Santa Barbara's premier string ensemble for weddings and private events.The Santa Barbara String Quartet (SBSQ) has been providing live music for thousands of couples over the past 30 years! The SBSQ have an extensive repertoire from traditional wedding music to contemporary renditions of covers. They are a flexible group and can perform as a mini-orchestra, trio, duo or solo instrumentalists. To give you a tailored entertainment experience, The SBSQ are happy to fulfill special requests.
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Our Musicians
Emily Sommermann, violin, manager
Emily Sommermann is an accomplished violinist whose passion for music resonates through her dynamic performances. Her musical journey began in New York, where she received her foundational training under esteemed instructors Alan Arnold, Nathan Gottschalk, and Isidor Cohen of the Beaux Arts Trio. Emily earned her Bachelor of Music degree from SUNY Albany and her Master of Music degree from The University of NY at Stony Brook. Emily's orchestral experience is extensive, having played in the Chicago Youth Symphony, Albany Symphony Orchestra, Long Island Symphony Orchestra, and Springfield (IL) Symphony Orchestra. Summer festivals include the North Carolina School of the Arts and Chautauqua Institution. In California, Emily took on the role of assistant concertmaster of the Santa Barbara Civic Light Opera Orchestra and as a section violinist with the Santa Barbara Symphony and the Santa Barbara Chamber Orchestra. She recently was seen playing with the Santa Barbara Chamber Players and as concertmaster for the Santa Barbara Master Chorale orchestra. Emily leads the Santa Barbara String Quartet, a highly sought-after ensemble that adds beauty and elegance to private events. Currently, Emily is an Instructor of Violin and Chamber Ensemble at Cate School and Westmont College and continues to nurture students in her private studio. She enjoys cycling, gardening, and traveling. |
Anna Corcoran, violin
Anna Corcoran holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Music from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music where she received the Sergei Barsukov scholarship for four years of study under Axel Strauss and Ian Swensen. She earned a Master’s Degree from the University of California, Los Angeles where she studied with Guillaume Sutre and held the position of first violinist of the VEM String Quartet that traveled as far as Yerevan, Armenia to perform concerts for the public. Anna currently performs with New West Symphony, Orchestra Santa Monica, the Long Beach Symphony and Santa Barbara String Quartet among other groups spanning Southern California. She teaches a private studio at Craft Music where she focuses on creating well-rounded musicians who are healthy and thriving in their musical endeavors. Anna is dedicated to many genres of music and enjoys fiddling and collaborating on new works for performance and film. |
Cam Audras, viola
Polymathic at heart, Cam Audras believes musicians possess the power to serve as advocates for social good. He has performed with Pink Martini, the Santa Barbara Symphony, Opera Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara Chamber Players, Santa Barbara String Quartet, and the Santa Cruz Symphony. Cam has appeared on the main stage with Judy Collins, as well as at Bowdoin International Music Festival, Manchester Music Festival, Credo Chamber Festival at Oberlin Conservatory, and Center Stage Strings at the University of Michigan. Cam holds Bachelors and Master's degrees in viola performance and environmental science from the University of Southern California (USC) and UC Santa Barbara and was honored to be selected as the USC Thornton School strings department’s outstanding undergraduate. He has performed in masterclasses for Kim Kashkashian, Rachel Barton Pine, and Dimitri Murrath, and his principal teachers were Jonathan Moerschel, Che-Yen (Brian) Chen, Yura Lee, and Helen Callus. He teaches at Westmont College, and is passionate about hiking, travel, and walkable cities. |
Jacqueline Greenshields, cello
Jacqueline Greenshields has been a member of the Santa Barbara musical community since 1983. She has been a member of the Santa Barbara Symphony since that time and was the principal cellist of the Santa Barbara Chamber Orchestra for 35 years. In 1990 she traveled to Australia where she played in the West Australian Symphony Orchestra in Perth for that year. She was also a member of The American Sinfonietta, a chamber orchestra that toured Europe many times and had its summer home in Bellingham, Washington. Jackie attended the Music Academy of the West for three summers where she was a student of Gabor Rejto. She received her Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Oklahoma in 1979 and her Master of Music degree from the University of Southern California in 1981. She is very active as a chamber musician and has a full studio of cello students both young and old. In her spare time Jackie enjoys long distance hiking, scuba diving at the Channel Islands, long distance cycling, swimming, reading, and playing with her dachshunds. |