Michael Filson is the proud owner of a servicebased, reinvented record label, and a brand new commercial recording facility in Fullerton. ArtiSans Label is the world’s first & only full-service record company, offering all the services of a traditional label to any artist of any genre, at any career stage. You can Release Your Music™ with ArtiSans Label without giving up your profits, copyrights, or control! Record label: http://www.artisanslabel.com Studio: http://studio.artisanslabel.com

Ellen Linn (99) lives in Worcester Massachusetts and is the Music Director at Saint Luke the Evangelist Church in Westborough Massachusetts. Ellen works with five different musical groups, both traditional and contemporary, and plays lots of weddings and funerals in addition to regular Masses each weekend. Ellen lives with Aaron, her 23-year old autistic son, who is a whiz at video games and who also leads a busy life with lots of friends, both online and off!

Alyssa Donaldson Wine is the Music Teacher for 3 Montessori Schools in Pasadena. Teaching 2yrs-4th grade! “Its great.” Alyssa continues to work on her music, writing, gigging and recording. She also got married last November, 11/22/08 and she and her husband Jason are living in San Dimas. http://www.facebook.com/pages/Alyssa-Wine/117519423553

Joel Wilson and his wife Darci welcomed a baby boy, Jackson Hamilton Wilson, last November. Joel is the choral director at Claremont High School.

Mark Raymond Velarde recently performed in Cats as Coricopat/Genghis at the Moonlight Amphitheatre in Vista, CA. The production ran from Sept. 9-26. After graduating, Mark performed at Disney doing various things in their Entertainment Dept. where he got to do some photo/film shoots. Mark earned a dance scholarship at Jimmie DeFore’s, and has been doing musicals ever since - Annie Get Your Gun, The King & I, West Side Story, Oklahoma!, Kismet, 42nd Street, All Shook Up, and Smile!

Joseph Klein will be featured in a special event concert this quarter with Matthew Elgart and Peter Yates on Saturday, December 6th, discussing his original compositions including a performance of one written for the The Elgart/Yates Guitar Duo.
Dr. Klein holds degrees in composition from Indiana University (DM, 1991), University of California, San Diego (MA, 1986), and California State Polytechnic University, Pomona (BA, 1984). His composition teachers have included Harvey Sollberger, Claude Baker, Robert Erickson, and Roger Reynolds. He is currently Professor of Composition at the University of North Texas College of Music, where he has served as Chair of Composition Studies since 1999. Klein’s compositions for various media have been performed and broadcast internationally, and he has been a featured guest composer at academic institutions, performance venues, conferences, and music festivals throughout North America, Europe, and Asia. His recorded works are available on the Innova, Centaur, and Mark labels. 

Christina Galit has accepted a position at Diamond Ranch HS as Choir Director.

Jim Huff and Sarah Wallin were married on August 23rd followed by a honeymoon in Oahu.  

Jonathan Guillen wrote, mixed and edited the music for the radio play Termen Vox Machinawhich opened June 28th at the Oracle Theatre in Chicago.

Gustavo Jimenez presented a master class and concert with Janet Noll at CPP in January and won second place in the Gerda Lissner International Vocal Competition in March 2008 - an award which comes with a substantial grant.

Ann Noriel addressed the Careers in Music class in the Spring.  She also sang Josephine in the Lewis Family Playhouse production of HMS Pinafore.

Mark Raymond Velarde performed in Oklahomaand Wonderful World of Christmaswith the Candlelight Pavilion during the 2007-2008 season.

Melanie Alpert sang Lady Thiang in The King & I for Performance Riverside in February.

Spring 2008 Alumni Activities

David Martinez is currently serving as a Second Lieutenant in the National Guard, anticipating training in military intelligence. David is hoping to be selected for the NASA space program. He continues his music, playing guitar, and plans to return to school for a masters in music composition.

Isaac Piercy & Cynthia Amaro will be married in April at the Fullerton Arboretum with a reception at The Meridian Club, also in Fullerton.

Kurt Samson & Yuko Aoyama
were married March 21st in Las Vegas, NV.

Richard Firman and his wife Karen Eloisa welcomed their first child, Richard Vincent Firman, on Aug. 16th, 2007. Richard is President and owner of KYR Music Store which is in it’s 6th year and is growing by leaps and bounds with over 550 students taking lessons and an expansion planned that will double the store’s square footage. KYR has over 30 instructors, many of them graduates of CPP’s music program. For more information visit the KYR website at http://www.kyrmusic.com/

Karlo Arenas is the advisor for Bronco Broadcasting, CPP’s new radio station, as well as BEAT’s concerts and special events committees. Karlo started working on the radio station project when he was still a
Cal Poly Pomona music student.

