Elizabeth is a modern and baroque violist based in Seattle, Washington. She can be seen  performing with various local ensembles such as the Seattle Chamber Orchestra, the Seattle  Metropolitan Chamber Orchestra, the Pacific Northwest Ballet Orchestra, the Federal Way  Symphony, in the Fever Candlelight Concerts and in a variety of other chamber music and  orchestral settings. In addition to performing and composing, she is a dedicated teacher of viola,  violin, and piano.  

Elizabeth completed her Bachelor of Music degree at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and  Dance, London, where she studied with Violist Matthew Jones and was awarded the Bank/Kurtz  Viola Prize. During her studies in England, she also received masterclass tutelage from Maxim  Rysanov, Helen Callus, Rivka Golani, and Illan Schneider. As a founding member of the  Trafalgar Trio, she performed in numerous chamber music concert series throughout England. In  the spring of 2013, Elizabeth was selected to be a part of the K12 collaboration project with the  Krakow Academy, performing as the violist of the chamber orchestra in Britten’s War Requiem  in Poland.  

Elizabeth completed her Master of Music at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, studying  with the esteemed Jodi Levitz. During this time she also developed a love for historical  performance and baroque music, studying baroque viola with the world-renowned baroque  violinist Elizabeth Blumenstock. In 2017, she won the SFCM Baroque Concerto Competition  and had the opportunity to perform the Telemann Viola Concerto with the SFCM Baroque  Ensemble.  

Elizabeth moved to Berlin, Germany in 2018, where she toured with the Berliner Camerata throughout Norway, premiered contemporary pieces at Savvy Contemporary Berlin, performed  early music in the Alte Musik Fest Friedenauer, and won the Neustart Kultur Deutchemusikrat Grant to complete her composition for viola and dancers. During these years she released an  album with her first band, White Night, which included songs nominated by the German  Songwriting Awards, as well as her first solo pop album “Mine”, under the artist name Ela Ira. 

As the laureate of both the 2007 International Markneukirchen and Sion-Valais International Violin Competitions, Sunmi Chang has performed widely to much acclaim throughout North America and Europe as a soloist and chamber musician. In 2008, she was the soloist of the Yale Philharmonia's tour to Seoul, Beijing, and Shanghai, performing the Beethoven Concerto. She studied at the Yehudi Menuhin School in England and at the Hanns Eisler Musikhochschule in Berlin with Prof. Eberhard Feltz. An active chamber musician, Ms. Chang won first prize at the Plowman Chamber Music Competition and has collaborated with many renowned artists. She was invited to take part in the Rising Stars Series at Caramoor, Music@Menlo and Chamber Music Northwest. She completed her studies with Peter Oundjian, Ani Kavafian, and Soovin Kim in 2009, earning the Artist Diploma and the Master of Music degree at Yale University, where she won the concerto competition in 2006.  She was a tenured member of the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra from 2009 to 2015 and she recently completed a Doctor of Musical Arts in Violin Performance from the University of Michigan in 2020.

Karin Choo is Executive Director of Northwest Sinfonietta, and has been a member of the Sinfonietta’s violin section since 2012. An active performer in the region, she is also Concertmaster of Olympia Symphony Orchestra and Vashon Opera, is acting Assistant Concertmaster of Symphony Tacoma and performs frequently with Tacoma Opera, Tacoma City Ballet and other Puget Sound ensembles. Karin's arts administration experience includes serving as Executive Director of the American String Project, and Operations Manager and Assistant Artistic Administrator of Seattle Symphony. Choo holds Bachelor degrees in violin performance from the New England Conservatory, where she studied with James Buswell, and economics from Tufts University.

