Join our Grammy-winning Artistic Director, Zuill Bailey, alongside Yuriy Bekker, Concertmaster and Artistic Director of the Charleston Symphony for intimate discussion and a preview of Wednesday evening’s concert in Ketchikan. A chance to ask questions and meet the artists in an intimate space.
Generously sponsored by Bawden Street Brewing Co.
Thank you to Ketchikan Area Arts and Humanities Council for hosting!
Program: announced from the stage
About the Artists
Zuill Bailey
Zuill Bailey, widely considered one of the premiere cellists in the world, is a Grammy Award winning, internationally renowned soloist, recitalist, Artistic Director and teacher. His rare combination of celebrated artistry, technical wizardry and engaging personality has made him one of the most sought after and active cellists today.
Mr. Bailey has been featured with symphony orchestras and music festivals worldwide. He won the Best Solo Performance Grammy Award in 2017, for his recording of Michael Daugherty’s “Tales of Hemingway,” with the Nashville Symphony led by Giancarlo Guerrero. His extensive discography includes his newest release – the world premier recording of Ellen Taaffe Zwilich’s Cello Concerto with the Santa Rosa Symphony. In 2021 he released his second recording of the Bach Cello Suites for PS Audio’s Octave Records label, recorded and mixed in stereo and multichannel sound.
He appeared in a recurring role on the HBO series “Oz,” and has been heard on NPR’s “Morning Edition,” “Tiny Desk Concert,” “Performance Today,” “Saint Paul Sunday,” BBC’s “In Tune,” XM Radio’s “Live from Studio II,” Sirius Satellite Radio’s “Virtuoso Voices,” and his latest disc of Bach Suites was the disc of the week on Sirius’ Symphony Hall.
Mr. Bailey received his Bachelor’s Degree from the Peabody Conservatory where he was named the 2014 Johns Hopkins University Distinguished Alumni, and received a Master’s Degree from the Juilliard School. He performs on the “rosette” 1693 Matteo Gofriller Cello formerly owned by Mischa Schneider of the Budapest String Quartet.
He is the Artistic Director of El Paso Pro-Musica (Texas), the Sitka Summer Music Festival/Series and Cello Seminar, (Alaska), Juneau Jazz and Classics, (Alaska), the Northwest Bach Festival (Washington), Classical Inside Out Series- Mesa Arts Center (Arizona) and is Director of the Center for Arts Entrepreneurship and Professor of Cello at the University of Texas at El Paso.
Zuill Bailey, widely considered one of the premiere cellists in the world, is a Grammy Award winning, internationally renowned soloist, recitalist, Artistic Director and teacher. His rare combination of celebrated artistry, technical wizardry and engaging personality has secured his place as one of the most sought after and active cellists today.
A consummate concerto soloist, Mr. Bailey has been featured with symphony orchestras worldwide, including Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Detroit, Indianapolis, Dallas, Louisville, Honolulu, Milwaukee, Nashville, Toronto, Colorado, Minnesota, Utah, Israel, Cape Town, Philharmonia (UK) and the Bruchner Orchestra in Linz, Austria. He has collaborated with such conductors as Itzhak Perlman, Alan Gilbert, Andrew Litton, Neeme Jarvi, Giancarlo Guerrero, James DePriest, Jun Markl, Carlos Kalmar, Andrey Boreyko, Krzysztof Urbanski, Jacques Lacombe, Grant Llewellyn and Stanislav Skrowaczewski. He also has been featured with musical luminaries Leon Fleisher, Jaime Laredo, the Juilliard String Quartet, Lynn Harrell and Janos Starker.
Mr. Bailey has appeared at Disney Hall, the Kennedy Center, the United Nations, Alice Tully Hall, the 92nd St. Y and Carnegie Hall, where he made his concerto debut performing the U.S. premiere of Miklos Theodorakis’ “Rhapsody for Cello and Orchestra.” In addition, he made his New York recital debut in a sold out performance of the complete Beethoven Cello Sonatas at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Bailey also presented the U.S. premiere of the Nico Muhly Cello Concerto with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra. World premieres include works by composers such as Lowell Lieberman, Phillip Lasser, Roberto Sierra, Alistair Coleman, Benjamin Wallfisch, Ellen Taaffe Zwilich, Jeff Lippencott and Michael Daugherty.
