Hailed by The Strad magazine as, “A viola star in the making!”, Austrian/German violist, Emma Wernig, is an emerging young artist known for her authentic musical voice. Born in 1999 in Los Angeles, California, her musical path has since taken her across the globe. Early competition successes, like receiving the ‘Barbirolli Prize’ at the 2019 Tertis International Viola Competition and winning the 2017 Cecil Aronowitz International Viola Competition, have enabled her to pursue an international career. As a result, Emma released her debut album, “The Viennese Viola” alongside Spanish-Dutch pianist Albert Cano-Smit in July of 2021 on the Champs Hill label to critical acclaim and 5 Stars from BBC Music Magazine. The program features Austrian rarities for viola and piano and pays homage to her heritage and passion for discovering new repertoire. She continues to be passionate about innovative programming when creating solo programs, often making her own arrangements of cello, violin, and vocal repertoire. She will debut her own arrangement of the Schumann Cello Concerto in the 24/25 season.
As a recipient of the Wilo Foundation Förderpreis of the Mozart Gesellschaft Dortmund in 2021, she remains a scholarship holder and featured solo artist in the 2023/24 season. In 2024, Emma will also serve as 1st Principal Viola of the Danish National Symphony Orchestra.
She has been invited as a guest artist at prominent festivals such as the Festspiele Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Grachtenfestival in the Netherlands, France’s Festival de Musique de Wissembourg, Krzyzowa Music, the Gezeitenkonzerte in Ostfriesland, Verbier Festival, Kronberg’s Chamber Music Connects the World, the Vevey Spring Classic Festival in Switzerland, Grachtenfestival in the Netherlands, West Cork Chamber Music Festival in Ireland, and Grafenegg Festival in Austria, among others.
Early chamber music competition successes led to a lifelong passion for chamber music, having now collaborated with artists such as Janine Jansen, Gidon Kremer, Lynn Harrell, Daniel Müller Schott, Steven Isserlis, Christian Tetzlaff, Tabea Zimmermann, Nils Mönkemeyer, Viviane Hagner, among others.
Emma Wernig earned her Bachelors degree from the Colburn Conservatory where she studied with Paul Coletti and her Masters with Ettore Causa at the Yale School of Music where she received the Lucy Grosvenor Memorial Prize upon graduating. She received an additional Masters Degree studying with Tabea Zimmermann at the Musikhochschule Hanns Eisler.
Emma is also a passionate photographer, avid reader, and ballet and visual art enthusiast, and resides in Berlin, Germany,
She plays on a viola made in 2019 by Jason Viseltear.
