Mack McCray Artistic Director
Meikui Matsushima Administrative Director

Board of Directors:
Julia K. Cheng
Dennis Evans
Charles Lee
Meikui Matsushima
Mack McCray
William Miller
Joshua Rafner
Gary A. Rust
Robin Schader
James Zhu

Board of Artistic Advisors:
John Adams
Emanuel Ax
Jorja Fleezanis
Bonnie Hampton
Klaus Hellwig
Garrick Ohlsson
Michael Steinberg
The St. Petersburg String Quartet

Faculty:

Bettina Mussumeli | violin

Well known as the former co-concertmaster and violin soloist of the Italian chamber group "I Solisti Venetia", Bettina Mussumeli is Professor of Violin at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and the first violinist of the Ives Quartet. Ms. Mussumeli has performed throughout Europe, Australia and the Far East, and has made numerous recordings for the Erato, RCA, Tactus and Concerto labels. She collaborated frequently as guest concertmaster with the Orchestra Toscanini of Parma, Orchestra del Teatro Comunale di Bologna, Orchestra del Teatro di Cagliari and the Orchestra della Fenice. She holds B.M. and M.M degrees from The Juilliard School studying with Ivan Galamian and Dorothy DeLay. She studied chamber music with members of the Juilliard, Guarneri and Cleveland quartets. She has also studied with Kato Havas at Oxford, England, focusing on the elimination of tension in violin playing.

Jodi Levitz | viola

Jodi Levitz received her Bachelor and Master of Musical Art degrees from the Juilliard School. While completing her Master’s degree, she was offered the post of Principal Viola and Soloist with the Italian chamber group “I Solisti Veneti”, a position she held for twelve years. She performed as soloist throughout Europe, South America, the USA and the Far East, and recorded works for viola on the Concerto, Dynamic, and Erato labels. She also has been the principal violist of the Chamber Orchestra of Mantova and the Orchestra Città di Ferrara, and
collaborated as guest principal viola with the National RAI Orchestra, the Orchestra Toscanini of Parma, and the Chamber Orchestra of Tuscany. Ms. Levitz was also professor of viola at the Ars Musica Academy at Imola. She is the violist of the San Francisco String Trio, and some of her recent concerts have included collaborations with pianist Menachim Pressler, cellists Sadao Haruda and Joel Krosnick, and violinists Robert Mann and Jorja Fleezanis. She is Professor of Viola and Chamber Music at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.

Jennifer Culp | cello

Jennifer Culp has been an active chamber musician for the past 25 years. She was a member of the Kronos Quartet for seven years from 1998, during which time her busy international career included appearances at Sydney Opera House, Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall, London 's Barbican Centre, Walt Disney Hall in Los Angeles , Concertgebouw in Amsterdam and WOMAD Festival in New Zealand . The quartet won many international and national awards including Musical America's 2003 "Musicians of the Year" and a Grammy Award for Best Chamber Music Performance of Berg's Lyric Suite in 2004. Ms. Culp has collaborated with artists such as Zakir Hussein, Dawn Upshaw, Tom Waits, Sandor Vegh, Asha Bhosle and Irina Schnittke, and is currently a member of the Feinsmith Quartet. She received a bachelor’s and master’s degree in music from the San Francisco and New England Conservatories, studying with Bonnie Hampton and Laurence Lesser. Ms. Culp was also cellist with the Dunsmuir Piano Quartet, Empyrean Ensemble, Philadelphia String Quartet, San Francisco Opera Orchestra, and Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, and has recorded numerous world premieres for Nonesuch, New Albion, CRI, Orion, New World and Sony.

Mack McCray | piano

A graduate of Juilliard School , Mack McCray won the Silver Medal in the International Georges Enescu Competition, first prize in the San Francisco Symphony and Charleston Symphony Young Artists competitions and numerous other prizes all in one season: 1969-1970. He has been invited guest artist at important festivals throughout the world, including Paris , Seville , Monte Carlo , Bucharest and Hong Kong . He has performed under such conductors as Michael Tilson Thomas, Edo de Waart, Josef Krips , Leon Fleisher and Arthur Fiedler. Recently he has performed with the Japan Philharmonic in Suntory Hall, Tokyo , at the Carmel Bach Festival, Manhattan ’s Trinity Church Series, and at the International Piano Festival in Shanghai . Since 1971 he has been on the faculty of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, where he is Chairman of the Piano Department.

