Sasha Kandybin

Sasha Kandybin is a violinist and conductor praised for performances with "soulful bliss and charisma" by Cremona Nazinoale. In August 2026 he will begin the role of assistant conductor of the South Dakota Symphony Orchestra and music director of the South Dakota Symphony Youth Orchestra.

Kandybin has served as the music director of the University of Maryland University Orchestra, a conducting fellow at the National Orchestral Institute in 2025, music director for the Immanuel Lutheran School, and he has conducted and collaborated with the Prince George Philharmonic and the Greenbelt Community Orchestra. His conducting studies began at the Manhattan School of Music Precollege program with Jonathan Strasser and continued with Larry Rachleff at Rice University and David Neely at the University of Maryland where he received his Master of Music degree in conducting.

Kandybin began studying the violin at age seven and performed at Cremona's International music academy in Italy at age twelve, launching an early career marked by both instrumental and artistic distinction.  He received his bachelor's degree in violin performance from the Cleveland Institute of Music, studying with William Preucil, Philip Setzer, and Jessica Lee, and later earned a Master of Music in violin performance from Rice University, where he studied with Paul Kantor.

Kandybin is a prize winner in numerous competitions, including the Cremona International Violin Competition and the New Jersey Intergenerational Orchestra Competition. He has served as concertmaster of the Music in the Mountains chamber orchestra, a fellow at the Aspen Music Festival and has performed with the Baltimore Chamber Orchestra, Apollo Symphony Orchestra, and the Alexandria Symphony. A passionate chamber musician, Kandybin has performed with the Nashville Chamber Music Society, Manchester Music Festival, and the National Arts Center Young Artists Program where he worked with Pinchas Zukerman, and the Music@Menlo chamber music festival. He was also a member of the Elara Quartet, which was invited to the McGill International String Quartet Academy and performed in the Juilliard String Quartet seminar and performance series.

Deeply committed to music education and community engagement, Kandybin has worked extensively in outreach initiatives to broaden access to classical music. During his time at the Cleveland Institute of Music, he performed throughout Northeast Ohio with the Connect Outreach Program, advocating for greater music education in public schools. In 2018, HBO featured him in a televised concert with El Sistema's Unity Youth Orchestra and the Recycled Orchestra of Cateura at Trinity Church in New York City.

Beyond the podium, enjoys exploring his passion of cooking, maintaining an extensive photography portfolio, hiking in the great outdoors, and singing jazz.