KMEA All-State Full Orchestra
All-State Full Orchestra
Century II Concert Hall
Sat - Mar. 1, 2025 - 11:15 AM
Interview with clinician Sharon Lavery

Sharon Lavery
2025 KMEA All-State Full Orchestra Conductor
Praised for her passionate and insightful interpretations, Sharon Lavery is known for connecting with audiences of all ages and backgrounds. Since 2007 she has been music director of the Downey Symphony Orchestra, an ensemble hailed as one of the best metropolitan orchestras in Southern California. Ms. Lavery has appeared as guest conductor with numerous orchestras, including the National Symphony Orchestra of Costa Rica, Vermont Symphony, Hollywood Chamber Orchestra, La Jolla Symphony, and San Bernardino Symphony, just to name a few. For many years she held the post of cover conductor for the Pacific Symphony Orchestra, and she has also served as cover conductor for the San Diego Symphony. She has been the assistant conductor of the Pasadena Symphony, the associate conductor of the Herbert Zipper Orchestra of Los Angeles, and has also served as music director of the MUSE International Music Day Festival in Chiba, Japan. In addition, Lavery has made recordings at Warner Bros studio in Burbank, CA, and with Delos Records, Inc.
In conjunction with her professional duties, Ms. Lavery serves as Resident Conductor of the Thornton Symphony, Chamber Orchestra, and Wind Ensemble at the University of Southern California Thornton School of Music. She has led USC’s ensembles in concert on countless occasions and served as music director of the Thornton Concert Orchestra for seven years. In addition to these duties at USC, Lavery teaches instrumental conducting.
Ms. Lavery is also known as an advocate for music education. She has conducted several All-State orchestras and wind ensembles throughout the United States, and she has served on the conducting faculty of the Interlochen Arts Camp and the International Honors Performance Series at Carnegie Hall.
Hailing from Ossining, New York, Lavery received her Bachelor of Music Education from Michigan State University, and Master of Music in Clarinet Performance from the New England Conservatory of Music. She also earned a Master of Music in Orchestral Conducting from USC Thornton where she was awarded the Leonard Bernstein Memorial Scholarship.
In conjunction with her professional duties, Ms. Lavery serves as Resident Conductor of the Thornton Symphony, Chamber Orchestra, and Wind Ensemble at the University of Southern California Thornton School of Music. She has led USC’s ensembles in concert on countless occasions and served as music director of the Thornton Concert Orchestra for seven years. In addition to these duties at USC, Lavery teaches instrumental conducting.
Ms. Lavery is also known as an advocate for music education. She has conducted several All-State orchestras and wind ensembles throughout the United States, and she has served on the conducting faculty of the Interlochen Arts Camp and the International Honors Performance Series at Carnegie Hall.
Hailing from Ossining, New York, Lavery received her Bachelor of Music Education from Michigan State University, and Master of Music in Clarinet Performance from the New England Conservatory of Music. She also earned a Master of Music in Orchestral Conducting from USC Thornton where she was awarded the Leonard Bernstein Memorial Scholarship.
2024-25
Violin I
- Maho Gibbs, Overland Park-Blue Valley Northwest
- Joshua Shin, Overland Park-Blue Valley North
- Ryan Byun, Andover-Central
- Omar Hamarshi, Overland Park-Blue Valley
- Amaya Gab, Lawrence-Free State
- Athul Prasad, Overland Park-Blue Valley West
- Ivanka Joshi, Overland Park-Blue Valley West
- Alyanne Jones, Derby
- Yad Kamla, Overland Park-Blue Valley Northwest
- Yoseph Negash, Olathe-East
- Isabel Franz, Prairie Village-Kansas City Christian
- Ella Lim, Overland Park-Blue Valley
- Gracen Dame, Manhattan
- Leonardo Aptilon, Overland Park-Blue Valley
- Mingcheng (Bobby) Guo, Overland Park-Blue Valley Northwest
