Based in the Mountain West region of the United States, Ross McIntosh directs the Wyoming International Chamber Music Festival (WICMF), teaches viola and chamber music at the University of Wyoming, and is the newly appointed assistant principal violist of the Boulder Philharmonic. Other recent orchestral activity includes a period as guest principal violist of the BBC Concert Orchestra. As a chamber player he is often engaged in the US and Europe. He is delighted to be regularly appearing as a part of the Swiss Chamber Concerts series in Geneva, Switzerland. Ross has shared the stage with such artists as Atar Arad, Timothy Ridout, Gyula Stuller, Annette von Hehn, Daniel Blumenthal, David Lai, Alexander Gebert, Stephanie Gurga, Tony Nys, Joanna Blendulf, Tomo Keller . . . and has worked with composers including Sir John Rutter, Cheryl Frances-Hoad, Kian Ravaei, and Claire-Mélanie Sinnhuber.

McIntosh has revived ViolaFest West, an event hosted by the University of Wyoming which brings students of the instrument to Laramie for masterclasses, workshops, and concerts which explore the musician’s role via the viola. 2026’s ViolaFest West, in association with WICMF, proudly presents renowned violist Roger Chase as guest artist.

As founder and Artistic Director of WICMF, Ross has the opportunity to invite artists from all corners of the globe to come together and share in the creation of new and unique musical experiences in the singularly beautiful region he calls home. All WICMF concerts are presented free of charge; the festival’s mission is to increase the accessibility of classical music for all, and to invite people from all walks of life to take part in the shared artistic experiences which chamber music performances offer. 

Ross is also an active organist, and plays regularly in sacred and secular settings. He is organist at the Cathedral of St. Mary in Cheyenne, WY. Ross’s own compositions have been performed across the northern hemisphere. From orchestral works to chamber and solo pieces, art songs to popular arrangements, he makes an effort not to get stuck speaking only in his native tongue as a classical violist.

Upcoming projects include the recording of an album of the viola music of Johannes Brahms and Joseph Joachim. This album will be recorded on the ca. 1609 Gasparo da Salò viola once owned by Joachim, and by which these pieces were conceived and inspired. Ross will be joined for this project by his frequent chamber music partner, pianist Benjamin David Tufte.  This project is generously sponsored by the National Music Museum in Vermillion, South Dakota.