Yani Quemado

Yonatan Quemado (USA) is a promising violinist of tremendous versatility. Praised for his iridescent lyricism, smouldering tone and innovative programming, Quemado has received international acclaim for his performances throughout North America and Europe. 

Quemado is ardently dedicated to chamber music, and he is a founding member of the Kannas Quartet and the Resiliencia Ensemble. He has appeared at the Montecito International Music Festival, the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, the Brevard Music Festival, Aurora Music Festival and the National Orchestral Institute. He has performed alongside such distinguished musicians as Kerson Leong, Kolbjørn Holthe, Giovanni Guzzo, Pekka Kuusisto, Andrés Cárdenes, Hiyoli Togawa, the Meta4 Quartet, members of the Kamus Quartet, Tracy Silverman, and Noah Bendix-Balgley. 

Frequently sought after as an orchestral musician, Quemado is a member of the Helsinki Chamber Orchestra, and has performed with the Lahti Symphony Orchestra, Lohja City Orchestra, Pori Sinfonietta, and the Nashville Opera. Formerly, he was Assistant Principal Violin I of the Lappeenranta City Orchestra, concertmaster of the Renova Music Festival Orchestra, concertmaster of the Sibelius Academy Symphony Orchestra, and Concertmaster of the Vanderbilt Commodore Orchestra. He served under the batons of Erkki Lasonpalo, Sir Colin Davis, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Leonard Slatkin, Sakari Oramo, Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Leif Segerstam, Lawrence Loh, Jaan-Eik Tulve, Osmo Vänskä, and Manfred Honeck.

Quemado is hailed as an emergent fearless flagbearer of new music. He was invited as a visiting artist to the What ever Works! Contemporary Music Festival and the Korvat Auki concert series, and was featured as a soloist with the NYKY Ensemble at the Musica Nova Helsinki Festival. He has collaborated on recordings and concerts with several vanguard ensembles inlcluding the Pekka Toivonen Ensemble, the Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble, ensemble recherche, the Eschaton New Music Ensemble, and Klangforum Wien, as well as with prominent composers such as Kalevi Aho, Nico Muhly, Aino Juutilainen, Áslaug Magnusdottìr, Michael Kurek and Robert Ruohela.

A native of Pittsburgh, PA, Quemado received his early training from Peter Snitkovsky at the City Music Center at Duquesne University, and he won first prize at the 2013 Pittsburgh Youth Symphony Orchestra Conducting Competition. He earned a B.Mus degree from Vanderbilt University where he studied with Stephen Miahky, Carl Smith and John Kochanowski, and later completed a M.Mus degree, studying with Kaija Saarikettu, Timo Koskinen, Paavo Pohjola and Tero Latvala at the Sibelius Academy.

Quemado plays a modern violin by Florentine maker Paolo Vettori, and a bow by American bow-maker Roger Zabinski.