Susan Warner is an Acting Principal Clarinetist of the Lyric Opera of Chicago Orchestra. In addition to her position at the opera house, Susan is a member of the Lyric Ensemble, a chamber ensemble comprised of Lyric Orchestra colleagues, as well as a member of the Prairie Winds, a nationally touring wind quintet with an annual residency at Madeline Island Chamber Music. Also a member of the Sun Valley Music Festival Orchestra, Susan was recently featured as soloist in Bernstein’s Prelude, Fugue, and Riffs. She has performed as substitute musician with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Montreal Symphony Orchestra, and Grant Park Symphony Orchestra.

Cornelius Chiu joined the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in 1996. Born to Chinese parents in Ithaca, New York, he began violin lessons at the age of six. His older brother, Frederic, is a successful concert pianist and Yamaha recording artist with whom Cornelius collaborates on a regular basis. The many acclaimed artists with whom Cornelius has worked include Joseph Silverstein, Miriam Fried, János Starker and Menahem Pressler. He received special recognition from Isaac Stern after a performance in his honor. A winner in the Irving M. Klein International String Competition and the National Arts and Letters Competition, Cornelius has performed as a soloist with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, the Washington Chamber Orchestra and at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. Recent solo performances include appearances with the Sinfonietta DuPage orchestra and the Drake University Symphony Orchestra.

Kozue Funakoshi joined the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in 2000, after three years with the Cleveland Orchestra. A former concertmaster of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, she studied with Hideyuki Nimura, Joseph Genualdi, and Sando Shia. A native of Yokohama, Japan, Funakoshi grew up in Kamakura. Her father was a rock musician who played guitar and piano, and her mother was a kindergarten teacher. In 1987, she received first prize at the All Japan Young Musicians Competition and was awarded a full scholarship to the Tokyo College of Music, where she received a bachelor’s degree. Funakoshi has appeared on the Cleveland Orchestra’s chamber music series, at the Kurashiki Music Festival directed by conductor Takashi Asahina, and as a soloist on the Thüringer Philharmonic Orchestra’s 1993 German concert tour. 

Taiwanese-born violist Youming Chen (pronounced YO-ming) was appointed by Music Director Riccardo Muti to join the Chicago Symphony Orchestra during its 125th season. Chen served as Associate Principal Viola of the Kansas City Symphony and was a member of the Grant Park Music Festival. He also performs with International Chamber Artists in the Chicago area.  He has previously participated in Pacific Music, Aspen Music, Prussia Cove, and Music@Menlo festivals. He received his Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Michigan, Master of Music degree from Juilliard School, and a Doctor of Musical Arts from the University of Missouri-Kansas City.

A Chicago native, Daniel Katz was appointed to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in 2011 by Music Director Riccardo Muti. Prior to joining the Orchestra, he was a regular substitute with the CSO and the Cleveland Orchestra and also was a member of the Grant Park Symphony Orchestra. Under the guidance of Hans Jensen, he received a doctor of musical arts degree with honors from Northwestern University, a master’s degree from the New England Conservatory under Laurence Lesser and a bachelor’s degree from Northern Illinois University with Marc Johnson. Katz has participated in a number of major music festivals, including Tanglewood, Verbier, Sarasota and Norfolk. Recently, Katz recorded an album of works by Victoria Bond (Naxos) and a disc of James Stephenson’s works (Liquid Melancholy: Clarinet Music of James M. Stephenson, Cedille), both with the ensemble Chicago Pro Musica.