Dilek Engin Stolarchuk

Mrs. Dilek Engin Stolarchuk, Doctor of Musical Arts, is currently the conductor of the Mason Philharmonic Orchestra since 2021-22 season. She works at the Expression Music Academy since March 2023 as violin,viola, cello, piano, voice and percussion teacher. She has been teaching violin, viola, cello, voice, acoustic guitar, mostly string instruments, piano, music theory and earning at the Axis Music Academy since October 2022. She joined the faculty at Marshall Music in 2024. She is an active performer and teacher based in Mid-Michigan and Ohio.

Dr. Engin hails from Istanbul, Turkiye. She earned her B.A. Degree from Istanbul University State Conservatory, studying with Çigdem Altaş Epikmen and Venyamin Varsavsky from 1992 until 2003. She received her MM from Marshall University, where she studied with Dr. Elizabeth Reed Smith from 2006 until 2007. In 2006, she won the Bell and Jackson competition from Marshall University. She earned her Doctor of Musical Arts Degree from Michigan State University, partially studying with I-Fu Wang and Yuri Gandelsman and other string, wind and jazz faculty.

She had worked as the String Department Chair at the Flint School of Performing Arts, FIM in Flint, Michigan, where she also served as a Violin/Viola instructor 2018-2022. She had also taught the Summer Fun Strings at FSPA during the summer of 2021-22. She has been the contractor faculty at the College of Music at Michigan State University since 2015 during the Summer semester. She has taught at Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp since 2016; and the Huron High School Band and Orchestra Camp since 2019, held on the campus of Interlochen Arts Academy in Northern Michigan. She was a guest faculty and conductor at Marshall University, teaching for the String Technique Program. She lives in East Lansing, MI with her lovely husband, bass trombonist Stefan Stolarchuk. Together, they spend their time cooking delicious food and trying to make viola and bass trombone duets a thing. She organizes and operates DES Studio, a private studio based at the First Christian Church in Lansing, MI and Holy Cross School in Saginaw, MI. She was a founder of the World Artist Chamber Series sponsored by TACAM (Turkish-American Cultural Association of Michigan) in Novi since 2014.

As an orchestral player, she worked with the Cemal Resit Rey Symphony Orchestra as a full time position, one of the largest symphony orchestras in Istanbul, Turkiye from 1998 to 2000. In the summer of 2001 and 2002, she won the Mediterranean Young Symphony Orchestra in Aix-En-Provence and performed at many festivals in Marseille, France, Morocco, Spain, and Italy. Dr. Engin Stolarchuk has built a successful performing career and professional teaching experience throughout Turkiye, Europe and the United States. Summer 2000, she participated at Ayvalik String and Chamber Music Master Classes with Tatiana Masurenko in Ayvalik, Turkiye. In 2001, Dilek performed in Viola Master-class with Rusen Gunes in Istanbul, Turkey and participated at Ascolo-Piceno Festival in Italy. She performed and played on the CD at the Beethoven Music Festival in Bonn, Germany, with solo pianist Fazil Say in 2002. She performed with the Huntington Symphony Orchestra, West Virginia Symphony Orchestra, Ohio Valley Symphony Orchestra and South Ohio Light Opera Company in Ohio and West Virginia from 2004 until 2009. She participated in Viola Master-class with Roberto Diaz at MSU in 2010. Dilek performed at the Brevard Summer Festival in 2010 and studied with Scott Rawls, Jennifer Snyder Kozoroz and Maggie Snyder.

As a chamber musician, Dilek performed with the Fontano Trio at Marshall University in 2008. She has performed with the California Guitar Trio as a guest artist since 2007 and played on Andromeda CD in 2009. Dilek has performed with the Ad Libitum Chamber group, MSU Cello Plus ad International Chamber Soloist series since 2010. Dilek is a molto instrumentalist. She was a member of the Solivovitz Klezmer group as violin, violist and hummer dulcimer player between 2010 and 2015. Dilek performed with the Ohio Light Opera Orchestra and chamber groups between 2011 and 2012 as a principal viola. Dilek also played on Jazz-Tinged CD with Charles Ruggiero (composer) and Joseph Lulloff (saxophone) as a violist with Musique 21 at Michigan State University, in 2013. Dilek performed with Ruggero Allifrachini (violin), Randolph Kelly (viola) and MSU performer students at MSU in 2013. Dilek performed and recorded the original 13-player version of Appalachian Spring by Aaron Copland, conducted by Kevin Noe by memory in 2014.

Currently, Dr. Engin Stolarchuk performs with Midland, Flint, Saginaw Bay, Rochester, Oakland, Jackson, Adrian, Battle Creek, Lansing, Holland, Southwest Michigan and Macomb Symphonies in Michigan, and the Toledo Symphony in Ohio during the performance season, as assisting viola principal and section player. She performs with the Praise Band at the First Christian Church in Lansing, MI. She has taught the String Class at the Lansing Catholic High School in Lansing since 2019. Dilek also performs at the Baroque on Beaver Festival, and performs with The Taneycomo Festival orchestras in Missouri as a principal viola and assistant principal viola.