Aadam Ibrahim was born in the west suburbs of Chicago where he began his viola studies at Wheaton College’s Community School of the Arts with Lisa Hirschmugl beginning at age five. At age 13, he began studying with Likuo Chang, the principal of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. At age 17, he also began working with Roland and Almita Vamos at Northwestern University’s Bienen School of Music. At age 20, he joined the then newly formed Barenboim-Said Academy in Berlin, Germany where he studied with Professor Wilfried Strehle - former principal violist of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. He is currently finishing studies under Peter Slowik at the Oberlin Conservatory and will go on to pursue a master’s degree under Kim Kashkashian at The New England Conservatory of Music.

Ibrahim has enjoyed the mentorship of many great musicians including Daniel Barenboim, Semyon Bychkov, Riccardo Muti, Nobuko Imai, Tabea Zimmermann, Pinchas Zukerman, Mihaela Martin, Shmuel Ashkenasi, Ralph Kirshbaum, Roberto Diaz, Paul Neubauer, and Bruno Pasquier. Ibrahim has been a top prize winner at the Pablo Casals International Festival in Prades, France, the George Gershwin International Competition, the American Protege International Competition, the Glen Ellyn-Wheaton Music Club competition and the Robert Stanger Concerto competition where he soloed with orchestra as the featured prize winner at the winners recital.

Ibrahim has performed as a soloist and chamber musician in the United States, Europe, and Asia. As a chamber musician, Ibrahim has been a member of the Ashkenasi-Kirshbaum Seminar of the Heifetz International Institute of Music along with the National Arts Center Young Artists Program, festivals where he worked with Roberto Diaz, Shmuel Ashkenasi, Ralph Kirshbaum and Pinchas Zukerman. Ibrahim has given chamber recitals with a variety of ensembles in Frank Gehry’s Pierre Boulez Hall in Berlin where he was able to work with musicians such as Mihaela Martin, Michael Barenboim, Frans Helmersson, and Daniel Barenboim. As an orchestral musician, his career has included the opportunity to be the associate principal violist of the Orchestra Iowa in Cedar Rapids, violist of the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, the youngest member of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago during the 2015-2016 season, principal violist of the Northwestern University Symphony Orchestra and Northwestern University Chamber Orchestra, and co-principal violist of the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra.

Ibrahim enjoys collaborating with friends and expanding his horizons in music in every possible way. He plays a viola crafted by Gand and Bernardel in 1879 on generous loan from the Chimei Foundation.