With an orchestral career spanning four decades, an extensive background in chamber music, and a deep commitment to teaching, Jennifer Ross brings a wealth of knowledge and a wholehearted approach to her teaching and performing. She began her professional life at the age of 19 as Associate Concertmaster of the Honolulu Symphony. She later became a member of the Cincinnati Symphony before being named Principal Second Violin of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, a position she held for nearly 20 years.

​

In 2017, Jennifer stepped away from full-time orchestra life to pursue new musical and creative ideas. Drawing on insights from years of experience, she’s developed a series of innovative workshops with the mission of demystifying the complex issues facing young musicians. She regularly presents these in-demand residencies at universities, conservatories, and festivals nationwide, including the Sphinx Competition, National Youth Orchestra of the USA, New World Symphony, and the National Orchestral Institute and Festival, where she has served as Artist in Residence for Orchestra Studies since 2007.

​

In addition to being a sought-after educator, Jennifer maintains an active role as a chamber musician and concert curator. She is a founder and Co-Artistic Director of Jackson Hole Chamber Music—a festival of world-class musicians presenting intimate concerts aimed to entertain, educate and affirm. Her notable chamber music collaborations include such artists as Yefim Bronfman, Pinchas Zukerman, Jaime Laredo, Denis Kozhukhin, Johannes Moser, and Lynn Harrell, with whom she had the great joy of performing frequently during the final years of his life.

​

Ms. Ross is a veteran performer at the Grand Teton Music Festival, where she has been featured on NPR’s Performance Today. She’s been a frequent guest with the Atlanta Symphony, the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, L’Orchestre Symphonique de Montreal, Iris Orchestra, Indianapolis Symphony, and the Seattle Symphony, and currently holds the Principal Second Violin chair of ProMusica Chamber Orchestra, a collective of 37 musicians from across the country.

​

In keeping with her commitment to diversity in classical music, Ms. Ross has had a close association with the Sphinx Organization since its inception. She has been a juror for the Sphinx Competition for Black and Latinx String Players, regularly serves on the competition screening committee, and was a panel guest at the 2019 Sphinx Connect Conference. As a member of the Sphinx Orchestral Partners, she is dedicated to supporting and guiding the careers of underrepresented musicians.

​

Ms. Ross was a student of Szymon Goldberg at the Curtis Institute of Music.