Jeannette Isenberg
Violin and Viola Workshops
Ms. Isenberg holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in music and divides her time between teaching and performance. She has diverse musical talents: she plays violin with the Santa Rosa Symphony, classical chamber ensembles, jazz combos and country swing bands.
Corinne Antipa
Rhythm and Movement Workshops
Corinne Antipa, cellist, performer, teacher was trained by Bonnie Hampton and Colin Hampton and has a lifetime of experience with solo, orchestral work, but most happily with chamber music. Ms. Antipa has been a member of the Santa Rosa Symphony since high school excluding years of being away as a dancer. She has a BA and MA in Dance from Mills College, and until recently taught modern dance, dance history, choreography and Feldenkrais Awareness Through Movement at Santa Rosa Junior college.
Corinne also spent 40 years riding horses and in younger years and if good sense had not prevailed, would have dropped everything to be a cowgirl!
Elizabeth Vandervennet
Cello Workshops and Music Fundamentals
Elizabeth Vandervennet received a Bachelor of Musical Arts from the University of Michigan where she studied applied cello with Jeff Solow, Nina DeVeritch, and Jerome Jelinek. Upon graduation she received high honors in Music Theory as well as a Minor in Arts Administration. Her Master of Music in Cello Performance from Carnegie Mellon University was obtained under the guidance of Anne Martindale-Williams, the Principal Cellist of the Pittsburgh Symphony.
Elizabeth currently lives in Oakland, California as an active freelance musician, teaching artist, and advocate for arts education. She is a member of the Oakland Symphony, Santa Rosa Symphony, Marin Symphony, and Principal Cellist in Vallejo Symphony. Elizabeth’s chamber music posts include cellist of Squid Inc. - string quartet, and Rosin Coven - theatrical Pagan Lounge ensemble. In additional to teaching throughout the community of Oakland, she holds the post of Lead Teaching Artist for the Oakland Symphony’s MUSE (MUSic for Excellence.) program. In 2016, Elizabeth was nationally recognized with the Ford Musician Award for Excellence in Community Service by the League of American Symphony Orchestras and the Ford Foundation.
Ivy Zenobi
Chamber Ensembles & Violin Workshops
Violinist and violist, Ivy Zenobi, is embracing a diverse career as a symphonic, chamber musician, rock musician, and private instructor. In recent years, concert appearances include the Santa Rosa Symphony, San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus, Chora Nova, The National Geographic Symphony, and the Philharmonic Kitchen. Outside of the classical scene, Ivy was a member of the rock band Naked Fiction, performed at the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival, recorded at Skywalker Ranch and The Bachelor (Season 22 Episode 3). Ivy Zenobi received her B.M. from the University of Colorado at Boulder and her Masters from the University of Toronto, Canada. Ivy became Suzuki Certified under the tutelage of Dr. William Starr and was chosen to attend the Starling-Delay Violin Symposium held at The Juilliard School. Ivy has a competitive studio of over thirty students, many which go on to study at programs such as the San Francisco Conservatory of Music Pre-College and Interlochen Center for the Arts Summer and Pre-College programs. Outside of music, Ivy enjoys spending time with her French bulldog, Lola, hiking, traveling, and cooking (and eating, of course).
Karen Zimmerman
Bass Workshop, Music Fundamentals
Ms. Zimmerman holds both Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in music from the Juilliard School. While in New York, Karen played with the New York Philharmonic and the Metropolitan Opera along with appearing with various chamber ensembles throughout the city. She now plays with the Santa Rosa Symphony along with other local orchestras, has an active teaching schedule and is the Librarian for the Santa Rosa Symphony.
