What year did you join the orchestra?
2015

How long have you been playing music?
23 years

How did you pick your instrument?
When I was 5, I wanted to play upright bass however there was not a bass small enough at the time. Instead I picked cello and, while I thought about switching over for a period of time, my love of discovering new sounds on cello has bridged that gap anyway.

Occupation?
Cellist, Composer, Teacher

When you’re not playing with the Reno Phil, what would we most likely see you doing in your free time?
Besides music, I enjoy spending my free time outdoors and have found joy in carving projects from various pieces of nature I have collected.

What genre of music are you most excited to play?
I am most inclined towards playing genres that contain a lot of rhythmic and harmonic interplay, typically gravitating towards a heavier genre of sound.

What is your favorite piece of all time to play, and why?
The Gaspar Cassado Solo Sonata for Cello has always been one of my favorites. It is another early influence towards understanding the versatility and rhapsody that cello is capable of.

If you could meet one composer/musician, who would it be and why?
I would like to meet Ernst Reijseger, a Dutch cellist and composer whose music was an early influence on my love for improvisation and cello.

What is your favorite vacation spot?
I especially enjoy road trips, and being outdoors for vacation.

What do you think the audience would find surprising about you?
I think the audience would be surprised to learn I have released two albums of original composition for cello with loop pedal as part of my project Darabello.

What about performing live music brings you joy?
The opportunity to direct each moment, and to share a feeling or experience with the audience as a result of the energy and fallibility of each moment, is what brings me joy in live music.