After receiving her Bachelor’s degree from Florida State University, Alison Gooding Hoffman went on to earn a Master’s degree from the University of Cincinnati-College Conservatory of Music, where she served as Associate Concertmaster of the Philharmonia, as well as Concertmaster of the Eighteenth Century Ensemble and Concertmaster of the Contemporary Music Ensemble.

Alison won a tenured position in the Nashville Symphony in 1999. In addition to performing with the Nashville Symphony, she has performed in orchestral and chamber music performances in Europe and across the United States.

In 2015, Alison performed as a soloist in the inaugural recital for the Palazzo Cucchiari in Carrara, Italy for the Giorgio Conti Foundation. She is continually involved with additional projects, notably the non-profit chamber ensemble, Alias, of which she is a founding member. Her performances with Alias have been lauded in the press as “masterful”, “energetic” and “seamless”, and she has recorded on all Alias CDs including the group’s 2011 GRAMMY nominated, critically acclaimed CD, Hilos.

A dedicated artist, passionate about her craft, Alison is committed to inspiring others, and taught violin for many years in a private studio and at the Montessori School of Franklin, before joining the faculty of Belmont University in 2010, where she taught until 2023. She dedicates much of her time to education, not only through teaching but also through outreach. In this pursuit, she has served not only with the education ensembles of the Nashville Symphony, but also as educational coordinator for Alias, and as a teaching artist with the TPAC/Wolftrap Early Learning through the Arts programs. 

Ms Hoffman currently works full-time in the recording industry and has recorded in all of the major studios in Nashville. She also performs with the Nashville Opera, the Nashville Ballet, and enjoys collaborating with living composers on new music.

Alison has many varied interests and recently earned a Bachelor of Science with a minor in nutrition from Belmont University. In her free time, she fosters rescue animals, and enjoys spending time with her husband, six-year-old son, and their puppy, cats, and chickens.