Amanda McFadden
Composition & Conducting
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Amanda McFadden has been a music educator for the last 10 years and currently serves as the Music Director at Sonoma Academy in Santa Rosa, California. At Sonoma Academy, she teaches a variety of music courses including Advanced Musicianship, Choir, Chamber Ensemble, and Foundation Arts Music. She also collaborates with Jenifer Coté on Musical Theater productions through vocal and musical directorship. Amanda completed her Master of Music in Choral Conducting at the University of Delaware, where she also conducted the Neuro Notes, a choir for people with Parkinson’s disease, and was the Assistant Director of the Rainbow Chorale of Delaware. Prior to graduate school, Amanda taught middle and high school Instrumental Music at Woodside Priory School in Portola Valley, CA. Amanda’s non-musical projects reflect community, an ideal that is at the core of everything she does. From coaching volleyball to leading service-learning trips, Amanda aims to instill a strong sense of community in every person with which she interacts.
Robert Bowman
Jazz Ensemble, Jazz Theory & Improvisation
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Robert Bowman has played bass professionally for over ten years. After graduating from California State University Northridge with a Bachelors of Music in Jazz Studies, Robert moved to Sonoma County to pursue performance as well as begin his career as an educator. Robert Bowman is involved with several working bands all around Sonoma and Napa counties. He is currently on faculty at St. Vincent de Paul High School where he serves as Art Dept. Chair as well as Band Director, Simply Strings and Summer Music Academy. While his degree is in Jazz, Robert is proficient in a variety of musical genres including classical, pop/ rock, bluegrass, musical theatre and many others. Robert has played all over the country and the world, recording and performing with several artists in a wide variety of musical genres.
Chris Pimental
Guitar Workshops
Chris has been a professional musician in and around Napa Valley and the Bay area for over 30 years. He has taught privately and as an adjunct instructor at Santa Rosa Junior College. Since 2016, he has taught band, choir, strings, and has collaborated in developing the Music Exploration classes offered through NVUSD since 2018. Chris holds a BA in Jazz Studies from Sonoma State University where he graduated Magna Cum Laude with distinction in his field. Chris Still enjoys playing music in the Bay Area and Napa Valley, as well as skiing, mountain biking, and hiking.
Chris Newton
Guitar Workshops
Chris Newton is a Multi-Instrumentalist, Singer-Songwriter, Composer, Arranger, Producer, Music Teacher and has been playing music in the Bay Area for over fifteen years.
Chris was first self-taught on the guitar at the age of 13 but in college, he began studying music more seriously, learning Jazz with instructors such as Tuck Andress, Randy Vincent, Brian Pardo, Gary Digman and Bennett Friedman. He received his AA in Jazz Studies from Santa Rosa Junior College and his Bachelor's of Music from Sonoma State University.
He performs both solo or with his band Mood Jungle blending elements of jazz, rock, funk and neo-soul influences.
Darina Drapkin
Rhythm; Movement
Darina Drapkin is a life-long singer and musician. Having studied classical piano, guitar, flute, percussion, ukulele and, most recently, violin, she feels at home with a wide variety of styles and genres of music, both as a teacher and performer. Darina performs with the Sonoma County women’s Balkan ensemble “Gradina”, who put out an album in March, 2020. Darina has studied classical piano for 17 years and Balkan voice with Lily Storm of Kitka for over a decade. She is well versed in the Kodaly method of music education, having taught music at Sunridge and is a faculty member of Simply Strings. She is currently recording an album of diverse ukulele based songs and is including her flute-playing 10 year old son on it.
Alex Volonts
Violin/Viola Workshops
Alex Volonts is a musician and educator in Sonoma County. He has been a member of the Santa Rosa Symphony since 2007 and is also contracted with the Monterey Symphony Orchestra. Mr. Volonts studied viola performance at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music as well as the Juilliard School's pre-college division. He began his musical studies at 5 years old as a violin student at the North Shore Suzuki Institute of Long Island, New York. Mr. Volonts has performed as a soloist, chamber musician and orchestral player throughout the Bay Area. He resides in Santa Rosa with his wife and fellow accomplished musician (Tingting), and their 2 young children (Nathan and Tiana). Mr. Volonts is currently the specialty strings teacher at SunRidge Elementary in Sebastopol.