Nelson is currently principle clarinet with the Pacific Northwest Ballet and Auburn Symphony Orchestras, as well as playing with the Seattle Symphony, Seattle Opera and Northwest Chamber Orchestra. Nelson also plays shows at the Paramount and Fifth Avenue Theaters , and has traveled with the national touring companies of Phantom of the Opera and the New York City Opera. Syd Potter, affiliate artist faculty member, conductor, jazz band. Potter holds a bachelor of music degree in composition from the Boston Conservatory of Music and is a Ph.D. composition candidate at the University of Northern Colorado. Potter previously taught jazz studies, jazz history, jazz improvisation, in addition to directing jazz ensembles, at Western Washington University, the Metropolitan State College, and the University of Northern Colorado.
Potter is constantly in demand as an adjudicator for local and regional jazz festivals.
He plays first trumpet with the Olympia Chamber Orchestra, an ensemble devoted exclusively to the performance of 20th century music, as well as being a professional jazz performer. Amy Putnam, affiliate artist faculty member, percussion. Putnam holds a BM in music education and performance from Miami University in Ohio, and a Masters in Music from The Juilliard School. She has performed with the Seattle Symphony and the Pacific Northwest Ballet Orchestra, and currently serves as principal percussionist for both the Tacoma Symphony Orchestra and the Bellevue Philharmonic. She has freelanced in New York City, and has performed with various symphony orchestras, including the Cincinnati Ballet Orchestra, and the Aspen Music Festival Orchestra, and was a finalist in the St. Louis Symphony Concerto Competition.