Aaron Conitz is a dynamic performer and thoughtful musician. He has appeared as a featured soloist with the Aspen Contemporary Ensemble and the National Repertory Orchestra, and as a collaborative artist in the Archipelago Collective (San Juan Island, WA), Aspen Art Museum Summer Series, Arts Renaissance Tremont, and Aspen Music Festival. Conitz has performed alongside acclaimed musicians such as Darrett Adkins, Elaine Douvas, Victoria Chiang, and Paul Kantor. Aaron is the recipient of several awards and fellowships including the Frances Walton Competition (Ladies Musical Club of Seattle), Susan and Ford Schumann Fellowship (Aspen Contemporary Ensemble), and the prestigious New Horizons Fellowship. As an orchestral musician, Conitz appears with the Seattle Symphony and Seattle opera and formerly as a member of the Canton Symphony. Aaron began his musical instruction at the age of four. He has received both Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from the Cleveland Institute of Music and a Doctor of Musical Arts at Rice University.

Erica Convery is excited for her debut with Emerald City Music! She received her Masters degree in vocal performance/vocal pedagogy from Peabody Institute and has since performed with Seattle Opera, Maryland Lyric Opera, Opera Lancaster, Berks Opera Company, Sky Opera, the Singer’s Theater of Washington, Utah Festival Opera, Seattle Modern Opera, Bellevue City Opera, Tacoma Opera, and N.OI.S.E. (Northwest Opera in Schools, Etc). Audiences most recently heard Ms. Convery as the alto soloist in Mozart’s Requiem with the Everett Philharmonic/Everett Chorale. She has also performed recitals at both Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center. She is currently a member of Seattle Opera’s regular chorus and performs with both the Mägi Ensemble and the Emerald Ensemble. Also in May, she will be covering roles in Jake Heggie’s new opera, When It All Goes Dark (world premiere). Erica lives in Snohomish with her husband, Chris, and daughter, Isabelle. She also teaches voice and piano lessons through her private studio, Convery Music Studio, and is the founder and president of Snohomish Concert Series, a classical-music series in Snohomish dedicated to featuring professional musicians of Snohomish County and of the greater Seattle area.

Pianist Oksana Ejokina appears frequently on concert series across the United States and abroad. She has soloed with the Seattle Symphony, Symphony Tacoma, Olympia Symphony and St. Petersburg Philharmonic, and performed at numerous distinguished venues in the US. She has premiered works by Marilyn Shrude, Laura Kaminsky, Wayne Horvitz, Bern Herbolsheimer, and has been featured on multiple live radio broadcasts on WFMT-Chicago, KUOW and KING FM in Seattle, and Maine Public Radio. Oksana is the pianist of the Volta Piano Trio, whose recordings for Con Brio label received accolades in The Strad, Gramophone, and American Record Guide. A sought-after teacher, she is an Associate Professor of Piano at PLU. For the last 22 years, she has been an integral part of the Icicle Creek Center for the Arts in her capacity as Artistic Director of several flagship classical music programs.

Ross Gilliland performs regularly on modern and baroque bass throughout the pacific northwest with numerous ensembles including the North Corner Chamber Orchestra (NOCCO), Seattle Modern Orchestra, Pacific Northwest Ballet, Auburn Symphony, Seattle Chamber Orchestra, and the Seattle ‘Candlelight Concert’ series. He also freelances actively in theater and studio sessions, recording soundtracks for feature films, pop, bluegrass, video games, and other ‘attractions’. A lover of baroque/early music, he performs baroque bass and violone (a precursor to the modern bass) with period ensembles including the Seattle Baroque Orchestra, Portland Baroque Orchestra, Sound Salon (formerly Byron Schenkman & Friends), the Whidbey Island Music Festival, Epiphany Parish, Tacoma Bach Festival, and Seattle Bach Choir. A Madison, WI native, he was a tenured member of the Madison Symphony Orchestra and Madison Opera and performed with the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, the Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society, Madison Bach Musicians, and the Token Creek Chamber Music Festival, collaborating closely with famed composer and Bach interpreter John Harbison for 20 years. He has been a featured soloist with Seattle's Mostly Nordic concert series and live on Wisconsin Public Radio, and spent about a year of his life touring the nation in a ska band. Mr. Gilliland holds degrees in music performance, physics, and environmental policy.

