Karel Butz (b. 1980), originally from Seattle, Washington, has performed in several orchestras, including the National Repertory Orchestra, National Orchestral Institute, and Spoleto Festival USA. He has served as Associate Instructor for String Techniques and Music Theory at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music. In addition, he taught violin for the Indiana University String Academy, Oklahoma Summer Arts Institute, and the Bands of America Summer Symposium – Orchestra Division. Mr. Butz taught orchestra in the Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District in Houston, Texas, as well as in the Carmel Clay Schools in Carmel, Indiana. He is a frequent guest conductor, lecturer, and clinician around the country. Mr. Butz serves as adjunct violin faculty at Purdue University.

Mr. Butz received both his Bachelor of Music Education and Master of Music in Violin Performance degrees with High Distinction from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music where his principal violin instructors were Nelli Shkolnikova and Mimi Zweig. Currently, he is completing his doctorate in music education at Indiana University.