Meikui Matsushima | piano

Meikui Matsushima graduated from the Toho Music College in Tokyo, Japan where she studied piano with Eiko Tanaka. She continued her musical studies with Beatrice Beauregard at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Currently she is a member of the piano faculty of the San Francisco ConservatoryÕs Preparatory Division, and taught at the International Chamber Music Course and Festival in Positano, Italy from 1998Ð2001. She served two terms as the president of the San Francisco Chapter of the California Association of Professional Music Teachers, and was Program Director of the 1999 San Francisco International Summer Music Festival.

Fumino Ando | violin

Born in Japan, Fumino Ando graduated from Toho Gakuen University of Music in Tokyo, received an artist diploma at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas, and her master of music degree at Oklahoma University. In 1992, she became a member of the Bettina String Quartet which concertized through Japan and performed in the Santa Fe and La Jolla chamber music festivals. Ms. Ando received a fellowship at the Tanglewood music festival and was given a chamber music "Diploma Honor Prize" at the Chigiana Music Academy in Italy. She has been a member of the New World Symphony in Miami, Assistant Concertmaster of Oklahoma City Philharmonic Orchestra and was a member of the Crouse String Quartet. She has played chamber music through the United States and performed as a soloist with the Fort Smith Symphony Orchestra in Arkansas. She has been a member of the Oregon Symphony since 2002.

Bonnie Hampton | cello

A founding member of the Naumburg Award-winning Francesco Trio, Bonnie Hampton also has performed as part of the Hampton-Schwartz Duo with her late husband, pianist Nathan Schwartz. Her chamber music guest artist appearances have included performances with the Juilliard, Guarneri, Cleveland, Mendelssohn, Alexander, Budapest and Griller String Quartets. A student of Pablo Casals, she participated for many years in the Casals and Marlboro festivals. Currently she is involved in the summer programs at the Tanglewood Music Center and the Yellow Barn Festival. Her early studies were with Margaret Rowell, the Griller String Quartet and Zara Nelsova. Ms. Hampton has taught at Mills College, Grinnell College, Stanford University, University of California at Berkeley, and at the San Francisco Conservatory for thirty years. She is a past president of Chamber Music America. In September 2003 she joined the faculty at the Juilliard School.

Ellen Jewett | violin

Ellen Jewett has performed throughout the United States, Europe, Japan and New Zealand, both as recitalist and with groups such as the New England String Quartet, the American Chamber Players, the New York Chamber Soloists, the Apple Hill Chamber Players, the Thaikovsky Chamber Orchestra and the American Symphony. She is a founding member of Ensemble X as well as the Taliesin Trio with whom she has been in residence at the Tanglewood Institute, the Spoleto Festival in Italy and at the Olympic Festival. For the last three years she has been performing with the Audubon String Quartet. Chamber music collaborations include performances with Yo Yo Ma, James Buswell, Eugenia Zuckerman, Anthony Newman and Marcus Thompson. She is currently a member of the string faculty at SUNY Stony Brook.

Felicia Moye | violin

Felicia Moye has performed throughout Europe, Asia, North and South America as soloist and chamber musician with groups such as the Miami String Quartet, Orpheus and the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra. She was first violinist of the Miami String Quartet when the group won top prizes in both the Evian and London International Quartet Competitions and recorded with the group under the Pyramid Records label. Currently, she is a founding member of Trio Amade who records under the Klavier Records Label. Felicia Moye has also performed chamber music in collaboration with YoYo Ma, James Buswell, the Lincoln Center Chamber Music Society, the Blossom Music Festival and the Mostly Mozart Festival in Avery Fischer Hall. She has served as concertmaster of the Santa Fe Opera, Honolulu Symphony and as acting associate concertmaster of the San Francisco Symphony. A frequent guest artist and coach of the New World Symphony, she is currently professor of violin at the University of Oklahoma, concertmaster of the Oklahoma City Philharmonic, and also on the faculty at the ARIA International Summer Music Festival.

