Ritsu Katsumata
Born in California in 1964, Ritsu was raised in Nara, Japan and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. After completing her degree in English Literature from the University of Pennsylvania, she lived and worked in New York City, Portland, Oregon; Tokyo, Japan; Ithaca, New York; and Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. As a classical violinist, Ritsu performed from childhood at such venues as Carnegie Hall, Smithsonian Institute and the Philadelphia Academy of Music. After college, she pursued a career in advertising and design, working for agencies with clients including Nike, Microsoft, Coca-Cola, Japan Air Lines and Canon USA. In 1994, she traded in the acoustic instrument for an electric 5-string violin and began composing and performing her own music at rock and roll clubs like CBGB's as well as venerable institutions including the Museum of Modern Art in New York City and the Seattle Opera House.
Today, she balances her performance schedule with her job as a multimedia designer/web developer for Bucknell University and raising her two young daughters with her photographer-husband Stafford Smith.