Faculty
Curt Altarac - Saxophone
Curt Altarac earned a bachelor's degree in music education from the
State University of New York College at Fredonia, and a masters degree
in saxophone performance from the University of Southern Mississippi. An
active classical and jazz saxophonist, Curt plays in a saxophone Trio, a
quartet, several big bands and maintains a teaching studio at the
Wilmington Academy of Music. As a saxophone repair technician and owner
of MusicMedic.com, Curt designs and advocates the use of new repair
materials including TechCork, RooPads, Saxgourmet Pads, and many other
tools and techniques. Curt specializes in saxophone reconditioning,
focusing on improving tone, response, and intonation through custom key
work improvements, neck modifications, and bore alterations.
Justin Hoke
Guitar
Janet Porterfield - Flute and special events
Janet graduated magna cum laude with a BA degree in education from Kean University in New Jersey. She also attended Ohio Wesleyan University and Hofstra University. She taught in the New Hanover and Brunswick County schools. She is a member of the Raleigh Area Flute Association and has served as adjudicator at contests. She has attended numerous master classes of world renowned flutists. Her teachers include Rebecca Falor and Dr. Mary Jo White who studied with Doriot Dwyer, then principal flutist with the Boston Symphony. In addition to performing as a soloist she has played with the Wilmington Symphony Orchestra, the Muse Woodwind Quintet, the Coastal Carolina Flute Choir, and other chamber groups in the Wilmington area.
Roy Robuck - Violin
Roy Robuck attended the University of North Texas (Bachelor of Music Degree) and earned a Masters degree in performance and education from Central Florida University. Roy's professional experience includes his work as a member of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra (Eduardo Mata conductor), touring fiddler with Merle Haggard and Ray Price, performances with the Walt Disney Orchestra and extensive work as a studio musician. Roy's teaching experience includes violin instruction at the Rochelle School of the Arts, Lakeland, Florida, and classroom instruction as an orchestra director and conductor. Additionally, he developed a K through 8th orchestra program which was invited to perform in the state Capitol and was chosen to representthe state of Florida at the Kennedy Center's 25th Anniversary celebration in Washington, D.C., 1996.
Jane Tierney - Violin
Jane Tierney graduated from West Virginia University with a Bachelor of Music degree. She is recently retired from New Hanover County Schools where she was voted Teacher of the Year at Roland Grise Middle School in 2000 and achieved National Board certification in music, Adolescent through Adult, from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards in 2001. Her students have consistently received recognition at the NC Music Educators Association's state wide orchestra events. Jane is passionate about passing on her love of music to children and is looking forward to focusing on private teaching. She is also a frequent performer and is a member of the Tallis Chamber Orchestra and the Wilmington Symphony Orchestra. Jane resides with her husband, Hiroshi Sueyoshi, a ceramic artist, and they have two sons, Tadashi and Osamu.
Richard Thomas - Cello
Dr. Richard Thomas is on the faculties of the University of North Carolina Wilmington, the Wilmington Academy of Music, and is principal cellist of the Wilmington Symphony. During the summers he is String Department Head and Chamber Music Coordinator at Camp Encore-Coda in Sweden, Maine. Thomas studied at the Cleveland Institute of Music, De Pauw University, the University of North Texas, and received a Doctor of Musical Arts from the University of South Carolina. He is a former member of the Orquesta Sinf?nica de Colombia (Bogot?), Orquesta Sinf?nica del Valle (Cali, Colombia),the Orquesta Sinf?nica Nacional (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic) and was on the faculties of the Universidad del Cauca and Universidad del Valle in Colombia, the Conservatorio Nacional in the Dominican Republic, and Presbyterian College and the South Carolina Governor?s School for the Arts and Humanities.
Samuel Huff
Drums and percussion
Fumiko Yamashita - Oboe, bassoon and clarinet (Woodwinds)
Fumiko Yamashita originally began playing clarinet in her junior high and high school orchestras. While enrolled at the Kyoto University, Fumiko switched to oboe. After performing with the Yokosuka Symphony Orchestra in Japan for nine years, she moved to Wilmington and is now the principal oboist of the Wilmington Symphony Orchestra, and performs in many chamber ensembles in the Wilmington area. In addition to her work as a performer, Fumiko teaches oboe, clarinet and bassoon at the Wilmington Academy of Music and runs the Muse Woodwind Repair Shop.
Nancy McAllister
Violin
Steve Toll -
Voice and Music Therapy
Steven B. Toll, B.S. Columbia University, Director of Prescription-Music is a classically trained violinist, vocalist and songwriter.
As a teenager he attended the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, which afforded him an introduction to study with members of the Philadelphia Orchestra. Branching out musically from there, Mr. Toll was a student of world-renowned jazz pianist Gerald Butler. Adding guitar and keyboards to his repertoire of instruments, he founded a band that toured the country playing the popular tunes of the 70's during that time period. Today he is the lead vocalist, violinist and steel guitar player for the band Primitive Soul, which features original music with an eclectic blend of styles. A former chef and restaurant owner, he along with his wife Linda Bareham, a writer and researcher in the area of alternative therapies for seniors with dementia, formed the company Prescription-Music. Together they have developed a therapeutic music model for use with Alzheimer's patients, along with complimentary assessment and measurement tools. Mr. Toll is on the Speaker's Board for the National Alzheimer's Association and trains professional and family caregivers in the development of music therapy programs where his intent is to spread the word of the healing power of music for those afflicted with Alzheimer's.
Laci Ballard
Office administrator
Robert Hoggard - Violin and viola
Originally of Wilmington, Mr. Hoggard continued music performance and education studies at the Peabody Conservatory of Music of the Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland. Mr. Hoggard studied viola with Karen Tuttle and Richard Field, violin with Beryl Senofsky.
While away, Robet taught violin and viola and coached chamber ensembles. He has participated in Master Classes held by such artists as Leon Fleisher, Annar Bylsma, Stephen Kates, Shirley Matthews, Barry Tuckwell and the American String Quartet. Among many ensembles and symphonic groups, Mr. Hoggard has worked extensively to promote contemporary composition for the viola. Through efforts with groups such as the Baltimore Composers Forum he has debuted contemporary works for viola by a few of today's most dynamic composers.
Mr. Hoggard performs and lectures specifically on the tenor viola. By teaching and lecturing he seeks to raise awareness and re-introduce this voice back into Baroque, early music then into modern where feasible.
Tamar Gilad
Piano