At 11 years of age, violinist Kevin Michael Mendoza began his studies in the San Antonio  Symphony’s Music Advancement Program. Throughout his upbringing, he was a student of  Sarah Cote, Suzy Perelman, Stephanie Sant’Ambrogio, and Bassam Nashawati. Mendoza is a  Texas Music Scholar and was a member of the Youth Orchestras of San Antonio. In 2005,  Mendoza ranked 10th in state for the T.M.E.A. All-State Symphony Orchestra and received an  Outstanding Performer Award at the U.I.L. Texas State Solo-Ensemble Contest. 

Mendoza attended The University of Texas at San Antonio, where he studied performance under  Karen Stiles and Dr. Stephanie Westney. He is a two-time U.T.S.A. Concerto & Aria Competition  winner and a member of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia. In 2008, Mendoza transferred to The University  of Texas at Austin, where he later received a Bachelor of Music in orchestral violin performance.  

At U.T., Mendoza studied under professors Vincent Fritelli, Brian Lewis, Anne Akiko Meyers,  and Daniel Ching. Mendoza was a New Music Ensemble scholarship recipient and a soloist with  The Bach Cantata Project. In 2009, his quartet was awarded grand prize at The Miró Quartet’s  Intensive String Quartet Seminar & Competition, along with an invite to a side-by-side  performance of the Mendelssohn String Octet, Op.20. During his undergraduate studies,  Mendoza has participated in masterclasses for Nadja Solerno-Sonnenberg, Anne Akiko Meyers,  Stephanie Chase, the Chiara Quartet, the Miró Quartet, and the Takács Quartet.  

In 2013, Mendoza relocated to West Hollywood, California. Throughout his time in Los Angeles,  Mendoza served as principal for the “conductor-less” Kaleidoscope Chamber Orchestra, worked  as the Director of Library Operations for the Thomas Metzler Violin Shop, and has appeared live  on NBC’s The Voice as a sideline musician.  

In 2015, Mendoza joined the Mariachi Arcoiris de Los Angeles, the world’s first LGBTQ+  ensemble of its kind. Built as a haven for those who identify within the queer community, the  Rainbow Mariachi has gained international recognition through the Los Angeles Times, billboard  magazine, Smithsonian magazine, National Public Radio, and the U.S. Library of Congress.  

Aside from live performances, Mendoza’s recorded studio work includes the albums Christmas  At My Place by Travis Cloer and Los Arcoiris by Mariachi Arcoiris de Los Angeles. Mendoza is  also a featured soloist in the Terrence Malik film To The Wonder, released by Magnolia Pictures.  

Amid his career in the Lone Star State, Mendoza has since performed for the symphonies of San  Antonio, San Angelo, Round Rock, Round Top, Corpus Christi, Laredo, and Victoria, along with  theatre companies including The Josephine, The Vexler, The Brauntex, and The San Pedro  Playhouse. In 2019, Mendoza relocated to San Antonio, where he currently performs with the  Mid-Texas Symphony, Symphony of the Hills, Temple Symphony, and the newly reformed San  Antonio Philharmonic.

Matthew “Matty” Saltibus is currently the Orchestra Director at Harlan High School in Northside ISD and the conductor of the San Antonio Community Orchestra. 

He attended The University of Texas at San Antonio and became a Music Education Major and currently holds a Master’s Degree in Instrumental Conducting. He taught in the UTSA “String Project” for seven years, teaching orchestra to 3rd-7th grade students in the San Antonio area. He has been teaching orchestra in the public school system for 12 years. He also served as Region Chair for the Texas Music Educators Association for 4 years. With his expertise in music education he has served as a clinician, providing clinics for school districts, music programs, and the Texas Orchestra Directors Association. He has also taught students and teachers in multiple music schools on the island of St. Lucia.

Over the course of 12 years, he has earned more than twenty UIL String Orchestra Sweepstake Trophies, six UIL Performance Plaques, and eight UIL Full Orchestra Sweepstakes Trophies. His most recent major award includes the “2017 TexASTA Marjorie Keller Young Teacher of the Year Award,” which recognizes one young Texas music educator for their meritorious service and outstanding promise in string education grades K-12.

Jey Ping began learning the violin as a young child from his father and has enjoyed playing ever since.  Through high school and college, he studied with Yuly Ilyashov and trained through his school orchestra program, the St. Louis Symphony Youth Orchestra, and the Missouri All-State Orchestra.  He performed with the Ladue Strolling Strings on multiple tours through Europe, Branson, Washington, D.C., and state dinners.  Jey received the Lois Percival Orchestra Award during his senior year in high school.  He is an alum of the Masterworks Festival and served as concertmaster of the Washington University Symphony Orchestra, Washington University Chamber Orchestra, Young People’s Symphonic Orchestra, and St. Louis All Suburban Orchestra.

After graduating from Washington University in St. Louis with a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science and Economics, Jey continued to keep music a part of his life, on top of his job working at SAP. He worked as a part-time violin teacher at Ladue and Mehlville and led the Ladue Strolling Strings.  He has served as concertmaster of the Jacksonville Symphony Society and as principal second violin with the Town and Country Symphony Orchestra. 

Today Jey lives near Johnson City, Texas, and continues to study and play as many different styles of fiddling as he can get his hands on, drawing inspiration from fellow musicians at folk schools, shows, fiddle festivals, jam sessions, and dances.  He regularly plays jazz shows at the Ragtime Oriole in Marble Falls, Texas, and plays 6-string fiddle and mandolin in the Country and Western dance band at the Ramblin’ Rose in Llano, Texas.  He plays in community orchestras such as the San Antonio Community Orchestra, Fredericksburg Community Orchestra, and Heart of Texas Orchestra.  Jey is also the substitute organist for multiple churches in Blanco County.   

Randy Chang is a freshman at the University of the Incarnate Word and is a music performance major with emphasis in viola. This is his eighth year playing viola, and he hopes to achieve his doctorate in music to become a viola professor. He is also a member of YOSA Philharmonic and has participated in TMEA All-Region 29 Orchestra and all-state UIL solo and ensemble.