Philip Setzer

Violinist Philip Setzer, a founding member of the 9-time Grammy-Award-winning Emerson String Quartet, was born in Cleveland, Ohio.  He began studying violin at the age of five with his parents, both former violinists in the Cleveland Orchestra. He continued his studies with Cleveland Orchestra concertmasters Josef Gingold and Rafael Druian, and later at the Juilliard School with Oscar Shumsky. In 1967, Mr. Setzer won second prize at the Merriweather Post Competition in Washington, DC, and in 1976 received a Bronze Medal at the Queen Elisabeth Competition in Brussels.

Mr. Setzer is currently serving as Distinguished Professor of Violin and Chamber Music at Stony Brook University and Artistic Director of Strings Chamber Music at the Cleveland Institute of Music.  He is the Artistic Director of the Manchester Music Festival in Vermont and is also the Director of the Shouse Institute at the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival in Detroit.

Mr. Setzer continues to tour and record the piano trio repertoire with David Finckel and Wu Han in the Han-Finckel-Setzer trio.  He lives in NJ with his wife of 40 years, Linda Setzer, and is the very proud father of daughter Katia Berry and adorable granddaughter Ava Berry.