GOLDEN GATE STRINGS

Please take a moment to learn about the very special musicians that make up Golden Gate Strings. Each has multifaceted talents and brings a unique gift to the group, creating an ensemble that is like no other.

THE VIOLINISTS

John Tenney has been an "in the trenches" musician for more than thirty years, and is closing in on ten thousand professional engagements including three thousand performances of Broadway musicals and two thousand-odd chamber music appearances. John's been concertmaster for Joel Grey, Liberace, Dionne Warwick and Tony Bennett and played in orchestras for Marlene Dietrich, Lena Horne, Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Barry Manilow, the Temptations, Smokey Robinson, Boz Scaggs, and countless others, and has toured nationally as part of the Van Morrison Band. He has also performed with the San Francisco, Oakland and San Jose Symphonies, the San Francisco Ballet, the Bolshoi Ballet, American Ballet Theatre and the San Francisco Opera. He played mandolin on the San Francisco Symphony's Grammy Award-winning recording of Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet. John is also an accomplished composer of contemporary soundscapes. His string arrangements of R&B and funk are unsurpassed. John was my main inspiration to form Golden Gate Strings; I couldn't have done it without his encouragement (and some of those burning arrangements!)

Vivian Warkentin is Assistant Concertmaster of the Oakland East Bay Symphony since 1979 and has been performing professionally for over thirty years in symphonies and small ensembles throughout California. She also performs frequently with the San Jose, Santa Rosa, Napa and Fresno Symphonies. Vivian is in demand as a chamber musician and performs with numerous groups, including the Adena Trio with her sisters. Aside from classical music, she has worked with popular artists such as Tony Bennett, Burt Bacharach, Smokey Robinson and Sarah Vaughn, to name just a few. Vivian has also recorded movie soundtracks at Fantasy Studios and Skywalker Ranch. Vivian brings vivacious energy and sophisticated style to each performance.

Robin Mayforth is Concertmaster of Symphony Silicon Valley (formerly San Jose Symphony) and first violinist of Pegasus String Quartet. She was a founding member of the Lark Quartet and traveled world-wide with the quartet for 8 years. Robin has been a soloist with the San Jose Symphony and with the Music in the Mountains orchestra, where she has been concertmaster for the last 7 summers. She studied with Dorothy DeLay at The Juilliard School where she received her Bachelors and Masters degrees. Her clear confident style are a real asset to the group.

Mark Volkert has held the position of Assistant Concertmaster of the San Francisco Symphony has been a member since 1972. A graduate of Stanford University, Mark was Concertmaster and soloist with the Carmel Bach Festival for many years. As a composer, he has received commissions from many organizations, including the San Francisco Symphony, Marin Symphony, Stanford String Quartet, and the Monterey Bay Aquarium. In addition to classical performance, he is expert in the composition and performance of salon and operetta styles. Mark is also the best classical arranger I know. His interpretations of classical works are so to true to form and style that you can't help but wonder if Mark might have a future in forgery!

Wenyi Shih is new to the Bay Area but had already established a successful career in Boston. She holds a B.A. in performance at the Boston Conservatory. She served as a violinist fellow at the Tanglewood Music Center and was a regular substitute player for the Boston Symphony and Boston Pops. Wenyi has worked with Seiji Ozawa, Bernard Haitink, Robert Spano, Simon Rattle, Peter Serkin, Samuel Sanders and others. She has toured extensively and can be heard on recordings in many styles, from classical to swing and Latin well as on movie soundtracks. Wenyi also served as the principal second violinist in Portland Symphony, first violinist in Rhode Island Philharmonic, the Boston Modern Orchestra Project and the New England String Ensemble. Now, California's got her and we won't let her go! She frequently plays with the San Francisco Opera, California, Fremont, Oakland and Modesto Symphonies as well as with many chamber ensembles. Wenyi's innate musicianship, her disciplined work ethic and her incredible sense of humor make each performance a gem.

Eline van den Ende is Concertmaster of American Musical Theater of San Jose and a regular First Violin section player with the Symphony Silicon Valley (formerly San Jose Symphony), orchestras of Ballet San Jose Orchestra, Midsummer Mozart Festival, Music in the Mountains Festival, Musicfest Festival of Carefree, Arizona. She is a member of the San Jose String Quartet. Eline studied at the Amsterdam Muziek Lyceum and at Het Sweelinck Conservatorium, where she studied with Herman Krebbers, past concertmaster of the Royal Concertgebouw. Whether playing Vivaldi or The Stones, Eline always gives 110%.