Irina Muresanu | violin

Irina Muresanu won the Montreal International Violin, Queen Elizabeth Violin, George Enescuâ International Violin, UNISA International String, Washington International, and the Schadt String Competitions. She is the winner of the Pro Musicis International Award, the Presser Music Award and the Arthur Foote Award from the Harvard Musical Association. Recent engagements as soloist include concerts with the Boston Pops, the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande (Geneva), the Syracuse Symphony, the Metropolitan Orchestra (Montreal), the Transvaal Philharmonic (Pretoria), the Orchestre de la Radio Flamande (Brussels), the Boston Phiharmonic, the Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra, the Romanian National Radio Orchestra, and the Miami Symphony Orchestra among others.
An active chamber musician, Ms. Muresanu is a member of the Lewin-Muresanu Duo and the Boston Trio. She has appeared in such festivals and venues as Bargemusic in New York; the Rockport Festival in Massachusetts; Bay Chambers concert series and Bowdoin Festival in Maine; the Strings in the Mountains festival in Colorado; Maui Chamber Music Festival in Hawaii, Reizend Music festival in Netherlands; Festival van de Leie in Belgium; and the Renncontres des Musiciennes festival in France. www.irinamuresanu.com

Matthew Trusler | violin

Winner of numerous awards and prizes in England and abroad, Matthew Trusler has been invited to perform as a recitalist and concerto soloist throughout Europe, Australia and the USA.  He has performed with most of the UK’s major orchestras, including the London Philharmonic, BBC Concert, City of Birmingham Symphony, Hallé, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, Royal Scottish National and Bournemouth Symphony orchestras.  Recent British and European concert engagements have included appearances with the London Mozart Players, the Ulster Orchestra, a tour of German festivals with the Academy of St Martin in the Fields under Sir Neville Marriner, as well as his debut with the Deutschland Radio and the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin. An avid chamber musician, Trusler has recently teamed up with Wayne Marshall with whom he is performing classical and Broadway repertoire. Collaborations with other eminent musicians include Leon McCawley, Martin Roscoe, Peter Donohoe, Adrian Brendel, Lynn Harrell, Imogen Cooper and Joseph Silverstein.   Future engagements include concerto performances with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, the NDR Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Philharmonie Südwestfalen, the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, and the Johannesburg Philharmonic.  His new recital disc, the violin sonatas of Elgar, Janacek and Debussy with pianist Martin Roscoe was the launch CD of Orchid Classics, released in 2005. Matthew teaches regularly at the Royal Academy of Music in London, the Malmö Academy of Music in Sweden, and the Dartington International Summer School.

Benjamin Simon | viola

Benjamin Simon has performed around the world as a violist with the New York Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, Music from Marlboro, and the Naumburg Award-winning New World String Quartet. He has served as principal violist with the Buffalo Philharmonic as well as the Los Angeles and New Century Chamber Orchestras. Mr. Simon has recorded for MCA Classics, Vox, Musical Heritage Society, Centaur, CRI, and Laurel Records, and was awarded Grand Prix du Disque in 1991 with the New World String Quartet. He has taught at Harvard University and joined the faculty of Stanford University in 1992 as a member of the Stanford String Quartet. Director of the Crowden School in Berkeley, California from 1999-2002, he is currently on the chamber music faculty at UC Berkeley and the Music Director for the San Francisco Chamber Orchestra and the Palo Alto Chamber Orchestra.

