Norman Carol - violin, former concertmaster of the Philadelphia Orchestra, is a native Philadelphian, graduate of the Curtis Institute and was formerly concertmaster of the New Orleans and Minneapolis Symphony Orchestras before joining the Philadelphia Orchestra. His career with the Philadelphians has spanned the music directorships of Eugene Ormandy, Ricardo Muti and Wolfgang Sawallisch, during which time he performed and recorded many solos and concertos and has appeared as soloist with other major orchestras. Mr. Carol continues to teach at the Curtis Institute and performs regularly with the Philadelphia Piano Quartet.

 

La Mar Alsop - viola, a native of Salt Lake City, Utah, began his musical training there and performed with the Utah Symphony under Maurice Abravanel, both as violinist and bass clarinetist. He is a graduate of the Juilliard School in New York and was a member of the music faculty of the State University of New York at Potsdam for several years. The multi talented Mr. Alsop also performs on violin and clarinet as a member of the Philadelphia Piano Quartet, thus providing the opportunity of presenting more varied repertoire to their audiences. He is a studio musician in New York and most recently had a concerto written for him by composer, arranger and jazz pianist, Dick Hyman, in which he displays his versatility by playing violin, viola, clarinet, saxophone and whistling! He and his wife, Ruth, a cellist in the New York City Ballet Orchestra, are the proud parents of conductor, Marin Alsop.

Bert Phillips - cello, received bachelor and masters degrees in performance from Northwestern University, taught at Iowa Northern and Kent State Universities briefly, joined the Cleveland Orchestra for a season and subsequently became a member of the Philadelphia Orchestra cello section, a position he maintained for 31 years. Bert left the Philadelphians in 1990 to concentrate on responsibilities as Executive Director of the Luzerne Music Center, a summer music camp for talented young musicians located in Lake Luzerne, New York, which he founded in 1980. An avid chamber music performer, he has received international acclaim in performances and recordings with the Philarte String Quartet and as a duo recitalist with his wife, pianist Toby Blumenthal. He has also presented numerous master classes, been conductor of the Temple University Youth Chamber Orchestra and served for several seasons as co-principal cellist of the Naples (FL) Philharmonic Orchestra. Mr. Phillips is a native of LaCrosse, Wisconsin.

Toby Blumenthal - piano, has appeared as soloist with many ensembles including the Chicago and Houston Symphony Orchestras. She has received high acclaim for numerous chamber music performances with members of the Philadelphia Orchestra, duo recitals with husband, cellist, Bert Phillips and with other internationally renowned artists. A native of Chicago, she is a graduate of Northwestern University School of Music and has a Master of Music in performance degree from the University of Houston. Her training as pianist includes study with Gui Mombaerts, Leonard Shure, Rudolf Serkin and Claude Frank. As Director of the piano studies program at Luzerne Music Center, she shares her talents with aspiring music students each summer, both as teacher and performer. She and Bert also share responsibilities as Artistic Directors and Founders of the Luzerne Chamber Music Festival in Lake Luzerne, New York and Classic Chamber Concerts in Naples, Florida. Ms. Blumenthal is proud to be named a Steinway Piano Artist.