Mission of the Rainey-McCullers School of the Arts Orchestra Program
The goal of Orchestra at Rainey-McCullers is to create life-long musicians through the process of learning and performing on an orchestral string instrument. There is a consistent emphasis placed on improving one’s own technical skills and abilities, while also honing the theoretical and historical knowledge through the highest quality musical education available. Students will learn about patience, discipline, and consistency and their values in not only improving as a musician, but in every aspect of life. Students who take orchestra will collaborate with each other as well as students from other departments in small to large projects. While the majority of instruction will involve large groups of students playing as an ensemble, time will dedicated to students on an individual basis.
Our Orchestra Faculty
Ms. Elena Kolbrek
Elena Kolbrek is a concert violinist and educator, intertwining performance and outreach to create holistic educational experiences within her workspaces and community. Since 2020, Kolbrek has resided as a violin instructor in the Schwob Preparatory Program as well as Teaching Artist in Columbus Symphony Orchestra’s Making Music Matters program, in which she provides group violin lessons to children in Title I schools with the goal “to enrich students’ lives through the creative pursuit of musical skills,” currently in partnership with Girls Inc. In her private studio, Kolbrek teaches students in the United States, South Africa, Nigeria, Venezuela, and Guatemala.
Kolbrek has toured the midwest with the National Lutheran Choir and is a prize winner in the Edvard Grieg Society Violin Competition, where her transcription of a Grieg piano piece garnered special recognition. She has been featured as a conductor with college bands and high school and middle school orchestras and performs with the Atlanta Ballet Orchestra, Blue Morpho Orchestra, LaGrange Symphony Orchestra, and the Columbus Symphony Orchestra.
As the founding executive director of the Vargas Foundation, Kolbrek works to engage the global partnerships with families and organizations for meaningful impact through music education. She oversees the production of all programs between the board, artistic faculty, staff, students, and volunteers, ensuring that each project carries out the mission and goals of the foundation while providing organizational guidance and oversight.
Kolbrek holds a Masters in Music and Artist Diploma from the Schwob School of Music and a Bachelor’s in Music (Violin Performance and K-12 Music Education) from the University of Minnesota, where she graduated with summa cum laude recognition. Her teachers and mentors include Sergiu Schwartz and Boris Abramov (CSU-Schwob), Sally O’Reilly (UMN), and Roger Frisch (Minnesota Orchestra).