The Strad magazine describes cellist Ani Aznavoorian as having “scorchingly committed performances that wring every last drop of emotion out of the music. Her technique is well-nigh immaculate, she has a natural sense of theater, and her tone is astonishingly responsive.” Ani has appeared as soloist with many of the world’s leading orchestras including the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Tokyo Philharmonic, the Helsinki Philharmonic, the Finnish Radio Symphony, the Boston Pops, and the Juilliard Orchestra. She received both her Bachelor and Master of Music Performance degrees from The Juilliard School in New York, where she studied with Aldo Parisot. 

Ani Aznavoorian is an avid chamber musician, and this season marks her 18th year as principal cellist of Camerata Pacifica. She also performs regularly at the Seattle Chamber Music Society and the Jupiter Chamber Players series in NY, along with numerous other chamber music festivals around the globe. Her many accolades include being the recipient of the prestigious Bunkamura Orchard Hall Award in Tokyo, Japan for her outstanding cello playing and artistry, being named a Presidential Scholar in the Arts upon receiving a medal by President Bill Clinton, and being a prize winner of the International Paulo Cello Competition in Helsinki, Finland. 

She is a proponent of new music and has expanded the cello concerto and chamber music repertoire with over three dozen commissions and world premiere performances. Highlights of her upcoming season include a tour of Germany and Slovenia, and a return performance of Dreammusik, a cello concerto written for her by Lera Auerbach. Ani records for Cedille Records and she proudly performs on a cello made by her father, Peter Aznavoorian, in Chicago.