Stefanie Weigand - Executive Director

Stefanie Weigand (she/her) has served as President and Membership Chair of the VT Chapter of ACDA (American Choral Directors Association) and as ACDA's Eastern Region Youth R&R Chair. She currently serves as the Chair of the NAfME Council for Choral Education. She enjoys working as a presenter, clinician, and guest conductor across the region and directs the Catamount Singers at the University of VT, where she is also on the voice faculty. While teaching grade 7-12 music at Harwood Union MS/HS, she was the 2014 recipient of the VMEA's Outstanding New Music Educator Award and received a Masters of Music Education from Castleton University. 

After completing her BFA in Musical Theatre from Ithaca College, Stefanie toured nationally with a Children's Theatre Company and worked on stage and off as a performer, pit musician, and music director in New York. Since moving to Vermont, she has appeared as a vocalist, pianist, and music director for various organizations including: TURNmusic, the VT Philharmonic, Burlington Civic Symphony, the Green Mountain Mahler Festival, the Champlain Philharmonic, Lyric Theatre Company, the Green Mountain Opera Festival, and more. Stefanie's work as a studio vocalist can also be heard on a number of albums released through Lane Gibson Studios, Lovetown Recording, and Tank Recording Studio, including the recent release of The Saturn People's Sound Collective self-titled album. 

Learn more at: https://linktr.ee/stefanie802 
 

BOARD

Andy Murphy
Andy Murphy is the father of Otis, who has been composing for Music-COMP since Opus 34, as well as some recent Summer Composition Workshops. Otis has absolutely loved those experiences. Andy has been an educator for over 25 years, beginning at the Bellwether School in Williston, VT where he taught grades K-5, was a mentor teacher, and served on the board of directors. Later, he started an in-home preschool and kindergarten. More recently, Andy helped start and taught at the Davis Studio preschool in South Burlington. All along, he has homeschooled Otis, coached hockey, continued to teach classes, and been part of the greater Burlington homeschool community. Music has been an integral part of Andy's life since childhood. From high school guitar lessons with the late Wally Wysk at the original Blue Mountain Guitar in West Lebanon, NH, to writing about bands in his college newspaper, to playing drums in a band today. Andy is so grateful that Music-COMP allows and encourages young composers like Otis, and children throughout Vermont, to find their voice and grown their own love of music. 

Previous Members:
 

Sandi MacLeod, Founding Member, Executive Director

Sandi MacLeod, Ed. D. taught music in public schools in Winchendon, MA, Ramona CA, Milton VT and at Founders Memorial School in Essex Town, VT, one of the schools where the Vermont MIDI Project was first implemented. Sandi taught at the University of Vermont. She has been active in state wide initiatives to improve music education: Music Scope and Sequence committee, Teachers Education Resource person, Vermont Arts Assessment Design Team, the Web Project, Vermont Standards and Grade Expectations in the Arts. Siince 1998, Sandi has presented workshops frequently at technology and music conferences all over the United States and Canada.  In 2011 she co-authored materials for Inside Music: Exploring Composition, a composition curriculum built on lessons learned from her many years as a teacher and project coordinator of the Vermont MIDI Project along with co-author Matt Podd. As a founding member of the project, Sandi continues to explore her passion for music composition, online mentoring and the process of critique and reflection. More info.
 

Anne Hamilton, Founding Member and Vice-President

Anne K. Hamilton is recently retired as Choral Director and Music Theory and Composition teacher at North Country Union High School. Prior to that, she spent nine years as an itinerant K-8 music teacher in four Vermont schools, and six years at the middle school level.  She holds a Bachelor of Music Education from Ohio Wesleyan University, a Masters Degree in Creative Arts in Learning from Lesley College, and Kodaly Certification from KMTI at Hartt School of Music.

Anne is a founding member of the Vermont MIDI Project, now called Music-COMP.  She has presented workshops and in-service training at Music and Technology Conferences in New York City, Seattle, San Diego, New Orleans, Nashville, Dallas, and many other cities throughout the United States. She has been a clinician at four National and six Eastern Division MENC Conferences as well as state conferences in Mass., Texas, Maryland and Florida. Anne has contributed to several articles and books about music and technology, including three MENC publications, and teaches at the Summer Arts and Technology Institute at Champlain College. In 2009 she was named the Vermont Music Educator of the Year, is a former President of Vermont ACDA, and was also featured in Choral Director Magazine as a "Choral Director of Note".

