ELLA SHARPE

Ella Sharpe is a bassist and violist da gamba from Winston-Salem, North Carolina where her father, Paul Sharpe, taught her from the age of seven. In high school, she gained recognition as a soloist, performing as a semifinalist in the International Society of Double Bassists Solo Competition (15–18 division). Her love of orchestral performance was enriched by spending her summers with the National Youth Orchestra, touring across Europe, Central America, and Southeast Asia. At eighteen, she continued her studies at the University of Southern California with David Moore in Los Angeles. She began her early music studies on the violone and viola da gamba in 2019, studying with Malachai Bandy and performing with USC’s Baroque Sinfonia directed by Adam Gilbert and Rotem Gilbert. Throughout her undergraduate career, she attended festivals such as Sarasota Music Festival, Wabass Institute, and Domaine Forget. In the Spring of 2023, Ella began her masters degree at the Shepherd School of Music, studying with Paul Ellison. This past summer, she appeared as a guest performer and faculty member at Anchorage Chamber Music Festival as well as a member of the AIMS Festival Orchestra in Graz, Austria.