Where are you from originally?
Fayetteville, AR
How many years in the symphony?
Four years
Favorite spots around town?
I’m always finding new and interesting spots in unexpected places, even more so since driving around aimlessly became one of my standard pastimes during the pandemic! One of the best places to watch the sunset is in the parking lot of Vestavia Hills Baptist Church. There will usually be others there with the same idea! Red Mountain Park is one of my favorite places to hike; up near the top of the mountain, after a steep climb over iron-rich dirt, there are a couple of whimsical treehouses, accessible only by a treacherously narrow swinging bridge. One of my favorite spots to get a drink pre-covid was at the Marble Ring, a hidden speakeasy in Avondale where you have to place a call at a special phone booth to be let in.
Scariest orchestra moment?
During my first season with the ASO, I was asked at the last minute to fill in for one of the solo parts in Bach’s Double Violin Concerto in D Minor. I had two days to prepare, and I had just cut a finger on my left hand while slicing an avocado – not very badly, but right in the spot where the finger meets the string. It was only possible to play if my fingertip was rigged up in an assortment of tiny band-aids. I would also be playing on an unfamiliar violin from the Violins of Hope Exhibit (a traveling collection of violins that were played by prisoners in WWII concentration camps). Needless to say my anxiety was through the roof! Luckily, the piece is comfortably familiar to most violinists, and I discovered that playing with and being supported by my wonderful and talented colleagues can transform that anxiety into excitement.