A Scarsdale native and alumna of Hoff-Barthelson Music School’s Honors Program, Rachel Haber returns to HBMS as a faculty member with a meaningful connection to the School and community where her own musical journey began.
Rachel earned her Bachelor of Music degree from Vanderbilt University and her Master of Music degree from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, where she studied with Dimitri Murrath. She is currently pursuing a doctoral degree at Stony Brook University under the guidance of Lawrence Dutton and Matthew Lipman.
An active chamber musician and collaborator, Rachel has performed with members of the Emerson String Quartet and with ensembles including the Academy of St Martin in the Fields and San Francisco-based One Found Sound. Her musical experience has also included recording at Ocean Way Nashville. She has participated in distinguished festivals and programs including the Aspen Music Festival and School, Fontainebleau Schools of Music and Fine Arts, Maine Chamber Music Seminar, Mendocino Music Festival, Icicle Creek Chamber Music Festival, and Bear Valley Music Festival.
Rachel’s honors include winning the 2015 Lincoln Center Young Musicians Competition and the 2018 MTNA Chamber Music Competition. In 2024, she and the Rhodora String Quartet won Stony Brook University’s Ackerman Chamber Music Competition.
Rachel’s musical interests extend beyond performance to music history and the social and historical contexts that shape musical works. In October 2025, she was invited to return to the San Francisco Conservatory of Music as a guest lecturer, presenting on Beethoven’s String Quartet No. 12 in E-flat major, Op. 127.
As a returning HBMS alumna, Rachel brings her experience as a performer, chamber musician, and scholar back to the community that helped foster her own development as a musician.
