A native of Michigan, James began his artistic career in theater, but early on re-directed his focus to music, earning degrees in 'Cello Performance, Music Education, Choral/Vocal Music, and Music Theory & Composition from Northern Michigan University, Bowling Green State University, University of Akron and Louisiana State University.

Additionally, James has attended conducting workshops under Robert Shaw and Margaret Hillis of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Chorus. He has led various choral ensembles in the Midwest as well as serving as Director of Youth Orchestras at the Wausau Conservatory of Music in Wisconsin.

A prolific composer, James has written works for the Ohio Chamber Music Society, the contemporary music group “Dædalus” (of which he was a founding member), and commissions for numerous orchestral and choral groups worldwide, as well as scores for six episodes of MTV’s groundbreaking series “Liquid Television”.

As a ‘cellist, James has performed with the Detroit, Cleveland, and Baton Rouge symphonies, and served as principal ‘cello for the Lima Symphony, Cleveland Ballet, Glacier Symphony Orchestra, and the Ohio Light Opera. Most recently James served seven seasons as principal ‘cellist of the Saratoga Orchestra on Whidbey Island.

He has worked under the batons of conductors Robert Spano, Antol Dorati, Robert Shaw, and Antonia Brico among others, and has shared the stage with such diverse artists as Yo-Yo Ma, Phillip Glass, Giuseppe di Stefano, Doc Severinsen, Helen O’Connell, Odetta, and Pearl Django.

James has been a frequent guest artist at WICA’s “DjangoFest Northwest” with the jazz ensembles “Billet-Deux”, “3-Cent Stamp”, & “Trio Bistro”, and often accompanies local singer/songwriter Levi Burkle.

James is thrilled and grateful to be a part of Whidbey's own orchestra, and believes whole-heartedly in the following words -

- by Robert Shaw:
The Arts are not simply skills: Their concern is the intellectual, ethical, and spiritual maturity of human life. And in a time when religious and political institutions are so busy engraving images of marketable gods and candidates that they lose their vision of human dignity, the Arts have become the custodians of those values which most worthily define humanity."

- by Friedrich Nietzsche:
The essence of all beautiful Art, all great Art, is gratitude."

- by Batman (Adam West, 1966):
All Music is important, Robin! It's the universal language; one of our best hopes for the eventual realization of the brotherhood of man."

Assistant Conductor - Curtis Price

Curtis Price grew up here on the island, and after graduating from Langley High School he continued music studies at the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma studying clarinet with Dr. Bob Musser, playing in the UPS bands, minoring in music, along with his geology major.

During grad school and over his long career with the United States Geological Survey, community music remained an important part of his life. He played clarinet in orchestras, concert bands, musicals, ensembles, sang in church and community choirs, and volunteered behind the scenes working to keep community music going. After a quarter century in the Rapid City, South Dakota community, Curtis was recognized with the Rapid City area’s prestigious Rushmore Award for the Arts and shared the Black Hills Symphony Russell Mettler Award with his violinist wife Beth Wojahn.

Once, when he was part of a church handbell group, the director resigned. Wanting to keep the bells ringing, he began conducting the group, and accepted the director position. This led to directing other handbell ensembles and church choirs. Upon his return to the Island in the fall of 2022, Curtis and Beth joined WIO the week after they arrived, and soon Curtis started helping with wind sectionals on occasion. He is honored to have been asked to support the WIO as assistant conductor.

He is extremely grateful to the excellent teachers, conductors, and collaborative musicians he had the privilege to learn from over the years.

“Live Music Is Better" Bumper Stickers Should Be Issued -- Neil Young, Union Man

Principal Conductor Emerita - Cynthia Morrow

Cynthia Morrow is a graduate of New England Conservatory of Music, holds a Master of Arts in Psychology from Antioch University, LA, and a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology from Ryokan College, LA. She studied violin with Gabriel Nevola, Samuel Applebaum, Robert Brink, and Cecylia Arzewski, and was a member of Joseph Silverstein's Master Class. She studied chamber music under Rudolph Kolisch, and conducting and composition with Gunther Schuller. She was a member of the Portland Symphony in Maine under Paul Vermel, played principal viola in Los Angeles with Downey Symphony, LA Jewish Symphony, California Chamber Orchestra, Symphony in the Glen, and was a member of Glendale Symphony, American Ballet Theater Orchestra, and LA Civic Light Opera. Morrow has been a member of The New Ysaye Quartet, Tsunami Quartet, Luminarias Duo, and Gaia Viola Quartet. She has performed in Las Vegas and in the Hollywood studios as a violinist, violist, vocalist, and has been a composer, award-winning singer/songwriter and lyricist for more than thirty years before moving to Kirkland, WA. In 1979 she conducted the World Song Festival in Seoul, Korea, where the song she co-wrote with Lennie Stack won top honors. She conducted string orchestras at Kirkland Community School, conducted and coached for Bellevue Youth Orchestra and Cascade Youth Symphony, and opened her own teaching studio, Violin & Viola Studio of Kirkland, turning out hundreds of string players, her students winning First and Second Place in State on viola year after year, and filling concertmaster and principal chairs on both instruments in their schools and youth orchestras.

Dr. Morrow and her husband Gary Hattal moved to Whidbey Island permanently in 2014. She has taught, performed with pianist Sheila Weidendorf in Deux Femmes Musiques, been a member of Island Consort, played with and been on the board of Saratoga Orchestra, and has been Music Director, Executive Director, and Principal Conductor of Whidbey Island Community Orchestra since 2015.

After suffering a stroke in August, 2024, Dr. Morrow turned the conductor's baton over to Assistant Conductor James Hinkley. James led the orchestra through the 2024 - 2025 concert year, and was named Conductor in May, 2025

Board of Directors