Author - Jason Hurwitz

Born and raised in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, Jason realized that he wanted to play the violin at age 3 after seeing Itzhak Perlman play for Oscar the Grouch on “Sesame Street;" at age 5, he started in the local Suzuki program. Although officially he only ever studied classical music, Jason got into alternative violin in his high school’s Strolling Strings group and in his jobs as a bluegrass fiddler at both Knoebels Amusement Resort and HersheyPark, and continued pushing the violin’s limits throughout college. Jason earned his degree in Music Education from the University of Miami where he was Homecoming King and President of the Beta Tau chapter of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia.

Following graduation, Jason landed his dream job as a member of the cast of Barrage, the international high-octane touring alternative violin show. During his four years with Barrage, Jason was elected to the position of Performers' Representative, and, in this capacity, was responsible for all of the communication and contract negotiation between the cast, management, and the American Federation of Musicians.

Over the summer of 2010, Jason worked in Atlantic City, New Jersey, as the onstage electric violinist in the Cirque Productions show "Cirque Dreams Jungle Fantasy."

From September 2010 until August 2012, Jason was the Cultural Programs Coordinator at the University of Cincinnati Blue Ash College, where he managed two concert series -- a diverse performing arts series for kids and an adult music series.

During the summer of 2011, Jason interned at the Overture Center for the Arts (Madison, WI), primarily assisting the Transition Coordinator as the Center transitioned from being a public entity to a private not-for-profit. His responsibilities also involved projects in the finance, programming, and administrative departments. He has now returned to Overture as the Programming and Community Engagement Coordinator, a full-time position responsible for a variety of tasks within the Programming Department.

Jason earned his MBA from the University of Cincinnati's Lindner College of Business in June 2012, and has nearly completed his Master of Arts in Arts Administration (there's just a thesis standing between him and completion).