Yale Concert Band Roster Fall 2024

Piccolo

Salena Huang YSEAS ‘26

Salena is a 5th year PhD student from Houston in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science. She has been playing flute for over 19 years and piccolo for 11 years. In addition to the flute and piccolo, Salena enjoys singing and playing keyboard and guitar. Outside of music, she also enjoys sewing, photography, and learning new languages.

 

Flutes

Tiffany Jiang MED ‘27, Principal

Tiffany is a second year medical student from Plano, Texas. She studied music and biology in undergrad and loves to play chamber music with friends! She also enjoys playing video games, trying new snacks, and hanging out with her three cats (Cinnamon, Nutmeg, and Pepper). 

Zoe Frost MY ‘27

Zoe is a sophomore from Washington Heights, New York City. At Yale, she is in Pauli Murray college and studying (probably?) English and Music. Outside of YCB, Zoe is involved with Yale Matriculate, the Yale Undergraduate Chamber Orchestra, and Yale Tour Guides. Her favorite things about Yale include the Gilmore Music Library, the abundance of friendly campus dogs, and Tru Fru from the Bow Wow.

Noah Brazer MED ‘27

Noah plays the flute and is a second year student at the School of Medicine.

Alliese Bonner BK ‘27

Alliese is a sophomore in Berkeley College majoring in Music and aiming for a certificate in Ed Studies. She was born and raised in Mount Juliet, Tennessee, a suburb of Nashville, and has been playing flute for eight years. Alliese is a proud alum of the Nashville Symphony’s Accelerando Program and the Nashville Youth Orchestra Program. If she’s not playing flute, you can find her singing soprano 1 in the Yale Glee Club or performing in an opera (please come watch one sometime!).

Allie Gruber PC ‘26  

Allie is a junior in Pierson College. She has been playing the flute for twelve years but has yet to establish a consistent practice routine. She is enthralled by the great American breakfast, so on Saturday mornings you can find her eating a hearty brunch of pancakes, waffles - and generally anything doused in syrup. Allie also enjoys playing water polo and jamming out swanky jazz tunes on the baritone saxophone. Speaking of swank, she feels immense joy when people use stylish turns of phrase in everyday speech. If you ever use a word or phrase that she finds sleek, rest assured: she WILL steal it!

Noah Watson TD ‘28

Noah Watson is a first-year from Atlanta, Georgia, and he has been playing the flute for seven years. Noah is interested in studying biology with hopes of becoming a househusband in the Hamptons. Outside of music, Noah loves walking around aesthetically across campus, hanging out with friends, trying new restaurants, and binge-watching Netflix shows.

Allan An BR ‘28

Allan An is a first-year flutist in Branford College from Florida. He started playing the flute when he was 8 and has enjoyed serving as the Principal Flutist of the Tampa Metropolitan Youth Orchestra and Florida All-State Bands throughout high school.

Peter Nelson JE ‘26

Peter Nelson (he/him) is a Junior from Sacramento, California, in Jonathan Edwards College (go spiders!). Potentially double majoring, he is interested in both MB&B and BME. Outside of school, Peter enjoys playing the flute in band, hitting some volleyball at Payne Whitney, and doing puzzles and trivia in his spare time. He is excited to be part of YCB for his third year!

Renee Wu MY ‘28

Renee is a first year in Pauli Murray College from Ellicott City, Maryland. She’s been playing the flute for 10 years and is excited to play with the band this year! Renee is interested in studying Chemical Engineering and outside of school, she loves to read, garden, and visit different boba shops.

Mei Hao YSEAS ‘28

Mei is a third-year PhD student in Mechanical Engineering. She started playing the flute 18 years ago but may or may not have paused practicing for a few years in between. She enjoys playing in band and is always happy to meet new friends interested in music. When not in class, in lab, in lab, in lab, or playing music, she puts her time into painting, RPG games, and bird-watching.

Winni Lin BR ‘28

 
Winni is a first-year undergraduate at Branford College with a prospective major in biomedical engineering and six years of inconsistent experience on her flute. She came from a small, middle-of-no-where town in central Texas. In her free time, she enjoys reading, listening to music, keeping her poor plants alive, irritating her cat til the last straw, and decompressing through organizing.
 
