Meet The Team

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Members of the 2014 class and teaching team in Tanzania.
Founder of Clarinets for Conservation Michele Von Haugg is a native of East Berne, New York, USA.  Michele completed her Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education at Ithaca College.  Her performance career began in 2001 with the Air Force Band of Liberty based out of Hanscom Air Force Base, Massachusetts. After completion of active duty service,  Michele continued her military service as principal clarinet and soloist for the Air National Guard Band of the Northeast while pursuing a Master’s Degree in performance at the New England Conservatory of Music.  During her studies at the Conservatory,  Michele retained a private studio of over 30 students, was actively involved in community outreach performances, and toured regularly with Air Force Bands across the country. Contact Michele: michelevonhaugg@hotmail.com
Executive Director Katherine Palmer is currently the Curator of Education at the Musical Instrument Museum in Phoenix, Arizona where she is in charge of developing educational content and teaching programs. Katherine earned a Doctorate of Musical Arts (clarinet) and a Master of Arts (ethnomusicology) from Arizona State University. Her master's thesis focused on the Venezuelan music education program (El Sistema), identity formation, and nationalism; her doctoral research was centered on the Peruvian composer, Armando Guevara Ochoa, and his works for wind instruments. Committed to research and performance, Katherine has presented papers, presentations, and performances throughout the United States. An active performing musician in the Phoenix area, Katherine is an adjunct instructor at Maricopa Community Colleges, a Faculty Associate in the Herberger Institute of Design and the Arts at ASU, and maintains a private teaching schedule. Katherine is Executive Director of Daraja Music Initiative. She completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Miami (FL) in clarinet performance with a minor in anthropology and a Masters of Music in clarinet performance at ASU. Contact Katherine: k.hurst.palmer@gmail.com
In-country operations coordinator and curriculum specialist, Julia Georges (clarinet) teaches elementary and middle school band in Phoenix, Arizona with the Osborn School District. Osborn Schools are Title 1 with 89% of students on the free or reduced lunch program. Her students actively participate in local honor bands and consistently receive high ratings at state festivals. Georges performs bass clarinet with Tempe Winds and recently performed at the Arizona Music Educator’s Association conference. She received her Master of Music degree in clarinet performance from Arizona State University and additionally holds a bachelor degree in music education. While at Arizona State University, Georges studied clarinet with Robert Spring. She also spent two summers with the Belgian Clarinet Academy where she was able to study with Eddy Vanoosthuyse, Tamara Cuypers, and Guido Six. Other significant teachers in Georges’ life include Lavinia Richards, Ann Hallmark, Barbara Lambrecht, and Kenny Capshaw. Julia Georges is a member of the National Association for Music Educators and the Arizona Orff Association. Julia was selected as an Osborn School District Teacher of the Year in 2017.   Contact Julia: julia.anne.georges@gmail.com
In-country operations coordinator and community partner, Goodluck Chanyika is a Programmes Officer with Childreach Tanzania where he implements, monitors, and evaluates Deaf Education Development Programme (DEDP), a project that involves advocacy for deaf individuals and communities. Along with other program management tasks, Goodluck monitors project progress and maintains documentation of program data and lessons learned. He also builds strong relationships with project partners and government officials and provides key technical support. He graduated from the University of Dodoma in July 2013 with a Bachelor of Education in Policy, Planning, and Management. In 2016, Goodluck was awarded an opportunity to participate in the Young African Leaders Initiative Fellowship (YALI) in Nairobi, Kenya. YALI is a U.S. State Department program launched by President Obama to foster excellence among emerging professional in Africa. In 2017, he was invited to participate in the ADA International Fellowship Program in the U.S. at the University of South Dakota, Center for Disabilities, Sanford School of Medicine, a program funded by the U.S. State Department to advance inclusive education in Tanzania. Goodluck is instrumental in assisting DMI with educational agendas in Moshi. In his free time, he enjoys listening to music and watching international news channels. Contact Goodluck: gchanyika@yahoo.com
Faculty and board member, Gary Sperl received a Bachelor of Music Education degree from the University of Wisconsin – River Falls and a Master of Music in Multiple Woodwinds from Indiana University. He has been on the faculty of The University of Tennessee for 36 years. His duties include teaching private clarinet, clarinet methods, and coaching clarinet ensembles. In 2005, a clarinet quartet from the University of Tennessee performed a recital at the International Clarinet Association Conference in Tokyo, Japan and in 2006 performed a recital at the Southern Chapter of the College Music Society Conference in Puerto Rico. In March 2011, The University of Tennessee Clarinet Choir performed 8 concerts in The Peoples Republic of China – a three city, twelve day tour.  In addition to his teaching duties, Mr. Sperl is Principal Clarinetist with the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra, Principal Clarinetist with the Bear Valley (California) Summer Music Festival and Clarinetist with the Assisi (Italy) Chamber Music Festival. He has performed and recorded with the Wild Basin Winds and the Spoleto Festival Orchestra. Mr. Sperl is the bass clarinetist on the Grammy Award winning recording of Samuel Barber’s opera ‘Antony and Cleopatra’. Other appearances include performances with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, the Buffalo Philharmonic, and other professional ensembles.   Contact Gary: gsperl@utk.edu
Faculty and board member, Dr. Ching-Yi Lin is Assistant Professor of Violin and Director of the WKU Pre-College Strings Program at Western Kentucky University. Recent performances and masterclasses have taken her to the Barratt Due Institute of Music in Norway, Shenyang and Xi’an Conservatories in China, Northwestern University, the University of British Columbia, Louisiana State University, and the University of North Texas. In 2013, Dr. Lin was presented with the prestigious Jefferson Award for Public Service in Washington, D.C., recognizing her work in bringing music into the lives of young people throughout her community. Dr. Lin was appointed Associate Instructor of Violin at Indiana University in 2008 while also working as a teaching assistant to Professor Mauricio Fuks. At the pre-college level, she has taught as an instructor for the IU String Academy, working closely with her mentors Professor Mimi Zweig and Dr. Brenda Brenner. In 2008–09, Dr. Lin acted as co-researcher, violin instructor, and piano accompanist for the Fairview Project – a research project designed to assess how underprivileged children can benefit academically and socially from learning the violin. Dr. Lin earned her BM, MM, and DM in Violin Performance at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, and also studied at the Vienna Conservatory from 2001 to 2003. Her principal teachers include Mauricio Fuks, Boris Kuschnir, Fredell Lack, and Nelli Shkolnikova. She plays on a violin made in 1863 by Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume.  Contact Ching-Yi:  http://www.chingyilin.com/contact/

