RSSoM STAFF

Dr. Julie Bemis

Dr. Julie Bemis is the Vice President of Education and Community Engagement at the Richmond Symphony, where she thrives in collaborating with both staff and musicians. Passionate about connecting the community to music, Julie believes in its transformative power to inspire, unite, and uplift people of all ages and from all backgrounds. She is particularly dedicated to creating opportunities for young people to engage with music.

In her previous role at the Colorado Symphony, Julie contributed to impactful programs such as El Sistema and the Very Young Composers program, which foster creativity, collaboration, and self-expression in children. She also played a key role in community partnerships, including the creation of the annual DaVita Day of Music, an initiative that brings live performances to patients receiving dialysis at clinics across the region. 

As a college educator, Julie served as Assistant Professor of Percussion at the University of Northern Colorado and has lectured at institutions such as UCLA, Florida State University, the North Carolina School of the Arts, CU Boulder, Colorado State University, and Clemson University. She has served on the University Curriculum Committee of the Percussive Arts Society, and her academic writing has been published in Percussive Notes. Her dissertation entitled Theater Percussion: Developing a Twenty-First-Century Genre Through the Connection of Visual, Dramatic, and Percussive Arts, is available online.

A graduate of the Manhattan School of Music and a two-time Fulbright Scholar (Germany), Julie has performed on Broadway and with orchestras including the Munich Symphonic Orchestra, Munich Chamber Orchestra, Charlotte Symphony Orchestra, Toronto Concert Orchestra, and Colorado Symphony.

RSSoM STAFF

Davey Van Beveren

A Chesapeake, Virginia native, Davey’s passion for music began in elementary school with a plastic recorder. He holds a bachelor’s degree in oboe performance from Oberlin College & Conservatory and a master’s degree from the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University.

An accomplished performer, Davey has performed with a variety of orchestras, such as the Shepherd School Symphony Orchestra, the Virginia Symphony Orchestra, and the National Youth Orchestra of the USA. Davey’s engagements have taken him across the United States to renowned venues such as Carnegie Hall, Walt Disney Concert Hall, Seiji Ozawa Hall at the Tanglewood Music Festival, and the Chicago Symphony’s Symphony Center, among others.

As an educator and administrator, Davey has worked with all age groups, ranging from Pre-K to retirees. A committed teaching artist, he served with ArtistYear (AmeriCorps) at West Lee Middle School in Sanford, North Carolina in 2021. Before moving to Richmond, Davey was the Community Education Manager at the Colorado Symphony where he designed and managed award-winning educational programming. In addition to his position at the Colorado Symphony, Davey worked with the Greater Boulder Youth Orchestras as their Orchestra Manager.

RSSoM STAFF

Caitlin Barry

Caitlin Barry is Project Manager and Lead Instructor for the Richmond Symphony’s new Youth Community Strings program, which launched Fall 2023. A violinist and music educator, she brings nearly two decades of teaching experience to her position. Caitlin began playing the violin, learning the Suzuki method, at age five. She received her degree in Music Education from VCU, also completing Suzuki Teacher Training. She started teaching violin privately while in college and has run a successful Suzuki violin studio since. She has also had teaching experiences in both public and private school programs. Caitlin launched a sought-after violin program at Patrick Henry School of Science and Arts from 2015 through 2018. Previously, Caitlin taught Music Together classes for Richmond Public School Preschools, working with nearly 300 children each week.

An active performer, Caitlin performs with RVAStrings, an ensemble composed mostly of string teachers in the Richmond area. She also plays fiddle with her brother, singer-songwriter and frontman for the band AVAIL, Tim Barry. Caitlin’s two daughters are learning to play the violin. Daughter Grace has played in the Richmond Symphony Youth Orchestra Program for the last four years.

RSSoM STAFF

Marcey W. Leonard

Marcey W. Leonard, a Richmond, VA native, has been the Admissions Assistant for VCUarts Music since January 2017. Marcey holds a Bachelor of Arts in Music with a concentration in arts business and development from Virginia Commonwealth University (2019) and loves that with her work, she can give back to the department and community that gave so much to her. Besides communicating with prospective students and their parents during the admissions/audition process, Marcey organizes and produces VCUarts Music Shadow Days, a recruitment program designed to help prospective students get a glimpse of life as a VCUarts Music student. In addition, she helps current students navigate the “day-to-day” of college life in the music department with support and encouragement.

In early 2020, Marcey was appointed Dean of Students for Wintergreen Music. With the restrictions imposed by the pandemic, Marcey became part of the team that created and managed the innovative Wintergreen Music Online Community. In this reinvented role, she assisted with concert operations, program proofing, and social media planning and monitoring. Previously, she worked as a supervisor for Kings Dominion’s Festival of Music, and for 14 years as Camp Administrator/Co-Director for Mid-Atlantic Camps, Inc. She administered the Greater Richmond Youth Wind Ensemble (GRYWE) at its inception and was co-director of the VCU Honors High School Music Institute. She began playing the flute at age 10, performs regularly at churches and other venues in the Richmond area, and is a member of Commonwealth Winds.

RSSoM STAFF

Anita Williams

Anita Williams (She/They) is a violist, educator, and arts administrator passionate about making arts education more accessible. She holds a BM in viola performance from Shenandoah University where she studied under Doris Lederer. As a performer, Anita is passionate about expanding the classical music canon, and frequently performs with ClassicalRevolutionsRVA. Other performance highlights include studio sessions with DC based Foreign Air and local RVA artists. She also enjoys musical theatre, and has been a member of the pit orchestra for the Shenandoah Summer Music Theatre (SSMT) since 2017.

As a member of the RSSoM team, Williams acts as registrar for all RSSoM programming, coordinates day-of logistics for Discovery Concerts and Open Rehearsals, supports the YOP team, and is co-teacher for the first Youth Community Strings cohort. Prior to joining the RSSoM team, Anita served several positions in administrative capacities for the arts, namely within patron services at SSMT and in education with partnerships with the Shenandoah Conservatory Arts Academy.

Anita continues to be an active educator outside of RSSoM. She particularly enjoys coaching young string ensembles and leading sectionals for middle schools, high schools, and youth orchestras. Anita maintains a private studio of violin and viola students, and strives to make music making a joyful experience while pushing for technical excellence. When not teaching or knee-deep in spreadsheets, she can be found backpacking, rock climbing, and petting as many dogs as possible.

RSSoM STAFF

Anna Mitchell

Violinist and violist Anna Mitchell (she/her) is an arts administrator originally from Prince George County, Virginia. Anna currently serves as Education Assistant with the Richmond Symphony School of Music and is delighted to work with the same youth orchestra program she grew up, playing in!

Anna is a Spring 2023 graduate of Virginia Commonwealth University, where she completed coursework in the Department of Music and Honors College. During her four years at VCU, Anna spent eight semesters playing violin and viola with the VCU Symphony and four semesters singing with Vox Concordia, VCU’s treble choir. Anna studied violin with Susanna Klein and viola with Molly Sharp. She was also selected to receive the Senior Award for Outstanding Service.

Anna’s previous administrative roles include Teaching Assistant and Program Editor for the VCU Symphony and Program Design Assistant at the Aspen Music Festival and School. In her free time, Anna loves practicing calligraphy in her bullet journal, performing in various pit orchestras, photographing various performances, and playing with her cats.