Described as a violinist whose playing is “emotional and virtuosic” by Stadt Sulzbach-Rosenberg und Umland Newspaper, Jingting Liu has performed at venues such as Weil Recital Hall in Carnegie Hall, National Centre for the Performing Arts in China, Forbidden City Concert Hall in Beijing, Zhongshan Concert Hall in Beijing, Steinway Music Hall in Shenzhen, China, etc.

As an experienced teacher, Jingting has taught in University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music as a Graduate Teaching Assistant of Violin. She also served as a violin teacher in Ichi San Academy, Montessori Academy, American String Teachers Association (ASU 360 Project), String Project in Arizona State University, and Joy Music Company in Arizona.

Jingting Liu won the First Prize in Hong Kong International String Competition, and she was also the first place in Vivaldi Concerto Competition in Arizona. It leads to a performance of Vivaldi’s “Spring” Concerto with the Four Seasons Orchestra, which was broadcast by AZ-KBAQ radio station.

Jingting is pursuing a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in UC-CCM under the tutelage of Prof. Won-Bin Yim, with full scholarship and served as his graduate assistant. She completed her bachelor and master degrees in Arizona State University where she was a student of Prof. Danwen Jiang.

Anja Ormiston is a violinist and violist based in Cincinnati. Originally from Scotland, she holds a Bachelor of Music (honours) in violin performance and a Master of Music in viola performance from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.

Anja has a wealth of teaching experience within non-profit projects, schools of all levels, and private studio tuition. Additionally, she enjoys a wide-ranging career collaborating with ensembles, orchestras, string trios/quartets and award-winning popular artists.

Amelia Korbitz is an American violinist with a passion for new music and collaboration through chamber music. She frequently performs works by living composers and is a co-founder of the Antigone Music Collective, a nonprofit organization with the mission of bringing new music by dedicated specialists to a broad audience. Amelia is committed to performing the music of underrepresented composers and advancing the role of women in classical music. She has won the UC College-Conservatory of Music Concerto Competition, took top honors at the New Philharmonic Orchestra’s Young Artist Competition, and is a grant recipient of the Matinée Musicale Scholarship Fund as well as the 3Arts Foundation.

Amelia is a founder of Antigone Quartet, the core performing ensemble of the Antigone Music Collective. They perform regularly throughout the Midwest and have been invited to perform at the Southern Illinois Music Festival, Musica Le Mans, and the Musica Malicorne Festival in France. They have also been artists in residence at the Ascent International Music Festival. The Antigone Quartet was a finalist ensemble in the Glass City Chamber Competition as well as prizewinners in the UC College-Conservatory of Music Chamber Music Competition in 2022 and 2023. They have been featured on WGUC 90.9, performing the winning work of the inaugural Antigone Music Collective call for scores.

Solo performance highlights include Vivalid’s le Quattro Stagioni: Primavera with the West Suburban Symphony, L’Inverno with the Southern Illinois Music Festival Orchestra, Piazzolla’s Los Cuatros Estaciones Porteñas with the CCM Philharmonia Orchestra. She has spent five consecutive summers at the Southern Illinois Music Festival and as an associate concertmaster in 2022 and 2023. She is a violinist in the Richmond Symphony Orchestra and has also performed with the Queen City Opera, Green Lake Festival Orchestra, the Immaculata Chamber Music Series, and Solaris Chamber Music Series.

Amelia is a student of Dr. Won-Bin Yim and a graduate of the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory where she was a member of the CCM Philharmonia Orchestra and the contemporary music ensemble Musica Nova. Amelia has been a scholarship student at the Ascent International Chamber Music Festival, ENCORE String Quartet Intensive, Green Mountain Chamber Music Festival, and the Green Lake Chamber Music Festival.

Julia Poetain began her studies on the violin at age 4 with Jason Posnock of the Asheville Symphony.  Her other teachers include Charles and Rachel Stegeman, the late Richard DiAdamo, Fred Lifsitz, and the late Hong Guang Jia. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Violin Performance in 2018 and her master’s degree in May 2023, both from Duquesne University. Julia performs regularly with the West Virginia Symphony, Erie Philharmonic, Butler Symphony, Wheeling Symphony, Youngstown Symphony, Westmoreland Symphony, and the Johnstown Symphony orchestras.  Julia has appeared with artists such as Michael Bublé, Andrea Bocelli, and Il Volo. Julia is originally from Pittsburgh, PA and currently lives in Cincinnati, OH.

