Gaelen McCormick
Applied Double Bass
E-mail: kittypablo@yahoo.com
Education:
M.M. in Double Bass Performance
Carnegie Mellon University
B.M in Double Bass Performance
Eastman School of Music
Member, Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra
Teaching Responsibilities:
MUS 1007 Applied String Bass
Ms. McCormick has been a member of the Rochester Philharmonic’s bass section since 1995. Before joining the RPO, she held positions with regional orchestras such as the Erie (PA) Philharmonic, the Binghamton Philharmonic and the Albany Symphony. She recently became a founding member of the Pittsburgh Live Music Chamber Orchestra and performed with them during their inaugural season. Ms. McCormick performs regularly with other major orchestras, including the Buffalo Philharmonic and the Syracuse Symphony.
Teaching the double bass to students of all ages has become a significant part of Gaelen’s life. She has been the bass instructor for the Eastman Community Music School since 2001. She enjoys working with talented high school aged string players in the summer at Eastman’s Music Horizons program where she teaches chamber music and gives bass lessons. In 2003, she was invited to teach for the year at Duquesne University’s City Music Center, a program for talented, pre-college students. She is a member of the faculty of Roberts Wesleyan College. She holds degrees from the Eastman School and Carnegie Mellon University.
Playing chamber music has been a passion for Ms. McCormick. Before moving to Rochester, she often performed with the St. Cecilia Chamber Orchestra (Albany, NY) as their sole bassist. During her tenure in Pittsburgh, she became the founding bassist of the Pittsburgh Live Music Chamber Orchestra. In recent summers, she has been performing with the Music in the Mountains chamber orchestra, a festival based in Durango, Colorado. She is frequently invited to play chamber music with musicians from around the country in festivals such as the Roycroft Chamber Music Festival and the Syracuse New Music Ensemble.
A sampling of some of the exciting projects happening this season include chamber music performances with Quartsemble; performing in Rochester City schools for 3rd graders as their introduction to string instruments; publishing a bowing method she has edited; commissioning a new work for string trio from the composer Judd Greenstein. In her spare time, Gaelen enjoys kayaking and Irish set dancing.
