About us...
Having launched our inaugural season in the fall of 2011, we are a dynamic group of young professional musicians based in Richmond, Virginia comprised of members of the Richmond Symphony and faculty members at institutions such as Virginia Commonwealth University, the College of William and Mary, and the University of Richmond.

While showcasing the talent of the Richmond area on the national stage through recording and touring, our mission is to build new kinds of connections with the people of our community via innovative programming, formats, venues, and community interaction, as well as through partnerships with local organizations.

With our unique combination of strings, winds, and piano, we continue to program a great variety of musical styles for forces both large and small, with a firm commitment to programming works seldom heard due to their unusual instrumentations.

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ACE Musicians
Born in South Carolina, but considers Colorado her home, violinist Alana Pritchard Carithers graduated in 1999 from Northwestern University with a double Master of Music degree in violin performance and pedagogy. After serving as Assistant Concertmaster and Principal Second of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, she became assistant Principal Second violin in Colorado Springs Symphony.
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She currently serves as violinist with the Richmond Symphony and the Oberon Quartet. Her musical endeavors have brought her recent opportunities as guest soloist, concertmaster, clinician and teacher in five recent trips to multiple cities in the People's Republic of China. She lives in Richmond with her husband and three children.
photo by Keitara Harada
photo by Victoria Carl
Susanna Klein is Associate Professor of Violin and Coordinator of Strings at Virginia Commonwealth University. Originally from Stuttgart, Germany, she has enjoyed a varied career as a violinist, educator and innovator. She has performed in orchestra and chamber music settings in Germany, France, Switzerland, Italy and Israel,as well as throughout the United States. Currently she serves as violinist with both Trio 826, based in Iowa, and the trailblazer group Atlantic Chamber Ensemble (ACE) in Richmond.
Ms. Klein is author of the Practizma Practice Journal and creator of the IOS app Clipza and the Practice Blitz YouTube Channel. She researches technology and musician's practice habits and is currently working on a book about Empowered Practice Psychology. In 2017 her work was funded through a VCU Presidential Grant, the University's most prestigious award research Ms. Klein regularly presents workshops on the psychology of practice at Colleges and conferences. Her work has been featured in The Strad, Strings Magazine, the Instrumentalist Magazine, Chamber Music America Magazine, and on National Geographic Instagram. Read more about all of her activities at practizma.com
As an orchestral musician, Ms. Klein served as principal second violin of the Richmond Symphony for five years. Other full-time orchestral appointments have been with the Colorado Symphony, Memphis Symphony, Vermont Symphony (as acting concertmaster) and Rhode Island Philharmonic. She has performed at the Wintergreen Performing Arts Festival, Lake George Music Festival NY, Cedar Valley Chamber Music Festival IA, Loon Lake Live! NY, and at the Musique au Fivales in France. Ms. Klein can be heard on the compact discs of One Ring Zero, Modern Groove Syndicate as well as on the Klavier and the Griffin Classical Chamber music labels.
Ms. Klein holds a Bachelor of Music degree from VCU and Master of Music degree from Boston University, where she was an assistant to the legendary violinist Roman Totenberg. Ms. Klein lives in Richmond with her two boys and her husband, jazz musician John Winn.
Kimberly Sparr is Associate Professor of Viola at Louisiana State University. Equally skilled as a soloist, chamber and orchestral violist, she has garnered praise for her versatility and virtuosity across the United States and beyond. She is a founding member of the Atlantic Chamber Ensemble and is currently on faculty of the Brevard Music Center..She is also assistant principal violist of the Colorado Music Festival and plays with the trio, Scabaret.
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As an orchestral violist, Sparr was the assistant principal violist of Virginia’s Richmond Symphony from 2008-13 and has performed with the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, National Symphony Orchestra, and the Washington National Opera, among others. Her festival participation includes Jackson Hole Chamber Music; New Hampshire Music Festival; Tanglewood Music Center; the Verbier Festival Orchestra in Switzerland; Festival Mozaic and Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music in California; Sarasota Music Festival; and the Lake George Music Festival in New York. Recently, she has been an invited guest with Agarita and the Harrington String Quartet.
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Sparr has appeared as a concerto soloist with the Amarillo Virtuosi, the Pittsburgh Civic Orchestra, the Texas Tech University Symphony Orchestra, Colorado Music Festival Orchestra, and the Lubbock Symphony Orchestra. An enthusiastic educator, Dr. Sparr has previously served on the faculties of Texas Tech University, The College of William and Mary, and University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC).
Jason McComb has been the Assistant Principal Cellist of the Richmond Symphony since 2002. Having received his early musical training in his native Portland, Oregon, Jason earned a Bachelor of Music from The Juilliard School where he studied with Joel Krosnick and Zara Nelsova. He then went on to study with Bonnie Hampton at The San Francisco Conservatory of Music where he received a Master of Music in both cello and chamber music.