A passionate and inspiring performer, Ava Shedd has developed into an accomplished violinist and musician who loves engaging with audiences and educating the next generation of young musicians. She has had years of orchestral, chamber and solo experiences which have shaped her into a well-rounded individual based in the world of classical music. Hailing from Virginia Beach VA, Ava has blossomed into the violinist she is today because of ensembles such as the Bayyouth Orchestras of Virginia, Hampton Roads Chamber Players and the Virginia Symphony Orchestra where she is currently a substitute section violin. Ava is currently pursuing her Bachelor’s Degree in Violin Performance at the Cincinnati College-Conservatory. While her primary focus lies in the study of the violin, she also has years of experience in teaching and playing the piano. In her free time she enjoys listening to as much music as she can, visiting local coffee shops, thrifting, reading, and going on long walks.

Lila Reeser is a violist and composer from Parrish, Florida. She began playing at the age of 9 and continued throughout school, with involvement in multiple ensembles around the area.

She received her Bachelor’s of Music in Music Composition and Music Theory from Florida State University where she studied under dr. Pamela Ryan. During her time there, she was heavily involved in orchestra, multiple chamber groups, as well as being a founding member of Florida State University’s New Music Ensemble, Polymorphia. Lila is a strong proponent of new music and loves composing for viola.

Prior to starting her masters at the University of Cincinnati, she worked with the Sarasota Youth Orchestra. Here, she worked with children and enjoyed watching the progress they made every rehearsal and being able to support them in their growth as young musicians.

Lila is currently studying with Dr. Catherine Lees at CCM while she finishes her Master’s Degree in viola performance. She has experience teaching both private lessons and group sectionals. She is looking forward to expanding her studio of violinists, violists, and early composers and to creating a safe environment that inspires students to have fun while learning new skills. In addition to music, Lila enjoys exploring Cincinnati and petting any dogs she can.

Dan Qiao has enjoyed a vibrant career as a concert violinist and chamber musician performing in concerts around the world, including in China, Germany, France, Poland, and the USA. Ms. Qiao has performed as a solo and chamber musician at such prestigious festivals as Beijing Modern Music Festival, Baroque Summer Festival, Mostly Modern music festival (Saratoga Springs, NY), Euro Music Festival (Halle, Germany), Rencontres Musicales Internationales des Graves (Bordeaux, France), and the Jubilee International Music Course (Opole, Poland), Lunigiana International Music Festival (Italy), Brevard Music Festival (NC, USA). She played chamber music recital with legendary violinist Maxim Vengerov at Rencontres Musicales Internationales des Graves in 2019. She also played in Carnegie hall in 2021. She has a long repertoire list including more than 30 baroque, classical, romantic, and contemporary concerti.

Dan has received many honors and awards for her work as a solo and chamber musician, including 1st place and top scholarship in the Three Arts Scholarship Competition, and a multi-time winner of the CCM concerto competition, a multi-time winner of a Doug Davis Endowment Performance Award. She won the Quebec International Music Competition, "Bonn and Salzburg" Grand Prize Virtuoso. She won the concerto competition in Italy “LIMF” and the special prize. She also won the American Music /Contemporary Music Competition in many other international competitions. She was the first place winner in the 2022 Music International Grand Prix For Adult String and Third place winner for the ensemble. She played in Merkin Hall, Lincoln Center in May 2022.

Dan is also a new music promoter. She values passionate performances, collaborations, and making modern music more approachable for today’s audiences. She did many world premieres in NYC. She is an experienced teacher for 13 years. Her private students have been admitted by a lot of famous music colleges in China and the USA.

Starting violin at age 4, She was the first-place winner in the graduate entrance exam in the orchestra department at Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing. In 2015 she moved to the USA to pursue another Master's and Doctor degree. Now, She is a DMA candidate at the College-Conservatory of Music, University of Cincinnati.

