San Francisco Ballet 150 students are chosen by audition to dance in the yearly SF Ballet production of "Nutcracker". The most advanced students may also dance with SF Ballet in the repertory season. The school also runs a pre-ballet program for children ages 4–7; after completing the program, students of age who wish to continue study must audition in order to continue at the school. The faculty of the San Francisco Ballet School has long been known for its excellence and diversity of background. As of January 2017, it is led by the Artistic Director Helgi Tómasson and Associate Director Patrick Armand. The
Quartet San Francisco with the Santa Fe Opera. She is co-concertmaster of the Oakland East Bay Symphony and concertmaster with the Santa Fe Pro Musica Chamber Orchestra. She is on the faculty of the Music Department at Stanford University. James "Jim" Shallenberger, a founding member of the Kronos Quartet, played violin on the 2002 recording "Quartet San Francisco". Shallenberger is a member of the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra and the San Francisco Opera and Ballet Orchestras. He is one of the extended faculty of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. "Pacific Premieres", the group's fifth album, was released in 2013. The album consists