CVPA faculty

Joseph Walsh has three decades of experience in preparing, presenting and conducting opera and musical theater in Virginia, across the U.S. and internationally. He is a conductor admired for his ability to combine dramatic flair and theatrical excitement with sensitivity, detail and a keen sense of dramatic pacing.

Dr. Ina Radeva Mirtcheva is a May 2014 graduate of George Mason University with a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Piano Performance. She has been a piano student of Dr. Anna Balakerskia for many years. Her doctoral dissertation research focused on the life and music of Isaac Miknovsky; Dr. Linda Monson served as her dissertation advisor and mentor.

Dr. Yoonji Kim, pianist, currently teaches keyboard skills and is a member of the applied piano faculty at Mason. Born in Seoul, Korea, Dr. Kim moved to United States of America at age fifteen to study.

Shawn Purcell, a native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is a jazz guitarist, educator, arranger, and composer in the Washington DC region. Purcell has shared the stage, recorded with, and/or toured with top jazz artists including: Terell Stafford, Nicholas Payton, Tim Warfield, Sean Jones, Brian Charette, Steve Fidyk, Dana Hall, The Chicago Jazz Ensemble, The Metropolitan Jazz Orchestra, Jim Pugh, Chip McNeill, Jeannie Bryson, Eddie Daniels, Chris Potter, Jerry Bergonzi, Steve Allee and many others.

Jesse Guessford received a BS in music education from West Chester University, a Master of Music in music composition from the Crane School of Music at SUNY Potsdam, and a DMA in music composition from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. 

Dr. Mark Jenkins began his musical studies on the euphonium at the age of 11 in his home state of Nevada. During his early studies, he was awarded top honors at state, regional and international solo competitions, including the Nevada Governor’s Scholarship to attend the prestigious Interlochen Fine Arts Camp in Michigan and 1st prize at the 1996 Leonard Falcone International Tuba and Euphonium Competition.

Darden Purcell, jazz vocalist, is a featured soloist with symphony orchestras, big bands and small ensembles, as well as a band leader and vocal instructor.  She has collaborated with many of the world’s top jazz artists, and is a former Washington, D.C. Air Force Band vocalist as part of the pop/rock group High Flight.

Prof. June Huang is the Director of Strings and Assistant Professor of Violin at the Dewberry School of Music. She teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in applied violin, chamber music, and string pedagogy.

Patricia Miller is an Internationally acclaimed operatic and concert mezzo-soprano.  She is also a highly respected voice teacher and Music Educator. A University Professor, artist-teacher and master class clinician, her talent and commitment to opera education has taken her all over the world.

Dr. Gregory Joseph Robinson is Associate Professor of Music and Director of Ethnomusicology at George Mason University’s School of Music. He received the Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania and graduated summa cum laude from Colby College in Waterville, Maine.