symphony spotlight
Meet Liz Graf
conroe symphony French Horn
It’s Never Too Late
Meet Liz Graf, French Hornist in her first season with the CSO.
Liz Graf found her instrument late, and it changed everything.
She played trumpet through high school until, the summer before her senior year, her band needed more French horns.
So Liz spent those months teaching herself a new instrument, switched over for senior year, and, as she puts it, “never looked back.”
That willingness to start something new, even when it feels late, became the heart of what she’d tell anyone thinking about picking up an instrument:
“It’s never too late to start playing an instrument.”
Now in her very first season with the Conroe Symphony Orchestra, Liz has quickly found her people.
“I love the music we play, I love the CSO audience, and I love the brass section!
-Liz Graf
Her favorite memory so far is already made: her first concert with the CSO, the Disney program. “
We were rehearsing with the lead singers all morning to get everything perfect for that afternoon. I loved seeing it all come together.”
Off stage, Liz has followed a winding and interesting path, she studied engineering, and has also worked in corporate communications and behind-the-scenes administration for a small business. But music is the thing she keeps returning to, no matter what else she’s doing.
“I’ve had loads of important teachers, but I always come back to music. I do it because I love it, and there’s nothing else like it.”
-Liz Graf
Her favorite composers are the ones who move her most — Brahms, Tchaikovsky, Hans Zimmer, and Danny Elfman.
“They’ve all made me cry listening to their music,” she says.
Home life is simple and sweet: “It’s just me and my husband.”
One season in, Liz has already found exactly what she was looking for — the music, the audience, and a brass section she’s proud to call hers.
Liz Graf, Off The Stage
She Can Not Live Without?
Her Earplugs
(of course she is a brass player:)
Favorite Composers
Brahms, Tchaikovsky, Hans Zimmer, Danny Elfman.
“They’ve all made me cry listening to their music,”
Fact That Surprises People
Keeps a strict gluten and dairy-free diet.
“People are always shocked.”
Come Hear Liz For Yourself
“The musicians in the orchestra must have music in their hearts to make such a sacrifice to come to rehearsals after their day jobs. They just have music-making as part of their lives.”
— Gary Liebst, Music Director
To Learn More About Our Musicians
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