EXECUTIVE BOARD MEMBERS
Jonathan Allentoff (President) is a nationally acclaimed conductor, composer, performer, clinician, and educator. Actively involved in the Greater Rochester community, he holds positions as the founding music director of the Brockport Symphony and Temple Beth El Orchestras, music director of the GPAS Greece Community Orchestra, associate conductor and principal arranger for the Brighton Symphony Orchestra, Director of Music and Strings at Hillel School, director of the Eastman Klezmer Ensemble and Eastman Studio Orchestra at ECMS, and composition mentor and conductor for the Los Angeles Inception Orchestra. His works and licensed arrangements have been performed by ensembles across the globe, and he manages his own music publishing business, Allentoff Music, www.allentoffmusic.com. He holds a Master of Arts degree specializing in Music, Interdisciplinary Arts, Education, and Technology with Honors from Stony Brook University’s School of Professional Development, and he received the Dr. Deborah C. Hecht Award for his MA thesis, “The Positive Cultural Impact of Community Orchestras.” He is an active member of APME, ASCAP, ASMAC, ASTA, CODA, NAfME, and NYSSMA.
GPASPres@GreecePerformingArts.org
Marcia Najjar (Vice President) joined GPAS and the Greece Concert Band in 2001. An accomplished clarinetist, she has served as principle chair since that time. In addition to performing with GPAS Marcia is a member of the Pittsford Fire Department Marching Band, the RG&E Big Band, Flower City Pride Band, and the North Dixie Stompers Dixieland band. She has performed in chamber quintets, clarinet choirs, and done some solo work in the past. Since 2003, Marcia has served on the board, except when taking a hiatus to complete two master’s programs in both Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine, and Clinical Nutrition. Her service with the board had led to her acting as secretary for 2 years and treasurer for 1 year. Currently, Marcia is happy to be pursuing music educational courses at Monroe Community College and taking private lessons at the Eastman Community Music School.
GPASVP@GreecePerformingArts.org
Janine Resch (Treasurer)
GPASTreasurer@GreecePerformingArts.org
Sean Fallon (Secretary)
BOARD MEMBERS
Dale Vanocker (Board Member) was born in Rochester, NY and quickly gained an appreciation for fine music from his father, who always made Sunday afternoon a rest and music listening experience. At that time he bought every volume of the “Star Supermarket Special Classic LP set” and then took a music course with Professor Crawford at MCC. Since 1963 Dale has been collecting a very large music library of his own. In the mid 1980’s he took over recording GPAS musical events on a huge Akai 11″ reel-to reel tape recorder (@60 lbs) and producing high quality Cassette Tapes. Today, Dale uses handheld digital audio recorders (0.5 lbs) and a music adaptation and correction computer program to produce excellent CD reproductions of concerts for the performers. Dale sees all of this as a contribution in support of the area’s best Performing Arts Society.
Carolyn Greene (Board Member) was born and raised in Toledo, Ohio. She started violin lessons when she was 9 years old. When she was 13, she auditioned for and won a seat in the Toledo Youth Orchestra (Toledo’s version of the RPYO). She started college with a major in Music, but switched and graduated with a degree in Chemistry. She has a Masters degree in Chemistry Education, with certification also in Physics. She taught Chemistry and Physics for 25 years. She joined the Greece Community Orchestra in 1969 and the Greece Symphony in 1970. She has served on the GPAS Board of Directors since January 2020.
Kathy Mertz (Board Member) has been a member of GPAS for 7 years. She sings in the Greece Choral Society. This is her third year acting as a liaison between the chorus and the GPAS Board.
GROUP / MUSIC DIRECTORS
Jonathan Allentoff (Community Orchestra Director) is a nationally acclaimed conductor, composer, performer, clinician, and educator. In addition to serving as music director of the Greece Community Orchestra, he holds positions as the founding music director of the Brockport Symphony and Temple Beth El Orchestras, associate conductor, principal arranger, and principal viola for the Brighton Symphony Orchestra, President of the Greece Performing Arts Society, Director of Music and Strings at Hillel School, director of the Eastman Klezmer Ensemble and Eastman Studio Orchestra at ECMS, composition mentor and conductor for the Los Angeles Inception Orchestra, and the founder of Allentoff Music (ASCAP).
Jonathan recently conducted the Los Angeles Inception Orchestra studio recording session at Village Studios in Westwood, CA and the orchestral session at UCLA, conducted the premiere of his big band composition,“Swingin’ Through Griffith Park” and performed as violin soloist with the Flight 584 Big Band at the Mayflower Club in North Hollywood, conducted and performed as principal viola with the NYSSMA/NYASTA Conference Orchestra and violin soloist with the NYACDA Honor Choir in Albany, NY, composed the score for the documented drama, Love Letters from the Cold War, and conducted his film score and popular song arrangements at the ASMAC Summer Concert celebrating the 100th Anniversary of Warner Bros. at Evergreen Studios in Burbank. He has presented APME Conference workshops at the Berklee College of Music, New York University, Loyola University, Detroit Institute of Music Education, University of Colorado Denver, and Middle Tennessee State University.
Jonathan’s works and licensed arrangements have been performed by ensembles across the globe, including the Pittsburgh, Knoxville, Holyoke, Muncie, Oklahoma, Redlands, Salina, Texas, and Vermont Symphony Orchestras, and the Sydney Opera House in Australia, among others. He holds a Master of Arts degree specializing in Music, Interdisciplinary Arts, Education, and Technology with Honors from Stony Brook University’s School of Professional Development, and he received the Dr. Deborah C. Hecht Award for his MA thesis, “The Positive Cultural Impact of Community Orchestras.” He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Interdisciplinary Arts and Music from The College at Brockport, SUNY. He is an active member of APME, ASCAP, ASMAC, ASTA, CODA, NAfME, and NYSSMA and serves on the Executive Board of NYASTA and the Los Angeles Inception Orchestra Board of Directors.
