Rachel Ordaz is a world-class flutist with expertise in piccolo performance, and has held the position of Third Flute/Piccolo with the Virginia Symphony Orchestra since 2012. In 2011, she earned her Bachelor’s degree from Carnegie Mellon University under the instruction of Jeanne Baxtresser and Alberto Almarza. Ordaz completed her Master’s degree in Piccolo Performance from the Peabody Conservatory of The Johns Hopkins University in 2013, where she studied with Piccoloist Laurie Sokoloff. In 2016, Ordaz took 2nd place in the National Flute Association’s Piccolo Artist Competition, and was recognized for having the best performance of the newly commissioned work with the Carl Hall Prize. An avid soloist, she was featured by the Virginia Symphony Orchestra in a performance of Vivaldi’s Piccolo Concerto in C Major, RV 443. Ordaz is widely traveled, having performed with numerous orchestras including the Richmond Symphony, the Florida Orchestra, and can be heard on the Oregon Symphony’s CD release, Aspects of America: Pulitzer Edition (2020). Ordaz can also be heard on the 2022 Naxos release of William Walton’s Complete Façades, performed by the Virginia Arts Festival Chamber Orchestra. Committed to Hampton Roads music education, she maintains a private studio and is adjunct faculty at Old Dominion University as well as Virginia Wesleyan University.