World-class musicianship, with a Santa Barbara soul.

Emily Sommermann

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

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

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 holds degrees in viola performance and environmental studies from USC and master's degrees in viola performance and environmental science and management from UC Santa Barbara. He was named the USC Thornton School of Music's outstanding undergraduate in strings and has appeared at festivals including Bowdoin, Manchester Music Festival, Credo at Oberlin and Center Stage Strings. Cam serves on the viola faculty at Westmont College and maintains a private teaching studio.

Katrina Agate

Katrina Agate began studying the cello at the age of nine and has since worked with distinguished teachers including Clive Greensmith, Jacob Braun, and Jennifer Kloetzel. She has participated in masterclasses with renowned artists such as Yo-Yo Ma, Steven Isserlis, Alban Gerhardt, and Carter Brey, and attended the Music Academy in 2015, where she studied with David Geber and Alan Stepansky.

Katrina earned undergraduate degrees in Electrical Engineering and Music, with an emphasis in Cello Performance, from the University of California, Santa Barbara, where she was recognized with the UC Regents Scholarship, the Martin Kamen Fellowship for Strings, and the Outstanding Graduating Senior Award in Music. Her achievements also include first place in the senior instrumental category of the PASF Scholarship Competition and a full scholarship to perform at the KotorArts Music Festival in Montenegro, representing Santa Barbara.

She went on to earn a master’s degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of California, San Diego, in 2021, and continues to balance her career as an engineer with an active performing career. Her notable appearances include Carnegie Hall, performances with Coldplay at the Hollywood Palladium and the iHeartRadio Music Festival, and recording with the band on Coldplay: Reimagined.

Katrina is also a proponent of new music, most recently performing as part of BROILER, Oracle Egg’s residency series supporting the development of ambitious new work in sound and performance, in Los Angeles. In her free time, Katrina enjoys reading, tinkering with engineering projects, and baking sweet treats.