Robert Baldwin , Viola
Robert Baldwin is Director of Orchestral Activities at the University of Utah. He is also Music Director of the Salt Lake Symphony and conductor of It's a Grand Night for Singing, in Lexington, Kentucky. Also an accomplished violist, Baldwin has held several positions, including professor of viola at Northern Arizona University and principal viola with the Arkansas Symphony, Flagstaff Symphony, and Arizona Opera Orchestras. As a violist, experiences include guest appearances with the Amadeus Trio, and the Saint Petersburg and Stanford String Quartets. He has appeared as a soloist with the Flagstaff Symphony, SMU Festival Orchestra, and Sedona Chamber Music Festival, and was violist of the Arizona-based Coconino Chamber Ensemble from 1989-1999. Recent appearances include recitals in the US and Mexico, and performances with the University Faculty Chamber Players, the Utah Chamber Artists and the Utah Symphony.

Ron Beitel, Horn
Ron Beitel is currently the Associate Principal Hornist of The Utah Symphony. Prior to moving to Utah, he performed as Associate Principal Horn of the San Antonio Symphony and Principal Horn of the Memphis Symphony. His solo and chamber music appearances include performances with The San Antonio Symphony, The Cactus Pear Music Festival (San Antonio), The Olmos Ensemble (San Antonio), NOVA, and Intermezzo. Mr. Beitel is a graduate of the Cleveland Institute of Music.

Karlyn Bond, Piano
Karlyn Bond made her debut with the Utah Symphony at age twelve. Since then her performing career has included concerto appearances as well as numerous solo, chamber, and lecture recitals. Karlyn received her bachelor's degree in piano performance from Walla Walla College, where she studied with Leonard Richter. She earned her Master of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees at the University of Southern California, where she studied with John Perry, completing areas of concentration in piano performance, music history and literature, instrumental accompanying, and analysis of tonal music. Karlyn holds a full-time position at Westminster College as director and chair of the music program and teaches music and interdisciplinary courses.

Ellen Bridger, Cello
Cellist Ellen Bridger began her musical studies at the age of 7 on cello and piano at the Peabody Institute. Her early accomplishments include winner of the MTNA Competition, Outstanding High School Musician Award at Interlochen where she was principal of the World Youth Symphony Orchestra, Atlanta Symphony Youth Auditions Winner on both cello and piano, and the Bezazian Award at Oberlin Conservatory. She then pursued further study with George Neikrug in Boston. She has participated in the Sarasota, Brevard, Park City International Chamber Music Festival, and the Grand Teton Music Festival where she was featured soloist under conductor Ling Tung. Ms. Bridger has collaborated in chamber music performances with violinists Joseph Silverstein, Andres Cardenes, Bill Pruecil, Glenn Dicterow, Oleg Krysa and violist Paul Neubauer. She has been acting member of the Utah Symphony, is currently principal of the Utah Chamber Orchestra and serves as Principal cellist and soloist for many of the commercial studio orchestras in town. Ms. Bridger also maintains an active cello studio in SLC.

Leon Chodos, Bassoon
Leon Chodos joined the Utah Symphony in March of 2007. His duties include playing contrabassoon and associate principal bassoon. Most recently he came from the Oregon Symphony as the Contrabassoonist. Before that he was a member of the Colorado Symphony and the San Jose Symphony. Leon received his Bachelor of Music from California State University, Northridge and studied with Michele Grego. He received his Masters of Music from the University of Michigan and studied with Richard Beene and Robert Williams. During the summers, Leon has spent much time with the Apple Hill Chamber Music Festival in Keene, New Hampshire.  Leon loves all kinds of food, but especially ethnic foods. He enjoys following baseball and loves to get to a game whenever possible. He lives with his wife Gisela and has two children; Gabriel and Abigail.

Heather Conner, Piano
Originally from Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Heather Conner is Assistant Professor of Piano at the University of Utah. In 2003 she completed her Doctor of Musical Arts Degree in piano performance at the Manhattan School of Music, where she studied with Arkady Aronov. Under the guidance of renowned pianist Peter Frankl, as well as tutelage from Boris Berman and Claude Frank, Heather received her Master of Music degree from the Yale University School of Music. Heather received her Bachelor of Music degree from the Curtis Institute of Music in 1997. While at Curtis, Heather studied with the distinguished piano pedagogue Eleanor Sokoloff for five years. An avid chamber musician, Heather has appeared in Weill Hall at Carnegie Hall and the Glenn Gould Studios in Toronto. In 1990 she was one of sixty American pianists to participate in the Russia/America Piano Institute at the Gnessin Institute of Music in Moscow. In Utah Heather has been a regular performer in the NOVA and Intermezzo chamber music series.  

