Westchester Philharmonic Violinist Fatally Shot in Upstate NY Home

By Alfred Branch.

Mary Whitaker, a violinist with the Westchester Philharmonic Orchestra for more than 25 years, was reportedly shot and killed this week in her Westfield, NY, summer home, according to The Buffalo News andNewsday.

Whitaker, 61, was discovered in the home by another musician and her husband on Wednesday. No arrests have been made and police are “aggressively investigating” the crime.

“She died as the result of a gunshot wound, and we are aggressively investigating the incident,” Chautauqua County Sheriff Joseph A. Gerace told The Buffalo News Thursday. “My investigators have been on the scene since yesterday afternoon. We got there about 4:20 p.m., and they have worked through the night. We’re being assisted by the Jamestown office of the FBI and the New York State Police.”

According to her bio on the Westchester Philharmonic website, Whitaker played with several orchestras, and once toured with Barbra Streisand. During the summer months, she played with the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra.

Photo: Mary Whitaker. Photo credit: Westchester Philharmonic Orchestra.