Max K. began his viola studies at the age of fifteen. He earned Bachelor and Master of Music degrees in his native Poland, as well as a Master of Music degree from the Peabody Conservatory of Music in Baltimore. During his graduate studies he qualified for a one-year scholarship at the historic University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna, where he studied with Wolfgang Klos.
As a soloist and chamber musician, Max has received many prizes in local and national competitions in Poland. In 2017, he won auditions for the I, CULTURE Orchestra concert tour, and, as an orchestra musician, he performed in four European countries with world-known violinist Julian Rachlin. As a member of diverse orchestras, Max has recorded CDs under various labels such as Naxos and DUX. In 2018, under the baton of Marin Alsop, he led the Peabody Opera Theater Orchestra viola section in the production of Leonard Berstein’s Mass. He has also performed in Vienna Musikverein and Berlin Konzerthaus under the batons of Christoph von Dohnanyi and Andrey Boreyko. Mr. Krzak is an alumnus of the National Music Festival, and in 2019, he was invited to the Atlantic Music Festival as Resident Artist Fellow. He is a recipient of a scholarship from The Kosciuszko Foundation in New York.
Max performs regularly throughout the DMV area as an orchestra and chamber musician with various ensembles. Additionally, he is a teaching artist with OrchKids of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. He plays a viola made by Maciej Lacek in 2011.
Outside of performing and teaching, Max actively promotes Polish language and music among American classical singers with his colleague, Dr. Laura Kafka-Price. They have presented at numerous conferences and workshops nationwide, coaching singers and voice teachers in Polish lyric diction. Their book, Polish Pronunciation Guide for Singers, was published by Oxford University Press (2025).
Julienne F. is the Orchestra Director at Marley Middle School, where she teaches orchestra and general music. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Towson University in Music Education (2024) and just completed a graduate certificate from the University of MD, College Park, in Special Education for the General Educators (2026). During her undergraduate career, Julienne received the Towson University Music Education Talent Award, Ben O’Brien Scholarship, the Towson University General Music Scholarship for Cello Performance, Cecelia B. Barczyk Cello Endowment Award, and Harold D. and Elizabeth S. Kehne Scholarship. During her cello lessons, she studied under Professor Cecelia Barczyk and Dr. Joseph Gotoff.
Julienne is a member of the National Association for Music Education, the American String Teachers Association, the Maryland Music Educators Association, and the Maryland Orchestra Directors Association. She presided over Towson University’s chapter of the National Association for Music Education in 2023 and continues to be an active member of the Maryland Music Education Community. She strives for growth and is pursuing her graduate degree.
Julienne believes that the arts are a quintessential part of development and every child deserves to experience music. She strives to be an inspirational music teacher, and her primary goal is to create a healthy and supportive environment within her music classroom. Julienne has explored many holistic options for musicians and is an advocate for the health and wellbeing of her students. She explores posture and breathing with her students in order to prevent injuries
Asa Z. is a violinist and violist based in Cockeysville, Maryland. In this capacity, they perform with a number of ensembles, including The Smithsonian Chamber Players, The Washington Bach Consort,The Thirteen, Tempesta di Mare, the North Carolina Baroque Orchestra, Mallarmé Chamber Players, Modern Musick, Musica Spira, Burning River Baroque, Bach Akademie Charlotte, Handel Choir of Baltimore, Baltimore Choral Arts, BaRock Band, Tazzina Drammatica, the Baltimore Baroque Band, and Charm City Baroque. Asa has been teaching violin and viola for more than a decade in various capacities, including positions with the Peabody Preparatory and Musical Empowerment. Asa holds a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Music from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, as well as a Master of Music and Graduate Performance Diploma from Peabody Conservatory. They are currently pursuing a Doctor of Musical Arts degree at Peabody.
Dorothy C. was graduated from New England Conservatory and Tufts University with a dual degree in Viola Performance and English Literature and from Peabody Conservatory with a Graduate Performance Diploma in Viola Performance. She has studied most recently in Berlin with Felix Schwartz, the principal violist of the Staatskappelle Berlin. Her previous professors include Li-Kuo Chang, VIctoria Chiang, Mark Lakirovich, Roger Tapping, Sel Kardan, and Kim Kashkashian.
