About Quist Violins
Jim Quist began playing the violin at the age of 8 in the Seattle School Orchestra Program. Years later, tutored by the gifted violist Karl Allred of the Utah Symphony, he prepared for university studies while performing as principal violin and viola for several local, state and national youth symphonies and string ensembles. At the age of 14, he began teaching fellow students in weekly private lessons and, by his senior year in high school, was contracted as the youngest substitute orchestra teacher in the State of Utah.
A music scholarship at Brigham Young University provided Jim with many opportunities to hone his craft, mentored by the esteemed viola professor, David Dalton – former student and colleague of the internationally renowned violist, William Primrose.
In 1989, the Quist family moved to Bellingham where Jim established a studio of 65 private students while also teaching string classes in the public schools, managing and conducting a youth symphony, summer chamber music camps, and adult fiddle classes.
A strong advocate for music education, Jim has served as an adjudicator for the San Juan Region Solo & Ensemble
Competition and the Mt Baker Youth Symphony and Western Washington University Concerto Competitions. In 2020, he was awarded “Friend of Music - San Juan Region of the Washington State Music Educator's Association” for his contribution and support of music education in Northwest Washington.
When a local luthier passed away in 1993, Jim was asked to manage the violin shop until the estate was settled. Finding that his teaching experience transferred seamlessly into customer service, he thoroughly enjoyed helping students and experienced players alike with the expertise and insight that he had developed as a performer and educator. In 1995, Jim and his wife, Anna-Marie, established Quist Violins, where they continue to share their love of music with the community.
MIKE KENNEY:
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After many years of performing restoration work for shops in Boston and Chicago, Mike Kenney relocated to the East Seattle area where he continues to practice the craft from his home workshop. He is a member of the Violin Society of America and an active participant in the Oberlin Restoration Workshops. It has been our pleasure to be working with Mike since early 2020, providing repair and restoration services to our local Bellingham musicians.
JANE PERKINS:
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Jane Perkins grew up playing the violin in the San Francisco Bay Area and went on to study music at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and Notre Dame de Namur University. Her teachers include Isadore Tinkleman, Asbjorn Finess, and Avis Aasen-Hull. She has performed as a member of Master Sinfonia Chamber Orchestra, West Bay Opera Orchestra, and Santa Cruz Symphony, and has served as principal violist in the Whatcom Symphony. She was a founding member of the Cascade Ensemble and has also performed in numerous solo recitals throughout Northwest Washington. Jane is presently a member of the Skagit Symphony and has been teaching violin and viola at Quist Violins since 1996. In addition to her private teaching, Jane is our resident bow hair specialist, having trained in bow rehairing at the UNH Violin Craftsmanship Institute.