Violinist Eric Bate has a passion for the orchestral world of classical music. He has so far played with a total of ten different professional orchestras and counting. Eric is currently a section violinist for Orchestra Iowa, and a substitute violinist for the Minnesota Orchestra. Previous posts include Assistant Concertmaster of the La Crosse Symphony and section violinist of the Illinois Symphony and the Green Bay Symphony.

Throughout his career, Eric has had the honor of playing in concert with some of the top names in the classical music world, such as Joshua Bell, Emanuel Ax, Lynn Harrell, and Zuill Bailey. He also enjoys dabbling in Irish fiddle and improvising in rock bands, including a 5-year tenure as the violinist in a church worship band.

Eric studied violin performance at the University of Minnesota under Sally O’Reilly. In his free time, he enjoys reading Terry Pratchett novels and riding his bicycle. In 2022, he returned home to the Milwaukee area, where he now resides with his wife and and daughter in Waukesha, WI. Eric plays on a beautiful Amedee Dieudonne violin.