Gillian Rogell has been on the faculty of the New England Conservatory Preparatory School since 1977, when she was was both the first violist and the first chamber music coach on the faculty. She went on to direct the Chamber Music Departments at both the Preparatory School and the School of Continuing Education.
Ms. Rogell has been an active performer in both orchestral and chamber music concerts in the Boston area. She was principal violist for 10 years with Boston Philharmonic and Boston Civic Symphony, and performed frequently as principal violist in Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra. She appeared with the Opera Company of Boston, Boston Ballet, Cantata Singers, and numerous choral groups and academic orchestras and choruses. She was also presented in chamber concerts at the Gardner Museum, MIT, Brown, Harvard, and Brandeis. She has taught and performed at festivals in Israel, Italy, and the Czech Republic; and at Castle Hill, Heifetz International Music Institute, Killington Music Festival, and the Foundation for Chinese Performing Arts.
She received her BA degree from University of Pennsylvania, and her MM, with Honors, from NEC. Her principal viola teachers were Karen Tuttle and Scott Nickrenz; in chamber music, she studied with The Hungarian Quartet, Edgar Ortenberg of the Budapest Quartet, and her mentor, Eugene Lehner.
In 2008 Ms. Rogell created the award-winning DVD, At the Heart of Chamber Music, featuring The Jupiter String Quartet and Paul Katz, which has been distributed around the world, and has been shown on PBS stations. In it, she demonstrates both a practical and conceptual coaching technique based on the musical language found in the music itself. She has been invited to coach at many New England music camps and festivals, and has given presentations at the American String Teachers Association Conference, Chamber Music America, and the Suzuki Association of America Conference.
Ms. Rogell is also on the faculty of the Rivers School Conservatory, where she teaches viola, and is Director of Chamber Music Studies. She maintains a private studio in Brookline.