Johanna Nowik Assistant Principal
Johanna received her Bachelor of Music in Viola Performance from the Colburn Conservatory of Music in 2019 and a Professional Studies Certificate in 2020 as a student of Paul Coletti.
In 2018, she was a quarterfinalist in the Primrose International Viola Competition, and in 2017 was awarded first place in the strings division at the Pasadena Showcase House Instrumental Competition. As founding violist of the Viano String Quartet, she was a bronze medalist in the 2017 Osaka International Chamber Music Competition.
She has collaborated with artists such as Paul Coletti, Orion Weiss, Noah Bendix-Balgley, and Robert Chen. Johanna has been featured as a guest chamber artist throughout Los Angeles, including Le Salon de Musiques, Salastina Music Society, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra’s “In Focus” series, and the New Hollywood String Quartet’s “Summer of Brahms Chamber Music Festival,” in which she was praised by the LA Times as a young artist “ready to make her mark.”
In addition to her solo and chamber experience, Johanna studied orchestral repertoire with Ben Ullery at the Colburn School. Johanna has served as principal violist of the Colburn Orchestra, the Spoleto Festival USA Orchestra, The American Youth Symphony, and the Tanglewood Music Center, where she was a fellow for three years. She has performed as a substitute musician with both the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Johanna was a section member of the San Diego Symphony Orchestra from 2021 until 2023, where she often served as guest principal and guest assistant principal. She began her full time title position as assistant principal of the Washington National Opera in the fall of 2023.