Isaac Pastor-Chermak is Principal Cellist of Portland Opera and Waterloo-Cedar Falls Symphony; Associate Principal Cellist of Stockton Symphony; and a member of Santa Barbara Symphony, Monterey Symphony, Santa Cruz Symphony, and Dayton Philharmonic. He is the cellist of Black Cedar Trio, the only professional flute-cello-guitar ensemble in the country, and enjoys frequent sonata collaborations with pianists Miles Graber and Alison Lee. Pastor-Chermak performs more than 100 concerts every season, playing an 1889 Riccardo Antoniazzi cello.

As an educator, Pastor-Chermak is Beelard Foundation Artist-in-Residence at Young Artists Conservatory of Music in Vacaville, CA; and a faculty member at Dominican Sisters School of Music in Fremont, CA. He is the founder and principal conductor of Solano Youth Chamber Orchestra, a highly selective high-school string ensemble. Pastor-Chermak holds degrees from the University of California, Berkeley (B.A. with honors) and San Francisco Conservatory of Music (M.M. with honors). He makes his home in Berkeley, California, but is at home wherever the music takes him. Follow Isaac’s musical adventures at isaacpastorchermak.com!