Timothy S. Byrns Artistic Director
Conductor Advanced Orchestra
Timothy S. Byrns has been a staple of the professional classical music community in South Florida for more than 3 decades. Mr. Byrns hails from Louisville, Kentucky where his love of music began very early, thanks to the youth string programs at the internationally recognized Youth Performing Arts School and the Louisville Youth Orchestra. Inspired by classical music, he grew to love the cello and then continued his study of music pedagogy and cello performance at Eastern Kentucky University as a Music Education/Performance Major. He then relocated to South Florida, attending the New World School of the Arts where he studied chamber music with the Miami String Quartet and Maestro Felix Galimer. Mr. Byrns served as a member and Principal Cellist with the Symphony of the Americas in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, for nearly two decades. He has also served as Assistant Principal Cello for the Palm Beach Pops. Most recently he was a member of the Naples Philharmonic Orchestra in Naples, Florida. Internationally Mr. Byrns has performed and recorded as soloist and guest Principal Cellist with the Budapest Chamber Orchestra, the Czech Virtuosi Orchestra, and the world-renowned Hungarian Virtuosi. He also performed as solo cellist on an extensive European tour of the Broadway production of “West Side Story”. As a founding member of the Arcangelo Piano Quartet, he was instrumental in their Ensemble-in-Residence position with the Florida Youth Conservatory as well as tour development which led throughout Florida, Central America, and Asia. Mr. Byrns has served as a music consultant for the Broward County Florida School Board for Strings and Chamber Orchestra and has been an International Music Consultant for the Community Music Center in Guatemala City, Guatemala. He is enormously proud of his most recent musical milestone, co-founding the Gold Coast Youth Orchestra, where he is able to bring his broad experience in classical music, and his passion for it, to these talented young musicians, in hopes of inspiring them the way he was inspired during his youth.
Martha Schimelpfenig
Conductor Intermediate Orchestra
An accomplished double bassist and pianist, Martha Schimelpfenig has more than 30 years of experience as a professional musician, having received a Bachelor and Masters Degree in Music Performance from the University of Michigan. Along with her impressive orchestral record, which includes tours with the New World Symphony, Florida Philharmonic Orchestra, Miami Chamber Symphony, Florida Grand Opera, and Symphony of the Americas, Ms. Schimelpfenig is a highly sought-after music educator. She has been the Director of Strings at the prestigious Pine Crest School William J. McMillan Campus in Boca Raton, Florida, Pre-K through grade 8, since 2003. Ms. Schimelpfenig has served as Music Director and Organist at All Saints Lutheran Church, Tamarac, Fl. since 2006 and joined Gold Coast Youth Orchestra in 2013 as Conductor of the Intermediate Orchestra. In addition to having a successful private studio, Ms. Schimelpfenig has also served as a clinician and adjudicator for Broward County Schools.
Vanessa Leal
Conductor Beginning Orchestra
Vanessa Leal is a violinist, music teacher, and former social worker who loves to share the joy of music with others. Mrs. Leal has been studying music since the age of 3 and now has the great pleasure of seeing her four children learn their respective instruments. She has performed with various groups, including the Gainesville Orchestra, the Central Florida Philharmonic, local community orchestras, and her church’s worship team at Calvary Chapel Ft. Lauderdale. Mrs. Leal has a degree in Psychology from the University of Florida and a minor in Violin Performance. She is passionate about teaching music and has extensive experience working with children and youth. Mrs. Leal has been teaching privately since 2009 and teaches music classes to her homeschool group. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends, reading, and serving at her church’s children’s ministry.