Jason has participated in many festivals including Aspen, Musicorda, Kent/Blossom, Banff and Tanglewood, where he was awarded two prizes for outstanding cellist. Among numerous chamber music performances are ones with Joel Krosnick, Donald Weilerstein, Mischa Amory, Ian Swensen, William Preucil and the Miami String Quartet. He has been a member of Orchestra London Canada, and has served on the faculty of Brandon University in Canada.
A very active teacher, Jason has a private studio and is on the faculties of the University of Richmond, University of Mary Washington, and Virginia Commonwealth University. In 2009 he performed the Dvorak Cello Concerto with conductor, Keith Lockhardt.
Jason lives in Richmond with his wife, cellist Dana McComb, and his three sons.
Flutist Jennifer Debiec Lawson joined the Richmond Symphony in the fall of
1995. Jennifer is currently the Assistant Principal/Second Flute, and she held the position of Third Flute and Piccolo for seven seasons prior to that. In addition, she plays Piccolo and Assistant Principal Flute with the Grant Park Symphony Orchestra in Chicago, Illinois, and is the Principal Flutist with the Williamsburg Symphony.
Ms. Lawson is on the faculty at the University of Richmond and maintains a private studio locally. Jennifer is a graduate of the North Carolina School of the Arts, where she completed high school and continued on to receive her Bachelor of Music degree, studying with Philip Dunigan. She received her Master of Music degree from The Juilliard School in New York, where she studied with Julius Baker.
Jennifer was the winner of the Flute Talk Magazine Competition in 1990.
photo by Keitaro Harada
photo by Keitaro Harada
Shawn Welk is the Assistant Professor of Oboe at the University of Oklahoma and Principal Oboe of the Williamsburg Symphony in Williamsburg, Virginia. Before his appointment at OU, Mr. Welk served fourteen years as Associate Principal Oboe and Principal English Horn of the Richmond Symphony in Richmond, Virginia and seven years as Co-Principal Oboe of the “President’s Own” U.S. Marine Band and Marine Chamber Orchestra in Washington, D.C.
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During his years with the “President’s Own,” Mr. Welk performed concerts in the White House, Washington D.C. metro area, overseas, and across the United States as concerto soloist, tour soloist, chamber player, and principal musician. His solo appearances with the band and chamber orchestra included performances of John Harbison’s Concerto for Oboe, Clarinet and Strings, Frank Martin’s Trois Danses for Oboe, Harp and Strings, Jules Demersseman's William Tell Fantasy, and Samuel Barber's Capricorn Concerto. In 2003 he performed J.S. Bach’s Concerto for Oboe and Violin at the White House for President George H. W. Bush and visiting heads of state.
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With the Richmond Symphony, Mr. Welk served as soloist, chamber musician, and educational program leader, designing innovative music education shows for elementary and middle school students, commissioning new chamber works, and arranging music for the Richmond Symphony Woodwind Quartet. In 2015 he performed on the RSO Masterworks series as English horn soloist in The Swan of Tuonela by Jean Sibelius.
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In the summer of 2008, he was appointed Principal Oboist of the New York Symphonic Ensemble, performing annual summer concert tours across Japan and in 2016 was appointed Principal Oboist of the New Hampshire Music Festival in Plymouth, NH. For the 2013–14 season, he served as Acting Principal Oboe of The Florida Orchestra in Tampa, FL. Mr. Welk has also performed with the Baltimore Symphony, Milwaukee Symphony, Kennedy Center Opera, Tulsa Philharmonic, Aspen Festival Orchestra, and the Staunton Music Festival. An active chamber musician, Mr. Welk is a core member of D.C.’s acclaimed Fessenden Ensemble and executive director of Richmond’s innovative and award-winning Atlantic Chamber Ensemble.
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A passionate educator, Mr. Welk has served on the faculties of the Virginia Commonwealth University, the Catholic University of America, and the University of Richmond. He has presented masterclasses and recitals in Japan, China, and across the United States, and he holds performance degrees from the University of Oklahoma and the University of Rochester's Eastman School of Music. In 2016, Mr. Welk began a Doctor of Music degree at Indiana University's Jacobs School of Music.
Jared Davis served as Associate Principal/Second/Eb Clarinetist of the Richmond Symphony for over 10 years. He has also served one year positions as Acting Principal Clarinet with the Richmond Symphony and Acting Second Clarinetist with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra.
He has performed with the Virginia Symphony, the North Carolina Symphony, the Colorado Music Festival, the New Hampshire Music Festival, the Wintergreen Music Festival, and the Williamsburg Sinfonia. Other engagements include performances with the Chamber Music Society of Central Virginia, The Richmond Chamber Players, and the Staunton Music Festival.
He has twice been a guest artist at the International Clarinet Association conference, and in 2000, was a semi-finalist in the International Clarinet Association’s Solo Competition. Other musical ventures have taken him to England, Belgium, and France, and most recently, he had the honor of joining the Detroit Symphony on their tour of Japan and China in July 2017.
