Madison, a native of Conway, Arkansas, happily switched to viola at age 12 in her public school orchestra after a year of trekking a string bass home to practice. In high school, she began studying the viola seriously with Ryan Mooney and made exponential progress. At the age of 17, she became a member of the National Youth Orchestra of the USA, where, under the baton of Charles Dutoit, she performed at Carnegie Hall and toured China.
During her time as an undergraduate at Brigham Young University, Madison studied with Dr. Claudine Bigelow on a full scholarship as both a performance and education major. As the principal violist of the BYU Philharmonic and Chamber Orchestras, she toured the Philippines, China, recorded Broadway star Lea Salonga’s album The Story of My Life, and shared the stage with Itzhak Perlman.
With the assistance of experiential learning funding, Madison has been able to travel the world and study with the world’s leading violists. She has attended the National Orchestral Institute and Festival in Maryland (‘20, ‘21), Domaine Forget Music Festival in Quebec (‘16, ‘18, ‘20), Karen Tuttle Workshop in Delaware, Viola Visions Festival in Miami, and the Salzedo Trio Festival in France. She has worked diligently to earn the chance to play in masterclasses for world-renowned artists, including Tabea Zimmermann, Kim Kashkashian, Antoine Tamistit, Atar Arad, James Dunham, Misha Amory, CJ Chang, Dimitri Murrath, and Ivo-Jan van der Werff, and Matthew Lipman.
Madison’s notable classical performances include The Bartok Viola Concerto with the BYU Philharmonic, the Western USA premiere of David Liptak’s Ballast, and Viola Spaces alongside composer Garth Knox at the Primrose Memorial Concert and in Avalon, France. She is featured in Max Steiner’s documentary on HBO, Rob Schneider’s Netflix special, a Christmas television program with Amy Grant and Jordan Smith, and performed arena shows with Brian Stokes Mitchell.
As an active musician, Madison primarily performs with her inspiring colleagues in the Murano String Quartet, but also performs regularly with Ballet West, Utah Metropolitan Ballet, Helena Montana Symphony, and in recording studios across Utah.
In addition to all of her performing, Madison loves teaching junior high and high school orchestra full-time in Spanish Fork. Her students inspire her every day. In her spare time, you can find Madison at the climbing gym facing her fear of heights, biking in the canyon, or baking delicious treats.
Madison is finishing her Master’s Degree and has a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education K-12 : Instrumental Emphasis from Brigham Young University.
