Praised for his "vibrant intensity," (The Times, London) and playing "supremely convincing in its vitality," (Cleveland Plain Dealer) violinist Kevin Lawrence has consistently elicited superlative responses for his performances throughout the United States and Europe. Since 1990 he has served on the faculty of University of North Carolina School of the Arts.
A Tennessee native, violinist Shannon Thomas has garnered a reputation for exciting, thoughtful performances as a chamber musician, soloist, and in recital throughout North and South America, Europe, and Asia. Interested in sharing her enthusiasm for the arts through teaching, Shannon is in demand as a pedagogue. She currently serves as Assistant Professor of Violin at Florida State University and gives master classes throughout the United States and abroad. Shannon earned a Doctorate of Musical Arts at the Cleveland Institute of Music, where she was Paul Kantor’s teaching assistant.
Violinist Sandy Yamamoto has dazzled audiences in concert performances around the globe for the past three decades as a soloist and as a member of the Miró Quartet. Since leaving the Quartet in 2011, she has been appointed Associate Professor of Practice in Violin Performance at the Butler School of Music at the University of Texas at Austin.
Violinist Carolyn Huebl enjoys a varied career as a soloist, chamber musician, and teacher. She is currently Professor of Violin at the Blair School of Music at Vanderbilt University and violinist of the Blakemore Trio. Prior to her appointment at Blair, she was Assistant Principal Second Violin with the Pittsburgh Symphony and Assistant Professor of Violin at Carnegie Mellon University. Critics have called her performances “unfailingly sensitive”, “utterly fearless”, and “pristine”, and STRAD magazine declared that she “possesses a beguilingly warm sound and highly responsive expressive personality.”
Acclaimed as a virtuoso of the highest rank, Julia Bushkova appeared as a soloist with numerous orchestras and in recital throughout the United States, Central and South America, Europe, Asia, and South Africa. Julia Bushkova's former students are found in major orchestras and premiere ensembles: Cavani String Quartet, the Cleveland Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, LA Philharmonic, Dallas Symphony, Israel Philharmonic, and Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra.
(on leave for 2021 season)
Won-Bin Yim is Associate Professor of Violin at the College Conservatory of Music, University of Cincinnati, which has awarded him the Glover Award for Excellence in Teaching. He has served on the violin faculty of the Aspen Music Festival, the Spoleto Festival in Spoleto, Italy, the Juilliard Pre-College Division, as assistant to Dorothy Delay in the Juilliard College Division, and as dean and faculty member at the Great Mountains Music Festival and School in Korea.
(on leave for 2021 season)
Rictor Noren teaches violin, viola, chamber music, string fundamentals, and string pedagogy at the Boston Conservatory of Music. His collaborative approach emphasizes balance, goal setting, efficient practice techniques, musical development, and a hands-on approach to training. His work supports students overcoming technical barriers, conquering physical pain, and developing a professional identity.
Described as “a charismatic soloist of expressive generosity and technical élan,” violinist Bayla Keyes is an ardent champion for a wide range of classical and contemporary repertoire. After her first professional experience with the acclaimed Music from Marlboro, Keyes founded the Muir String Quartet and toured internationally, winning the Evian and Naumburg Awards and two Grand Prix du Disques. Ms. Keyes currently concertizes throughout America as recitalist, as soloist with orchestras, and as a member of the contemporary music ensemble Boston Musica Viva and the acclaimed piano trio,Triple Helix.
Violinist Janet Sung enjoys an acclaimed international career as a virtuoso soloist, praised for her exquisite tone and impassioned, bravura performances. She has conducted masterclasses at conservatories throughout the country, including the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, The Hartt School of the University of Hartford, Harvard University and the Juilliard School. In 2010, she was appointed Associate Professor of Violin at the DePaul University School of Music in Chicago.
Violin playing described as “tonally resplendent and affectingly assured both stylistically and technically” (Fanfare Magazine) and a performer of "astonishing effectiveness, radiant inspiration, deep sensitivity, and colossal temperament" (Musical Horizons - Sofia), violinist Carolyn Stuart is heard regularly as soloist, recitalist, and chamber musician in prominent North American and European centers.