Born and raised in Durango, Colorado, violist Nicholas Wilbur holds a Master’s Degree in Viola Performance from the University of Cincinnati's College-Conservatory of Music, where he studied with Kenichiro Matsuda. He also holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Viola Performance from the Eastman School of Music, where he studied with George Taylor.

Nicholas began playing music at the age of four, originally learning bluegrass fiddling before beginning his studies as a classical violinist with Dr. Kasia Sokol Borup and Dr. Nathan Lambert. He began playing the viola at age twelve, and his teachers include William Foster of the National Symphony Orchestra and Dr. M. Brent Williams.

As an orchestral violist, Nicholas was the youngest member of the San Juan Symphony in two decades, where he played for two seasons before leaving to attend the Eastman School of Music. At Eastman, Nicholas held principal positions in both symphonic and opera orchestras. Nicholas attended both the Summer Music Institute fellowship run by the National Symphony Orchestra in Washington D.C., and National Orchestral Institute as a full-scholarship fellow. He has worked with renowned conductors including JoAnn Falletta, David Zinman, James Judd, David Alan Miller, Ward Stare, Mark Gibson, and Neil Varon. Nicholas has also been featured in masterclasses and coachings with artists such as C.J. Chang, Daniel Foster, Joan DerHovsepian, Alan Harris, Federico Agostini, David Ying, Robin Scott, and Nicholas Stovall.

As a member of the Antigone Quartet, Nicholas has shared in winning a finalist position in the Glass City Chamber Music Competition as well as Third Prize in the 2022 CCM Chamber Music Competition (the only string quartet to earn a prize).The Antigone Quartet have toured and concertized in the United States and Europe, and were invited to perform in the Southern Illinois Music Festival (SIFest), Musica Malicorne in Le Mans, France, as well as the CCM Atrium Recital Series at the University of Cincinnati.

Nicholas has nearly a decade of experience as a viola and violin instructor and is passionate about helping his students find their own musical voice and developing the technique to express it. In his time away from the viola, Nicholas is an active composer and arranger for a variety of instruments and ensembles. He is also an amateur chef and non-classical music enthusiast. Nicholas performs on a viola made by Stanley Kiernoziak in 2017.

Violinist Jade McClellan is an Atlanta native who began playing the violin after her mom asked if she would be interested in learning the instrument. At the time, she didn't even know what a violin was! That simple yes set her on an exciting musical path on which she has performed in the United States and Japan, and the Czech Republic. She has organized musical events and fundraisers to use music as a tool for good. Her favorite venues to perform are at churches and in nursing homes to share healing and love through music. An engaging soloist and chamber musician, she is currently studying with Kurt Sassmannshaus at the University of Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music. She previously studied under Carla Trynchuk at Andrews University. She is also a passionate and creative teacher and sharing the joy of music with children is one of her greatest joys. In her free time, she enjoys spending time in nature with her dog.

Maggie Niekamp, violinist, is a second-year graduate student at the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, where she studies with Timothy Lees, former Concertmaster of the Cincinnati Symphony. Maggie received her BM degree in Violin Performance from the Cleveland Institute of Music (May 2019), where she studied with Stephen Rose, principal second violinist of The Cleveland Orchestra, and Brian Lewis.

Maggie started playing the violin at the age of four. Her former teachers include Francesca Chase, Marlene Moses, and Amy Barlowe. Maggie has performed in solo masterclasses for Almita Vamos, Ilya Kaler, David Kim, and for various members of the Cleveland Orchestra, including Sonja Braaten-Molloy and Lembi Veskimets. She has also performed in chamber music masterclasses for former Cleveland Quartet member, Peter Salaff.

An avid orchestral musician, Maggie currently holds the position of section violin in the Kentucky Symphony Orchestra. Maggie also serves as a substitute violinist with the West Virginia Symphony Orchestra, Dayton Philharmonic, and with The Firelands Symphony in Sandusky, Ohio.

