Yariv Aloni, violist & conductor, is the music director of the Victoria Chamber Orchestra and the Galiano Ensemble. His viola teachers included David Chen, Daniel Benyamini (principal viola, Israel Philharmonic) and Michael Tree of the Guarneri String Quartet. Aloni has recorded for the United, Marquise, Tritonus, and CBC labels. He appears regularly with the Vetta Ensemble in Vancouver and performs in numerous chamber music festivals and recitals series. Aloni has played a Joseph Curtin viola since 2001.

Endre Balogh has performed as violin soloist with the Berlin Philharmonic, Rotterdam Philharmonic, Zürich Tonhalle Orchestra, Frankfurt Symphony, and Los Angeles Philharmonic. He toured internationally with the Pacific Trio for nearly 30 years, and has played with Vladimir Horowitz and Leonard Pennario, and in the 1993 chamber concerts: "André Watts and Friends." In 2008, Endre composed original music for Shakespeare's "The Winter's Tale" for the repertory company, "A Noise Within." He owns the Artot-Alard Stradivari and a replica of it by Curtin & Alf.

Kam-Lung Cheng’s solo appearances include the Tchaikovsky concerto for Dutch Television, and the Beethovan and Brahms with the Philharmonia Moldova, with whom he recorded the Brahms. Born in Beijing China, Cheng began violin lessons with his father when playing Western music was a punishable offence. Cheng later moved to Hong Kong and then Europe, where he studied with Yehudi Menuhin, Viktor Leiberman , and Philip Hirschorn. Cheng has performed on his two Joseph Curtin violins since 1997.

Joshua Coyne plays classical music, jazz, gypsy, opera, and broadway. He began studying violin at age four and has been performing in public since he was eight. He also plays piano, saxophone, mandolin, viola, and guitar, and is active as a composer, arranger, and conductor. In 2009?, Josh composed a piece for violin and orchestra under the mentorship of one of his musical heroes, Marvin Hamlisch. Joshua Coyne has performed on a Joseph Curtin violin since 2006.

Nicholas Crosa won the gold medal at the 1998 Stulberg International String Competition and was first prize winner in the 1997 Nakamichi Foundation Paganini violin concerto competition. A student of Carol Sindell in Portland, Oregon, and Dorothy DeLay at the Juilliard School, he has performed as soloist with such orchestras as the Oregon Symphony, the Vancouver Symphony, the Aspen Concert Orchestra, and as a collaborative artist with the Florestan Trio. Nicholas Crosa has played a Curtin violin since 1994.

Xiaolei Ding, Violin Professor at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, studied in Shanghai and New York. She was a Jury member in the Ninth China National Violin Competition, and many of her students have won prizes at international level. In 2008 she acquired a violin by Joseph Curtin. In 2009, her student Zheng Liu used it to win Second Prize at the Jeunesses International Music Competition in Romania.

Csaba Erdélyi is the only violist ever to win the Carl Flesch Violin Competition (1972). He was solo violist on the soundtrack of Amadeus; he has recorded the Bartok concerto with the New Zealand Symphony. Born in Budapest, Erdélyi's teachers include Yehudi Menuhin and Bruno Giuranna. He was principal viola of London's Philharmonia Orchestra, violist in the Chilingirian Quartet, and has taught at the Guildhall School, Rice University, and Indiana University. Erdélyi has performed and recorded on a Curtin viola since 1991.

Erick Friedman (1939-2004) was one of the 20th Century's greatest American-born violinists. He studied with Galamian, Milstein, and Heifetz, with whom he recorded the Bach Double for RCA. Compositions by Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco, Isadore Freed, Ezra Laderman and Laurent Petitgirard were written for or dedicated to Friedman. In 1996 he won a Grammy Award, then in 2000 the Ignace J. Paderewski Award for Distinguished Contributions to Society and Culture. From 1995 on, Erick Friedman recorded and performed exclusively on Curtin violins.

Eugene Kaler began studying violin at Peabody Conservatory when he was 7. He took first place in both the Concerto Competition at J. Madison University and the String Solo Festival. In 2009 he graduated with honors from DePaul University. His teachers include Albert Markov, Victor Danchenko, Ilya Kaler, Olga Kaler, John Merrill, Oleg Rylatko. Kaler has performed in Spain, Italy, France, and the USA. He currently teaches at the Long Island Conservatory, and has played a Joseph Curtin violin since 2006

Ilya Kaler, the only violinist to win gold medals at all three of the Tchaikovsky (1986), Sibelius (1985), and Paganini (1981) competitions, tours internationally as a soloist and with the Tempest Trio. Born in Moscow, he studied with Zinaida Gilels, Yuri Yankelevich, Leonid Kogan, and Viktor Tretiakov. Kaler has recored extensively, with over a dozen CDs on the Naxos label. Currently a Professor of Violin at DePaul University, Chicago, Kaler has performed and recorded on a Joseph Curtin violin since 1997.

