BY YOUNG ARTISTS,
FOR YOUNG ARTISTS..
Young string students are inspired by mentors that they can relate to.
We are proud that our faculty is comprised of creative early-career professionals who are thriving in the music world. The faculty bring vibrant new ideas and hands-on experience to the world of music education.
ENSEMBLE-IN-RESIDENCE
ORION TRIO
Featuring violinist-composer Cole Habekost, multi-instrumentalist Alex Munson, and sound-healer Isabella Weik, the Orion Trio is a unique group that is carving its own niche into the music world. The group blends ambient soundscapes with jazz, classical, and contemporary influences - creating music that is borderless.
An Orion Trio concert is a truly special experience where audience members are fully immersed in an expansive and breathtaking sound world.
FACULTY
Cole Habekost, Director, Violin
Cole Habekost is a violinist and composer based in New York City. He has premiered dozens of works for solo violin or chamber ensemble since 2020. As a champion of new music, Cole collaborates with an ever-expanding network of composers from around the world.
Cole’s personal mission is to use sound to inspire and enrich lives. He strives to ease the suffering of others through compassionate and altruistic music making.
Cole is a graduate of the Toledo School for the Arts, and holds a Bachelor of Music from Bowling Green State University, studying under Caroline Chin, and a Master of Music from the Manhattan School of Music, studying with Curtis Macomber.
Isabella Weik, President and CEO of
Toledo Mindfulness Institute
"No mud, no lotus." -Thich Nhat Hanh
Isabella Weik is the President and CEO of Toledo Mindfulness Institute. She has been immersed in mindfulness practices from a young age, inheriting the legacy of the Toledo Mindfulness Institute founded by her parents. This unique upbringing has led her to share this gift with businesses, community organizations, and institutions across the Midwest. As a trained Jazz musician, she has brought her background of vocal jazz into her career through hosting Sound Healing Concerts and offering weekly sound baths at TMI. Isabella's work is driven by a profound desire to reduce suffering in the world. She believes in cultivating deep roots, much like a tree, to foster growth and resilience.
Alex Munson, Co-Director, Conductor
Alex Munson currently serves as an orchestra director for the Toledo School for the Arts. There, he teaches three levels of orchestra, two levels of guitar, general music, and co-directors the TSA mariachi band. Alex regularly collaborates with artists at the school through performances, and arts integration. Most recently, the TSA String Orchestra received a superior rating at the 2025 OMEA State Orchestra Adjudication under his direction.
Alex is also an active performer, and regularly performs for schools and other organizations on many instruments including violin, keyboard, trumpet and voice.
Clarissa Yanke, Violin & Viola
Clarissa Yanke serves as the assistant orchestra director at Maumee City Schools. She collaboratively teaches three levels of orchestra. She is also a private violin and viola instructor at RiverFront Studios in Waterville, where she teaches students of varying levels and consistently prepares them for auditions and additional performances. Clarissa's mission is to inspire all students to find joy in the discovery and excitement of playing music.
Clarissa received her Bachelor's of Music Education and Bachelor's of Spanish from Bowling Green State University. She has studied under Dr. Julian Ross, Dr. Penny Thompson Kruse, and Dr. Solomia Soroka throughout her musical journey. She still continues to play and sing in the Toledo Area for churches, in musicals, and at other events.
Gene Waldron, Bass
Recently named Assistant Principal Bass for the Alabama Symphony Orchestra, Gene Waldron III grew up in Wyoming, Ohio where he began violin and double bass studies at age three and nine, respectively. Throughout his undergraduate degree at Bowling Green State University, he was a Hansen Music Fellow and won the Douglass Wayland Chamber Competition. He was named runner up in the Young Artists Concerto Competition while completing a Master’s degree at Florida State University and playing with the Tallahassee Symphony Orchestra.
During studies at the Cleveland Institute of Music, Gene performed with many orchestras such as The Cleveland Orchestra, Charleston Symphony Orchestra, and NACO as part of their 2024 Mentorship Program. Throughout his career, Gene has played under the direction of Franz Welser-Möst, John Adams, Fabio Luisi, and Alexander Shelley in some of the most prestigious halls around the world such as Carnegie Hall, Berliner Philharmonie, and the Wiener(Vienna) Musikverein.
Anthony Marchese, Cello
Active in contemporary music, Anthony Marchese often works with new music and living composers. Currently ABD in their DMA at BGSU, Anthony actively performs with their ensemble Spectra Trio as well as with numerous regional symphonies in Northwest Ohio and Southeast Michigan. Anthony has taught students of all ages having received Suzuki certification and completing multiple seminars with pedagogues like Rock Mooney. Outside of classical music, Anthony works as a session cellist and is featured on albums by Joanna Sterling, the Juliets, and Three Body Problem. They have also studied improvisation and folk music with Mike Block and Mazz swift. Recently Anthony recorded for 2 award-winning independent film soundtracks and performed an original song cycle with New Zeeland based singer songwriter, Maggie Coco.
Selena Trombley, Coordinator
Selena Trombley is a sophomore music education and violin performance double major at Butler University. There, she studies violin primarily with Dr. Mélanie Clapiès while also taking secondary viola lessons with Richard Auldon Clark. Selena is currently an enthusiastic member of the Butler Symphony Orchestra and a substitute violinist for the Danville Symphony Orchestra. Furthermore, Selena is a registered teaching artist with the Butler Community Arts School, where she teaches violin lessons to students of varying ages.
Last summer, Selena interned with the Toledo Alliance for the Performing Arts (TAPA) for their summer “In the Parks” series, where she taught children, ages 4-16, how to play instruments in the winds, brass, string, and percussion families. In the future, Selena aspires to perform and teach orchestra in a middle or high school environment. However, during her first year of undergraduate studies, she has discovered a growing passion for teaching young students and is now exploring the possibility of pursuing general music education.