JOHN DEVLIN, Music Director and Youth Symphony Orchestra Conductor, holds many positions as an artist in the Washington-D.C. area. He is the Music Director of the Youth Orchestras of Prince William (VA); the Associate Conductor of the Capital City Symphony; the Assistant Conductor of the Apollo Symphony Orchestra; and a Technical Director for IMAG at the National Symphony Orchestra.
Devlin is a member of the graduate program in Orchestral Conducting at the University of Maryland School of Music, where he received his Master of Music degree and is currently enrolled in the Doctor of Musical Arts program. A student of James Ross, Devlin has also studied Wind Conducting with Michael Votta and Choral Conducting with Ed Maclary. John's also graduated summa cum laude from Emory University with a double major in music and Latin.
GERALD FOWKES, Concert Orchestra Conductor, is a 2001 graduate of Louisiana State University where he graduated summa cum laude in Cello Performance. His former teachers and mentors include Dennis Parker, Loran Stephenson, Wesley Baldwin and Pamela Frame. In addition, he has studied conducting with Jindong Cai and Michael Butterman and participated in master classes with cellists Gary Hoffman, Aldo Parisot, Erling Blöndal Bengtsson, and Paul Katz, amongst others. A product of Prince William County Schools, he is an alumnus of both the Youth Orchestras of Prince William (YOPW) and the American Youth Philharmonic and a past Virginia Governor's Scholar at the National Music Camp at Interlochen, Michigan. A former member of the Baton Rouge Symphony, he performs frequently as a freelance cellist throughout the Baltimore/Washington metro area.
Mr. Fowkes is currently the Director of Orchestras at Gar-Field Sr. High School. Prior to his tenure at Gar-Field he taught at Woodbridge Sr. High School and Stonewall Middle School where his orchestras consistently received Superior ratings at District Orchestra Assessment and national festivals in New York and Philadelphia. He has had the distinct honor of conducting All-County Orchestras in Fauquier, Prince William, Spotsylvania, and Stafford Counties and was invited to guest conduct at the 2010 JMU Spring String Thing. In addition, he regularly serves as an adjudicator for various festivals throughout the Northern Virginia region. Mr. Fowkes maintains a private cello studio at his home where he resides with his wife, Becky, daughters, Scout and Eleanor, and son, Isaak.
Rebecca Sinclair is a 2008 graduate of James Madison University, where she studied violin with Dr. Wanchi Huang, and earned a Bachelor's Degree in Music Education. She is the orchestra director at both Fauquier and Kettle Run High Schools. Rebecca is a member of the Piedmont Symphony Orchestra and performs in a piano quintet. Rebecca is a counselor, sectional coach and devoted advocate for the James Madison Spring String Thing. In the summertime, she is a camp director and participant in the Apple Hill Chamber Music Festival, in New Hampshire, which focuses on bringing together people of diverse backgrounds - and often opposing sides of social and political conflicts - to make music.
Phaedra Long graduated Magna Cum Laude in 2001 from The Hartt School with a Bachelor of Music degree in Music Education. Prior to receiving her bachelors degree, Ms. Long studied viola performance at the New England Conservatory of Music. Currently, Ms. Long is a graduate student in the summer Masters of Music Education program at Northwestern University, Bienen School of Music. Teachers and mentors include Kathleen Goodrich, James Kjelland, Teri Einfeldt, and James Dunham. In 2001, Ms. Long started teaching in Fairfax County and is the current Orchestra Director at Luther Jackson Middle School. She was on the string faculty at The Levine School of Music from 2001 -2004 and currently maintains a private violin and viola studio. In addition to her full time teaching responsibilities, Ms. Long is a free-lance violist in the Greater Washington DC area.
