You’re invited to come and see a brand new line of performances in our Spring Noon Hour Concert Series! Admission to the building is free, and a sandwich lunch is available for purchase prior to each recital between 11:30 a.m. - 12:15 p.m., with the concerts beginning at 12:15 p.m.
About Ambrosia Clarinet Quintet
The musicians of the Ambrosia Clarinet Quintet began playing together in September 2023. The five musicians performing at St. Andrew's are five of the six founding members of Ambrosia Chamber Ensembles, along with cellist Mary Steele. Ambrosia musicians enjoy playing chamber music in various combinations including a clarinet-piano duo, a string sextet, and several different trios, quartets, and quintets. The Ambrosia Clarinet Quintet performed music of Brahms in June 2024, and is sharing a concert with Ambrosia string ensembles in March 2025 in the Gallery Concert Series at the Wellington County Museum in Fergus.
Clarinetist Ginny Scarfino is a native of Kitchener-Waterloo and began playing clarinet in high school. She completed a computer science degree at University of Waterloo and studied clarinet with former K-W Symphony principal Victor Sawa for 18 years. After he left K-W, she studied bassoon with former K-W Symphony principal, Cedric Coleman, for over 20 years. After a 33-year career in IT with Mutual Life/Sun Life/IBM, she retired in 2013, and studied piano with long-time Beckett School teacher Terry Kroetsch for 10 years. She plays bassoon in the Wellington Wind Symphony, Waterloo Chamber Players, Kitchener-Waterloo Chamber Orchestra. and Spindrift Wind Quartet, is Principal Clarinet in the Kitchener-Waterloo Community Orchestra, and studies piano with Rebekah Jordan-Miller. For hobbies, she loves to knit, especially socks, and put together jigsaw puzzles.
Violinist Yiyang Shi started playing violin at age five. He was born in Liuzhou, China, moved to New Brunswick in 2014, and moved to Waterloo in 2020. Yiyang enjoys playing violin/viola with the Waterloo Chamber Players and occasionally with the Stratford Symphony Orchestra. In 2014, Yiyang started his MSc journey in Electrical Engineering at University of New Brunswick in Fredericton and played violin and viola with the Fredericton Symphony Orchestra. Yiyang plays violin, viola, guitar and drums, and is skilled in the use of audio/video production, MIDI/computer music and sheet music notation. He works as an electrical control panel specialist at a family business in Breslau, and enjoys working on cars, driving on local circuits, or playing with electronics during the weekend.
Violinist Carmen Miron started playing violin at age nine. By age 12, she joined the Hamilton Youth Orchestra. She had a 12-year hiatus until moving to Sault Ste Marie, where she was convinced to join the Sault Symphony. Since relocating to Waterloo in 2001, she has participated in the Kitchener Waterloo Community Orchestra, Kitchener Waterloo Chamber Orchestra, Waterloo Chamber Players, and Cambridge Symphony. Carmen attends adult chamber music camps in Canada and the USA. At CAMMAC, she was inspired to learn the viola. Carmen is now retired from a rewarding career as a MSW social worker with a focus on mental health, including serving the Canadian Armed Forces during Afghanistan deployments. She is a “snowbird” who plays in two orchestras in Southwest Florida in the winter and loves to play tennis.
Violist Caleb Olesen learned the violin in grade school through the Niagara Elementary Instrumental Music program. In grade 8, his violin teacher handed him a viola and asked him to learn how to read the alto clef and to join the Niagara Youth Orchestra as a violist. Caleb has been a violist ever since. During university, Caleb earned a degree in chemical engineering from the University of Waterloo while playing viola with Orchestra@UWaterloo and the Waterloo Chamber Players as well as singing bass with the University of Waterloo Chamber Choir and the Renaissance Singers. Today, Caleb is a professional engineer in the wastewater treatment business. He is a violist with, and a board member of, the Waterloo Chamber Players, and he is busy with three children at home.
Cellist Michelle Kyle began playing piano at age four and cello at age 11. She studied piano and cello at Laurier, then completed a Master of Music in piano performance at McGill and degrees in law at Osgoode Hall and adult education at Brock University. Michelle has performed as a pianist and cellist for special events throughout Ontario for decades. She has been a lawyer, web developer at a major bank, certified rock climbing instructor, and adult literacy instructor. Michelle lives in rural Princeton with her husband, cats and chickens. She is currently a full-time student, studying cello performance with Katie Schlaikjer in the chamber music diploma program at Wilfrid Laurier University. She enjoys swimming, cycling, Duolingo, and puzzles.