Tim Shaffer completed his Bachelor of Music Degree with Distinction at the Indiana University School of Music. He has been a professional double bassist since the age of twenty, when he joined the New Orleans Symphony. For many years, he lived in Germany and was principal bassist of the Westphalian Symphony Orchestra. After returning from Germany, he and his wife Jocelyn have been living in the Chicago area. Shaffer is principal bassist of the Elgin Symphony Orchestra, section bassist with the Grant Park Orchestra of Chicago (at Millennium Park) during the summer, and an active free-lance musician and substitute musician with Lyric Opera of Chicago and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. He has also toured throughout the United States, Europe and Japan and recorded with various ensembles during his career.