Musicians

Violin
· Brian Lewis, Concertmaster
· Brinna Brinkerhoff
· Aloysia Friedmann
· Jonathan Godfrey
· Andrés González
· Rachel Jordan
· Rasa Kalesnykaite
· Kana Kimura
· Maxine Kuo
· Tammy Linn
· Deborah Tien Price
· Oleg Sulyga
· Amy Thiaville

Viola
· Matt Dane
· Suzanne LeFevre
· Tawnya Popoff
· Lorento Golofeev

Cello
· Richard Belcher
· Julia Cleworth
· Erika Johnson
· Shino Hayashi

Bass
· Sandor Ostlund
· Erik Gronfor

Harp
· Mollie Marcuson

Flute/Piccolo
· Christina Jennings
· Jennifer Keeney

Oboe
· Alecia Lawyer

Clarinet
· Nathan Williams
· Maiko Sasaki

Bassoon
· Kristin Wolfe Jensen
· Daniel Chrisman

Horn
· Danielle Kuhlmann
· Gavin Reed

Trumpet
· Jens Lindemann
· Dan Shipman
· George Chase

Trombone
· Brian Logan

Percussion
· Matthew McClung

Piano
· Kimi Kawashima
· Rodney Waters

Mollie Marcuson Instrument: Harp Originally from: Kansas City, MO Now reside in: Houston, TX; St. Paul, MN; Paderborn, Germany; and on the road in equal parts Age: 29 Birthday: January 31

How did you get started? I saw a harpist playing in a restaurant with my family, and was entranced. I begged and begged for lessons, so my parents let me try it out for my 7th birthday.

What do you do when you’re not playing with ROCO? I freelance and teach around Houston, play with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, sub with other orchestras around the country, and tour with my heavy metal cover band Harptallica.

What are you listening to on your iPod? I just finished a three month project to listen to all 11,364 songs on shuffle without skipping any. I also like to listen to episodes of This American Life on the road.

What did you do this summer? I spent most of the summer in Germany, followed by the Cabrillo Festival for Contemporary Music in Santa Cruz, and a Harptallica tour!

Personal info: Single with a dog named Stella.

Question you're asked most often: How do you move that thing? Answer: I have a dolly, a station wagon, and really helpful friends.

Interests outside music: Art, architecture, travel, dogs.

Links: www.molliemarcuson.com; www.myspace.com/harptallica

Education: BM, University of Minnesota; MM, Rice University

Bio: Mollie Marcuson is in her fourth season as principal harpist of the River Oaks Chamber Orchestra, and fifth season as harpist for the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra. In addition to performing with ROCO and the SPCO, she appears regularly with the Houston, San Antonio, Kansas City and Spokane Symphonies. As an orchestra member, she has played under conductors such as Andreas Delfs, Douglas Boyd, JoAnn Falletta, Hans Graf, Marin Alsop, and Gunther Schuller.

Ms. Marcuson is also an enthusiast for new music, performing with Houston organizations such as Musiqa and the Foundation for Modern Music, as well as the Cabrillo Festival for Contemporary Music in Santa Cruz, CA. She also participated in the SPCO’s 2007 recording of works by George Tsontakis, and a recording of Karim Al-Zand’s Duet for Viola and Harp, due out later this year. Less orthodox musical pursuits include her new status as member of the Metallica tribute harp duo, Harptallica.

In addition to performing, she has been teaching harp since 2000, and is currently on the faculty at Stephen F. Austin State University, and at the American Festival for the Arts Summer Music Conservatory in Houston. Ms. Marcuson began playing the harp at age seven in her home town of Kansas City. She received her bachelor’s degree in harp performance from the University of Minnesota in the spring of 2003, and her master’s degree in harp performance in 2006 from the Shepherd School of Music, Rice University. Her primary instructors include Paula Page, Deborah Wells-Clark, Kathy Kienzle, Francis Miller and Alice Chalifoux.