A native of Bulgaria, Janette started her professional violin career at age five.  At age eight won the Bulgarian National Championship in the adult division.  From that point on Janette was highly sought after by the best music professors in the nation.  At age nine she became the youngest student in the Sofia Music Academy.  Janette toured all over Europe as a child prodigy, performing and winning numerous prizes and competitions in Italy, France, Germany, Czechoslovakia, Poland and the Netherlands.   Janette acquired a dual Masters in Music Performance and Teaching for the Sofia Music Academy.  Janette performed regularly with the Pacific Symphony and The San Bernadino Symphony. Janette has also performed in Movies – Disney’s Fantasia 2000, as well as several Television series including Columbo and Disney’s Jet Jackson.  Janette has run the Kurz Violin Studio since 1994.  Janette’s Studio was in collaboration with Dr. Peter Marsh of U.S.C. in Los Angeles, CA.

Janette is a member of the Boise Philharmonic and is proud to be teaching at our Creative Arts Campus. She is currently accepting new students.

String Department Head of ArtsWest in Eagle, ID, Dr. Jennifer Sullivan, is a premier teacher and performer in the classical string discipline. Her students often gain entrance into higher educational institutions decorated with scholarships, awards, grants and placement in symphonies and chamber ensembles. Many of her students have won concerto competitions and performed as soloists with those symphonies.

Being highly educated herself, Dr. Sullivan has received performance degrees from the Eastman School of Music (commonly referred to as ‘little Juilliard’) and the University of Oregon, where her supporting area to her doctorate lies in Arts Administration. Her pedagogical heritage is one generation removed from the famous American teacher, Ivan Galamian. Some of her teachers include Curtis graduates and solo artists: Kathryn Lucktenburg (Concertmaster Eugene Symphony/Honolulu Symphony), Charles Castleman (Prizewinner in the Tchaikowsky and Brussels competitions). She has worked closely with Isaac Stern, Itzhak Perlman, Maxim Shostakovic, William Preucil, and members of the Kronos, American, and Juilliard quartets.

Currently, Dr. Sullivan performs with the Pan-American Trio with pianist Del Parkinson, and cellist Arturo Chavez. A former semi-finalist at the Fischoff Chamber Music Competition, Dr. Sullivan has held residencies with the Golden Gate Philharmonic, Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, Chamber Music Albuquerque, and the Treasure Valley Community College. Dr. Sullivan has made solo appearances with the Lake Arts Council Concert Series, Treasure Valley Symphony, Eastman Philharmonia, Eastman Chamber Ensemble, Eastman Film Collaboration, Idaho State Civic Symphony, and the Idaho Falls Youth Symphony. An experienced symphonic musician, Dr. Sullivan has sat in titled positions with the Eugene Symphony Orchestra, Corvallis Symphony Orchestra, San Francisco Concerto Orchestra, Pacific Chamber Symphony, Classical Philharmonic, North Bay Opera, West Bay Opera, Fredonia Chamber Players, Eastman Philharmonia, and the Erie Philharmonic among others.

Her current teaching experience includes serving as String Department Head of ArtsWest and the Sun Valley Summer Symphony and Conservatory. Formerly, she has taught at Oregon State University (guest), University of Oregon (GTF position), Northwest Nazarene University, Treasure Valley Community College, San Francisco State University (guest), Golden Gate Philharmonic, Mountain View School of the Arts, and Eastman School of Music.

Piano and Violin

Amy brings 15 years of teaching experience on both violin and piano to ArtsWest.  As a student she was never able to give up one instrument in order to focus on the other, so she achieved advanced levels on both instruments. She attended Dixie College were she was concertmistress of the Dixie College orchestra and received an associates degree.  From there she attended Brigham Young University where she received a bachelor’s degree in education and a minor in music.  She taught for 2 years in the Corona California School District as a music teacher before taking a full time job as a mother (while maintaining a small private studio). She was concertmistress of the Corona orchestra and quartet under the direction of Dave Elliot and is featured on his CD “Sacred Songs”.  As a pianist she was chosen to perform a solo concerto with the Southwest Symphony.  She also played violin with the Southwest Symphony for eight years before moving to the Treasure Valley in 2009.