Founder / Director of Music

Brandon Chan (he/him) is a music educator who operates on the southern coast of Massachusetts. He is currently a middle school band director in the Blackstone-Millville School District where he also works with the Charger marching band as an assistant band director. He holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Music Education from UMass Amherst where he studied clarinet with Romie de Guise-Langlois. He currently resides in the town of North Attleboro with his cat Cruiser.

Vocalist / Composer in Residence

Eliza Howells (she/her) is a Boston-based mezzo-soprano and composer, and she is so excited to be a part of this project! Recent performances include Sally in Die Fledermaus with UMass Opera, Noelle in Scrapbookers with Tufts Opera, Dritter Knabe in Die Zauberflöte with the Trentino Music Festival, and a guest solo performance with La Societa Filarmonica di Sarteano in Sarteano, Italy. Eliza holds a Bachelor of Music in Voice Performance and Composition from UMass Amherst. She is currently pursuing a Master of Arts in Music Composition at Tufts University, and will be presenting an original song cycle as her thesis in Spring of 2024.

Flute

Isabelle Garland is a fourth year teacher from Cape Cod, MA. She got her degree in Music Education from UMass Amherst in 2020, and studied flute under Cobus du Toit. Before coming here, she taught General Music, Chorus, Band, and Marching Band for two years in New Bedford. She is currently pursuing her Masters in Music Education through the American Band College Program.

On her days off you can find her playing the flute, crocheting, or relaxing in her home in New Bedford.

Flute

Alex Martin is a music educator and flutist from Taunton, MA. She earned her degree in Music Education from UMass Amherst, studying flute under Dr. Cobus du Toit. In Addition to being a proud enthusiastic teacher of General Music in middle school, she is a member of the Commonwealth Symphony, teaches flute privately, and advises for the THS Flute Choir. Alex currently lives in Randolph, MA with her partner and their many plants.

Clarinet

Faith McKinley-Shiu is an educator and clarinetist. As an educator, she has taught students from ages five to seventy. She has worked in public and private school settings, and has become involved with New Horizons Band, which serves senior citizens learning an instrument for the first time. Currently, Faith teaches at Lesley Ellis School in Arlington, MA, where she teaches K-8 general music, band and choir. 

As a clarinetist, Faith seeks to expand her classical performance skills and outreach opportunities. She is currently in the Me2/ Orchestra in Boston, MA, which places an emphasis on ending stigmas around mental health. Faith has also given performances to help the homeless in Cambridge, MA; close to where she received her Master’s degree in Clarinet Performance at Longy School of Music of Bard College. 

In addition to clarinet, Faith can often be found singing in a choir. She believes that singing is an essential part of the learning process of music, even as an instrumentalist.

Horn

As a Boston native, Emma Chisholm got an early start in the Boston music community.

She secured a principal horn position with the Quincy Symphony quickly after undergrad. She has also recently played with the New England Film Orchestra, Firebird Pops, and the Commonwealth Wind Symphony. Emma is currently playing with the Brockton Symphony, Fall River Symphony, the Lincoln Sudbury Civic Orchestra, and the Bridgewater Antiphonal Brass while getting her Master’s in Horn at The Longy School of Music in Cambridge. This past summer, Chisholm traveled through Italy with The Interharmony Music Festival. Most recently she was in Brockton as part of a chamber music concert series. She fills a unique niche, being a common improviser on French Horn in jazz big bands and small groups. Emma has also recently played with the Birth of the Cool big band in Hartford. She can be seen playing at jazz clubs in the Greater Boston area.

Bassoon

Debbie Chen is a freelance bassoonist from Brockton, Massachusetts. Chen studied music at the University of Massachusetts Amherst where she earned her Bachelor’s degree in Music Education and Bassoon Performance. She then studied there for another year and earned a Performance Practice Certificate. Chen also graduated in Spring 2022 with her Masters in Bassoon performance at Stonybrook University where she studied with Frank Morelli. Recently she was appointed the supervisor of the Music Enrichment Program in Brockton which provided free lessons to students. She has also begun building her private lesson studio in Eastern Massachusetts. Aside from playing the bassoon, Chen loves to travel, eat food, play sports, meet new people, and is an avid video gamer during her free time.