Wynter McCray

Wynter McCray is a first-year Bass Fellow at the New World Symphony. She has been celebrated for her distinctive tone and musical sensibilities. Wynter has served as a member of the Orchestra of Northern New York and Principal Bass in the Eastman Philharmonia, Juilliard School Orchestra, Juilliard Chamber Orchestra and Turkish American Orchestra.

Wynter is also recognized as an exceptional chamber musician, performing at music festivals and recitals. She believes that, as a musician, collaboration is one of the most important aspects that can help an individual understand music through different lenses.

In addition to her performance career, Wynter is dedicated to cultivating the minds of young artists. She has served as a teaching fellow for The Juilliard School’s Music Advancement Program and as an orchestra mentor with the New York Youth Symphony’s Crescendo Orchestra, where she inspired students to learn more about themselves through music while fostering a sense of duty and personal artistic standards.

Wynter's passion for music is rooted in her childhood, surrounded by the voices of the black church in her hometown of Columbia, South Carolina. At the age of 11, she began studying the double bass and was drawn to its deep, rich tone. Her early studies include attending the Palmetto Center for the Arts and the South Carolina Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities. Wynter is a graduate of The Juilliard School, where she studied with Joseph Conyers as a master's degree candidate and recipient of a Kovner Fellowship. She completed her bachelor of music degree at the Eastman School of Music, where she received Eastman’s prestigious Performance Certificate while studying with James VanDemark.

She is honored to be a first-year Fellow at the New World Symphony.