First year with SO: 2005

Hometown: Goldsboro, NC

Instrument: Jennifer performs on a 1697 Giovanni Battista Rogeri violin, generously donated to the Sarasota Orchestra by Ernest and Alisa Kretzmer.

Education:
Bachelor of Music – North Carolina School of the Arts; Master of Music – Manhattan School of Music

Biography:
A native of North Carolina, violinist Jennifer Best Takeda currently serves as the Assistant Concertmaster of the Sarasota Orchestra, as well as violinist of the resident Sarasota Piano Quartet.  Prior to joining the Sarasota Orchestra in 2005, Jennifer served as a Concertmaster of the New World Symphony, under the direction of Michael Tilson Thomas.

An active chamber musician, Jennifer has performed chamber music in the New York Historical Society and the "Meet the Composers" series at Columbia University, and was a member of Manhattan School of Music's new music group, Claremont Ensemble, among others.  Most recently, Jennifer has performed with the Chroma Quartet, a string quartet she co-founded in 2008 that has enjoyed great success and performed throughout Florida to critical acclaim.

Her vast orchestral experience includes performances with The Florida Orchestra, Kennedy Center Opera House Orchestra, North Carolina Symphony, New World Symphony, Naples Philharmonic, New York Chamber Opera, National Repertory Orchestra, National Orchestral Institute Orchestra, Spoleto USA Festival Orchestra.  In recent summers, she has performed with the Sun Valley Summer Symphony, Santa Fe Opera, served as Associate Concertmaster and faculty of Eastern Music Festival and served as Concertmaster of the Crested Butte Music Festival.

Jennifer's principal teachers have included Elaine Richey, Nicholas Mann, Robert Mann, Mitchell Stern and Sylvia Rosenberg.

Passions/Interests:
When not busy performing or practicing, she enjoys spending time with her husband and her greatest achievement to date, young son Carter.