Mary Brook Hartmann
Mary Brook Hartmann, 15, attends the Kinder High School for the Performing and Visual Arts in Houston under the music direction of Dr. Bradley Smith. She is returning for her 4th season with Virtuosi, currently as Principal Cello. She has been playing the cello since the age of 8. She currently studies with Richard Aaron, Professor of Cello at the Juilliard School and the University of Michigan, and with Max Geissler at Rice. She is a student at the Michael P. Hammond Preparatory Program at Rice’s Shepherd School of Music, where she studies with composer Grace Ann Lee and is coached by collaborative pianist Charlie Tauber. She won First Prize at the 2020 International Music Competition Grand Prize Virtuoso in Bonn, Germany, where she traveled to perform in August 2021. She has won prizes at the Immanuel and Helen P. Olshan Foundation Concerto Competition, the Houston Civic Symphony Young Artist Concerto Competition, and Texas MTNA. She has attended the International Cello Institute, the Eastman Cello Institute, Vivace, Orford Music Academy, Boulder Cello Festival, and Greenwood Music Camp. In addition to Virtuosi, she has earned positions in the Houston Youth Symphony’s top orchestra, the 2020 Texas All-State Orchestra, and is Principal Cello of the 2021 TMEA Region 23 Symphony Orchestra. Other passions include chamber music, classic film, and major league baseball.