String Faculty
We are fortunate at Mira Mesa High School to have with us a tremendous teach of dedicated string faculty. These incredible musicians and educators join our students each week throughout the year, providing homogenous group instruction to all of our string players.
We are fortunate at Mira Mesa High School to have with us a tremendous teach of dedicated string faculty. These incredible musicians and educators join our students each week throughout the year, providing homogenous group instruction to all of our string players.
Margeaux Maloney, Violin
Described as “nothing short of dazzling” and playing “with impeccable bowing and intonation” by South Florida Classical Review, Margeaux Maloney is a long-term Acting Section Violin with the San Diego Symphony and holds the Associate Concertmaster position in the Reno Chamber Orchestra. She has performed as a substitute violinist with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, San Diego Symphony, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Kansas City Symphony, and Charleston Symphony.
Born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, Ms. Maloney began studying the violin at age five and had her first concerto performance at age nine. Since then, she has received awards and recognitions at regional and national levels. She earned her degrees from The Juilliard School and University of Southern California’s Thornton School of Music, where she studied with Lewis Kaplan and Martin Chalifour, respectively. Ms. Maloney then went on to be a Violin Fellow at the New World Symphony in Miami Beach, Florida from 2017-2022.
Ms. Maloney has performed alongside members of the Tokyo String Quartet, Eroica Trio, Dover Quartet, Attacca Quartet and Vega Quartet and has also been coached by members of the Cleveland, Juilliard and Formosa string quartets, and pianists Jerome Lowenthal, Julian Martin and Conor Hanick. She has performed with various contemporary ensembles and several premieres, most recently the US premiere of the new edition of George Gershwin"s Concerto in F and Matthias Pintscher’s Piano Concerto !Nur for solo piano and ensemble. Ms. Maloney has performed in venues such as Carnegie Hall, Walt Disney Concert Hall, Alice Tully Hall, Avery Fisher Hall (now David Geffen Hall) at Lincoln Center, Hollywood’s Dolby Theatre, Sapporo Concert Hall Kitara, Tokyo Suntory Hall, The Usher Hall in Edinburgh, Scotland, National Concert Hall in Dublin, Ireland and Teatro Metropolitano José Gutiérrez Gómez in Medellín, Colombia.
As a teacher, Ms. Maloney has coached students from the Nashville Symphony’s Accelerando program and the Iberacademy in Medellín, Colombia. In February 2020 Ms. Maloney had the opportunity to travel to Medellín, Colombia to teach and perform with the young musicians of the Iberacademy and The Orquesta Filarmónica de Medellín.
Outside of music, Margeaux Maloney is passionate about photography, dancing, traveling and the great outdoors; she hopes to one day climb Mt. Fuji and hike the Pacific Crest and Appalachian Trails.
Born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, Ms. Maloney began studying the violin at age five and had her first concerto performance at age nine. Since then, she has received awards and recognitions at regional and national levels. She earned her degrees from The Juilliard School and University of Southern California’s Thornton School of Music, where she studied with Lewis Kaplan and Martin Chalifour, respectively. Ms. Maloney then went on to be a Violin Fellow at the New World Symphony in Miami Beach, Florida from 2017-2022.
Ms. Maloney has performed alongside members of the Tokyo String Quartet, Eroica Trio, Dover Quartet, Attacca Quartet and Vega Quartet and has also been coached by members of the Cleveland, Juilliard and Formosa string quartets, and pianists Jerome Lowenthal, Julian Martin and Conor Hanick. She has performed with various contemporary ensembles and several premieres, most recently the US premiere of the new edition of George Gershwin"s Concerto in F and Matthias Pintscher’s Piano Concerto !Nur for solo piano and ensemble. Ms. Maloney has performed in venues such as Carnegie Hall, Walt Disney Concert Hall, Alice Tully Hall, Avery Fisher Hall (now David Geffen Hall) at Lincoln Center, Hollywood’s Dolby Theatre, Sapporo Concert Hall Kitara, Tokyo Suntory Hall, The Usher Hall in Edinburgh, Scotland, National Concert Hall in Dublin, Ireland and Teatro Metropolitano José Gutiérrez Gómez in Medellín, Colombia.
