Aaron Westman

Violin and viola

Violinist and violist Aaron Westman was a “metal-head” growing up in Santa Rosa, CA.  Described as "expressive and virtuosic" (San Francisco Classical Voice) and a “brilliant virtuoso violinist” Early Music America Magazine), he has performed since 2006 as a chamber, principal player, or soloist with all of the major gut string ensembles in California, and toured extensively throughout the world. As a principal or chamber player, Aaron works with Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra (since 2006), American Bach Soloists, Ars Minerva, Bach Collegium San Diego, El Mundo, New Hampshire Music Festival, Hawaii Performing Arts Festival, Harmonia Stellarum Houston, LOBO, Long Beach Opera, Los Angeles Master Chorale, Musica Angelica, Opera Neo, Portland Baroque Orchestra, and Tesserae, and he has toured extensively with Orchester Wiener Akademie, including for four seasons with the actor John Malkovich.  He also plays with both the Oregon and Carmel Bach Festival Orchestras, and has worked with Vox Luminis (Belgium) choir, and the Mark Morris and Martha Graham Dance Companies. 

As a co-director of AGAVE, Aaron has recorded eight albums, edited all of them, and engineered four of them, including the GRAMMY®-nominated American Originals.  His work with AGAVE has been featured in The New York Times, Gramophone Magazine, BBC Music Magazine, Santa Rosa Press Democrat, and San Diego Union-Tribune.  AGAVE regularly collaborates with star singers Reginald Mobley––with whom they have three albums––sopranos Michele Kennedy and Jennifer Paulino, and alto Cecilia Duarte.  Their 2024-25 season takes them on tour again with Mr. Mobley, including a performance on the Boston Early Music Festival season series.  Aaron is also Associate Director of the Live Oak Baroque Orchestra, and was the violist in the Sylvestris Quartet, which was a finalist for the American Prize.

Aaron holds an MM from Indiana University Jacobs School of Music. His principal teachers were Stanley Ritchie, Elizabeth Blumenstock, Geraldine Walther, Alan de Veritch, and Theodore Arm. Aaron has been on the faculty at Sonoma State University and previously taught at Mills College and CalArts. He directs the Santa Rosa Symphony’s Young People’s Chamber Orchestra, and teaches in Italy each summer at the Music Adventure program.  In his spare time, he is an audio engineer and producer.  Aaron and his wife, fellow AGAVE violinist Anna Washburn, have a four-year-old daughter.