- Neil Joshi, Overland Park-Blue Valley West
Violin II
- Daniel Chang, Overland Park-Blue Valley Southwest
- Jun Brewer, Lawrence
- Laura Ward, Wichita-East
- Julie Kong, Lawrence-Free State
- Kianna Ayala, Lawrence-Free State
- Emmeline Walker, Shawnee Mission-East
- Caleb Park, Overland Park-Blue Valley Southwest
- Katelyn Page, Overland Park-Blue Valley North
- Joseph Park, Olathe-West
- Ryan Huska, Overland Park-Blue Valley North
- Jiyeon Kim, Manhattan
- Cole Brown, Goddard-Eisenhower
- Nayeli Luna, Overland Park-Blue Valley West
- Will Suh, Overland Park-Blue Valley North
- Drew Harrison, Lawrence-Free State
- Srinivasa Vel, Overland Park-Blue Valley Northwest
- Isaac Player, Olathe-North
Viola
- Rishi Venkatesh, Overland Park-Blue Valley Northwest
- Hazel Ecklund-Johnson, Shawnee Mission-East
- Taryn Dale, Overland Park-Blue Valley
- Leandre Carlos, Olathe-East
- Alexis Chang, Overland Park-Blue Valley Southwest
- Isabella Glasow, Overland Park-Blue Valley North
- Spencer Lein, Olathe-Northwest
- Jasper Kim, Overland Park-Blue Valley North
- Noah Jackson, Goddard-Eisenhower
- Alex Velasco-Crates, Lawrence
- Lily Fischbach, Overland Park-Blue Valley North
- Johanna Speer, Maize
- Anna Qi, Overland Park-Blue Valley West
- Libby Kepler, Olathe-Northwest
Cello
- John Lee, Overland Park-Blue Valley Southwest
- Kyle Cho, Wichita-East
- Solomon Wu, Overland Park-Blue Valley Northwest
- Rebekah Pickering, Manhattan
- Adele Van Lieshout, Overland Park-Blue Valley North
- Alan Richey, Overland Park-Blue Valley
- Oliver Zimmerman, Wichita-Northwest
- Curtis Clark, Overland Park-Blue Valley West
- Amy Keeley, Manhattan
- Mason Bounds, Wichita-East
- Noelle Crouch, Lindsborg-Smoky Valley
- Eleanor Grindle, Manhattan
Bass
- Brandon Lewis, Olathe-Northwest
- Andrew Bowles, Olathe-Northwest
- Ethan Steiner, Overland Park-Blue Valley Southwest
- Nithish Aravinthan, Wichita-East
- Joaquin Miranda Diaz Gill, Pittsburg
- Clare O'Malley, Shawnee-Shawnee Mission Northwest
- Mark Wilkie, Topeka-West
- Jimmy Pargeets, Lawrence
- Emma Lockwood, Wichita-East
Bass (1234A Band)
- Maria (Lupita) Guzman, Kansas City-Sumner Academy
Bass (56A Band)
- Alexander Hillebrand, Hays
Harp
- Hannah Hillyer, Olathe-Northwest
- Daniel Cho, Overland Park-Blue Valley Northwest
- Alt. - Nathan (Leo) Solano, Kansas City-Sumner Academy
Placement of winds/percussion is managed by the All-State Band chairs.
Flute
- Audrey Fullerton, Overland Park-Blue Valley
- Claire Ahlrichs, Overland Park-Blue Valley
- Joanne Yoon, Overland Park-Blue Valley West
- Chamiru Liyanawaduge, Olathe-West
- (Piccolo) Amber Quint, Shawnee-Shawnee Mission Northwest
Oboe
- Mollie Domoney, Overland Park-Blue Valley West
- Olivia Wang, Overland Park-Blue Valley
- Miles Wilson, Wichita-East
- Joshua Lee, Wichita-Collegiate
Bassoon
- Henry Wheat, Olathe-South
- Alex Guo, Overland Park-Blue Valley West
- Ryan Yu, Olathe-East
- Leonard Schneider, Andover-Central
B-flat Clarinet
- Wesley Janssen, Olathe-East
- Aidan Anderson, Buhler
- Keegan Flynn, De Soto
- Abigail VanOosbree, Olathe-Northwest
Bass Clarinet
- Michael Leach, Overland Park-Blue Valley
Horn
- Brandon Beal, Derby
- Aidan Oberholtzer, Olathe-South
- Ben May, Olathe-Northwest
- Kate Deardorff, Overland Park-Blue Valley Northwest
- Grant Parcell, Wichita-East
- Anthony Wilson, Wichita-East
- Jacob Swisher, Olathe-East
- Hannah Khan, Buhler
Trumpet
- Max Zhang, Overland Park-Blue Valley North
- Adrian Obregon, Wichita-East
- Tessa Chaffee, Topeka-Washburn Rural
- Russell Franklin, Overland Park-Blue Valley
Trombone
- Nick Maskil, De Soto
- Jude Roos, Overland Park-Blue Valley
- Jayce Anson, Overland Park-Blue Valley Northwest
- Sam Garner, Tecumseh-Shawnee Heights
Euphonium
- Jack Kennedy, Olathe-East
Tuba
- Ernie May, Olathe-South
Percussion
- Anthony Seck, Overland Park-Blue Valley
- Ryne Poindexter, Olathe-East
- Emerson Prather, Olathe-East
- Bryan Dodson, Shawnee Mission-South
- Akhila Jayasinghe, Wichita-East
- Nick Heffner, Shawnee Mission-West