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Yuko Uébayashi

Japanese-born composer Yuko Uébayashi grew up immersed in music. She began composing as a young child and emerged into the professional sphere while still a teenager. Throughout early adulthood, Uébayashi built a career in Kyoto as a freelance composer and arranged music for film scores. In 1998, she followed her musical inspiration to Paris, where she would spend the next 20 years actively writing new works. In 2018, Uébayashi left the French capital and relocated to the South of France.

Nobu Kōda

In the second half of the 19th century, Western music began to play a significant role in Japan. Much like in the West, the study and knowledge of music became a signifier of social status in Japanese culture, particularly among women. One direct result of this cultural shift was the creation of the Tokyo Music School in 1887. The school promoted the benefits of music for mental health, self-expression, and critical thinking for its (mostly women) students.

Damien Geter

Damien Geter is a diverse musical artist known for his work as a composer, actor, and bass-baritone. As a leading voice both in his role as a performer and in creating meaningful classical music, Geter uplifts, challenges, reflects, and inspires his audiences on and off the stage. Geter focuses on issues around social justice in his compositions. He thoughtfully infuses classical music with styles from the Black diaspora, such as jazz, gospel, and rhythm and blues. Geter’s works have premiered with some of the nation’s most respected institutions, such as The Kennedy Center, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and the Oregon Symphony. As a classical singer, Geter has performed with the Metropolitan Opera in the Grammy award-winning production of Porgy and Bess, as well as with Seattle Opera, Portland Opera, and Chicago Opera Theater.

damiengetermusic.com

Martha Long

Martha Long joined the Oregon Symphony as principal flute in 2016. She was formerly the principal flute of the San Antonio Symphony and has performed as guest principal with the Baltimore, Chicago, and Pacific Symphonies. Originally from Chapel Hill NC, where she studied with Brooks de Wetter-Smith and Helen Spielman, Long received her Bachelor of Music from the Colburn School in Los Angeles.

María García

María García began piano studies in her native Puerto Rico at the age of four. She received a Bachelor of Music with Distinction in Performance from the New England Conservatory of Music. Graduate studies followed at SUNY Stony Brook, where she received a full merit scholarship and completed a Master in Music. An active chamber musician and soloist, García has performed throughout the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, the Czech and Slovak Republics, Israel, Venezuela, Tunisia, Puerto Rico, and more.

Emily Cole

Violinist Emily Cole has been a member of the Oregon Symphony since 2011. An avid chamber musician, Cole has performed with several Portland-area ensembles including 45th Parallel Universe, Third Angle, Fear No Music, and Northwest New Music, as well as with Chatter ABQ in New Mexico. She has been fortunate to premiere chamber works of Caroline Shaw, Kenji Bunch, Pierre Jalbert, and James Shields.

Yoko Greeney

A native of Japan and an acclaimed soloist and collaborative pianist, Yoko Greeney has won top prizes at numerous international competitions. Greeney holds a bachelor’s degree from San Francisco State University, and a master’s degree from the Peabody Conservatory of Johns Hopkins University, where she was awarded the prestigious Piano Accompaniment Assistantship.

Inés Voglar Belgique

Born to a Slovenian family in Venezuela, where she studied music under the program “El Sistema” and violin with Roberto Valdes, violinist Inés Voglar Belgique came to the United States in 1996 to study at Duquesne University and Carnegie Mellon University with Andrés Cárdenes, then concertmaster of the Pittsburgh Symphony. Belgique has toured internationally and is the assistant principal second violin of the Oregon Symphony. She has served as guest concertmaster of the Galicia Symphony Orchestra and concertmaster of the Astoria Music Festival Orchestra. A renowned educator, Belgique is the conductor of the String Ensemble of the Portland Youth Philharmonic and co-director of the Portland Summer Ensembles.

orsymphony.org

Ruby Chen

Canadian-Taiwanese violinist Ruby Chen began her musical training at a young age, and her family moved to North America to pursue her studies. In 2003, Chen entered the Eastman School of Music, earning the prestigious Performer’s Certificate. Ruby attended Yale University, where she earned both a Master of Music and an Artist Diploma. In addition to being a member of the Oregon Symphony, Chen has worked as a freelance violinist in New York City and performed with many of North America’s finest symphony orchestras, including Los Angeles, Toronto, Pittsburgh, and San Diego. A versatile violinist and an advocate of contemporary music, Chen has worked closely with composers Andy Akiho, Elliott Carter, Mario Davidovsky, and Christopher Theofanidis, among others.

orsymphony.org/discover/orchestra/strings/ruby-chen/

Nancy Ives

Composer and cellist Nancy Ives (D.M.A.) has served for more than 20 years as principal cellist of the Oregon Symphony. A relative of the composer Charles Ives, she “carries on the tradition of her namesake with modern relevance,” (Oregon Coast Today). Her profound collaborative work Celilo Falls: We Were There received its world premiere to wide acclaim in 2022. Ives has appeared with the Oregon-based Chamber Music Northwest, Third Angle, Portland Piano International, the Oregon Bach Festival, and the Vancouver Symphony. She has performed with avant-garde artist Laurie Anderson, Brazilian pop star Gal Costa, and rock star Lenny Kravitz. A sought-after educator and arts leader, Ives is an instructor at Lewis & Clark College and serves on the Board of Directors for All Classical Radio and Resonance Ensemble.

nancyives.com

Jennifer Arnold

Violist Jennifer Arnold is a freelance musician, arts consultant, and educator living in Taiwan while on sabbatical. She is the Artistic Advisor for the Richmond Symphony (VA) and advisor for the Cleveland Institute of Music. From 2019 to 2022, she served as the Director of Artistic Planning and Orchestral Operations for the Richmond Symphony, focusing on expanding the symphonic canon and creating opportunities for historically excluded artists to perform. Before her move to Richmond, she enjoyed 15 years as a violist with the Oregon Symphony in Portland OR. One of Arnold’s greatest joys is teaching at the Sphinx Performance Academy, which she has been doing for over 15 seasons. Arnold also performs as a member of the Gateways Festival Orchestra, Sphinx Symphony, Oregon Bach Festival, and with her string quartet, mousai REMIX, and is a founding member of the advocacy organization Black Orchestral Network.

vlajma.wixsite.com/jenniferarnoldviola