Theresa Dimond

Originally from Phoenix, Arizona, Theresa Dimond began her percussion studies with Mervin Britton at age 8. Upon moving to Los Angeles, she attended the University of Southern California where she studied with Ken Watson, earning a B.M., M.M. and D.M.A. in music performance. As a student, she also attended the Interlochen National Music Camp, the Aspen Music Festival, the Music Academy of the West and the Los Angeles Philharmonic Institute. She has studied with the late Mitchell Peters (Los Angeles Philharmonic), Neil De Ponte (Oregon Symphony), F. Michael Combs (formerly of the University of Tennessee) and the late Charlie Owens (Philadelphia Orchestra).

Prof. Dimond is currently the principal percussionist of the Los Angeles Opera Orchestra. She has been a member of the orchestra since its inception in 1985. The LA Opera Orchestra has recently won four Grammy Awards for its recordings of Kurt Weill’s The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny, and John Corigliano’s The Ghosts of Versaille.

As a freelance musician in Los Angeles, Dr. Dimond has worked with every orchestral ensemble in the city, including the LA Philharmonic and Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra. As well as her duties at LA Opera, she is currently Principal Percussion of the Pasadena Symphony and Pops and Principal Timpanist of Muse/ique, the Los Angeles Master Chorale and the California Philharmonic. She has worked with many preeminent conductors including Leonard Bernstein, Michael Tilson Thomas, Jeffrey Kahane, Placido Domingo, Herbert Blomstedt, Kent Nagano, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Gustavo Dudamel and James Conlon. A highlight of her career has been performing with soprano Dawn Upshaw, and members of the Boston Symphony, on a contemporary music tour. Dr. Dimond has also appeared as soloist at the Aspen, Sun Valley and Tanglewood Summer Music Festivals.

She serves on the faculties of UCLA, UC, Irvine, Pomona College, Whittier College and Cerritos College. She has previously taught at her alma mater, USC. In 1998, she founded TouchDown Publications, a music publishing company which edits and publishes opera percussion parts.

One of a handful of experts on the cimbalom, a Hungarian hammered dulcimer, she has performed with Pierre Boulez, Lalo Schifrin, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Kurt Masur, Dawn Upshaw, and Grant Gershon on that specialty instrument. Her recording credits include The Curious Case of Benjamin Buttons, Far from Heaven, The Dewey Cox Story, Rush Hour 3, Rocky 5, and Edward Scissorhands, to name but a few.

Prof. Dimond makes her home in the Mt. Washington area of Los Angeles, with her husband, Jim, their dog, Monte, and their two cats, Tiggy and Widget.