Annika Kounts, from Seattle, USA, is a member of the first violin section in the Staatsorchester Kassel (State Opera in Kassel, Germany). As an orchestral musician she has played with the NDR Hannover, Hannover Staatsoper, and Dortmund Philharmoniker. She has also performed at various international festivals in Europe and the U.S. as a member of the Verbier Festival Orchestra, Schleswig Holstein Music Festival Academy Orchestra, and the Music Academy of the West. She is currently based in Seattle, and performs regularly with the Pacific Northwest Ballet Orchestra. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Violin Performance from Indiana University, where she was a student of Mauricio Fuks, and a Master’s in Music from the Hochschule für Musik, Theater, und Medien Hannover, where she studied with Elisabeth Kufferath.

A recipient of the 2015 Avery Fisher Career Grant, as well as a top prizewinner of the 2012 Walter W. Naumburg Competition and the Astral Artists’ 2010 National Auditions, Kristin Lee is a violinist of remarkable versatility and impeccable technique who enjoys a vibrant career as a soloist, recitalist, chamber musician and educator. “Her technique is flawless, and she has a sense of melodic shaping that reflects an artistic maturity,” writes the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, and The Strad reports, “She seems entirely comfortable with stylistic diversity, which is one criterion that separates the run-of-the-mill instrumentalists from true artists.”

Lee has appeared as a soloist with leading orchestras including the Philadelphia Orchestra, St. Louis Symphony, St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, New Jersey Symphony, Rochester Philharmonic, Milwaukee Symphony, Tacoma Symphony, Hong Kong Philharmonic, Nordic Chamber Orchestra of Sweden, Ural Philharmonic of Russia, Korean Broadcasting Symphony, Guiyang Symphony Orchestra of China, Orquesta Sinfonica Nacional of Dominican Republic and many others. She has performed on the world’s finest concert stages, including Carnegie Hall, Avery Fisher Hall, the Kennedy Center, Philadelphia’s Kimmel Center, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Steinway Hall’s Salon de Virtuosi, Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, the Ravinia Festival, Philadelphia’s World Cafe Live, (Le) Poisson Rouge in New York, the Louvre Museum in Paris, Washington, D.C.’s Phillips Collection and Korea’s Kumho Art Gallery. An accomplished chamber musician, Lee is a member of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, performing at Lincoln Center in New York and on tour with CMS throughout each season, as well as a member of Camerata Pacifica in Santa Barbara, sitting as the Bernard Gondos Chair.

Recent and upcoming highlights include concerts presented by the San Francisco Symphony with Itzhak Perlman, Amarillo Symphony, Chamber Music Sedona, a tour with the Silk Road Ensemble, Music@Menlo, Parlance Chamber Concerts, Moab Music Festival, Music in the Vineyards, Town Hall Seattle, Lyra Music Festival, Olympic Music Festival, North Carolina New Music Initiative and the Leicester International Music Festival, as well as performances with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and Camerata Pacifica.

Lee’s many honors include awards from the 2015 Trondheim Chamber Music Competition, 2011 Trio di Trieste Premio International Competition, the SYLFF Fellowship, Dorothy DeLay Scholarship, the Aspen Music Festival’s Violin Competition, the New Jersey Young Artists’ Competition and the Salon de Virtuosi Scholarship Foundation. She is also the unprecedented First Prize winner of three concerto competitions at the Juilliard School: in the Pre-College Division in 1997 and 1999, and in the College Division in 2007.

Born in Seoul, Lee began studying the violin at the age of five, and within one year won First Prize at the prestigious Korea Times Violin Competition. In 1995, she moved to the United States and continued her musical studies under Sonja Foster. Two years later, she became a student of Catherine Cho and Dorothy DeLay in the Juilliard School’s Pre-College Division. In January 2000, she was chosen to study with Itzhak Perlman. Lee holds a Master’s degree from the Juilliard School. She is the co-founder and artistic director of Emerald City Music in Seattle.

