Christian joined the Charleston Symphony in 2022 as Principal Bass. When he began studying the bass at age 9 he wanted to be different from his other musical siblings by playing jazz. His teacher David Yavornitzky, principal bassist of the Utah Symphony, convinced him to start with some classical fundamentals—years later Christian still hasn’t gotten around to doing much jazz. As a teenager, Christian made his big debut as a winner of the Utah Symphony’s Salute to Youth concerto competition. Years later, in college at BYU, Christian won the school’s concerto competition, and then, while attending the San Francisco Conservatory of Music for a Masters Degree, he won that school’s concerto competition. After completing a Master’s Degree with Scott Pingel (Former Charleston Symphony Principal), Christian extended his studies one year to earn a Professional Studies Certificate. In 2021 he attended the National Orchestral Institute and Festival in Maryland and in 2022 he played in the Music in the Vineyards festival in Napa Valley. In California he was a regular substitute with the SF Ballet Orchestra and the SF Symphony. He has also played with various regional orchestras including the Santa Cruz Symphony, the California Symphony and One Found Sound. He has worked with a host of premier conductors including Esa-Pekka Salonen, Christoph Eschenbach, Klaus Mäkelä and Maren Alsop. In performance he has worked with artists such as Lea Salonga, Lynn Harrell and Víkingur Ólafsson. He has performed in masterclasses around the US and Europe for artists such as Joseph Silverstein, Daxun Zhang, Bogulsaw Furtok, Artem Chirkov, Claus Trumpf, Ed Barker, and Peter Lloyd. A born native of North Carolina, Christian is excited to be returning to such a beautiful part of the country.