All Caribbean Youth Orchestra

Our Faculty

ACYO brings some of the world's best artists and educators to the Caribbean. Our world-renowned faculty have extensive experience working with youth of all ages and are some of the most renowned pedagogues in their field.


Richard Fields: Brass
Trumpeter Richard Fields made his solo debut at age sixteen with the New World School of the Arts High School in Miami. He went on to win awards in the Jazz at Lincoln Center Competition hosted by Wynton Marsalis. Based in New York City. He performs regularly with ensembles such as the New World Symphony, Miami Symphony, Broward Symphony, Ensemble du Monde, Bravo Vail Valley Festival Brass Quintet, and the National Symphony Orchestra of Merida Mexico.
 
He received his B.M and M.M from Suny Purchase State University of New York where his principal teachers were Graham Ashton, Rich Klemer and Lee Soper. He has also participated in the Luzerne Music Center and the Las Vegas Music Festival. Currently he is a DMA candidate at Columbia University, Teachers College.
 
 The co-founder of Parallel Brass, He is also Second Trumpet with the Norfolk Symphony Orchestra and a member of Ensemble du Monde, chamber orchestra.
 
As a smooth jazz artist Mr. Fields is in high demand and currently featured as a performer and composer on the new CD Walk Away alongside Mike Marrocco.


Alison Gaines: Cello & Bass
Alison Gaines is the Ron Crocker Chair of Orchestra for the University of Nebraska in Kearney. She also serves as Assistant Professor of Orchestra and Bass and is the Music Director of the Kearney Symphony Orchestra. She holds a Doctoral degree in orchestral conducting from the University of Kansas, Lawrence and a Master’s degree from U.S.C. in Los Angeles for bass performance where she won two Orchestral Leadership awards.
 
In addition, she has served as a clinician and guest conductor for music associations throughout the Midwest and for the Chicago Bass Festival. During her doctoral studies she received assistantships from both the orchestral and jazz departments where she worked and studied with British conductor, keyboardist and recording artist Brian Priestman and with jazz educator, arranger and composer Dan Gailey. She has also received fellowships from through the League of American Orchestras, Chorus America, the Conductor’s Institutes in South Carolina and at Bard College in New York.
 
Her experience as a bassist includes Tanglewood and New York String Ensemble fellowships, an Aspen Music Festival scholarship, the Spoleto, Italy Opera Festival and co-principal with the National Repertory Orchestra for two summers. She also won a substitute audition with the St. Louis Symphony and served for eight years as principal bassist of a full-time orchestra in Oklahoma. She has also performed chamber music in the United States and in Europe and has been a featured soloist with the National Repertory Orchestra, Tulsa Philharmonic, Breckenridge, CO Festival, and Rockford, IL Symphony.


Ville Mankkinen: Viola
Finish violist Ville Mankkinen has performed in Asia, Europe and both North and South America. Mankkinen has made appearances among others with the Brasilian National Symphony Orchestra, the Americana City Orchestra (Brazil), the Kirkkonummi Chamber Orchestra and the Kemi City Orchestra (FInland), the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra (China) and the Pazardchik Symphony Orchestra (Bulgaria).
 
Mankkinen began to study violin at the age of six at the Mikkeli Music School in Finland. Later he studied violin at the Piteå Music Academy in Sweden and continued viola at the Rimsky Korsakov Conservatory in St Petersburg in Russia.
 
Mankkinen is the general manager and artistic director of the Kemi City Orchestra and artistic director of the Wasa Sinfonietta. He also is artistic director of the Sea Lapland Oratory Choir and the Sea Lapland Male Singers. He is also the founding member of the Panula Academy, where he has been the assistant Jorma Panula.
 
Mankkinen is currently supported by the Finnish Cultural Foundation, the Vuorio Foundation and the Svenska Kulturfonden. Mankkinen has won the Demetrio Kipman award two times.