Our Musicians

The musicians of the Hartford Symphony Orchestra bring the beauty of music to life- whether it is in Belding Theater at a Masterworks concert, in schools and in the community, or at the Talcott Mountain Music Festival. Each musician is dedicated to their craft and is continually providing exceptional performances. Here, you will get to know some of the musicians who make up this incredible orchestra!

Meet Jaroslaw Lis

Jaroslaw Lis received his Master of Music degree summa cum laude from the Frederic Chopin University of Music in Warsaw, Poland and was a recipient of the prestigious Polish Ministry of Culture scholarship. As a youngest member of the Sinfonia Varsovia he has worked with Yehudi Menuhin, Krzysztof Penderecki and Emmanuel Krivine as well as recorded for Denon and Aperto labels. He received an Artist Diploma and Master of Music degrees from the Yale School of Music.  He has studied with Jan Jakuc, Wojciech Malinski, Zofia Kuberska, Julia Jakimowicz, Krzysztof Jakowicz, Syoko Aki and the Tokyo String Quartet, and was a scholarship student of Nathan Milstein (Zurich, Switzerland). He has been a member of the Assai and Essex Quartets, receiving Second Prize at the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition with the Assai Quartet.

Position

Assistant Principal Second Violin

Started with the HSO

1994

Fun Facts!

Get to know Jarek outside of the concert hall!

Jarek is an avid cyclist. He used to take part in amateur races such as New Haven Grand Prix, Hartford Cycling Criterium, Killington Stage Race and legendary Maratona delles Dolomites. He placed in the top 10 percent of his age group in 2018 edition of the Maratona.

Jarek lives in West Hartford with his wife Malgosia, an accomplished piano pedagogue. Jarek and Malgosia have three children: Suzanne, Jakub and Milo. You can often see Malgosia’s students performing in the Bushnell Lobby as part of the Hartt Community Division!

“During the pandemic with the help of my dear wife Malgosia, we operated a very successful cottage industry bread making business Pain de Lis. Our specialty Sourdough Country Bread!”

Favorite HSO Memory

When asked what his favorite HSO memory was, Jarek said:

“One of my favorite memories was a performance during 2021 HSO Gala. Carolyn Kuan approached me about playing a short solo piece. This was in a midst of pandemic and the future of HSO and other arts organizations was in question, so it was particularly meaningful to play at that time and see an audience interest.”

This season, I am looking forward to…

“I am truly looking forward to the next season 2024-25 opening concert and soloing with my friend Lenny Sigal playing an iconic Navarra duo by Sarasate! In addition, I am delighted to be able to share the stage with my daughter, Suzanne, during the Vivaldi’s Gloria- she is performing as a featured vocal soloist.”

Previous Musician Highlight

Jarrod Briley joined the Hartford Symphony Orchestra as Principal Tuba for his first season in 2022. A native of Beaufort, North Carolina, he began as a trumpet player at age 11 and switched to the tuba at age 15. Jarrod attended East Carolina University, earning a B.M. in Music Performance in 2018. He then attended Bard College for an Artist Diploma before joining The Orchestra Now, an orchestral training master’s program at Bard College, earning a M.M. in Critical, Curatorial, and Performance Studies.

Check out Jarrod’s Spotlight!

Sangwon Lee joined the Hartford Symphony as Principal Clarinet in 2023. He has performed with orchestras all over New England, which include the Boston Philharmonic, Berkshire Opera Festival, Vermont Symphony, Dartmouth Symphony, New Bedford Symphony, Symphony New Hampshire, etc. As a chamber musician, Sangwon has shared the stage with the late Peter Serkin – performing the Beethoven and the Mozart Quintets for Piano with Winds in multiple performances in 2018.

Check out Sangwon’s spotlight.