Thomas Schneider joined the Richmond Symphony as Principal Bassoon in September of 2012. Before joining the RSO, Tom was a fellow for two years at the New World Symphony in Miami Beach under the direction of Michael Tilson Thomas. Tom holds a Bachelor of Music degree from the Oberlin Conservatory and a Master of Music degree from the University of Maryland, and his primary teachers are Sue Heineman, George Sakakeeny, Yoshi Ishikawa, and Debbie Torpe.
Tom has appeared at many of the country's top festivals including the Tanglewood Music Center, National Orchestral Institute, National Repertory Orchestra, and the Sarasota Music Festival. In the fall of 2014, Tom made his debut solo appearance with the RSO, performing Peter Schickele's Bassoon Concerto. Outside music, Tom loves to read, play soccer and climb the beautiful mountains in his native Colorado
Russian-born pianist Maria Yefimova has established herself internationally as a recitalist, chamber musician, and orchestra soloist, performing in Italy, Spain, England, Slovakia, Croatia, Russia, and the United States. She made her orchestral debut with the Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra, and subsequently has performed with the Tambov Philharmonic Orchestra and the William and Mary Symphony Orchestra.
Ms. Yefimova made her Carnegie Hall debut in 2004, with a critically acclaimed solo recital presented by Artists International. She was invited back for three consecutive Carnegie Hall re-engagements from 2007-2009. Maria's festival appearances include Velo Music Festival and Meranofest in Italy, Rachmaninoff Music Festival in Russia, and Water Island Music Festival in the US Virgin Islands. As an avid chamber musician she has collaborated with such artists as Dmitry Berlinsky, Joe Burgstaller, Eric Jacobsen, Cyrus Beroukhim, Julian Gargiulo, Elizabeth Brightbill, and Andrew Gabbert, among many others.
Often heard on TV and Radio broadcasts, Ms. Yefimova has appeared on the Bravo TV network, Slovak National Television, Paradise Radio in US Virgin Islands, and Tele Monte Orlando in Italy, to name a few. She was featured in a film documentary Women of Music, which aired on Bravo. A competition prizewinner, Maria received awards from Artists International, the Five Towns Music & Art International Piano Competition, the Lillian Fuchs Chamber Music Competition, and the Kuznetsk Young Artists Piano Competition. She was awarded diplomas at the Hummel International Piano Competition and the Hilton Head International Piano Competition. Ms. Yefimova graduated with honors from Moscow State Conservatory, and came to the United States on a full scholarship to the Manhattan School of Music, where she earned both Masters and Doctor of Musical Arts Degrees. Maria's principal teachers include Arkady Aronov, Yury Slesarev, Nina Dunaeva, and Yelena Tatulian. She has participated in masterclasses with such renowned pedagogues as Claude Frank, Boris Berman, Sergio Perticaroli, Lev Natochenny, and Eugene Indjic.
Dr. Yefimova has taught applied piano at the Manhattan School of Music and is currently on the piano faculty of the College of William and Mary.
Daniel Stipe is equally at home as a solo recitalist, collaborator and arranger on both the piano and the organ. He earned a BM in organ and piano performance from the University of North Texas in 2006, studying with Adam Wodnicki and Jesse Eschbach. He served as assistant university organist at the University of the South from 2007-2010, and he earned a MM in organ performance from Westminster Choir College in 2012 studying with Ken Cowan. He served for five years as Director of Music at Trinity Lutheran Church in Richmond, VA from 2013-2017.
He is a prizewinner in the William Hall Pipe Organ Competition in San Antonio, the Tulsa Crescendo Music Awards, the Fort Wayne National Organ Playing Competition, and the AGO/Quimby Region VII Competition for Young Organists. In 2022 he was a featured recitalist at the convention of the Association of Anglican Musicians in Richmond.
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As a collaborator, Daniel has worked with dozens of vocal and choral ensembles, and has an extensive knowledge of the string and wind repertory. He is a founding member of the Piedmont Singers of Central Virginia, a professional octet focusing on works by living composers. He was chosen to be one of the staff accompanists for the 2020 Menuhin International violin competition. He plays regularly with the Richmond Symphony. Since 2007 he has served as accompanist for the North Texas Children’s Choir festivals in Dallas, working with acclaimed clinicians like Ruth Dwyer, Herbert Washington, Julie Yu, and Rollo Dilworth.
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Daniel lives in Richmond, where he serves as accompanist for the Central Virginia Masterworks Chorale and the Richmond Symphony Chorus, and as principal organist at All Saints Episcopal Church. He also manages the concert series at Trinity Lutheran Church. Since 2017 he has tuned and serviced pianos in the Richmond area. In his spare time he enjoys road cycling, hiking, role-playing games, and good literature.