Born in Kansas City, Emily Stewart is a Los Angeles-based violinist, arranger, and educator. She started her career at age eighteen, and has since performed with internationally renowned artists including Stevie Wonder, Andrea Bocelli, Placido Domingo and more. Emily has contributed significantly to the design, development, and implementation of progressive music education programs in both public and independent schools.
Belonging to a denomination of string players who have transcended their classical background, Emily is a creative artist in her own right. She holds a Doctorate of Musical Arts in violin performance from Boston University and studied improvisation, composition, and arrangement with legendary multi-genre violinist Didier Lockwood in France. She has composed and performed for film and television, and most recently wrote and recorded the closing theme for the upcoming film Beyond the White Veil, which will premiere in 2021. In 2018 she and her partner formed the contemporary Indie Pop group Automatic Hangout Partner and have composed together for film, theater, and dance productions. The group will release their first single and music video in May 2021.
Her versatility and depth as a violinist can be heard in her hauntingly beautiful solos in the 2020 Sebastian LaCause film Disciple, scored by Juan Cortes as well as her string quartet collaboration with Indie Folk group Delta Rae on their album After It All. In 2018 she appeared as the on-stage violinist and violist in Speakeasy Stage Company's production of Fun Home and has collaborated with KAIROS Dance Theater on numerous original projects, including Stretch/Hook in collaboration with sculptural artist John Cira.
Fiercely committed to the evolution of music, art, and humanity, Emily dedicates herself every day to equipping young students with the knowledge, inspiration, and confidence that will empower them to design the future of music. She creates lessons that promote self-directed learning and creativity, while also guiding students to rely on patient determination and solid technique. Emily is one of the leading experts on the methods of violinist and educator Demetrios Constantine Dounis and is the author of Demetrios Constantine Dounis: The Philosophy Behind the Methods. Emily's students have been finalists in YoungArts' National Arts Competition and have been honored by the American Strings Teachers Association. Emily is currently the director of the Elizabeth Mandell Music Institute and K-12 Strings at Crossroads School for Arts & Sciences.
A life-long learner herself, Emily is currently pursuing a Master of Music: Music Technology degree at Southern Utah University. Emily has received honors including a Fulbright scholarship at the Conservatoire de Musique in Geneva, Switzerland, a Margaret Metzger Writing Fellowship grant, and a grant from the Brookline Educators Foundation to study with Tracy Silverman, creator of The Strum Bowing Method in 2019. In 2015 Emily was selected as a participant in the first Global Musicians Workshop with cellists Mike Block, Yo-Yo Ma, and the Silkroad Ensemble.