Maggie’s summer music experiences in the last five years include the Meadowmount School of Music (2016), the Chautauqua Music School Festival Orchestra (2017, 2018), and the National Repertory Orchestra (2019). At both Chautauqua and the National Repertory Orchestra,

Maggie was given the opportunity to perform in concerts as Principal Second Violin. This Summer, Maggie plans to return to Breckenridge, Colorado to perform in concerts as a Section Violin Member of the National Repertory Orchestra

Also passionate about teaching, Maggie has gained teaching experience through the Cleveland Institute of Music’s preparatory department, where she assisted with the preparatory orchestras for two years—leading sectionals and assisting the students with their music. Maggie is a registered Suzuki Teacher through Suzuki Violin Books one-four. She took two semesters of Suzuki Pedagogy at the Cleveland Institute of Music, under the tutelage of registered Suzuki Association of the Americas teacher trainer, Kimberly Meier-Sims. Maggie served as violin faculty at Miss Shannon’s music studio in Batesville, Indiana for her first semester at the Cincinnati—College Conservatory of Music in Fall 2019.

In her free time, Maggie enjoys practicing yoga, running, and cooking.

Carmen Granger is an orchestral musician and educator throughout the midwest and has been seen performing with many symphonies and opera companies in Ohio, Kentucky, Arkansas, Virginia, South Carolina and North Carolina. She is currently Principal Violist of the Lima Symphony Orchestra, and has sat as principal viola of Western Piedmont Symphony, Carolina Philharmonic, Fayetteville Symphony, and assistant principal of Greensboro Symphony and Durham Symphony.

Carmen graduated in 2017 with her Bachelor’s in Music Performance from The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG). During her time at UNCG, she was the principal viola of the Symphony Orchestra for two years and performed with different smaller ensembles within the school, including being the resident violinist/violist of the school’s contemporary music ensemble, Present~Continuous, the Gate City Camerata, Casella Sinfonietta and the UNCG Opera Orchestra. She has also had the pleasure of working with Lynn Harrell, Philip Glass, Molly Ringwald, and Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg. She has performed in masterclasses for Michael Strauss, Pamela Ryan, and Elias Goldstein as well as the Friction Quartet, Daedalus Quartet, and Decoda Quartet.

In 2020, Carmen graduated from The University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory (CCM) of Music with her Master’s degree in Viola Performance. While she was at CCM, she was principal for the Philharmonia Orchestra, Concert Orchestra, and Chamber Orchestra and has performed in masterclasses for Rictor Noren, Amadi Azikiwe, Scott Lee, and Wendy Richman.

In recent years, Carmen has played at the Durham Center for Performing Arts as a guest with the MGP Live tour of The Legend of Zelda Symphony of the Goddesses (2017) as well as Distant Worlds: The Music from Final Fantasy (2018). She has also been an orchestral fellow at National Music Festival (2019) and Sewanee Summer Music Festival (2018). She is currently studying to complete her D.M.A. in Viola from CCM. In her free time, Carmen enjoys playing disc golf, video games, baking, and entertaining her two cats, Yuffie and Clementine.

Benjamin Abel is a violinist from Indianapolis, IN. From 2012-2016, Benjamin attended Butler University’s Jordan College of the Arts on full scholarship. Benjamin studied with Larry Shapiro. While at Butler, Benjamin was Concertmaster of the Butler Symphony Orchestra and Winner of Butler’s Concerto Competition.  

In 2016 and 2017 Benjamin attended the prestigious Castleman Quartet program. In 2017 Benjamin suffered a serious injury to his left hand which forced him to teach himself to play again from scratch. In 2018, following a successful recovery, Benjamin was awarded a Graduate Orchestral Fellowship at Britt Festival and was offered a full scholarship and stipend at the Frost School of Music as a Henry Mancini Fellow. He studied with Charles Castleman and Scott Flavin. While at Frost, Benjamin was Concertmaster of the Henry Mancini Institute, Principal Second Violin of the Frost Symphony Orchestra, and was featured in masterclasses with Sylvia Marcovici and Gerard Schwarz. He graduated with his MM in violin performance in 2020. 

