Mr. Armeen Ghafourpour is a bassist and music educator who teaches and performs in the Bay Area. He holds degrees in Double Bass Music Performance, with a Bachelor’s degree from San Jose State University, and a Master’s degree from the Eastman School of Music. He is also currently working toward a Master’s and Credential in Music Education from San Jose State University. Before joining the music staff at Los Gatos High School, he was a professional bassist in New York, performing regularly with the Orchestra of the Southern Finger Lakes and the Binghamton Philharmonic. As a strings educator, he previously held faculty positions at the Hochstein School and Roberts Wesleyan College in Rochester, NY. Mr. Ghafourpour has many years of experience performing and teaching in the marching arts. The highlight of his marching experience was four years as a percussionist in the DCI championship group, the Santa Clara Vanguard, and he has been a part of the educational team at the Vanguard and Vanguard Cadets since 2015. As an educator he works to combine the best of both his musical worlds, as he presents philosophies of focus, work ethic, and dedication learned from the marching arts with his academic knowledge and performance experience of classical music.

Mr. Ken Nakamoto is proud to be a part of the LG Music Family as the Director of Bands. In this capacity, Ken teaches all three concert bands, jazz band, marching band and collaborates with the rest of the LG Music team.  Prior to his tenure at Los Gatos, Mr. Nakamoto taught at William C. Overfelt High School for 3 years and served as their Performing Arts Department Chair. He also had the privilege of teaching the 2022 Open Class Champion Vanguard Cadets. As part of the instructional music staff, he and the rest of the team lead the Vanguard Cadets to their 7th championship title while winning “best music”. Mr. Nakamoto received his Bachelor’s degrees in Instrumental Music Education and Euphonium Performance from San José State University with departmental honors. While at San José State, he was fortunate to study with Dr. Matt Tropman, Prof. Thomas Hornig and Dr. David Vickerman. Currently, Mr. Nakamoto serves as the music director for the San José Metropolitan Band and principal baritone for the 2023 NABBA Champion San Francisco Brass Band. His professional affiliations include the California Music Educators Association (CMEA), California Band Directors Association (CBDA), and the California Orchestra Directors Association (CODA) where he serves as a board member. At the core of his vision, Mr. Nakamoto hopes to bring his diverse experience as a musician and educator to help guide, mentor and inspire students that continue their musical journey through high school.  Outside of music, Mr. Nakamoto enjoys spending time with friends and family. In his spare time, he enjoys bouldering and the pursuit of finding all the coffee places in San Jose.

Mrs. Maricel Riley earned her Bachelor in Education in Music, P.E., and Health, graduating cum laude in 1991 from the University of San Agustin, Philippines. In 1993, Mrs. Riley was chosen as a youth diplomat and traveled around Southeast Asia and Japan to promote friendship and mutual understanding among nations serving as the choral director of the delegation. Mrs. Riley went on to earn a Doctor of Education degree from the University of St. La Salle, Philippines, and was awarded the Outstanding Doctoral Dissertation for her experimental study entitled “The Effects of the Gestalt-Centered Approach in the Learning of Students in Music.” She served as a professor for 11 years in the College of Education at the same university and in 1998 received its Most Outstanding Mentor Award for her exemplary contributions as an educator. Mrs. Riley joined the Los Gatos Union School District as a music teacher in 2006, teaching general and vocal music in grades K-5 and serving as Choir Director of R.J. Fisher Middle School for seven years prior to her current role as the Choral Activities Director of Los Gatos High School. Choirs under her direction have earned no less than Unanimous Superior ratings in the CMEA Large Ensemble Festival, Music in the Parks Festival and have garnered GOLD as well as Adjudicators Award at the Worldstrides Heritage Festivals. Mrs. Riley made her international conducting debut with the Los Gatos High School Choirs in England in 2014 and in 2018, her choirs performed in prestigious venues in Spain. In 2019, her Women’s Chorus was chosen as a featured ensemble in the California Choral Directors Association All-State Conference in San Jose, Ca. Furthermore, Mrs. Riley made her Carnegie Hall conducting debut with the Los Gatos High Schools Choirs in April 2023. Mrs. Riley is currently the Artistic Director of A Sharp Chorus, a Chinese Community Choir based in Los Altos. She made her debut Concert with the ensemble in December 2022 and in June2023 went with the community choir on a performance tour in Italy and was invited to sing at a High mass at the Vaticans’ St. Peter’s Basilica and participated in 2 international music festivals namely the Joyful Festival in Capannoli in the Italian Tuscany area and the International Music Meeting in Candiana, the Province of Padua. Mrs. Riley is an active member of the California Music Educators Association, the National Association for Music Education and the American Choral Directors Association(ACDA).