USYO Staff

Judy Meister, Strings

Judy Meister holds a Bachelor’s degree in music from Washington University and a Master’s degree in violin performance and literature from the University of Notre Dame.

Ms. Meister has played as a full time musician in the Knoxville and Virginia Symphonies and the Virginia Opera, participating in the Virginia Symphony’s Carnegie Hall debut. Ms. Meister has taught at the University of Notre Dame, Hillsdale College, the College of William and Mary, and Gardner-Webb University.

Currently, Ms. Meister divides her time between performing in the Charlotte Symphony Classic series, her concertmaster duties with Union Symphony, assisting in our youth, education, and outreach programs, and teaching at Wingate University and Winthrop University. She is also a member of Out of Bounds, a new music ensemble in residence at Winthrop University and CPCC. In her spare time she teaches privately through the Community School for the Arts.

Ms. Meister is in her eighth year as adjunct strings instructor at Wingate University. She resides in Monroe with her husband and daughter.

Sabrina Howard, Strings

Union Symphony Youth Orchestra welcomes  instructor and violinist Sabrina Howard to our staff. Ms. Howard is the former president of the North Carolina School Orchestra Association. She is currently the strings instructor at Charlotte Latin Sabrina Howard is the director of Lower, Middle, and Upper School string ensembles. Howard has more than 20 years of teaching experience. She previously served as the orchestra director at Mt. Tabor High School and Jefferson Middle School. Prior to those appointments, she served as the orchestra director at Independence High School and South Charlotte Middle School.

Howard received her National Board certification in 2005 and was named the 2007 Western Region Orchestra Director of the Year. She received her bachelor's degree in music education from the University of Southern Mississippi and a master's degree in music education from the University of South Carolina..

Amanda Turner, Strings

Amanda J. Turner is a 1998 graduate of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro with a Bachelor of Music Education degree.  She received the Master of Music Education degree from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro in 2005.  Mrs. Turner also received her National Board Certification in Orchestra.  Mrs. Turner, a violist, has performed with the Greensboro Philharmonic Orchestra, Greensboro, North Carolina; Charlotte Civic Orchestra, Charlotte, North Carolina; the Union County Symphony, Monroe, North Carolina and the Charlotte Philharmonic Orchestra, Charlotte, North Carolina.  Mrs. Turner is in her 12th year of teaching, and is currently the orchestra director at East Mecklenburg High School and Ardrey Kell High School both located in Charlotte, North Carolina.  Mrs. Turner taught previously at McClintock Middle School in Charlotte, North Carolina.  Mrs. Turner’s orchestra’s have received superior ratings at both state and regional competitions for the past 12 years and have traveled to New York, New York; Chicago, Illinois; Boston, Massachusetts; and Orlando, Florida.  Mrs. Turner has served as a guest clinician/conductor at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro Summer Music Camp for the past five summers, the Rock Hill All County Orchestra, Onslow County and Robeson All County Middle School Orchestras.  She is currently the North Carolina Orchestra President-Elect for the North Carolina Music Educators Association and is a Past District 6 President of the North Carolina Music Educators Association.  She and her husband, Chad, a band director at Albemarle Middle and High Schools, currently reside in Indian Trail, North Carolina with their beautiful daughter, Addison, a future cellist! 

Jennifer Frisina, Strings

Jennifer Frisina is a cellist and local music educator. She has taught orchestra in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools since 1981 and currently teaches at two middle schools.  She is a member of the Union Symphony Orchestra and a past member of the Charlotte Civic Orchestra and Charlotte Philharmonic. She received her music education degrees from Jacksonville University (BME) and Florida State University (MME). She enjoys playing musical theater and for church productions in the area as well as teaching private cello lessons. She is married and the mother of three grown children.

Keith James, Winds and Percussion

Union Symphony Youth Orchestra welcomes instructor Keith James to our staff. Keith James is the director of bands at Marvin Ridge High School.

USCHAP Staff

Beth Joy Fowler, Allegro Strings (not pictured)

Beth Joy Fowler has been a music teacher of choirs, strings, orchestras, and handbells in several public and private schools.  Mrs. Fowler graduated cum laude with a degree in Music Education from Asbury College.  She studied violin at the University of KY with Abraham Mishkind, and attended graduate school at Wright State University.  Beth Joy started the strings programs in four school systems and directed multiple choirs, orchestras, and handbell choirs in several churches.  She was the past president of the Dayton Federation Music Club and was an active violinist in the Charlotte Philharmonic for over ten years.

Her current responsibilities include teaching violin at Wingate University, Covenant Day School, and Benton Heights Elementary School of the Arts.  Beth Joy is a member of the American Suzuki Assoc., NC Suzuki Teachers Assoc., AGEHR, MENC, and Mu Phi Epsilon Music Fraternity.

Administrative Staff

Lee Northcutt, Administrative Consultant

Lee Northcutt graduated cum laude from Pfeiffer College where he earned a B. A. in Church Music and a minor in Business Administration. Mr. Northcutt also received a Master of Music degree from Yale University.

Currently, Mr. Northcutt is president of Brodt Music Company, Inc., an international supplier of sheet music. He is also the Director of Music of the First Presbyterian Church of Monroe, NC. In addition, has has served as president on many arts boards and organizations in Charlotte, NC including Carolinas Concert Association, Charlotte East Rotary and the Oratorio Singers of Charlotte. Mr. Northcutt served on the Charlotte Symphony Music Director Search Committee and is chair for the NC Blumenthal Performing Arts Center Organ Committee. He is a past board member for Choristers Guild, a national service organization with an emphasis on children’s choirs.