Matt LaRocca - Executive Director (2017-2023)

After working as a mentor with Music-COMP for 10 years, Matt LaRocca became the Executive Director in 2017. Matt is on the composition and theory faculty at the University of Vermont and is the Artistic Director and Conductor of the Champlain Philharmonic Orchestra. Committed to new music and innovation, Matt is the Chair of Creative Projects for the Vermont Symphony Orchestra.

As a musician, Matt is equally at home in both the rock and classical worlds. His classical work has been commissioned by groups such as the Vermont Symphony Orchestra, the New Jersey Youth Symphony, and the Great Falls Symphony Orchestra. He also works as an arranger for rock bands and has created orchestral arrangements for artists such as Guster (his work can be heard on their OMAGAH! album), Kat Wright, Francesca Blanchard, Matt Flinner, and Henry Jamison. Artistic residencies include an expedition to the high arctic through The Arctic Circle organization and composition/improvisation teaching residencies at schools throughout New England and California. Matt performs as a violist and guitarist in classical, rock and improvisation ensembles, and most often can be seen playing the electric viola through his array of guitar pedals. He holds degrees in chemistry and music from Middlebury College and a doctorate in music composition from Boston University.
For more information, visit www.mattlarocca.com

Erik Nielsen - Past Board President

Erik Nielsen's compositional catalog includes works for chorus, orchestra, wind ensemble, solo instruments, chamber music of many configurations, works for dance, film and electronic music. His works have been performed in Canada, Europe, Asia, South America and Australia as well as many locations in the United States and have been performed by ensembles including A Far Cry, the Amabile, Chiara, Emerson and Ying String Quartets; the National Symphony Orchestra;  the Killington and Manchester Chamber Players; Bread and Puppet Theater; the Vermont Contemporary Music Ensemble; Vermont Opera Theater, Vermont Symphony; Vermont Youth Orchestra and Village and Northern Harmony. He has won awards from ASCAP, the Vermont Arts Council, and in 1991 was chosen Vermont Composer of the Year by the Vermont Music Teachers Association. Mr. Nielsen lives in Brookfield, Vermont and teaches music theory and composition with the Vermont Youth Orchestra, the Monteverdi School and privately. He is senior mentor with Music-COMP. More info.

Bill Reilly, Past President and Treasurer

Bill Reilly has 25+ years of management experience in the music & consumer products industries. He started as a sales rep. for Capital Records, and then went to RCA Records in a field management capacity. From there he went on to lead sales & marketing departments at six different high tech start ups. Most recently he was COO of Sibelius software where he became aware of The Vermont Midi Project (now called Music-COMP). He was an early corporate supporter and joined the Board of Music-COMP after leaving Sibelius. He resides in Castle Rock, Colorado with his wife Marie-Anne. More info.

Zachary Avshalomov

Zack is a fourth generation professional musician, stemming from a long line of classical composer/conductors. Being involved in music and the arts his entire life, Zack received his Bachelor's degree in Jazz and Environmental Studies from Ithaca College, and currently resides in Los Angeles, CA, where he actively performs and records. On the business side, Zack played a pivotal role in the creation and development of USA Projects (now HatchFund), an online micro-philanthropy platform benefiting artists, from conception to launch and then through a period of significant growth, resulting in over $5 million raised to date. Before that, Zack served as the Business Development Manager at Online Fitness (.com) for half a decade, which equipped him with a broad understanding of the online enterprise. As a musician, entrepreneur, and environmentalist, Zack brings a versatile and fresh approach to problem solving, and is honored to serve as an active member on Music-COMP’s Board.

Leora Black

Leora Black PhD., is known locally for her service to the Colchester-Milton Rotary Club and her devotion to Music-COMP, an organization that inspired her youngest son to pursue music composition in college. Leora is a licensed marriage and family therapist and licensed clinical mental health Counselor at Counseling Connection, PLC, in Colchester, an affiliation of independent practitioners.