Theresa Koenig at the age of 18 made her solo debut as one of the three winner-finalist in the Milwaukee Symphony’s Young Artist Competition, and has won or been named finalist in several other competitions, including the Indiana University, UW-Madison, Irving Shaine, and the Milwaukee Youth Symphony Competitions.
Ms. Koenig performs around the country on Renaissance winds and baroque and modern bassoon. She plays with the period ensembles Lyra Baroque Orchestra, Eliza's Toyes, and is a founding member of the Helios Woodwind Quintet. Ms. Koenig has performed with Piffaro Renaissance Band, Chicago’s Baroque Band, Ensemble Musical Offering, and others. In the past she has toured with the IU New Music Ensemble, American Wind Symphony, performed chamber music at the Hot Springs Music Festival, and with the Prairie Winds Quintet at the Madeline Island Music Festival. Ms. Koenig along with Kirstin Ihde perform together as the bassoon and piano duo, Duo Ricercata, an ensemble that performs on both modern and historical instruments. In addition to small chamber ensembles, Ms. Koenig regularly performs with larger ensembles, and has played with the Michigan Opera Theatre, Flint Symphony, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, Beloit-Janesville Symphony, IU Festival Orchestra, Columbus Symphony (IN), and others.
Ms. Koenig is based in Madison where she has a teaching studio, teaching bassoon and recorder. In the summer of 2013 she will again be on the Faculty for the Madison Early Music Festival, for the UW-Whitewater Recorder Seminar, and offers a beginning recorder class through the department of continuing studies at UW-Madison.
Ms. Koenig received her Bachelor's degree in performance as well as her Master’s degree in performance with a conducting minor from Indiana University's Jacobs School of Music. While there she studied bassoon with Kim Walker. Ms. Koenig was awarded the prestigious performers certificate for musical excellence in her junior recital, making her one of the youngest student to receive this distinction. She has a Doctor of Musical Arts Degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she was the first bassoonist to be awarded the Paul Collins Distinguished Fellowship. At UW-Madison, Ms. Koenig studied modern, baroque, and classical bassoon with Marc Vallon. In addition to her bassoon studies, Ms. Koenig studied composition with Les Thimmig and completed her DMA minor in musicology; her musicological interests are in early music and contemporary music studies. In addition to her formal studies, she has taken lesson in early winds with Robert Wiemken and Joan Kimball of Piffaro and Michael McCraw.
In her spare time, Ms. Koenig enjoys rock climbing, yoga, skiing, biking, as well as sampling the many restaurants that the city has to offer.