Laura Mulligan Thomas served as director of the award-winning Charlottesville High School Orchestra for four decades. She came to CHS after graduating with honors from James Madison University in 1982 and immediately began to develop and nourish the orchestra program of eight students she inherited. Under her direction, the CHSO grew to 120 members, consistently earned superior ratings at District Assessments, performed at the Midwest Clinic, garnered top honors at competitive music festivals throughout the U.S., and performed five European tours.

Many CHSO alumni are now music educators, including its current director and Ms. Thomas's daughter, Emily Thomas Waters. Others are professional musicians who perform with orchestras and pop, rock, and country artists in the U.S. and Europe, including Taylor Swift, John Legend, Carrie Underwood, the Jonas Brothers, and Stevie Wonder.

Ms. Thomas holds a master's degree in conducting from Shenandoah Conservatory and has been recognized with numerous awards for her work, including the 2022 Elizabeth A. H. Greene Award by the American String Teachers Association. Ms. Thomas now teaches music education courses at JMU, serves as String Editor at Alfred Music, Vice-President of the Virginia Band and Orchestra Directors' Association, and as Membership Chair of the Virginia Chapter of ASTA. An active performer, she plays cello and piano with several chamber ensembles and is pursuing a Doctor of Musical Arts in Orchestral Conducting and Literature.

Brooke is an advocate for music as a healing force and community builder for humanity. She manages Felicity Chamber Music, a group of passionate musicians dedicated to sharing the gift of music with our community. Brooke teaches private and group lessons (violin, viola, cello, bass, guitar, and piano) at her music studio in Crozet, Virginia to people from all walks of life. She also teaches orchestra at the Village School in downtown Charlottesville, a middle school for girls. She performs professionally on violin and viola with Melodious Strings, Madison Trio, Bloom Trio, Listeso Music, Ibis Music, Cville Strings, and in the Roanoke Symphony.

Brooke has a Bachelor of Music in Violin Performance from James Madison University, an Artist Diploma in String Quartet studies from Shenandoah Conservatory, and a Master of Music in Violin Performance from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. She is married to Charles Moore, who is her partner in travel adventures, house improvement projects, and entertaining.

Micah Hunter-Chang began his journey with the violin at age 8 under the tutelage of Julie Wilkinson. As he developed as a performer, he came to be recognized for his impressive command of color and tone, defining himself as a player who approaches music with a striking blend of vulnerability, sensitivity, and raw sincerity.

As an arts scholar at the University of Richmond, Micah served as concertmaster of the University Symphony Orchestra, won the program's concerto competition, and was honored with the C. J. Hesch Award for outstanding musicianship. Beyond the orchestral stage, he cultivated a deep love for chamber music, performing with fourteen different ensembles across a wide breadth of genres and formats.

Since graduating, Micah has remained committed to musical community and continued growth as a violinist. He has performed with local orchestras and string ensembles, and has built extensive experience as a sought-after wedding and event musician, providing heartfelt, beautifully crafted backdrops for hundreds of ceremonies, cocktail hours, and conferences. Currently a biomedical sciences graduate student at the University of Virginia, music has become central to his daily life, a space for reflection and expression, and a continued commitment to the rigorous standards instilled in him from an early age.

Emily Waters began her study of violin at age three. She graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University and holds a bachelor's degree in music with a concentration in music education from Virginia Commonwealth University. While at VCU she served as concertmaster of the VCU Symphony and graduated with university honors. Ms. Waters served as the Director of the Frank W. Cox High School Orchestra in Virginia Beach from 2015-2018, during which time membership in the program doubled. Ms. Waters returned home in 2018 to direct the Walker Upper Elementary School Orchestra; within two years the Walker Orchestra grew from 120 to nearly 200 students.

Ms. Waters earned her master's degree in music education at James Madison University in 2021. That year she was awarded the JMU Graduate School Innovation Award and the JMU Dr. Alice Hammel Inclusion in Music Education Award for her work at JMU, including the development of a hip-hop violin method book. Ms. Waters directs the Junior Strings of the Youth Orchestra of Central Virginia, has presented at the Virginia Music Educators' Association Professional Development Conference, and in 2021 produced an instrumental hip-hop violin album entitled Who Are You? under her stage name "The String Queen."

In 2022, Ms. Waters was hired to succeed her mother Laura Mulligan Thomas upon her retirement after four decades as the CHSO Director. Ms. Waters and the CHSO have continued her legacy of excellence; in the past four years they earned gold medals at competitive festivals in Orlando, New York City, and Williamsburg. Under her direction, the CHSO completed an international performance tour as part of the Lisbon International Youth Music Festival in Portugal and Spain last summer. Most recently, the CHSO was invited to perform as part of the 2026 Virginia Music Educators Association Conference. She lives in Charlottesville with her husband (also a music teacher) and two children, Roman and Indie.