BJ Comer (Concert Band Director) is a Rochester area musician and was chosen as the Director of the Greece Concert Band in May, 2014. BJ continues as the Conductor of the Pittsford Fire Department Band where he plays trumpet and was chosen as Conductor in 2007. The Pittsford Fire Department Band has enjoyed outstanding success under BJ’s musical leadership and performs frequently during the summer music season in the Upstate NY area.
In addition to conducting, BJ is in demand as a trumpeter throughout the Rochester area. Since moving to Rochester in 2005, BJ has performed with numerous ensembles, including the Off-Monroe Players, the Greater Rochester Jazz Orchestra, Music Maker’s Big Band, local salsa band Grupo Calle Uno, and the Greater Finger Lakes Jazz Orchestra. He is a current member and performer in the Rochester Metropolitan Jazz Orchestra and Nik and the Nice Guys. In 2006, BJ founded Upbeat Music with the purpose of providing quality musical instruction and unique musical performances to the greater Rochester area. BJ currently maintains a studio of over 40 students. Upbeat Music also provides custom arrangements and compositions for local performers and bandleaders that are tailored to their specific needs. BJ was born and raised in Texas. He graduated Summa Cum Laude from Texas A&M University-Kingsville in 2005 with a Bachelor of Music. During his college years BJ performed with many local bands, orchestras and student groups. BJ met his wife, Jessamy, when they played in the Texas All-State Band. Jessamy is a Visiting Assistant Professor of Psychology at RIT. She enjoys playing soprano, alto, and bass clarinet. They have two young children and reside in the Rochester area.
In loving memory: Dr. David Fetler (Director Emeritus) was the Founder and Music Director Emeritus of the Greece Symphony Orchestra. He was also the Founder and Conductor Laureate of the professional Rochester Chamber Orchestra with players from the Rochester Philharmonic. He was born in Riga, Latvia, and came to the United States at the age of 12 with his family. He studied at Juilliard, Westminster Choir College, Eastman School of Music (DMA), as well as with the French conductor Pierre Monteux and Leopold Stokowski. Eastman School Director Howard Hanson invited Fetler to join the Eastman Conducting Faculty where he presented a wide variety of instrumental and choral music with the Eastman Collegium Chamber Orchestra & Singers. He was also for many years Choral Director at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Rochester.
Dr. Rollo Fisher (Choral Society Director) is Assistant Professor of Vocal and Choral Music at Monroe Community College in Rochester, New York. Dr. Fisher received his PhD in Choral Music Education from Florida State University, MME from the University of Central Florida, and BME from Indiana University. His choirs have performed for local and national events, including the Masterworks Series at Carnegie Hall, in which the Greece Choral Society participated in June 2016.
COMMUNITY PARTNERS
Karen Pearson (Choral Society President) holds a B.S. and M.S. in English. She retired in 2004 after teaching middle school and high school English/Language Arts for 32 years. She has been included in Who’s Who in American Colleges and Universities as well as in Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers.
During high school and college, Karen was an active member in a variety of choirs; she currently sings in her church choir, joined Greece Choral Society in 1978, and has served as President since 2014. Karen also plays in two hand bell choirs. In the summer of 2016, she participated in the Masterworks Series in NYC as part of a 240-voice choir, performing Mozart’s Requiem at Carnegie Hall.
In addition to her love of music, Karen enjoys volunteering at Atria once a week and doing read-alouds as an elementary school “reading buddy.” She is also very active in her church, leading the Outreach Ministry team. Finally, in her spare time, she enjoys doing calligraphy and walking or biking every day.
Dale Vanocker (Program and Poster Designer) was born in Rochester, NY and quickly gained an appreciation for fine music from his father, who always made Sunday afternoon a rest and music listening experience. At that time he bought every volume of the “Star Supermarket Special Classic LP set” and then took a music course with Professor Crawford at MCC. Since 1963 Dale has been collecting a very large music library of his own.In the mid 1980’s he took over recording GPAS musical events on a huge Akai 11″ reel-to reel tape recorder (@60 lbs) and producing high quality Cassette Tapes. Today, Dale uses handheld digital audio recorders (0.5 lbs) and a music adaptation and correction computer program to produce excellent CD reproductions of concerts for the performers. Dale sees all of this as a contribution in support of the area’s best Performing Arts Society.
Brian Oyer (Webmaster) is a retired science teacher, having taught high school earth science and astronomy for 32 years at Greece Athena High School. Playing the French horn has been an important part of his life since grade school. He joined the GPAS Community Orchestra back in the 1970s, and switched to the Concert Band on its inception in 1994. In the spring of 2014, Brian volunteered to work on designing a new website for the Concert Band. While he has a fair amount of experience with computers, he has had no formal training in website design; he has managed to learn the basics by researching on-line. Brian and his wife, Marjorie, have taken many photos and videos of the band, which can be seen on his website. As a result of his work on the band site, Brian was asked by the GPAS president to also be the webmaster of this main GPAS website. Brian’s other hobbies include astronomy, photography, video editing, computers, HO model trains, gardening, travel, and, of course family. He and Margie spend many happy hours attending their eight grandchildren’s school, sports and musical activities.