Born in the Northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C. and raised in Greenville, South Carolina, violist Brian Shoop has been heard by audiences across the US as well as in Central America and in Europe. Holding a deep passion for music from a young age, he attended the Residential High School program at the South Carolina Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities for two years before going on to receive a Bachelor’s degree under the tutelage of Peter Slowik at Oberlin Conservatory, where he was awarded the Ernest Hatch Wilkins Memorial prize for Academic Excellence, and a Master’s degree with Katherine Murdock at the University of Maryland, College Park. In addition to his engagement with the Annapolis Symphony Orchestra, he has appeared with Apollo Orchestra, the Fairfax Symphony Orchestra, the Akron (OH) Symphony Orchestra, and the Erie (PA) Philharmonic. His drive to share his love of music with others through teaching has led him to appear on faculty and as a guest instructor at institutions such as Levine Music and the DC Youth Orchestra Program.
Brian has received such honors as the First Prize in the collegiate division of the Ohio Viola Society Competition, where he was praised for his “rich and authentic” musicality, and being named a finalist in Oberlin’s Senior Concerto Competition. He has also appeared at summer programs such as the National Orchestral Institute and Festival (NOI + F), Green Mountain Chamber Music Festival, and the National Symphony Orchestra’s Summer Music Institute. At NOI + F, he appeared in a recording of George Gershwin’s two rhapsodies for piano and orchestra, among other American orchestral works, that was released on the Naxos music label in addition to appearing on Apple Music’s “New in Classical” playlist. The following summer, Brian returned to the festival as a part of UMD’s Innovation Studio, where he worked directly with musicians in the program to design interactive performances for the festival that incorporated elements such as lighting, projection, and live digital storytelling programs.
Passionate about channeling his musical skills to serve communities in need, Brian has also appeared in concerts benefitting charitable organizations in Lorain County, OH, the greater Washington, D.C. area, and Haiti. He has also been involved in educational efforts such as Oberlin’s Panama Project, where he spent two weeks teaching in an orchestral program for high school students in Panama City. When not making music or teaching others to do so, Brian enjoys cooking, baking, crocheting, cycling, and being in nature.