Romanian-born, Cleopatra Ilie Talos, arrived in the US at age 19 with nothing, but two bags and her flute in search of the American Dream; powered through hardship days, made the most of her opportunities and is now living her best life. As a child prodigy growing up during the Communist regime of Romania, Cleopatra was appointed as the head soloist for the Romanian Orthodox Patriarch Chorale at age 10. She became a recording artist, professional classical flutist, piano player, toured the world with various music companies and philharmonics and has won numerous international awards for music performance. She started touring at the age of 10 and one of her greatest experiences was meeting and singing for Mother Teresa. Her contribution to the 1996 Summer Olympics as the Romanian Youth Cultural Ambassador determined Cleo to move to the US when the time was right.
In 1999 she moved to Los Angeles and won a scholarship to study music performance at UCLA where she earned her B.A (Magna cum Laude), as well as her Masters and was appointed as the Graduate Fellowship recipient for the UCLA's Herb Alpert School of Music. She also holds an Art Degree from USC. She won several prestigious classical competitions and was invited to be a guest soloist with the Pacific Symphony. Her Cinderella story takes her from supporting herself by working as a nanny and housekeeper to being the the Vice President of Operations and Director of Personnel for Jude Frances Jewelry, LLC, to being a funding partner of Valahian Queens Belts, a custom leather women's belts and corsets line, adorned with solid silver or brass accents plated in 24K gold that were sold at Nordstrom’s flagship stores, as well as Nordfstrom.com and boutiques throughout the US, UK and Japan, and to founding Tysons Music Academy, a private music school in McLean, Virginia.
She married her husband George in 2004 and they have two boys: Matteo, 8, and Lucca, 12. George is a law enforcement official whose career has taken the family across the world from California to Virginia, overseas, and lastly to Boerne. While her husband was serving a diplomatic assignment in her home country of Romania for years, Cleopatra built a music therapy program for sex trafficking victims as well as coordinated fund-raising efforts. She also took a mentorship and Choir Director position at the American International School of Bucharest.
After Boerne became the Taloses' new home, Cleopatra decided to switch gears once more and enter a field that has always intrigued her: real estate. She joined The Wagner Team, Cibolo Creek Realty, LLC in 2021 under the mentorship and guidance of Travis Wagner, broker/owner. Cleopatra is flourishing and is quite the rookie of the year in this third generation Fair Oaks Ranch boutique realtor team. She believes in putting people first and listening to understand each client's needs. She likes to describe it as the “music of real estate” and thoroughly enjoys it. She still plays the flute and sings whenever possible. She is a great songwriter as well – both the lyrics and melody. Her music, available on all major digital platforms such as iTunes, Spotify, Pandora, YouTube, etc, is inspirational and she has a strong message about women's inner strength and breaking socially-imposed standards.
She dreams about using her musical background as a catalyst for helping youth; perhaps buying instruments for those unable to purchase them on their own. Cleopatra has seen both the beauty and ugliness in the world and is empathetic to others’ plights. She plans to launch The Music of Real Estate, a program for underprivileged students with extraordinary musical abilities who need funding to afford private instruction, instruments, mentorship, music production, and branding. I can see her making a big difference by sharing her kindness, philosophy, and music with others.