 

Oboes

Ana Rodrigues BR ‘25, Principal

Ana is heartbroken to write that she is a senior in Yale College in the last year of what will have been a four year Yale Concert Band career. She studies the history of art and urban studies, and hopes someone will let her into graduate school. When she is not playing her oboe or English horn, Ana works at the Yale Art University Gallery as a research assistant in the American Paintings and Sculpture department and she is also a tour guide at the Yale Center for British Art. Outside of the band, she enjoys playing in pit orchestras and the Yale Undergraduate Chamber Orchestra. If you ever see Ana on the street, you should ask her about whaling. 

Sophia Graham DC ‘26

Sophia Graham is a junior in Davenport studying economics with a certificate in data science. She is a proud Michigander who has played with the Detroit Symphony Youth Orchestra and several other Detroit-area ensembles. Outside of YCB, Sophia can be found tap dancing with Taps at Yale, interior designing rooms, trying to convince people that she isn’t a finance bro, and eating dining hall Coconut Ranger cookies. 

Estelle Balsirow JE ‘26

 
Estelle Balsirow (she/her) is a junior at Yale University. She majors in Linguistics and pursues an Advanced Language certificate in Russian. Estelle grew up in New Jersey, where she graduated from the Marine Academy of Technology and Environmental Science. She played oboe at Juilliard’s Music Advancement Program with Hassan Anderson and Julia DeRosa and the Mannes Pre-college in New York with Lillian Copeland. At Yale, Estelle works on board with the Yale Undergraduate Legal Aid Association, leads as Head Design Editor for the Yale Review of International Studies, and works and researches syntactical diversity across North America with the Yale Grammatical Diversity Project. In her spare time, Estelle enjoys playing video games with her sister and singing.
 

Cameron Gray-Lee DC ‘27

 

English Horn

Ana Rodrigues BR ‘25

Ana is heartbroken to write that she is a senior in Yale College in the last year of what will have been a four year Yale Concert Band career. She studies the history of art and urban studies, and hopes someone will let her into graduate school. When she is not playing her oboe or English horn, Ana works at the Yale Art University Gallery as a research assistant in the American Paintings and Sculpture department and she is also a tour guide at the Yale Center for British Art. Outside of the band, she enjoys playing in pit orchestras and the Yale Undergraduate Chamber Orchestra. If you ever see Ana on the street, you should ask her about whaling. 

Eb Clarinet

Nickolas Hamblin YSM ‘25

Bb Clarinets

Ben Swinchoski BF ‘25, Keith L. Wilson Principal Clarinet Chair

Ben Swinchoski is a ‘25 neuroscience major from Wall, New Jersey in Benjamin Franklin College. Ben works as a research assistant studying the neural and psychological mechanisms of borderline personality disorder in the Fineberg lab. He also serves as the senior advisor of the Yale Student Mental Health Association Association. Outside of studying, playing music, and thinking about mental health policy, you might find him drinking a chai latte at a coffeeshop or playing Kirby and the Forgotten Land (currently his favorite Nintendo Switch game). One bonus fun fact about Ben is that he made a Sporcle quiz on baseball stats as a 10-year-old that went semi-viral and is still updated by the SporcleBot to this day. 

Amelia Shaw TC ‘28

Amelia Shaw is a freshman in Trumbull College! She is currently an undeclared major, but is interested in music, architecture, and education studies. She went to high school in North Haven, CT and also to arts school in New Haven (a couple blocks from Yale campus!), where she was in the music department. Her favorite thing to do when not looking for an open practice room is to hang out with her lovely friends, try restaurants in the area, or watch the sunset from the top floor of the Sterling Library. 

Sammy Feingold MY ‘28

Samantha “Sammy” Feingold is a freshman in Pauli Murray College who plans on majoring in neuroscience on the pre-med track. She hails from Long Beach, New York (NOT California). She starting learning the clarinet around ten years ago after hearing her idol, Squidward, perform. When Sammy isn’t locked in on her p-sets and textbooks, you can find her gymming it out, practicing the clarinet (and her not-to-be-forgotten tenor saxophone), snagging dinner with her friends, socializing at Slifka, FaceTiming her dog, reading till she falls asleep, and traveling to the most random places on the planet.

Joshua Chen SY ‘27

Joshua is a sophomore in Saybrook College. He has been playing the clarinet for nine years and loves playing in wind bands, symphonic orchestras, chamber groups, and pit orchestras. He’s planning on majoring in something STEM but has no idea what he wants to do beyond that. In his free time, he enjoys playing soccer, running, and hanging out with his twin brother, Kyle, and his friends.

Jessica Liu GH ‘25

Jessica plays the clarinet and is a junior in Grace Hopper College.

