Pamela Highbaugh Aloni
phighbau@finearts.uvic.ca
BMUS California State University, Northridge
M.M. (Indiana), Artist-in-Residence
Cello, Lafayette String Quartet

Praised for her “meltingly beautiful solos” The Detroit News and for performances of “depth and insight” Times Colonist, Cellist Pamela Highbaugh Aloni has enjoyed performing both as a chamber musician and soloist in North America and Europe. Pamela is a co-founding member of the Lafayette String Quartet, Artists-in-Residence at the University of Victoria. With the ensemble she has won prizes in the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, the Portsmouth (England) International String Quartet Competition, the Cleveland String Quartet Residency Competition and in 1988 was cited as one of Musical America’s “Young Artists to Watch”.

A native of California, Ms. Highbaugh Aloni has appeared throughout California and later in Detroit, Michigan, where she served as principal cellist with the Renaissance City Chamber Players. She was a Ford Motor Company Artist-in-Residence at the Center for Creative Studies Institute of Music and Dance and a faculty member at Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan. Prior to this position she earned her BMus and MMus degrees in music from California State University, Northridge and Indiana University, respectively. Her principal teachers have included, Peter Rejto, Janos Starker and Paul Katz.

Since 1991, Pamela has been an Artist-in-Residence at the University of Victoria where she teaches both cello and chamber music courses. It is from this base in Victoria that she and the members of the quartet have continued to perform and record while maintaining their leadership in one of the strongest university string programs in Canada. The quartet celebrated the millennium year 2000 by devoting their season to the performance of all sixteen string quartet of Ludwig van Beethoven. Their recent CBC recording with Schubert’s “Death and the Maiden” was awarded “Outstanding Classical Recording of the Year” for 2003 by the Western Canada Music Awards.

In the summer, Ms. Highbaugh Aloni serves on the faculty at the Courtenay Youth Music School and Festival in Upper Vancouver Island. She has performed as soloist with the Victoria Chamber Orchestra and has been a  guest artist with various chamber groups including the Vetta Ensemble of Vancouver, the Victoria Summer Festival, Eine Kleine Summer Music, Chamber Music San Juan, the Victoria Symphony’s Summer Cathedral Series and is principal cellist with the Galiano Ensemble. She has recorded six compact discs for the Dorian, CBC and AdLar labels, has been heard on NPR’s St. Paul Sunday Morning, and can be regularly heard on the CBC radio two. She plays on a George Craske Cello made in England, 1850.