Meet Our Directors

Bethaney Cross

Mrs. Bethaney Cross, Orchestra director at Mountain View High School, has been a music educator in Arizona since 2011. Teaching at all levels, from elementary music and orchestra, junior high orchestra, and high school, she has worked in various school districts around the state. Mrs. Cross has also had the privilege of conducting the Phoenix Youth Symphony Orchestra’s String Orchestra ensemble since 2018. Mrs. Cross earned her Master’s in Music Teaching and Learning from Arizona State University in 2021. Prior to her graduate degree program, she earned a Bachelor of Arts in 2011 in Viola Performance from Northern Arizona University where she studied under Dr. Jacquelyn Schwandt.

Mrs. Cross is an active member of orchestral organizations that support Arizona State Music Education as well as National Music Education. She is currently a member of the National Association for Music Education (NAfME) and the American String Teachers Association (ASTA). Additionally, she currently serves as the Central Regional Festival Orchestra Chairman. In February of 2023, Mrs. Cross had the honor of conducting the Northeast Regional Festival Orchestra.

Mrs. Cross has been the conductor of Phoenix Youth Symphony Orchestra’s String Ensemble since August of 2018. Since beginning this role, her ensemble has grown to over 60 members, and has had the honor of performing at the Arizona Music Educators Association Convention. In addition to conducting the String Orchestra, Mrs. Cross has had the privilege of conducting Honor Orchestras around the state. In 2017, she conducted the Scottsdale 6th Grade honor orchestra. In 2020, she conducted the Greater Phoenix High School and Junior High Honor Orchestra. In 2023, Mrs. Cross conducted the Mesa Public Schools Junior High Honor Orchestra and the Gilbert Public Schools Junior High Honor Orchestra.

As an accomplished musician, Mrs. Cross has performed in many local community and professional orchestras throughout the state of Arizona. She has performed as a section Violist in the Flagstaff Symphony, Verde Valley Sinfonietta, and Principal Violist in the Chandler Symphony. She also regularly subs in the Encore Quartet, a Mountain View alumni wedding quartet, on violin and viola.

As an orchestra director in Arizona, Mrs. Cross has led countless ensembles to receive top ratings at ABODA and AREA concert festivals. As a music educator, Mrs. Cross strives to develop a collaborative learning environment amongst her ensembles and build a community of friendships while learning how to deliver a polished performance.

Mrs. Cross resides in Mesa with her husband Johnathan, and her four children, Landen, Walter, Eleanora, and Rosealynn. During her free time, she spends every opportunity camping, hiking, and quilting.

Contact

Email Bethaney Cross
480-472-7149

Ajay Patel

Ajay R. Patel has been a music educator in Arizona since 2001. He has been a teacher in the Tempe, Chandler, and Gilbert school districts, and is currently the Assistant Director of Orchestras at Mountain View High School in the Mesa Public School district. Mr. Patel also serves as adjunct faculty in the Maricopa Community Colleges, as Director of Orchestras at the Phoenix College campus. Mr. Patel earned his Bachelor of Music Education from Arizona State University (ASU), and a Master of Music in Cello Performance from Arizona State University (ASU).

Mr. Patel is an active member of organizations that support Arizona music education. He has served positions for the Arizona Band and Orchestra Directors Association (ABODA) as Southwest Region Orchestra Chair, and Central Region Governor. He is a sought-after clinician and adjudicator, having served as conductor of the Jr. High All-State Orchestra and a regular adjudicator for the ABODA Area Festivals. He is also a current member of the National Association for Music Education (NAfME) and the American String Teachers Association (ASTA). Mr. Patel had the honor of conducting the 2017 North Central Region Orchestra, as well as the 2019 West Region Orchestra.

Mr. Patel has served as the Symphony Orchestra conductor for the East Valley Youth Symphony since its inaugural year in 2006. He also established the Chandler Academy for the Performing Arts (CAPA) in 2009, a three-week summer music program for orchestra, band, choir, and theater serving the students of the Chandler Unified School District and the local southeast valley community. In addition to serving music programs for youth, Mr. Patel was conductor of the Scottsdale Philharmonic, and enjoyed musical collaborations with featured artists such as Caio Pagano, Walter Temme, Qingqing Ye, and Katie McLin.

An accomplished cellist, Mr. Patel has performed with many of the local community and professional orchestras in Arizona. He has served as a substitute section cellist for the Arizona Opera, Guest Principal cellist for the Chandler Symphony Orchestra, and the Assistant Principal Cellist of the Arizona Pro Arte Orchestra. He has also performed with the Symphony of the Southwest, Musica Nova Orchestra. In the winter of 2011, Mr. Patel was the principal cellist of the American Festival Orchestra under the direction of Lawrence Golan. The American Festival Orchestra toured 14 cities in China over a span of two weeks as part of an international cultural exchange.

Mr. Patel has studied cello with Takayori Atsumi, and Thomas Landschoot at Arizona State University. His conducting studies have been guided by Timothy Russell and Gary Hill at Arizona State University.

Mr. Patel lives in Gilbert with his wife Rochel, and his children Olivia, Alexander, and Phoenix.