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Elinor Rufeizen

conductor

The rising Israeli conductor Elinor Rufeizen has distinguished herself as a compelling presence on the podium and in the opera pit. She was recently named an Equilibrium Young Artist and will be working with her mentor, singer-conductor Barbara Hannigan, throughout the 2022–2023 season, in addition to making her debut at the Stadttheater Giessen, and serving brief stints as an assistant conductor at the New York Philharmonic and National Symphony (Washington D.C.).

Elinor has conducted the Haifa Symphony, New Jersey Symphony, Orchestre de Chambre de Paris, Juilliard Orchestra, Bridgeport Symphony, and Metropolis Ensemble. She was also a conducting fellow at the Dallas Opera and was selected to work with Riccardo Muti and conduct Nabucco with Orchestra Giovanile Luigi Cherubini in Fondazione Prada, Milan.

She has collaborated with many artists, among them Emanuel Ax, Daniil Trifonov, and Susan Graham; members of the Ébène, Kronos, Juilliard, and Cleveland Quartets; and living composers—Jörg Widmann, Shulamit Ran, Steven Stucky, Steven Mackey, Philippe Hersant, and Andrew Norman.

Elinor graduated from The Juilliard School with a master’s degree in orchestral conducting, studying with Alan Gilbert and David Robertson. She is a recipient of the Bruno Walter Memorial Scholarship, Charles Schiff Conducting Award for Outstanding Achievement, Morse Teaching Fellowship award, and scholarships from the American-Israel Cultural Foundation. Initially a clarinetist, she received a bachelor’s degree at the Cleveland Institute of Music and studied at the Conservatoire Nationale Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris. 

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Meet the Musicians

FIRST VIOLIN
Carmelo de los Santos
Karen McKinnon Concertmaster Chair
Sarah Tasker •••
Assistant Concertmaster
Ana María Quintero Muñoz
Heidi Deifel 
Olivia DeSouza
Maia Lorenzo Gallegos
Juliana Huestis
Barbara Rivers
Nicolle Maniaci
Barbara Scalf Morris

SECOND VIOLIN
Rachel Jacklin •
Carol Swift •••
Julanie Lee
Lidija Peno-Kelly
Megan Lee Karls
Liana Austin
Sheila McLay
Jessica Retana
Jocelyn Kirsch

Brad Richards

VIOLA
Laura Chang
Kimberly Fredenburgh •••
Allegra Askew
Christine Rancier
Laura Steiner
Michael Anderson
Lisa DiCarlo
Joan Hinterbichler
Laura Campbell

CELLO
Amy Huzjak
Carla Lehmeier-Tatum
Ian Mayne-Brody
Dana Winograd
David Schepps
Lisa Collins
Elizabeth Purvis

BASS
Joe Weldon Ferris •
Mark Tatum •••

Katherine Olszowka
Terry Pruitt
Marco Retana
Frank Murry

FLUTE
Valerie Potter
Esther Fredrickson
Noah Livingston ••

PICCOLO
Esther Fredrickson

OBOE
Kevin Vigneau
Amanda Talley

ENGLISH HORN
Melissa Peña ••

CLARINET
Marianne Shifrin
Lori Lovato •••
Jeffrey Brooks

E-FLAT CLARINET
Lori Lovato

BASS CLARINET
Jeffrey Brooks

BASSOON
Stefanie Przybylska •+
Denise Turner +
Zoe SirLouis •++
Avery Dabe ++

HORN
Peter Erb •+
Allison Tutton
Maria Long
Andrew Meyers
Katya Jarmulowicz ••••

TRUMPET
John Marchiando
Brynn Marchiando
Sam Oatts ••

TROMBONE
Aaron Zalkind
Byron Herrington

BASS TROMBONE
David Tall +

TUBA
Richard White

PERCUSSION
Jeff Cornelius
Kenneth Dean
Emily Cornelius

HARP
Carla Fabris •

Principal •
Associate Principal ••
Assistant Principal •••
Assistant ••••
Leave +
One-year position ++
Half-year position +++