“The Festival is a chance to hear one of the finest orchestras anywhere, magically materializing on our shores for two blazing weeks of new, challenging music. Expect fireworks for the ears!”
—Good Times Weekly
Cabrillo Festival Orchestra
Winner of the League of American Orchestra and ASCAP’s 2008-2009 John S. Edwards Award for Strongest Commitment to New American Music, and winner of their Award for Adventurous Programming of Contemporary Music for 32 consecutive years.
Cabrillo has emerged as the western states’ leading orchestra devoted to modern symphonic repertory in the twenty-first century. The Festival’s core performance group is an ensemble of sixty-eight professional musicians who join us each year to perform award-winning contemporary orchestral repertoire. These musicians come to Santa Cruz from all over the world in order to volunteer their professional services in favor of the stimulation and challenge of the Cabrillo Festival experience and premiere programming. For 62 years, they have earned Cabrillo an uncompromised and prestigious reputation as America’s preeminent contemporary music festival. We invite you to join us in thanking each member of the orchestra for their generosity and dedication, and for the greatness of their spirit.
Below is a list of the 2025 players of the Cabrillo Festival Orchestra
Strings
Violin I
Justin Bruns, Concertmaster, Atlanta GA
Lauren Roth, Assistant Concertmaster, Atlanta GA
Sonja Bosca-Harasim, Detroit MI
Anne Chandra, Sarasota FL (Week 2)
Thomas Dougherty, San Diego CA
Adelaide Federici, Atlanta GA
Robyn Julyan, Denver CO
Rita Lee, San Francisco CA
Margeaux Maloney, San Diego CA
Sarah Shellman, Tampa FL
Chase Ward, Detroit MI
Violin II
Matt Albert, Principal, Ann Arbor MI
Emelyn Bashour, Assistant Principal, Detroit MI
Stuart Carlson, Dexter MI
Teagan Faran, Ithaca NY
Susan French, Long Island City NY
Kirsten Lee, Ann Arbor MI
Hannah O’Brien, St. Louis MO
Charmian Stewart, San Anselmo CA
Viola
Rebecca Epperson, Principal, Arlington VA
Dawson White, Assistant Principal, Houston TX
Chad Kaltinger, Capitola CA (week 2)
Richard Neff, Burien WA
Davis Perez, Chicago IL
Sebastian Stefanović, St. Petersburg FL
Nicole Swanson, Woodbury MN (week 1)
Cello
Úna O’Riordan, Principal, Detroit MI
David Gerstein, Assistant Principal, Little Rock AR
Chava Appiah, Cincinnati OH
Kathleen Balfe, Tenerife Spain
Wesley Hornpetrie, Silver Spring MD
Carlyn Kessler, Los Angeles CA
Bass
Ryan Baird, Principal, Pasadena CA
Matt Kline, San Diego CA
Kathryn Schulmeister, San Gabriela CA
Alan Wang, Los Angeles CA
Woodwinds
Flute
Martha Long, Principal, Baltimore MD
Adam Sadberry, Montgomery TX
Andrea Velasquez, Baltimore MD
Oboe
Lillian Copeland, Principal, New York NY
Eduardo Sepulveda, Syracuse NY
Paula Engerer, English Horn, Phoenix AZ
Clarinet
Bharat Chandra, Principal, Sarasota FL
Johnny Wang, Rochester NY
Andy Hudson, Appleton WI
Bassoon
Joseph Grimmer, Principal, Hyattsville MD
Christopher Jewell, Burke VA
Kris King, Los Gatos CA
Brass
Horn
Molly Norcross, Co-Principal, New York NY
Scott Strong, Co-Principal, Detroit MI
John Michael Flavetta, West Hartford CT
Caitlyn Smith-Franklin, Berkeley CA
John Turman, Seattle WA
Trumpet
Jack Farnham, Co-Prinicpal, Miami Beach FL
Morgan Low, Co- Principal, Northbrook IL
Lauren Eberhart, San Antonio TX
Andrew Gignac, San Antonio TX
Trombone
Carson King-Fournier, Co-Principal, Madison WI
Austin Richardson, Co-Principal, Metairie LA
Felix Regalado, Minneapolis MN
Taylor Fong, Bass Trombone, Pittsburgh PA
Tuba
Justin Benavidez, Principal, Rochester NY
Max Castor, San Francisco CA (Week 2)
Percussion
Timpani
Scott Christian, Principal, Washington DC
Percussion
Andres Pichardo-Rosenthal, Co-Principal, Detroit MI
Svet Stoyanov, Co-Principal, Miami FL
Galen Lemmon, San Jose CA (Week 1 & 2)
Jeffrey Marcos, San Francisco CA
George Nickson, Dallas TX
Justin Griffin, San Jose CA (Percussion Apprentice)
Harp
Sarah Fuller, Principal, Baltimore MD
Keyboard
Emily Wong, Principal, Yorktown NY
Michael Sheppard, CC Workshop, Baltimore MD (Week 1 & 2)
Orchestra Manager
Kelly Ott, Tacoma WA
Music Librarian
Robert Greer, Dallas TX
2025 Leave of Absences
Ben Tomkins, Violin 1
Julie Thayer, Horn
The Cabrillo Festival would like to extend a fond farewell to the following 2025 retired players:
Maximillian Haft, Violin 2
Carlos Tarazona, Violin 2