Violinist Hannah Frey, originally from Clinton, South Carolina, received both her Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from the Cleveland Institute of Music, where she studied with Linda Cerone and William Preucil. Hannah is currently Concertmaster of Winter Opera St. Louis. She also plays regularly with the American Kantorei Orchestra, the Metropolitan Orchestra of St Louis, and the Union Avenue Opera Orchestra. She has performed as an extra with many other groups in the area including the St Louis Symphony, the MUNY Orchestra and with visiting shows at the Fox Theatre.
In addition to performing, Hannah is a dedicated educator. She maintains a large private studio at her home and she was recently appointed to the violin faculty at Washington University of St. Louis. Hannah has pedagogy training through various Suzuki Institutes with Susan Kempter and others, and has attended Indiana University’s Retreat for Violin Teachers with Mimi Zweig.
In addition to performing, Hannah is a dedicated educator. She maintains a large private studio at her home and she was recently appointed to the violin faculty at Washington University of St. Louis. Hannah has pedagogy training through various Suzuki Institutes with Susan Kempter and others, and has attended Indiana University’s Retreat for Violin Teachers with Mimi Zweig.
Manuela Kaymakanova was born in Rousse, Bulgaria, and began her violin studies at the age of 5. Manuela holds a Bachelor of Music from Webster University, where she received the Buder Scholarship for gifted students and studied with Yuly Iliashov. Further studies led to a Master’s degree from the University of Missouri at Kansas City, where she was awarded a graduate string quartet assistantship for three years. Her teachers there included Benny Kim and Gregory Sandomirsky. Presently Manuela teaches at the Community Music School of Webster University and maintains a private studio. Manuela is an active chamber music and orchestral performer in the St Louis area.
Eliana Haig enjoys an active career as an orchestral and chamber musician. Since relocating to St Louis in 2012, Eliana has performed with the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra, Illinois Symphony Orchestra, Winter Opera Saint Louis, and Chamber Project Saint Louis. Chamber music appearances include the Webster University Chamber Music Series, Saint Louis Central Public Library, and Missouri History Museum. Eliana has served as a section violist in the Erie Philharmonic and Binghamton Philharmonic Orchestras and as a substitute in the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra. She was awarded a section position with the Civic Orchestra of Chicago and performed as a substitute. Summer festival appearances include the National Repertory Orchestra, Chautauqua Festival Orchestra, and National Orchestral Institute
Eliana holds a Master of Music in Performance from the Eastman School of Music and a Bachelor of Music with honors from Lawrence University. As an undergraduate student, Eliana spent a year in Austria on scholarship, where she studied music and German at the University for Music and Dramatic Arts in Graz. Her primary teachers include Ira Weller, George Taylor, Matthias Maurer, and Matthew Michelic. She is on faculty at the Community Music School of Webster University and Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville.
Eliana holds a Master of Music in Performance from the Eastman School of Music and a Bachelor of Music with honors from Lawrence University. As an undergraduate student, Eliana spent a year in Austria on scholarship, where she studied music and German at the University for Music and Dramatic Arts in Graz. Her primary teachers include Ira Weller, George Taylor, Matthias Maurer, and Matthew Michelic. She is on faculty at the Community Music School of Webster University and Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville.
An active and versatile musician, Stephanie Hunt performs on both modern and baroque cello. Her current activities include performances with Chamber Project St. Louis, the Perseid String Quartet and the Coromell Ensæmble, a Mexican Early Music ensemble. Stephanie has participated in numerous international music festivals, including the Nederlandse Orkest- en Ensemble-Academie, Royaumont Formations Professionnelles (France), the Britten-Pears Young Artist Programme, and two summers as a Tanglewood Music Center Fellow. Her studies on modern cello led to a B.Mus. summa cum laude from the University of Miami's Frost School of Music and a M.Mus. from Rice University's Shepherd School of Music. Following her American studies, Stephanie moved to Europe and earned both a B.Mus. Honours and M.Mus. in baroque cello from the Utrecht Conservatory in the Netherlands. Her teachers include Viola de Hoog, Norman Fischer, Hans Jørgen Jensen, Ross Harbaugh, and Monique Bartels. After five years studying and performing in the Netherlands, Stephanie returned to the United States, to settle in the St. Louis area. Stephanie teaches cello in the Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville Suzuki program, is the cello instructor at Lindenwood University, and maintains a private studio in St. Louis.