Instrument: Violin
Originally from: Lexington, KY
Now reside in: New Orleans, LA
Birthday: September 16
How did you get started? When I was 4 years old my mother told me that I was going to take violin lessons. I hated it for the first 7 years. Then I got into the Central Kentucky Youth Orchestra (Lexington, KY) and that’s when I knew what I was going to be when I grew up!
How long have you performed with ROCO? I have played with ROCO since the very first ROCO concert in 2005. I have played with ROCO off and on since that first concert after Hurricane Katrina. ROCO was my saving grace that year.
What do you do when you’re not playing with ROCO? I am the violin professor at Loyola University New Orleans.
What are you listening to on your iPod? Joni Mitchell, Abbey Lincoln, Shirley Horn, Shostakovich, Bartok, Hilary Hahn, Vartan Manoogian, a sprinkle of rap and r&b, and Marlon & Stephanie Jordan w/ Rachel Jordan and myself on strings.
What did you do this summer? This summer I have been taking it pretty easy – if you call chasing after 3 kids all summer easy. My kids, 10, 8 and 4 now, did only one camp for one week. The rest of the summer has been about trying to find things to keep them entertained inside when it’s 100 degrees outside. We’ve been visiting lots of places here in N.O., took a trip to KY to visit my parents, visited a freind’s condo in Mississippi, celebrated two of my kids’ birthdays and are going to Pensicola Beach next week for our last vaca before school starts in August. So this summer I put on my Mommy pants and spent it with my family.
Personal info: Married with children! 3 to be exact: ages 11, 8 and 4.
Question you’re asked most often: What’s your real job? Answer: I was asked this question more actually when I was Concertmaster of the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra but still get asked now that I am teaching. I would just laugh with the comfort of knowing that I love what I do – music. I also get asked almost as frequently: Do you play “The Orange Blossom Special”? Answer – NO!!!! I could but never had the desire.
Interests outside music: Working out at the gym, going to the beach, hanging out with my family and friends.
Education: Bachelor of Music (Violin Performance) – University of Wisconsin-Madison; Master of Music (Violin Performance) – Yale University