Katherine Sartori
.jpg "Bird playing violin")
Orchestra director at: Washington Middle School, Lincoln Elementary, McKenny Elementary
Email: ksartori@osd.wednet.edu (best way to get ahold of me!)
Ms. Sartori spent the first five years of her life in California, chasing lizards and complaining
about the heat. She and her family moved up to Washington state, where she attended school in
the Bethel School District, and played in the Tacoma Youth Symphony. She attended Washington
State University (go Cougs!), earning degrees in music performance and music education. While
studying in eastern Washington, she played regularly with the Washington-Idaho Symphony as
violinist and violist. In lieu of studying abroad, Ms. Sartori went to Florida International
University (in Miami) for a semester; while there, she got to participate in a full performance of
Beethoven's 9th symphony, see her musical heroes - the Kronos String Quartet - perform live, and
she learned that she really doesn't like cockroaches. After leaving WSU, Ms. Sartori student-
taught in the Puyallup School District before coming to Olympia in December 2009. She is
thoroughly enjoying living in Olympia, her wonderful teaching job (and cool coworkers - see photo
above), and her amazing students!
Some of Ms. Sartori's favorite pieces are: Beethoven's 7th symphony (especially the 2nd
movement), Prokofiev's Montagues & Capulets from his Romeo & Juliet Suite, anything by Ralph
Vaughan Williams (but especially his Fantasia on a Theme of Thomas Tallis), anything by
Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov (but especially Scheherezade), Richard Strauss's Death and
Transfiguration, Ravel's Mother Goose Suite, Gustav Holst's The Planets, Marjan Mozetich's
amazing violin concerto, Philip Glass, Steve Reich, Beethoven's 6th symphony, Berlioz's
Symphony Fantastique, Shostakovich's suite from The Gadfly, Samuel Barber's violin concerto and
his School For Scandal, Mendelssohn's Overture to Des Hebrides, Paul Schoenfield's Cafe Music,
Dvorak's "American" String Quartet, Ottorino Respighi's Pines of Rome, Mark O'Connor...
In addition to all the classical stuff, Ms. Sartori likes listening to Andrew Bird, The Kronos String
Quartet, Turtle Island String Quartet, Danish String Quartet, Yael Naim, Jason Mraz, Jack Johnson, Disney sing-along songs, Melody Gardot, Norah Jones, The Chieftains, Ashley
MacIsaac, Mumford & Sons, Nickle Creek, Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, Yann Tiersen, Joe
Hisaishi, Hans Zimmer, Danny Elfman, Clazziquai Project, Regina Carter, Stephane Grappelli,
Johnny Hodges, Pearl Django, The Tune Stranglers, The Blackberry Bushes, The Oly Mountain
Boys, The Burren Band, Songs To Wear Pants To...