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The American player on Baroque violin, viola and viola d'amore, Tekla Cunningham, received her musical training at Johns Hopkins University and Peabody Conservatory (where she studied History and German Literature in addition to violin) (1993-1996), Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst, in Vienna, Austria (1996-1999), and at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, where she completed a Master’s degree with Ian Swenson (1999-2001).
Tekla Cunningham enjoys a varied and active musical life. At home in Seattle, she is concertmaster of Stephen Stubbs' Pacific MusicWorks (since 2009), principal second violin with Seattle Baroque Orchestra & Soloists, and plays regularly as concert-master and principal player with the American Bach Soloists (Director: Jeffrey Thomas; since 2001) in California. She directs the Whidbey Island Music Festival (since 2006), a summer concert series presenting vibrant period-instrument performances of repertoire ranging from Monteverdi to L.v. Beethoven.
Tekla Cunningham has appeared as concertmaster/leader or soloist with the American Bach Soloists, Baroque Chamber Orchestra of Colorado, Seattle Baroque Orchestra, and Musica Angelica Baroque Orchestra (Los Angeles, Director: Martin Haselböck). She has also played with Apollo's Fire (Director: Jeannette Sorrell), Los Angeles Opera, Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, and at the Carmel Bach Festival, San Luis Obispo Mozart Festival, Indianapolis Early Music Festival, Savannah Music Festival and the Bloomington Early Music Festival. She has worked with many leading directors including Rinaldo Alessandrini, Giovanni Antonini, Harry Bicket, Paul Goodwin, Martin Haselböck, Monica Huggett, Nicholas McGegan, Rachel Podger, Jordi Savall, Stephen Stubbs, Jeffrey Thomas, Elizabeth Wallfisch and Bruno Weil.
An avid chamber musician, Tekla Cunningham enjoys exploring the string quartet repertoire of the 18th and early 19th century with the period-instrument Novello Quartet, whose abiding interest is the music of Haydn. She is also a member of La Monica, an ensemble dedicated to music of the 17th century, whose concerts have been reviewed as “sizzling”, and praised for their “irrepressible energy and pitch-perfect timing”. With Jillon Dupree, harpsichord, and Vicki Boeckman, recorders, she plays in Ensemble Electra, known for its inventive programs and energetic performances.
Tekla Cunningham can be heard on recordings with the American Bach Soloists, Apollo's Fire, Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra, Seattle Baroque Orchestra, San Francisco Bach Choir, various movie soundtracks including Disney’s Casanova, La Monica’s recent release "The Amorous Lyre", a recording of repertoire of Merula and his contemporaries and the Novello Quartet’s recording of Haydn’s Op. 50 string quartets. This summer she recorded W.A. Mozart’s Flute Quartets with Janet See, Laurie Wells and Tanya Tomkins.
Tekla Cunningham teaches Suzuki violin in both German and English and is on the early music faculty of Cornish College for the Arts (since 2010). She is Artist in Residence at the University of Washingtom: School of Music (since May 2015); Director of University of Washington Baroque Ensemble. |
