An electrical engineer since his days at Northwestern University, Matt Banner spent 11 years working in England where he met his wife, Jane, and acquired two children.  The girls started piano at 4, moving quickly to violin and bassoon, and the family soon became involved in local musical events, volunteering with the LSO not long after moving to Leesburg. 

After his daughter, Felicity, joined the Loudoun Symphony Youth Orchestra, Matt took on the role of parent liaison between the LSYO and the Loudoun Symphony board, and was then invited to become a member of the board. 

As president of the Loudoun Symphony this year, he is excited to see our finalist conductors as we identify the next LSO Music Director and Conductor, increase engagement with our community, and further grow our youth program.

Michelle Rippey studied violin, piano, and voice as a child, then dedicated herself to pursuing the flute beginning at age ten. She studied flute through high school at the North Carolina School of the Arts and during her summers at the Brevard Music Center. 

Ms. Rippey holds a Bachelor of Music in Flute Performance and a Master of Education.  

Ms. Rippey performs regularly with the Loudoun Symphony Orchestra, the Pro Art Chamber Orchestra (PACO) of Greater Washington D.C., and the Second Winds woodwind quintet. She is an alternate player with the Columbia Symphony Orchestra and the Piedmont Symphony Orchestra, and also performs regularly as a freelance musician. Ms. Rippey has a passion for teaching flute and piccolo. She is the flute instructor and director of the Flute Ensemble at Frederick Community College and maintains a private flute studio teaching lessons both in Loudoun County, VA and Frederick County, MD. She enjoys assisting youth programs as an adjudicator for youth contests, as a mentor for youth orchestra, and by providing sectional coaching, clinics, and master classes for young flutists for schools throughout the Potomac region.

Sheryl Rader is the Accounting and Audit Manager for Updegrove, McDaniel, McMullen & Chiccehitto, PLC, a full-service public accounting firm in Leesburg. She joined the firm in 2004 and became Audit and Accounting Manager in 2012.

Her public accounting career has focused largely on audit and financial reporting needs of businesses, nonprofit and religious organizations, as well as employee benefit plans. She also oversees the firms Client Support Services department which provides consulting on internal control systems, bookkeeping and payroll services, QuickBooks support, general business analysis, and accounting procedures and systems support.

She holds the AICPA Not-for-Profit Certificate providing additional expertise specific to nonprofit accounting and financial reporting, tax compliance, and governance.

Sheryl graduated with honors from George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, where she earned a B.S. degree in Accounting. She is a member of both the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Virginia Society of Certified Public Accountants, and serves in various volunteer leadership positions with local business, nonprofit and religious organizations.

Flutist Ashley Bowen-Sanchez is an active freelance musician in the D.C. Metropolitan area.  Currently, Ashley is a member of the Loudoun Symphony Orchestra and Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra of Greater Washington (PACO). She began her flute studies with Wendy Webb Kumer, then continued with George Pope, Mary Kay Robinson, and Walfrid Kujala. Ashley holds degrees in flute performance from the University of Akron (B.M) and Northwestern University (M.M.).

Nick Bulgarino has been a working professional musician performing, arranging, teaching, and organizing concerts since he was 18. Nick’s passion for music is not bound by genre; he has played in groups ranging from small chamber ensembles, big bands, historically informed performances, and symphony orchestras.

Nick studied with Larry Zalkind at the Eastman School of Music, where he received his Bachelor of Music in 2018. Nick continued his education at the Peabody Conservatory, studying under David Murray, and received his Master of Music in May of 2020.  Nick holds the honor of being the conservatory’s first sackbut student, performing with the Baltimore Baroque Band and Peabody Renaissance Ensemble.

Nick currently holds the Second Trombone position with the Loudoun Symphony Orchestra. He is an active freelancer who has performed with the Amadeus Concerts Orchestra, National Philharmonic Orchestra, Capitol Philharmonic of New Jersey, Washington Chamber Orchestra, Four Seasons Chamber Orchestra, Lancaster Symphony Orchestra, and Endless Mountain Music Festival.

Outside of music, Nick’s interests are model railroading in O Scale 2-Rail, vintage SEGA video game collecting, computer gaming, and spending time with his friends.

Brett’s day job is working with scientific nonprofits on both their administration and meetings.  As a member of several boards of directors, he is hopeful that his experience can be useful to the Loudoun Symphony.  Brett is also a volunteer board member for several community based nonprofits with the goals of growing community through sports and the arts.

