michellewalkerphoto

Michelle Walker, a native Memphian, is currently Assistant Principal Violist of the Memphis Symphony Orchestra and violist with the Bluff City String Quartet. Other positions she has held include Principal Violist of the Missouri Chamber Orchestra and Principal Violist of the Tennessee Summer Symphony. She has also served as Acting Principal Violist of the Savannah Symphony Orchestra, and during the 1993-1995 seasons served as Acting Principal Violist of the Memphis Symphony Orchestra.

A six-year alumna of the Memphis Youth Symphony Orchestra, she also spent eight summers at Sewanee Summer Music Center, where she studied viola with Marcia Ferrito, David Becker, Colin Kitching, and Ruth Morrow.

She is a graduate of Southwestern at Memphis (BM 1980), where she studied viola and chamber music with John Wehlan. At the University of Illinois (MM 1983), she continued her viola studies with Guillermo Perich. Her chamber music coaches at UofI included Anne Epperson, Ian Hobson, and Catherine Tait.

She has appeared as featured soloist with the Tennessee Summer Symphony, the Baroque and Classical Chamber Orchestra of Memphis, the Dyersburg Community Orchestra, and the Camerata String Ensemble of Jackson, Tennessee.

During the spring of 2005 Ms. Walker traveled to Washington, D.C. with the Combined Choirs of Calvary Episcopal Church to participate as singer and viola soloist in their Tennessee Day performance at Washington National Cathedral. During the spring of 2006 she presented a full- length recital featuring the works of 20th and 21st century English composers. This spring (2008), she plans to present a recital honoring the 175th anniversary of the birth of Johannes Brahms.

During the summer of 1992, Ms. Walker taught viola at Memphis State University, and for 2 1/2 years during the mid-90s, she taught beginning violin as a member of the Saint Mary's, Manassas, Alabama Redevelopment Team, a neighborhood reclamation project sponsored by Saint Marys Episcopal Cathedral. For the last ten years, she has taught Music Appreciation at Southwest Tennessee Community College, where she serves as an adjunct instructor. She has also taught at Mid-South Community College and at the University of Memphis (Music Appreciation, Basic Music Theory, and College Survival Skills).

Ms. Walker has many interests outside of music, including (but not limited to!) architecture, astronomy, ballroom dancing, computers, geology, gourmet cooking, marine biology, needlework, photography, politics, puzzle and word games, science fiction, sports (especially baseball and tennis), sports cars, and writing.

Some Facts About Michelle:

If she hadn't become a musician... Marine biology was--and is--a continuing interest. I always wanted to find a way to talk to dolphins. Astronomy (given my love of space and science fiction) was another strong interest. I also flirted with the possibility of becoming an artist or a writer.

What she's reading... I'm going back and forth between several of the Honor Harrington novels by David Weber (Honor is a sci-fi starship captain--and a truly complex and amazing woman).

Her favorite Memphis restaurant... There are a LOT of places that I love--but right now, Cafe Society is at the top of the list. My Significant Other and I refer to it as "Our Place," and we always have at least one (if not two) dinners there when he visits.

Her favorite vacation... Of the places I've actually been to, my favourites are San Francisco, Paris (yes, in France!), and a transatlantic crossing on the Queen Elizabeth 2. My dream vacation destinations include Italy, St. Petersburg, and a world cruise. Ideally those would take place with my Significant Other.

Her most influential teacher... John Wehlan, without question--I studied with him for nine years, and he's the reason I'm able to make my living as a musician. He had the best bow arm I've ever seen, and he always stressed the importance of a beautiful sound.

Her earliest musical memory... I always got a kick out of banging out the low notes on my grandmother's piano when I was a little kid (at least, that's what she always told me!).

Her favorite composers... Johannes Brahms, Johann Sebastian Bach, Paul Pellay, and Marshall Fine. Nobody can have just one!!

What she listens to in the car... Jazz, 60's and 70's rock, and disco!

The best part of performing... I love being part of the greater whole. I always wanted to be an

orchestral musician--being a soloist held no interest for me. And where I sit in the orchestra is ideal: I can hear EVERYTHING, and it's like being inside a stereo. The energy created by 75-80 people who all have the same goal is unbelievable, and I'm privileged to be a part of it.

Beyond making great music, she sees the symphony's greatest role as... Education of our public--especially our kids--is vital. As a nation, we're losing the ability to think or create, and it's mainly because the arts have been de-stressed as a vital part of a child's education. That MUST change if we're going to get back on the right track. The arts are a necessity, not a luxury, and we need to recognise that and advocate for it in the strongest possible terms.

One more thing she'd like to share... In the interest of a bit of self-promotion, I'd like to refer you to

the following website:

http://www.calvarymemphis.org/worship/listenagain.htm

Go to "Our Favourites" and click on "Who Is This?" by John Ferguson. That's the anthem that we sang (and I played) at the Washington National Cathedral in

2005 (you'll need to download RealPlayer to your computer to enjoy the experience).