Thomas Wright began
his music studies at age 5 and brought with him an extensive background of
performing and teaching when he joined the viola section of the Chicago
Symphony Orchestra in 1981. Born and raised in Washington, D.C., from his
earliest years he studied with Mark Ellsworth, former assistant concertmaster
of the Pittsburgh Symphony under Fritz Reiner. He later attended Oberlin
Conservatory but left after a year to pursue the creative opportunities of
original rock music, playing guitar and electric viola. Some years later, he
chose to reenter classical music and, after one season as principal viola of
the Kennedy Center Opera Orchestra, he auditioned for Sir Georg Solti and was
accepted. As well as viola, Wright handles mandolin duties for the orchestra.
September
2012
Biography provided by artist or artist’s representative
