Rachel Harding Klaus

Born in Chicago, Rachel Harding Klaus studied violin with David and Linda Cerone at the Cleveland Institute of Music, where the faculty awarded her the coveted Joseph and Elsie Scharff Prize in Violin and the Dr. Jerome Gross Prize. Previous teachers have included Michael Avsharian, Steven Shipps, and Sonja Foster.

In the fall of 2004, she won the concerto competition at the Cleveland Institute of Music and performed the Bartók Concerto with the CIM Orchestra. In June of 2005, Harding Klaus was a prizewinner in the International Irving M. Klein String Competition, the Kingsville Performers Competition, and the Stulber International String Competition. She was also the grand prize winner of the Corpus Christi International String Competition. She has soloed with various orchestras including the Asheville, Kalamazoo, Corpus Christi, and Colorado symphonies.

Harding Klaus is an avid chamber music player and was a violinist for many years in the Harding Piano Trio along with her two sisters. The Harding Trio won prizes in the Fischoff, Coleman, and ASTA chamber music competitions. In 2009, Harding Klaus won a position with the Colorado Symphony as Assistant Concertmaster. In 2012, Harding Klaus joined the DSO as a member of the second violin section, moving to the first violin section the following year.