Benjamin is a dynamic chamber musician and has coached with Laurie Carney, Csaba Erdelyi, Jodie Levitz, Alan Harris, Terry King, and Laura Bossert. In New York Benjamin has performed concerts with Cosmopolitan Chamber Players and Vista Lyrica. He has performed chamber music works alongside Eric Grossman, Beth Levin, Eric Shumsky, and Richard Deane. His family quartet, the Abel Family Quartet, has appeared on various chamber music series around the country, including Sioux City Chamber Music, Tippecanoe Chamber Music Society, and Finger Lakes Chamber Music Festival.  

A dedicated orchestral musician, Benjamin has appeared as guest concertmaster with the Kokomo Symphony and Hendricks Symphony, and has played under the batons of Gerard Schwarz, Teddy Abrams, Richard Auldon Clark, Larry Rachleff, and Carl St. Clair. 

Benjamin is a passionate teacher. Since 2014 he has taught private lessons for Butler Community Art School, and also maintains a personal studio of private violin and viola students in Indianapolis.  He is currently a DMA student at the University of Cincinnati-CCM and studies with Timothy Lees.

Presenting masterpieces ranging from Bach to Tchaikovsky, violinist Jackie Tso has been heard as a soloist with orchestras around the world such as the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Santa Fe Concert Association Orchestra, and the Beijing Broadcasting Orchestra. Other past solo engagements include the Kentucky Symphony Orchestra, Blue Ash Montgomery Symphony Orchestra, Southwest Ohio Philharmonic, Wright State University, and the Seven Hills Sinfonietta.

Ms. Tso has played in many of the world’s most prestigious competitions including the Yehudi Menuhin, Shanghai Isaac Stern, Zhuhai Mozart, and Cooper. She was a semifinalist of the International Jascha Heifetz Competition as well as the Irving M. Klein. Jackie is currently studying with Li Lin at The Juilliard School, and has also studied with Glenn Dicterow, Kurt Sassmannshaus, and Almita and Roland Vamos.

Jackie is from Cincinnati, OH and began her violin studies at the age of four with the Suzuki method. She still remembers her early years in the Suzuki Program as being so influential in her musical development. Tso made her debut in Cincinnati’s beloved Music Hall when she was eight years old, and also performed at the Lensic Performing Arts Center when she was twelve. When Tso was fifteen, she had the pleasure of collaborating with acclaimed pianist Christopher O’Riley on National Public Radio’s From the Top. She was one of twenty individuals selected for the “Most Interesting People” issue of the 2009 Cincy Magazine, a much-loved local Cincinnati publication.

Jackie was a member of Cincinnati’s Starling String Program and enjoyed tours with them to Detroit as well as Salzburg, Austria. Jackie was also a member of the Music Institute of Chicago’s Academy Program. Prior to her transfer to Juilliard, Jackie spent her first two years of her undergraduate at sunny Los Angeles’ University of Southern California where she was very interested in law.

Tso has been heard as soloist in many of the world’s most-cherished violin concertos: Paganini Concerto with the Blue Ash Montgomery Symphony Orchestra, Tchaikovsky Concerto with the Cincinnati Symphony/Cincinnati Symphony Youth orchestra, and the Sibelius Concerto with the MasterWorks Festival Orchestra.

Jackie has spent summers at the Great Wall International Music Academy, National Arts Center Young Artists Program, Meadowmount School of Music, Bowdoin Music Festival, Salzburg’s Mozarteum Summer Academy, MasterWorks Christian Festival, and the Aspen Music Festival as an orchestral fellow. This past summer, Ms. Tso performed in Virginia at the Heifetz Institute of Music. At all of these music festivals, Jackie collaborated with many fellow musicians in chamber music playing celebrated composers such as Arensky, Beethoven, Brahms, Mozart, and Ravel.

Tso’s orchestra career began with service as concertmaster of the Cincinnati Symphony Youth Orchestra for three years, followed by being a member of the Aspen Conducting Academy Orchestra, University of Southern California’s Thornton Symphony, and the Juilliard Orchestra. She has played in master classes for Pinchas Zukerman, Ida Kavafian, James Ehnes, Vadim Repin, Joji Hattori, Tong Wei-Dong, Joel Smirnoff, Thomas Ades, and Martin Beaver.