Brett’s appreciation for the arts increased when his then-young daughter began ballet classes at three years old.  She danced through her childhood and eventually became a professional ballerina.  This experience resulted in a long-standing appreciation for the arts and how it can bring people together and be a positive force in the community.

Part of a family of avid amateur musicians, Kellan Hogye studied piano, flute, and guitar as a child and young adult. She was a devoted member of her high school marching band in Central Virginia, which sparked a long-term interest in school music programs.

Kellan holds a Bachelor of Arts in English, a minor in Classics, and a Master of Teaching from the University of Virginia, where she also participated in music ensembles and student theater. She has worked as a Latin teacher, English teacher, and reading interventionist in Loudoun County's public, private, and homeschool communities for nearly twenty years. Presently, she performs as a musician and vocalist with church-based bands in Loudoun.

Carrying on the family's musical tradition, Kellan's son and daughter are active musicians with the Loudoun Symphony Youth Orchestra, the Loudoun County High School Marching Band, the J.L. Simpson Middle School band program, and the Catoctin School of Music.

Kellan is excited for the opportunity to support the growth and development of Loudoun's student musicians through partnerships between the LSO/LSYO and local school and community music programs.

Mitra Setayesh has more than twenty-five years’ experience in various business leadership positions in the US and Europe.  Ms. Setayesh and her husband Luiz Taifas planned and founded Ion International Training Center. Up until recently, Mitra owned and headed MS Consulting Group, a full-service marketing and advertising agency. MS Consulting Group’s over 50 clients ranged from small businesses to big corporations such as Pepco, Giant Food, PAHO (Pan American Health Organization), etc., all attesting to her track record of increasing revenue and efficiency, while solving team conflicts and improving overall financial health of the organization. Prior to that, she served in many leadership roles in various industries, training sales teams coast to coast, turning companies around, and preparing and facilitating many for mergers and/or acquisitions. She has helped start and run 27 companies, 3 of which were her own.

Mitra brings a wealth of experience and expertise to any team she joins, and has a knack for spotting talent and potential, within the team members. She is a good mentor and strongly believes in gratitude, humility and giving back.

She received her graduate degrees from University of Lausanne, Switzerland and did her Ph.D. work in Psycho-Linguistics at The Sorbonne University in Paris, France.

Michelle is a corporate banker at PNC. She has over 20 years of experience in investment and commercial banking including several years on Wall St.  Michelle's love of the arts began at the young age of three when she began both ballet and violin. 

At the age of 10, she began studying piano and also won several national titles in pointe.  Michelle has continued to pursue her passion of both music and dance throughout the years, playing in several orchestras, playing for or performing in musicals and theatre shows, singing for her church, and also instructing, performing and competing in dance.

She has three school-aged boys who all play music.  Michelle graduated with honors from Wellesley College with a BA in Economics and a minor in Studio Art.

Catherine Palusci has been a violist with the Loudoun Symphony Orchestra since 1999, with a five-year hiatus to Texas. She has served as a Board member for the last two years.

Loving every minute of her beginner orchestra in the public school system in Plano, Texas, she eventually moved on to viola to fill its need, for the last 35 years. While in Texas, she performed in the Allen Philharmonic for six seasons. In addition to performing with the LSO, she also plays viola in the ProArte Chamber Orchestra (PACO) of Greater Washington DC, and the DC Strings Workshop. She enjoys being a part of the worship team at her church, King’s Cross.

Catherine happily calls Ashburn her home, where she maintains a private viola and violin studio. She also enjoys providing sectional instruction for young string players of various levels throughout Loudoun County schools.

Among her favorite company is her husband JP, son Gabriel, daughter Daniela, and their cat Leo.

Raelene Wagoner has been a First Violinist of the LSO for over 20 years and has served as a Board member of the Loudoun Symphony for the past four years.

Wagoner is Vice President, Talent Management at Unison. She has over 25 years of experience in technology firms as an HR executive, consulting delivery leader, and engineer. She has led the HR components of several mergers and acquisitions, as well as international experience in Latin America, Europe and Asia. Before joining CVP, Raelene spent 7 years as the HR executive in Mantas, a software company, and over 12 years at SRA International as a consulting delivery leader.

Raelene holds a BS in Computer Science and a Music minor from the College of William and Mary. Raelene is a Trustee on the William and Mary Foundation and former Board member of the William and Mary Career Center Employer Advisory Board.