MEET THE STAFF
OREN KRONICK & KATHY REILLY
Vermont Violins and the Burlington Violin Shop are owned in partnership by the husband-wife team of Kathy Reilly and Oren Kronick. They have together run the shop since its conception in 1994. The pair met at Oberlin College where Kathy pursued a viola performance degree and Oren studied history in the college. While Kathy pursued a Masters in Botany at the University of Vermont’s Field Naturalist Program and Oren worked for entrepreneurial businesses in Vermont, the two merged their passions in the building of a violin shop in Central Vermont. Teaching, Performing and running a violin shop created a life rich in musical rewards as they devoted themselves to supporting a vibrant musical community in the state of Kathy’s childhood.
Outside of the shop, Kathy and Oren enjoy skiing, hiking with their dog Ziya, and taking care of their donkeys Dr. Sheffield, Holliana, and Satura at their home in the mountains of Duxbury.
MARY REILLY (& LILLY)
Mary, Kathy’s Mom, has been a part of the company for years; helping with everything from receiving to childcare & dogwalking! She recently took on a more active role in Receiving and Accounts Payable.
Outside the shop, Mary enjoys gardening and studying French..and excellent writer and photographer!
CHARLES IVAR KRONICK
From his home in the Berkshires, Ivar works for Vermont Violins as the staff accounting coordinator. Ivar graduated from Williams College and went on to pursue an MFA and worked as an independent artist for many years before becoming a marketing design expert for several companies. Joining Vermont Violins melded his many interests in business, art and history. When not punching the keys of his calculator, he works as Councilor for the City of Pittsfield, Massachusetts where he enjoys fishing, kayaking and encouraging his daughter's musical and other interests.
CEILE KRONICK
Despite being a full time student at Carleton College, Ceile continues to sneak in hours assisting with programing of our CNC machine and researching other ways to streamline our V. Richelieu instrument making. When not in Minnesota, you can find him in our basement offices in Burlington working on the newest fractional violin and viola models.
Ceile has played violin his whole life, studying a mixture of both classical and traditional music. He continues to pursue his musical passions related to his violin and his sound engineering at Carleton College in Minnesota.
Outside of work, when he’s in town, you might see him behind the mixing board at various live events or at the bowling alley!
XIU LING STEIN
Xiu Ling joined our staff full time in 2021 after just graduating from St. Olaf College in Minnesota. Originally, Xiu Ling lived in Los Angeles for 18 years but now she is permanently a Vermonter.
You can find her working with our Burlington team helping out with our social media, retail, rentals, and much more. Although she isn’t a string player she is an active pianist.
Having over 14 years of playing the piano, she loves to collaborate with other musicians. Her favorite composers are Bach, Brahms, Prokofiev, as well as Mozart but she is always looking for new pieces.
NATE WEBSTER
Nate Webster is the man on the scene in our West Lebanon location. Following in the footsteps of his professional violin-playing father, Nate started Suzuki violin when he was 4 and has been playing ever since….adding viola soon after. He has played in community orchestras in Massachusetts and Pennsylvania. Aside from musical interests, he is an entrepreneur and has started/owned several companies. Aside from musical interests he is a voracious reader and enjoys spending time with his nieces. He is a graduate of Villanova University.
ALEXANDRA "LEXY" PARSONS
Lexy brings over 14 years of experience in violin teaching and performance and another 8 years of experience managing the sales department at Atlantic Strings Violin Shop in Florida. Lexy is a force of nature, active in all aspects of youth strings education from teaching, orchestral coaching, fundraising, and non-profit strings education leadership. Her work with Atlantic Strings includes all manner of shop management and sales. She will be moving to the Upper Valley in mid-August, and you'll see her soon in our West Lebanon Office.
ZIIY3YAHHHA REILLY
The brains behind our whole operation, Ziiy3yahhha (pronounced Ziya) works both as a motivational figure and shop security officer (watch out: she can lick you to distraction). You can find her sleeping all day in the basement, or seeking attention from every customer who walks through the door.
MONA PATEL
As Marketing Director, Mona brings leadership and experience to our marketing efforts, both local and online, digital. She comes to us with over ten years of experience, most recently as a Deputy Manager of Marketing for Skechers in Mumbai, India. She is a world-traveller, and enjoys Photography, Music and Drawing….and loves her little dog Bella.
KRISTINA TURNER
Kristina Turner grew up in the "City of Subdued Excitement" - Bellingham, Washington. As a youth, she enjoyed performing in multiple school ensembles including chamber ensembles and Strolling Strings. She attended Eastern Washington University and studied Violin with Kelly Farris while performing in the EWU Symphony Orchestra and Gonzaga University Symphony. Kristina transferred back home to finish her Bachelor of Arts in Music at Western Washington University, studying Violin with Walter Schwede and continuing to perform in Symphony, Chamber, and New Music Ensembles. Kristina was a member of the Whatcom (now Bellingham) Symphony Orchestra from 2007 until 2019.
Kristina taught in Bellingham from 2003 until 2019 when she moved to Salt Lake City, Utah where she teaches at the prestigious Gifted Music School and in private studio. Kris’ joyful playing perfectly matches her V. Richelieu viola that serves as her primary instrument. As an Artist Representative of the V. Richelieu line of instruments, she is frequently travelling through the western United States to promote her favorite instrument. She is a registered and active teacher with the Suzuki Association of the Americas.
ADAM SCHECHTER
Originally from Sioux Falls, South Dakota, Adam studied viola performance under Steve Wyrczynski at Indiana University and at McGill University under Andre Roy, as well as studying violin making under Roman Barnes at the North Bennet Street School. Mostly recently, Adam played as a member of the South Dakota Symphony Orchestra viola section and taught violin and viola lessons to students of the Sioux Falls area. He is a new transplant to Vermont, having made the 23 hour road trip with his two guinea pigs, Meena and Daphne. When not cooing at said pigs, Adam enjoys playing Brahms, reading Dickens, and drinking a good cup of light roast coffee.
SORIA NGUYEN
Soria grew up in San Francisco, beginning violin at the age of four through the Suzuki method. At the time, she was the only musical member of her family, but was soon joined by her younger sisters who also took up the instrument. She received a Bachelors Degree in Violin Performance from the University of Colorado Boulder in 2022, and in 2024 she completed a Master’s degree in Violin Performance with a certificate in Suzuki pedagogy for violin from the University of Denver. Soria loves teaching and playing chamber music with friends. She also enjoys reading, baking, and hiking!
CHRISTIAN
Christian hails from the snowy tundra of Western New York. He began actively listening and exploring the realm of rock and metal music during his formative years. In doing so he found his love for playing the drums and guitar. These passions would lead him to SUNY Fredonia's unique Music Business program. In the midst of his college days, he would start exploring the world of craft beer. Going down this rabbit hole, he would go on to work in the beverage industry for eight years and eventually move to the Green Mountain state. The perfect combination of Vermont's beautiful scenery, world class breweries, and small town vibes were a perfect storm to convince Christian to finally burst out of his hometown bubble. Nowadays you can spot him walking trails, snowboarding, or enjoying a pint.