Martin Osten | cello

Martin Osten has been a soloist with the Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra in Warsaw, the Budapest Philharmonic Orchestra and the Hungarian Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra in Budapest, Christchurch Symphony Orchestra in New Zealand and the Vogtland Philharmonie in Thuringia. He has performed recitals and chamber music concerts in Europe, the USA and Asia, and has been a participant at Tanglewood and Ravinia festivals, IMS Prussia Cove Festival in England, and the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival. His principal teachers have been Wolfgang Boettcher, Lynn Harrell, Norman Fischer and David Geringas (plus master classes and lessons with Heinrich Schiff and Yoyo Ma). Among the honors he has received is First Prize at the German national competition "Jugend musizert" in Nordrhein-Westfalen, Second Prize and a special prize at the National Lions Cello Competition, and Second Prize at the International Australasian Cello Competition in New Zealand. Mr. Osten has made recordings with SŸddeutscher Rundfunk, Polish Radio, Hungarian Radio and Television and Radio New Zealand. Orchestral experience includes performances and recordings with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. He has been an Associate Instructor for Cello at Rice University, Houston, and a member of the faculty at the Musikschule Ostholstein, Germany.

Sarah Hong | cello

Sarah Hong, cello Born in Korea, Sarah Hong began studying cello at the age of five and was selected as most promising young cellist in the nation at the age of 16, her performance broadcast nationwide by KBS. She made her New York debut at Carnegie's Weill Recital Hall as a winner of Artists International. The winner of numerous national and international awards, Sarah studied at the Juilliard School with Zara Nelsova and Joel Krosnick, and received her artist certificate in chamber music at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music under Bonnie Hampton. She has appeared at international festivals such as Salzburg, Holland Music Session, Seoul International, Nice, Schleswig-Holstein, Bach Academy, Britten Pears, Aspen and the Juilliard String Quartet Seminar.Ê Sarah Hong lives in San Francisco where she balances a busy career as soloist, collaborative artist and teacher. She is currently a member of the New Century Chamber Orchestra, the YE Solisti and the Broderick String Quartet.

Tomoko Fujita | cello

A recipient of numerous honors including The Edgar Feder Award for the Advancement of the Art of the Cello presented by the Violoncello Society, Inc., of New York and the Henri Kohn Memorial Award given by the Tanglewood Music Center, Tomoko Fujita graduated summa cum laude from Rice University with a double degree: Bachelor of Music degree in cello performance as a student of Norman Fischer; and a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology. She earned a Master of Music degree at The Juilliard School while studying with Joel Krosnick and Darrett Adkins, and is currently working with Colin Carr in the Doctor of Musical Arts program at Stony Brook University. In addition to the Tanglewood Music Center, she has participated in the Festival dei Due Mondi in Spoleto, Italy , Le Domaine Forget Academy in Quebec, and the Sarasota and Aspen music festivals. Ms. Fujita is currently on the faculty of the Stony Brook University Pre-College Program and the Port Jefferson Music Academy.

The Lee Trio

Lisa Lee, Violin; Angela Lee, Cello; Melinda Lee Masur, Piano

Praised by The STRAD magazine for their "gripping immediacy and freshness" and "rich palette of tone colours," the Lee Trio is made up of sisters Angela, cello; Lisa, violin; and Melinda, piano. The Trio has regularly appeared on both sides of the Atlantic to rave reviews and won top awards at the Gaetano Zinetti and Kuhmo International Chamber Music Competitions in Italy and Finland. During 2005-2006, The Lee Trio performed in Italy under the auspices of Luoghi Di Confine at the Mendelssohn Festival in Leipzig, at Herbst Theatre in San Francisco, and completed their first China tour.

Megan Fergusson | viola

Megan Fergusson is currently Assistant Professor of Viola at Bowling Green State University. She has performed with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Cleveland Orchestra; as chamber musician collaborated with Ida Kavafian, Paul Katz, Yan Wei of the Silk Road Ensemble and performed on numerous occasions with the Michigan Chamber Players presented by University Musical Society. Her festival appearances have included Tanglewood, Aspen, Spoleto USA and Domaine Forget (Canada). Ms. Fergusson holds a DMA from the University of Michigan and degrees from New England Conservatory and Rice University, where her teachers included Yizhak Schotten, Martha Katz, and Karen Ritscher.