Music Director and Alumnus of the Greater Connecticut Youth Orchestras (GCTYO), Christopher James Hisey, has conducted concerts throughout the United States, Europe, Mexico and China with such notable musicians as Sir James Galway, Tim Janis, Jackie Evancho, James Dunham, Chris Finckel and Deborah Wong.

In addition to his duties with GCTYO, Maestro Hisey serves as Music Director of the American Chamber Orchestra, is Co-founder and Music Director of the Connecticut Philharmonic, and was recently named Music Director of the Mendelssohn Choir of Connecticut. He has also served as Music Director of the Civic Orchestra of New Haven, Connecticut Valley Chamber Orchestra, Troupers Light Opera Company, and Perrysburg Symphony Chorale, and as Associate Conductor of the Perrysburg Symphony, Bowling Green Philharmonia and Opera Theater Orchestras.

Maestro Hisey has been a guest and cover conductor of the Greater Bridgeport Symphony and has made appearances with the Ruse Philharmonic and Pleven Philharmonic in Bulgaria, and the St. Petersburg “Klassika” Symphony, formerly the Leningrad State Philharmonic, in St. Petersburg, Russia.

A champion of new music, Maestro Hisey frequently premieres new works. Emmy award-winning composer Rex Cadwallader recently said of Maestro Hisey’s work, “He is an advocate for new music, and a caring and careful medium through whom my music has been brought gracefully and powerfully to life.“

A passionate and sought after music educator, Maestro Hisey frequently appears as guest adjudicator and clinician at schools and festivals throughout the region. His student orchestras have won top prizes in competition and have been invited to appear at Carnegie Hall, NAFME Eastern Music Festival and other festivals and concerts in the United States and abroad. He has served as Professor of Conducting, Orchestration and Music Director of the Orchestra at Manhattanville College and Professor of Conducting and Music Director of the Orchestra at Fairfield University.

Maestro Hisey is currently the Chairman of the Performing Arts Department and has been Director of Orchestras and Chamber Music at Greens Farms Academy in Westport for more than 20 years. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Viola Performance from the Eastman School of Music and a master’s degree in Conducting from Bowling Green State University. He has been fortunate to study conducting with Emily Freeman Brown, David Effron, Gustav Meier, Donald Portnoy, and Donald Hunsberger.

Locally, he has performed with the Cornelius Quartet, the Deming String Quartet, the Lotus Chamber Music Collective, the Bridgeport Symphony, Ridgefield Symphony, and the Ives Festival Orchestra. As a soloist, Mr. Taghavi has performed concerti with several ensembles, including performances at Veronica Hagman Hall and Yale University. At the age of 18, he was described by the Danbury News Times as, “…a promising, talented soloist.” Internationally, he has been invited to play at venues in Vienna, Bonn, Leipzig, Salzburg, Bologna, Budapest, and La Paz among many others. Some highlights from the 2024/2025 season include appearances in Leipzig, San Francisco, and Australia.

In addition to live performances, Mr. Taghavi can be heard on numerous albums from many different genres, as well as film, TV, and video game soundtracks. He is the managing director of the Peony Music Group as well as the creative director of Blue Dahlia Music. Hafez also maintains his own private studio, the Taghavi Music Studio, and is currently on faculty at the Canterbury School, the St. Mary School in Ridgefield, and in Italy at the Interharmony International Music Festival. In addition to his business endeavors, Mr. Taghavi is highly philanthropic, most notably as a board member for the Families United in Newtown organization. He was also recently appointed Assistant Music Director for the Greater Connecticut Youth Orchestras. Mr. Taghavi attributes much of his success to his incredible mentors. His major musical influences and teachers are: Martha Shackford, Ronda Cole, David Strom, Eric Lewis, Cal Wiersma, John Dexter, Chris Finckel, Curtis Macomber, Ransom Wilson, Chris Hisey, and the Manhattan String Quartet. Outside of music, Hafez enjoys soccer, collecting watches, and all food. He resides in Danbury, CT with his pit bull, Cornelius.

Angelica Jara is a violinist with a B.A in Music from Western Connecticut State University and a Masters from the University of Bridgeport. She started her teaching career at a charter school in Waterbury, CT, co-instructing 2nd-7th grade orchestra, which opened her eyes to the importance of differentiation and inclusion. That propelled her to shift her focus and pursue a teaching certificate through ARC (Alternative Teaching Certification). She then migrated to Wilton, CT, where she currently teaches middle and high school orchestra plus middle school general music. During her free time, Ms. Jara likes to join jams and hop in some Bluegrass bands performing in the CT and NY area.

… that have been passed down to them, continuing a 30-year tradition of excellence.

Brian Ente, a GCTYO alumnus, is a musician and composer who studied at Ithaca College with Gordon Stout and Conrad Alexander. A Connecticut native, he is a former vice president of the state’s chapter of the Percussive Arts Society, and works to improve the performance standards and education of percussion both in his local area of Bridgeport/Fairfield, and across the state, taking part as a composer and judge for the Western Region Music Festival on both the middle school and high school levels. Mr. Ente coaches the GCTYO Percussion Ensemble at weekly rehearsals and conducts at concerts. He also teaches at the Jim Royle Drum Studio and is an active performer.

Currently Director of Bands in the Performing Arts Department at Greens Farms Academy in Westport, Connecticut, Dr. Cadwallader has served as Assistant Director of Jazz Studies at the University of Texas in Arlington and Associate Director of Jazz Studies at the University of Northern Colorado. He has taught at the Royal Academy of Music in London, England, Marlborough College in Marlborough, England, Southern Connecticut State University, and the Neighborhood Music School in New Haven. He received his Doctor of Arts Degree in Composition and Music Theory from the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley, and his Bachelor of Music Education and Master of Music in Composition degrees from the University of Nebraska in Lincoln.

Dr. Cadwallader has played with such jazz luminaries as Rufus Reid, Bob Mintzer, Eddie Daniels, Ed Shaunessey, Bill Watrous, Don Menza, Clark Terry, Ali Ryerson, Joe Beck, Giacomo Gates, and many others. He appears as performer or composer on over twenty-five albums including his most recent cds, “A Balm in Gilead,” featuring Tiffany Jackson. That was preceded by “Sweet Perfume In An Alabaster Jar,” and “Quicker Than The Eye,” with bassist Mike Asetta and drummer Artie Dixson and “Broadway – West Side Story,” with flutist Ali Ryerson, bassist Mike Asetta and drummer Artie Dixson. A CD of original contemporary jazz with drummer Rich MacDonald entitled “The Cadwallader/MacDonald Project – YOUR SMILE” was released in 1998 on Jaybird Records. Two other recordings, “Christmas In The Neighborhood” with bassist Mike Asetta, and “In A Mellow Tone,” a tribute to the music of Duke Ellington, were released in 2002 and 2003, respectively. Dr. Cadwallader has also composed several works that have been debuted by the Greater Connecticut Youth Orchestras under the baton of Christopher Hisey, including “Citizen” in March 2018.

Dr. Cadwallader’s compositions for jazz band have been performed and recorded worldwide. With more than 100 published in the U.S., Japan and England, he is the recipient of awards from downbeat magazine, the NEA and the NEH.