Jane Hart Brendle
First Violin
Jane Hart Brendle has been a member of the first violin section of the Charlotte Symphony since 1995.
Brendle’s violin solos and original arrangements have been featured by many performers and composers in the region. Her session work includes recordings for numerous artists as well as contributions to various film and television soundtracks. As a pit orchestra musician, she has frequently performed with touring Broadway productions during their appearances in Charlotte. She is the violinist for Music and the Holocaust, a powerful collaborative educational program for students in Charlotte and the surrounding region.
Brendle has performed as a mandolin soloist with the CSO and in a variety of chamber music settings, playing instruments handcrafted by her father. A passionate chamber musician, she enjoys performing a wide range of repertoire, from classical to jazz. She especially enjoys opportunities to perform alongside her husband, Ron, a professional jazz bassist.
A Charlotte native, Brendle holds a Master of Music degree in applied violin performance from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, where she studied with David Moskovitz. In her free time, she enjoys visiting the North Carolina coast, where she can be found taking long walks on the beach and catching waves on her boogie board.
What piece made you fall in love with music?
Beethoven's 3rd Symphony.
What's an interesting tidbit about how you chose your instrument?
I started playing violin through the CMS music program. We were given presentations of all band and orchestra instruments, and we could decide which instrument appealed most. My dad already owned a violin — my great-grandfather's "fiddle" — so, even though all instrument options were open to me as a beginner, I made the practical decision to choose the violin because we already had one!
What would you be doing if you weren’t a professional musician?
As my very first violin teacher told my mother after my first year of study, "She's going to be a musician, and there's nothing you can do about it."
