Joanna Kamenarska was born in Sofia in 1978. Initially, she studied with Prof. Yosif Radionov in Sofia and later on with Ruggiero Ricci and Igor Ozim at the Mozarteum University in Salzburg. Since 2008, she has been serving as concertmaster of the Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra. She is the first woman ever to have held this position. Since 2021, Ms. Kamenarska has also been engaged as first concertmaster and soloist of the Hamburger Camerata, where she regularly performs concerts and leads the ensemble without a conductor. Ms. Kamenarska was awarded Third Prize at the International Mozart Competition in Salzburg and First Prize at the Nedyalka Simeonova International Violin Competition in Haskovo. As a concert soloist Ms. Kamenarska regularly performs with some of the leading philharmonic orchestras of Europe and Asia, such as the Berliner Symphoniker, the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, Nuremberg Symphony Orchestra, Polish Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra, Mozarteum Orchestra Salzburg, Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra, Hamburger Camerata, Kodály Filharmonia Debrecen, Győr Philharmonic Orchestra, Stuttgarter Kammerorchester, Kyushu Symphony Orchestra (Japan), as well as with the symphony orchestras in Sofia, Ruse, Varna, Sliven, and Haskovo. Ms. Kamenarska has worked with numerous conductors, such as Paul Goodwin, Dennis Russell Davies, Kálmán Berkes, Tibor Bényi, Pierre Boulez, Elisabeth Fuchs, Kent Nagano, Vassil Kazandjiev, Nayden Todorov, and Martin Panteleev, among others. She has recorded two CDs: the 2014 “Initio” for Gega New with pianist Irina Georgieva including works by Fauré, Prokofiev, and Wieniawski; and the 2018 “Lost Landscapes” for Urtext Digital Classics with pianist Moises Fernandez Via including works by Schubert and Rautavaara. Ms. Kamenarska’s latest achievement is her performance of Pancho Vladigerov’s First Violin Concerto as soloist of Hamburger Camerata conducted by Delyana Lazarova in the Grand Hall of Elbphilharmonie Hamburg. From 2004 to 2013, Ms. Kamenarska played a 1771 Giovanni Battista Guadagnini violin on loan from the Donald Kahn Trust. From 2018 to 2021, she played a 1740 Lorenzo Guadagnini (“Ex-Flesh”) instrument, provided by a private owner. Currently (since 2021), Ms. Kamenarska owns, loves and plays on a modern instrument created by violin maker Vlado Tilev.

Joanna Kamenarska was born in Sofia in 1978. Initially, she studied with Prof. Yosif Radionov in Sofia and later on with Ruggiero Ricci and Igor Ozim at the Mozarteum University in Salzburg. Since 2008, she has been serving as concertmaster of the Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra. She is the first woman ever to have held this position.

Since 2021, Ms. Kamenarska has also been engaged as first concertmaster and soloist of the Hamburger Camerata, where she regularly performs concerts and leads the ensemble without a conductor. Ms. Kamenarska was awarded Third Prize at the International Mozart Competition in Salzburg and First Prize at the Nedyalka Simeonova International Violin Competition in Haskovo.

As a concert soloist Ms. Kamenarska regularly performs with some of the leading philharmonic orchestras of Europe and Asia, such as the Berliner Symphoniker, the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, Nuremberg Symphony Orchestra, Polish Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra, Mozarteum Orchestra Salzburg, Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra, Hamburger Camerata, Kodály Filharmonia Debrecen, Győr Philharmonic Orchestra, Stuttgarter Kammerorchester, Kyushu Symphony Orchestra (Japan), as well as with the symphony orchestras in Sofia, Ruse, Varna, Sliven, and Haskovo.

Ms. Kamenarska has worked with numerous conductors, such as Paul Goodwin, Dennis Russell Davies, Kálmán Berkes, Tibor Bényi, Pierre Boulez, Elisabeth Fuchs, Kent Nagano, Vassil Kazandjiev, Nayden Todorov, and Martin Panteleev, among others. She has recorded two CDs: the 2014 “Initio” for Gega New with pianist Irina Georgieva including works by Fauré, Prokofiev, and Wieniawski; and the 2018 “Lost Landscapes” for Urtext Digital Classics with pianist Moises Fernandez Via including works by Schubert and Rautavaara.

Ms. Kamenarska’s latest achievement is her performance of Pancho Vladigerov’s First Violin Concerto as soloist of Hamburger Camerata conducted by Delyana Lazarova in the Grand Hall of Elbphilharmonie Hamburg.

From 2004 to 2013, Ms. Kamenarska played a 1771 Giovanni Battista Guadagnini violin on loan from the Donald Kahn Trust. From 2018 to 2021, she played a 1740 Lorenzo Guadagnini (“Ex-Flesh”) instrument, provided by a private owner. Currently (since 2021), Ms. Kamenarska owns, loves and plays on a modern instrument created by violin maker Vlado Tilev.