Chas Barnard is a proud three-summer alum of the Music Academy of the West, where he was the recipient of the Susie and Ted Cronin Cello Scholarship. He has also served on the summer staff as the Chamber Music Specialist, performed on the Mariposa Series as a guest artist, and won the London Symphony Orchestra - Keston MAX Audition, leading to performances with the LSO under Simon Rattle and Gianandrea Noseda. Chas is grateful for the many wonderful experiences the Music Academy provided him. Now, as the Manager of Fellow & Alumni Engagement, he enjoys contributing to the organization's future and helping to create transformative opportunities for the next generation of fellows and alumni.
Before moving to Santa Barbara, Chas was a member of the Lírios Quartet, the Graduate Quartet-in-Residence at the University of Colorado-Boulder, studying under the Takács Quartet and David Requiro. He also maintained a successful freelance career as a member of the Boulder Philharmonic and Boulder Chamber Orchestra, and frequent substitute with the Colorado Symphony Orchestra. Additionally, Chas is the co-founder of the Sohap Ensemble, a soprano-cello duet with his wife, Sabina Balsamo. Together, they commission, record, and present out-of-the-box musical experiences, including a children's chamber opera, Colorado Sky by Ben Morris and Laura Fuentes, which features innovative shadow puppetry.