His solo organ recitals and church choir tours have taken him across the United States as well as many appearances in England and Europe; including recitals at the St. Thomas Church in New York City, Washington’s National Cathedral, London’s famed Westminster Abbey and St. Paul’s Cathedral, and the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris, France.

He has served as guest conductor for the Union Symphony Orchestra and has also served as its Chorus Master. Mr. Northcutt served as accompanist for the Allegro Foundation’s visit to sing at the White House in Washington, DC in December 2005.

In 1996, Mr. Northcutt was chosen by Chorus America to travel to Salt Lake City, UT and conduct the world-famous Mormon Tabernacle Choir in one of their Sunday television and radio broadcasts of Music and the Spoken Word.

Lee and wife Dr. Kristin Northcutt reside in Charlotte, NC and are the proud parents of twin boys Paul and Tim.

Rosemary Webster, Strings

Rosemary Webster is a double bassist who has recently relocated to this area, from the Washington, DC area, to live closer to her family.  She is a member of the Union Symphony Orchestra and volunteers with the Winthrop University Chamber Orchestra.  She has a Bachelor of Music degree from the Eastman School of Music, and a Master of Arts degree from the University of Maryland.  She played in the Arlington Symphony Orchestra in Virginia, and the Avanti Orchestra in Washington, DC.  She is a member of Sigma Alpha Iota National Music Fraternity and the Society of Pi Kappa Lambda.

Mrs. Webster taught vocal and instrumental music for 31 years in the Montgomery County Public Schools in Maryland.  She was the founder of the Montgomery County Public Schools Honors Orchestra program and directed the Middle School Honors Orchestra for several years.  She was very active with the Maryland Classic Youth Orchestra program, serving on the Board of Directors and coaching double bass sectionals.  She also had a private double bass studio and many of her private students participated in the youth orchestra program.  Mrs. Webster is a strong advocate for music education.  She is looking forward to continuing this work in her new home, by being associated with the Union Symphony Youth Orchestra program

Craig Retzlaff, Winds and Percussion

Craig Retzlaff is currently the Principal Trumpet of the Union Symphony Orchestra and an active freelancer in the greater Charlotte area.  His training started in Delaware at the age of 9 with his middle school band director Jason Rogers and continued while attending the prestigious Peabody Conservatory of Music of the Johns Hopkins University earning both a Bachelor of Music (Trumpet Performance) and Bachelor of Music Education.  After graduating Peabody, Craig to attended the Bob Cole Conservatory of Music at the California State University, Long Beach earning a Master of Music degree (Trumpet Performance) and serving as  trumpet teaching assistant and brass chamber music graduate assistant.

His primary trumpet instructors include Robert Frear (Former Principal Trumpet, Israel Philharmonic Orchestra), Wayne Cameron (Peabody Institute), Gene Young (Oberlin College) and Charles Schlueter (Former Principal Trumpet, Boston Symphony Orchestra).  Additional studies include Chris Gekker, Andrew Balio, Jonas Haltia, and Steve Hendrickson.  He has also performed in master classes and chamber music coachings given by Susan Slaughter, Charles Schlueter, Anthony Plog, John Rojack, Toby Hanks, Peter Landgren, James Olin and Graham Ashton.

Craig has performed with the California Philharmonic Orchestra, the West Los Angeles Symphony Orchestra, the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra's "Soulful Symphony", the Salisbury Symphony Orchestra, and the Delaware Choral Society Orchestra.  He has also performed at numerous venues throughout the east coast including Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center, Heinz Hall, Royce Hall and Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center and has performed under the baton of Gene Young, Harlan Parker, Gustav Meier, Hajime Teri Murai, Lawrence Leighton Smith, Alexander Treger and Edward Polochick.

An avid music educator, Craig is in his fourth year as Director of Bands at Monroe Middle School where the bands have received “Superior” ratings at the SCDBA MPA Festivals.  Several of his trumpet students have received top chairs in the county, regional and state honor bands as well as gained admittance into the prestigious North Carolina School of the Arts.

When not doing something music related, Craig enjoys spending time with his wife, pets, family and friends as well as following his beloved New York Yankees.

Megan Morris, Vivace Strings

Megan Morris, violinist from Charlotte, NC, holds a BM in Music Education from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. She is currently the Orchestra Director at Mint Hill Middle School in Matthews and Rocky River High School in Mint Hill. Megan also teaches private lessons in Charlotte and coaches the Vivace Strings chamber ensemble.

Elizabeth Pilot, Exposition (not pictured)

Elizabeth Pilot, cellist from Rock Hill, SC, holds a BM in Music Education from Winthrop University. She is currently an orchestra director for Richland District #2 in Columbia, SC as well as she is the instructor for Exposition.

Union Symphony Youth Orchestra welcomes new Union Symphony Youth Director, Tom LaJoie. LaJoie, also Director of the Symphony Orchestra at UNC Charlotte, has extensive experience at all levels of music education from elementary through college level. He has taught orchestra, Advanced Placement Music Theory, and IB Music in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools System for 19 years. He has also been guest conductor for various honor ensembles such as the Western Region Repertory Orchestra and the York County Senior String Honors Orchestra. He has a great deal of experience with full orchestras as well, has frequently programmed for his top ensemble at Myers Park and for the Symphony Orchestra at UNC Charlotte. Being a string pedagogue, LaJoie brings these skills to instruction for technique to achieve the best sound possible in performance. We look forward to this season with Tom LaJoie.