Achmad Kevin Ihza: Joanna Marie Frankel

home about watch and listen concerts press contact

Biography

American violinist Joanna Marie Frankel consistently garners worldwide acclaim for her technical prowess, her artistic sensitivity, and her captivating performances of the classical repertory’s most challenging masterpieces. Hailed as “formidable” in Palm Beach, “riveting” in South Africa, “heartfelt” in The Netherlands, and “an uncommonly fine young violinist” in Washington D.C., she has toured as a soloist and chamber musician across the United States, Europe, Africa, and the Middle East, implementing her passionate vision of performance excellence and arts advocacy on a global scale.

Ms. Frankel has appeared as a soloist and chamber musician worldwide, at such important venues as Carnegie Hall, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Rachmaninoff Hall, Glazunov Hall, Suk Hall, Rudolfinum, Slovak Philharmonic Hall, Vanemuise Hall, and The Sibelius Academy’s Chamber Music Hall. She has presented a wide repertoire of concertos with The KwaZulu-Natal Philharmonic, The Ambler Symphony, The Rochester Symphony, The Olney Symphony, The Ocean City Pops, and The Southern Adventist Symphony; her recital appearances have taken her to Durban, Pietermaritzburg, New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, Washington D.C., Chattanooga, Charleston, Amsterdam, Moscow, St. Petersburg, Prague, Tallinn, Bratislava, and Helsinki. Proficient on the viola as well as on the violin, Ms. Frankel embodies an honest love of chamber music and is consistently engaged to perform at a large variety of music festivals, which have included Festspiele Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Centro Cultural Internacional oscar Niemeyer, La Jolla’s SummerFest, Santa Fe New Music, The Aspen Music Festival’s summer and winter seasons, The Spoleto Festival USA, and The International Holland Music Sessions. From 2008-2012 Ms. Frankel joined Kean University as a member of its Concert Artist Faculty in violin and viola, and in 2014 she became a founding member and first violinist of the KwaZulu-Natal Philharmonic Principal String Quartet.

In addition to maintaining a busy concert schedule, Ms. Frankel is committed to serving the communities in which she performs.Â She is passionate about making classical music relevant, accessible, and life changing to those who hear her play. She rarely visits a city without performing in a school or hospital, speaking to her audience during a concert, teaching a master-class, or making time to help an aspiring student, since she knows well that not all those in need of music are able to journey to a traditional concert hall. For Joanna, music is simply the language she speaks – and a sacred vehicle for connection, communication, and inspiration.

Born in Philadelphia in 1982, Ms. Frankel began her violin studies at age three with The Suzuki Method, andÂ at age seven continued in the Russian tradition with mentors Edwin Grzesnikowski, Jascha Brodsky, Choong-Jin Chang and Robert Chen. She then trained for six years at The Juilliard School in New York City, a pupil of Masao Kawasaki and Cho-Liang Lin, and received the school’s prestigious ‘William Schuman Prize for Outstanding Artistic Excellence and Leadership’ upon graduation. Her post-graduate work continued at Carnegie Hall, where she was selected as part of the inaugural class of The Academy, the Hall’s groundbreaking initiative that trains ambitious young musicians to be 21^st century arts leaders. Appointed First Concertmaster of The KwaZulu-Natal Philharmonic in 2013 (Durban, South Africa), she performs on the 1846 Jean Baptiste Vuillaume violin labeled ‘Joseph Guarnerius fecit Cremonae on extended loan from a generous patron through the Rachel Elizabeth Barton Foundation in Chicago. Ms. Frankel plays a custom-made Robert Brode viola, built especially for her in 2001.

Biography THE BACH BENEFIT PROJECT Repertoire Program Projects Gallery

Download Press Packet Listen to Joanna

Photos

The ensemble, led with panache by Joanna Marie Frankel (the first violinist), gave a heartfelt performance of the work, which blends haunting solos with grittier interludes.The New York Times

Current Projects

PARADISE LOST

Premiere: TBDISO festival, Valetta, Malta

FAIRYTALE

Premiere: Janury 2008Keneseth Israel Synagogue, Elkins Park, PA

DARKNESS IN LIGHT

Premiere: November 2005Alexian Brothers Foundation, Chattanooga, Tennessee

see all projects

Upcoming Performances

FRIENDS OF MUSIC, DURBAN

14 January 2014
Solo Recital
Mozart, Elgar, Brahms, de Falla

AMBER VALLEY, HOWICK