Diversity Fellowships
We welcome our Diversity Fellows to the stage
for the 2021-22 Season!
Each musician will perform with the SFCO’s MainStage programs, helping these early career musicians gain experience and make contacts at the highest level of the Bay Area’s freelance music scene.
Diego De La Cruz Iwadare, violin
MainStage 3
Diego de la Cruz Iwadare was born in San Luis Potosi Mexico in 2003. From the first moments of his life, music was always present, but it was not until he was 10 years old that he began to play the violin. Starting in the San Luis Potosi State Music School, he quickly attracted the attention of the teachers, performing in music ensembles and as a soloist on multiple occasions around the country.
In 2018 and 2020 he was selected for the National youth symphonic orchestra of Mexico and in 2017 and 2019 he won the julian carrillo violin competition. He has participated in several music festivals such as the baroque music festival of Mexico and the Tchaikovsky international music festival Mexico 2019.
This year Diego won a scholarship at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music where he continued his studies with the renowned violinist and pedagogue Simon James.
Paulina Flores, viola
MainStage 3, MainStage 2 (rescheduled)
Paulina Flores is a violist from Altadena, California. She began studying viola at the Pasadena Conservatory of Music with Rachel Fabulich. Paulina continued her studies with the esteemed Donald McInnes at Idyllwild Arts Academy and graduated from there in 2017. Her orchestral experience includes playing in the Pasadena Youth Symphony Orchestra, Pasadena Chamber Orchestra, Idyllwild Arts Orchestra, and San Francisco Conservatory Orchestra. She has played in various chamber ensembles in the Pasadena Conservatory of Music, the Junior Chamber Music Los Angeles Branch, Idyllwild Arts Academy, and the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Masterclass teachers include Roger Meyers, Caroline Coade, Jonathan Moerschel, Melissa Reardon, Juan-Miguel Hernandez, and Mai Motobuchi.
Paulina served as Associate Principal Viola at the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra, with whom she played with in the Berlin Philharmonie, the Musikverein, and the Elbphilharmonie. She graduated with a BM in Viola Performance in 2021 from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music where she studied with Associate Principal Violist of the San Francisco Symphony, Yun-Jie “Jay” Liu. She is currently completing a Post-Graduate Studies Certificate with professor Dimitri Murrath at SFCM. Paulina plays on a Douglas Cox viola on loan from the Virtu Foundation. When not in the practice room, she enjoys going on walks around the city, reading books, and going to parks.
Sam Hernandez-Yanes, cello
MainStage 4
Native to Los Angeles, Cellist Samuel Hernandez-Yanes has been passionate about performing and teaching since early on in his musical studies. Beginning his professional studies at California State University of Long Beach, Samuel transferred to the San Francisco Conservatory of Music in order to cultivate his musical career in the Bay Area. He has recently earned a Bachelor’s of Music Degree from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music during which he studied under the instruction of Jennifer Culp. Other important mentors include Cellist Margret Edmonson, Cellist David Garrett, and Violinist Eric Chin. During pandemics and other spare moments, Sam enjoys exploring and creating other musical projects that involve genres such as; Hip-hop, Jazz, and Black Metal.
Nick Reeves, cello
Mainstage 2 (rescheduled)
Nick Reeves is a 20-year-old cellist from Oakland, California with interests in chamber, solo, and experimental genres. As a chamber musician, he attended Sphinx Performance Academy for three years and made appearances performing at venues, such as the Obama White House in 2016 and the NAMM show in 2017. Currently, Nick collaborates and performs with pianist and mentor, Jerry Kuderna throughout the Bay Area. As a soloist, Nick loves performing the Bach Cello Suites and has appeared at The Oakland Symphony’s Mixtape series and Yo-Yo Ma’s 2018 Oakland Block Party. While involved with Musaics of the Bay, Nick has premiered 3 works and collaborated with cellists Tanya Tomkins, Peter Myers, and Gabriel Cabezas. Nick has also been heard on “Revolutions Per Minute”, hosted by pianist Sarah Cahill. Apart from his main focus as a classical musician, Nick loves Jazz and experimental music. In these genres, he has played in an experimental music group backing poet Gregg Eisenberg and frequently collaborates and records with, friend and saxophonist Nathan Nakadegawa-Lee. Nick is currently studying with Richard Hirschl at Roosevelt University’s Chicago College of Performing Arts.
Nasr Sheikh, viola
MainStage 1, MainStage 2
Nasr Ali Sheikh is an active solo and chamber violist in the Bay Area. He graduated from Texas Tech University studying with Kimberly Sparr and San Francisco Conservatory of Music with Jonathan Vinocour in viola performance. Aside from playing in the San Francisco Chamber Orchestra, he also has played in many orchestras in the US, including the Lubbock Symphony Orchestra, Abilene Philharmonic Midland Symphony, Merced Symphony.
Solanch Sosa, violin
Solanch Sosa began her career as a violinist at the age of seven. She studied with Emilia Bondarenko at the Conservatory for the Arts in Cienfuegos, Cuba where she is originally from. During the first years of her career, she won the National Strings Concerto Competition in Cuba, leading her to perform with the National Symphony Orchestra and the Philharmonic Orchestra of Venezuela. Solanch Sosa has also performed with orchestras such as the Seattle Symphony Orchestra, the Philadelphia Orchestra, and New World Symphony.
She attended New World School of the Arts, where she studied with Dr. Daniel Andai. During these years, Solanch has attended the Killington Music Festival (2016 and 2018) and NYO-USA/NYO2 (2017). This gave her the opportunity of performing in venues like Carnegie Hall and Kimmel Center’s Verizon Hall in Philadelphia. Solanch has performed with artists including Christopher O’Reilly, Philippe Entremont, YoYo Ma, Esperanza Spalding and Sammy Nestico. She has worked under the baton of various renowned conductors such as Michael Tilson Thomas, Dr. William LaRue, Thomas Sleeper, Jeffrey Grogan, and Giancarlos Guerrero, leading her to studying a vast orchestral repertoire.
Solanch Sosa currently attends the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, where she studies with Professor Ian Swensen and is a recipient of the Peter and Jacqueline Hoefer Scholarship.
Manny Vouse, violin
MainStage 4
Matthew Vousé began playing the violin at the age of ten through his school's music program and since then, has fallen in love with the instrument. Hailing from the small town of Westport, Connecticut, he has long been an active musician both in and out of school, performing for venues at the Saugatuck Congressional Church, the Westport Woman’s Club, and various local charity fundraisers. Apart from his school's orchestra, Matthew was also a member of the Norwalk Youth Symphony, an East Coast based orchestra program for advanced young musicians. There, he would become Asst. Concertmaster, performing in Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center as well as regularly touring throughout Europe in the summertime. After attending the Sphinx Performance Academy at CIM 2019, mentored by members of the Grammy Award winning Catalyst Quartet, he knew he was to become a professional musician. Matthew is currently earning his Bachelors in Violin Performance at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music where he studies with Simon James, Associate Concertmaster Emeritus of the Seattle Symphony.