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Artistic Directors
Toby Saks, Artistic DirectorToby Saks is the founder and Artistic Director of the Seattle Chamber Music Society since its inception in 1982.
Professor of cello at the University of Washington since 1976, she is a frequent adjudicator at regional and national competitions. Ms. Saks has performed in the U.S., Canada, Europe, the former U.S.S.R., and Israel. Her chamber music credits include Boston Chamber Music Society and the festivals of Sitka, Vancouver, Cascade Head, Bargemusic, St. Cére, New Mexico, Amsterdam, Juneau, Marlboro, Stratford, Spoleto, and Anchorage. In 1988 she led musicians of the Seattle Chamber Music Festival on a two-week tour of the Soviet Union.
Ms. Saks was first prizewinner at the International Pablo Casals Competition in Israel and a top prizewinner at the Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow. A recipient of Fulbright and Rockefeller grants, she studied with Leonard Rose at The Juilliard School and with Andre Navarra at the Conservatoire de Musique in Paris. Ms. Saks made her New York Town Hall debut at age 18, after winning the New York Young Concert Artists auditions, and was a member of the New York Philharmonic from 1971-76.
James Ehnes, Associate Artistic Director
A 2008 Grammy award winning artist for Best Performance as Soloist with Orchestra, James Ehnes has performed as a soloist, recitalist, and chamber musician in over 20 countries on five continents and has worked with many of the world's most renowned orchestras and conductors. Highlights of his 2007-2008 season include appearances with the New York Philharmonic, the San Francisco, Detroit, Seattle, New World, Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver Symphonies, a tour of South America, and European performances in London, Manchester, Glasgow, Berlin, Prague, Istanbul, San Sebastian and Pamplona.
Born in Brandon, Manitoba, Canada in 1976, Mr. Ehnes began violin studies at the age of four, and at nine became a protégé of the noted Canadian violinist Francis Chaplin. He continued his studies with Sally Thomas at The Juilliard School, winning the Peter Mennin Prize for Outstanding Achievement and Leadership in Music upon his graduation in 1997. Mr. Ehnes's extensive discography of over 20 recordings features repertoire ranging from Bach violin sonatas to John Adams's Road Movies. He has received the Avery Fisher Career Grant, an honorary doctorate from Brandon University, and in 2007 became the youngest person ever elected as a Fellow to the Royal Society of Canada. He plays the "Ex Marsick" Stradivarius of 1715 on extended loan from the Fulton Collection.
2008 marks Mr. Ehnes' 14th consecutive season with the Seattle Chamber Music Society's summer festival.
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JamesEhnes.com
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