Victoria Gau

She/Her/Hers

CONDUCTOR AND ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

Now in her 25th season leading CCS, conductor Victoria Gau has been lauded by critics for her “strong sense of style and drama” (Washington Post) and her “enthusiastic and perceptive conducting”, and brings a wide range of musical experience and expertise to her work. She is Music Director of Cantate, where she conducts the Chamber Singers and the Concert Choir.

Maestra Gau is well-known in the Washington DC area for her work as Associate Conductor at National Philharmonic. She has additionally served as Artistic Director and Music Director/Conductor of the Other Opera Company in Bethesda, Maryland, which she co-founded in 1992. and music director for such Washington area companies as The Washington Savoyards, Victorian Lyric Opera Company, Annapolis Opera Musicales, the Eldbrook Opera Ensemble, and the IN-Series. Guest conducting includes the Open Page Ensemble, Alexandria (VA) and Akron (OH) Symphonies, Friday Morning Music Club Orchestra, and the Kennedy Center Messiah Sing-Along. She has been active as Artistic Director of the Takoma Ensemble and is the former Conductor and Music Director of the Richmond Philharmonic Orchestra in Richmond, VA.

Known as a strong advocate for American composers and for fostering ongoing expression in music, Ms. Gau has conducted numerous premieres, including works by Jorge Martin, Charlie Barnett, Scott Pender, Joel Friedman, and Alistair Coleman, among others.

Gau is in demand as a guest conductor and conductor/string educator at youth orchestra festivals and workshops. She is the former conductor of the Junior Summer String Institute Orchestra for National Philharmonic and the Young Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra, an elite group of string players from the DC Youth Orchestra Program, as well as the Akron Youth Symphony. She has conducted youth orchestra festivals in Virginia, Ohio, and New York as well as Side-by Side events with DC-area youth orchestras and the National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center. Other recent appearances include the SOGO Conservatory Orchestra (Olympia, WA), the Vermont All-State Orchestra Festival, and the Maryland Senior and Junior All-State Orchestras.

Choral activities have included assisting in preparation of the 150-voice National Philharmonic Chorale for approximately 6 concerts per season, as well as serving as Co-Director of the National Philharmonic Singers, and Director and Co-Conductor of the National Philharmonic Summer Choral Institutes. Gau has guest conducted such choruses as The Metropolitan Chorus, Capitol Hill Chorale, and the Congressional Chorus. She is Director of Music at Bethesda Presbyterian Church.

Known for her ability to connect with audiences both on and off the stage, Ms Gau is also a popular clinician and lecturer on music. She formerly gave pre-concert lectures before all National Philharmonic performances, has been on the faculty of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute of Johns Hopkins University, has been a guest lecturer for the Alexandria Symphony. And has taught music appreciation classes for the Monday Morning Music Club in Alexandria. She co-led a conducting clinic with Dr. William LaRue Jones at the ASTA National Conference in 2022.

Gau has served on the opera faculty at George Mason University, and worked with vocalists privately and in the Crittenden Opera Studio. She has toured with Cleveland Opera, performing throughout northern Ohio, as well as Odyssey Opera Theatre and the Baltimore Opera Company, performing educational outreach in schools throughout the state of Maryland. As a violist she has been an active freelancer, teacher, and 15-year member of the Envoy String Quartet. Ms. Gau holds degrees in Viola Performance and Conducting from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, where she won the Liberace Foundation Scholarship and the Phi Kappa Lambda Prize for Musicianship.

Erin Feng

She/Her/Hers

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Erin Feng brings a wide range of musical expertise and administrative experience to her roles as executive director of both the Capital City Symphony and The Thomas Circle Singers. She is a member of the Washington National Opera Chorus and sings regularly with other regional companies. Prior to being appointed executive director, Erin was administrative director of The Thomas Circle Singers. She also worked as festival coordinator for the Boulanger Initiative, which commissions, promotes, and celebrates music composed by women and other gender-marginalized people. Previously, Erin served as an intern with the Choral Arts Society of Washington and in an interim capacity at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Erin earned her bachelor’s degree in voice from the University of Alberta and her master’s degree in opera from the University of Maryland. She also holds a certificate in Arts Management from the University of Massachusetts. A native of Canada, Erin now lives in Rockville, Maryland with her husband and son.

