Tiffany Ou-Ponticelli teaches orchestra at Gunn High School in Palo Alto, CA. Ms. Ou-Ponticelli holds a B.A. in Music Education from the University of California, Los Angeles and a master’s degree in Music Education from the University of Michigan. In the UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music, she studied viola with Richard O’Neill, and received her teaching credential from the UCLA Teacher Education Program. Her ensembles at Gunn High School, and previously at Fletcher Middle School, consistently receive superior ratings at festivals. 

 

Under Ms. Ou-Ponticelli’s direction, the Henry M. Gunn High School Orchestras have performed at conferences including the Midwest Clinic International Band & Orchestra Conference (2022) and the American String Teachers Association National Orchestra Festival (2018). Ms. Ou-Ponticelli currently serves as President of the California Orchestra Directors Association (CODA), where she also held positions as All-State Orchestras Coordinator and Secretary. She also serves as the California Music Educators Association (CMEA) Bay Section Website Editor, after serving as Orchestra Representative from 2018-2022. Ms. Ou-Ponticelli was previously a member of the AST Journal Editorial Committee, and has presented at state and national conferences including ASTA and CASMEC. She was the recipient of the 2023 CMEA Richard L. Levin Orchestra Educator Award, and the 2022 CMEA Bay Section Outstanding Orchestra Educator Award.

 

Ms. Ou-Ponticelli is an active string teacher, violist, and vocalist in the San Francisco Bay Area, and is also the co-host of the string education podcast “Band Meets Strings”. In addition to her orchestral background, she sings with San Francisco-based treble voice ensemble Musae. Ms. Ou-Ponticelli holds a Level III Orff Certification from the San Francisco International Orff Course and is an advocate for incorporating Orff pedagogy in the secondary ensemble setting. Her research interests lie in musical self-efficacy, repertoire diversity, group composition, and solfege for instrumentalists.