Aside from music, Tso is active in the Juilliard community serving at the Christian Fellowship as a women’s Bible study leader. She also loves spending time with her family and friends, and being outdoors.

Violinist Tiffany Steinweg is a passionate and compassionate performer, teacher, and arts advocate. Whether recording original string duo arrangements with her brother, helping a young violin student fix his bow hold, or leading her university’s music association in a discussion of potential outreach ideas, she strives to bring a sense of mission, service, and adventure into every aspect of her career.

As a soloist, she is celebrated for her silky tone and moving expression. Most recently, she had the honor of premiering her brother Grant Steinweg’s composition “Star Breather” in her senior violin recital. Previously, she was selected as a winner of the 2017 Andrews University Young Artist Competition and has performed in masterclasses with Janet Sung, Mitch Newman, and Victor Yampolsky.

Tiffany discovered her niche for teaching as a volunteer violin instructor at Peace Music Academy in Khon Kaen, Thailand where she spent 11 months working with over 30 students at Peace Music Academy. Since returning to the U.S., she has enjoyed investing in a small private studio and several Suzuki Teacher Training courses with Sherry Cadow and Joanne Melvin. Having begun her own violin journey as a Suzuki student, she now finds delight in facilitating this experience for others.

She is currently a Master of Music candidate at Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and a student of Kurt Sassmannsshaus. Prior to graduating from Andrews University as a Dare to Dream Scholarship recipient and J.N. Andrews Honors Scholar, she studied under Carla Trynchuk and completed a BMus degree in Violin Performance with a minor in Behavioral Sciences.

Originally from the beautiful Pacific Northwest, Tiffany may be found climbing mountains in the summers or busking at the International Rose Test Garden in Portland, OR.

Dominic Mileti has played viola for the past 16 years, and violin for 6 years. Knowing from a young age his love for music, Dominic attended Interlochen Arts Academy high school where he studied with David Holland and Renee Skerik. After graduating, he pursued his music education at Cincinnati Conservatory of Music studying with Dr. Catherine Lees. During his undergraduate, Dominic was principal and co-principal of the conservatories Philharmonia Orchestra. Dominic attended the Chicago Suzuki Institute in 2016, receiving teacher training with Kathleen Spring. After which, he started his adult teaching career working with multiple studios through the tristate area. Currently, Dominic is finishing his master degree in viola performance from CCM, where he performs on a monthly basis with the Philharmonia, as well as chamber groups in the Cincinnati area and at school. He is currently studying under Denisse Rodriguez from the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, and has a studio of violin and viola students ranging from six years old to adults in Batesville Indiana that he has been cultivating for the past three years.

Hannah MacNeal began her musical studies at the age of 11 in her hometown, Louisville, Kentucky with Stacey Yates. In 2012, she began attending the Youth Performing Arts Program at DuPont Manual High School for Viola Performance, where she studied with Jason Seber, Daniel Whisler, and Jonathan Mueller, a member of the Louisville Orchestra. During the four years spent there, she performed in the American String Teacher’s Association (ASTA) conference, the Kentucky Music Educators Association (KMEA) conference, and the Indianapolis Music For All Festival. She was also a part of the Louisville Youth Orchestra from 2011 until 2016 and had many regional performance opportunities alongside the Louisville Orchestra. In 2015, she was the only violist in Kentucky selected to be a part of the Kentucky Center’s Governor’s School for the Arts (GSA). These opportunities inspired her to continue her viola performance studies at University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) with Dr. Catharine Lees. Throughout her time spent at CCM, she has been a part of countless solo, chamber, and orchestral performances. Hannah has recently performed with the Kentuckiana Philharmonic Orchestra and the Lima Symphony. Not only has she continued her passion for performance, but she has also fallen in love with teaching. She has several years of teaching experience with a variety of ages and skill level. She loves to share her experiences and hopes to spark the light of music in those around her. She is currently finishing her degree at CCM, teaching private viola and violin lessons, and a part of a touring band, Acarya, where she plays a five- stringed electric viola. They have just released their first album, “The Way Home,” which was produced by Turtle and the Stone Productions. Hannah plans on pursuing a career in violin and viola performance and teaching based on experience, adaptability, and passion for music.

