2026 Arkady Fomin Scholarship Fund recipient
Maximilian James is a violinist from Redmond, Washington. Inspired by Itzhak Perlman’s Zigeunerweisen, he began studying violin at age four with Sharon Wherland and later received guidance from Professor Grant Donnellan. He currently studies with Dr. Pasha Sabouri.
Max has performed in masterclasses with renowned artists including Vadim Gluzman, Richard Lin, Erin Keefe, Nancy Zhou, Miriam Fried, Chad Hoopes and Stefan Jackiw. A passionate chamber musician, he is a member of the Seattle Chamber Music Society Academy and has worked with musicians such as Efe Baltacigil, Nathan Chan, Elisa Barston, Susan Gulkis Assadi, Mark Salman and Rachel Lee Priday. His chamber groups have also performed in masterclasses for artists like James Ehnes, Tessa Lark, and Inon Barnatan. Max is the concert master of Eastlake High School’s chamber orchestra. Max has studied at the Indiana University Jacob’s School of Music summer strings academy for the last 3 summers.
Max won the Performing Arts Festival of the Eastside’s Concerto Competition in 2025 and made his orchestral debut with the Bellevue Symphony the same year. He also won first prize in the violin category of the 2026 Washington State Solo and Ensemble competition. Max was sponsored by the Arkady Fomin Scholarship Fund to attend the inaugural violin academy of the Music in the Mountains festival in 2026, where he studied with Vadim Gluzman.