Emily Day-Shumway, Violin
Emily Day-Shumway was born and raised in Gresham, Oregon. She is the daughter of two musicians, her mother being a cellist and her father a composer. She received her Bachelor of Music degree in 1995 from the Manhattan School of Music, where she studied with Oleh Krysa, Sylvia Rosenberg, and Ariana Bronne. She has participated in the master classes of Arnold Steinhardt, Glen Dicterow, Charles Castleman, and Shirley Givens. Emily has played in several music festivals, including Aspen, Jerusalem, and Schleswig-Holstein, and was Principal Second Violin with the National Repertory Orchestra. Emily held a one-year position with the Utah Symphony, 1995-1996.  She now free-lances and teaches privately in Salt Lake City. She is married to Kevin Shumway, Utah Symphony cellist, and is the proud mother of two boys, ages eight and four.

Anthony DiLorenzo, Trumpet
Emmy Award winning composer and trumpeter Anthony DiLorenzo grew up in Stoughton Massachusetts where he studied trumpet at age eight with teacher Ron Christianson. In 1984 and 1985, Anthony won both New York and Boston's Young Artist competitions, which led to solo performances with The New York Philharmonic and The Boston Symphony Orchestra. He received his Bachelor of Music Degree from The Curtis Institute of Music, where he studied with Philadelphia Orchestra principal trumpet, Frank Kaderabek. Anthony has held principal trumpet positions with The San Francisco Symphony, Santa Fe Opera, The New World Symphony, The Utah Symphony, The Cincinnati Symphony, The Seattle Symphony, The Pacific Symphony and second trumpet with the Philadelphia Orchestra.

As an accomplished composer, Anthony's music is performed throughout the world by symphony orchestras and chamber groups,including the San Francisco, New World, Utah, and Tokyo symphony orchestras, the Louisiana Philharmonic, and the Boston Pops Orchestra. For the past twelve years Anthony has composed more than 80 film trailers, from Toy Story, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Red Dragon, The Lost World, Final Fantasy, Fools Gold, Bee Story to The Simpsons movie in 3D. Recently, Anthony was commissioned by the Tokyo Symphony to compose a concerto grosso for Brass Quintet and orchestra. The Boston Landmarks orchestra commissioned Mr. DiLorenzo to write a composition based on the life of president John Adams. This work will be premiered in June of 2008. Anthony lives in Salt Lake City with his wife, cellist Meeka Quan-DiLorenzo, and their son Luca.

John Eckstein, Cello
Cellist John Eckstein joined the Utah Symphony in June, 1990. Previously Associate Principal Cello of the New Orleans Symphony and Principal Cello of the Omaha Symphony, he enjoys a varied musical life of orchestral, chamber, and solo playing, in addition to his teaching duties at the University of Utah.Mr. Eckstein received his Bachelor of Music degree from the Eastman School of Music. He completed his Master of Music under the tutelage of famed cellist Raya Garbousova. Other teachers have included Steven Doane, Ralph Kishbaum, Ron Leonard, Richard Kapuschinski, and Dennis Brott. Mr. Eckstein was a founding member of the Abramyan String Quartet. With the Abramyan he concertized extensively throughout the US as well as Japan on six occasions.

Julie Edwards, Viola
Born and raised in Rapid City, South Dakota, Julie Edwards began studying viola in the public schools at age nine. Encouraged at age ten by her orchestra instructor not to quit viola and switch to flute "because everyone needs violas, and if you play viola, you'll always have work, but flute players are a dime a dozen," Julie made up her mind to pursue a career in viola and went on to receive bachelor's and master's degrees in viola performance from Indiana University, where she studied with Atar Arad. After college, Julie began a series of moves that took her to locations that needed violas, including Chicago and Pittsburgh, and became a member of the Louisville Orchestra. Julie is currently a violist with the Utah Symphony and hopes that everyone still needs violas.

Joseph Evans, Violin
Joe Evans has been a member of the Utah Symphony since 1996. Previously he was a member of the New World Symphony in Miami Beach, Florida. He holds a Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Utah and a Master of Music degree from the Manhattan School of Music. His main teachers were Miriam Schneider, Mikhail Boguslavsky, and Ariana Bronne. Joe has played in several music festivals, including Tanglewood, Sarasota, the Pacific Music Festival in Japan, and the Grand Teton Music Festival. In Utah he has been a frequent performer with the NOVA Chamber Music Series and the Canyonlands New Music Ensemble.

Walter Haman, Cello
Currently a cellist with the Utah Symphony, Walter Haman began playing the cello at age thirteen. His main teachers were Irene Sharp in San Francisco and Lawrence Lesser at the New England Conservatory, where he graduated in 1997. He received fellowships to the Aspen Music Festival, where he worked with Lynn Harrell and David Finckel, and the Tanglewood Music Center. From 1997-2000, Mr. Haman was associated with the Spoleto Festival in Italy, where he performed as member of the Spoleto Festival Quartet, Principal Cellist of the Spoleto Festival Orchestra, and appeared as soloist with the orchestra. In 2000 he was invited to the Banff Centre for the Arts for a three-month residency. In addition to performing chamber concerts, he also formed a partnership with dancer/choreographer Jose Navas and spent much of the next three years performing solo cello music by Britten, Hovhaness and Kodaly as part of the Haman/Navas Project in places such as New York, Los Angeles, Toronto, Montreal, London, Prague, Zurich, and Venice.   

Jason Hardink, Piano
Jason Hardink holds the position of Principal Symphony Keyboard/Opera Rehearsal Accompanist with the Utah Symphony and Opera. A native of North Smithfield, Rhode Island, Jason attended Oberlin Conservatory of Music, studying piano with Sanford Margolis, and has recently completed a Doctor of Musical Arts degree as a student of Brian Connelly at Rice University. His thesis "Messiaen and Plainchant" explores the varying levels of influence that Gregorian chant exerted on the music of Olivier Messiaen. He has performed several concerti with the Utah Symphony and earlier this year was instrumental in organizing a weeklong program of musical performances in Salt Lake City commemorating the centennial of Messiaen's birth. Jason is much sought after as a chamber musician. A strong advocate for new music, he served as the pianist for the Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble for three seasons and premiered over fifteen works. In Utah Jason performs with the Canyonlands New Music Ensemble.

Lun Jiang, Violin
Violinist Lun Jiang is a native of Beijing, China, and grew up in Westchester, New York. He has appeared in concerts with Paul Katz, Ruth Laredo, Glenn Dicterow, Ian Swenson and members of the Brentano, Pacifica and Ying String Quartets. Most recently, he performed at Martha's Vineyard Chamber Music Society with members of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and Los Angeles Philharmonic. Lun has recorded the complete string quartets of Camille Saint-Saens for Eroica Classical Records. A new album was recently released featuring Lun and his twin brother Quan playing music of Ysaye, Rosza and Paganini. Lun was a founding member of the Equinox String Quartet and Gotham Quartet, which was a graduate quartet in residence at Rice University from 1999-2001. The Gotham Quartet was a winner of Fischoff Chamber Music Competition, and has appeared in New York, Chicago, Houston, Detroit, Dallas-Fortworth, Indiana and North Carolina. Lun is a graduate of the Rice University and Manhattan School of Music, he has worked with Stanley Bednar, Isidore Cohen, Sergiu Luca and Raphael Fliegel. He has coached chamber music with Isaac Stern, Joseph Silverstein, Miriam Fried and members of the Guarneri, Juilliard and Tokyo String Quartets. Lun is currently a member of the Utah Symphony. He plays on a Januarius Gagliano violin made in 1780, Naples.

Carl Johansen, Viola
Carl Johansen joined the Utah Symphony in 2005. He was formerly a member of the Orquesta Simfonica de Barcelona y Nacional de Cataluña, the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra and the Rochester Philharmonic. In 1988 he won the John and Arthur Beare prize at the Lionel Tertis International Viola Competition, held on the Isle of Man. In his spare time he paraglides, skis and plays chess.

Lee Livengood, Clarinet
In October 2002 Lee joined the Utah Symphony as clarinetist and bass clarinetist. Previously he was a member of the Savannah Symphony Orchestra. He received a bachelor's degree from the Eastman School of Music as a student of Stanley Hasty and a master's degree from the University of California at Santa Barbara as a student of Mitchell Lurie. Besides being a member of the Tulsa Philharmonic, Fresno Philharmonic, and the Santa Barbara Chamber Orchestra, Lee has taught clarinet at Keene State College, the University of California at Santa Barbara, and Georgia Southern University. As a chamber musician, he has performed at the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, the Round Top Music Festival, the La Jolla Chamber Music Festival, and the Spoleto Festival. In addition to his work as a performer, Lee is well known as a mouthpiece maker and refacer. His clients include clarinetists throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Europe.

Ralph Matson, Violin
Ralph Matson was appointed Utah Symphony Concertmaster in 1985. Mr. Matson received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Yale College and a master's degree from the Yale School of Music. His principal teachers were Joseph Silverstein and Steven Staryk. He was a member of the Cleveland Orchestra, and prior to his Utah Symphony appointment, was Assistant Concertmaster of the Minnesota Orchestra. Mr. Matson's solo appearances with the Minnesota Orchestra and the Utah Symphony include collaborations with Stanislaw Skrowaczewski, Leonard Slatkin, Sir Neville Marriner, Eiji Oue, Joseph Silverstein, Keith Lockhart, and Pavel Kogan. Since 1996, he has participated in the Grand Teton Music Festival where he is Concertmaster of the Festival Orchestra.

Rebecca Moench, Violin

David Porter, Violin
David Porter is a violinist with the Utah Symphony, as well as serving as president of the Intermezzo Chamber Music Series. David has enjoyed many opportunities to perform as soloist and in chamber music both in the United States and abroad, often in duo with his wife, pianist Vedrana Subotic. A native of Northfield, Minnesota, David attended Indiana University, where he studied under Miriam Fried and Sylvia Rosenberg. An avid skier and hiker, David is famous among his friends for getting lost in Utah's vast deserts.

Stephen Proser, Horn
Stephen Proser has served as fourth horn of the Utah Symphony Orchestra since 1992 after having been a member of the horn sections of the New Orleans Symphony Orchestra and the Alabama Symphony Orchestra. Mr. Proser completed his undergraduate studies at the Peabody Conservatory of Music in Baltimore, where he was a student of David Bakkegard. Studies with Dale Clevenger of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and a M.M. at Northwestern University followed. Stephen also serves on the faculty of the School of Music at the University of Utah, where he maintains a large and active teaching studio. In addition to that, he is a frequent guest as a chamber musician in Salt Lake City for the Nova and Intermezzo Chamber Music Series and with University of Utah Faculty Chamber Musicians. He has also performed with the Chicago Symphony, Milwaukee Symphony, Columbus Symphony and at the Grand Teton Festival, among others. Stephen lives in Salt Lake City with his wife Susan Kohler, his children Matthias and Helena, and their three guinea pigs; Pepper, Cookie and Gravy.

Meeka Quan-DiLorenzo, Cello
Meeka Quan has been the Associate Principal Cellist of the Utah Symphony since 2003. A San Francisco native, she began her cello studies at the age of six with Suzuki teacher Beth Goldstein. Other teachers include Julie Feldman, Irene Sharp, Stephan Geber, and her mentor, Richard Aaron. Ms. Quan has been a prize winner in several national and international competitions and was featured on the Fox television network playing the second movement of the Elgar cello concerto as a result of her performance with the Pacific Symphony. She was offered a scholarship to the Cleveland Institute of Music's Young Artist Program at the age of fifteen, where she finished her high school diploma and then remained to earn her bachelor's degree in 2002. Chamber music having been a long-time passion for Ms. Quan, she has participated in many chamber music festivals, performing with members of the Juilliard and Cleveland quartets. Ms. Quan plays a 1908 Stefano Scarampella. Meeka and her husband Tony are the parents of a new-born son.

Kevin Shumway, Cello
Kevin Shumway was born in Neptune, New Jersey, in 1969. When Kevin was five years old, his family moved to Holladay, Utah. He played the cello in his elementary school program starting at age nine and began private lessons at eleven. As a teenager, he studied with Stephen Emerson, Assistant Principal Cellist of the Utah Symphony. Kevin attended Northwestern University from 1987 to 1992, studying cello performance with Hans Jensen. His final year of conservatory training took place at the Cleveland Institute of Music, where he studied with Stephen Geber, Principal Cellist of the Cleveland Orchestra. Kevin joined the Utah Symphony cello section in 1994. He is married to violinist Emily Day-Shumway and they have two sons, Avery, age eight, and Quinn, age four. As a father of young boys, Kevin's hobbies include playing with toy trucks, building Lego structures, and practicing after bedtime.

Robert Stephenson, Oboe
Robert Stephenson, Principal Oboist with the Utah Symphony, joined the orchestra in 1980. He is a graduate of the Interlochen Arts Academy and the Curtis Institute of Music. Before coming to Salt Lake City, Mr. Stephenson spent three years as Principal Oboe with the Savannah Symphony. He has participated in the Interlochen, Temple University, Symphony School of America, Spoleto, Academy of the West, Grand Teton, and Blossom music festivals and is Professor of Oboe at the University of Utah.

Alisa Thomason, Soprano
A native of Oregon, Alisa Thomason was a 2007 finalist in the Rocky Mountain Region of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions. Her recent appearances include the title role in Giacomo Puccini's Suor Angelica with La Musica Lirica , John Rutter's Mass of the Children under the baton of Brady Allred and Giulia in Gilbert & Sullivan's Gondoliers with Utah Opera. Ms. Thomason's ventures into new music include work with Canyonlands New Music Ensemble in presenting Yehudi Wyner's song cycle On This Most Voluptuous Night in conjunction with the Pulitzer Prize-winning composer's visit to the University of Utah in October 2006, as well as premiers of new works by Igor Iachimciuc, Sam Richards, and Marie Grudzien. Fluent in Italian, Alisa enjoys tennis, running, and the outdoors.

Robert Walzel, Clarinet
Robert Walzel is Director of the School of Music at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. He previous served in a similar capacity at Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, Texas. Prior to this he served on the faculty for eleven years at Texas Tech University and as Principal Clarinetist of the Lubbock Symphony Orchestra. Active as a soloist and chamber musician, appearances have included those with such groups as the Ensemble of Santa Fe, Dallas String Quartet, Texas Clarinet Consort, Intermezzo, Clear Lake Chamber Music Society, and the Society for the Performing Arts in Houston. From major symphony orchestras to jazz and commercial music, Walzel has performed extensively in virtually every medium featuring clarinet and saxophone. International solo appearances include those in Europe, Asia, Africa, and Central America. With pianist Steven Glaser, Walzel has toured as an Artistic Ambassador for the United States Information Agency. The duo has also released a commercial compact disc, Con Fuoco: Duos for Clarinet and Piano. Walzel was Festival Coordinator for ClarinetFest '97, the annual conference of the International Clarinet Association, and currently serves as Immediate Past President for this organization.

Pegsoon Whang, Cello
Pegsoon Whang is a graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music and the Mannes College of Music. She has performed throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia and has appeared in numerous festivals, including the Grand Teton Music Festival, Kneisel Hall, and the Chateau de La Gesse in Toulouse, France. She also served as Principal Cellist of the Colorado Music Festival for five seasons in Boulder. Currently Ms. Whang is a member of the Utah Symphony, Quattro Amici, and the Snake River Chamber Players in Colorado.

Larry Zalkind, Trombone
Larry Zalkind, Principal Trombone, began his trombone studies at age eight. Although his first choice was trumpet, inspired by Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass, his school music teacher had no trumpets available. "You look like a trombone player to me," she declared. Continuing with trombone, he later attended the University of Southern California, studying with Robert Marsteller, Lewis Van Haney, Terry Cravens, and Ralph Sauer, as well as Arnold Jacobs in Chicago. Along with his duties in the Utah Symphony, Mr. Zalkind is currently Adjunct Professor at the University of Utah, a member of the Summit Brass, and a member of the Grand Teton Music Festival summer orchestra.

Roberta Zalkind, Viola
Roberta Zalkind has been a member of the Utah Symphony since 1981 and its Associate Principal Violist since 1987. She studied viola at the Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara and the University of Southern California, where she was violist for the Vuillaume String Quartet. She has participated in the Colorado Music Festival and has been a regular member of the Grand Teton Music festival in Jackson, Wyoming, for the past eighteen years. Roberta is an active viola teacher and chamber musician, often performing in the NOVA, Kol Ami, and Intermezzo chamber music series. Ms. Zalkind has been on the faculty at the University of Utah since 1987. She is married to Larry Zalkind, Principal Trombone for the Utah Symphony, and they have three children, Benjamin, Matthew, and Aaron.

Thomas J. Zera, Bass
Tom Zera was born and raised in Buffalo, New York. He began playing the bass at age nine and won his first solo competition at sixteen. He received his bachelor's degree from the Hartt School of Music and his master's degree from the Juilliard School. Mr. Zera is currently a member of the Utah Symphony and has also held positions with the Buffalo Philharmonic and was Principal Bassist of the New World Symphony. He has performed with the Jacksonville Symphony, the Florida Orchestra, the Virginia Symphony, the Syracuse Symphony, and the Hartford Symphony. An avid outdoorsman, Tom's hobbies include skiing, fly fishing, and golf.