Alessandra Hollowell

Bitter Jester Music Festival Judge

Alessandra Hollowell is a clarinetist and librarian based in Chicago. Originally from Oregon, she is an active freelance orchestral performer and chamber musician.

She is particularly driven by contemporary classical music and seeks to challenge the formalities of traditional music by exploring performance in a variety of spaces and modalities.

Alessandra has been a dynamic and collaborative performer throughout the United States, with partnerships including the Salem Philharmonic Orchestra, OrchestraNEXT, Eugene Symphony, Boston Chamber Symphony, Boston Conservatory Orchestra, Neither/Nor Ensemble, and the Longy Divergent Studio. Alessandra was also a founding member of Into the Light Ensemble, a cross-genre new music collective dedicated to creating and sharing meaningful art. 

Additionally, Alessandra is a librarian at the Highland Park Public Library (a big supporter of the Bitter Jester Music Fest!), where she cultivates the annual Note for Note concert series to expose audiences of all ages and musical ability to a diversity of genres and musical styles.

She holds a B.M. from the University of Oregon Clark Honors College, a M.M. from the Boston Conservatory at Berklee, and a M.L.S. from Simmons University where she graduated as a member of the library honors society Beta Phi Mu. Her principal teachers included Lou DeMartino, Michael Norsworthy, and Jan Halloran. Alessandra performs on Buffet clarinets and Vandoren mouthpieces.

When not playing clarinet, Alessandra is an avid cinephile and reader.

Some of her favorite movies include Problemista, Metropolitan, Tar, Licorice Pizza, The Graduate, Past Lives, and Priscilla.

Her favorite books include Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series, Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, and D. H. Lawrence’s Sons and Lovers.

Alessandra considers proficiency in music to move beyond sound; a well-rounded musician appreciates all kinds of art.

She is thrilled to be asked to judge this year’s Bitter Jester Music Festival and can’t wait to hear all the performers playing in so many different genres!