“She has a meaty, luscious sound, rhythmically driven, the raw honesty of her musicality tempered by a confident, light-handed virtuosity. ” — Natasha Gauthier, artsfile.ca
Carissa is a violinist based in Ottawa, Canada, where she plays with Canada’s National Arts Centre Orchestra and pursues other solo and chamber projects. Formerly of Saskatoon (by way of Montreal), she’s a proud Ukrainian-Canadian, a frequent traveler, vinyl enthusiast, photographer, and a coffee/whisky/music snob. Carissa wears many professional hats: violin soloist, chamber musician, orchestral musician, violist, artistic director of the Ritornello Chamber Music Festival, singer in the Ukrainian folk-rock band Tyt i Tam, and a part of the “take-no-prisoners” string quartet, Ironwood. Her debut album, SOUNDWORLDS, was released in 2016. Carissa currently plays on a 1851 Jean Baptiste Vuillaume violin, generously on loan from the Canada Council for the Arts Instrument Bank.
Learn more: www.carissaklopoushak.com