ELLIE BERGERON AKER,
MELISSA LUND ZIEGLER,
& ARIANA DEWAR

Ellie Bergeron Aker, violin
Melissa Lund Ziegler, viola
Ariana Dewar, cello

Ellen Bergeron Aker is a native of New Hampshire, where she began her violin studies at the age of four. She completed her pre-college studies at Boston’s New England Conservatory Preparatory School before earning a Bachelor of Music in Performance and Music Education from the Eastman School of Music, followed by a Master of Music in Violin Performance and Literature from Eastman. During her time at Eastman, she served as concertmaster of the Eastman Philharmonia. Her principal teachers include Renée Jolles, Juliana Athayde, and the late Lynn Blakeslee.

Mrs. Bergeron Aker has held positions with the New York State Ballet, Cayuga Chamber Orchestra, St. Andrews Chamber Orchestra, Greece Symphony Orchestra, Waco Symphony Orchestra, Temple String Quartet, and has served as Assistant Concertmaster of the Temple Symphony Orchestra.

Ellen aspires to see all of her students fulfill their potential as a musician and as a citizen of the world. She desires to ensure that every student who steps inside her studio feels seen, respected, and inspired. Ellen has been teaching students of all ages for nearly a decade, and has seen many of her students go on to pursue music as a career.

Described as “exciting to watch”, violist Melissa Lund Ziegler is an experienced and dynamic orchestral and chamber performer. In the summer of 2025, Lund Ziegler performed as part of Concerts in the Barn, a chamber music festival in Quilcene, Washington with members of the Seattle Symphony Orchestra. Locally, you can find her performing with her husband in a saxophone and viola duo, as well as with other friends and musicians in Southern Maine.

She was a member of the Lafayette Symphony Orchestra and performed regularly with the Fort Wayne Philharmonic, and the Muncie and Anderson Symphony Orchestras. Lund Ziegler has performed in many orchestras and music festivals in Europe and across the United States including CCM Spoleto (Spoleto, Italy), the Aspen Music Festival and School, and the Fox Valley, Sheboygan, Richmond (IN) Symphony, and Owensboro Symphony Orchestras. She was a founding member of Muse Trio and the Take 3 String Trio, and has collaborated with violists Katrin Meidell and Michael Chen. She has performed as part of the 360 Lecture Series at the University of Wisconsin – Green Bay performing a history of jazz dance styles.

Melissa is Director of Marketing and Development at the Portland Conservatory of Music in Portland, ME. Previously, she was Development and Marketing Coordinator at the Portsmouth Music and Arts Center in Portsmouth, NH, Social Media Coordinator at Rees Harps in Rising Sun, IN, and Associate Director of Music for the Sake of Music in Green Bay, WI.

She holds two degrees in viola performance from the prestigious College-Conservatory of Music in Cincinnati, OH and an Artist Diploma from Ball State University in Muncie, IN. Her major teachers have included Dr. Catharine Lees, Masao Kawasaki, Rebe Barnes, and Dr. Katrin Meidell.

Ariana Dewar is a professional cellist based in Lisbon Falls, Maine. Ariana holds both undergraduate and graduate degrees in performance from Converse College and Florida State University, where she studied with esteemed professors Kenneth Law and Gregory Sauer. During her time at Converse College, she was a member of the Honors Undergraduate String Quartet, and at Florida State, she served as principal and assistant principal cellist with the University Symphony Orchestra.

Although she is still relatively new to Maine, Ariana has already established herself as an active performer in the area, playing with groups such as the Bangor Symphony, Classical Uprising, and Portland Ballet, as well as performing at numerous weddings with Casco Bay Strings.

Before relocating to Maine, Ariana was a founding member of the Triangle String Quartet and the principal cellist of the Raleigh Symphony Orchestra. She also performed as a regular soloist at White Plains United Methodist Church and was a member of several notable ensembles, including the Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra, Carolina Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Hayes Barton Church Festival Orchestra. As a freelance cellist, she has had the honor of performing with renowned artists such as Yo-Yo Ma, Zuill Bailey, The Eagles, Weird Al Yankovic, Mannheim Steamroller, and the Ten Tenors, in addition to accompanying operas and musicals.

A passionate educator, Mrs. Dewar teaches private cello lessons to students of all ages and levels and beginning lessons in violin and viola. She is the new cello instructor at 240 Strings in Portland and teaches in her home studio in Lisbon Falls. She was also an Adjunct Faculty member at The University of North Carolina at Pembroke, where she taught private cello lessons and Music Appreciation courses.

Run Time: 45 minutes, with no intermission.