David Laidlaw & Mavi Cazares will be married April 25, 2009. David is currently working for TAXI, The World’s Leading Independent A&R Company. He most recently became part of the A&R team working to help on special music projects. TAXI has helped thousands of musicians sign contracts such as artist deals with major and indie labels, staff songwriter and single song publishing deals, as well as film, TV, commercial and video game placements. David focuses on video game connections, and the online music university project, as well as keeping track of the deals that TAXI members receive after their music was forwarded through TAXI. For more information visit the TAXI website at http://www.taxi.com/

JohnPaul Trotter, Felix Salazar, & Philip Graulty along with the other Los Angeles Electric 8 group members perform at Cal Poly Pomona on April 25th, as part of the Spring 2008 Guitar Festival. For more information on the Spring 2008 Guitar Festival visit www.class.csupomona.edu/mu

Ann Noriel, founder and General Director announced the celebration of the 10 year anniversary of the Southland Opera. For more information visit the website at www.southlandopera.org

Linda Corwin and a number of her students participated in the grand opening gala celebration for the newly reconstructed Covina Center for the Performing Arts www.covinacenter.com/index.html. Janet Noll performed with them in the Lakme Duet and the finale from “Sunday in the Park with George”.Linda’s vocal studio (where she teaches 50 students weekly) is now housed in the Center.

Matt Starcher’s band The Denouement will present a special concert to benefit the Music Industry Studies program on February 1st featuring the band and Joanna Chase. The concert will be in the Music Recital Hall and tickets will be $10.

Christina Galit, Loren Vasquez Martinez, Bobby Laird, David Cahueque, Jackie Cox, Kristen Hamilton, Joel Wilson, Jennifer Dunigan and Lawrence Fitz returned to CPP to perform in the annual Charles Lindsley Vocal Scholarship Fund Raiser on November 2nd and alumni Tatiana Thibodeaux returned to honor Dr. Phillip Clarke and perform in the Phillip Clarke Piano Scholarship Fund Raiser held November 16th.

Sheryl Santiaguel is an AmeriCorps Promise Fellow through the Academy for Literacy Through The Arts program, associated with the Cal Poly Pomona Downtown Center, coordinating arts programs for community youth.

Tammy Carstersen and her husband Charlie welcomed a new addition.
Saige Michele Carstersen, born July 8th in Placerville, 7 lbs 12.1 oz and 20” long

Sarah Wallin performed with the strings of the Aineo Christian Chamber Orchestra of Fullerton, CA at the prestigious Colburn School of the Arts in Los Angeles on September 16, 2007 as second violinist in their performance of Vivaldi’s “Four Seasons” and “Waltz” from Tchaikovsky’s “Serenade for Strings”. In addition Sarah premiered an original work, a lush arrangement of Andrae Crouch’s beloved gospel tune “My Tribute” .

Veronica Amador, Asst. Operations Director for Guerilla Union, just wrapped up a nation-wide tour “Rock the Bells” including four large-scale, all-day festivals that featured artists such as Rage Against the Machine, Wu-Tang Clan, Talib Kweli, Pharaohe Monch, and Immortal Technique.

Damion Frigillana performed his Master’s Recital in the Recital Hall at Cal State
Long Beach on May 21, 2007. The program included solos and duets for a number of percussion instruments. The featured work was the Concerto #1 for Timpani by William Craft, with Janet Noll playing the orchestral reduction. Frigillana and Noll had the great privilege of performing the work for Mr. Craft and Raynor Carroll (Damion’s teacher and principal percussionist with the Los Angeles Philharmonic) the previous week.

Christopher Jackson performed his dream role as Coalhouse Walker Jr. for In The Company’s production of “Ragtime” in August 2007.

Alyssa Cossey has accepted a combo position in the Bonita Unified School District teaching four sections of choir: a 7th and 8th grade girls chorus and a 6th grade mixed chorus at Ramona Middle School; and a Chamber Singers and a Women’s Ensemble at San Dimas High School.

Joel Wilson has entered the Masters Program at Cal State Fullerton in Choral Music.

Daniel Sandt has accepted a position as Band Director for San Dimas HS.

Joseph Ann and Matt Starcher worked for EMI/Capitol Records as the street team promoters for Korn on the “Family Values” tour July and August. Joe has now accepted a position as a tour coordinator for Capitol Records.
Matt’s band The Denouement is currently recording a CD to be released this Fall.