Instrument: Oboe

Position: Assistant Principal Oboe

Hometown, Country: Okazaki, Japan

Year began with ASO: September 2007

Machiko Ogawa Schlaffer, originally from Okazaki, Japan, joined the Alabama Symphony Orchestra in 2007 as Assistant Principal Oboe. She began her musical education by taking violin lessons and playing the trumpet in her middle school band. Machiko started playing the oboe at the age of 14. She earned her bachelor’s degree in music performance from Musashino Music Academy in Tokyo. After graduation, she moved to the United States to study at the Boston Conservatory with Keisuke Wakao, the Assistant Principal Oboist in the Boston Symphony. In 2002, Machiko joined the Civic Orchestra of Chicago and was coached by members of the Chicago Symphony, including Alex Klein. She attended Roosevelt University for her master’s degree in Orchestral Performance and studied the oboe and English horn with Grover Schiltz. Machiko has participated in summer festivals such as Tanglewood, Des Moines Metro Opera, National Orchestral Institute, and Colorado College Music Festival. She has also performed with the Northwest Indiana Symphony, Rockford Symphony, South Bend Symphony, and Chicago Symphony Orchestra. She is an adjunct faculty member at the University of Montevallo. Machiko lives in Hoover with her husband, Gabriel, an accountant, and their three cats, Leila, Fuga, and Poko. She enjoys cooking and traveling.