About Us
CAP CITY QUARTET
CAP CITY QUARTET is one of the most sought-after Columbus based ensembles for weddings, corporate events, and parties. The group performs both classical music, as well as original arrangements of popular contemporary songs, bringing a level of artistry and professionalism your guests are sure to notice!
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Solomon Liang
Violin
Solomon Liang is a violinist in ProMusica Chamber Orchestra in Columbus, and a software engineer at OCLC in Dublin. He has performed with many major orchestras, including The Cleveland Orchestra, Pittsburgh Symphony, Minnesota Orchestra and was principal 2nd violinist of Canton Symphony Orchestra for 9 years. As a chamber musician, Solomon has played in many chamber music festivals such as Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, Banff Centre, Robert Mann String Quartet Institute and Perlman Music Program, and held residencies at Banff International String Quartet Competition and Interlochen Summer Arts Academy. He received his musical degrees from Cleveland Institute of Music, Yale School of Music and California State University, Long Beach.
Koko Watanabe
Violin
Japanese violinist Koko Watanabe is passionate to share the excitement of music making with everyone. She has given orchestral, solo and chamber music performances in the U.S. and Japan. Koko was a musician of the Nashville Symphony for the 21-22 season and performs frequently with the Pittsburgh Symphony, with whom she went on tour to NYC’s Lincoln Center and recorded Beethoven’s 9th Symphony, Tchaikovsky’s 5th Symphony and Schulhoff’s Five Pieces conducted by Manfred Honeck. She has also played regularly with the Cleveland Orchestra. Currently, she is a member of ProMusica Chamber Orchestra in Columbus, OH. And she served as assistant concertmaster of DesMoines Metro Opera in the summer of 2019.
In 2014, Koko received her Artist Diploma in violin performance from the Cleveland Institute of Music, where she studied with William Preucil and Stephen Rose, the former concertmaster and principal second violinist of The Cleveland Orchestra. Before moving to Cleveland, Koko earned her musical degrees at Southern Methodist University, Toho Conservatory and Tokyo College of Music, and has studied with Emanuel Borok and Hamao Fujiwara. She was the winner of Cho-Ko Hai International Music Competition and Toho Conservatory Concerto Competition, which led to a performance of the Khachaturian Violin Concerto with the Toho Academy Orchestra.
Koko also has a deep-rooted passion for teaching. As a Suzuki Method Certified violin teacher, she enjoys nurturing beautiful young souls and helping developing their characters through the power of music.
She lives in Bexley, Ohio with her husband, Solomon and three fluffy pets, Leia, Lucky and Poe.
Jessica Pasternak Ingersoll
Viola
Violist Jessica Pasternak Ingersoll is an accomplished orchestral and chamber musician. She is a member of the Columbus Symphony and she was a fellow of the New World Symphony. Jessica has performed with The Cleveland Orchestra as a regular substitute and has joined them on multiple tours to Miami, Indiana, Iowa, and Chicago. She has also performed as a substitute with the Pittsburgh Symphony. In 2022, Jessica won the 2nd prize at the American Viola Society Excerpt Competition.
As a chamber musician Jessica has been praised by the South Florida Classical Review for her “dark-hued resonance” and “rich viola.” She has had the opportunity to perform with renown artists including Atar Arad, Martin Chalifour, Timothy Eddy, Ralph Kirshbaum, Tamás Varga, Robert Vernon, and Tabae Zimmerman at the Sarasota Music Festival, Heifetz Institute, and New World Symphony.
Jessica studied at the Cleveland Institute of Music in their Young Artists Program where she was a student of Lembi Veskimets. She continued her studies with Robert Vernon and received Bachelors and Professional Studies degrees as well as the Robert Vernon prize from the Cleveland Institute of Music.
Joseph Mueller
Cello
Joseph Mueller has firmly established himself as a virtuosic soloist, orchestral musician, chamber musician, and sought-after instructor of cello. Mr. Mueller was appointed Principal Cello of the Springfield Symphony Orchestra in 2011. He also performs with the Newark-Granville Symphony Orchestra, the Columbus Symphony Orchestra, the ProMusica Chamber Orchestra, and the Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra. In addition to his extensive orchestral duties, Mr. Mueller is also the Instructor of Cello at Capital University, where he has appeared as soloist with the Capital University/Bexley Community Orchestra, and also serves as Principal Cello. Internationally, Mr. Mueller has toured and performed extensively in Austria and Hungary as a member of the Classical Music Festival, which is based in Eisenstadt, Austria. In addition to his international appearances, Mr. Mueller has also performed in the Brevard Music Festival, the Texas Music Festival, and the Indiana University Jacob’s School of Music Summer Music Festival.
Mr. Mueller completed a Master of Music degree in Cello Performance from the University of Oklahoma where he held the position of Graduate Assistant, was a member of the Crouse String Quartet, and held a permanent chair in the Oklahoma City Philharmonic. Mr. Mueller also holds a degree in Cello Performance from the Indiana University Jacob’s School of Music. His primary teachers have been Emilio Colon, Jonathan Ruck, and Sabrina Lackey and he has performed master classes for Janos Starker, Lynn Harrell, Andrés Diaz, Helga Winold, Tsuyoshi Tsutsumi, William Preucil, Peter Salaff, and the Cavani String Quartet. Mr. Mueller lives in Columbus, Ohio with his wife and best friend Angela Heck Mueller, and their cat, Stanzi.