BIOGRAPHY
Described as "mesmerizing" by The Burlington Hawkeye Times, music has always been at the forefront of Keoni's life. After convincing his grandmother to purchase a 1/16th size violin for him at the age of three, he began taking violin lessons at a local music school. As his studies became more serious, he always still managed to find time to help take care of the horses and goats on his family’s dairy farm. At age fifteen, his family relocated from Tucson, AZ to the suburbs of Philadelphia, bringing with them all the animals from their Arizona ranch. During this brief two year period in Pennsylvania, Keoni served as concertmaster of the Philadelphia Youth Orchestra and performed concertos with several local orchestras before beginning his undergraduate degree at the Robert McDuffie Center for Strings in Macon, GA
During his four years in Macon, he began exploring the viola, initially playing primarily chamber music. By his senior year, he had committed to the instrument. After completing his Bachelor of Music degree, majoring in violin and viola performance, Keoni began his Master of Music degree at the Juilliard School.
As an orchestral player, he has appeared with the New York Philharmonic, The Philadelphia Orchestra, The London Symphony, and as co-principal of the Juilliard Orchestra, playing under conductors Esa Pekka Salonen, Yannick Nézet-Séguin among others. Keoni has also performed as a soloist in notable American venues including Carnegie’s Weill Hall, the Kennedy Center, and as a finalist in the Irving M. Klein and Juilliard Concerto Competitions. As a chamber musician, Keoni has appeared at the US Capitol, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and internationally with the Rome Chamber Music Festival. He has also been lucky enough to collaborate with members of the Cavani, Ehnes, and Takács quartets.
Keoni’s musical interests reach beyond the concert hall and outside classical music. Beginning in 2014 he began providing free live music for cancer patients and their families, performing at the Philadelphia Ronald McDonald House and the Fox Chase Cancer Center among others. When pursuing his undergrad, Keoni brought this passion with him to his Georgia, providing the Macon Health Center Intensive Care Unit with free monthly live performances to patients and their families.
Beyond classical music, Keoni has been featured playing folk music on the Emmy nominated show SongCraft Presents and can be heard on the Concerto for Violin, Rock Band, and String Orchestra by REM’s Mike Mills. He has also performed with the Count Basie Orchestra, the Indigo Girls, Leslie Odom Jr., and composed the score for several films including Dreamlife (2018), a semi-finalist at the 2018 Los Angeles CineFest.
Keoni is beyond grateful for the guidance of his teachers at the Robert McDuffie Center for Strings and the Juilliard School, where he is a proud recipient of the Kovner Fellowship. He is also fortunate enough to play a viola made by Hiroshi Iizuka on loan from a private donor. He recently joined the Houston Symohony and enjoys tasting craft beers with his dad, taking care of the family farm with his mom, jamming out with his multi-talented brother Aidan, and going to art museums with his Grandma Judy.