The Orchestra

Jump to: Music Director | Music Director Laureate | Musicians | Auditions | History

The Charlottesville Symphony at the University of Virginia is one of Central Virginia’s leading musical ensembles. Exciting Masterworks, Holiday and Pops concerts regularly bring audiences to their feet. Orchestra members also perform at a wide variety of community engagement events and take great music into K-12 classrooms throughout a seven-county region.

The Charlottesville Symphony is a unique blend of professional musicians – many of whom are also music faculty members at the University of Virginia – accomplished community members and talented university students from diverse academic fields. Together, they create high-energy learning and listening experiences that led one concertgoer to write:

What a privilege to enjoy a performance worthy of a metropolis in a small city like Charlottesville!

Music Director

Benjamin Rous

Admired for his dynamism on the podium, Benjamin Rous was named Music Director of the Charlottesville Symphony in the spring of 2017, and simultaneously joined the University of Virginia faculty as Associate Professor of Music. In 2018, he concluded an eight-year tenure as Resident Conductor of the Virginia Symphony Orchestra where he conducted a broad range of Classics, Pops and ballet performances, and created the new multimedia VSO@Roper series.

Click here to read more about Ben.

Violin
Daniel Sender, Concertmaster
Mary Dean Scott Chair

David Sariti, Principal
Robert D. Cross Memorial Chair

Amelia Bailey
Katherine Cadzow
Britney Cheung
Alice Choe
Carsten Clark
Imani Edwards
Zahra Edwards
Sion Kim
Margaret Lather
Liam McVea
Ayaka Ohara
Paul Ok
Jisoo Park
Sophie Park
Olivia Scheidt
Lauren Schmidt
Eric Su
Melody Su
Johanna Suffern
Matthew Wang
Steven Yi

Viola
Ayn Balija, Principal
Elizabeth W. Gatewood Chair

Nicholas Anderson
Sydney Anderson
Jordan Ball
Ian Becker
Joshua Gibson
William Henderson
Devyn Lee
Ryan Lee
Isabelle Lesmana

Cello
Adam Carter, Principal
Genevieve B. Horween and Marion H. Chase Chair

David Chen
Adam Cooper
Brent Davis
Christopher Fox
John Kanu
Olivia Liu
Edward Shen
Isabella Tucker

Bass
Peter Spaar, Principal
Robert and Ruth Cross Chair

Maxwell Halbruner
Masashi Kawasaki
Andrea Tache Lopez
Conor Moran
Anthony Murphy-Neilson

Flute
Kelly Sulick, Principal
Thomas C. and Margaret M. MacAvoy Chair

Reid Dodson
Carolyn Graham - Alternate
Lee
Julia Payne
Kristen Springer
Wendy Tang

Oboe
Kelly Peral, Principal
Jason I. and Ellen U. Eckford Chair

Anna Liang
Sophia Rosenberg

Clarinet
Jiyeon Choi, Principal
Henry Jacob Javor Chair

Michael Lu - Alternate
Madaline Marland
Elizabeth Ozment
Courtney Tern
Grace Yang

Bassoon
Elizabeth Roberts, Principal
Ann Saunders Roberts Chair

Michael McNulty
John (JT) Sepanski

Horn
Katy Ambrose, Principal
Johanna and Derwood Chase & Chase Investment Counsel Corporation Chair

Rebecca Allen
Benjamin Feldman
Michael Flanagan
Aiman Khan
Katie Kolo
Michael Ozment

Trumpet
Arthur Zanin, Principal
Lucille and Kennerly H. Digges Chair

Ethan Massey
Timour Abduhalikov
Ben Dooley
Boris Topalov

Trombone
Nathaniel Lee, Principal
Rawson-Jones Chair

Tuba
Jess Lightner, Principal
Christine M. and Robert L. Elliott Chair

Harp
Anastasia Jellison, Principal
The Jefferson Trust Chair

Timpani & Percussion
I-Jen Fang, Principal
James E. and Yolonda T. Roberts Chair

Ali Bandeali
Abel Ruiz
Brennan Stewart
Ilon Weeldreyer
Joseph Ziemer

Keyboards
John Mayhood, Principal

Auditions

Membership in the Charlottesville Symphony at the University of Virginia is open to all UVA students, faculty and community musicians through audition.

Due to the logistics involved with holding auditions during a pandemic, we have not finalized our audition procedures for fall 2020. We will post confirmed audition schedules, excerpts and sign-up information as soon as it becomes available.

Please fill out this interest form to receive audition updates.

The orchestra rehearses Wednesday evenings, 7:30-10:00pm, during the UVA academic year. Additional participation in sectional rehearsals is required. String sectionals meet Monday evenings, 5:30-7:00pm. Wind and brass sectionals meet Wednesday evenings, 5:15-6:15pm. Percussion sectionals are scheduled as needed by the Principal Percussionist.

For audition excerpts and more information visit:
http://music.virginia.edu/auditions

History

Throughout its history the Charlottesville Symphony at the University of Virginia has been a source of tremendous civic pride and an emblem of the bond between University and Community. A 1974 Cavalier Daily article wrote of the newly formed orchestra as "the seed of new life for symphonic music in Charlottesville." Over the years the orchestra has made great strides in musicianship, by recruiting professional musicians to serve as the core for an orchestra of principal players, talented students and community musicians.

In 1974, the McIntire Department of Music hired Douglas Hargrave as Music Director to conduct both the orchestra and the wind ensemble. With fifty musicians and an abundance of perseverance and hope, he set the course that would lead to the accomplished group recognized today as an artistic gem in a city with a rich cultural scene. The advent of the subscription series in 1975 was met with such success that pairs of concerts were instituted in 1978.

Music Director Carl Roskott came to the University in 1991, bringing with him experience gained under such celebrated American conductors as Gunther Schuller, Sheldon Morgenstern and Murry Sidlin. Under Maestro Roskott's direction, the orchestra continued to evolve and its reputation flourished. Audiences from throughout Central Virginia came to concerts that frequently sold out.

By the early 1990s, six professional musicians served as principals. Today sixteen professional musicians act as an invaluable artistic resource to the orchestra and to the community as well. These musicians bring music to audiences far beyond the University by teaching classes in local schools, offering lessons to young musicians and performing for local civic and religious organizations. Without question, these distinguished performers are at the forefront of Charlottesville's vibrant artistic scene.

In 2006, celebrated conductor Kate Tamarkin became Music Director and brought new attention to music and the arts in Charlottesville. With her distinguished career, exceptional musicality and inspiring leadership, she brought the orchestra to new heights of artistic achievement. When Maestra Tamarkin announced her retirement in 2016, a year-long search for a new Music Director began. In May 2017, Benjamin Rous, Resident Conductor at the Virginia Symphony, was announced as the orchestra's fourth Music Director.

The unique blend of professional Principal musicians, talented students and community members lends a cultural vibrancy to Charlottesville unparalleled in most cities of this size. From its beginnings forty-four years ago, the orchestra looks forward to a long future of bringing an inspired musical message to the community.