Emma Cifrino, is a violist and violinist currently pursuing her PhD in historical musicology at UW-Madison, where she also received the Doctor of Musical Arts degree under the direction of Pro Arte Quartet violist Sally Chisholm. Originally from central Maine, Emma began her studies with Betsy Kobayashi at the Pineland Suzuki School in Augusta, ME. While in Maine she also studied violin, viola, and chamber music with members of the Portland String Quartet. She holds a B.Mus from Lawrence University, where her principal teacher was Matthew Michelic, and an M.Mus from Bowling Green State University, where she studied with Matthew Daline. At Bowling Green she was a member of the Graduate String Quartet and served as principal viola in the Bowling Green Philharmonia. Other career highlights include appearing on the radio program Live From WFMT in Chicago, and performing at Early Music America’s Young Performers Festival with the BGSU Early Music Ensemble. In addition to her active performance career, Emma has almost a decade of experience teaching students of all ages and levels. She believes that her primary duty as a music educator is to produce students who are respectful of the art of music-making. This means instilling students with good practice habits, encouraging participation in chamber ensembles, and modeling a scholarly – but enthusiastic – approach to performance.