About the Musicians
Julia Cash, Violinist
Violinist Julia Cash has recently returned to Louisville after some 25 years pursuing an exciting musical career in New England and Europe. Brought back to Louisville by her family and her husband’s career, she was named Interim Principal 2nd violin of the Louisville Orchestra by Teddy Abrams. Also in the 21-22 season Ms Cash performed Mozart 5th Violin Concerto in Boston with Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra this last summer, that was hailed for “heroic presence, sparkling accuracy and delicacy of her silvery tone ” (Musical Intelligencer)
Ms. Cash left Louisville for Boston to work with legendary violinist James Buswell at age 15 to pursue an already promising musical future. Winner of the National Music Club Prize as a Tanglewood fellow, and a two-time Outstanding Performer award winner at the Academia Chigiana in Siena, Italy, Ms. Cash has performed all over the United States and Europe as a chamber musician and recitalist. In Boston, she performs with the Boston Ballet, Boston Pops, and has served as concertmaster for many prominent Boston musical groups such as Boston Modern Orchestra Project, Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra and Chamber Orchestra of Boston. A huge new music advocate, Ms. Cash served as concertmaster of Alea III under Gunther Schuller to high accolades. Early in her career, she served as principal second of Opera Boston and won a Pulitzer and has been on many Grammy nominated albums through her extensive recording career. Ms. Cash holds degrees from New England Conservatory of Music, the Staatliche Hochschule fur Musik in Germany and the Royal Conservatory of the Netherlands. In addition to James Buswell, other notable musical mentors include Pamela Frank, Vera Beths and Federico Agostini.
Ms. Cash is also an avid teacher and music educator. Along with her private studio, she has taught chamber music, orchestral coaching and lessons at Harvard, Boston College and Boston Latin School. She is currently on faculty at New England Conservatory and maintains a competitive studio of award winning students. Currently she spends summers teaching for Boston Youth Symphony Orchestras and serves as Music Director at Point Counter Point Chamber Music Camp in Vermont.
Margaret Karp, Violin
Margaret Karp is Senior Lecturer at the University of Kentucky School of Music where she teaches violin and viola. She is Concertmaster of the Lexington Chamber Orchestra and Acting Concertmaster of the Lexington Philharmonic Orchestra. Previously, she was Principal Second Violin of the Florida Orchestra, the Sarasota Opera, and a member of the Philharmonia da Camera in Dortmund, Germany. Since 2008 she has been an artist faculty member of the Brevard Music Festival. Ms Karp performs in Lexington as a member of the Karp&Co piano trio. Ms. Karp has performed on violin and viola in chamber music festivals throughout the U.S. She was a student of James Buswell at Indiana University and studied and Valery Gradow in Germany.
Ms Karp has been on the faculty of Transylvania University, Centre College, and the Interlochen Arts Camp. She was named 2005 Studio Teacher of the Year and Outstanding Educator of 2015 by the Kentucky chapter of the American String Teachers Association. Ms. Karp works closely with the Central Kentucky Youth Orchestras and directs a free outreach program each year for high school string students interested in auditioning for Kentucky All-State Orchestras. In spring 2020 she was the recipient of the University of Kentucky College of Fine Arts Faculty Award for Teaching.
Ms Karp began her musical studies at the age of 4 in Tucson, Arizona, where she participated in one of the early Suzuki group classes. She has fond memories of her mother accompanying her on the early Suzuki Books and her dad trying to tune her small violin with the help of a pitch pipe. Ms. Karp and her cellist husband Benjamin Karp live in Lexington, Ky where they raised two children with whom they play string quartets whenever possible.
Jonathan Mueller, Viola
Jonathan Mueller has been a member of the Louisville Orchestra since 2006 and Adjunct Professor of Viola at Bellarmine University since 2009. Mr. Mueller finished his Masters in Viola Performance at Rice University in 2006 under the instruction of James Dunham and his Bachelors from Indiana University where he studied with Alan DeVeritch. Mr. Mueller lives in the Highlands with his wife Krista, son Everett and daughter Coral.
Tze-Ying Wu, Viola
Dr. Tze-Ying Wu is Associate Professor of Viola and String Education at the University of Kentucky, where she directs the UK String Project.
An active chamber musician, Dr. Wu performs with the Formosa Trio (viola, harp, flute), which has appeared at major venues and festivals in Asia and the United States, including the 13th World Harp Congress in Hong Kong, the National Taichung Theater, and the National Concert Hall in Taipei. The trio’s 2024 U.S. tour featured performances across the Midwest and premieres of new works by Zhou Tian and Yuchun Hu. Their debut album, First Impression, was released in 2018.
