MUSE • Musicians United for Social Equity

Biography

From Uniondale, New York, first-generation Filipino-American multi-instrumentalist, composer-arranger, and writer Jay Julio (b. 1997, they/them) splits time between NYC, Philadelphia, and on tour. Jay serves as Assistant Principal Violist of the Opera Philadelphia Orchestra; other highlights include performances with the American Composers Orchestra and the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, the Memphis, Charleston, and Dallas Symphony, the Broadway productions of Sunset Boulevard, Ragtime, and Queen of Versailles, and for over a year as Viola / Violin III with the touring company of Hamilton. Solo appearances include concertos with the Ocala Symphony, the Marquette Symphony, and the Brooklyn Youth Chorus, as well as recitals on the Dame Myra Hess Concert Series, at the Free Library of Philadelphia, and the University of the Philippines’ Abelardo Hall. Their commercial experience includes live shows and recordings with Burna Boy, Major Lazer, Audra McDonald, Mac Ayres, and more. In 2026, they were named the recipient of the American Federation of Musicians Charles McDaniels Youth Award for their work towards equity in the industry.

Jay has recorded for Parma, Nonesuch, and Broadway Records, including releases nominated for 2025 and 2026 Grammy Awards, and has been heard on radio and TV across the US, Australia, and Europe, from appearances on nationally-syndicated Performance Today with pianist Josh Tatsuo Cullen to interviews on major media affiliates regarding Asian-American issues. They are a 2025 recipient of an Interdisciplinary New York State Council for the Arts grant and a 2025 YoungArts Alumni Microgrant to support the development of their original musical/literary/visual work america is in the heart, and served as a Tell Your Story fellow at the 2026 Spoleto Music Festival.

Their festival appearances include those at the Lucerne Festival Academy, the Music Academy of the West, Orpheus@Mannes, the New York String Orchestra Seminar and the Cabrillo, Tanglewood, Aspen, Pacific, Thy, Spoleto and Lake Tahoe music festivals; they have also spent summers at the Yellow Barn Young Artists Program and the National Symphony Orchestra’s Summer Music Institute as a Young Artist of Color. They have served as a Teaching Fellow at the Juilliard School’s Music Advancement Program and as substitute viola & chamber music faculty at the Manhattan School of Music Precollege Division. They have coached the Inner City Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles, have been on faculty at the Stony Brook University Chamber Strings Camp, and hold teaching positions at the Interlochen Center for the Arts Viola Intensive and Midori and Friends.

A prizewinner in national competitions held by the National Federation of Music Clubs and the Music Teachers National Association and recipient of a 2019 Juilliard Career Grant, Jay is indebted to the Virtu Foundation and the American Viola Society for their past support through instrument and bow loans. They were recipient of a 2020 Music Academy of the West Fast Pitch Award to start music-meets-prison-analysis organization Sound Off: Music for Bail, which was awarded a 2021 Juilliard School Career Grant, a 2022 YoungArts Foundation Creative Microgrant, a 2022 + 2024 Puffin Foundation Grant, a 2023 Surdna Foundation Thriving Cultures Sponsorship, a 2023 New Music USA Organizational Fund Grant, a 2023 Copland Fund Grant, and 2024 Lower Manhattan Cultural Council Manhattan Arts and Upper Manhattan Economic Zone Grants before they stepped down from leadership in 2024 to focus on touring. They have served as a panelist/juror for grants and competitions held by the YoungArts Foundation, the Groupmuse Foundation, the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, the New York State Council for the Arts, and the MAP Foundation.

After taking their first viola lesson at age 14 at the Mannes Preparatory Division, Jay graduated from the Interlochen Arts Academy at 16 studying with Renee Skerik with their highest musical honor, the Young Artist Award, received their BM in Viola Performance from the Manhattan School of Music under Karen Ritscher on full scholarship, and received their MM at the Juilliard School on a full-tuition Susan W. Rose Fellowship under the tutelage of Heidi Castleman and Misha Amory. Other important mentors include Leilehua Lanzilotti, Todd Low, and Lina Bahn. For rhythm, Jay studies poetry.