Olga Kaler is a violin soloist, chamber musician, and faculty member at Chicago’s DePaul School of Music. She has a degree from the Moscow State Conservatory, and a doctorate from Northwestern University. Kaler won the Special Prize at the 1990 Rodolfo Lipitzer International Competition, was a finalist at the Concert Artist Guild International Competition. Since 2005 she has toured annually with the World Orchestra for Peace under Valery Gergiev. Olga Kaler has played a Joseph Curtin violin since 1999.

Tanya Kalmanovitch, Jazz violist and violinist, has been has been named "Best New Talent" by All About Jazz. Her 2007 recording “Heart Mountain” won the prestigious Choc award from French magazine Jazzman. Kalmanovitch teaches at the New England Conservatory, the Guildhall School, the Koninklijk Conservatorium (NL), and is a founding member of the Brooklyn Jazz Underground. Born in Alberta, Canada, she is Canadian representative to the International Association of Schools of Jazz. Kalmanovitch plays a 1982 Curtin viola.

Alfonso Lopez, violinist, composer, & conductor, is concertmaster of the Venezuela Symphony Orchestra (OSV), Professor of Violin at the Emil Friedman School, and founding member of the Friedman String Quartet. His orchestral work, Caribe Pirana, was premiered in 2000 by the OSV. In 2007, his String Serenade was premiered in Russia by the Novosibirsk Chamber Orchestra. Lopez has conducted the OSV, the Michigan University Philharmonia Orchestra, and several youth orchestras. He has played a Joseph Curtin violin since 1999.

Mark Lupin studied with Heifetz, Galamian, Gingold, and Gulli, made his television debut at the age of seven, was concertmaster of the Canadian Youth Orchestra at fifteen, and played his recital début at London's Wigmore Hall at twenty-one. Along with his musical training, Lupin received advanced degrees in Mathematics and Medicine. He currently combines a career as a violin soloist with a medical practice in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. Mark Lupin owns two Joseph Curtin violins.

Jeanne Mallow, violist and violinist, comes from a long line of distinguished musicians; her grandmother was Lillian Fuchs, her uncle, Joseph Fuchs. The New York Times calls Mallow "a worthy successor to this tradition, playing with dusky aristocratic tone, exacting intonation, and a kind of conversational musicality that seems second nature." Her teachers include Josef Gingold, Daniel Phillips, and Paul Kantor. Mallow has recorded Lilian Fuchs's solo viola works for Naxos. She has a violin & viola by Joseph Curtin.

Sascha Mandl, Brazilian violinist and conductor, is a member of the Philomusica String Quartet and Assistant Concertmaster of the Milwaukee Chamber Orchestra. An international artist, Mandl has collaborated with Yo-Yo Ma, Erick Friedman, Aldo Parisot, and has recorded Bach's E major Violin Concerto under Sidney Harth. Dr. Mandl is a graduate of Yale and the University of Wisconsin, where he serves on the faculty at UW-Parkside. He performs regularly on a 1996 Curtin & Alf copy of the "Haddock” Guarneri del Gesu.

Jeremy Mastrangelo is Associate Concertmaster of the Syracuse Symphony Orchestra, and a featured soloist on multiple occasions, including a performance of Bach’s Concerto for two violins with Jaime Laredo in the 2004-2005 season. Mastrangelo has served as co-concertmaster of the New World Symphony Orchestra in Miami, and as concertmaster and soloist with the Bach and Beyond festival in Fredonia, New York. A former student of William Preucil & Paul Kantor, he has played a Joseph Curtin violin since 1991.

Donald McInnes, viola soloist, has performed with many of the worlds finest orchestras, collaborated with such artists as Leonard Bernstien, Yehudi Menuhin, Janos Starker, and Yo-Yo Ma, and has recorded for Columbia, RCA, Deutsche Grammaphone, and Angel (EMI). McInnes studied with William Primrose. He now holds the position at the University of California once held by Primrose; his students received the three top prizes at the 1984 Lionel Tertis Competition. McInnes plays a Curtin & Alf replica of a Gasparo Salo viola.

Yehudi Menuhin (1916-1999) came to international renown with his performance of the Mendelssohn Concerto at age seven, and at fourteen made a now-legendary recording of Elgar's Violin Concerto. He went on to have one of the most distinquished and varied musical careers of the 20th Century. He commissioned Bartok's Sonata for Solo Violin; he collaborated with Ravi Shankar and Stephane Grappelli; he performed, recorded, conducted, taught, wrote, and advocated - and continued doing so well into his eighties. Mehuhin commissioned a Curtin violin in 1996.

Laura Motchalov won Second Prize at the Corpus Christie International Concerto Competition in 2001, then in 2003 joined the first violins of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. Her teachers include William Preucil, Linda Cerone, Zvi Zeitlin, and members of the Ying, Cleveland, and Cavani Quartets. Formerly violinist of the Atlantica Trio, Motchlov remains active as a chamber musician and soloist. She is a member of the new music ensemble, IonSound Project, and has played a Joseph Curtin violin since 2008.

