Canadian violinist and violist Sheila Jaffé is praised for her versatility and expression on the instrument. She is equally comfortable and compelling in recital, chamber music, and orchestral positions, and is committed to excellence in every capacity. She has performed across North America and Europe as a chamber musician, orchestral player and soloist.

Very much in demand in chamber music circles, she has performed in numerous international festivals, including Domaine Forget in Quebec, IMS Prussia Cove in England, Toronto Summer Music and Ottawa Chamberfest. She helped found the Rosebud Chamber Music Festival in Alberta, where the Rosebud String Quartet was formed. The quartet now performs regularly in and around Toronto, and will be playing in Albuquerque this summer. Sheila completed her studies in violin at the Université de Montréal and the Hanns Eisler Hochschüle für Musik in Berlin, Germany before moving to Toronto to join the viola section of the Canadian Opera Company in January 2015.

Since then, she has become an integral part of Toronto’s musical community and has performed with several established ensembles in the city. She performs regularly with several contemporary music organizations, as well as chamber music and recital series’. Sheila also holds the position of principal viola of the Canadian Opera Company Orchestra and the National Ballet Orchestra, and is regularly invited as guest concertmaster of several regional orchestras. Her debut album recorded with pianist Huw Watkins will be coming out in fall 2022 as well as the Rosebud String Quartet’s first album of Haydn quartets and a Mozart quintet with guest violist Steven Dann.

Sheila plays on a Francesco Gobetti violin (1710-15) and a Raymond Schryer viola (2006) on generous loan from Canimex.