Hannah Burnett began playing viola at the age of three. A native of Waco, Texas, she grew up in the Central Texas String Academy, the Suzuki program GSA was modelled after. There she studied with the director and Suzuki Viola teacher trainer, Dr. Julia Hardie (mother to Nick Hardie). She has since performed internationally, with concerts at Carnegie Hall, Harris Concert Hall, the Royal Concertgebouw, Smetana Hall, and the National Centre for the Performing Arts (Beijing). At the age of 14, she had her first solo debut with the Waco Youth Symphony Orchestra. Hannah toured China and Europe with the National Youth Orchestra of the United States of America in 2015 and 2016. More recently, Ms. Burnett has had a wide variety of performance opportunities. In November of 2018, she soloed with the Oregon East Symphony, performing Mozart’s duo Sinfonia Concertante. She has played in solo and chamber masterclasses for Ronald Copes, Mark Jackobs, Robert McDonald, Cynthia Phelps, and Astrid Schween. She has been a principal violist of the Juilliard Orchestra since February of 2021, and has performed under the batons of Jeffrey Milarsky and Marin Alsop.
Ms. Burnett’s true passion lies with chamber music. She participated in Juilliard’s Chamberfest from 2017 to 2019, and is an alumna of the Kneisel Hall Chamber Music Festival, where she was active in the summers of 2017 to 2019. Ms. Burnett has collaborated with artists such as Natasha Brofsky, Janine Jansen, and Laurie Smukler. She is a member of the Unison String Quartet, which attended the Juilliard String Quartet Seminar in 2019 and participated in the Perlman Music Program and The Center for Advanced Quartet Studies at the Aspen Music Festival in the summer of 2021.
Ms. Burnett is a fierce believer that classical music can be and should be shared with many different audiences, and has taken many significant steps toward cultural diplomacy and community engagement. In addition to her international tours with the National Youth Orchestra, she was an artist in residence at the 2019 SuperCello music festival and conference in Beijing, China. As a Juilliard Gluck Fellow, she has performed in numerous hospitals and mental health facilities around New York City, and has performed as a part of the Music For Food concert series. Hannah is also a member of the Athena String Quartet, who has developed interactive concerts and musical workshops to be performed at mental health facilities and homeless shelters around Manhattan.
Ms. Burnett earned her Bachelor’s degree at The Juilliard School, and will complete her Master’s degree at Juilliard in May of 2022 under the tutelage of Roger Tapping and Misha Amory. Hannah Burnett is a proud recipient of the Kovner Fellowship at The Juilliard School.