A Paris Fulbright Fellow recipient, CHRISTINE LEE has been noted by the New York Times as a “clear delight.” Currently based in Seattle, Christine is on the faculty of the University of Washington School of Music where she leads the chamber program for undergraduate and graduate students. Her performances as both soloist and chamber musician has taken her to North America, France, Germany and Norway, and has been featured on Seattle’s Classical King FM radio. Most recently, Christine commissioned and premiered a new work entitled “Ominous Machine” by the trail-blazing composer Vivian Fung, which received its world premiere by L’arc in November 2023 at the Bowes Center. Christine was selected as one of two Fulbright Fellows for musical studies in Paris and studied with the renowned French cellist Michel Strauss. During her studies in Paris, she made her solo debut at the Reid Hall and had the great privilege of performing for the Fulbright Seminar in Berlin. She holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from the Juilliard School and her teachers include Bonnie Hampton and Richard Aaron.

Seeking means of discovery and expression, Carlin Ma has dedicated her life to music and the arts, including filmmaking, photography, solo piano, chamber music, and interdisciplinary projects.   As a professional photographer and filmmaker, she has collaborated with institutions such as Aspen Music Festival, Seattle Symphony, Boston University Tanglewood Institute, San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and Music@Menlo.  Special merit recognitions include front page feature in Symphony Magazine, publications in major news outlets like New York Times and San Francisco Chronicle, and 1st place Aspen Chamber of Commerce Photo Contest.  Carlin has been the resident photographer for Emeraldy City Music since our opening 2016.

As a pianist, she has performed at international prestigious venues including the Kennedy Center, Ravinia Festival, Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival, Capella Hall (Russia), and more.  She finds it equally meaningful to initiate performances in local venues, including the inaugural Seattle Musicians@Google.  As a pedagogue, she credits her mentors, including Menahem Pressler, Yoshi Nagai, Arnaldo Cohen, Evelyne Brancart, Emile Naoumoff, and Karen Taylor.  Carlin was the Associate Instructor at Indiana University.  In 2021-2023, Steinway & Sons awarded her with “Top Piano Teacher in Seattle” for her private studio.

Carlin finds music and film/photo emerging from the same internal chord, which has led to many interdisciplinary projects.  She is Co-Founder and Artistic Director of Hawaii International Music Festival, creating projects that interweave classical music with Hawaiian inspirations.  Seattle Symphony also invited her as an interdisciplinary artist in Octave 9’s inaugural season. Fostering perpetual discovery for herself and others is her committed passion.

Vanessa Moss is a tenacious performer, educator, and orchestral leader who has built a diverse musical career. Born and raised in the Northwest, she holds leadership roles across Washington state. Ms. Moss serves as concertmaster of the Walla Walla and Mid-Columbia Symphony Orchestras and as violinist with the Yakima Symphony Orchestra. She is the founder and curator of Sempre Chamber Music, a repertory ensemble of musicians performing in the inland Northwest.

She has appeared as soloist with the Wenatchee Valley Symphony Orchestra, Mid-Columbia Symphony, and the Twisp Chamber Players. Recent performances include Vaughan Williams’ Lark Ascending, Astor Piazzola’s Las Cuatro Estaciones Porteñas (The Four Seasons) concerti, and Saint-Saëns’ La Muse et la Poète Duo Concerto for Violin and Cello. As a chamber musician, she has been featured in recitals with the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber Orchestra and the Walla Walla Chamber Music Festival.

Vanessa enjoys any opportunity to travel and share music with new friends on stage and off. She regularly performs with the Northwest Sinfonietta, Spokane Symphony Orchestra, and the McCall Music Festival. International tours include South Korea with the Fairbanks Symphony Orchestra and China with the American Festival Orchestra. By far, her favorite venue has been the Grand Canyon, playing string quartets throughout the canyon and while rafting down the Colorado River.