Joey Berger DC ‘28

Joey is a first-year in Davenport College from New York and plans to study English and Environmental Studies. He has been playing the clarinet for nine years in wind ensembles and the Westchester Youth Symphony at venues including Lincoln Center and the Eastman Theatre. In addition to being part of the YCB, Joey enjoys reading and writing, playing tennis, exploring independent bookstores and cafes, hiking, and shopping at vintage clothing stores!

Amalee Bowen GSAS ‘28

Sofia Sato DC ‘28

Sofia is currently a first year in Davenport College from Tokyo, Japan. She has been playing the clarinet for 6 years and the piano for 13 years, and sings Alto 1 in the Yale Glee Club. She plans to be a Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology major with a certificate in Global Health Studies.

Trevor Strano MC ‘28

Trevor is a first year in Morse College. While he hasn’t yet declared a major, he plans on studying Earth & Planetary Science. Trevor has played clarinet for 9 years and is excited to continue his passion for music as a part of the Yale Concert Band. When he’s not studying or playing music, Trevor loves to read and hike in nature.

Cameron Nye BR ‘27

Cameron is a sophomore majoring in political science. Originally from Lancaster, PA, he’s excited to be in a place that isn’t plagued by horse-and-buggies. Outside the YCB, Cameron is one of the co-presidents of the Yale Handbell Ensemble. In his infinite free time, he enjoys caring for the slew of plants that occupy his windowsill, buying records (current count is 611), and decorating his dorm for the nearest holiday.

Bass Clarinet

Ari Blehert JE ‘28

Ari Blehert is a first-year in Jonathan Edwards college hailing from Madison, Wisconsin. He loves all things music; he has played piano since age 5, saxophone since 6th grade, picked up the clarinet and bass clarinet a couple years ago, composes, and tap dances (mediocrely). Besides music, Ari loves cooking and baking (but never said he was good at either, although the few times he’s made pie it came out beautiful and delicious), making art when he finds the time, sailing, being outside, admiring the world and humanity, and learning random linguistics facts. Outside of trying to do everything ever all the time, he’s interested in studying earth and planetary sciences with applications in climate solutions.
 
 

Bassoons

Kennedy Plains YSM ‘25

Laressa Winters YSM ‘26

Freddy Laux TD ‘27

 

Alto Saxophones

Lizzie Seward DC ‘27, Principal

Lizzie Seward is a second year in Davenport College. She is from just outside of Boston and went to high school in the city. She has been playing the alto saxophone for almost 10 years, and this is her second year in YCB. She is a Physics and Philosophy joint major, and when she’s not practicing, she is probably completing problem sets or hanging out with her friends from the concert band!

Richard Wong DC ‘28

 
Richard is a first-year in Davenport College from Long Island, New York. When he’s not being crushed by PSets or other busywork, you can probably find him in the gym, in one of the game rooms playing poker, or maybe even in NYC, where the food is peak. If you need someone to borrow creatine off of, he’s your guy.

Alina Martel MED ‘28

Alina Martel is a first-year medical student at Yale School of Medicine. She performed in the YCB from 2019-2023 as an undergraduate (go Trumbull!), and she is thrilled to be back with her favorite group for a fifth year! Alina has played the saxophone for thirteen years; she also enjoys playing the ukulele and guitar. When not desperately trying to memorize the TCA cycle, Alina can be found reading, frequenting coffee shops, or playing a good video game (recommendations available upon request).

Tenor Saxophone

Esteban Figueroa MC ‘25, Principal

Aaron Yu MC ‘25

Aaron is a senior in Morse majoring in computer science and applied math. He is from Atlanta and has played the saxophone for 11 years. Aaron has played in the Yale Concert Band, the Yale Jazz Ensemble, DPops, Berkeley College Orchestra, the Yale Symphony Orchestra (very briefly), and various saxophone ensembles. When he’s not playing music, you can find him playing unnecessarily complicated card games, walking around campus really fast, or rating Yale floors near you.

Baritone Saxophone

Hanson Qin ES ‘28

 

Cornets/Trumpets

Jared (J.J.) Wyetzner PC ‘27, Principal

JJ Wyetzner is a sophomore in Pierson majoring in physics. He began playing trumpet in fourth grade in his hometown of Metuchen, New Jersey. In high school, JJ played in the New Jersey Youth Symphony while participating in region, state, and national honors bands. He was also an accomplished last-chair double bassist in his high school’s orchestra. At Yale, he plays in (too) many musical groups while procrastinating PSETS and Yiddish homework. Some of his hobbies include Clash Royale, weightlifting, hyping up Pierson (it’s the best), and trains. Follow @jjtransit on Instagram to keep up with his public transportation adventures!

