Gayna Mandelbaum Bassin
Violin and Viola Instructor

Gayna Mandelbaum Bassin hails from Detroit, Michigan, but she has spent most of her life in the Cincinnati area. She studied with Emily Mutter Austin and graduated from Cass Technical High School, the top magnet school in Detroit, playing Concert Master of the orchestra in her senior year. She also played First Violin in the Cass Tech String Quartet.

 

She graduated from the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia with a Bachelor of Music degree, studying with violin pedagogues Ivan Galamian, Paul Makanowitzky, Jaime Laredo and Jascha Brodsky. She received a Master of Music degree from Indiana University in Bloomington, IN, studying with famed violinist Josef Gingold. She then moved to Cincinnati to join the first violin section of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, where she served for twenty years.

 

Gayna teaches traditional (non-Suzuki) violin and viola to students from age 7 to adult, from beginner to advanced.  She emphasizes reading skills, technique and musical styles.  She encourages her students with patience and compassion, placing love of music above all else.

 

As an active member of the Ohio Federation of Music Clubs (OFMC), she offers students (age 18 and under) the opportunity to participate in the annual OFMC Junior Festival at Miami University every March. Many have won Gold Cups and scholarships and performed in Junior Festival Honors Recitals. Gayna has been a judge in the Junior Festival every year since 2009.

 

Gayna also enjoys coaching adults and advanced players and helping them prepare for auditions and concerts.

 

Gayna teaches from her home in Montgomery, Ohio.  She and her husband Jeff have two adult sons. She enjoys reading audio books, photography, videography, webdesign, and hosting dinner parties with her friends. 

 

Follow her on Facebook and YouTube!

 

Current Positions

 

Member and Adjudicator for the Ohio Federation of Music Clubs (OFMC).

 

Board Member of Matinée Musicale Cincinnati, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that promotes classical music in the Greater Cincinnati area through a recital series, student scholarships, and grants to nonprofit organizations that promote and teach classical music. She is also a member of the Matinée Musicale Club, which features exclusive Members programs and opportunities to perform. Gayna has performed many times for Member Programs, most recently in December 2024. She is also the official Photographer at Matinée Musciale events and concerts.

 

Board Member of Chamber Music Network, non-profit organization that promotes classical chamber music and education in the Greater Cincinnati area. Gayna is also a Presenter Member of CMN and has performed several times on their yearly event, ChamberPalooza! at the Cincinnati Art Museum.

 

Electric Violin with Queen City Klezmorim, a band that specializes in Jewish Eastern European klezmer music. They perform at weddings, Bar/Bat Mitzvahs, holiday parties, and more. 
 

Principal and owner of GMB Multimedia, specializing in webdesign, photography, videography and digital duplication services.

 

Performing Experience

 

First Violin section of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra from 1976-1996.
 

Concertmaster with the Cincinnati Community Orchestra from 2003-2004.

 

Member of Concerto Soloists of Philadelphia 1973-1974, Marc Mostovoy, conductor.
 

Soloist with Colorado Philharmonic Orchestra, the Windsor Symphony, the Curtis Symphony Orchestra, and the Cincinnati Community Orchestra.
 

Participant in many international music festivals, including the Blossom Music Festival (Kent State University, Ohio), the Tanglewood Music Festival, the New York String Orchestra conducted by Alexander Schneider, the Casals Festival in Puerto Rico, and the Orchestra de les Jeunesses Musicales conducted by Leonard Bernstein and Michael Tilson Thomas.
 

Education

 

Bachelor of Music Degree from the Curtis Institute of Music; student of Ivan Galamian, Paul Makanowitzky, Jaime Laredo and Jascha Brodsky.
 

Master of Music Degree from Indiana University at Bloomington; student of Josef Gingold.

 

Meadowmount Summer School of Music 1967-1972; student of Ivan Galamian, Josef Gingold, and Margaret Pardee.

 

Professional Certificate in Electronic Media from University of Cincinnati-Blue Ash (formerly Raymond Walters College).