Dr. Kate Carter is a versatile performer based in Chicago with experience ranging from soloist to chamber and orchestral musician. A prizewinner in various competitions, Kate’s performances as soloist and with various ensembles have been heard across the US and internationally. She made her Carnegie Hall solo debut in February of 2014.
As a concerto soloist, Kate has performed many times with the Elmhurst Symphony, with whom she is Assistant Concertmaster. Other concerto appearances have included the works of Beethoven, Sibelius, Mozart, Haydn, Saint-Saëns, Bloch, and more with the Mid-Columbia Symphony, Whiting Park Festival Orchestra, South Orange County Chamber Orchestra, and others.
An avid chamber musician, Kate appears regularly in series throughout Chicago as a member of Blue Violet Duo, whose critically acclaimed debut CD was released in September 2018. Blue Violet has been invited to repeat engagements on the Dame Myra Hess series, broadcast live on WFMT Chicago. Kate performed as a guest artist with the acclaimed Grossman Ensemble at the University of Chicago in the 2021-22 season. Kate also appears frequently as guest artist with ensembles including Fulcrum Point New Music Project, International Chamber Artists, and Access Contemporary Music.
As an ensemble member, she has recorded for Cedille Records with Camerata Chicago, as well as the Chicago Jazz Philharmonic and Ensemble Nouvelle Epoque. She has performed with Chicago-area orchestras including the Lyric Opera Orchestra, Grant Park Symphony, Music of the Baroque, and she is a musician member of The Chicago Philharmonic Society.
Kate is passionate about teaching violinists of all levels and has held teaching assistantships at the Eastman School of Music, Northwestern University, and the Meadowmount School of Music. She is a frequent guest clinician, adjudicator, and chamber music coach with various schools and youth orchestras in Chicago. She currently holds teaching positions at Lake Forest College, Northwestern University Music Academy, and North Park University. Her students have won top prizes at the Illinois Music Association State Olympics and are members of area orchestras including the Chicago Youth Symphony and Midwest Young Artists. In summer of 2016 and 2017, some of her top students performed in the Grant Park Young Artists’ Showcase alongside some 60 of their peers from music schools throughout Chicago.
An in-demand speaker and clinician, Dr. Carter has lectured on peak performance and managing performance anxiety at the ASTA National Conference, ISMTA State Conference, Northeastern Illinois University, Chapman University, the Orange County School of the Arts, Marywood University, North Shore Music Teachers’ Association, and others. She is a member of the Chicago Musicians Club of Women, where she served as the Performance Chair for the 2020-21 and 2021-22 concert seasons.
Kate holds a Doctorate of Music in Violin Performance from Northwestern University, where she received the Emma Peters Hooper scholarship and was teaching assistant to Gerardo Ribeiro. Kate received her Master’s Degree from the Eastman School of Music on scholarship, where she was teaching assistant to Lynn Blakeslee. Her previous instructors include Haroutune Bedelian and William Fitzpatrick.
