About
Visit www.nashviola.com to learn more.
Katja Yeager is an accomplished orchestral violist, chamber musician, studio musician, and dedicated teacher. A graduate from the Cleveland Institute of Music, Katja earned both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Viola Performance as a student of Jeffrey Irvine and Lynne Ramsey. Initially trained as a Suzuki Method violinist in Greater Washington where she grew up, she credits the foundations of her musical appreciation and technique to her very first teachers, David Strom (Northern Virginia Suzuki Music School) and Tsuna Sakamoto (National Symphony Orchestra).
Katja’s orchestral experience as a leader and section player includes performances with the Nashville Symphony Orchestra, Owensboro Symphony, Lexington Philharmonic, Verbier Festival Orchestra, Ann Arbor Symphony, and New World Symphony. She has performed under distinguished conductors such as Gianandrea Noseda, Manfred Honeck, Valery Gergiev, Theodore Kuchar, and Fabio Luisi; and with a variety of internationally recognized soloists. In addition to her Proms debut at Royal Albert Hall in 2013 as a member of the inaugural National Youth Orchestra of the United States, she toured Southeast Asia with the Lincoln Center Stage Piano Quintet aboard the MS Westerdam in 2019.
Previous years have seen Katja performing chamber music at private events, community concerts, and at American music festivals including the Castleman Quartet Program, Bowdoin International Music Festival, and Aspen Music Festival as a fellowship recipient. In 2023, she was featured on a Nashville Chamber Music Society recital concert. As a studio musician, she has contributed to various projects, recording for companies such as Sony Playstation and Netflix.
Currently residing in West Nashville, Katja holds adjunct professorships at both Tennessee State University and Nashville State Community College.