SFSinfonietta

Urs Leonhardt Steiner, Executive Director / Conductor
Loretta Taylor, Concertmaster
Anja Strauss, Soprano
Heather Haughn, Violin
Allison Lovejoy, Pianist
Ruth Keys, Flute
Board of Directors

	Urs Leonhardt Steiner, Executive Director / Conductor Internationally renowned as a conductor, guitarist, educator, and composer, Maestro Steiner founded the San Francisco Sinfonietta as a 501(c)(3) not for profit organization in 1994. Originally from Chur, Switzerland, he graduated from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, Master of Music in 1986. He studied conducting with James Wimer, Gustav Meier, Herbert von Karajan as well as Master classes with Andre Previn, Erich Leinsdorf and Leonhard Bernstein. In collaboration with his father, techno star Peter "Cool Man" Steiner, he has received critical acclaim for CD's that have sold more than a million copies worldwide. Maestro Steiner's compositions include operas "Il Secondo Settenio" and "Return of the Phantoms" which have been performed to critical acclaim in Switzerland and the United States. In addition to leading the San Francisco Sinfonietta in local and international endeavors, he is a frequent guest conductor with orchestras and ensembles in Europe, United States and Central America. He is currently Music Director of the International Music Festival and Co-Director of "Musica en Los Barrios" in Managua, Nicaragua as well as artistic Director of the Music Theater Chur, Switzerland. Under his direction he has created innovative music education partnerships with the "Pan y Arte" Foundation in Muenster, Germany for funding community programs for underprivileged youth and communities in Central America. Here in San Francisco he is the Music Director of the Community Music Center Orchestra as well as the Adda Clevenger School Show Choir. Mr. Steiner is the first Swiss Artist to appear at the White House in Washington D.C. top
	Loretta Taylor, Concertmaster Loretta has been the concertmaster of the San Francisco Sinfonietta since 1994 and has worked extensively with many orchestras throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. She has performed in orchestras in San Juan, Puerto Rico and Perth, Australia. In addition to currently being the concertmaster of the San Francisco Sinfonietta, she teaches at the Community Music Center and is principal second violin of the Santa Cruz County Symphony. Loretta has coached chamber music for the Chamber Musicians of Northern California and the Sequoia Chamber Music Workshop. She has been soloist with the Old First Orchestra, Community Music Center Orchestra and the New Millenium Strings. She has been instrumental in managing San Francisco Sinfonietta orchestra during tours in Germany, Austria, Italy, Mexico, Nicaragua and Switzerland. Loretta Taylor is a graduate of San Francisco State University, magna cum laude. top
	Anja Strauss, Soprano German soprano Anja Strauss has established herself as one of the Bay Area's most sought-after singers. San Francisco Classical Voice called her recent performance of Frasquita in San Francisco Lyric Opera's Carmen "explosive". Originally from Lübeck, Germany, Anja Strauss has worked with such renowned German orchestras such as the Hamburg Symphony, the Kiel Philharmonic and the Schleswig-Holstein Symphony. She was the featured guest artist at the Millennium's Gala of the Klassik Philharmonie Hamburg and performed in a Gala Concert at the Teatro Bramante Urbania in Italy. In addition to operas and concert works, Ms. Strauss has performed an extensive repertoire of sacred music, ranging from Bach and Vivaldi to Respighi and Lili Boulanger. She has toured Germany, Poland, Italy and Slovenia. Other highlights include a performance of Mozart's Requiem for the September 11 Commemoration at Lincoln Center in New York City and the recording of the Petite Messe Solennelle by Rossini under her maiden name Anja Burmeister for the label Dabringhaus und Grimm. Anja Strauss graduated from the Juilliard School, where she studied with Cynthia Hoffmann, and from the Musikhochschule Lübeck (Germany), where her teacher was Prof. Günter Binge. She has appeared in Master Classes of Christa Ludwig, Bernd Weikl, Ubbaldo Fabbri, Elly Ameling and Barbara Bonney. Miss Strauss is a member of the San Francisco Sinfonietta. top