Hannah Schendel is a conductor, violinist and pianist. She began studying violin and piano at the age of 4, and has experience teaching students of all ages and abilities. Originally from Minneapolis, Hannah taught private lessons and coached chamber music ensembles in addition to her duties at Bethel University where she was Director of Orchestras and String Activities.

Hannah recently completed coursework for the Doctor of Musical Arts Degree in Orchestral Conducting at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) under the mentorship of Mark Gibson. She holds a Master’s Degree in Orchestral Conducting from the University of South Carolina, and a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Music (Violin) from the University of Minnesota.

A native of Cincinnati, Natalie began her violin studies at the age of seven with Mrs. Jacquie Fennell. In middle school and high school, she was a member of Cincinnati Junior Strings and the Cincinnati Symphony Youth Orchestra Philharmonic Orchestra where she developed her passion for making music. Natalie is currently pursuing a Bachelor’s in Violin Performance at the College Conservatory of Music where she studies with Timothy Lees. During her freshman year, Natalie placed runner up in the College Conservatory of Music’s Undergraduate Scholarship Competition. Her sophomore year, she served as Principal Second Violin for the CCM Concert Orchestra. During May, 2018, she won third place in the Matinee Musicale Nancy F. Walker Memorial Scholarship Award.

Teaching is one of Natalie’s favorite aspects of playing the violin, so during August 2018, she traveled to Pittsburgh and completed Unit One of the Suzuki Violin Teacher Training program. Natalie plans on pursuing a master’s degree in Violin Performance and a career as a violin teacher and orchestral musician.

Shelby Thompson is in demand as a chamber and orchestral violist and as a teacher. She has performed with members of the Leipzig Radio Symphony in the Leipzig Gewandhaus and members of the Houston Symphony domestically. During her undergraduate degree at the University of Houston, Shelby was principal violist of the symphony, opera, and ballet orchestras at the Moores School of Music. She has been a frequent guest with the Tallahassee and Albany Symphonies and served as principal of the Florida State University Symphony Orchestra. During her master’s Shelby served as violist of the Eppes String Quartet at Florida State University. An avid proponent of new music, Shelby has appeared as soloist with the AURA New Music Ensemble and collaborates frequently with the Society of Composers, Inc. at FSU.

Shelby’s experience beginning viola in her elementary school orchestra in her native Alexandria, VA has driven her enthusiasm for teaching. She is a Suzuki-certified teacher and maintains a private studio of young viola and violin students. Shelby is currently pursuing a doctorate at Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music with Dr. Catharine Lees Previously, Shelby studied with Wayne Brooks at the University of Houston and Dr. Pamela Ryan at Florida State University.

Sarah Thomas received her Bachelor of Music, summa cum laude, in violin performance from the University of Tulsa and her Master of Music in violin performance from the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. Born and raised in Philadelphia, PA, she began her violin studies at the age of three and a half. Despite falling asleep in lessons during the "Twinkle years," she has pursued her passion for music all of her life. Sarah is an alum of the IES Vienna Music Program, where she spent Fall 2015 studying music, performing, and attending concerts. She is also an alumna of the Bowdoin International Music Festival, the National Orchestral Institute, the Aspen Music Festival, and the Brevard Music Center. During her time at the University of Tulsa, Sarah was an active chamber musician and concertmaster of the TU Symphony. Most recently, Sarah was the principal 2nd violinist of CCM's top orchestra, Philharmonia. While at CCM, she participated in the string quartet program coached by the Ariel String Quartet and also performed in numerous student recitals and collaborations. From 2016-2017 she taught elementary school orchestra in Tulsa Public Schools and was the Beginner Strings Teacher at Sistema Tulsa. Sarah teaches private students in the Greater Cincinnati area and is a faculty member of Cincinnati Strings and the Immanuel School of Music in Lakeside Park, KY. Sarah has performed with the Signature Symphony and String Quartet and the Tulsa, Richmond, and Kentucky Symphonies. When not playing violin or teaching, Sarah enjoys gardening, cooking, hanging out with friends, and exploring all the fun things to do in Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky.