...Mr. Díaz has already had a significant impact on American musical life and will continue to do so in his dual roles as performer and educator. Some of Mr. Díaz's recent and upcoming performances include the Kansas City Symphony with Michael Stern, New World Symphony with Michael Tilson Thomas, Netherlands Philharmonic with Yakov Kreizberg, Philadelphia Orchestra with Gilbert Varga and the Bilbao Symphony with Juanjo Mena. In May 2007, Roberto Díaz will perform the Penderecki concerto at Carnegie Hall with Christoph Eschenbach and the Curtis Symphony Orchestra. An active chamber musician, Roberto Díaz has performed with artists such as the Emerson String Quartet, Emanuel Ax, Yefim Bronfman, Christoph Eschenbach, Yo-Yo Ma, Wolfgang Sawallisch, Isaac Stern and as a member of the Díaz Trio, with violinist Andrés Cárdenes and cellist Andrés Díaz. Mr. Díaz’s recording of transcriptions by William Primrose with Robert Koenig (Naxos) has been nominated for a 2006 Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Soloist Performance Without Orchestra. Also for the Naxos label, he has recorded works for viola and piano by Henri Vieuxtemps (2004). New World Records has released a critically acclaimed live recording of the Jacob Druckman Viola Concerto with Mr. Díaz and The Philadelphia Orchestra conducted by Wolfgang Sawallisch. Roberto Díaz was principal violist of the National Symphony under Mstislav Rostropovich, a member of the Boston Symphony under Seiji Ozawa, and a member of the Minnesota Orchestra under Sir Neville Marriner.
 

Some of her musical collaborations have been with Musicians From Marlboro, Philomusica, Theater Chamber Players of the Kennedy Center, the New York Philharmonic, and the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra. Karen Dreyfus has performed in recital with Yehudi Menuhin at Carnegie Hall and has also collaborated with such artists as Rudolf Serkin, Alexander Schneider, Leon Fleisher, Chick Corea, and her husband, Glenn Dicterow. Born into a family of musicians, she began studying the violin with her father, a member of the Philadelphia Orchestra and later decided to pursue a career on the viola under the tutelage of Leonard Mogill, Heidi Castleman and Martha Katz. A 1979 graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music where she studied with Karen Tuttle and Michael Tree, Ms. Dreyfus moved to the New York area where she performs solo concerts, chamber music recitals, and teaches viola, orchestra repertoire and chamber music. In 1991, she was invited to join the viola faculty of the Manhattan School of Music and in 2001 Karen Dreyfus began teaching a sonata class at the Juilliard School. Ms. Dreyfus has also served on the faculties of Third Street Music School Settlement, SUNY Purchase and Queens College. Karen Dreyfus is a co-founding member of the Lyric Piano Quartet which is Quartet-in-Residence at Queens College. Karen Dreyfus has received a National Endowment for the Arts Solo Recitalists Award and has performed extensively throughout the United States. She has also recorded many CDs. Her premiere recital recording with Bridge Records entitled " Romanze" has been received with much critical acclaim. American Record Guide cites Ms. Dreyfus as "a terrific player with impeccable technique and intonation, beautiful tone, and real musicianship. Her playing is highly expressive and responsive to the many moods elicited by this varied program." In 1995 Karen Dreyfus was invited to Poland to record the William Walton Viola Concerto with the Warsaw Philharmonic. She has also recorded works for viola and orchestra by eight American composers with the Silesian Philharmonic. In 1997 Ms. Dreyfus recorded and premiered three more solo works with the Czech Radio Symphony of Prague. These CDs have been released on the MMC label. Karen Dreyfus along with the ensemble Lyric Piano Quartet, have released a recording of piano quartet works of Strauss and Turina for Black Box Records. It has been given the honor of being nominated "Editor's Choice" by Gramophone Magazine. BBC Magazine said that the Lyric Piano Quartet "marry the old-fashion virtues of portamento and warm vibrato to a quicksilver intelligence." In the fall of 2002 Karen Dreyfus and Glenn Dicterow released Mozart's "Sinfonia Concertante" along with the McKinley "Concert Variations" which was written expressly written for them. It is on the MMC label with conductor Carl St. Clair and the Warsaw National Philharmonic. Ms. Dreyfus performs on a recording for Bridge Records of works by Erno Dohnanyi. Another recent recording for MMC are solo viola works with orchestra entitled "American Journeys". In 2008 the Lyric Piano Quartet released a recording of works by Dvorak for Bridge Records. Contact information: kdreyfus@aol.com
 

...Ms. Gallagher has taught in the summers at Chautauqua Institution, Affinis Festival in Japan, as well as at Summit Music Festival. She is a member of Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, and Principal Violist of the Orchestra of St. Luke's, as well as Co-Principal Violist of the Mito Chamber Orchestra, with Seiji Ozawa as music director. Her chamber music participation includes Artistic Coordinator of concerts at Dorot in New York City. She received a Grammy in 2001 for Stravinsky's chamber music with members of Orpheus, and a nomination for a Grammy in 2004 for the Oboe Quartet of Elliott Carter.

