Elisa received her degree from Sibelius Academy, Finland in violin solo performance and pedagogy. She has years of teaching experience in Finland, California, and Oregon, including Palo Alto School District in California, Marylhurst University, and Lewis & Clark College in Oregon. She has played the violin at Stanford Symphony Orchestra, Stanford Chamber Orchestra, Marylhurst Symphony, Lewis and Clark College Symphony, and North Oregon Coast Symphony, and is currently a serving member at Willamette Falls Symphony. She has held concertmaster positions in Hyvinkää Orchestra, Finland, and in North Coast Symphony, Oregon, and has acted as assisting concertmaster in Willamette Falls Symphony. In addition to violin, Elisa has long-time experience teaching also piano, cello, guitar, ukulele, and Finnish Psalter (Kantele) and she instructs student chamber music groups through Oregon City Music Academy.

Washington native Christine Sears began her cello studies at age 11 in her elementary orchestra program. After winning the Masterworks Youth Music Competition in 2013, Christine participated as a finalist in the Beatrice Herrman and Cour d’Alene Young Artists competitions. In 2020 she was selected as a winner of the Strings Division of the University of Oregon Concerto Competition. She has had the pleasure of being admitted to summer festivals including the Chautauqua Institution, Icicle Creek Chamber Music Institute, and Center Stage Strings among others. An avid orchestral musician, Christine served as Assistant Principal with the Longmont Symphony in Longmont, CO in 2018-2019. She regularly performs with the Rogue Valley Symphony, Eugene Symphony, Orchestra Next, and Oregon Mozart Players. She holds bachelor’s degrees in cello performance and music education from the University of Colorado at Boulder where she studied with David Requiro. She recently graduated with a master’s in cello performance from the University of Oregon, studying with Steve Pologe. Currently, Christine resides in Memphis, TN, and is involved with her doctorate studies in cello performance. 

Sami R. Shkolnik is a motivated music professional with experience in piano performance and teaching. She teaches children and adults of all ages. She holds a Bachelor’s of Arts degree in music specializing in piano performance from Mills College. She has also won the Flora Boyd piano performance prize and has participated in the Mu Phi Epsilon competition. Sami has studied with noted teachers such as Belle Bulwinkle, Svetlana Elenkova, Natallia Lobenberg, and Ruzanna Farmazyan. Her philosophy of teaching is to provide great music education in a fun yet studious way. 

In addition to piano, Sami is passionate about animals and animal welfare. She volunteers for PMR horse rescue in her spare time and studies dressage horseback riding.

Since the age of six music has been a fundamental part of Bowe’s life. He started taking music lessons early on and began playing with different bands and jazz ensembles while in middle school. In high school, he received the Jazz MVP award and in 2019 was a semi-finalist in the Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival. He also got to experience playing in metal and punk settings at the Music’s Edge Camp in Eugene. He graduated from Willamette High School in 2019 with a career pathway endorsement in the performing arts. He is currently studying at Lane Community College.

M.Mus.Jazz Performance
Portland State University
Projected graduation Spring 2024

B.Mus.Education
Central Washington University
Graduated December 2018

Jazz Education Network (JEN) Chapter President
Central Washington University
September 2016 - June 2017