Hillary Oseas

Hillary Oseas is sought out as one of the most versatile musicians in the Pacific Northwest. Hillary is an Oregon native, born in Roseburg and relocating with the family to Portland in early childhood. A natural talent with a gift for musical flexibility, Hillary’s first instrument was piano, then violin, but ultimately she found her most fitting voice in the viola. Ms. Oseas holds a bachelor’s degree in Music Performance from the UC Santa Barbara, where she studied with Helen Callus. She received many accolades while there, including a string quartet fellowship normally reserved for graduate students, a concerto performance with the UCSB symphony and awards for performances given with the Ensemble for Contemporary Music. Ms. Oseas went on to earn a master’s Degree in viola performance at the prestigious Shephard School of Music at Rice University, where she served as teaching assistant to the incomparable James Dunham. It was Mr. Dunham’s active participation in the early music realm that piqued Hillary’s interest in historically performed performance, and she divided her time at Rice between studying modern orchestral excerpts and learning the finer points of playing on gut strings. Ms. Oseas was awarded the title of Principal Viola for the Portland Opera Orchestra in 2012, so she returned home to the Pacific Northwest. Ms. Oseas began performing with Portland Baroque Orchestra in 2014 and was awarded a core position in the following season. She lives in Beaverton with her husband, two sons, and dog Lily. She can be seen on many stages around the region and is equally at home playing grand opera, regularly joining the Oregon Symphony for concerts.