Ingrid Lestrud

She/Her/Hers

Assistant conductor

Dr. Ingrid Lestrud enjoys an active career as a conductor and educator. Drawn to music and singing at an early age, she studied vocal performance as an undergraduate and discovered a passion for conducting choral and orchestral music. She went on to study conducting at the graduate level, eventually completing her Doctor of Music degree at Northwestern University, where she studied with Victor Yampolsky. While living in Chicago, Dr. Lestrud sang with the Chicago Symphony Chorus for several seasons under the baton of Riccardo Muti, performing in the Grammy award-winning recording of Verdi’s Requiem. She spent three years as the Voice Department Chair of the Merit School of Music, a community music school that serves over six thousand students with a focus on underserved communities. Collaborating with the Lyric Opera of Chicago, she worked with Renée Fleming to develop curriculum for Merit’s Solo Voice Program, and her choir performed for and with Ms. Fleming for special events.

Dr. Lestrud has served on the faculty of several colleges in the midwest and on the east coast, leading choral and orchestral programs. Formerly the Principal Associate Conductor of the Grammy award-winning National Children’s Chorus, she worked with some of the finest young singers in the nation, preparing them for concerts at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Walt Disney Concert Hall, and the Kennedy Center. In 2019, she performed as a member of the Living Arts Collective at the National Gallery of Art, conducting several movements of Schoenberg’s Pierrot Lunaire in an event that showcased both musicians and dancers, highlighting an exhibition of lunar photographs and commemorating the fiftieth anniversary of the moon landing. Dr. Lestrud currently conducts the Arlington Chorale, an auditioned community chorus that performs well-known masterpieces and compelling new works. She is also a conductor with Encore Creativity, a choral organization for older adults that focuses on preparing high quality performances while also fostering a sense of community through singing.

Kara Hooker

Personnel Manager / Librarian

Kara Hooker has been an orchestra librarian for 12 years and is currently the librarian of the Civic Orchestra of Jacksonville in Jacksonville, FL in addition to Capital City Symphony. Kara has her Bachelors in Music Education from James Madison University and has taught elementary music for the past 8 years.

She is currently a stay at home mom to her son Logan and fur baby Walla. Her husband, Kyle Hooker, is currently stationed at the Pentagon and flys for the Navy. Kara looks forward to the great playing opportunities as a violinist in CCS.

Al Rise

Production Manager

Al Rise is a Stage Manager and performer serving the greater DC, Maryland, and Northern Virginia areas. He began his studies on french horn in his hometown of Mt. Pleasant, Michigan, with Mary Beth Orr, the current 3rd horn player in the Grand Rapids Symphony. He received his bachelor's degree in horn performance at the Cleveland Institute of Music, studying under the tutelage of former principal horn of The Cleveland Orchestra, Richard King. Most recently, Rise received his master’s degree from the University of Maryland, studying with Greg Miller and Phil Munds. He currently performs with several professional orchestras in the DMV and in Michigan, and is the Stage manager for the Apollo Orchestra, as well as a substitute Stage Manager for the Arlington Philharmonic and Alexandria Symphony.

Alexandra Coburn

Development Associate

Alexandra Coburn is a professional mezzo-soprano from Houston, TX. She began her undergraduate degree at Louisiana State University. After finishing at LSU, she moved to Virginia to continue her study of voice with The Potomac Vocal Institute. Alexandra was also hired by Washington National Opera with the Kennedy Center in 2019 and is still an active member. She will be in their 2023-24 season in Gounod’s Romeo and Juliet and Puccini’s Turandot. 

Alexandra is a teacher at The Browne Academy in Alexandria. She is their Musical Director and Director of Handbell Choirs. She is currently studying at George Mason, finishing her BA in music with a minor in Arts Management, and working on her Masters in Arts Management starting in Fall of 2023. She is very excited to be working for Capital City Symphony!

Abby Lynch

Stage Manager

Abby is a freelance stage manager who has been working in the Washington, DC area since 2008, and with CCS since 2009. When not working behind the scenes, she is a fundraising officer at a local theatre company. Outside of work, she can be found around the DC area playing with her neurotic dog, working at her community garden, and planning her next entry into the DC State Fair pie contest.