Merit School of Music

Khelsey Zarraga

Executive & Board Relations Assistant

Education:

Indiana University – MM in Violin Performance
Indiana University – BM in Violin Performance

Bio:

Khelsey Zarraga is excited and proud to serve as the Executive & Board Relations Assistant at Merit. Recently the violinist and Director of Operations of Fifth House Ensemble, she brings a passion for community-focused engagement and the amplification of marginalized voices into all facets of her work.

As a violinist, Khelsey enjoys performing a wide variety of genres, including concerts of gospel, hip-hop, and jazz in venues such as the United Center, Auditorium Theater, Chicago Theater, and Harris Theater.

As an educator, Khelsey has worked with a wide variety of students, from elementary to the university level. She has been in residence and led masterclasses at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Southeast Missouri State University, and Denison University.

In her spare time, she loves perfecting croissant and chocolate chip cookie recipes and traveling to new places.

Favorite Musician/Band:

This is so hard! I love Anderson Paak., Tom Misch, Mac Ayres, and Fiji Blue. Ella Fitzgerald will always have a special place in my heart.