Administration & Faculty String Faculty
String Faculty
Leah Calvert, Violin/Fiddle Faculty
Leah Calvert is an Atlanta native whose musical roots extend deep into Georgia’s red clay. At the age of six she began classical violin lessons, but it was not long before she discovered the fiddle, to the consternation of her violin teacher and delight of her parents. After playing throughout high school in her father’s bluegrass group Leah headed to college at the University of Georgia, where she earned her bachelor’s degree while performing with Calliope Fair, an Athens-based band specializing in European folk music. Leah currently is fiddler and vocalist in The Dappled Grays, a fixture in Atlanta’s acoustic music scene whose 2007 release Doin’ My Job reached the top ten on the Sirius/XM bluegrass charts and earned the band a coveted spot as showcase performers during the International Bluegrass Music Association’s 2008 annual convention. Leah has taught fiddle workshops at Ohio’s Denison University and music festivals across the country, and she is excited about passing along what she’s learned during her own musical journey to students in the Atlanta area.
Allison James, Violin Faculty
full bio available soon
Elizabeth Oloadele, Violin Faculty
Elizabeth Oloadele began playing the violin at age five, and the piano at age nine. She is a graduate of the DeKalb School of the Arts. Before heading to college, she was a member of the Talent Development Program, a learning community of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. In conjunction with this progam, she studied with Atlanta Symphony members Judith Cox and Sandy Salzinger; she also played a number of gigs around Atlanta, including performances at the Atlanta Civic Center during the 2003 and 2004 Atlanta Heroes Awards. Elizabeth served as concertmaster of the DeKalb Youth Symphony Orchestra in 2003/2004 season and went with the orchestra on a music tour to Beijing, China.
Elizabeth recently completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Georgia, where she earned dual degrees in Music Education and Music Performance. While at UGA, Elizabeth studied solo and chamber repertoire with Michael Heald, and was a member of the UGA Symphony Orchestra. She also taught for the University of Georgia String Project, a string pedagogy music studio in Athens, where she worked with students ranging from five to eighteen years old. Through her experience in teaching in studio and at the elementary and high school levels, Elizabeth has solidified her belief that everyone should have the opportunity to learn music and gain an outlet for self-expression.
Val Taylor, Cello Faculty
Val Taylor joined the Music Center faculty with vast experience as a performer and educator. While enrolled as an Organic Chemistry and Romance Language and Literature student at Radcliffe/Harvard College, she studied cello with renowned teachers Irene Sharp and Rolf Storseth, as well as with Stefan Popov at New England Conservatory of Music. After completing her undergraduate education, she moved to the West coast, where for 30 years she maintained an active career as a performer and educator. During this period, Val was assistant to Ms. Sharp’s at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and to Ms. Martha Blackman at Stanford University. Val played with a variety of orchestras and ensembles, including the Fremont Philharmonic Orchestra, the Cantabrigia Baroque Players, the Nova Vista Symphony, and the San Francisco Opera Orchestra.
Val also spent twenty years teaching cello and coaching chamber ensembles at the Palo Alto Chamber Orchestra Summer Camp and ten years teaching at Saratoga Music and Fine Arts. Since relocating to Atlanta in the mid 1990s, Val has taught at the Paideia School, Woodward Academy, and through the Georgia State University Neighborhood Music Schools.