Concertmaster

What is a concertmaster?

The concertmaster is the principal or “first chair” violinist who leads the orchestra in its tuning prior to the concert and customarily plays all violin solos within pieces. The concertmaster also marks the orchestra’s scores with the appropriate bowings to ensure all the violinists are moving and playing in unison, offers suggestions to other string sections, and translates instructions from the conductor into specific technical language for strings.

Sandra Sundstrom

Sandy grew up in Colorado Springs, CO, in a family of musicians. She was involved in orchestras, choirs, and bands throughout her youth, and earned her bachelor of music in education with an instrumental major and choral minor from Arizona State University. Sandy has taught band, choir, and orchestra in all levels of education, elementary through college.

In 2010, she and her family moved to Grand Junction, and she is the Grand Junction Symphony Orchestra (GJSO) Principal Second Violinist. She also plays with High Desert Opera and Rockestra. She has an active private studio teaching violin, viola, and cello, and her quartet performs in churches and for area events. She plays in regional gigs, performs regularly in Aspen for summer weddings, and is a recurring violin coach for Camp Con Brio. Sandy has adjudicated for the District 51 (D51) Solo/Ensemble, and local auditions, and judged the Colorado West Invitational Music Festival in 2013. She was an active member of the GJSO Board for many years and served on their music director search committee.

In 2013, she started as a paraprofessional in Mesa County School District. Sandy has assisted orchestras at several middle schools, and in 2014, she was a long-term sub for choirs at a local high school. She retired from D51 in the fall of 2023.

Sandy and her husband, Dan, have two daughters, a son, and four grandchildren. They absolutely love living in Grand Junction: the people, surrounding views, and connections they’ve made.