DIANA RAMÍREZ ROSALES

UPPER STRINGS SPECIALIST, YOSAL ARTIST

A native of Costa Rica, Diana received her master’s degree from the prestigious Frost School of Music at the University of Miami, where she studied with violin virtuoso Charles Castleman. During her time at Frost, she was a member of the acclaimed Henri Mancini Institute Orchestra, where she performed with music celebrities such as James Newton Howard, John Williams, Jeff Beal, Chris Walden, and Ben Folds. She holds a Post Baccalaureate degree (Licenciatura) in Violin Performance and Pedagogy from the Universidad Nacional de Costa Rica and a bachelor’s degree in music performance from the Universidad Estatal a Distancia. 

As an educator, Diana has served as a violin and viola instructor in Costa Rica, as well as the Denton ISD in Texas. She has also been a guest teaching artist at Festival de la Música Orchestral and Fundación Azteca, both in Mexico; Instituto Baccarelli in Brazil, Buffalo String Works in New York, and others. She created an online workshop called Music Education: Individual and Social Progress, that has been successfully executed in Costa Rica and Mexico. 

As an orchestral performer, Diana has performed with professional orchestras internationally such as the National Symphony Orchestra of Costa Rica, Florida Grand Opera, Palm Beach Symphony, Orchestra Miami, Oklahoma City, Abilene Philharmonic, and the Orchestra of the Americas. 

As a chamber musician, Diana and her husband, bassoonist Dr. Brian McKee co-founded TransAmerican Duo, an emerging bassoon and violin chamber ensemble committed to new music in collaboration with contemporary composers, as well as community outreach and teaching. 

Diana recently graduated from The Global Leaders Program cohort 2021, a highly competitive program focused on leadership and social entrepreneurship for selected musicians from around the world. Through this program, Diana became a cofounder of the social initiative Paax, a consultancy platform for music services with a focus on gender perspectives, oriented to serve growing non-profit music organizations in Latin America. The pilot program will be executed in the organization Orquesta y Coro Alaíde Foppa in Guatemala in 2022. 

Diana is a current member of the Abilene Philharmonic in Texas, where she acts as section violinist and often as Principal Second Violin. She has been recently appointed Upper Strings Teaching Artist at YOSAL Salinas, California. Her case study for The Global Leaders Program in collaboration with Buffalo Strings Works will soon be published in the Music in Action Journal. During her free time, Diana and her husband enjoy hiking, creating fun dishes, playing board games, and traveling to visit family and friends.