Violinist Stephanie Arado has resigned as assistant concertmaster of the Minnesota Orchestra. Arado, who has been with the ensemble since 1991, has accepted a position with the Interlochen Center for the Arts. According to an e-mail she sent to orchestra leadership, she will be one of two instructors of violin at the Arts Academy, located southwest of Traverse City, Mich.
"My decision to understake this career change now grew out of my sense that the institution that I have devoted my creative energy to for the past two decades -- the Minnesota Orchestra -- has lost its way," Arado wrote in her note.
Arado has been featured as a soloist and chamber musician in several programs with the orchestra. In 2006, she and Lydia Artymiw performed the Mendelssohn concerto for violin and piano.
Musicians at the Minnesota Orchestra have been locked out since Oct. 1 of last year in a contract dispute. The two sides are engaging in quiet talks to see if they can agree on ground rules for mediated negotiations with George Mitchell, the former U.S. Senate leader and diplomat.
