James Zellers, Flute
The CBRE flute faculty chair
James Zellers holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from Indiana University and a D.M.A. from the Juilliard School. His teachers have been Judith Thomas, Mark Thomas and Carol Wincenc. His performances have taken him to the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., Victoria Hall in Geneva, Switzerland, the International Festival d’Evian, France, the Spoleto Festival in both Charleston, S.C. and Italy, and the 1988 Seoul, Korea and 1996 Atlanta Olympics Festival of Arts and Culture. Former touring artist for the North Carolina Council for the Arts, soloist with the Bach Aria Festival, the Chautauqua Institution, and the Sea Cliff Chamber Players, Dr. Zellers is currently Principal Flute with the Atlanta Opera Orchestra, The Columbus GA Symphony, and Piccolo with the Florida West Coast Symphony, Sarasota. He has also performed with the Alabama Symphony Orchestra, the Santa Fe Opera and has performed and recorded with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. He was Acting Principal Flute with the Florida Orchestra, Tampa for the 1999-2000 season, and has held positions with the orchestras of Augusta GA and Greenville SC as well as faculty positions at the University of Georgia, Augusta State and Georgia State Universities. He is currently an Artist Affiliate for Emory University School of Music, a position he has held since February 2006. In addition to his flute activities, Dr. Zellers is an accomplished organist and arranger of choral and instrumental chamber music. He is also the proud breeder/owner/handler/trainer of four prize-winning Australian Shepherds; competing regularly in Confirmation, Agility and Competitive Obedience.
Rebecca Testerman, Oboe
Rebecca Collins is a busy professional oboist and teacher in the Atlanta area. She holds performance degrees from Loyola University in New Orleans and the Mannes College of Music in New York City. She began her studies at age 13 and has studied with John Corina at UGA, Helen Erb of the New Orleans Symphony, and Elaine Douvas of the Metropolitan Opera. She is an active freelancer and plays with the Macon Symphony, the Dekalb Symphony, The Rome Symphony, The John’s Creek Symphony, and the Toccoa Symphony. Rebecca is also a popular oboe soloist and performs regularly at several churches in the Atlanta area. Rebecca has a large studio of successful oboe students and runs a reed making business serving oboists all over the country.
Miranda Dohrman, Clarinet
The Robert Frohwein clarinet faculty chair
Miranda Dohrman is a freelance clarinetist and instructor. She has performed with the Atlanta, Charleston, and Greenville Symphony Orchestras, the Atlanta Ballet and Opera Orchestras, the Atlanta Pops Orchestra, the Savannah Philharmonic, the Sarasota Orchestra, the Florida Orchestra, and the Orlando Philharmonic. She has also performed several shows with Broadway Across America, including Billy Elliot, Evita, Mary Poppins, Phantom of the Opera, South Pacific, and Wicked. Miranda is a charter member of the Atlanta Chamber Winds and served as clarinetist in the final seasons of the Pandean Players, an Atlanta-based chamber music ensemble. She is a founding member of the Balkan-style brass band Mercury Orkestar. For the 2004-2005 season, Miranda was Principal Clarinet with the Augusta Symphony Orchestra and the Augusta Opera Orchestra. Miranda received both her Bachelor of Music degree and Performer’s Certificate from the Eastman School of Music. She received a Master of Music degree from Florida State University. Her primary teachers include Dr. Frank Kowalsky and Mr. Kenneth Grant. Miranda is an Artist Affiliate at Agnes Scott College and she also teaches at the Atlanta International School and the Paideia School. She was previously
an instructor for both the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra’s Talent Development Program and the Community Music Centers of Atlanta. Her recordings include performances with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra under Donald Runnicles (Telarc), the Atlanta Chamber
Winds (Albany), The Florida Orchestra (Naxos), and the New York-based new music ensemble Alarm Will Sound (Nonesuch). www.mirandadohrman.com
an instructor for both the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra’s Talent Development Program and the Community Music Centers of Atlanta. Her recordings include performances with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra under Donald Runnicles (Telarc), the Atlanta Chamber
Winds (Albany), The Florida Orchestra (Naxos), and the New York-based new music ensemble Alarm Will Sound (Nonesuch). www.mirandadohrman.com
Marissa Takaki, Bassoon
Marissa Takaki will join the Atlanta Opera Orchestra in the fall of 2025 as Principal Bassoon. She is a member of the Arkansas Symphony, where she holds the position of Principal Bassoon, and previously, Second Bassoon. She has performed with the Atlanta Symphony, Atlanta Opera, Alabama Symphony, Memphis Symphony, Chicago Sinfonietta, and Nu Deco Ensemble.
Marissa received an Advanced Music Studies Certificate from Carnegie Mellon University, holds a Master of Music degree from Northwestern University, and was a member of the Stamps Woodwind Quintet at the University of Miami, where she graduated with her Bachelor of Music and a Minor in Economics. Her primary musical instructors include Nancy Goeres, David McGill, Gabriel Beavers, and Ann Dufek. Additional mentors include Bill Buchman and Evan Epifanio.
In the summers, Marissa has performed as a fellow at the Aspen and Sarasota Music Festivals, and has also attended the Brevard Music Center, Imani Winds Chamber Music Festival, and Music in the Mountains Conservatory.
*Artist-faculty are subject to change.
