Alison Bjorkedal received her Doctorate of Musical Arts at the USC Thornton School of Music. She also earned her Master’s degree from the Thornton School, where she studied with JoAnn Turovsky and was a teaching assistant for the beginning harp class. Alison received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Oregon (magna cum laude) where she studied harp with Sally Maxwell and Laura Zaerr. She performed the world premiere of William Kraft’s Encounters XII and has recorded that work for Southwest Chamber Music. She performed on the ensemble’s Complete Chamber Music of Carlos Chávez, Volume 4, which was nominated as Best Classical Album in 2007 by Latin Grammy. Alison performed two major harp concertos on tour with Southwest Chamber Music in Hanoi, Vietnam: Les jardins d’autre monde by Ton That Tiêt and Au dessus du vent by Nguyen Thien Dao. In addition, she gave the U.S. premieres of both concertos in Los Angeles for the ensemble’s Ascending Dragon Music Festival.

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Jim Foschia studied with Charles Russo at the Hartt School of Music and the Manhattan School of Music. He performed on world tours of Evita, 42nd St. and recording artist Yanni. Currently he performs regularly with the Santa Barbara Chamber Orchestra and has also performed with the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Los Angeles Master Chorale, Opera Pacific, California Philharmonic, Pasadena Symphony, Santa Barbara Symphony and the Mozart Camerata. Jim is on the Faculty of Hamilton High School Academy of Music and Director of Jazz Studies, teaching instrumental music, instrumental jazz and musical theater. He received the National Youth Theater Award for Best Musical Direction in 2006 for Hamilton's production of Chicago and in 2010 for Cabaret. He has received various awards for music education from the Mayor of Pasadena, Altadena Links and the U.S. House of Representatives. Mr. Foschia first performed with Southwest Chamber Music in 1999, and has recorded works with the group by Elliott Carter, John Cage, Mel Powell, Richard Felciano, Chinary Ung and Carlos Chávez on Cambria Master Recordings. Mr. Foschia performed on Southwest Chamber Music’s Complete Chamber Works of Carlos Chávez, Volumes 1 and 2, which received consecutive 2003 and 2004 GRAMMY Awards.

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Lorenz Gamma has given master classes in the United States, Europe and Asia and has taught at UCLA, Indiana University in Bloomington and California State University Fresno, before joining the faculties at California State University Long Beach as well as California Institute of the Arts, where he currently teaches violin and chamber music. Living in Los Angeles since 2001 he has also become a much sought-after private violin teacher. As former co-leader of Switzerland’s Amar Quartet, Mr. Gamma has performed in many of Europe’s most important chamber music venues. Prior to his full-time activity with the quartet he served as principal at the Zurich Opera Orchestra and as concertmaster of the Northwest Sinfonietta in Seattle. As a soloist Mr. Gamma has performed over twenty different violin concertos and holds an extensive record of radio appearances as recitalist and chamber musician, both in Europe and in the United States. He has recorded chamber music for the Cambria Records, Centaur Records, EAR Records, ECM Records, Innova Recordings, Suisa Records and Tilia Records labels and has performed a string quartet repertoire encompassing more than fifty different composers and most of the standard chamber music repertoire of over eighty composers. Mr. Gamma was born in Switzerland, where he received his initial training as a violinist. His further studies took place in the United States, with Franco Gulli, Steven Staryk and Mark Kaplan. Other important teachers include the Alban Berg Quartet, Walter Levin of the LaSalle Quartet, Rostislav Dubinsky of the Borodin Quartet and Isaac Stern. He has been performing with Southwest Chamber Music since 2002.

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Peter Jacobson started on the cello at age nine and went on to graduate from the University of Southern California studying under the late Eleonore Schoenfeld. He also studied at CalArts and at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Peter has studied North Indian classical music with the late sitar master Rahul Sariputra and at the Ali Akbar College of Music. He won the Jennings Butterfield Young Artist competition, the San Diego Musical Merit competition and numerous local scholarships and competitions. Peter has performed as a soloist and premiered concertos by Jeffery Holmes and Roger Prytzytulsky. He has played locally and internationally with a list of fine classical ensembles, orchestras, rock bands, fusion projects, hip-hop producers and jazz artists with the intention of celebrating the wonderful effects of music. Currently, he plays regularly with Southwest Chamber Music, Quartetto Fantastico, and the Arohi Ensemble.

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Elissa Johnston Hailed by Musical America for “her voice pure and ethereal, her expression embracing and heartfelt,” Elissa Johnston has appeared internationally in a wide range of repertory. Her orchestral engagements include appearances with the Atlanta Symphony, St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Fort Worth Symphony, Oregon Bach Festival, San Francisco Contemporary Players and the Pasadena Symphony. This season she appeared in the world premiere of Spiral XII by Chinary Ung with the Los Angeles Master Chorale at Walt Disney Concert Hall. Previously she sang the world premiere of Aura by Mr. Ung with Grammy Award winning Southwest Chamber Music. She subsequently recorded Aura and toured with the ensemble to Vietnam and Cambodia.

