A maverick French horn player, Anni Hochhalter is a founding member and Executive Director of WindSync. As an award-winning chamber musician, Hochhalter has set a new standard of virtuosic wind performance practice and built a new repertoire for the wind quintet in addition to her experimental craft in non-traditional performance styles and mediums. Hochhalter was the only musician selected for Stanford University’s Executive Program for Social Entrepreneurship in 2017 and has been a featured speaker at Chamber Music America’s National Conference and the MENSA World Gathering to share bold approaches to community building through chamber music. Outside of WindSync, she performs on vocals, electronics and horn with the band Late Aster, praised by the San Francisco Chronicle as a “very cool collision of brass and electronics.” Recent appearances with Late Aster include University of Wisconsin-Madison, Cal Academy’s NightLife LIVE, KXSF 102.5 FM radio, and the Owl Music Parlor in Brooklyn. Hochhalter studied horn at the University of Southern California with leading studio musicians Rick Todd, James Thatcher and Kristy Morrell, with additional summer training at Chautauqua Music Festival with Roger Kaza. Based in San Francisco, she enjoys ultra running and backpacking in her spare time.