Institute Faculty Institute Staff

Alyssa Tong Institute Manager

2nd Summer Alyssa Tong studies violin under Simon James at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. She formerly studied under Nelson Lee of the Jupiter String Quartet at the University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign School of Music. Alyssa has participated in masterclasses for artists such as Rachel Barton Pine, Ani Kavafian, Laurie Smukler, Zach DePue, Daniel Hope, and Alexi Kenney. An avid chamber musician, she has performed in chamber masterclasses with YoYo Ma, the Cavani, Parker, Catalyst, JACK, Telegraph Quartets, Mathieu Herzog, and pianist Michael Brown. Her other violin mentors include Paul Kantor, Charles Castleman, and Soovin Kim. She has spent recent summers at Bowdoin International Music Festival, ENCORE Chamber Music, LyricaFest, and the Castleman Quartet Program. During the pandemic, Alyssa launched the first online summer music festival to great success, providing instruction for over 100 students with faculty from the country’s most prestigious music schools. Faculty members Ani Kavafian, Paul Katz, Paul Kantor, Soovin Kim, Ettore Causa, and more, praised her work that filled the gap left by the canceled in-person festivals. The festival, the Online Solo Strings Intensive, continued and is on its fifth iteration. She also started an in-person offshoot, which has hosted the Verona and Rolston Quartets, and she manages the Young Artist Institute at Chamber Music Northwest. She is passionate about increasing accessibility to classical music, which includes revitalizing the concert stage, providing quality music education to youth, and opening conversations around careers, and holistic musicianship.

Katie Danforth

Resident & Production Assistant

2nd Summer

Originally from Indianapolis, Indiana, Katie Danforth currently attends the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University where she is pursuing a Master of Music degree in Oboe Performance under the instruction of Robert Atherholt. Previously, she studied with Robert Walters at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music and graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Oboe Performance in 2021. As an orchestral musician, Katie has performed as an extra musician with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra, Akron Symphony Orchestra, and the New Texas Sinfonia. She was also a member of the 2020 National Academy Orchestra of Canada and a member of the 2022 Spoleto Festival USA Orchestra.

Paul Kim

Resident & Production Assistant

2nd Summer Colorado-native

Paul Kim is a recent transplant to the Bay Area where he is an active performer and teacher. He has just recently finished his Master’s degree with Cordula Merks at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and is pursuing a Performance Certificate with Ms. Merks next fall. Previously, he studied with Charles Wetherbee of the Carpe Diem String Quartet at the University of Colorado Boulder College of Music. In his free time, Paul enjoys baking bread and hiking with friends.

Haig Hovsepian Production Assistant

ArmenianAmerican violinist, Haig Hovsepian began his musical journey at a very young age. At four, he was already playing violin, at eight, the Sh'vi (Armenian fipple flute), and at 11, the saxophone. Those instruments became the means of his musical expression reflecting his upbringing that’s deeply rooted in traditional classical training, his Armenian heritage, and American jazz. At 11, Hovsepian won his first international competition, "Classival" (Canada), followed by "Young Promise" (USA), "Renaissance" (Armenia), and an array of Concerto Competition wins launched his orchestral debuts with Waltham Philharmonic, Nashua Chamber, Concord Orchestra, Youth Orchestra of New England Conservatory, and Boston Pops Orchestra. At 24, he is enjoying a multifaceted career that has taken him across the U.S., to Canada, Norway, Iceland, Armenia, and to Carnegie Hall, Koussevitzky Music Shed, Jordan Hall, Slosberg Hall, and Killian Hall, among others. As a saxophone player, he has appeared in various jazz clubs, Mechanics Hall, and Boston’s Symphony Hall. A Max Reger Ambassador prize winner at New England Conservatory's Preparatory division, he received several scholarship awards there and graduated with his Bachelor's and Master's degrees, studying under one of the world's most outstanding violin personalities, Ilya Kaler. Hovsepian has appeared on NPR’s From the Top. He has dedicated performances to many fundraising events such as: Belmont Media's "Gifts of Hope" Telethon, Joslin Diabetes Center, “Armenian Music for Peace,” “5pm Series,” and others.