Ms. Johnston has performed numerous times with the L.A. Philharmonic’s New Music Group, both in Los Angeles and at the Ojai Festival, with conductors Tan Dun, David Zinman, Daniel Harding and Steven Stucky. She made her Lincoln Center debut singing Brahms’ Liebeslieder Waltzes with the New York City Ballet and was subsequently invited back to premiere Morgen!, a set of 10 orchestral songs by Richard Strauss choreographed by Peter Martins. Ms. Johnston also appeared in the New York Philharmonic’s Copland Festival and Lincoln Center’s Stravinsky Festival. Her recital appearances include programs at the Aldeburgh Festival in England and at the Aspen Festival’s Winter Music Series.

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Larry Kaplan is one of Southern California’s most sought after and versatile flutists, and he has appeared at virtually every major venue in the area. For five seasons he played piccolo with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and has played Principal Flute for the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, American Ballet Theater, Long Beach Symphony, and many other local ensembles. Mr. Kaplan has recorded for dozens of feature film soundtracks and is an avid jazz enthusiast and past recipient of the Outstanding Jazz Soloist at the Chaffee Jazz Festival. He attended California State University at Northridge and continued his studies in France with Jean-Pierre Rampal. He first performed with Southwest Chamber Music in January 2003, and performed on Southwest Chamber Music’s Complete Chamber Music of Carlos Chávez, Volume 2, which received a 2004 GRAMMY Award.

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Jan Karlin, Founding Executive Director of Southwest Chamber Music, is a recipient of a James Irvine Foundation "Fund for Leadership Advancement" Award to outstanding Executive Directors in California. Ms. Karlin won a 2004 Grammy Award as producer for Southwest Chamber Music’s recording of the Complete Chamber Music of Carlos Chavez, Volume II. She also serves on the Grammy Museum Education Advisory Committee. Ms. Karlin has performed throughout the U. S. and Europe, including the Arnold Schoenberg Center in Vienna, Cooper Union in New York City, Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, Tanglewood, Schleswig-Holstein, Flanders, Brighton and the Vienna Festivals. Ms. Karlin received her Bachelor’s Degree from Tufts University in Drama and Music, and her Master’s Degree from Boston University as a student of Walter Trampler. She studied chamber music under such notable musicians as Eugene Lehner, Joseph Silverstein and Louis Krasner. A credentialed secondary education teacher, she was Instructor of Viola at the Claremont Colleges for 12 years. Ms. Karlin also performed with the Boston Pops, Opera Company of Boston, Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra in Boston, the Pacific and Long Beach Symphonies in California and the Wiener Akademie in Vienna. Her recordings are available on Cambria Master Recordings, ORFEO, (Munich) and Novalis, and she performed on Southwest Chamber Music’s Complete Chamber Works of Carlos Chávez, Volumes 1 and 2, which received consecutive 2003 and 2004 GRAMMY Awards.

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Tom Peters is known for his interpretations of contemporary music, with a special interest in music for double bass and electronics. He has commissioned solo works for the bass by composers such as Mary Lou Newmark, Dennis Bathory-Kitsz, Eric Schwartz, Alex Shapiro, Richard Derby, and Robin Cox. In 2008 Tom released a recording of John Cage’s seminal work 26’1.1499” for a String Player, with KPFK’s John Schneider performing Cage’s 45’ for a Speaker on the Tiger Barb Records label. An upcoming Tiger Barb Records release for music for double and electronics by women composers is slated for 2010. Tom has performed with Southwest Chamber Music since 1998, and is also a member of the Long Beach Symphony Orchestra, and Ensemble Green. He is featured in a series of solo concerts at Pasadena’s Boston Court Performing Arts Complex, and was featured in a live broadcast over Nordwest Radio in Germany in 2004. Tom teaches double bass at the Bob Cole Conservatory of Music at California State University, Long Beach, and is a graduate of the Eastman School of Music.

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Ming Tsu is widely recognized as a soloist, chamber musician and teacher. She has concertized in Europe, Asia, Mexico, Canada and the United States, and her performances have been broadcast on German National Radio as well as on over 60 stations throughout the United States. In 2003, she joined Southwest Chamber Music and since then has recorded with the ensemble the complete chamber works for piano and strings by Carlos Chávez as well as chamber music works by Chinary Ung and William Kraft. She has collaborated closely with other composers such as György Kurtág, Morton Subotnick, Henri Lazarof, Joan Huang, Eric Flesher, Lei Liang, Patricio Da Silva and Rob Paterson. Ms. Tsu has served on the piano faculty at Pacific Lutheran University and other Seattle schools, and has given master classes in the U.S. and abroad. In the summer Ms. Tsu performs and teaches at the California Concert Artists Summer Music Festival as well as at the Beverly Hills International Music Festival. Ms. Tsu is currently the Associate Director of the Los Angeles branch of Junior Chamber Music, one of the most vibrant youth chamber music programs in the United States. Ming Tsu has received degrees in piano performance from the New England Conservatory of Music, Indiana University and University of Washington (Doctor of Musical Arts).

