Isabella Gilligan is a 18-year-old trumpet player and an incoming freshman at Northwestern University's Bienen School of Music, where she will study under David Bilger. She recently finished her final year playing principal trumpet in the Philadelphia Youth Orchestra and currently studies privately with Nozomi Imamura. Isabella also played in the Philadelphia Youth Orchestra's brass ensemble, Bravo Brass, and the University of Pennsylvania Wind Ensemble as first trumpet throughout high school. Outside of her own performance, Isabella also teaches multiple middle-school aged trumpet players in the Greater Philadelphia Area and has loved serving as a mentor to younger students. Isabella has enjoyed many exciting musical opportunities and experiences. In 2025, she was selected for the PMEA All-State Orchestra after playing first cornet in the All-State Band in 2024 as a sophomore. In addition, she has participated in multiple summer programs, including Interlochen's World Youth Symphony Orchestra in 2025, where she studied with John Aley and Caleb Hudson, and the New England Conservatory Summer Orchestra Institute in 2024. She has also performed in several masterclasses with renowned performers, including Hunter Eberly of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra and Eli Epstein, formerly of the Cleveland Orchestra. Isabella is beyond grateful to have received a scholarship from the Motivated by Music Association and couldn't be more appreciative of the support as she begins her collegiate studies.