Karen Cortez is a genre-hopping cellist and amateur chorister, and completed her Bachelor of Music (Music Education) at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. She is one of the founding members of educational quartet "Quart-Ed", performing and teaching for audiences of all walks of life. The quartet's philosophy of pluralist music education means they frequently perform new Australian works, often in collaboration with composers. Karen has recently been exploring the string folk scene and performed with the Narrownecks at the Dorrigo Folk and Bluegrass Festival in 2019. Karen sustained an anxiety-related playing injury in 2016 and is now on the road to recovery with a passion for awakening and deepening people’s musical identities, and developing healthy music making practices in school settings and beyond. In her free time, Karen enjoys connecting with the world and people for whom music is about and for: Recently, she was a facilitator for Girl Guides NSW, ACT & NT's environmental advocacy seminar, and is currently completing a Certificate IV in Outdoor Leadership.
Karen is the Sydney Contemporary Orchestra - Ensemble Modern 2022 musician for the Sydney International Composers Concerts - Contemporary Chamber Music concert on December 22, 2022, at the TLC Theatre. Sydney Australia.
