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Cellist Anne MacQuarrie gave us the scoop on her involvement with the ESO and how she got started...

How long have you played with ESO? 

I joined the ESO in the Fall of 2021.

What instrument do you play and how did you gravitate to that instrument? 

I started the cello in the 5th grade in the South Milwaukee public schools. I chose the viola initially, but the orchestra director steered me toward cello because I was tall and had long fingers.

What piece is on your bucket list to play with ESO and why? 

Two pieces come to mind: First, Prokofiev’s Suite from Lt. Kije , because I always love Prokofiev’s melodies and orchestration, and I would love to hear my husband, Scott MacQuarrie, the principal trumpet in the ESO, play the trumpet parts!  Second, Tchaikovsky’s Serenade for Strings always pulls at my heartstrings. It never fails to make me cry.

Biography

Anne (DerHovsepian) MacQuarrie joined the ESO in the Fall of 2021. She grew up in a musical family in a suburb of Milwaukee, and graduated from Northwestern University with a bachelor’s degree in Cello Performance. 

While playing as a member of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, she shifted her career aspirations to orchestra management, taking positions in the administrative offices of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago and the Chicago Symphony Chorus. After seven years with the Civic, she became Assistant Orchestra Personnel Manager of the CSO. Since 2004, her duties have included managing all CSO auditions. 

Anne and her husband, Scott MacQuarrie, principal trumpet in the ESO, raised their two daughters in Glenview, IL.