The Brazilian bass player, Waldir Bertipaglia, continues to enjoy an exciting career as a soloist and chamber musician, performing in prestigious music festivals throughout the U.S., Europe and South America. In addition to performing solo concerts with many orchestras and ensembles, Mr. Bertipaglia is currently the principal double bassist with the Arizona Opera Orchestra and also performs regularly with the Phoenix Symphony. He holds degrees from Indiana University, Western Michigan, and is a DMA candidate at Arizona State University where he has served as a Teaching Assistant for Professor Catalin Rotaru. Waldir also serves on the double bass faculty and is the resident artist at respected annual music festivals in his home country, including the Festival Virtuosi in Recife and the Festival de Musica de Londrina. He has won many competitions and continues to be a featured soloist with several orchestras in Brazil and the U.S. As a chamber musician, Waldir has collaborated with pianist Caio Pagano, Marcelo Cesena, the Jacques Thibaud Trio (Berlin), to name but a few. He has participated in recording projects for EMI, Summit, Con Brio and Canyon Records. Waldir plays a 1991 Martin Hillmann double bass, which was a gift from the Swiss luthier during the 1995 International Society of Bassists convention in Bloomington, IN.