As a teacher, Ms. Maloney has coached students from the Nashville Symphony’s Accelerando program and the Iberacademy in Medellín, Colombia. In February 2020 Ms. Maloney had the opportunity to travel to Medellín, Colombia to teach and perform with the young musicians of the Iberacademy and The Orquesta Filarmónica de Medellín.
Outside of music, Margeaux Maloney is passionate about photography, dancing, traveling and the great outdoors; she hopes to one day climb Mt. Fuji and hike the Pacific Crest and Appalachian Trails.
Jesus Cervantes, Violin
Jesus Cervantes is a violinist and educator based in San Diego, California. He graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Music in Violin Performance from San Diego State University, where he studied with Pei-Chun Tsai Liebhaber. Jesus currently maintains a private violin studio, and holds teaching positions at the San Diego Music and Art Company, Villa Musica, and Allegro Music Studio. Additionally, he is the first violinist of the Aztec String Quartet, and plays electric violin in the San Diego based progressive-rock band "Fistfights with Wolves".
In the summer of 2017, Jesus was selected as a fellowship recipient of the National Orchestral Institute at the University of Maryland, working with conductors such as Asher Fisch and David Allan Miller, and resulting in a 2018 "Best Orchestral Performance" GRAMMY nomination for the orchestra's American Masterworks album, recorded and distributed by NAXOS. Additionally, he has been a participant of the Domaine Forget International Music Academy in Quebec, the International Youth Symphony, and the Indiana University String Academy. In 2015, he participated in SDYS’ 70th anniversary China tour, performing in four sold-out symphony concerts in the cities of Beijing, Shanghai, and Yantai.
Jesus has been a prizewinner in the La Jolla Symphony and Chorus’ Young Artist Competition, Grossmont Competition, SDSU Concerto Competition, and the ASTA Competition. Additionally, he was a national finalist in NAMM's 2015 SchoolJam USA competition in Anaheim, and received the Judge's Choice award. He has participated in masterclasses with violinists Noah Bendix-Balgley, Gil Shaham, Midori Goto, Ray Chen, and Paul Huang. During his time at SDSU, he was the recipient of the Fisch/Axelrod Student Artist Scholarship and SDSU Merit Scholar Award, and has also been a recipient of the Conrad Prebys Performing Arts Scholarship, Giavanna Kersulis Memorial Scholarship, Kiwanis Musical Merit Award, and was named the 2018 Presser Scholar of the School of Music and Dance.
Additionally, Jesus is an active composer and arranger. Most recently, he conducted the SDSU Symphony Orchestra’s premiere of his latest orchestral work. He has also served as a guest conductor and string coach at the San Diego School of Creative and Performing Arts. Outside of classical music, Jesus has appeared on numerous albums ranging in style from Jazz to Rock, and his versatility has made him a highly sought-after violinist and guitarist in San Diego.
In the summer of 2017, Jesus was selected as a fellowship recipient of the National Orchestral Institute at the University of Maryland, working with conductors such as Asher Fisch and David Allan Miller, and resulting in a 2018 "Best Orchestral Performance" GRAMMY nomination for the orchestra's American Masterworks album, recorded and distributed by NAXOS. Additionally, he has been a participant of the Domaine Forget International Music Academy in Quebec, the International Youth Symphony, and the Indiana University String Academy. In 2015, he participated in SDYS’ 70th anniversary China tour, performing in four sold-out symphony concerts in the cities of Beijing, Shanghai, and Yantai.