	Heather Haughn, Violin Heather received her Bachelor of Music degree from the Eastman School of Music where she studied with Lynn Blakeslee. She received a Master of Music degree from Rice University where she studied with Kathleen Winkler. Heather has performed as soloist and concertmaster with the Berkeley Symphony Orchestra and the San Francisco Concerto Orchestra. She has also served as concertmaster for Cal Performances, Golden Gate Opera, Pocket Opera, Ballet San Joaquin, and North Bay Opera. Ms. Haughn has performed chamber music throughout the United States. She was formerly the first violinist of the Bella Cosi String Quartet. Also a dedicated pedagogue, Ms. Haughn is on the faculty of the University of California, Berkeley, the Golden Gate Philharmonic Youth Orchestra, the Community Music Center of San Francisco, and teaches privately. Ms.Haughn is a member of the San Francisco Sinfonietta. top
	Allison Lovejoy, Pianist Principal pianist with the San Francisco Sinfonietta, Allison Lovejoy has performed internationally as a soloist, chamber musician, and accompanist. Her insightful and passionate performances have received wide acclaim, and her varied repertoire highlights virtuoso works of the late 19th and early 20th century. She has performed the Beethoven 5th Concerto with the Orchestra of the International Festival of Music in Nicaragua under the baton of Maestro Urs Leonhardt Steiner. She has also performed Rachmaninov's "Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini" and the Prokofiev Concerto No. 3 . She was a prizewinner in the San Jose Young Artist and the San Francisco Concerto Orchestra Competitions. A guest speaker and performer at the 1998 San Francisco Symphony all-Gershwin concert at Stern Grove, she regularly presents concert-talks throughout California. Miss Lovejoy received her M.M. from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, her B.M. from the University of the Pacific and the Royal Academy of Music in London. Her teachers include Robert Helps, Daniell Revenaugh, Mack McCray, Nathan Schwartz, Frank Wiens, and Gyorgy Sandor. She was also a participant in the Holland International Music Sessions for Young Artists, where she performed in master classes with John O'Conor and Marie-Francois Bucquet. She has recorded a CD of solo works by Rachmaninov, Ravel, Debusssy and Bartok on Metro Records, and will soon be releasing a CD of Nocturnes, as well as an album of her original cabaret compositions. Her music has been featured in the film "The Waves" at Cannes Film Festival 2004, and her recordings have been featured in several other short films. She has worked as composer, arranger, keyboardist, and vocalist on a variety of projects ranging from Baroque to Blues. Miss Lovejoy also toured as a member of the Trans-Siberian Orchestra in 2003. Miss Lovejoy is a faculty member at the Academy of Art University, the Community Music Center, and the New Mozart School of Music, she has held positions at the College of Notre Dame and Foothill College, and has led master classes in the United States and Nicaragua. top
	Ruth Keys, Flute Currently the Principal Flutist with the San Francisco Sinfonietta, Ruth Keys has performed locally and internationally with the organization and with the Community Music Center Orchestra. Born and raised in Philadelphia, Ruth Keys very sensibly relocated to San Francisco shortly after graduation from the Philadelphia College of the Performing Arts with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Flute Performance. She has studied with John Krell, John Wummer and Deborah Carter. Ms. Keys regularly plays with a number of Bay Area music organizations, makes frequent appearances as a solo recitalist and is a founding member of the quartet Fog City Flutes. Ms. Keys is currently engaged in the development of a comprehensive method of individual and group flute instruction. top
	San Francisco Sinfonietta - Board of Directors Urs Leonhardt Steiner, Founder and Music Director Edy O. Sennhauser, President William Grossman, MD Melanie Grossman, PhD Freddi Kirchner Kimberly Klaas Neil O' Donnell, Attorney George Perrenod, Jr., CEO top