Music Mia Bella

Selected reviews:

Mia Bella was a joy to work with! She was extremely organized and stayed on top of all details to ensure that the music for our wedding was what we expected. Mia Bella incorporated all of our specific music requests, but was also flexible in offering her own input and ideas when asked. Mia Bella went out of her way to add some of the additional music we were looking for. All of our guests were so pleased with the full quartet performance and the music was thoroughly enjoyed. —Annie (wedding)

Mia was amazing. She was early, very professional and interactive with our residents who really enjoyed her performance. She did a variety of songs that got our audience active in her music. I would hightly recommend her to anyone who books her. She is a very talented musician. —Sheila (Fallbrook Woods Assisted Living memory care)

Excellent performance! Despite the wind and the hot sun, Mia Bella and Volkhard Lindner gave us an excellent performance! I would recommend Mia Bella to anyone looking for a professional violinist to give a performance at a public event. —Isabel (Parsons Memorial Library)

Exceptional! She made the event (my guests are still talking about her). Her music is beautiful with a wide repertoire to accommodate all tastes. She has the perfect demeanor and knows how to please her audience. We would hire her again without hesitation. —Ed and Alfreida (private party, and I played for them again at their son’s wedding 2 years after this!)

Bio:

I play the violin, compose, and love chamber music of all kinds. On alternating days I have been found playing brand new music, Haydn string quartets, Argentine tango, drone metal, free improvisation, and in a professional orchestra. I am a substitute violinist with the Portland (Maine) Symphony Orchestra and co-founder of Duo Mycorrhizae, a violin duo dedicated to exploring the vibrancy of new and old sound worlds.

Before I moved to southern Maine in 2019, I lived in Oakland, CA for 9 years. There, I was a member of the Town Quartet (a traditional string quartet), Sl(e)ight Ensemble (flute/violin/piano trio of original compositions with Erika Oba and Jacob Lane), and Redwood Tango Ensemble (a sextet for new chamber music led by bandoneonist Charles Gorczynski), among other projects. I was assistant principal second with Livermore Valley Opera from (phone number hidden)9, and for the 2017-18 season I was interim assistant concertmaster with the North State Symphony. I have sat concertmaster for ensembles including Camellia Symphony Orchestra, Mercury Soul Orchestra, and Slavyanka Russian Chorus and Orchestra. As an orchestral musician, I started playing in the back of the second violin section at age 7 in a local community orchestra, the Paradise Symphony Orchestra.

Working with living composers is a big part of my life, especially time spent with those listed above and Ian Carey, Brett Carson, Andrew Jamieson, Roscoe Mitchell, and Lewis Patzner. My collaborations often include venues that are not a concert hall, from art galleries to bars and living rooms, since I believe this is the future classical music (as it is the past). Studying with Gloria Justen, I received a BA in Music Performance from Mills College in 2014. While at Mills, my chamber music coaches were Joan Jeanrenaud, William Winant, and Robert Schwartz, and my free improvisation and composition teachers were Fred Frith and Roscoe Mitchell.

I take lessons to this day. I continued studying with Gloria Justen after college and have also worked with Charles Dimmick, Ramiro Gallo, Frederick Lifsitz, and Catherine Van Hoesen. As a teacher myself, I have been a guest chamber music coach at CSU Chico (with the Town Quartet), Hayward Odd Fellows Youth Chamber Music Project, and MTAC Butte County. I am attentive to each player’s drive to learn, working on technique and musicianship with the help of established method books and personally developed material. I encourage students to use their own knowledge of music to create pieces and exercises as they progress. I believe that through exploration and personal initiative, anyone can embrace their creativity and be a musician.

For daytime outdoor events, shade is necessary to protect delicate instruments. Cover must be provided in the case of rain or threatening weather

Good light is important for reading music; if notified I can provide my own lighting

As a solo performer, I will need a chair only if there are breaks during my performance time. For duos, trios, and quartets the group would require 2-4 armless chairs