Jesus has been a prizewinner in the La Jolla Symphony and Chorus’ Young Artist Competition, Grossmont Competition, SDSU Concerto Competition, and the ASTA Competition. Additionally, he was a national finalist in NAMM's 2015 SchoolJam USA competition in Anaheim, and received the Judge's Choice award. He has participated in masterclasses with violinists Noah Bendix-Balgley, Gil Shaham, Midori Goto, Ray Chen, and Paul Huang. During his time at SDSU, he was the recipient of the Fisch/Axelrod Student Artist Scholarship and SDSU Merit Scholar Award, and has also been a recipient of the Conrad Prebys Performing Arts Scholarship, Giavanna Kersulis Memorial Scholarship, Kiwanis Musical Merit Award, and was named the 2018 Presser Scholar of the School of Music and Dance.
Additionally, Jesus is an active composer and arranger. Most recently, he conducted the SDSU Symphony Orchestra’s premiere of his latest orchestral work. He has also served as a guest conductor and string coach at the San Diego School of Creative and Performing Arts. Outside of classical music, Jesus has appeared on numerous albums ranging in style from Jazz to Rock, and his versatility has made him a highly sought-after violinist and guitarist in San Diego.
Rebecca Matayoshi, Viola
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Violist Rebecca Matayoshi is currently a member of the Hawai‘i Symphony Orchestra and is excited to join the San Diego Symphony as an acting section violist. She enjoys a career performing all over the world. Prior to her appointment in Hawai‘i she was a violist with the Hyogo Performing Arts Center Orchestra in Osaka, Japan. She has toured with the Dresdner Philharmonie, performed at the Lucerne Contemporary Music Festival (Switzerland) and Pacific Music Festival (Hokkaido, Japan), been on faculty and performed at the Estate Musicale Frentana festival (Lanciano, Italy), and will make her first appearance at the Oregon Coast Music Festival (North Bend, OR) this summer. Locally, she has recorded studio and commercial work in Los Angeles, played for the Broadway tour of The Lion King and performed with contemporary pop artists The Eagles and Steven Tyler of Aerosmith, among others. Ms. Matayoshi also enjoys collaborating in chamber music, with notable performances including violinist Colin Jacobsen (The Knights of NYC), violinist David Kim (Concertmaster, Philadelphia Orchestra), Luigi Piovano (Principal Cello, Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia) and flute soloist Peter Lukas-Graf. As an educator, Ms. Matayoshi currently serves as the viola coach at Mira Mesa and Mt. Carmel High Schools, in addition to keeping a private teaching studio. She has given masterclasses at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and San Diego State University, and coached the San Diego Youth Symphony. She is also the Founder and Director of Dually Noted, an organization that artistically pairs music and food. (See www.duallynoted.org for details.) |
A native of Chicago, Rebecca Matayoshi completed a Master of Music from the New England Conservatory under the tutelage of Marcus Thompson and Bachelor of Music studies with Masumi Rostad and Rudolf Haken at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign as the Edward J. Krolick full-scholarship recipient.
Dr. Anna Cho, Cello
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Born in Seoul, Korea, Dr. Anna Cho holds Bachelor of Music from Korean National University of Arts, Master of Music from Yale University, and Doctor of Musical Arts from University of Southern California. A winner of music competitions and scholarships, Dr. Cho brings to her playing the subtle nuances, passion, colors and sensitivity associated with her multicultural background. She has performed as soloist with major orchestras in Korea and Russia, and was featured as a soloist at a Yale Cellos concert. As a chamber musician, she was the cellist of the string quartet with the world-renowned violinist Midori for a year. She was selected as the Principal Cellist of the Moritzburg Festival Orchestra in 2007. Dr. Cho has studied in Russia, Korea and the United States under masters of the cello including Eleonore Schoenfeld, Nathaniel Rosen, Peter Stumpf, Aldo Parisot and Myung-Wha Chung.
Dr. Cho is fluent in English, Russian and Korean and has lived in countries on three continents: Russia, Sudan and Korea. Her notable experience includes volunteering at AMASE |
(Academy of Music and Art for Special Education) in San Diego for over 8 years. She has been also actively involved with teaching and playing chamber music in San Diego area. Dr. Cho loves playing the piano and enjoys collaborating with her husband, cellist Xian Zhuo. Previously having served as Acting Section Cello, she has been Substitute Cellist with the San Diego Symphony Orchestra since 2013. She also serves as the Secretary of San Diego Cello Foundation which was founded in 2019.