Faculty and board member, Johnathan C. Robinson has an extensive background as a pedagogue, concert soloist, chamber musician, and symphonic clarinetist. Before moving to the valley in 2007, Mr. Robinson studied solo and chamber repertoire at the Belgium Clarinet Academy (Oostende, Belgium) with clarinetist Robert Spring and Eddy Vanoosthuyse in the summer of 2006. In addition to his studies in Belgium, Mr. Robinson also studied at the Manteo Music Festival (Manteo, NC) 2003 through 2006. His primary teachers have been Robert Spring (Arizona State University), Igor Begelman (Bowdoin International Music Festival), Daniel McKelway (Cleveland Orchestra), Robert Listokin (North Carolina School of the Arts), and Peter Wright (Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra). Currently, Mr. Robinson is a doctoral student at Arizona State University.  Contact Johnathan: robinson@goasa.org

Faculty and board member, Ian Tyson, is originally from Chicago, IL.. He has recently completed a Doctorate of Musical Arts at Stony Brook University, Ian played in the United States Air Force Band—stationed in Boston, MA, and Germany. Other playing engagements include: Orchestre de Chambre du Festival d’Echternach (Luxembourg), National Festival Orchestra (NY), Classical Symphony Orchestra (IL), and the Neponset Valley Philharmonic Orchestra (MA). Ian earned a masters degree in clarinet performance from Michigan State University and a bachelors degree in clarinet performance from Miami University (OH).
Contact Ian: tysonis02@yahoo.com
Tanzania Advisory Board
John Machibya- Clarinetist and educator, Tanzania Police Academy
Samweli Mochiwa- Director of Kiviwama Indigenous Trees
Theresia Msoka - Head Teacher, Majengo Primary School
Hussein Msuya - Head Teacher, Korongoni Secondary School
Randall Stubbs - Program Manager, Cultural Arts Centre, Tumaini University Makumira