In demand as an orchestral musician, Celeste joined the Dayton Philharmonic as 3rd and bass clarinet in September 2022 and holds the same position with the Lima Symphony Orchestra. She frequently performs with the Columbus Symphony Orchestra in Columbus, Ohio, and has appeared with a variety of orchestras across the United States. She can also be heard as principal clarinet on the Dallas Chamber Choir’s 2019 Spotify album of Mozart’s Requiem.

Music festival appearances include fellowships with the National Repertory Orchestra in Breckenridge, Colorado, two international tours with the Orchestra of the Americas to Europe and the Caribbean, the Brevard Music Center, and two seasons with Spoleto Festival USA in Charleston, South Carolina. Celeste also joined the Britt Festival Orchestra as 3rd and bass clarinet for the 2023 summer season.

Celeste was a featured performer at the International Clarinet Association’s 2016 ClarinetFest, joining her mentor Chicago Symphony bass clarinetist Lawrie Bloom and seven of his former students for an all-bass clarinet recital entitled “Lawrie Bloom and Friends.” As a chamber musician, she has collaborated with colleagues such as Alexander Kerr, David Cooper, Erin Hannigan, and Alcides Rodriguez, as well as the Escher String Quartet and the Dayton Philharmonic Wind Quintet. A passionate advocate for new and modern works, Celeste was the solo clarinet and bass clarinet fellow with the Atlantic Music Festival’s 2019 contemporary ensemble, where she assisted in the premieres of over fifty new works by composition fellows and faculty. 

Committed to educating the next generation of musicians, Celeste has given masterclasses in the United States, Germany, Jamaica, and the Dominican Republic. Former students have gone on to pursue music performance and education at SUNY Potsdam, SUNY Fredonia, New York University, the University of Kansas, Liberty University in San Antonio, Yale University, Ithaca College, Cal State Long Beach, and Cal State Fullerton. Celeste served on the faculty of the Mahanaim School’s collegiate conservatory in Huntington, New York and was also a founding Teaching Artist for the Dallas Symphony Orchestra’s Young Musicians Program.

Originally from Orange, California, Celeste started her musical career on piano at age six and began studying clarinet at age ten. She earned her Bachelor of Music degree from the University of California, Irvine, where she graduated cum laude and also completed a minor in Political Science. Celeste received her Master of Music Performance from Northwestern University’s Bienen School of Music and has performed in masterclasses for Mark Nuccio, John Bruce Yeh, David Howard, Daniel Matsukawa, Richie Hawley, Michael Wayne, Anthony McGill, Rob Patterson, and Sasha Potiomkin. Celeste also holds a Performance Diploma from Southern Methodist University and counts Lawrie Bloom, Steve Cohen, Amanda Walker, Greg Raden, and Yehuda Gilad among her principal teachers.

Outside of the concert hall, Celeste enjoys climbing, biking, good coffee, and hanging out with her two mischievous felines, Theo and Toby. She currently lives in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Celeste is a member of both the Local 101-473 and Local 103 Chapters of the American Federation of Musicians.