Recognized for her dedication to teaching, Dr. Wu received the 2024 Outstanding Educator Award from the Kentucky Chapter of the American String Teachers Association. Her students have earned professional positions with orchestras such as the Lexington Philharmonic, Jacksonville Symphony, Virginia Symphony, and the National Symphony Orchestra of Costa Rica.
Dr. Wu earned her Doctor and Master of Music degrees in viola performance from Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music, where she studied with Atar Arad, and a Bachelor of Fine Arts from National Taiwan Normal University. She has served on the summer faculties of the Kentucky Governor’s School for the Arts and the Oklahoma Summer Arts Institute, and is currently the board president of the National String Project Consortium.
Benjamin Karp, Cello
BENJAMIN KARP is Professor of Cello at the University of Kentucky, principal cellist of the Lexington Philharmonic, and Head of Strings at the Brevard Music Center. He was a full-time member of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra for the 2022 and 2023 seasons. From 2008-2013 he was adjunct Associate Professor at Indiana University. He received a MM from IU, where he was a student of Janos Starker and Gary Hoffman, and a BA from Yale. He is a Larsen Performing Artist.
Tahirah Whittington, Cello
Tahirah Whittington, native of Houston, TX, and currently residing in Chicago, IL, most recently completed her position as the cellist for the Dear Evan Hansen North American Broadway Tour. Previously, Ms. Whittington was the cellist for Hamilton: An American Musical in Chicago. Television/Film: “Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood” and episodes of “Empire”. Studio recordings: The Lion King (2019 – as a member of Re-collective Orchestra), Beyoncé’s The Lion King: The Gift, John Legend’s Big Love and PJ Morton’s Gumbo Unplugged. Tahirah performed the cello solo for Rhiannon Giddens’ “Cry No More” arranged by Michael Abels. As a chamber musician, she is a founding member of both the Ritz Chamber Players in Jacksonville, FL, and D-Composed based in Chicago, IL. Ms. Whittington received her Bachelor’s Degree from New England Conservatory and her Master’s Degree in Cello Performance from The Juilliard School.
Kathleen Karr, Flute
Since 1988, Kathleen Karr has been the Principal Flutist of the Louisville Orchestra. A founding member of the Kentucky Center Chamber Players (a chamber group that was active from 1984-2016), she is currently a member of the NouLou Chamber Players. For 25 years, Kathleen taught applied flute, flute ensemble, flute pedagogy and flute literature at the University of Louisville's School of Music. She was awarded the Distinguished Teaching Professor Award for the University of Louisville in 2012.
A frequent soloist with the Louisville Orchestra, Kathleen most recently performed the J. S. Bach Brandenburg Concerti #2, #4 and #5 during the 2023-2024 season. She has performed recitals and masterclasses in Israel, Mexico and across the U.S.A. She has performed as guest flutist with the Fort Wayne Philharmonic, Chautauqua Symphony and the Orquestra Sinfonica da Mineria in Mexico City.
Kathleen received her Bachelor of Music degree from Northwestern University and her Master of Music degree from the State University of New York at Stony Brook. She is an Altus Flutes Performing Artist.
Sarah Ransom, Double Bass
Sarah Ransom, a native of Chattanooga, TN, enjoys a multifaceted career as a double bass player and educator. She earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education from Tennessee Tech University, where she studied with Steve Benne of the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra, and later completed a Master’s Degree in Music Performance at Carnegie Mellon University School of Music, studying with Micah Howard and Peter Guild of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra.
Sarah has performed with numerous professional ensembles including the Chattanooga Symphony and Opera, Huntsville Symphony Orchestra, Kentucky Opera, NouLou Chamber Players, Illinois Symphony Orchestra, West Virginia Symphony Orchestra, Lexington Philharmonic, Owensboro Symphony, Nashville Symphony, Nashville Opera, Nashville Ballet, and the Louisville Orchestra.
In addition to her classical work, Sarah performs as a studio, pit, and jazz musician. She has performed multiple seasons with the Creede Repertory Theatre Company, was a member of the Tennessee Tech Faculty Jazz Ensemble, and co-founded the All Of Us Jazz combo. Her studio work with Nashville Music Scoring has included recording sessions for major motion picture and video game soundtracks. Sarah continues to work as a private bass instructor, guest clinician, and freelance musician throughout the United States, and as well as serving as an itinerant orchestra teacher with the Jefferson County Public Schools.
Sanaan Hamza, percussion
Sanaan Hamza is a daf player with an interest in Kurdish and Middle Eastern music and rhythm. He enjoys performing traditional pieces and sharing the cultural side of percussion music with audiences.