She is a percussionist born in Rochester, New York who started to learn percussion when she was nine years old and went on to study at the Eastman School of Music’s Preparatory Department where she gained a certificate of merit and diploma with honours in 1979. She took further studies at the Eastman School of Music where she earned her Bachelor of Music with distinction in 1983 and graduated with her Masters of Music from the College-Conservatory of Music in Cincinnati.
While still a student she performed as an extra musician with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and the Rochester Philharmonic and after starting her professional career went on to perform as Principal Percussionist with the Philharmonic Orchestra of Florida.
In 1986 she became a percussionist with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra after being appointed to the position by Sir Georg Solti. While with the CSO she has performed as a chamber musician in many of the orchestra’s chamber music concerts as as well as with several ensembles that include the CSO Trombone Ensemble, Chicago Pro Musica, the Chicago Chamber Musicians and Ensemble Intercontemporain of Paris.
Recordings she has performed on include The Solo Percussionist by William L. Cahn, Corigliano: Symphony No. 1, Wagner: Overtures and Preludes, Arnold Schonberg: Verklarte Nacht Op. 4, Piano Pieces Op. 11 & 19/Five Orchestral Pieces Op. 16, Brahms: Violin Concerto/Sonata No. 3 and the soundtrack of the film Lincoln by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Live by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Brass and Yellowstone: The Music of Nature by Mannheim Steamroller.
In the field of musical education she was the initiator of the CSO’s Percussion Scholarship Program in 1995 which offers gifted students a full scholarship and weekly percussion instruction. This group has appeared as soloists in the CSO’s youth concert series, on several radio broadcasts and at conferences and the Percussive Arts Society International Convention.
A co-leader of the Percussion Scholarship Program is her husband Doug Waddell who is a percussionist with the Grant Park Symphony and the Chicago Lyric Opera Orchestra.
Sources:
- https://cso.org/about/performers/cso-musicians/percussion/percussion/patricia-dash/
- https://zildjian.com/education/zildjian-inspirit-digest-issue-4-patricia-dash.html
- https://www.midwestclinic.org/2013_clinician_Patricia_Dash.html
- https://www.buzzsprout.com/1168991/8369539
- https://csosoundsandstories.org/dream-out-loud-patricia-dash/
- http://worldcat.org/identities/lccn-no2008105500/
- https://www.allmusic.com/artist/patricia-dash-mn0001747192/credits
- https://www.discogs.com/fr/artist/3599589-Patricia-Dash