Ardenza String Academy Faculty
Directors
Dr. Geoffrey Dean
ASA Director
A cellist and conductor with over thirty years of performance and teaching experience on both sides of the Atlantic, Dr. Dean was a founding music faculty member at the American University in Bulgaria. He has toured throughout Europe and Japan as a cello soloist and member of the Sofia String Quartet. As a conductor, he has appeared regularly at Bulgarian National Radio with Camerata Ardenza, a leading chamber orchestra and the namesake of the Ardenza String Academy. Based in the Twin Cities since 2018, Dr. Dean is best known in the US as the orchestra director at Parnassus Preparatory School in Maple Grove and as guest principal cellist of Midwestern orchestras. Read more about Dr. Dean here.
Hayley Nelson, MM
ASE Assistant Director
A string teacher and performer based in the Twin Cities and Chisago County, Hayley Nelson holds a Masters Degree in cello performance from the University of Minnesota, where she studied with Tanya Remenikova, and more recently earned a Masters in Teaching with license to teach K-12 Instrumental Music in Minnesota. Over the course of her twelve-year musical career, she has built and maintained a thriving private studio, conducting ensembles and teaching strings to all ages and abilities. Though her background is mainly in classical music, she performs many styles of music, and enjoys learning the drums, studying Irish and Appalachian fiddle styles, jamming with the Houdek String Band, and playing chamber pop with family and friends.