About Us
5280 String Quartet
6
About Us
Chris Menter
Violin
Syracuse native Chris Menter began playing violin at age 8 in her public school’s orchestra program. By high school she was a proud “orch dork” and chose to spend many free periods (and perhaps some math classes) practicing alone on stage in the auditorium. She holds a Bachelor of Music degree from Ithaca College and a Master of Music degree from the University of Colorado-Boulder. Chris is principal second violin of the Fort Collins Symphony and Boulder Chamber Orchestra, and performs with Opera Colorado, Greeley Philharmonic Orchestra, Boulder Philharmonic Orchestra, and Pro Musica Colorado, and is a violinist with 5280 String Quartet. Chris has built a multi-faceted career as a musician in Denver. In addition to teaching private violin and viola students, she is personnel manager and librarian for Boulder Chamber Orchestra and Director of Live Music for dj Maestro. Although she has resided in the Denver-Boulder area since 2003, Chris still experiences “wait, I live in Colorado?!” moments thanks to the natural beauty of our state. She enjoys hiking and wishes she could spend more time exploring the mountains.
Mary Evans
Violin
Mary Evans is a versatile violinist with a deep passion for a wide array of musical styles. She currently holds a position with the Colorado Springs Philharmonic and actively performs with various regional groups, including the Boulder Philharmonic, Fort Collins Symphony, Greely
Symphony, and Cheyenne Symphony, and she is a member of the 5280 String Quartet. Her love for chamber music is evident in her extensive experience with string quartets, piano trios, and even Schoenberg’s Pierrot Lunaire. A highlight includes her 2016 performance of the
Brahms Double Concerto with cellist Chas Barnard in the final round of the UO Concerto/Aria competition. With a strong foundation in early music, Evans has studied baroque violin under notable instructors and performed with ensembles such as the University of Colorado Boulder Early Music Ensemble and the University of Oregon’s annual Musicking Conference. Dedicated to new music, Evans has premiered numerous works for organizations like the Oregon Composer’s Forum and the University of Colorado Boulder Pendulum Ensemble. Her commitment to contemporary compositions is further showcased by her premiere of a solo violin suite by Isabel Austin, a solo performance of a violin concerto by Ramsey Sadaka, and a recent collaboration with percussionist Ryan Pride in the Bruce Eckstrand Graduate Performance Competition.
Allyson Stibbards
Viola
Allyson Stibbards joined the Altius Quartet in June of 2020, and is a member of the 5280 String Quartet. A native to Colorado, she began playing the violin at the age of five and viola at
the age of ten. She has been a soloist with the University of Colorado Symphony Orchestra, Longmont Symphony Orchestra, and Greater Boulder Youth Orchestra. Allyson received her Bachelors degree from the University of Colorado in 2018. She continued her studies at the New England Conservatory and received her Masters in Music Performance
in the spring of 2020. Allyson had the opportunity to study with incredible violists such as Geraldine Walther, Erika Eckert, Cathy Basrak, Stephen Wyrczynski, and Jeff Irvine. She has spent her summers at the Aspen Music Festival, Green Mountain Chamber Music Festival, and Tanglewood. She has also been a substitute at the New World Symphony and a participant at
the New York String Orchestra Seminar. Community engagement has been an important part of Allyson’s work over the past few years. At NEC, she was a storytelling fellow and an ensemble fellow in the Community Programs and Partnerships program. The concerts she performed as part of this program were geared towards children of diverse backgrounds and took place in schools and libraries across Boston. In addition to music, Allyson enjoys camping, yoga, and hiking with her dog Ryder.
Erin Patterson
Cello
A native of Huntsville, AL, cellist Erin Patterson joined the internationally acclaimed Altius Quartet in May of 2019. She began playing the cello at age three, and made her solo debut at age 17 performing Elgar’s Cello Concerto with the Huntsville Symphony Orchestra. Erin has performed in masterclasses for world renowned cellists such as Rafael Rosenfeld, Alisa
Weilerstein, Pieter Wispelwey, Paul Watkins, Alan Harris, Tamas Varga, Fred Sherry, and Richard Aaron. During her summers she has been a participant of the Sewanee Summer Music Festival, the Brevard Music Festival, the Meadowmount School of Music, the Green Mountain Chamber Music Festival, the Brancaleoni International Music Festival in Piobbico, Italy, the Vermont Mozart Festival and the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra Institute. Erin is a previous member of the Grammy nominated all-cello ensemble, Uccello. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in cello performance from the University of Cincinnati College – Conservatory of Music, where she studied with Alan Rafferty, and a Master’s Degree in cello performance from McGill
University’s Schulich School of Music, where she studied with Matt Haimovitz. Erin plays on acello made in 2002 by Michael Stürzenhofecker and a bow by François Malo.