David Reimer is the Director of the Dorothy Gerber Strings Program - under the auspices of the Charlevoix Circle of Arts - and former Professor of violin and director of String Studies at Calvin College. He studied violin at the North Carolina School of the Arts (Stephen Shipps), the Cleveland Institute of Music (Bernhard Goldschmidt) and received his DMA from the Ohio State University (Michael Davis).
Dr. Reimer accepted the directorship of the Dorothy Gerber Strings Program in 2017, providing administrative leadership for a community music program in transition. While upgrading the program’s music education program for regional schools without strings, he also added private lessons (including a Suzuki program), an annual practice challenge, a variety of summer programs and a faculty string quartet - The Cummings Quartet. In addition to his administrative duties, Dr. Reimer also teaches strings classes (in Boyne City, Ellsworth and Beaver Island), private lessons (violin, viola and cello), conducts the Dorothy Gerber Youth Orchestra and performs with and for students as 1st violinist of The Cummings Quartet.
Dr. Reimer was the featured soloist with the Great Lakes Chamber Orchestra in August of 2018, performing “Summer” from Vivaldi’s Four Seasons. He has performed for six years as part of Baroque on Beaver Island which has included serving as Concertmaster of the orchestra, First Violinist of the Beaver Island String Quartet and solo appearances that have included Vaughan-William’s “Lark Ascending”, Vivaldi’s “Spring” Concerto, Bach’s Concerto for Three Violins and Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante with Michael Hall. Other recent orchestras have included the Kalamazoo Symphony, the Traverse Symphony, the Great Lakes Chamber Orchestra and the West Michigan Symphony. Dr. Reimer has also previously played in the Virginia Symphony under Joann Falletta and served as Concertmaster for the Lancaster Festival Orchestra, Mansfield Symphony and the New Philharmonic in Glen Ellyn, Illinois.
In addition to the Beaver Island Quartet, Dr. Reimer has collaborated as a chamber musician as part of his recitals and with the contemporary music group Ensemble Montage. His recital performances have included two Midwest tours in 2017. He has also been a soloist with the Calvin Community Symphony (Prokofiev Concerto No. 1) and has produced a compact disc recording entitled Meditatio.
As director of Calvin College’s string program, Dr. Reimer founded and directed numerous music initiatives, including the Calvin String Summit (chamber music camp), the Calvin Honors Orchestra Festival, the Calvin College string chamber music program, the Calvin String Ensemble (string chamber orchestra), and revitalized the Leo Cayvan String Instrument Collection.
Prior to teaching at Calvin College, Dr. Reimer taught at the Omaha Conservatory, Cleveland Institute of Music Preparatory Division, University of Connecticut School of the Arts, College of DuPage and was a teaching associate at the Ohio State University.