Performance and Pedagogy, Voloshina played in the Odessa Philharmonic for nine years.

Since moving to Southern California in 1993, Irina has appeared in recitals, chamber music groups, and orchestras such as Pasadena Symphony and Pops, Los Angeles Opera, California Philharmonic, and Hollywood Bowl orchestras.

She has performed in over 600 film scores including those by John Williams, Jerry Goldsmith, James Horner, and Hans Zimmer, to name a few. She performed for “American Idol” and the “MTV Music Awards” and was a member of the Academy Awards orchestra. LA Times has described her playing as “a showcase of brilliant virtuosity.”

During the pandemic, Irina founded the “Melodia Mariposa” music series performing on the driveway of her Altadena home, presenting over 65 free public concerts. On July 24, 2021, she was named Volunteer of the Year and received the Congressional Leadership Awards: Hometown Heroes of the Pandemic in recognition of her outstanding contributions to the People of the 27th Congressional District from Congresswoman Judy Chu.

On December 21, 2022, Kathryn Barger, Supervisor of the 5th District of the County of Los Angeles awarded Irina and Melodia Mariposa with a commendation certificate in recognition of their dedicated service to the affairs of the community and for the civic pride demonstrated by numerous contributions for the benefit of all the residents of Los Angeles County.

A native of Baltimore, Maryland, cellist Tina Soule studied piano and cello at Peabody Prep and began her professional career at age 16 with the Bach Society of Baltimore.

She has worked on hundreds of film scores with composers such as John Williams, Danny Elfman, and Hans Zimmer, and has played on the Grammy’s, the Oscars, and the Tonight Show.

After receiving a Bachelor of Music degree from Indiana University and a Master of Musical Arts degree from Yale, she moved to Los Angeles where she has since enjoyed an active life as a studio recording musician and as a freelance orchestral and chamber music player.

For 30 years, Ms. Soule served as principal cello with the San Luis Obispo Mozart Festival (later called Mozaic), where she performed as soloist under conductor Christopher Hogwood and collaborated with some of the world’s most esteemed chamber musicians.
She has also performed with the Santa Fe Opera, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, and as principal cello with the Boston Ballet, the Orange County Chamber Orchestra, and the Santa Monica Symphony.

She currently resides in Altadena, where she enjoys playing local concerts with her beloved colleagues of Melodia Mariposa.

Amy Hershberger served as Concertmaster of the Santa Barbara Chamber Orchestra for sixteen years under Music Director Heiichiro Ohyama until its dissolution in 2017.

She is currently the Associate Concertmaster of the Pasadena Symphony, plays regularly with the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, and is a busy recording musician, having played on many hundreds of motion picture, television, and record soundtracks.

At USC, she studied with Robert Lipsett under a full scholarship and became his assistant at the Colburn School. Her students went on to study at the Colburn, Juilliard, and Curtis Schools of Music, among others.