Ms. Moss is an enthusiastic teacher to students of all stages. She has taught in El Sistema-inspired programs, BRAVO Youth Orchestras in Portland, OR, and Yakima Music en Acción in Yakima, WA, and has been faculty at summer camps including Icicle Creek Summer Symphony and Pipestone Music Festival. Her teaching has been heavily influenced by Mimi Zweig at Indiana University and she pursued pedagogical development at the Starling-Delay Symposium at the Juilliard School. Ms. Moss teaches a private studio of dedicated students, many of whom have achieved notable success. Students of Ms. Moss have won concerto competitions, competed at State Solo and Ensemble, and gone on to  study music collegiately.

When a violin isn’t in her hands, Vanessa spends as much time outside as possible. She lives in Ellensburg with her percussionist husband, Josh Gianola, where they work to provide for the cat’s lifestyle.

Mas Podgorny is a freelance bassist in the Seattle area. Primarily an orchestral musician, Mas  has performed with the Houston, Utah, and Seattle symphonies, among others. His primary  teachers include Jordan Anderson, Ira Gold, and Paul Ellison. Mas plays on a bass made in 2019  by Daniel Hachez of Wenatchee, WA. In his free time, you can find Mas outside hiking, camping,  or rock climbing – preferably in the company of his wife, two sons, and dog. 

Cellist Holly Reeves enjoys a varied career as an orchestral player, chamber musician, and teacher. Holly  has toured with ensembles in Japan, Costa Rica, France, Great Britain, Italy, and the United States. She was a founding member of the Anacapa String Quartet, an ensemble that established a highly-regarded  chamber series in Santa Barbara and gave concerts nationally. As a member of Anacapa, she was a prize  winner at the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition and was twice invited to compete at the Evian International String Quartet Competition. 

Holly is well-known to Olympia audiences as principal cello of the Olympia Symphony. This year marks  her twenty-sixth season with the group. She is also a long-time member of the acclaimed chamber  orchestra Northwest Sinfonietta. Holly has been a featured soloist with the Olympia Symphony and has  appeared many times on the Governor’s Mansion series and the Abbey series at Saint Martin’s  University. She is a sought-after teacher in the area and maintains a busy private studio.  

Originally from the Kansas City area, Holly holds a Bachelor of Music degree from the Eastman School of  Music and a Master of Music degree from the University of California Santa Barbara. She studied with Steven Doane, Ronald Leonard, Geoffrey Rutkowski, and Jean Hassel and participated in the cello master  classes of Janos Starker and Aldo Parisot at the Banff Music Festival. Chamber music coaches include  members of the Colorado, Muir, Cleveland, Julliard, Emerson, and Amadeus quartets. She has recorded  with the Anacapa String Quartet, members of the Ensemble for Contemporary Music at UCSB, pianist  Scott Cossu, and local singer-songwriters.

Ramon Salumbides began his studies of the double bass with Barry Lieberman, former Assistant Principal of the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Artist in Residence at the University of Washington, and would eventually attend UW for a Bachelor’s Degree in Double Bass Performance. In the summer of 2013, Ramon won the position of Section Bass for the Yakima Symphony Orchestra and has since then been granted tenure. In addition, he performs with Bellevue Symphony (Principal), North Corner Chamber Orchestra, Lake Washington Symphony Orchestra and the 5th Ave Theater.  Ramon has also subbed with the Auburn Symphony, Northwest Sinfonietta, Village Theater, Bremerton Symphony, Bellingham Symphony Orchestra, Seattle Philharmonic Orchestra, Northwest Symphony Orchestra, and the Maui Pops Orchestra. Ramon has served as double bass coach for the Bellevue Youth Symphony Orchestra, and various schools within the Seattle, Bellevue, and Lake Washington School Districts since 2013.  His current studio is located at Hammond Ashley Violins in Issaquah WA.  His students have gone on to receive recognition within Seattle Youth Symphony Orchestra, Bellevue Youth Symphony Orchestra, All-State/All-Northwest, and acceptance into various collegiate music programs across the country.