Takako Nishizaki won Second Prize (behind Itzhak Perlman) at the Leventritt International Competition. She has since performed extensively as a soloist and has recorded over 100 CDs. Her Four Seasons sold over a million copies, and The Butterfly Lovers Concerto over three million. Nishizaki was the first student to complete the now-famous Suzuki course. In 1962 she went to the United States, where her teachers included Broadus Erle, Joseph Fuchs, Louis Persinger, and Aldo Parisot. Nishizaki owns two Curtin violins.

Elmar Oliveira began violin at nine with his brother John, then studied with Ariana Bronne and Raphael Bronstein at Hartt College of Music and Manhattan School of Music. In 1978 he won a gold medal at Moscow's Tchaikovsky International Competition - and remains the only American to have done so. He was also the first violinist to receive the Avery Fisher Prize. Oliveira tours and records extensively. His violins have included two by Curtin & Alf, which he used for several CDs.

Orpheus Papafilippou, violinist and leader of the Orfeas Quartet & Ensemble, has premiered solo and chamber music by Amir Sadeghi Konjani, Denise Mangiardi, Simon Spear, Theothoros Harithis, William Attwood, and Aziza Sadikova. As solo violinist for the 'Balletboyz,' he played Piazzolla tangos at Queen Elizabeth Hall. In 2008 he performed the Sibelius Concerto at the Richmond Music Festival. Orpheus grew up in London and Athens, and studied at the Royal Academy and Trinity College of music. He plays a 2010 Curtin violin.

Clayton Penrose-Whitmore won first place in the 2008 Sphinx Competition junior division at age 14. He subsequently toured with their orchestra. A student of Almita Vamos, Penrose-Whitmore took up the violin at age 4. At 9 he made his solo debut with the Jacksonville (Illinois) Symphony Orchestra. He has been a soloist with the St. Louis Gateway Festival Orchestra, the Illinois Symphony Orchestra, the Highland Park Strings, and the Alton Symphony Orchestra. Penrose-Whitmore has played a Joseph Curtin violin since 2005.

Ruggiero Ricci, one of the great violinists of our time, studied with Louis Persinger in San Fransico, where he made a sensational debut at the age of ten. Ricci has since performed over 5,000 concerts in 65 countries, and has a discography encompassing the widest repertoire of any violinist. His fourth recording of the Paganini Caprices was the first ever made on Paganini's own Guarneri, the "Cannone." Ricci commissioned three violins from Curtin & Alf, including a replica of his 1734 Guarneri del Gesu, the "Ex-Huberman."

Julian Ross is Professor of Violin and Head of String Department at Baldwin Wallace College; member of the Elysian Trio, and 1995 recipient of the Elizabeth Wycoff-Durham award in music performance. He has commissioned and premiered numerous violin concertos. A past President of the Tennessee Chapter of the American String Teachers Association, Ross has authored two volumes of technical materials for students, 'Right From the Start', and 'I Wish I'd Practiced That'. He has played a Curtin violin since 200?.

Stephen Shipps, Professor of Violin at the University of Michigan, studied with Gingold, Galamian, and Gulli. He has served variously as soloist, concertmaster, and associate conductor with a number of top American orchestras, including the Cleveland Orchestra, and has recorded for American Gramophone, RIAS Berlin, Hessiche Rundfunk of Frankfurt, Melodia/Russian Disc, Moscow Radio, and Naxos. A judge at numerous international violin competitions, Shipps is founder and director of the International Music Academy Pilzen. He has had a Joseph Curtin violin since 198?

Geoffrey Silver performed the Sibelius Concerto while in his mid-teens, led the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain for two years, and won the Royal Academy of Music's principal violin prize playing Bach and Paganini. He has since performed extensively as a soloist. After playing the the Berg concerto with the Consort of London in 2009, he was invited to perform the Stravinsky, Sibelius and Tchaikowsky concertos in the UK and S. Africa. Silver performs on a 1998 Curtin violin

Guillaume Tardiff, violinist, is an Associate Professor at the University of Alberta and leader of the Enterprise String Quartet. He gained a Doctor of Musical Arts at Eastman School of Music, and has since appeared as soloist and guest teacher in Canada, the United States, Asia, South America, and Europe. Tardiff has been featured on national and international TV and radio networks, and has produced several CDs, compositions, and pedagogical publications. Tardiff plays a 200? Joseph Curtin violin.

Patrick Wood is soloist and concertmaster for the Vermont Mozart Festival, performs with the New York Chamber Soloists, and has been concertmaster of the New York Philomusica and The English Mozart Players. Wood began violin in Mexico City with Icilio Bredo, later studying at Britain's Royal Academy, then in the USA with Erick Friedman and Eugene Drucker. In 2008? he made the first recording ever of the complete violin works of Thomas Baltzar. Wood plays a 2004 Joseph Curtin violin.

Andy Zaplatynsky, leader of the Syracuse Symphony Orchestra since 1981, was a student of Josef Gingold and Ivan Galamian. While assistant concertmaster of the Detroit Symphony, he was coached in many of the solos by Mischa Mischakoff. Since 2005, Zaplatynsky has had visiting professor status with the Fundacion Universitaria Juan N. Corpas in Bogota, Colombia, where he combines teaching, chamber music coaching, and performance. Zaplatynsky has performed on a Joseph Curtin violin since 198?