Ella Webb, MSYO Woodwind & Brass Ensemble Coach

Ms. Webb graduated from the University of the Pacific where she received a Bachelor of Music in Music Education with a minor in French horn performance.

She recently retired from the Hughson Unified School District where she worked for forty years. Her duties there included instrumental (concert and jazz bands) at Fox Road Elementary, Emilie Ross Middle School, and Hughson High School. She was named Hughson’s Teacher of the Year Award in 2003-2004 and received the School Bell Award in 2010. In 2015 Mrs. Webb was named one of 23 California Music Educator’s Association State Music Mentors.

In 1994 she began Summer Music at Stanislaus, the music camp at CSU Stanislaus for band, choral, orchestra, and piano students in the 6th through 12th grades. She was camp director until 2002.

She has worked for YES (Youth Entertainment Stage) Company as the orchestra conductor for the past fourteen years.

Ms. Webb has also conducted many honor bands including Madera, Novato, Tuolumne County, San Rafael, Merced, Santa Rosa, Sacramento, and California Music Educator’s Association Bay Section. She has served on the boards of California Band Director’s Association, California Music Educator’s Association, and the Stanislaus County Music Educator’s Association.

In 2016 she received the Stanislaus County Music Educator’s Association Distinguished Service Award and the California Music Educator’s Association Lifetime Achievement Award.

Her professional organizations include California Teacher’s Association, California Music Educator’s Association, National Association for Music Education, Stanislaus County Music Educator’s Association, and California Alliance for Jazz.

Joel Maki, MSYO Percussion Coach

Joel Maki is a skilled percussion coach who is passionate about helping young musicians develop their talents. With years of experience teaching and performing, Joel brings a wealth of knowledge to his work with MSYO. In addition to his role as percussion coach for MSYO, Joel also teaches music for Modesto City Schools. He holds a BM with an emphasis in Jazz Studies from CSU Stanislaus, where he specialized in percussion. As a performer, Joel has played in various settings, including as a pit musician for YES Company. He is also an avid reader of sci-fi and fantasy novels and has a keen interest in history and natural sciences. In his free time, he enjoys playing golf, hockey, and baseball. Joel's expertise in both music performance and education, combined with his passion for teaching and performing, make him an excellent mentor for young musicians in the MSYO program.

Modesto Symphony Youth Orchestra

About the Modesto Symphony Youth Orchestra

Founded in 1976, the Modesto Symphony Youth Orchestra (MSYO) serves young musicians and their families from more than 40 public and private schools in the Central Valley. Led by a deeply engaged leadership team, the youth orchestra attracts a diverse group of outstanding musicians. Members are presented with the opportunity to share their gift of music in an inspiring and challenging orchestral setting alongside their peers from all social, economic, cultural, and geographical backgrounds. As a program within the Modesto Symphony Orchestra Association (MSO), members also have the invaluable experience of interacting with MSO professional musicians, conductors, and visiting guest artists through workshops, side-by-side performances, and clinics. 

The MSYO serves students of varying skill levels and is made up of two full-orchestra (strings, winds, and percussion) groups: Concert Orchestra for grades 5-9 and Symphony Orchestra for grades 9-12. The MSYO Concert Orchestra has toured San Francisco, Sacramento, and the Central Valley. Each spring the Concert Orchestra tours through local elementary schools, providing free performances and advocating for the importance of music education. The MSYO Symphony Orchestra has also performed throughout the United States and abroad, including performances in England, France, Japan, Eastern Europe, Canada, and China. The Symphony Orchestra has previously partnered with the Napa Valley Youth Symphony to perform in the 2012 Mahler Festival in Vienna and for the 2014 New York Phil Young Composers workshop, where they performed at Carnegie Hall and in Central Park.