CBA Ode to Joy

SARA SU JONES VIOLIN

Hailed as a “violinist of enviable gifts” by a Chicago Sun- Times music critic, Sara Su Jones is an award-winning violinist who has performed as a soloist throughout North America, Europe, and Asia. In recent seasons, she has given recitals in London, England; Lisbon, Portugal; Reykjavík, Iceland; Washington, DC; Massachusetts; California; Wisconsin; and Indiana. Her Icelandic concerts include a recital on the main stage at Harpa, the home of the Iceland Symphony Orchestra, for an audience of over 500, as well as recitals for ambassadors and cultural leaders, including former Icelandic president Vigdís Finnbogadóttir, at theResidences of the US and Canadian Ambassadors to Iceland.

Sara Su appears regularly in her native Chicago in such venues as Preston Bradley Hall (Chicago Cultural Center), Fourth Presbyterian Church (Artists in Recital Series), and PianoForte. Her solo recitals have been recommended by the Chicago Tribune’s John von Rhein. Together with pianist Tatyana Stepanova, she has performed on “Live from WFMT,” the station’s full-length recital series; Sara Su has also performed live on WBEZ, Chicago’s public radio station. At age 17, Sara Su received an A.R.C.M. certificate in violin performance from the Royal College of Music in London and was heard as a soloist on BBC Radio. A top prizewinner in various music competitions in both the UK and US, including that of the Harvard Musical Association, Sara Su served for three years as assistant concertmaster of the symphony orchestra at Harvard, and since 2006 has served as concertmaster of the Chicago Bar Association Symphony Orchestra (CBASO), with which she has performed as a concerto soloist. For most of her life, she studied with the late Mark Zinger, a former student and colleague of David Oistrakh; she currently studies with Gerardo Ribeiro. Sara Su performs on a violin made for her in 2017 by the Icelandic luthier Hans Johannsson. Sara Su holds an A.B. in Economics, magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa, and a J.D., cum laude, both from Harvard. Formerly a diplomatic intern at the US State Department and US Embassy Moscow, she worked as a management consultant at McKinsey & Company in New York and as a trusts and estates lawyer at Ropes & Gray LLP in Boston. In 2004, Sara Su founded Elite Educational Coaching; she now coaches students throughout the US and internationally in person and via Skype on test prep, writing skills, and college admissions. www.sarasujones.com

CBA SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA AND CHORUS 15