Violinist Frank Almond held the Charles and Marie Caestecker Concertmaster Chair the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra for 25 years. He has also held the Concertmaster position with the Rotterdam Philharmonic with Valery Gergiev and Guest Concertmaster of the London Philharmonic with Kurt Masur. Frank regularly performs as a soloist with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra and as soloist and chamber musician throughout the US and Europe. He is the founder of his own chamber music series in Milwaukee, Frankly Music, consistently recognized for innovative programming and its ability to attract leading performers from around the world, most recently including Lynn Harrel, Orion Weiss, and the Miró Quartet. At 17, Frank Almond was one of the youngest prizewinners in the history of the Nicolo Paganini Competition in Genoa, Italy, and five years later was one of two American prizewinners at the Eighth International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow, which was documented in an award-winning PBS film. His extensive recording discography includes a wide range of repertoire on various labels that have garnered multiple Grammy nominations. His most recent series of recordings, A Violin’s Life, chronicles the extraordinary history and lineage of his current violin, the 1715 Lipiński Stradivarius. This instrument has direct ties to Giuseppe Tartini, Edvard Grieg, Johannes Brahms, and Robert and Clara Schumann. On January 27, 2014, the “ex-Lipiński” Stradivarius was stolen from Mr. Almond in an armed robbery after a concert. The violin was recovered nine days later, and the story continues to make headlines around the world. The robbery and recovery are the subject of a new documentary film, “Plucked,” which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in April (2019). Frank was also featured at Lincoln Center on “The Moth Radio Hour,” the critically acclaimed story-telling program heard on Public Radio stations nationwide. Community outreach and giving back to the Milwaukee community are also at the heart of Frank Almond’s artistic priorities. He mentors young musicians of all performing levels and backgrounds, and performs in nontraditional venues where classical music has a rare and unusual presence. Frank holds two degrees from the Juilliard School, where he studied with Dorothy Delay, Michael Tseitlin, Felix Galimir, and Joseph Silverstein. He currently serves on the Faculty at Roosevelt University in Chicago and is the Johnston Family Artist-in-Residence at the Milwaukee Youth Symphony, one of the largest youth arts programs in the United States. Previous teaching positions include positions at Northwestern University and Texas Christian University. Frank Almond writes an online column, as he admits, “instead of practicing.” Nondivisi offers his thoughts, hopes and expectations for the present and future of classical music and other topics. More information about Frankly Music, A Violin’s Life and the Lipiński Stradivarius is available at frankalmond.com.

Renee Skerik is an Instructor of Viola and Chamber Music, and Violist of the Interlochen String Trio at the Interlochen Arts Academy. An active member of the American Viola Society and the American String Teachers Association, She has presented at national conferences and served as the festival competition coordinator of the Inaugural American Viola Society Youth Competition. A highly sought educator, Skerik has worked with violists in masterclasses throughout the United States and South America, including recent masterclasses at the Oberlin Conservatory and Cleveland Institute of Music. Graduates of her Interlochen Arts Academy Viola matriculate to top conservatories and universities across the United States each year. Formerly Professor of Viola at Texas Tech University School of Music and violist of the Botticelli String Quartet, she toured throughout the United States, Europe, Brazil, including performances at the 33rd International Viola Congress in Reykjavik, Iceland, and Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall. Prior to her positions in Texas and Interlochen she served as violist with the Artaria String Quartet, a Minnesota-based prize winning quartet of the McKnight Fellowship for Performing Musicians and recipient of the National Endowment for the Arts Melliniel grant for performing artists. During the summers Skerik serves on the faculties of the Interlochen Viola Institute, The Saint Paul Chamber Music Institute, and the Montecito International Music Festival. Previous festivals include: the Green Mountain Music Festival; The Quartet Program; Green Mountain Chamber Music Festival; Bravo!; Summer Chamber Music Institute; Stringwood Chamber Music Festival,; and, the Boston University Tanglewood Institute. Her chamber music collaborations include performances with Cho-Liang Lin, Margaret Batjer, Yizhak Schotten, Janos Starker, Raphael Hillyer, Arnold Steinhardt, and Charles Castleman. Her principal teachers were Heidi Castleman, Yizhak Schotten, Korey Konkol, and David Holland.

Brandon Vamos, a Grammy-award winning cellist, has performed solo and chamber music recitals both in the U.S. and abroad to critical acclaim. Called a "first-rate cellist" by the Chicago Reader and praised for his "gutsy bravura" by the Chicago Tribune, Mr. Vamos has appeared as soloist with orchestras worldwide, including performances with the Taipei City Symphony, the Suwon Symphony in Seoul, the Samara Symphony in Russia, and the New Philharmonia Orchestra, and the Elgin Symphony Orchestra. Mr. Vamos has collaborated with many distinguished artists, including Paul Katz, Michael Tree, Yo-Yo Ma, Menahem Pressler, and the Emerson Quartet, and has recorded for Cedille, Naxos, and Cacophony Records. Awarded a Performer’s Certificate at the Eastman School of Music, where he earned a Bachelor’s of Music Degree as a student of Mr. Katz, Mr. Vamos has also studied with distinguished artists such as Tanya Carey in Macomb, Illinois, and Aldo Parisot at Yale University, where he earned a Master of Music Degree. As a member of the Pacifica Quartet, with whom he performs over 90 concerts a year, he won a 2009 Grammy Award for Best Chamber Music Performance and the Cleveland Quartet Award, in addition to being named Musical America’s 2009 Ensemble of the Year.