Our Team

Allyson Cohen

Founder & Executive Director

Allyson Cohen is a violinist passionate about outreach and engagement. It is her belief that music should be accessible to everyone without the formalities and barriers of the concert hall that inspired the creation of CMOC. Also an advocate for contemporary music and the inclusion of underrepresented composers to the standard canon of repertoire, she is excited to bring this music to the audiences of all CMOC performances.

Allyson is currently studying with Professor Danielle Belen of the University of Michigan. Allyson holds a bachelor’s degree from the Robert McDuffie Center for Strings of Mercer University. She studied there with distinguished artists Amy Moretti, David Kim, and Robert McDuffie.

Allyson has given solo recitals at Carnegie Hall as well as the Kimmel Center. She has performed as a substitute for the Philadelphia Orchestra, and has played under the baton of renowned conductors Marin Alsop, Simon Rattle, and Yannick Nezet Seguin, and Stèphane Denéve. Allyson has acted as one of the concertmasters for the Macon-Mercer Symphony. She has attended Summer festivals such as The National Repertory Orchestra, NYO-USA, Bowdoin International Music Festival, The Manchester Music Festival, The Chautauqua Institute. In 2021 Allyson was named a young artist at Rome Chamber Music Festival. Allyson has had the privilege of taking lessons and masterclasses with James Ehnes, Miriam Fried, Catherine Cho, Donald Weilerstein, Cho Liang Lin, and Kathleen Winkler, among others. Allyson has collaborated with renowned musicians such as Lisa Batiashvili, Clive Greensmith, David Kim, and Robert McDuffie, Victoria Chiang, as well as with members of the Borromeo, Emerson, Ehnes, and Tokyo string quartets.

She has also appeared in concerts alongside members of R.E.M, The Rolling Stones, and the Allman Brothers. Allyson has appeared on NPR’s From the Top and has recorded for SiruisXm and PBS.

Allyson-Cohen-headshot

Valerie Xu-Friedman

Director of Marketing

Valerie Xu-Friedman is a student of Danielle Belen at the University of Michigan, pursuing a double major in Violin Performance and Communications and Media. She has performed with orchestras across Michigan, including the Flint, Adrian, Jackson, Lansing, Saginaw Bay, and Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestras. Valerie has spent her summers at Interlochen Arts Camp, Center Stage Strings, Harpa International Music Academy, The Chautauqua Institute, and the Aspen Music Festival. She has taught at BRAVO Workshop, giving chamber and private lessons. Valerie has been a two-time participant on the national radio show From the Top and performed as a piano accompanist at Carnegie Hall. Her research background focuses on organ donation procedures, digital sleep solutions, and the impact of social media on politics. Currently, she is involved in Development and Marketing at Ronald McDonald House Charities Ann Arbor.

IMG_7787

Artists

Jolie Rebelo

Violin

IMG_1126_JPEG copy

Jolie Rebelo is a 22 year old violinist from New York and began studying at the age of nine. As a current student of Danielle Belen, she is studying at the University of Michigan School of Music, Theater and Dance, where she holds the Stuart and Jane Sheill Scholarship. She began her studies with Steven Behr, working with Xiang Gao as a Freshman during her undergraduate studies, continuing to earn her bachelors while studying with Elicia Silverstein at the University of Delaware, where she was named a Distinguished Music Scholar for four years. In May of 2021, Jolie was awarded The Edward G. and Naomi L. Jefferson Prize in Music, continuing on to perform Ravel’s Tzigane with the university orchestra as a concerto competition winner. Jolie has had numerous opportunities to perform at world renowned halls, including Carnegie Hall and Kodak Theater, where she served as the concertmaster and soloist of the NY All-State Symphony.

Read Bio

Anda Jiang

Violin

IMG_7243_Original-768x960

Anda Jiang is a violinist from Ann Arbor, Michigan. Throughout high school, Jiang performed as concertmaster for ensembles such as the Michigan Youth Symphony Orchestra and the Pioneer High School Symphony Orchestra. She has attended a multitude of summer festivals such as Bowdoin International Music Festival, Sounding Point Academy, Encore Chamber Music Institute, and Center Stage Strings. In 2020, Jiang and her peers formed The Quartet Frederick and were honored as the first-place chamber ensemble by the Michigan String Teachers Association. In 2022 she performed as a concerto soloist in the Pioneer Orchestras Concerto Competition. Jiang is pursuing her studies at the University of Michigan, School of Music, Theater and Dance under the direction of Professor Danielle Belen.

Read Bio

Bethlehem Kelley

Violin

unnamed

Bethlehem Kelley is an Ethiopian American violinist from Lenexa, Kansas. She is currently a Junior at the University of Michigan where she studies violin performance with Danielle Belen. Betti was awarded first prize in the Kansas City Symphony Young Artist Competition and has soloed with the Midwest Chamber Ensemble as well as the Kansas City Civic Orchestra. This spring she will be performing the first movement of the Sibelius Violin Concerto in D Minor with the Rochester Symphony Orchestra. Some of her fondest musical memories include spending summers as a member of the National Youth Orchestra of the United States, studying at the Sphinx Performance Academy, and attending Center Stage Strings. Prior to college, she was a student of Kristin Velicer and Alice Joy Lewis.

Read Bio

Kathryn Moran

Viola

IMG_4500_Facetune_05-09-2021-00-32-12 copy

Violist Kate Moran, 23, is currently pursuing a double Master of Music in Performance and Chamber Music at the University of Michigan in the studio of Caroline Coade. She obtained her bachelor of Music at the University of Ottawa studying under Michael van der Sloot, having previously studied with Victoria Chiang and Choong-Jin Chang at the Peabody Conservatory of Johns Hopkins University. Kate has played with the National Arts Centre Orchestra, Ottawa Symphony Orchestra, Victoria Symphony Orchestra, Aspen Philharmonic Orchestra, Victoria Chamber Orchestra, Greater Victoria Youth Orchestra, Victoria Conservatory of Music Chamber Orchestra, and Peabody’s Symphony and Chamber Orchestras. Kate has also been privileged to play under world-renowned conductors such as Marin Alsop, Robert Spano, and Hugh Wolff, amongst others. She has won numerous awards and scholarships performing in venues across North America, including the prestigious Roberto and Mary Wood Scholarship Competition, the largest performing arts scholarship in Canada awarded at a music festival, and being invited twice to perform at the National Arts Centre. Kate also won first prize at the BC Provincial Music Festival in both Senior Solo Strings and Senior Chamber Music and third prize in the National category.

Read Bio

Benjamin Penzner

Viola

6B44FF8D-1E0B-45DA-BE77-23E8B595293E-768x1024

Benjamin Penzner is a masters student in Viola Performance major currently studying with Caroline Coade at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. He was named first prize winner in the solo and the excerpt competition with the American Viola Society, both in 2021. In 2022 he won 2nd place in the Lima Symphony Young Artist Competition. Benjamin won the UMICH Concerto competition in 2019, performing the complete Walton Viola Concerto in March 2022 at Hill Auditorium. Trio Matisse is an award winning Piano Trio, featuring Nick Hamblin, clarinet, and Ariya Laothitipong, piano. The trio has competed in Austin, Texas in the Coltman Chamber Music Competition, South Bend, Indiana in the 49th Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor where they won first prize in the Briggs Chamber Music Competition, and many more. Benjamin has performed with orchestras such as the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, the Colburn Conservatory Orchestra while on tour in Edinburgh and Dublin, the Pasadena Symphony, and the American Youth Symphony in which he was Principle.

Read Bio

Maria Savarese

Cello

39911591-9C85-4E75-B4C8-A495CC1CD095

Maria Savarese is an Ann Arbor based cellist who is pursuing a Master of Music degree under the tutelage of Dr. Amir Eldan. Inspired by her first music teacher, her grandfather, Maria strives to share the joy of music to audiences and students alike. Prior to moving to Ann Arbor, Maria was a Patti Johnson Wilson fellow with the Tulsa Symphony Orchestra and regularly performed with the Oklahoma City Philharmonic. There she studied with Dr. Meredith Blecha-Wells. She also won the Donna Turner Smith competition in 2022. Maria completed her undergraduate studies with Dr. Theodore Buchholz at the University of Arizona. While in Tucson, Maria won the String Solo Competition and the Tucson Cello Congress competition. Additionally, she was awarded with the 2020 Fred Fox School of Music Outstanding Senior Award. Since 2020, Maria has also studied with Alban Gerhardt. Additionally, Maria has completed Suzuki trainings with Dr. Tanya Carey, Zachary Sweet, and Dr. Laurie Scott. Away from the cello, Maria loves to hike, read, and cook.

Read Bio

Our Vision

A world where everyone has access to exceptional musical performances and feels a genuine sense of belonging at every event.

Make a Donation
Scroll to Top