As a freelance orchestral musician, Dorothy has played with the Amadeus orchestra, the Apollo Orchestra, the Delaware Symphony, the Lancaster Symphony, the Londontowne Symphony, Symphony No. 1, the Boston Philharmonic, and the Atlantic Symphony, among others. In addition, she served as assistant principal viola for two symphony tours of Germany with the International Junge Orchesterakademie, and was a member of the Jungen Sinfonie Berlin while studying with Felix Schwartz.
As a chamber musician, Dorothy is a founding member of The Laurel Quartet, and was also a founding member of the Syrinx Ensemble while studying in Boston, She has also been a regular collaborator with Classical Revolution Baltimore and has been a guest artist with the Evolution Concert Series, the Edwin Trio, the HexaCollective, and the Iris Quartet.
In the past, she has taught for TWIGS at Baltimore School for the Arts, OrchKids, Baltimore Talent Education Center, and music-intensive camps for the Peabody Preparatory.
Anna W. has been in the world of music for over a decade. With more than ten years of experience performing on the violin, along with several years of proficiency on the viola, piano, and cello, Anna loves everything about music! She currently is majoring in Aerospace Engineering at the University of Maryland, College Park, and dedicates most of her free time towards her devotion to and love of music. During her high school years, Anna was president of the String Orchestra, as well as the Piano Club. She also had leadership roles in the Music Honor Society and performed in the Pit Orchestra. Anna’s experiences and future reflect her dedication to the art, and her enthusiasm of sharing and helping others explore the culture of music.
Kim K. inherited her love of music from her father, who played trumpet with a US Army Air Force band during World War II. Kim began playing flute at age 10 and was a member of bands and orchestras associated with Towson University’s outstanding music department. She earned bachelor and masters degrees in music education at Towson where she studied flute under noted instructor Robin McKey-Day.
During a 32-year teaching career with the Baltimore County Public Schools, elementary and middle school bands and orchestras under Kim’s direction received superior and excellent ratings at both county and state levels of competition. In addition she served as the elementary instrumental music representative to the Maryland Music Educators Association and has played flute and piccolo with the Gettysburg Symphony Orchestra.
Kim specializes in developing a lifelong love of music and performance in the youngest musicians. Although she excels at playing and teaching woodwinds (flute, clarinet and oboe), Kim is happy to work with students who are learning strings and brass. Quite simply, Kim’s passion isn’t just music, it’s teaching the techniques that guide beginning players to excel. Whether working with young musicians in several Howard County schools or as a part of the Mike’s Music family, Kim is uniquely qualified to nurture the sheer joy that comes from making music.
Elizabeth R. began studying the viola at age 9 and the flute at age 10, and has experience performing and teaching strings and woodwinds. She earned her Bachelor of Music in Music Education at Ithaca College, where she studied flute with Kelly Covert. She spent one semester at the Ithaca College London Center, taking lessons with Susan Milan at the Royal College of Music. After completing her undergraduate degree, Elizabeth moved to southern Maryland, where she taught pre-k through fifth grade band, strings, chorus, and general music for four years at St. Mary’s County Public Schools. While in Maryland, she earned her Master of Music in Music Education from Boston University. In 2010 she played Griffes’s Poem for Flute and Orchestra with the Chamber Orchestra of Southern Maryland In Concert as the winner of the COSMIC Young Artist Competition.
Elizabeth earned her PhD in music education at Temple University in 2019. While at Temple, she worked as a TA in the music education department, which included serving as a graduate conductor of the Night Owls Community Band and teaching Woodwind Methods to undergraduate and graduate students. She also taught as an adjunct and supervised student teachers at West Chester University. During her doctoral studies, she was a member of the viola faculty for the Music Education Pathways program at Settlement Music School in Philadelphia, PA and was a member of the flute faculty at Ferrwood Music Camp in Drums, PA. Elizabeth is happy to be back in Maryland, teaching 4th-6th grade band and orchestra in Prince George’s County Public Schools.