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Lynn Vartan is an active performer and educator who is an advocate for diversity in music. As a new music percussionist, Lynn has worked with Michael Colgrass, Donald Crockett,Vinny Golia, Arthur Jarvinen, Ursula Oppens, Joan Tower, Glen Velez and Xtet, and is known for her athleticism and exciting energy on stage. She has commissioned and/or performed new music by composers Crockett, Hoey, Krausas, Muhl and Naidoo. As a soloist, she has been featured on the Los Angeles Philharmonic Green Umbrella Series, the Different Trains Series and the USC Contemporary and Percussion Ensembles. In February 2003, Lynn recorded Stephen Hartke’s Tituli with the Hilliard Ensemble for release on the ECM series. Lynn performed with the Tambuco Percussion Ensemble on Southwest Chamber Music's Complete Chamber Works of Carlos Chavez, Volume 3, which was nominated as Best Classical Album for the 2005 Gramy Awards.

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Shalini Vijayan deemed “a vibrant violinist” by Mark Swed of the Los Angeles Times, is an established performer and collaborator on both coasts. A native of California, Shalini studied in New York as a scholarship student at the Manhattan School of Music where she received her B.M. and M.M. degrees under the tutelage of Ariana Bronne and Lucie Robert. Always an advocate for modern music, Shalini was a founding member and is Principal Second Violin of Kristjan Jarvi’s Absolute Ensemble, having recorded several albums with them including 2001 Grammy nominee, Absolution. As a part of Absolute, she has performed throughout the United States and Europe. A member of the New World Symphony in Miami Beach, Florida from 1998-2001, Shalini served as concertmaster for Michael Tilson Thomas, John Adams, Reinbert de Leeuw and Oliver Knussen. She was also concertmaster for the world premiere performances and recording of Steven Mackey's Tuck and Roll for RCA records in 2000. In Los Angeles, Shalini is featured regularly with Grammy Award winning Southwest Chamber Music and can be heard on their Complete Chamber Works of Carlos Chávez, Vol. 3 and the Encounters of William Kraft. She is one half of the duo 61/4, with percussionist Lynn Vartan, with performances throughout California and in Mexico. Shalini is a member of the first violin section of the Pacific Symphony Orchestra and served as Principal Second Violin of the Opera Pacific Orchestra from 2003-2008. She has appeared on over a hundred film scores including The Incredibles, Ratatouille, Star Trek, Up and Avatar as well as on every season of the television show Lost. Shalini has been on the faculty of the Sequoia Chamber Music Workshop in Arcata, California since 2003.

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Jeff von der Schmidt is Founding Artistic Director of Southwest Chamber Music. A two-time Grammy Award-winning conductor, he has led numerous performances of standard 20th century composers as well as world and local premieres of new work. Mr. von der Schmidt has received seven Grammy nominations, including consecutive 2003 and 2004 Grammy Awards as conductor for the Complete Chamber Music of Carlos Chávez Volumes 1 and 2. His performance was nominated for Best Classical Album in 2005 for the Complete Chamber Music of Carlos Chávez, Volume 3 by both Grammy and Latin Grammy. Recent projects include leading the six-week 2010 Ascending Dragon Music Festival in Hanoi, Saigon, Pasadena and Los Angeles for the U.S. State Department. Ascending Dragon was the largest cultural exchange in the history of Vietnam and the United States. In 2009 he led Southwest Chamber Music at the Guadalajara FIL Festival alongside the largest Spanish language book festival in the world. Past international exchanges include a complete cycle of the chamber music of Carlos Chávez with Southwest Chamber Music and the Tambuco Percussion Ensemble at the UNAM Center in Mexico City in May 2007. In 2006, Mr. von der Schmidt conducted at the Hanoi Opera House, 2006 World Culture Expo at Angkor Wat, and the Royal University of Fine Arts in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, with Aura, a major new composition by Grawemeyer Award-winning composer Chinary Ung. His successful 2003 performance at the Library of Congress, with soprano Phyllis Bryn-Julson in Richard Felciano’s An American Decameron, was greeted with a standing ovation. He has led cycles of the Los Angeles works of Arnold Schoenberg at Cooper Union in New York City and at the Arnold Schoenberg Center in Vienna, where Southwest Chamber Music was the first American ensemble to perform at the Center since its relocation from the University of Southern California. Mr. von der Schmidt received the Henri M. Kohn Award as the outstanding student at the Tanglewood Music Festival in 1980 from Gunther Schuller and Seiji Ozawa, and studied French horn with Roland Berger of the Vienna Philharmonic, holding a certificate in German from the University of Vienna. He has lectured on music at the Getty Center, Los Angeles Philharmonic Green Umbrella Series, Arizona State University, University of Colorado, Ohio State University, Royal University of Fine Arts in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, the Vietnam National Academy of Music, and the Hochschule für Musik in Lübeck, Germany.

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