Lisa Kline attended James Madison University and Bridgewater College (Virginia), where she graduated with a degree in music. She received her primary Suzuki training from William Starr and Ronda Cole. Currently, she is the Orchestra Director at Gainesville Middle School in Prince William County. She has taught strings in Fauquier County and at the Prince George's County Magnet School for the Performing Arts, where she developed the first Suzuki Violin Program in that county's public school system. Mrs. Kline also maintained a private Suzuki violin studio for ten years. She has performed as a member of the Prince William Symphony Orchestra and the Prince George's Philharmonic Orchestra. Mrs. Kline has served as an adjudicator for various Solo & Ensemble Festivals and as a guest conductor for the Shenandoah Junior All-County Orchestra. Her musical education also includes training in Paul Rolland String Pedagogy from George Mason University. Additionally, she is the proud parent of a YOPW player!
Joseph LaBrie holds a Bachelor's Degree in Music Education from Louisiana State University and a Masters Degree in Instrumental Conducting from Sam Houston State University and the American Band College. Since 2003, he has been working at Carl Sandburg Middle School in Alexandria, VA. He enjoys teaching band classes at all levels, as well as percussion classes and an after school Jazz Band. His professional affiliations include VMEA and VBODA. Mr. LaBrie is an active member of the Fairfax Wind Symphony percussion section and has performed with many local wind ensembles. A native of Prince William County, and a former member of YOPW, Mr. LaBrie is looking forward to working with the YOPW Wind Symphony.
Executive Director and Ex Officio member of the Board
BEVERLY HESS, Executive Director, Youth Orchestras of Prince William, graduated from Salem College with a Bachelor of Arts in Chemistry with an emphasis in Economics. She is a highly experienced manager and teacher. She has worked as a management consultant with companies such as Belk Stores Services, The Variable Annuity Life Insurance Company, and American General Corporation. Mrs. Hess has also spent several years teaching young people with Bear Creek United Methodist Church School in Houston, TX and Springwoods Elementary School in Woodbridge, VA. For the past several years, she has operated her own management consulting business.
Prior to joining the YOPW staff, Mrs. Hess was a member of the YOPW Board of Directors and the President of the Parent Volunteer Organization. She joined the YOPW staff in 2005 as the Administrative Assistant and Financial Director, working closely with Mrs. Carol Taylor, the former Executive Director. In 2008, the Board of Directors conducted a national search to replace Mrs. Taylor who passed away from cancer. At the conclusion of the search, the Board named Mrs. Hess as Executive Director.
The Youth Orchestras of Prince William has been named as one of the five Resident Art Partners of the Hylton Performing Arts Center in Manassas, Virginia. During the opening of the Hylton Center in 2010, Mrs. Hess spearheaded a fundraising effort called DrumRoll Please. The objective of this endeavor was to raise the funds to provide the Hylton Performing Arts Center with percussion equipment. The event was a success and the Hylton was able to add a full set of tympani.
In addition, Mrs. Hess, along with Alan Grofe, President of the Manassas Symphony Orchestra, chairs the Resident Art Partner Committee at the Hylton Center. The committee's objective is to provide greater exposure for the Hylton Center and its partners by combining marketing efforts and providing collaboration opportunities. The committee is also tasked with providing operational feedback to the Hylton Center staff so that they can continue to improve the operations of the facility. Mrs. Hess maintains an excellent working relationship with the Hylton Center staff and the key staff members of the Resident Art Partner groups (Manassas Ballet Theatre, Manassas Symphony Orchestra, Manassas Chorale, and Prince William Little Theatre.)
Mrs. Hess serves on the Board of Directors of the Virginians for the Arts and the Prince William County Arts Council. She is currently the Secretary/Treasurer of the Arts Council and serves on numerous committees including the By-Laws committee, which recently updated the By-Laws; the website committee, which is currently working on a complete redesign of the website; and the strategic planning committee tasked with assessing the current organizational structure.
In 2009, the Youth Orchestras of Prince William was named Cultural Arts Organization of the Year by the Prince William Chamber of Commerce. Mrs. Hess worked with the chamber to provide music for numerous area events and served on the Not-for-Profit Council working to advance the needs of the non-profit organizations in the Chamber.
Mrs. Hess is a graduate of Leadership Prince William, Class of 2011. She is an active participant in the alumni functions of this organization. Currently Mrs. Hess serves as the co-chair for the Arts and Culture Day which highlights the importance of the arts and culture for economic development and education in the region.
