Aaron Janse —viola

Aaron Janse has performed across the globe as both a violinist and violist. Washington Post critic Daniel Gawthrop wrote of him, "Rarely have I heard Ravel's Tzigane played with such intensity and authority." After Janse performed Paganini's First Violin Concerto, the El Paso Times called him "a tour-de-force at any age."

He has performed as a soloist and chamber musician at venues such as Lincoln Center's Alice Tully and Avery Fisher Halls, Kennedy Center's Concert Hall, and Carnegie's Weill Recital Hall.

As a violist, Janse has performed, toured, and recorded with the Berlin Philharmonic under the direction of Bernard Haitink, Daniel Barenboim, and Simon Rattle. He has also performed many times as a violist with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra at the Ravinia Festival.

He has collaborated in chamber music performances with such esteemed artists as Gil Shaham, Alicia DeLarrocha, Joseph Silverstein, Charles Castleman, and Stephen Hough in such venues as the Aspen Music Festival, the Linton Series in Cincinnati, Sommerfest in Minneapolis, and the Las Vegas Music Festival. As a violinist with the Minnesota Orchestra, Janse has performed throughout the United States, Europe and Japan.

A recipient of the Fritz Kreisler Scholarship, Janse received his bachelor's and master's degrees at the Juilliard School, where he studied with Dorothy DeLay and Joel Smirnoff. His chamber music studies included extensive work with Felix Galimir, Joseph Fuchs, and Zoltan Szekely as well as the members of the Guarneri and Juilliard string quartets. While at Juilliard, Janse served as a teaching fellow for Dorothy DeLay as well as concertmaster of the Juilliard Orchestra.

Janse joined the Musical Offering for the 2004 – 2005 season.