Jessica Tovey

​​Jessica Tovey is a modern and baroque violinist based in Montreal, Quebec. In December 2024 she graduated with her Master’s in Music from the Schulich School of Music at McGill University under the guidance of Violaine Melancon. Jessica has appeared three times as a soloist with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, including the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto on the orchestra’s Tea and Trumpets series. In 2019 Jessica was an Assistant Concertmaster with Canada’s National Youth Orchestra, touring Eastern Canada and Spain.

 

Jessica graduated with a bachelor's degree in Violin Performance from Boston University in 2022, where she studied with Bayla Keyes. Jessica’s love of baroque music was fostered throughout her experience in the Baroque Ensemble at McGill University under the direction of Dorian Bandy. This experience led Jessica to explore baroque music more intimately at the Tafelmusik Baroque Summer Institute, where she performed and worked closely with members of the Tafelmusik Orchestra such as Julia Wedman and Patricia Ahern.

 

In the fall of 2024, Jessica was a soloist in Vivaldi's Double Concerto for organ and violin alongside organist Aron Sipos and the McGill Baroque Ensemble, in collaboration with the Canadian International Organ Competition. Currently, Jessica is a member of the Lyra Quartet, a string quartet formed in 2022 and finalists in the Schulich School of Music Chamber Competition in 2024. In the summer of 2024, Lyra Quartet held a fellowship position at the Garth Newel Music Center in Hot Springs, Virginia and received a full scholarship to attend the Tuckamore Music Festival. In summer 2025, Jessica will be participating in the mentorship program of the Orchestre Classique de Montréal and the National Arts Centre Orchestra in Ottawa. Outside of violin, Jessica enjoys practicing yoga and spending time on her family farm in Maxville, Ontario.​