THE SEATTLE SYMPHONY ANNOUNCES NEW AND RETIRING MUSICIANS

FOUR NEW MUSICIANS JOIN THE SYMPHONY FOR THE 2022/2023 SEASON

TWO MUSICIANS RETIRE AFTER DECADES OF MUSICAL CONTRIBUTIONS

From left: Helen Kim, Associate Concertmaster; Emerson Millar, Second Assistant Concertmaster; Kipras Mazeika, contrabassoon; Eden Garza, bass trombone.

Seattle, WA – The Seattle Symphony announces four new musicians, all of whom made their Symphony debuts at the start of the 2022/2023 season. The Symphony welcomes violinist Helen Kim as the Clowes Family Associate Concertmaster, violinist Emerson Millar as Second Assistant Concertmaster, contrabassoonist Kipras Mazeika to the woodwinds section and bass trombonist Eden Garza to the brass section. The Seattle Symphony additionally announces the retirements of two longtime members of the orchestra: Associate Principal Second Violin Michael Miropolsky and flutist Judy Washburn Kriewall.

Associate Concertmaster Helen Kim joins the Symphony after most recently serving as the Associate Principal Second Violin of the San Francisco Symphony, and Second Assistant Concertmaster Emerson Millar was previously the Co-Concertmaster of the Naples Philharmonic in Naples, Florida. Seattle’s own Kipras Mazeika joins the orchestra playing bassoon and contrabassoon after graduating from Rice University, and joining on bass trombone is Eden Garza, who recently earned his master’s degree from the University of Texas at Austin.

The Seattle Symphony also warmly acknowledges the decades of musical contributions from two retiring musicians, Michael Miropolsky and Judy Washburn Kriewall. Miropolsky joined the orchestra in the 1991/1992 season and was the first musician to hold the position of John & Carmen Delo Associate Principal Second Violin. Kriewall joined the Seattle Symphony in 1979, making her exit after 43 years of service as a member of the orchestra’s flute section.

HELEN KIM | ASSOCIATE CONCERTMASTER

Helen Kim enjoys a multi-faceted career that has her regularly performing across the Americas, Europe and Asia. Since her concerto debut at the age of 8, she has given performances at the Kennedy Center, Carnegie Hall, BBC Proms, Suntory Hall and Disney Hall, among others. In recent seasons, Kim has made concerto appearances with orchestras such as the St. Louis Symphony, Reno Chamber Orchestra, Aspen Festival Orchestra and the Colorado Music Festival Orchestra. Kim has collaborated with a number of conductors, including Nicholas McGegan, Peter Oundjian and Jun Märkl. She has performed works for solo violin on San Francisco Symphony’s Soundbox series and on the Pulitzer Arts Foundation's contemporary music series. Most recently, Kim was the Associate Principal Second Violin of the San Francisco Symphony from 2016 to 2022 before joining the Seattle Symphony as the Clowes Family Associate Concertmaster.

EMERSON MILLAR | SECOND ASSISTANT CONCERTMASTER

Emerson Millar began her tenure as the Co-Concertmaster of the Naples Philharmonic in Naples, Florida, in 2018. Millar attended the New World Symphony and is a graduate of the Colburn School in Los Angeles, where she studied with Robert Lipsett. As an orchestral musician, Millar has appeared as guest Concertmaster with the Nashville Symphony and she served as the Concertmaster of the New World Symphony, the Debut Orchestra of the Young Musicians Foundation and as the Associate Concertmaster of the American Youth Symphony. A recipient of the New Horizons Fellowship at the Aspen Music Festival, she performed as the Assistant Concertmaster of the Aspen Festival Orchestra in the summer of 2015. She has been a participant at the Verbier Festival and the Tanglewood Music Center, where she performed Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 4 as Concertmaster with Giancarlo Guerrero conducting. In March 2018, as a winner of the New World Symphony concerto competition, she performed the Barber Violin Concerto with conductor Edwin Outwater. Originally from Ithaca, New York, Millar grew up on a 100-acre organic farm. She currently plays on a French violin made in 1897 by H.C. Silvestre.

KIPRAS MAZEIKA | CONTRABASSOON

Kipras Mazeika is local to Seattle and earned a bachelor’s degree in Bassoon Performance from Rice University. He studied with Benjamin Kamins and was a recipient of the Louis Sudler Prize in the Arts. Previously, Mazeika studied with Francine Peterson and was a member of the Seattle Youth Symphony Orchestra. He has appeared as a soloist with the Seattle Symphony, Shepherd School Symphony Orchestra, Seattle Collaborative Orchestra and the Seattle Wind Symphony. He is a three-time Fellow at the Music Academy of the West and has performed with the London Symphony Orchestra, Oregon Symphony and Bellingham Festival Orchestra. Passionate about community engagement, Mazeika was a coordinator for the Shepherd School’s Just For U music program, where he organized and performed concerts for various elementary and middle schools in the Houston area as well as made an introductory bassoon video for young audiences.

EDEN GARZA | BASS TROMBONE

Eden Garza is a native of South Texas and received a master's degree from the University of Texas at Austin, where he studied with Dr. Nathaniel Brickens, and his bachelor's degree from Texas A&M University Kingsville, where he studied with Dr. Oscar Diaz. As a soloist, Garza has been featured with TAMUK’s Jazz Band I, South Texas Trombone Sound, TAMUK Trombone Choir, TAMUK Wind Symphony at the Texas Music Educators Association Conference, University of Texas Trombone Choir at the Texas Music Educators Association Conference, IF with the University of Texas Trombone Choir, TAMUK Trombone Choir at the Midwest Clinic, and at the ITF's Composers Workshop. Garza was awarded first prize for various competitions, including the Edward Kleinhammer Orchestral Bass Trombone Competition, the Big 12 Bass Trombone Competition, the Donald Yaxley Solo Bass Trombone Competition, the ITA Trombone Quartet Competition and the Hungarian Online Trombone Competition. Garza also serves as a faculty member for the University of Washington School of Music.

SEATTLE SYMPHONY

The Seattle Symphony unleashes the power of music, brings people together and lifts the human spirit. Recognized as one of the “most vital American orchestras” (NPR), the Seattle Symphony is internationally acclaimed for its inventive programming, community-minded initiatives and superb recordings on the Seattle Symphony Media label. With a strong commitment to new music and a legacy of over 150 recordings, the orchestra has garnered five Grammy Awards, 27 Grammy nominations, two Emmy Awards and was named Gramophone’s 2018 Orchestra of the Year. The Symphony performs in Benaroya Hall in the heart of downtown Seattle from September through July, reaching over 750,000 people annually through live performances and radio broadcasts, and through the Seattle Symphony Live streaming service, the orchestra’s concerts reach audiences at home and around the world.

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Helen Kim’s position is generously underwritten as the Clowes Family Associate Concertmaster.