Lise M. Gilly, a native of Washington, D.C., came to Chicago via Miami in 1994. Ms. Gilly completed her Bachelor of Music, Music Education Major at the University of Miami, Florida, where she graduated with honors in 1993. Upon her arrival in Chicago, she became a music educator in the Chicago Public Schools. In 1996, she founded the classical chamber group, Musica Pacem, and in 1998, she founded a Latin band, Grupo Cha Cha. Both are successful freelance groups in the Chicagoland area.

Ms. Gilly continued her studies at Roosevelt University where she received a Master of Music, Summa Cum Laude in Flute Performance in 2000. Her major teachers were Jean Berkenstock, principal flute of the Lyric Opera and the Grant Park Symphony, and Richard Graef, Associate Principal Flute of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.

While she was studying at Roosevelt, she was also employed as a Band Director in several Chicago public and parochial schools. She was an Associate Member of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago in 1999-2000, and has been the Flute/Piccolo player for the Kenosha Symphony since 1997. Her flute masterclass experience includes Donald Peck, Walfrid Kujala, Bonita Boyd, James Galway and Vincent Lucas. Ms. Gilly has also played saxophone in the local latin scene playing with such bands as Merengito and the Ritmo Award winning Carpacho y Su Super Combo. 

In 2001, Music by Lise was born with the roster additions of The Steve Million Trio, Top to Bottom and Nigel Mack and The Blues Attack.  In addition to her active freelance career, Ms. Gilly is currently the Performing Arts Department Chair at Lincoln Park High School in Chicago.