A Chamber Orchestra for the 21st Century

WHAT WE DO    •    ORCHESTRA    •    MUSIC DIRECTOR    •    BOARD AND STAFF

Since 2009, the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber Orchestra has crafted performances that tell the story of the human experience in new ways. SMCO features music by composers of under-represented groups, such as women and people of color, on every performance. A professional ensemble flexible in size and instrumentation, SMCO is made up of adventurous artists hailing from all over the United States, Asia, and Europe.

In SMCO’s primary Orchestral Series, audiences experience a diverse variety of music through themes relevant to our world, curated from the stage with verbal insights. Secret Chamber Music brings intimate SMCO small-ensemble performances into homes, galleries, and other private locations. SMCO’s cross-genre projects have featured collaborations with DJs, visual artists, and dancers for unique events in nightclubs and unexpected spaces.

SMCO finds new ways to tell the story of communities of the greater Seattle metropolitan area through music. The SMCO Out Loud! Program seeks to inspire future generations of musical minds with hands-on artistic experiences.

Watch and listen to past SMCO performances

Violin
Caitlin Kelley, Concertmaster
Allion Salvador, Asso. Concertmaster
Pamela Liu, Asso. Concertmaster
Rachel Nesvig, Principal Second
Liza Zurlinden
Libby Phelps
Jiyeon Yeo
Eleanor Legault
Christina Xiaowan Wu
Jenny Kim
Lauren Eastman
Bryan Djunaedi
Kathy Shaw
Janet Utterback-Peck

Viola
Tricia Wu
Kelly Moore
Aleida Gehrels
Brian Hillyard
Elizabeth Boardman
Evan Uebelacker
Brian Jankanish

Cello
Adrian Golay
Soohyun Juhn
William Spengler
Erika Pierson
Colin Meek
Lauren McShane

Bass
Attila Kiss
Bryan Kolk
Rose Gear

Piano
Anastasia Solomatina
Amanda Harris
Jeremy DesChane

Organ
Susanna Valleau

Harp
Lauren Wessels

MUSIC DIRECTOR

American conductor Geoffrey Larson serves as Music Director of the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber Orchestra, Resident Conductor of the Windsor Symphony Orchestra (Ontario), and Music Director of the Windsor Symphony Youth Orchestras. At home on both the symphonic and operatic stage, he served on the conducting staff of Berkshire Opera Festival for eight seasons, acting as Assistant Conductor and Chorus Master. Geoffrey's adventurous, multi-genre projects have harnessed the storytelling power, rich variety, and universal relevance of orchestral and operatic music to engage new audiences.

In December 2021, Geoffrey was awarded second prize in the International Orchestral Conducting Competition “UAL” in Spain, after competing with 126 conductors from 26 countries. He has conducted orchestras such as the South Bend Symphony, Spokane Symphony, Bainbridge Symphony, Northwest Mahler Festival, National Radio and Television Orchestra of Albania, Pleven Philharmonic (Bulgaria), and Carlsbad Symphony Orchestra (Czech Republic).

In the world of opera, he has collaborated with artists such as Tamara Wilson, Joshua Blue, Duke Kim, Caroline Worra, and Daniel Belcher. Working closely with baritone Sherrill Milnes, he served as Assistant Conductor for Mozart's Don Giovanni at the Estates Theatre in Prague, the site of the work’s premiere. In 2024, he led the development workshop of The Reef, a new opera by the Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Anthony Davis, giving the work’s concert premiere at Merkin Hall in New York City. Other contemporary opera projects include his collaboration with soprano Laquita Mitchell and members of the Seattle Symphony for a new staging of Tom Cipullo’s opera Josephine, presented by Music of Remembrance. His other opera credits include Puccini's La bohème, Suor Angelica and Gianni Schicchi, Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas, Chabrier’s L’étoile, Strauss’ Ariadne auf Naxos, Donizetti’s Don Pasquale, Tom Cipullo’s Glory Denied, and Verdi’s La Traviata, Rigoletto, and Falstaff.

Passionate about equity of access and increased inclusion in classical music, Geoffrey’s performances with the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber Orchestra each feature works by composers of under-represented groups, such as women and people of color. He has demonstrated a deep commitment to the works of living composers, premiering works by Gabriel Prokofiev, Erberk Eryılmaz, Clarice Assad, Randall Woolf, and Reza Vali.

Geoffrey is currently completing a doctoral thesis at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music under the mentorship of Arthur Fagen and Thomas Wilkins. He has served as Assistant Conductor of IU Opera and Ballet Theatre, working with David Neely, Kevin Murphy, and Walter Huff. He previously studied with the late Robert Page at Carnegie Mellon University, where he conducted performances and recording sessions of the Carnegie Mellon Philharmonic. His recording with the Carnegie Mellon Contemporary Music Ensemble appears on NAXOS Records. Geoffrey participated in master classes at London’s Royal Academy of Music at the personal selection of the late George Hurst, and he studied at the Pierre Monteux School under the tutelage of Michael Jinbo. He has benefited from additional studies with Nicolás Pasquet, Rodolfo Saglimbeni, Carl St. Clair, James Ross, Peter Erös, Ronald Zollman, and Michael Christie.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Steve Reeder, President

Marcia Johnson, Director

Andrew Fox, Director

Credit for images on this page
Top ensemble image: Carlin Ma. Middle image of SMCO artists: Dawndra Budd. Image of Music Director Geoffrey Larson: Sean Salamon.