Violinist Mary Manning is equally at home on both the baroque and modern
instrument and freelances around the Puget Sound in many orchestras and ensembles.
At her home in Gig Harbor she teaches violin and viola privately and is enjoying
playing folk fiddle in a newly formed band. Her current chamber ensembles include
the Puget Sound Consort,Tacoma's ensemble for early music; Chinook Trio with
pianist Bruce Berry and cellist Holly Reeves; and South Sound Strings with
violinist Gwen Taylor and cellist Margaret Thorndill. She is principal second
violin of the Northwest Sinfonietta and the Tacoma Opera Orchestra. Ms. Manning
has been a member of the Seattle, Portland, and Pacific Baroque Orchestras,
Carmel Bach Festival Orchestra in California, and the Pacific Northwest Ballet
Orchestra in Seattle. She is a graduate of the Oberlin Conservatory of Music.
Gwen Taylor, violinist, is a graduate of the Oberlin Conservatory where she studied modern
and baroque performance on violin and viola. Currently she is a member of the Tacoma
Symphony and the Northwest Sinfonietta. In addition to a busy freelance and teaching
schedule in the classical world, Gwen is also active in the Celtic music scene. She
has been a faculty member of the Irish Music Academy of Cleveland and the Ohio Scottish
Arts School as teacher and performer. Her teachers have included Almita and Rolan Vamos,
Greg Fulkerson, Marilyn MacDonald and Walter Schwede. A native of the Pacific Northwest she
lives in Bremerton with her two collies, Claudius and Fergus, who would like her to stop
talking about herself and take them for a nice walk.
Cellist Margaret Thorndill directs public events at the University of Puget Sound.
Margaret grew up in Tacoma, studying cello with Phylis Alport in Seattle and playing in
the early years of the Tacoma Youth Symphony. She received her bachelor of music degree
from Washington State University and completed her master of fine arts degree in cello
at the California Institute of the Arts, where she worked with Joel Crosnick. Margaret’s
teachers have included Claus Adam, former cellist in the Juillard String Quartet, Gabor
Reijto, and Cordelia Wikarski-Miedel. She free-lanced in the Los Angeles area for four
years prior to becoming a member of the Singapore Symphony Orchestra for three years.
She currently plays in the Tacoma Symphony Orchestra and is a member of the Con Brio
String Quartet, Seattle String Quartet, and South Sound Trio. Margaret coaches chamber
music for the Peninsula Youth Orchestra String Quartet program and is on the board of
the Tacoma Youth Symphony.
Violinist Mary Manning is equally at home on both the baroque and modern
instrument and freelances around the Puget Sound in many orchestras and ensembles.
At her home in Gig Harbor she teaches violin and viola privately and is enjoying
playing folk fiddle in a newly formed band. Her current chamber ensembles include
the Puget Sound Consort,Tacoma's ensemble for early music; Chinook Trio with
pianist Bruce Berry and cellist Holly Reeves; and South Sound Strings with
violinist Gwen Taylor and cellist Margaret Thorndill. She is principal second
violin of the Northwest Sinfonietta and the Tacoma Opera Orchestra. Ms. Manning
has been a member of the Seattle, Portland, and Pacific Baroque Orchestras,
Carmel Bach Festival Orchestra in California, and the Pacific Northwest Ballet
Orchestra in Seattle. She is a graduate of the Oberlin Conservatory of Music.
Gwen Taylor, violinist, is a graduate of the Oberlin Conservatory where she studied modern
and baroque performance on violin and viola. Currently she is a member of the Tacoma
Symphony and the Northwest Sinfonietta. In addition to a busy freelance and teaching
schedule in the classical world, Gwen is also active in the Celtic music scene. She
has been a faculty member of the Irish Music Academy of Cleveland and the Ohio Scottish
Arts School as teacher and performer. Her teachers have included Almita and Rolan Vamos,
Greg Fulkerson, Marilyn MacDonald and Walter Schwede. A native of the Pacific Northwest she
lives in Bremerton with her two collies, Claudius and Fergus, who would like her to stop
talking about herself and take them for a nice walk.
Cellist Margaret Thorndill directs public events at the University of Puget Sound.
Margaret grew up in Tacoma, studying cello with Phylis Alport in Seattle and playing in
the early years of the Tacoma Youth Symphony. She received her bachelor of music degree
from Washington State University and completed her master of fine arts degree in cello
at the California Institute of the Arts, where she worked with Joel Crosnick. Margaret’s
teachers have included Claus Adam, former cellist in the Juillard String Quartet, Gabor
Reijto, and Cordelia Wikarski-Miedel. She free-lanced in the Los Angeles area for four
years prior to becoming a member of the Singapore Symphony Orchestra for three years.
She currently plays in the Tacoma Symphony Orchestra and is a member of the Con Brio
String Quartet, Seattle String Quartet, and South Sound Trio. Margaret coaches chamber
music for the Peninsula Youth Orchestra String Quartet program and is on the board of
the Tacoma Youth Symphony.