Page Smith is solo cellist of the Pacific Northwest Ballet Orchestra and was principal cellist for the Northwest Chamber Orchestra for 25 years and the Auburn Symphony for 10 seasons, performing frequently as soloist with all three.  She was also principal cellist of the New Jersey Symphony, and the Aspen Chamber Symphony at the Aspen Music Festival.  She currently plays upon invitation with the Seattle Symphony and the Seattle Opera.  She is one of this region’s most beloved and trusted chamber musicians, performing with the Orcas Island Chamber Music Festival, Music of Remembrance, Chamber Music Northwest concert series, the Mostly Nordic Chamber Music Series and the Second City Chamber Music Series.  Her teachers have included Lynn Harrell, Ronald Leonard, Eva Heinitz and Raymond Davis.

Known for his passionate and captivating performances, violinist Shintaro Taneda is an emerging artist active in the chamber music scene. Currently based in San Francisco, this season featured performances with Inon Barnatan, Esmé Quartet, and the Jupiter Quartet in the Chamber Music Tuesday concert series, in addition to performances with Alexi Kenney, Stefan Jackiw, Nobuyuki Tsujii, and the New Century Chamber Orchestra. Shintaro also performs regularly at the Hawaii Chamber Music Festival as part of their Quartet-in-Residence. An equally experienced soloist, recent performances include collaborations with the Fairbanks Symphony Orchestra, San Francisco Civic Symphony, Seattle Festival Orchestra, Cascade Symphony, Ottawa Chamber Symphony, Skagit Symphony, and the San Francisco Conservatory of Music Orchestra, where he has also served as Concertmaster under the baton of Earl Lee, David Chan, and SFCM Artistic Director Edwin Outwater. Through the years, Shintaro has had the privilege to perform for artists such as Ray Chen, Hilary Hahn, Midori, and Noah Bendix-Balgley. Shintaro is currently pursuing his Master of Music degree in Chamber Music at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music under the guidance of Ian Swensen, Wonhee Bae, and Nancy Zhou, along with coachings with members of the Telegraph String Quartet, and Dimitri Murrath.

Known for his passionate and captivating performances, violinist Shintaro Taneda is an emerging artist active in the chamber music scene. Currently based in San Francisco, recent concerts featured performances with Inon Barnatan, Esmé Quartet, and the Jupiter Quartet in the Chamber Music Tuesday concert series, in addition to performances with Alexi Kenney, Stefan Jackiw, Nobuyuki Tsujii, and the New Century Chamber Orchestra. An equally experienced soloist, recent performances include collaborations with the Fairbanks Symphony Orchestra, San Francisco Civic Symphony, Seattle Festival Orchestra, Cascade Symphony, Ottawa Chamber Symphony, Skagit Symphony, and the San Francisco Conservatory of Music Orchestra, where he has also served as Concertmaster under the baton of Earl Lee, David Chan, and SFCM Artistic Director Edwin Outwater. Through the years, Shintaro has had the privilege to perform for artists such as Ray Chen, Hilary Hahn, Midori, and Noah Bendix-Balgley. Shintaro is currently pursuing his Master of Music degree in Chamber Music at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music under the guidance of Ian Swensen, Wonhee Bae, and Nancy Zhou.

Giving performances the New York Times describes as “surehanded,” “engrossing,” and “rich,” violist Erin Wight is an enthusiastic proponent of the music of our time. She has appeared as a contemporary music soloist on four continents, and is happiest when collaboratively imagining and creating new sound worlds with her friends. Deeply committed to community engagement, Erin’s decade-plus in NYC found her in Teaching Artist roles for the New York Philharmonic, Carnegie Hall and the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. From her present home-base of Seattle, Erin continues to develop exploratory music curricula for preeminent arts organizations including the New York Philharmonic, the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, and her alma mater The Juilliard School’s K-12 Programs and Initiatives. When not busy performing in stadiums, orchestra pits, or cozy venues in the gorgeous Pacific Northwest, Erin enjoys looking for tide-pool creatures on rocky beaches, reading novels while drinking coffee, and spending time with her three children and composer-turned-hospitalist partner.