Greta Garrison BF ‘28

Graydon Nolen DC ‘28

Graydon Nolen is a Freshman in Davenport at Yale College. He has been playing the Trumpet for 8 years. Outside of playing the trumpet he loves reading, playing squash, and learning about science.

Kyle Chen SY ‘27

Kyle Chen is a second year student at Saybrook College from Guilford, CT. His fascination with music began at a young age, watching the Yale Bands perform. Now, as a new member of the Yale Concert Band, Kyle is excited to transition from being an audience member to taking the stage. Kyle has performed in jazz bands, concert bands, and orchestras, including the New Haven Youth Symphony Orchestra and is blessed to have been mentored by great directors and teachers.
Although currently undecided, Kyle is considering a future in mechanical engineering, biomedical engineering, or pursuing a pre-medical track.

Aidan Garcia MC ‘26

Isaiah Harvey TD ‘28

Isaiah is a first-year in Timothy Dwight College from Morgantown, West Virginia. He is interested in studying Ethics, Politics, and Economics, and loves playing his trumpet whenever, wherever, and with whoever. Isaiah has been a part of jazz ensembles, symphony orchestras, honor bands, all-state bands, musical pits, and even the Macy’s Great American Marching Band, his passion leading him anywhere another trumpet is welcome. Outside of music, you can find him trying to pet every dog on campus or looking for a worthy foosball opponent in the TD buttery.

French Horn

Micah Draper TD ‘28

Micah is a first-year in Pauli Murray College (the best residential college, it’s not up for debate) who is studying Global Affairs. He is from Wallburg, North Carolina and has played the French horn for 7 years. Micah has played in many musical ensembles across the globe including the World Youth Wind Orchestra Project in Schladming, Austria, the North Carolina All-State Honor Band, and the Winston Salem Symphony Youth Orchestra. When not making music, you can find him playing pickleball, studying, drinking coffee, or listening to The Frozen Cathedral by John Mackey (the greatest musical work known to man… ever).

Julia Landres JE ‘28

Julia Landres is a first year in Jonathan Edwards college and is from New York (not the city). She has been playing French horn for 9 years, during which time she has played for the New-York All-State Band, the New York Area All State Orchestra, and her high school’s Wind Ensemble and Pit Orchestra. At Yale, she plans to major in Physics with a concentration in Programming. In addition to the YCB, Julia also plays for DPops. When not in rehearsal or practicing, you can find her working on psets, gawking at Yale’s architecture, or desperately trying to find other people who speak toki pona.

Katie Howard GSAS

Katie is a graduate student in GSAS, studying Personalized Medicine and Applied Engineering. She earned her B.S. in Biological Engineering with minors in Music and Biological Sciences from Louisiana State University (LSU), where she was a member and section leader of the mellophone section in the LSU marching band. Katie also performed in various concert ensembles and chamber groups during her time there. Outside of music and academics, she enjoys rock climbing and is a proud pet parent to a leopard gecko named Ancalagon (Callie for short), who is the light of her life.

Rory Bricca ES ‘26

Rory Bricca (ES ‘26) is a Music major who is excited to this year be pretty much doing music stuff all day long. He is a composer, conductor, pianist, and (occasionally) French horn player who enjoys playing, composing, and learning about many styles of music, from classical to “contemporary” to jazz to musical theater. In addition to playing in YCB, he will this year be music directing the US premiere of the opera Darwin en Patagonia by Argentinian composer Mariano Fernandez and Laid Off, an original musical comedy by Emma (BF ‘26) and Aaron Ventresca. The Yale Concert Band premiered his piece Duplicity in Woolsey Hall last December. This summer, he attended the Brevard Composition Institute in North Carolina, and is planning after Yale to apply to graduate programs in music composition. www.rorybricca.com

Zakariya Bouzid GH ‘28

Zakariya (Zak) is a first year in Grace Hopper College and has been playing French Horn for the past seven years. As a California native and long time lover of the outdoors, he is passionate about birds, bugs, trees, and everything in between. He hopes to major in Ecology & Evolutionary Biology while also participating in a wide variety of outdoorsy clubs. Outside of his nature related interests, he enjoys longboarding, coin collecting, and trying new foods!

Shell Ross GH ‘26

Alexander Bello ES ‘28

Andrés Luengo TC ‘27

 
Andrés is a physics major at Trumbull College, and has been playing the french horn for 7 years. Whenever he’s not playing horn in the YCB, he’s busy being a huge nerd about space or attempting to learn to play the keytar. He was born in Venezuela, and now lives in South Florida. He has a tux cat named Oreo back home who he misses very dearly.