Aaron Blick, Bass
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A Southern California native, Aaron Blick joined the San Diego Symphony’s bass section in June of 2022. Born and raised in Los Angeles, he began his musical studies on the piano at age 5. By age 11, Mr. Blick’s musical interests had shifted to the double bass, and he began formal study at age 14 in both classical and jazz. At age 16, he was named a Herb Alpert Emerging Young Artist and was awarded a scholarship by the Herb Alpert Foundation to continue his musical studies. Blick earned his Bachelor of Music in 2018 from Northwestern University’s Bienen School of Music studying with Andrew Raciti, Associate Principal Bass of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra. He then returned to his hometown to study with Los Angeles Philharmonic bassist David Allen Moore at the University of Southern California’s Thornton School of Music, earning his Master’s Degree in Music Performance in 2020. He continued his studies with Mr. Moore at USC as part of the Graduate Certificate program until Spring of 2022.
During his summers, Aaron Blick has attended Le Academie Domaine Forget de Charlevoix (2017, 2018) and was invited with orchestral fellowships to the Aspen Music Festival and School (2019) and Music Academy of the West (2020, 2021). Over two summers at Domaine Forget, he studied closely with some of the world’s most renowned double bassists and pedagogues including François Rabbath, John Clayton and Paul Ellison. At Music Academy of the West he was awarded the Keston MAX Fellowship with the London Symphony Orchestra. Since becoming a Keston MAX Fellow, he performed with the LSO under the baton of Sir Simon Rattle during their 2022 residency in Santa Barbara. He is invited to perform with the LSO again this coming Fall at the Barbican Centre in London. |
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Prior to joining the San Diego Symphony, Mr. Blick has performed with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Los Angeles Opera Orchestra, the Long Beach Symphony, the Kaleidoscope Chamber Orchestra and the Civic Orchestra of Chicago. He has also been an avid freelancer and studio musician during his time living in Los Angeles and maintains a private teaching studio of young bassists. When not playing bass, Mr. Blick enjoys vegetarian cooking and playing golf and basketball, as well as following a variety of other sports. He has recently taken up a fascination with siphon-brewed coffee and looks forward to exploring all that beautiful San Diego has to offer.
Aaron Blick performs on a modern double bass made by Christopher Savino and French bows made by Jean Grunberger and Bernard Walke.
Aaron Blick performs on a modern double bass made by Christopher Savino and French bows made by Jean Grunberger and Bernard Walke.
Kevin Gobetz, Bass
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Born and raised on Long Island, Kevin Gobetz recently joined the San Diego Symphony in June of 2022. Coming from the dry heat of Arizona, Mr. Gobetz served as Principal Bass of the Phoenix Symphony from 2019 to 2022. Previously, Mr. Gobetz has held one year positions in both the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the San Diego Symphony and began his professional journey as a fellow of the New World Symphony in Miami Beach. He earned a Masters Degree and Graduate Certificate from the University of Southern California from 2012-2016 (where he studied with David Allen Moore) as well as a Bachelor’s Degree as a double major in Music Performance and Music Education from Ithaca College (where he studied with Nicholas Walker). Mr. Gobetz has performed with several prominent figures in the Los Angeles area, including the Grammy® Award-winning acapella group Pentatonix, reggae artist Damian Marley, and Kevin Olusola on his Adele Medley for solo cello and strings. Mr. Gobetz has spent many rewarding summers studying the double bass at various music festivals including the Tanglewood Music Festival, Aspen Music Festival and Domaine Forget Academy. In his free time, Mr. Gobetz loves to spend time with his dog Finn, learn adventurous new recipes in the kitchen, and enjoy all the beauty and rich culture that San Diego has to offer. Kevin Gobetz plays on a modern double bass crafted by Daniel Hachez in 2001. |