Greg Mazmanian is a Bay Area native and graduate of the Juilliard School of Music. He has performed as a soloist in North America and Asia and has played with the San Francisco Symphony, Opera and Ballet orchestras. Greg has performed with a veritable Who's Who in the popular and classical world from Sinatra, Ray Charles and Tony Bennett to Zubin Mehta, Luciano Pavarotti and Leopold Stokowski. The San Francisco Chronicle described his playing as "sheer classiness" while The Strad of London praised his "thrilling virtuoso flair". All I can say is that, musically, Greg's up for anything I can dream up!

THE VIOLISTS

Su Buchignani is founder, arranger and director of Golden Gate Strings. She was the youngest member of the San Jose Symphony and playing professionally at age fifteen. She was composer/pianist for acclaimed mimes Shields and Yarnell and was on the staff of SummerSong Vocal Arts Institute. Recently, she has played for Bjork, Josh Groban, Clay Aiken and Smokey Robinson. A longtime performer of Argentine Tango, Su is the founder of Ensemble Bizou and Fievre (those tango violin solos you hear lately on national commercials are likely Su's.) Her specialty is strolling violin, with a repertoire of many hundreds of songs. This has taken her to unusual venues~she was the real "Fiddler on the Roof" when she played on top of the dome of San Francisco City Hall!

Paul Ehrlich is Principal Violist with the San Francisco Ballet Orchestra. He also plays regularly with the San Francisco Opera and San Francisco Symphony, and is a frequent chamber music performer in the Bay Area. Previous positions have included The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra and Phoenix Symphony. Mr. Ehrlich received his undergraduate training at The Royal College of Music, London, and Cambridge University, and completed the D.M.A. degree at The Yale School of Music, where he studied with Raphael Hillyer. I love Paul's precision with a touch of swagger-style.

Dawn Harms is Co-Concertmaster of the Oakland East Bay Symphony and a member of the San Francisco Opera and New Century Chamber Orchestras. She is a member of the Harmida Piano Trio and founder/conductor of the Elixir Chamber Orchestra and co-founder/musical director of the Music at Kirkwood Chamber Music Festival. She was First Violinist with the Harrington String Quartet and the Santa Fe Opera. An advocate for children's music education, she was also conductor of the Amarillo Youth Orchestra and continues to create and perform educational concerts. Her latest solo release, "The Hot Canary," was released in January 2005. Dawn also collaborated with her cousin Tom Waits on his recordings, "Alice" and "Blood Money." Ms. Harms currently serves on the music faculty at Stanford University. Dawn received her BM degree from the New England Conservatory of Music where she studied with Dorothy Delay and Josef Gingold, and her MA from the State University of New York at Stonybrook.

THE CELLISTS

Jan Volkert is Principal Cellist with the Marin Symphony and has held this position since 1979, and was formerly Principal Cellist with the Modesto Symphony. She is a member of The Volkert/Walther Trio with Mark Volkert, associate concertmaster of the San Francisco Symphony and Geraldine Walther, the symphony's principal violist. Jan holds degrees from Dominican College of San Rafael and the Royal College of Music in London. Not your usual cellist, Jan is equally well-versed in salon, operetta and musical theater music, in addition to the classical repertoire. She also joins John Tenney, Wenyi Shih and me in Fievre, a fiery tango quartet. Jan's vibrant playing and solid musicality always brings life (and plenty of fun!) to every performance.

Paul Rhodes was recently engaged as Assistant Principal Cellist with the Sacramento Philharmonic and is a regular member of the Oakland East Bay Symphony and the Carmel Bach Festival Orchestra. He is former Principal Cellist with the Austin Symphony, Austin Lyric Opera Orchestra, Orchestra of Santa Fe and Fresno Philharmonic and has performed with the San Antonio, Sacramento and San Jose Symphonies as well as the New Century Chamber Orchestra. Paul received his Bachelors degree at Dominican College and his Masters at the University of Texas-Austin. A terrific chamber musician, Paul's consistent precision, attention to detail and sense of musical adventure make him a great addition to the group.

THE BASSIST