Elisabeth Waldo began her outstanding musical career on the family Ranch, which borders the Yakima Native American Reservation in Washington State. She began to sing at age three and played the smallest violin (of that time) by when she was five. Upon the recommendation of world-renown concert Violinist Jascha Heifetz, Ms. Waldo received  a Scholarship to the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia. However, the magical Native American sounds of her childhood remained with her throughout her classical musical education and early career.

 

Ms. Waldo joined the All-American Youth Orchestra at the invitation of Leopold Stokowski. Touring South America, she further fanned the flames of "new directions" other than Western European Music. After a season as a First Violinist with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, she at last was free to explore other Latin-American countries as a solo violinist.

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Explains Ms. Waldo: "It was a time when I was most susceptible to the “freer” forms of the Hispano and Indigenous Idioms. I became totally immersed in the color and warmth, the rhythms and mystery of another World."

 

Ms. Waldo toured on her own as a Solo Violinist in Panamá, Costa Rica, Colombia, Peru, Chile, and Cuba. She concluded her tour in Mexico City, where she became a resident. While performing on Mexican Radio Networks (including a series of concerts with Augustin Lara) she had the rare opportunity to become acquainted with the famous muralist, Diego Rivera.

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Explaining her need to understand the music of ancient Meso-American Cultures, for which no musical notation has ever been discovered, don Diego influenced Ms. Waldo to extensively Research and “devise” musical Hieroglyphics which would make it possible for modern Musicians to perform rare pre-Colombian styles on their modern instruments.

 

Through her Indo-Hispanic and Indigenous performing-composing activities, Ms. Waldo began to add and compose music in Asian idioms (1980s) with special emphasis on China. Subsequently, her Pan-Asian Ensemble was one of the first groups to introduce Chinese music and dance to the Los Angeles School System. As a follow-up cultural exchange with various Chinese Conservatories, Ms. Waldo was invited to perform her Concierto Indo-Americano with the Xian Symphony in the Ancient Chinese Capitol. Today, this newly created "Chinese Idiom" is a part of her Southwinds Music in live Concerts, Recordings, and Lecture-Demos.

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