Bio
Dr. Fil Starostka is a Polish-born trumpet player, music educator, and arts administrator. Having found his love for music at a young age, Fil has had the privilege of performing all his life; from playing recorder at the Michigan Renaissance Festival in elementary school to performing for international crowds in Germany, England, and Australia. After receiving his bachelor’s in music from Oakland University, Fil attended Michigan State for his Masters studying with Justin Emerich. Following his masters, Fil moved to Baton Rouge, Louisiana to start his Doctoral degree studying with Dr. Matthew Vangjel where he received his DMA in trumpet performance with a minor in music history. The culmination of his work resulted in the first substantial biography in the English language of often overlooked Polish composer, Zygmunt Noskowski.
After his tenure in higher-ed, Fil moved with his wife, Alisha, to San Diego where the two enjoyed success as musicians, teachers, and administrators. Fil’s skill as an arts administrator was strengthened by his service with the San Diego Youth Symphony where he worked both as a program assistant for their early childhood classes and as a production assistant with their youth ensembles.
As a performer, The San Diego Tribune has called Fil “feisty” while his friends call him “cool”. Through the years, he has shared the stage with Il Volo, Lisette Oropesa, Wayne Bergeron, Bill Conti, and Trisha Yearwood; played for the Seattle Mariners and Detroit Pistons; performed the national anthem on opening day for the Detroit Tigers; and has been a member of the Rochester Symphony Orchestra, Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra, Mississippi Symphony, Coronado Philharmonia, La Jolla Symphony Orchestra, Oakland Symphony Orchestra, Five Lakes Silver Band, Capital City Brass Band, and the San Diego–based hip band, The 524.
Outside of music, Fil is an avid enjoyer of nature, collecting (and not reading) books, and his fat and sassy cat Stanisław Meowiuszko.
