If you’re an amateur violin, viola or cello players age 18 and over, and looking for an opportunity to take your skills to the next level, the City of Lakes Music Society is hosting their 2026 Strings Retreat from August 12 to 16. The Strings Retreat offers daily instruction from professional chamber musicians at Thorneloe University in Sudbury.
The intensive begins with an optional meet and greet on August 11, then plunges into study from August 12 to 16. Participants will get ensemble as well as solo playing opportunities. Ensembles will be created according to skill levels, including a string orchestra, and chamber ensembles. Along with group instruction, there will be master classes and workshops designed around the retreat participants, and a concert on the afternoon of August 16.
Instruction is provided by three members of the Sudbury Symphony Orchestra String Quartet — Beth Schneider-Gould and Melissa Schaak, violins, and Dobrochna Zubek, cello — and guest
teacher violist Caitlin Boyle.
The deadline for registration is June 15, 2026.
Meet The Instructors
Beth Schneider-Gould, violin
Beth Ilana Schneider-Gould made her debut as a soloist at the age of 16 with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. She is a graduate of Indiana University Bloomington and the University of Arizona.
Beth has performed as a soloist across the United States, including at venues such as the Kennedy Center and Carnegie Hall, and in Europe with Sir George Solti and the Schleswig Holstein Festival Orchestra. She has also played in various chamber ensembles with artists who include Simon Rattle, Kurt Masur, Leonard Slatkin, Neeme Jarvi, and Christoph Dohnanyi.
Schneider-Gould is a member of Duo46 with guitarist and husband Dr. Mathew Gould. Together, Duo46 has recorded several albums of contemporary music, including commissioned pieces. Duo46 has performed in across Europe and the US, and conducted ensemble residencies at Harvard University, Florida State University, UC Berkeley, the Hochschule for Musik Würzburg, the Landesmusik Akademie Shlitz, Germany, and Uludag University in Turkey, among others.
As a recording artist, Schneider-Gould appears on 11 compact disc recordings under the Albany, Summit, Centaur, GPR, Meyer-Media, Kyra and Beauport Classical labels.
Beth is a former member of the San Antonio Symphony and served as a Senior Lecturer of Violin, Viola and Chamber music at Eastern Mediterranean University in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, and Paradise Valley Community College in Phoenix, Arizona USA. She is on faculty at Laurentian University in Sudbury, Ontario.
Beth is also the Concertmaster of the Sudbury Symphony Orchestra.
Melissa Schaak, violin
Melissa Schaak is a native of Sudbury, and a violin performance graduate from Wilfrid Laurier University. She obtained a specialization in chamber music studying under the Penderecki String Quartet, and subsequently continued her studies at the Conservatory of Amsterdam.
She remained in Europe for 12 years, performing classical crossover music with prominent artists such as the Trans-Siberian Orchestra, Josh Groban, Michael Bublé, Salvatore Adamo, Idina Menzel, Johnny Logan, Richard Desjardins, and Chaka Khan.
Since returning to Canada, Melissa has performed with the Sudbury Symphony Orchestra, Timmins Symphony Orchestra, L’Orchestre Symphonique Abitibi-Témiscamingue et L’ensemble Aiguebelle.
Dobrochna Zubek, cello
Toronto-based cellist Dobrochna Zubek earned her B.A. and M.A. at Baltimore’s Towson University, then continuing her studies at the Conservatoire de Versailles in France. She completed her Doctor of Musical Arts in Cello Performance at the University of Toronto.
She is the newest member of Quartetto Gelato, an ensemble known for their innovative approach to classical music programming. Doborchna is also a member of Thin Edge New Music Collective, a Toronto ensemble dedicated to performing new music.
Previously, in 2024, she served as principal cellist of Symphony New Brunswick, and as a member of the Saint John String Quartet. From 2017 to 2023, Dobrochna was principal cellist of the Sudbury Symphony Orchestra, and during the same period, was principal cellist of the Ontario Philharmonic. Prior to arriving in Toronto, Zubek performed as a member of the Orquesta Sinfonica del Estado de Mexico.
She has performed on several music festival stages, including the Geneé International Ballet Competition (2019), Banff Center for Arts and Creativity (2019) and Ottawa Chamberfest (2016).
A passionate educator alongside her performing career, Dobrochna has taught masterclasses in Poland, Canada and the United States, as well as in China as part of the University of Toronto’s Faculty of New Music Festival. She taught as a cello instructor at the University of Toronto from 2016 to 2017.
Caitlin Boyle, viola
Hamilton based violin and viola performer Caitlin Boyle She began studying music at the Hamilton Suzuki School of Music at the age of three, and went on to earn BMus, MM, and DMA degrees.
She is currently a member of Sinfonia Toronto, the Niagara Symphony Orchestra, and the Isabel String Quartet. She has also performed with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Munich Symphoniker, and was the violist of the Cecilia String Quartet from 2006 to 2018.
Caitlin is also a dedicated music educator, and she has taught at Western University, the Faculty of Music at the University of Toronto, and served as the chamber music coordinator of the Mooredale Youth Orchestras. She has also taught individual students across North America, in Europe, and the UAE.
Caitlin co-founded Xenia Concerts, an organization which presents events designed for families living with autism.
The Details
- The Retreat takes place at Thorneloe University (935 Ramsey Lake Rd, Sudbury, ON).
- The registration deadline is June 15, 2026.
- Find more information about the Strings Retreat at the City of Lakes website [HERE].
- For details such as schedule, accommodations, cost, repertoire, and others, please email info@cityoflakesmusicsociety.ca
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