When Paetsch was 12 years old, she won both the Colorado Springs Young Artists Contest and the Pueblo Young Artists Contest.[3] She subsequently performed as a soloist with the Colorado Springs Symphony, the Pueblo Symphony, under the direction of Gerhard Track, and the Jefferson Symphony in Denver, Colorado.[4]
At the age of 14, Paetsch was the youngest full-time member of the Colorado Springs Symphony[4], which she did while attending Cheyenne Mountain High School.[5] At 16 years old, she won first prize in the National String Competition held in Chicago, Illinois.[6]
Career
1970s
In 1972, Paetsch became the concertmaster of the Cosmic Heights Chamber Orchestra and played as a first violinist and soloist with the Baroque Players.[7] The Paetsch String Sextet, a family group formed in 1972, consisted of Michaela as concertmaster and solo violist; Priscilla Paetsch as both violinist and violist; Günther Johannes Paetsch as the principal cellist; Brigitte and Phebe Paetsch performing the tutti voices and solo inner violin and viola parts, and Johann Sebastian Paetsch as the continuo cellist, a chordal instrument considered part of the basso continuo part.[8]
Paetsch was awarded a special prize for the best performance of a compulsory work by Russian composer Yuri Falik at the closing ceremony on July 4th 1986, in the International Tchaikovsky Competition, which is held every four years in Moscow, Russia.[15] Her brother, Johann Paetsch, participated in the cello competition at the same event.
In October 1987 Paetsch played three concerts in Holland, directed by the leader of the Zurich Chamber Orchestra. The orchestra's manager arranged for Paetsch to come to Zurich, where a Swiss millionaire with a large collection of stringed instruments loaned her a Guarneri violin to use. Shortly after that the German recording company Teldec signed her to a recording contract.[16]
Paetsch and her brother Johann performing the Brahms Double Concerto.
Paetsch performed for audiences worldwide as a soloist, recitalist, and chamber musician across the world. Notably, she played venues such as Carnegie Hall and Avery Fischer Hall in New York, as well as at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. Paetsch also performed at music festivals, including Marlboro in Vermont, Davos in Switzerland, Brandenburg Summer Concerts in Berlin, Banff in Canada, and Boulder Bach Festival and the "Mostly Mozart" festivals in New York.[19] She also participated in the Rhein-Sieg and Niederrhein Chamber Music Festivals, both located in Germany.[20]
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