Dr. Maia Zander, Director
Violin/Viola Instructor

Maia Zander has concertized and presented masterclasses throughout Western Europe and the United States, and is a favorite collaborator with some of today's finest artists. An avid chamber musician, Dr. Zander has been a member of the Galena, Hunt, Nomis and Cavaletta String Quartets, performing nationally and internationally on radio and in concert halls, and additionally presenting outreach programs for the underprivileged. She has served as concertmaster of the Sierra Chamber Orchestra, Waltham Philharmonic, Icicle Creek Chamber Orchestra, and the Boston University Symphony Orchestra on tour at Carnegie Hall and Boston's Symphony Hall.

An innovative teacher, Dr. Zander has served as a faculty member of the Suzuki Strings of Madison, the Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra's Intensive Community Project, and the Brookline Extension School. She currently serves as orchestra director for the Malibu Middle and High School orchestra programs. Under her leadership, enrollments have reached record levels and her students have performed multiple times at Carnegie Hall. She is also a fully certified Suzuki teacher, a graduate degree she earned from the prestigious program at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. Dr. Zander received her Doctor of Musical Arts degree from Boston University in 2008. She is the author of the book Intermediate Violin Repertoire: A Teachers’ Guide. 

Steven Zander
Violin/Viola Instructor

Violinist Steven Zander is in frequent demand as an orchestral violinist, chamber music collaborator, and studio musician.

Mr. Zander is a member of the Santa Barbara Symphony, and regularly performs in many of the other professional orchestras in the Los Angeles area, including the Pasadena Symphony and Pops, the New West Symphony, the Riverside Philharmonic, the Santa Barbara Opera orchestra, and on tour with the Andrea Bocelli orchestra. While pursuing his studies, Mr. Zander was a member of the Madison Symphony and the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, as well as a frequent substitute with the Houston Symphony. An avid chamber musician, Mr. Zander has collaborated with principal members of the Boston Symphony, Houston Symphony, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and with members of the Pro Arte Quartet. Mr. Zander can also be heard on many motion picture and television soundtracks, including “Rango,” HBO’s “The Sunset Limited,” “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides,” and on episodes of “Perception” and “Revenge.”

Mr. Zander began his violin studies at the age of four with Patricia D’Ercole at the Aber Suzuki Center. He earned his Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, as well as a Master of Music from Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, where his principal teachers were Vartan Manoogian and Sergiu Luca.