Gabriel Pegis Gabriel Pegis began studying the violin at the age of three. He joined the Cincinnati Symphony as a member of the second violin section in June of 1999, and in September of 2000 he was appointed to the Principal Second Violin Chair. Previously, Pegis was Assistant Principal Second Violin with the North Carolina Symphony. Other past positions include a violin faculty position at Western Illinois University and the Concertmaster position with the Illinois Symphony Orchestra in Springfield, IL. In addition, Pegis has taught at numerous summer music festivals including the Sewanee Summer Music Center, The Music Festival of Arkansas and The Young Musical Artists Association in Lawrence, Kansas. Pegis has also appeared as soloist with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, the Rochester Philharmonic, the North Carolina Symphony and the Illinois Symphony among others. As a violist, Pegis has appeared on both the Cincinnati Chamber Music series and the Linton Chamber Series, with members of the North Carolina Symphony and as a faculty member at Western Illinois University. In 1994 he was awarded a Doctoral Fellowship at the University of Illinois where he studied with Emmanuel Vardi.