Cory Balzer began playing the violin and piano at the age of five in his hometown of Calgary, Alberta. Since his early days studying violin with Dr. Lise Elson at Mount Royal College, he has gone on to perform in recitals and concerts throughout Canada, US, Australia, Europe and the Caribbean. In addition to being a member of the Victoria Symphony, he is a founding member of the Emily Carr String Quartet; a group twice nominated for the Western Canada Music Awards Classical Album of the Year.
Following completion of a Bachelor of Music Performance degree at McGill University, Cory played for two seasons in Les Jeunes Virtuoses de Montreal. As a member of the Cartier String Quartet, he was a winner in the Debut Young Concert Artists Series and performed on CBC and Radio Canada on several occasions. Cory continued his studies with Kenneth Goldsmith at Rice University in Houston, Texas where he earned a Master of Music degree.
In 1997 Cory moved to Victoria to join the Victoria Symphony. He spent the 2000 and 2001 seasons playing with the Trius String Quartet at the Shaw Theatre Festival in Niagara-on-the-Lake ON. The quartet performed biweekly concerts in addition to being heard in various plays and musicals for Shaw Festival. The quartet also embarked on a Rocky Mountain Tour bringing music to many smaller towns in Alberta and BC. Cory has also played at the Charlottetown Festival and has participated in residencies and festivals at the Banff Centre, Stanford University, Snowbird (Utah), Hornby Festival and Meadowmount School of Music (NY).
As a member of the Emily Carr String Quartet, he has played hundreds of concerts in BC, Canada, United States and Turkey. They have commissioned and premiered dozens of works to critical acclaim and have collaborated with some of the greatest musicians in Canada.
In addition to his performing career, Cory is also a passionate violin teacher. His students have pursued music degrees in universities, completed all levels of RCM exams and have been winners at the Greater Victoria Performing Arts Festival. He has coached violin sectionals at the Greater Victoria Youth Orchestra, both weekly and at the GVYO summer camp. He has given solo and chamber music masterclasses at the Victoria Conservatory of Music, VCM Summer Strings Camp and was a teacher at The Rice University Preparatory program in Houston, Texas. Cory taught at Daniel Lapp’s House of Music for 2 years, sharing classical techniques with young fiddle students. He also helped to establish the Emily Carr String Quartet’s Young Mentorship Program; a program which gives young, talented musicians the opportunity to work with the quartet and to perform on their Music:InsideOUT series.