His international appearances include notable performances with the Moscow Chamber Orchestra in its 50th anniversary tour of Russia as well as concerts in Ukraine, Korea, Australia, the Dominican Republic, France, Israel, Spain, South Africa, Hong Kong, Jordan, Mexico, South America and the United Kingdom. Festival appearances include Ravinia, the Interlochen Center for the Arts, Manchester Cello Festival (UK), Wimbledon (UK), Consonances- St. Nazaire ( France), Australian Festival of Chamber Music, Deia Music Festival- Mallorca (Spain), Montreal (Canada), Santa Fe, Caramoor, Chautauqua, Bravo!, Vail Valley, Maverick Concert Series, Brevard, Interlochen, Cape Cod and the Music Academy of the West. In addition, he was the featured soloist performing the Elgar Cello Concerto at the Bard Festival in the World Premiere of the Doug Varr
Yuriy Bekker
Yuriy Bekker is a critically acclaimed conductor, violinist, and passionate community ambassador. He has led the Charleston Symphony Orchestra as Artistic Director since 2021, while concurrently serving as Concertmaster since 2007 and Principal Pops Conductor since 2016. Bekker previously served as the orchestra’s Acting Artistic Director from 2010 to 2014 and has long demonstrated vision and dedication to the CSO. In 2011, he received the Outstanding Artistic Achievement Award from the City of Charleston in recognition of his cultural contributions to the community.
Bekker is currently Distinguished Professor of Practice at the College of Charleston School of the Arts (CofC), serving as Director of the College of Charleston Orchestra, where he has engaged internationally renowned soloists such as Augustin Hadelich and Sarah Chang, leading to sold-out performances. In 2023, Bekker led the CofC Orchestra on its first tour, culminating in a Kennedy Center debut. He previously served as Music Director of the Piccolo Spoleto Festival’s Spotlight Chamber Music Series and is co-founder of the Charleston Chamber Music Intensive, a summer program for high school and college-aged musicians. During the summer, he also regularly serves on the faculty of both the Gingold Chamber Music Festival in Miami, FL and the Nelli Shkolnikova Academy in the Loire Valley, France.
In 2025, a multi-year initiative reached its peak when the Charleston Symphony Orchestra, Charleston Youth Symphony, and College of Charleston Orchestra shared the stage at Carnegie Hall in a gala celebrating Charleston’s vibrant cultural community — and marking Maestro Bekker’s Carnegie conducting debut. His vision, fundraising, and tireless advocacy made this extraordinary evening possible.
Yuriy Bekker has performed internationally as a guest concertmaster, chamber musician, conductor, and soloist. He has served as concertmaster of the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra and the AIMS Festival in Graz, Austria, and has held positions with the Houston Symphony, Houston Grand Opera, and Houston Ballet. In addition to performing over a dozen violin concerti with the CSO, he has also appeared as guest concertmaster with the Vancouver Symphony, Ulster Orchestra, Buffalo Philharmonic, and Kansas City Symphony. His festival and venue appearances include the European Music Festival (Stuttgart), Pacific Music Festival (Japan), Spoleto Festival USA, Aspen Music Festival, The Kennedy Center, Chicago Chamber Music Society, and many others across the U.S. and abroad.
From the podium and in chamber settings, he has collaborated with artists including Itzhak Perlman, Augustin Hadelich, Gil Shaham, Sarah Chang, Joshua Roman, Alexander Kerr, Andres Cardenes, Robert DeMaine, and Ilya Kaler. As Principal Pops Conductor of the CSO, he has led performances with celebrated entertainers such as Ben Folds, Tony DeSare, Ellis Hall, Ranky Tanky, and Cirque de la Symphonie.
Bekker is a passionate champion of contemporary music. He has recorded new works by Edward Hart and Thomas Cabaniss to critical acclaim. His recording of Hart’s Under an Indigo Sky reached the Top 10 on Billboard’s Classical Albums chart. His debut CD, Twentieth Century Duos, received international praise and a nomination for the International Classical Music Awards.
Bekker earned a Graduate Performance Diploma from the Peabody Conservatory as a student of Herbert Greenberg. He also holds Bachelor's and Master's degrees from the Indiana University School of Music, where he studied violin with Nelli Shkolnikova and Ilya Kaler. His conducting teachers and mentors have been Christopher Wilkins, David Zinman, Imre Palló, and David Effron.
Born in Minsk, Belarus, Yuriy Bekker is now a proud U.S. citizen, husband to his wife, Jenny, and father to their children, Nathanael and Charlotte. He performs on the 1638 Franz Degen Andrea Guarneri violin, generously on loan from an anonymous patron.
About the Sitka Music Festival
The Sitka Music Festival (SMF) inspires audiences, sparks creativity, and strengthens community across Alaska through live chamber music performances, music education, and training by artists of the highest caliber.
For over 50 years, SMF has presented classical music at the highest artistic standards. Throughout its history, SMF musicians have shared their music with Alaskans who would otherwise not have access to live chamber music of the highest caliber and, in turn, Alaskans have shared their music, traditions, and ways of life with the visiting musicians. These shared experiences have taken SMF musicians to more than 40 Alaskan communities, many of which are small, remote villages off the road system. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, SMF remains dedicated to bringing exceptional music experiences to communities statewide.