Heather Powell

Heather Powell appears in performance with a diverse group of ensembles as orchestral violinist, chamber musician and soloist. She plays regularly for the Los Angeles Opera and is an active recording artist for motion pictures and television. She has performed extensively with the San Francisco Ballet, the San Francisco Opera and the Pacific Symphony, as well as serving for many years as Concertmaster of the Merced Symphony and Associate Concertmaster of the Stockton Symphony. Powell has made TV appearances on Little Big Shots, Best.Cover.Ever and The Voice and World’s Best. She has received awards for her musical achievements from the Harvard Musical Association, the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts and at the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition.

With recognition for music’s power to connect and inspire individuals and communities, Powell is passionate about interdisciplinary collaborations to reach audiences of all ages and backgrounds. Her recent production, Before You Had A Name (2019), is a unique live performance collaboration which marries chamber music, classical dance and visual art to explore the theme of maternity. Created together with choreographer Danielle Rowe and media artist Alisa Lapidus, this piece featured Sarah Van Patten of the San Francisco Ballet and premiered at Barak Ballet’s Off Balance Series. It also inspired a short film, produced by Powell and directed by Raquel Gallego. The Before You Had A Name film premiered at the 2019 San Francisco Dance Film Festival and was screened at several other festivals in 2020.

Powell began her early music instruction at the San Francisco Conservatory Pre-College Program and continued her studies at the New England Conservatory of Music. Her interests and education outside of music have been wide-ranging, including Italian and Film History at the Universitá di Genova and Viticulture and Enology at U.C. Davis. She received her BA Magna Cum Laude from Harvard University in the Social Sciences with a thesis essay on the image of the home in Italian films directed by women.

Powell performs on a 1865 Guarneri model violin made by JB Vuillaume. When she is not doing things music related, she loves exploring new beaches, cooking meals with a lot of ingredients, painting, yoga, drinking obscure Italian wines and long conversations with friends. Powell lives in Los Angeles with her husband, son and their adventurous dog.

To learn more about upcoming projects and stay in touch, visit Powell at www.heather-violin.com.