Trombone

Cody Uman MC ‘25

Cody is a senior in Morse College. They’re a mathematics major and an Education Studies scholar. They also enjoy to ice skating, modular origami, disc golf, and theater.

Max Watzky BF ‘27

Beatrice Beale Tate PC ‘28

Nathan Lange SY ‘27

 

Euphonium

John Liu TD ‘25, Principal

John plays the Euphonium and is a senior in Timothy Dwight College.

Anna Calkins MC ‘27

Anna is a sophomore in Morse College, also referred to as the best college. A retired pianist and trumpeter, she has been playing the euphonium for 7 years. When not in rehearsal, you can find her studying, at the pool, or at City Climb Gym. She’s originally from the great city of Chicago and is pursuing a major in Cognitive Science.

 

Tuba

Benson Wang BK ‘27, Principal

Benson Wang is an Economics and Computer Science Major at Berkeley College. Through high school, Benson has made the CT All-State Festival four times, all being first chairs. He was Principal tuba for the inaugural year of the National Youth Wind Ensemble and the Carnegie Hall HPS Series Band. He has also been awarded prestigious orchestral fellowships at Interlochen, Idyllwild, and Brevard. In addition to his orchestral and wind ensemble endeavors, he was unanimously awarded first place at the ITEA’s International Tuba Solo Competition and Third Place at the American Protege Winds and Brass Competition. Throughout his musical endeavors, he has studied tuba with Tony Clements, David Winer, and James Gourlay.

Karim Najjar MC ‘27

 
Karim Najjar is a sophomore in Morse college planning to major in history and sociology. Only mildly terrified that he’s been playing tuba for nine years, he loves rocking the bass line and savoring every time the tuba actually has the melody. He loves Lebanese foods and visiting art galleries, but doesn’t love referring to himself in the third person.

Greg Wolf TD ‘26

Hari Manchi TC ‘28

String Bass

Chelsea Strayer YSM ‘25

Percussion

Max Su SY ‘25, Principal

Max plays percussion and is a senior in Saybrook College.

Madeline Chun SM ‘26

Madeline plays percussion and is a junior in Silliman College.

Jacob Leshnower GH ‘27

Jacob Leshnower is a sophomore percussionist in Grace Hopper College from Long Island, New York, and plans to study Music and Statistics & Data Science. He began playing piano at the age of two and percussion in the fourth grade. Jacob has performed on percussion with the NAfME All-National Symphony Orchestra and NAfME All-Eastern Symphonic Band, and on piano with the New York All-State Symphonic Band. He was also a finalist in NPR’s radio show From The Top and appeared in NPR’s “Daily Joy” feature. In the summers, Jacob has participated in the Juilliard Summer Percussion Seminar & Masterclass Series, the Boston University Tanglewood Institute, and the NYU Sandbox Percussion Seminar. Outside of music, Jacob enjoys competing in Rubik’s cube competitions and juggling.

Nikolai Stephens-Zumbaum BF ‘26

Nikolai plays percussion and is a junior in Benjamin Franklin college. He is majoring in mechanical engineering and plays soccer and tennis outside of school.

Tally Vaneman GH ‘27

Tally is a sophomore in Grace Hopper who’s desperately trying to cram astronomy, chemistry, and physics into one major. They’ve been playing percussion since 5th grade in a variety of ensembles, but their favorite was their high school percussion ensemble where they played “Manah Manah.” When they’re not in rehearsal (which is rare) they complete numerous PSets, attempt to balance time with friends and sleep, and serve as the KBB section leader in the YPMB. Feel free to contact Tally if you have a dog that needs petting!

Zahra Virani SY ‘26

Zahra plays percussion and is a junior in Saybrook College. She is majoring in Urban Studies and History of Art. She is from Houston Texas and has played percussion since middle school. When she’s not in rehearsal, you can find her wandering in the art gallery, painting, or hanging out.

Mirabel Solomon BF ‘28

Mirabel is a first-year in Benjamin Franklin college from Westchester, NY. She has no clue what she wants to study. Maybe economics?? She has been playing percussion for eight years, both in her high school band/orchestra and in a percussion ensemble. In her free time, she likes to swim, listen to Taylor Swift, and explore different coffee shops. Most importantly, she loves her two dogs - Coconut and Hazelnut (although she’s allergic to nuts).