Dr. Chiara Pappalardo

Cellist Chiara Pappalardo enjoys a rich and varied career as a soloist, chamber musician, orchestral musician, and teacher. Dr. Pappalardo has given numerous recitals of solo Bach at venues such as Catania City Hall in her native Italy, and performed throughout Italy and the United States. As a recitalist and chamber musician, she has collaborated with artists such as Simone Bernardini, Vladimir Dyo, Ralitza Patcheva, Carlos Cesar Rodriguez, and Anat Almani, and performed for both world and local premieres.

Dr. Pappalardo has been awarded both first and second prizes in international music competitions in Italy, including first prize at the Amigdala International Music Competition and second prize at the Gianluca Campochiaro Music Competition. She won the Catholic University Concerto Competition in 2019 and was featured as soloist in the Dvořák Concerto. With her piano trio, she was awarded honorable mention at the competition of the Lancaster International Piano and Chamber Music Festival 2024. Recently, she has appeared in the Emerson Avenue Salon Series, the Washington International Young Artists Music Series, and at venues such as the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China, the Embassy of Kazakhstan in the US, the Apostolic Nunciature in the US, and the Embassy of Canada to the US.

An active orchestral musician, Chiara has performed with the Opera Italiana Orchestra, the New Orchestra of Washington, and the Musica Viva Kentlands Symphony Orchestra, and has been selected for the sub-pool of the New World Symphony. She served as principal cellist of the Catholic University of America Symphony Orchestra, principal and assistant principal cellist at the Eastern Music Festival, and assistant principal of the Orchestra Giovanile Mediterranea. Dr. Pappalardo has performed at venues such as The Kennedy Center, The Music Center at Strathmore, and the Teatro Massimo Vincenzo Bellini in Catania. She has played under the batons of Donato Renzetti, Gerard Schwarz, and Emil de Cou.

Dr. Pappalardo is passionate about teaching, and has taught in Italy as well as maintaining a private studio in Washington, D.C. Currently, she holds a faculty position at the Mason Community Arts Academy at George Mason University, Harmonia School of Music and Art, Potomac Music, and The International School of Music. She has served as a strings coach for the Symphony Orchestra of the Maryland Classic Youth Orchestras.

Chiara Pappalardo received a D.M.A. in Cello Performance and an Artist Diploma at the Catholic University of America where she studied under Amy Frost Baumgarten. She holds a Master of Music from the Istituto Musicale Vincenzo Bellini in Catania, Italy, where she was a student of Benedetto Munzone and graduated with high honors. Chiara Pappalardo has also played in classes for Ulrike Hofmann, Timora Rosler, Lachezar Kostov, Wolfram Koessel, Neal Cary, and Julian Schwarz.

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