Recently he performed as a soloist with Miami Symphony and Boca Symphonia. Michael Klotz is the violist of the Amernet String Quartet. An avid performer of the chamber music repertoire, recent appearances on violin and viola include concerts in New York at venues such as Alice Tully Hall, Weill Hall, Merkin Hall, Steinway Hall, Museum of Modern Art and the Kosciuzsko Foundation, which included a live broadcast on WQXR-FM. Additionally, he has been heard in prestigious halls in Philadelphia, Los Angeles, San Diego, Rochester, and Mexico. Michael Klotz has performed at leading festivals such as Caramoor, Newport, Skaneateles, Music Mountain, Sarasota Music Festival, Music Academy of the West, and Bowdoin Summer Music Festival, where he was a faculty member from 2005-2008. He prizes his association with the New York String Orchestra Seminar at Carnegie Hall. In December of 2003 he was invited by Maestro Jaime Laredo to perform with distinguished alumni of the Seminar in Carnegie Hall. Some of Michael Klotz teachers include Zvi Zeitlin, Lewis Kaplan and Toby Appel. In 2002, Michael Klotz became one of the few individuals to complete the Master of Music degree in both Violin and Viola Performance from The Juilliard School, where he was a recipient of the Maxwell Gluck Fellowship and the Ryoichi Sasakawa Young Leaders Fellowship. HIs students are currently attending the Juilliard School, Curtis Institute of Music, Cleveland Instiute of Music, Indiana University, and Yale. They are winners of national and international competitions. One recently won a position in the Atlanta Symphony. Klotz performs on a 1619 Anonio and Hierinymus Amati viola graciously on loan from Peter Kamnitzer of the LaSalle Quartet.
 

Ms. Kopec completed her MM and BM at The Julliard and studied with Dorothy DeLay, Ivan Galamian, and William Lincer. She has performed at Aspen Music Festival, Carnegie Recital Hall, Town Hall, Down East Festival (NY), Killington Music Festival, and the Southern Vermont Festival. She was formerly artist in residence with the Andreas Quartet (viola) for 10 years and was on the faculties of Queens College, Interlochen Arts Academy, Sarah Lawrence College, SUNY Purchase, Thurnauer School of Music at the JCC of the Palisades (NJ), and Hoff-Barthelson Music School. She has given Master Classes in Tel Aviv, Prague, Shanghai, Miyazaki (Japan), Ottawa, and the US. Her students have placed in international competitions such as the Menuhin, Stolberg, and the Young Concert Artist and many of her students now hold teaching positions.

Also served as a mentor to the Junior String Program of the National Arts Center Young Artists Program in Ottawa, Canada. Ms. Kravitz is a recipient of number of prizes and awards including first prize in the 5 Town Music & Art Foundation String Competition, Long Island, NY; Winner of the String Orchestra of the Rockies Concerto Competition, in Missoula, Montana; First place at the Joyce Dutka Arts Foundation Instrumental Competition. She was20the recipient of the America-Israel Cultural Foundation Scholarships for gifted young musicians. A winner of the Virtu Foundation Scholarship Competition, Ms. Kravitz currently plays on a contemporary viola made by luthier Raymond Schryer. Festival appearances include The Steans Institute for Young Artists of the Ravinia Festival in Chicago; the Young Artists Program of the National Arts Center Orchestra in Ottawa, Canada; the Perlman Music Program's chamber music workshop in Shelter Island and the Keshet Eilon violin master-course in Israel. An active recitalist and chamber musician, Ms. Kravitz performed in such venues as the National Arts Center, Ottawa; the Bennett-Gordon Hall in Chicago; the Jerusalem Music Center (concerts nationally broadcasted on the Israeli national radio); Felicja Blumental Music Center, Tel Aviv; Interchurch Center, New York City. As an orchestra member, she performed under the baton of such conductors as Kurt Masur, Zubin Mehta, George Manahan, Pinchas Zukerman, Philippe Entremont and Jean-Claude Casadesus. In the season of 2008-2009 she was invited to join the viola section of the National Arts Center Orchestra in Ottawa, as a participant of their Institute of Orchestral Studies. Born in Israel, Tali Kravitz began violin lessons at the age of seven. She played in master classes with Itzhak Perlman, Michael Tree, Robert Mann, Donald Weilerstein, Miriam Fried, Ivry Gitlis and Pamela Frank. Among her chamber music coaches are Lawrence Dutton, Andre-Michel Schub, Sylvia Rosenberg, Isidore Cohen and Ruth Laredo.

...been broadcast on various radio and television stations. Currently, Mr. Watson is on the faculty of the Music Conservatory of Westchester and is a string teacher in the Clarkstown Public Schools in New City, New York. He is also currently principal second violin with the Greater Bridgeport Symphony Orchestra.
 

His recent performances include a solo performance of Martinu’s Concerto for String Quartet with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and collaborations with well-known chamber ensembles such as the Tokyo String Quartet, the Ying String Quartet, the Chester String Quartet, the Ciompi String Quartet, and with members of the Cleveland String Quartet. He was recorded and broadcast by the BBC, CBC, NPR, and the Israeli Broadcast Authority. He won the first prize of the Paul Ben-Haim competition for contemporary music performance and the Israeli National Music Foundation award. Mr. Youngerman is a former member of the internationally award winning Amernet String Quartet. He is professor of viola and director of the Chamber Music Program at East Carolina University, and the conductor and artistic director of the Mallarmé Youth Chamber Orchestra in Durham, NC.