- About Us
Principals
Joyce Lee, Assistant Concertmaster
Joyce Lee began formal music studies on piano at age four and violin at age twelve. She is an alumna and scholarship recipient of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music (SFCM), where she received both her B.M. and M.M. in Violin Performance. She is an avid chamber musician and enjoys collaborating with other musicians, along with premiering and recording contemporary composers' new works. Recently, Joyce formed a violin-cello duo, transcribing and arranging a variety of compositions in addition to performing the well-established duo repertoire.
Beginning in 2008, Joyce has been touring around the United States with Bella Sorella, www.bellasorella.net, a soprano duo-piano-violin ensemble and featured soloists with the Redwood Symphony in July 2011. Joyce has also traveled to Europe on tour with the SF Youth Orchestra, to New Orleans to play with the Louisiana Philharmonic, to Las Vegas to play as concertmaster of the summer festival orchestra and to Indianapolis to play in a workshop with William Preucil. Locally, she performs regularly with the Vallejo Symphony as associate concertmaster, and with the Marin, Symphony Silicon Valley, Santa Rosa, Stockton and Napa Symphonies. She has soloed with the Nova Vista Symphony and has served as the orchestra's concertmaster.
In addition to teaching violin, piano and viola privately, helping cellists practice and accompanying students and colleagues, Joyce coaches young musicians at Summer Music West, a chamber music program at SFCM, and leads violin classes at AP Giannini Middle School in SF. Joyce also runs her own business where she organizes chamber ensembles such as string duos, trios and quartets for special events such as weddings and art exhibitions (www.joyouslee.com)
Melanie Keller, Flute
Melanie Keller has also performed with the Santa Cruz, Monterey, and Marin Symphonies, the North Bay Opera Orchestra, the San Francisco Lyric Opera, Santa Cruz Ballet Theatre Orchestra and Broadway by the Bay. Mrs. Keller has spent recent summers performing at the Mendocino Music Festival, the Aspen Music Festival, the Texas Music Festival and the Las Vegas Music Festival, and touring the world with the American Russian Young Artists Orchestra and the Jeunesses Musicales World Orchestra. She has participated in several masterclasses across the country, including those taught by Trevor Wye, Carol Wincenc, Jeanne Baxtresser, Renee Siebert and Keith Underwood. She was a prizewinner in the 2003 Orchestral Audition Masterclass at the National Flute Association Convention in Las Vegas, the 2003 Flute Festival Mid-South Young Artist Competition, the 2005 Mid-Atlantic Flute Fair Young Artist Competition, the 2006 Madison Flute Festival Young Artist Competition and the 2007 NFA Convention Performer's Competition. She received her M.M. degree in the studio of Timothy Day at the San Francisco Conservatory and her B.M. degree in the studio of Mark Sparks at the Peabody Institute. Former teachers also include Laurie Sokoloff, Sara Nichols and Gail Cameron. Mrs. Keller also enjoys teaching flute at several schools in the Bay Area including St. Matthew's Catholic School in San Mateo and Myriad Music School. She is a former faculty member of the Golden Gate Philharmonic and has taught at the Mt. Tamalpais School in Mill Valley and St. Paul's Music School in Burlingame. Mrs. Keller is a founding member of The Avenue Winds. She currently resides in Belmont, CA with her wonderful husband, Blaise, and their fun-loving sons, Owen and Jacob.
Diane Maltester, Clarinet
Diane Maltester received her master's degree in music performance from California State University, Hayward and has been on the music faculty at Los Medanos College since 1980. She is a member of the Oakland East Bay Symphony and principal clarinetist with the Napa Valley Symphony, Vallejo Symphony, and the Fremont Philharmonic Orchestra. She is also principal chair with the Festival Opera. She performs numerous solo and chamber recitals in the San Francisco Bay Area and is a member of The Emerald Ensemble and the Muir Trio. She enjoys teaching privately and is the former Northern Woodwind Chairperson for the Music Teachers Association of California. She is presently the co-conductor of the Diablo Wind Symphony and clarinet instructor at California State University, East Bay.
Brian Anderson, Trumpet
A native of Redding, California, Brian Anderson began his musical studies and career in his hometown, attending Shasta College and performing in the funk band Ozone. After transferring to San Francisco State University he changed his emphasis from commercial to symphonic music, completing his undergraduate degree there and studying trumpet with Joseph Alessi and Donald Reinberg. He then finished his graduate degree at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music as a student of San Francisco Symphony principal trumpeter Glenn Fischthal.
In the years that followed were positions in several orchestras, including the Berkeley Symphony, the Napa Valley Symphony, the California Symphony, the Santa Rosa Symphony, the Santa Cruz Symphony, and the Sacramento Symphony. He co-founded the quintet San Francisco Brass, and later his own group, the seven-piece St. Francis Brass Ensemble. He also played several summer festivals, including the Lake Tahoe Music Festival, the Yachats Music Festival, Bear Valley Festival, and the Oregon Coast Music Festival. His musical touring has taken him to Africa, the Middle East, and Japan.
Today Brian is Principal Trumpet in the Vallejo Symphony, the Stockton Symphony, the Fresno Philharmonic, the Monterey Symphony, the Fresno Grand Opera, and the North State Symphony. He has made over twenty solo appearances with orchestras, and continues to add more in successive seasons. He lives in Pittsburg, California with his wife Stephanie, and enjoys writing articles and screenplays, along with motorcycling and travel.
Robert Hamaker, Percussion
Robert graduated from Cal State Hayward in 1983 with his B.A. in Music Performance. While at CSUH he studied with Jack Van Geem (Principal Percussion with San Francisco Symphony) and Jerry Neff of Oakland Symphony. He currently studies jazz drumming With Chuck Brown in Novato, and teaches private students at his studios in Walnut Creek, House of Woodwinds in San Ramon, and Fiat Music in Pinole. He is on the Faculty at Los Medanos College in Pittsburg where he teaches private students and directs the LMC Percussion Ensemble.
He is currently Principal Percussionist for Vallejo Symphony Orchestra, The Golden Gate Park Band, and is also Principal Percussionist, Personnel, and Stage Manager for Diablo Symphony Orchestra. He stays active playing with Pacific Sticks Percussion Ensemble and also plays with many other Symphonies, Bands, and Theater groups around the Bay Area.
Elizabeth Vandervennet, Cello
Elizabeth Vandervennet is a cellist, composer and music teacher. She received a Bachelor of Musical Arts from the University of Michigan, with high honors in Music Theory, and gained her Master of Music in Cello Performance from Carnegie Mellon University. Vandervennet is principal cellist of Vallejo Symphony, as well as a member of the Oakland East Bay Symphony, Santa Rosa Symphony, and Marin Symphony. In addition to her conventional roles, Vandervennet explores more left-field climes with the Pagan lounge ensemble Rosin Coven, Uncivilized Ladies, and Squid Inc.
Bruce Chrisp, Trombone
Bruce Chrisp has been performing trombone professionally in the San
Francisco Bay Area since 1989. He is the principal trombonist with the
Santa Rosa Symphony, Marin Symphony, Fresno Philharmonic, Napa Valley
Symphony, Oakland East Bay Symphony and Carmel Bach Festival. He is
also a member of the Opera San Jose Orchestra. Bruce is currently the
Instructor of Trombone at UC Davis and resides in Vallejo, CA.
