Females who are currently concertmasters
Other than Erin Keefe in Minnesota, Holly Mulcahy in Chattanooga, and Kay Sloan w/San Francisco Opera, can you share the names of current female concertmasters? Please limit it to the top 75 or so orchestras.(We have 2 right here in Tulsa, but our budgets just are not at that level.)
Replies (32)
Grretings,
genuinely interested. Do we still talk about femal concertMASTERS. Soory for the caps. Lauries last post on the Julliard week included a brilliant lady who has been around for yonks. Great player who does Akexander Technique.
Name eludes me as usual.
Cheers,
Buri
Sarah Kwak out here in the Oregon Symphony.
Alexander technique ... supposed to cut knots, isn't it?
Stephen, I gather that "Concertmistresses" is now a no-no (although the Wikipedia article on Iona Brown calls her just that - in the singular of course), and I didn't read about Nicola Benedetti giving mistress classes. However, in the UK we have a perfect solution to the problem; no, NOT "don't HAVE female concertmasters", though this would certainly make sense. No, the one you call the Concertmaster of the orchestra we Brits call the Leader - We had Iona Brown (I think I ought to correct Wikipedia, British terms for the Brits and all that).
good job I'm a Brit.
Thanks John.
My friend Lauren Roth is the concertmaster (or mistress...) in Tucson.
How about internationally? I-ching Li is one of the two concertmasters of Taiwan's National Symphony Orchestra.
Albena Danailova is the concertmaster of the Vienna State Opera Orchestra (even though she is listed as one of the four concertmasters of the Vienna Philharmonic).
US orchestras please.
Great idea for a thread -- of course, I'm perfectly interested in hearing about female concertmasters anywhere, not just the U.S. You can pick out the 75 U.S. ones, if we come up with them, if you need that for something!
Buri, I'm not remembering that one!
Nurit Bar-Josef: National Symphony
Yoonshin Song: Detroit Symphony
Juliana Athayde: Rochester Philharmonic
Susanna Perry Gilmore: Omaha Symphony
Jessica Hung: Dayton Philharmonic
something like Flonzales?
Buri, do you mean Jorja Fleezanis? She was concertmaster of the Minnesota Orchestra from 1989 to 2009.
what would I do without you?
Buri, thanks for making that clear - I'd got the idea you were Japanese. I'm no longer QUITE so impressed with your evident command of British language and culture.
Mind you I should have realized - Japanese don't burp, do they? (Mind you, Guy Wright's persona Elmer J Burpalot, of the Bernard Robinson music camps and the Fritz Spiegl extravaganze was invented as an AMERICAN tycoon).
Here are some more. I am not sure all of these are current, and I apologize if I am duplicating any who were already mentioned:
Albany: Jill Levy
Atlanta Ballet: Lisa Morrison
Austin: Jessica Matthaes
Baton Rouge: Borislava Iltcheva
Brooklyn Phil: Laura Park Chen
Canton: Lauren Roth
Cleveland Opera: Lenora Leggatt
Colorado: YuMi Hwang-Williams
Dayton: Jessica Hung
Delaware: Dayna Anderson
Detroit: Yoonshin Song
Elgin: Isabella Lippi
Houston Ballet / Houston Grand Opera: Denise Couch Tarrant
Hudson Valley Phil: Carole Cowan
Kalamazoo: Diana Cohen
Las Vegas Phil: DeAnn Letourneau
Long Island Phil: Erica Kiesewetter
Los Angeles Chamber: Margaret Batjer
Memphis: Susanna Perry Gilmore
Michigan Opera Theatre: Charlotte Merkerson
Mississippi: Marta Kirk
New West Symphony: Elizabeth Pitcairn
New York Pops: Erica Kiesewetter
Northeastern Pennsylvania Phil: Erica Kiesewetter
Oakland East Bay: Terrie Baune, Dawn Harms (co-CMs)
Oregon: Sarah Kwak
Palm Beach Opera: Laura Hilgemann Miller
Pasadena (CA): Aimee Kreston
Chamber Orch. of Philadelphia; Gloria Justen
Richmond: Karen Johnson
Rochester Phil: Juliana Athayde
San Francisco Opera: Kay Stern
Symphony Silicon Valley: Robin Mayforth
South Bend: Zofia Glashauser
Springfield (MA): Masako Yanagita
West Virginia: Amelia Chan
Katherine Winterstein- Vermont Symphony Orchestra
Joyce, I was thinking of Jorja as a teacher ( because she's such a good one ), but you are right! Thank you for your good memory!
Roanoke Symphony Orchestra: Akemi Takayama
Sorry if it's not "top 75" to you but this is a darn good orchestra under the baton of a great maestro, David Stewart Wiley, and it's the best orchestra within 100 miles of my house, and furthermore, Akemi is one hell of a fine violinist, later this year she is playing the Brahms with RSO here in Blacksburg, I can hardly wait.
Don't know if we make 'top 75" either, but Ruth Lenz - Reno Philharmonic
I heard Erin Keefe play Brahms 3rd Sonata last year and her performance blew me away.
[EDITED]I think that Opera Colorado has a female concertmaster, but those silly rabbits don't post that information.
I was incorrect. I was thinking of Lydia Svyatloskaya, who is the concertmaster of the Colorado Ballet Orchestra.
"Roanoke Symphony Orchestra: Akemi Takayama"
Thanks for that, Paul. I didn't know her name, but she briefly tried out my first 3/4 before it was quite completed and apparently was mildly impressed. I wasn't present.
Violetta Todorova, Illinois Symphony Orchestra
(Although I have no idea where Illinois Symphony ranks among U.S. orchestras.)
"those silly rabbits don't post that information" - Too busy having babies, I suppose ...
Diana Cohen, Calgary Philharmonic
Gwen Hoebig, Winnipeg Symphony
Marie Bérard, Canadian Opera Company
Bénédicte Lauzière, Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony
Jeanne Lamon, Tafelmusik, Chief Artistic Advisor, founder, leader and Music Director
Just saw this.
I am pretty sure that Marta Kirk (Mississippi) goes by Marta Szlubowska now.
U.S. Marine Band: Claudia Chudacoff
Regarding Eric's excellent list:
Canton's current concertmaster is Justine Lamb-Budge.
Memphis' concertmaster is vacant but the acting concertmaster is also a female: Barrie Cooper.
Karen Johnson is no longer the concertmaster in Richmand.
Laurie, my memory cannot take credit for this one - I cheated by googling [site:violinist.com "Laurie Niles" "Alexander Technique" Juilliard], and "Master Class with Jorja Fleezanis" was the first result...
@Paul Deck-Glad to hear that Roanoke Symphony is still going strong David Wiley is terrific I haven't played down there in a long while, great memories.
@Joyce Lin-I played a quartet gig with Claudia Chudacoff she's soooooo good, kept me on my toes LOL!
-M
Dear Joyce,
don't be so hard on yourself. Not only did you remember how to use a computer but also that funny word 'goggles' that people seem to bandy around so much these days,
Buri
Outside the US, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra - Laura Samuel (ex-Belcea quartet). Previous leader was Elizabeth Layton.
Royal Scottish National - Maya Iwabuchi (one of 2 or 3 leaders)
Must be something in the water.....
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April 28, 2015 at 08:15 PM · And I forgot Yumi Hwang-Williams with Colorado.