Kathy Burrell

An avid collaborator, musician, and teacher, Kathy Burrell, has been performing with the Muncie Symphony Orchestra since 2016. In addition to playing with Orchestra Indiana, Kathy also has been a substitute musician for Anderson Symphony, Marion Philharmonic, Lafayette Symphony and Danville Symphony. Besides performing, she teaches a private cello studio in the greater Indianapolis area and has been a sectional coach to many schools in central and east central Indiana region. A passionate chamber musician and orchestral player, Kathy has spent her summers attending and teaching in music festivals such as Domaine Forget, the Fresno Opera and Orchestra Summer Academy, the Green Mountain Chamber Music Festival, the Cincinnati Young Artists Summer Cello Academy, and the Renova Music Festival. Kathy holds degrees from Ball State University (B.A. &  M.M.).

Anna Thompson-Danilova

Originally from St. Petersburg, Russia, Anna Thompson-Danilova is currently holding substitute positions with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, Louisville Symphony Orchestra as well as the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra. Nationally and internationally, she has been a substitute in the New World Symphony Orchestra, Florida and performed both as a principal player as well as soloist with the Zazerkalie Orchestra and the Conservatory Orchestra of St. Petersburg. Anna has given solo performances in the United States, Russia and Europe. She is currently the principal cello of Orchestra Indiana, Carmel Symphony and Marion Philharmonic Orchestras, and current cello faculty at Indiana Wesleyan and Taylor universities. Her students are regular winners of regional competitions.

She studied at such renowned institutions as the Rimsky-Korsakov Music College and the Rimsky-Korsakov Conservatory in St. Petersburg where she holds Bachelor and Masters degrees in cello performance and was a student of Alexey Massarsky. She furthermore holds an Artist diploma and additional Masters in cello performance from Ball State University, where she was studying with Peter Opie and had a full assistantship.

She has performed in cello master classes with Richard Aaron, David Garrett, Stephen Balderston, Emilio Colón, Robert DeMaine, Eric Barlett, Anthony Elliott, Natalia Gutman, and Susan Moses, and in chamber music classes with the Moscow Piano Trio and Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields Chamber Ensemble. Anna received numerous grants and scholarships to further her education, among them a Scholarship for the annual Round-Top festival in Texas as well as a full assistantship at Ball State University. She has participated in the National Repertory Orchestra, Round-Top festivals and the Chamber Music Seminar in Pittsburgh and won several regional competitions in St. Petersburg.

Sandra Neel

I began playing violin when I was nine years old through a school music program.  During my school years I was able to play in several ensembles which helped me to grow as a musician and gave me opportunities to develop a love for classical music.  After graduation from college I have played with various professional orchestras over a 40 year time frame:  including the Fort Wayne Philharmonic, Marion Philharmonic, Carmel and Anderson Symphonies.  I have been blessed to play with the Muncie Symphony for almost 30 years.

Tiffany Arnold

Tiffany Arnold is Executive Director of the Youth Symphony Orchestras of East Central Indiana (YSOECI), an organization in which she played violin as a student in elementary through high school. She also teaches the YSOECI Suzuki-based violin class for 5- and 6-year-olds.  She has a lifelong love of the arts, a dedication to the community, and a background in business management, all of which combine to further the musical education of young people. In addition to her responsibilities with the YSOECI, Tiffany is a Suzuki-registered violin teacher who teaches privately in Muncie, Indiana. In 2020, Tiffany was awarded Studio Teacher of the Year by the Indiana Chapter of the American String Teachers Association.  Her Suzuki training was with Nancy Jackson, Linda Stieg, Roger Stieg, and Moshe Neumann.  She has done additional training in Suzuki Early Childhood Education and Music Mind Games, and is a board member of the Suzuki Association of Indiana.  Tiffany has also completed teacher training in the O’Connor Violin Method. She is a member of Orchestra Indiana and the Anderson Symphony Orchestra, and she performs with other orchestras in the area.  She holds a Bachelor of Music in Violin Performance from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music and a Bachelor of Arts in Art History from Oberlin College, and has completed graduate studies in business. Primary teachers were Gregory Fulkerson, Dorothy Mauney, Stephen Clapp, and Kathleen Winkler. Additional chamber music studies were with Jeffrey Irvine and Andor Toth, Jr.

Kathryn Schilling

Kathryn Schilling has played violin with the Muncie Symphony for over 20 years. An active freelance musician in the Indianapolis area, she has had the opportunity to participate in a wide variety of musical projects in addition to the Orchestra Indiana, including musical theatre, orchestral and chamber performances, and providing music for special events.  Kathryn also maintains a studio of private students and provides coaching in area schools.  Kathryn earned a master’s degree in Violin Performance from Butler University, and her past teachers include Aaron Berofsky, Davis Brooks, and Larry Shapiro.

Natalia Nizhalova

Ms. Natalia Nizhalova regularly performs as a soloist, chamber, and orchestral musician. Holding BM and MM from prestigious Nizhny Novgorod State Conservatory in Russia, and Doctor of Arts degree from Ball State University. Dr. Nizhalova has given solo performances in the United States, Russia, Ukraine, Netherlands, Portugal, and Spain. She has been awarded a number of prizes from various national and international competitions. These include Second Prize in Matinee Musicale Collegiate Competition (Indianapolis, IN), First Prize in the International Competition “Art of the 21th Century” (Lisbon, Portugal), Second Prize in the International Competition “Musica-Classica” (Russia). She was awarded a special grant from the Russian President “Support of gifted youth”. As an active chamber musician Ms. Nizhalova has performed with the members of Cincinnati Symphony and Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra and American Piano Trio. As an orchestra musician Dr. Nizhalova holds leading positions with Orchestra Indiana, Lafayette Symphony Orchestra, and Carmel Symphony Orchestra. Before coming to the USA she held the position of Assistant Concertmaster at the Nizhny Novgorod Opera and Ballet Theatre Symphony Orchestra. She has appeared at some music festivals including National Repertory Orchestra (Colorado), Round Top Summer Music Institute (Texas), International Holland Music Session (Holland), Music in European Castles (Lithuania), Malaga Musical Summer (Spain) among others. As an active teacher Ms. Nizhalova spent five years as Teaching Assistant at Ball State University and two years as an Adjunct Professor at Nizhny Novgorod State Conservatory. She is currently having a private violin studio in Carmel IN. Her students are regular winners of regional competitions, members of youth orchestras as well as participants in master classes, workshops, and summer music festivals.

Noelle Tretick Gosling

When Noelle Tretick Gosling was a student at the North Carolina School of the Arts, she was both a violin and ballet major. These dual interests brought her full scholarships to both the Aspen Music Festival and Ballet West before she finally decided to pursue her music performance degrees at the Jacobs School of Music in Bloomington, Indiana.

In January 2017, Noelle won the position of Concertmaster of the Muncie Symphony Orchestra (now Orchestra Indiana ) 55 years after her father held the same position. She is a former member of the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra and still performs regularly with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and the Louisville Orchestra.

In addition to classical, Noelle enjoys playing all genres of music and is in demand as a recording artist for music publishing companies as well as traveling Broadway shows. Tours with legendary performers including Stevie Wonder, Johnny Mathis, Natalie Cole, Tony Bennett, Harry Connick Jr, Sandi Patty, Andy Williams, Mel Tormé, Perry Como, and Manhattan Transfer have taken her from coast to coast.

Noelle has served on the music faculties of Anderson University and Park Tudor School in Indianapolis. She now maintains a private teaching studio and coaches students of the Indianapolis Youth Orchestra. During the summers, she teaches at the Music For All Summer Symposium, Benefic Chamber Music Camp, and the Anderson University String Camp.

She is one of five children, all of whom are professional musicians. Their father, Sidney Tretick, was a virtuoso violinist and head of the string department at Ball State University from 1952 until his untimely death in 1962. Their mother, Patricia Tretick, was also Professor of Violin at Ball State until her retirement in 1993.

Noelle resides in Indianapolis with her husband Dan, a professional trumpet player and the inventor of ChopSaver Lip Care. Their son, Anthony, is a graphic designer and DJ/music producer living in Chicago.

When not playing the violin, Noelle enjoys traveling, cooking, hiking, reading biographies, consignment shopping, collecting unique footwear and clothes, and still loves to dance!