Heather Gonzalez is currently the Orchestra Director at John Jay High School in Northside ISD located in San Antonio, TX. In March 2020, her top Chamber Orchestra was invited and performed at ASTA’s National Orchestra Festival, where they broke the mold with their finale performance which included drum set, no chairs/stands, and choreography. It is this love of pushing orchestra boundries that led her to create her well-known all-electric Rockn’ Stringz ensemble. This group of 12 students performs extended stage shows that included them shredding on their Wood Violins, singing, and winning over audiences with their dancing and showmanship. It is due to the success of this ensemble that she has been able to successfully build a district-wide event incorporating her ideology of movement and memorization using the Electrify Your Strings platform. The event now features more than 1,000 middle and high school string students pushing the boundary of accepted “orchestra performances”. Heather is so excited to be on staff this year and can’t wait to collaborate with teachers from around the world!