Brian Strawley hails from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Growing up in a musical family of nine, he began studying piano at the age of six and trumpet at the age of eight. He received a full scholarship to Temple University in Philadelphia and studied with Donald McComas, former Associate Principal Trumpet of the Philadelphia Orchestra, and members of the Chestnut Brass. Shortly after graduation in January 1995, he won the Principal Trumpet position with the Media Theatre of the Performing Arts Orchestra. In September 1996, he entered a master’s degree program in orchestral performance at the Manhattan School of Music, again on scholarship. During that time his principal teacher was Vincent Penzerella; however, he also studied with Robert Sullivan, Chris Gekker, and Per Brevig.

Brian won a position with the United States Naval Academy Band and was the Assistant Principal Trumpet in the Concert Band, performing with the Brass Quintet, ceremonial and marching units. Formerly Principal Trumpet with the Bay Street Brass Works brass quintet, he can be heard on their CD, “Folk Music from Around the World.”

Currently Brian is Principal Trumpet with the Richmond Symphony.

Hornist Dominic Rotella enjoys an active career as a professional musician in central Virginia. He is proud to serve as Principal Horn of the Richmond Symphony, a position he has held since 2018, as well as Principal Horn of the Williamsburg Symphony Orchestra and Charlottesville Opera. Prior to his relocation to the Mid-Atlantic, he worked abroad as Solo Horn of the Orquesta Filarmónica de Santiago at the historic Teatro Municipal in Chile. He has performed with dozens of professional ensembles across North and South America, including the premier symphony orchestras of Chicago, Houston, and Cincinnati, along with stints as Guest Principal Horn with the Detroit, Baltimore, and Virginia Symphony Orchestras and the Orquesta Sinfónica de Guayaquil in Ecuador. Dominic’s past summer engagements include the Sun Valley Music Festival, Artosphere Festival Orchestra, Lake Placid Sinfonietta, Spoleto Festival USA, and since 2013, an annual appearance at the Lakes Area Music Festival in Brainerd, Minnesota.

Initially a trumpet player, Dominic first played the horn at age fourteen under the guidance of John P. Little. He went on to study with professor D. Bruce Heim at the University of Louisville, where he graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Music degree in horn performance. He continued his orchestral training as a member of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago and completed a fellowship at the New World Symphony under the direction of Michael Tilson Thomas. Dominic later attended graduate school at the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University under the tutelage of William VerMeulen.

Dominic was born in Cincinnati, grew up in the small town of Holderness, New Hampshire, then spent twelve years in Louisville and has bounced around ever since. As a result, he finds it increasingly difficult to answer the question, “Where are you from?” Aside from his musical pursuits, Dominic enjoys rock climbing, Yoga, running, cooking, puzzles and games, movies and TV, NBA basketball, birding, long walks with his dog, Mary, and FaceTiming his niece, Margo.

Han Yun Liang is currently Acting Principal Trombone of the Richmond Symphony. Originally from Taiwan, he is pursuing his Bachelor of Music degree at The Colburn School, where he studies with David Rejano. He previously trained at The Juilliard School Pre-College under Joseph Alessi and was a recipient of the Epstein Family Foundation Scholarship.

Han Yun has performed as a trombone section substitute with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and has subbed for the Macao Orchestra in various trombone roles. His dedication and artistry have earned him full scholarships to The Colburn School and the Music Academy of the West (2024, 2025).

He is a decorated competition winner, earning First Prize in both the 2025 International Trombone Association Lewis Van Haney and Robert Marsteller Competitions. He also won First Prize at the Hungarian Trombone Camp International Competition (2020) and was a finalist in the 2022 American Trombone National Competition – Tenor 1 Division. Additionally, Han Yun is a two-time winner of the Alessi Seminar in Asia, in both the Getzen and Edwards Divisions.

Outside of music, Han Yun enjoys playing golf, discovering new cuisines, and spending time with friends and family.

Russell Wilson, a native of Memphis, Tennessee, is an outstanding classical and jazz pianist who received his bachelor’s and master’s of music degrees in performance from Memphis State University now the University of Memphis.  Mr. Wilson is formerly a member of the Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra, the Joe Kennedy Quartet, Virginia Union University’s faculty and, most recently, an Assistant Professor of Music at Virginia State University.  Currently he is a piano instructor at Virginia Commonwealth University and serves as pianist for worship services at Second Baptist and Crown and Joy. Wilson enjoys a distinguished career as a solo and chamber music performer and is the principal pianist of the Richmond Symphony Orchestra where he has performed as a soloist and has accompanied world class artists including Mel Tormé, Dick Hyman, Cab Calloway, Chet Atkins, Steve Allen and Carol Lawrence. 

As a soloist, he has performed Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 1 in C Major with the Petersburg Symphony Orchestra, Duke Ellington’s “New World a’ Comin’” with the New River Valley and the Richmond Symphony orchestras, and Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 23 in A Major.  In 2016, he performed Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 in C Minor with the Petersburg Symphony Orchestra.  Wilson was also selected to perform in master classes conducted by Earl Wild and Leon Fleisher.

As a recording artist, he is featured as soloist on “Moonlight Piano”and “The Memphis Convention.” During the summer of 1995 he became pianist for the Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra conducted by David Baker and Gunther Schuller. 

He received the Theresa Pollak Award for excellence in the arts in 2002.