The official website of the violist Jan Snakowski
Winner of the 21st International Johannes Brahms Competition in Pörtschach
Principal Viola of the Polish National Opera in Warsaw
Born in 1990 in Poland, Jan Snakowski is one of the most sought-after violists of his generation. As a laureate of international solo and chamber music competitions, he is appreciated not only as a soloist, but also as a highly experienced orchestral musician and teacher.
He studied at the Haute École de Musique in Lausanne, Switzerland, and at the Academy of Music in Cracow, from which he graduated with honors in violin and viola, and where in 2024 he also received the degree of Doctor of Musical Arts, defending his thesis about transcriptions in the solo viola repertoire. Jan is also an alumnus of the Verbier Festival Academy, where he worked with, among others, Tabea Zimmermann, Nobuko Imai, and Lawrence Power.
Since being awarded the 1st Prize at the 21st International Johannes Brahms Competition in Pörtschach, Austria, he has performed several times as a soloist with orchestras in Europe. His preferred area of expertise, however, has focused on a broader spectrum, which is that of orchestral music. Despite his young age, Jan has already served many years as Solo Viola in orchestras like the Orchestra della Svizzera italiana in Lugano (2018–2022), and Sinfonieorchester St. Gallen (2016–2018) in Switzerland.
Most recently, he took up the position of Principal Viola of the Polish National Opera – the Teatr Wielki – in Warsaw, which he was appointed in 2022. As a guest principal, he regularly collaborates with orchestras such as the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome, Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg, Wiener Symphoniker, Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich, Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne, led by many world-class conductors including Lorin Maazel, Paavo Järvi, Manfred Honeck, Jukka-Pekka Saraste and many others.
As a teacher, Jan has held several masterclasses at the Conservatorio della Svizzera italiana in Lugano and has also tutored viola and chamber music classes at the Academy of Music in Cracow. In 2023, he was the resident teacher at the Sinfónica Azteca education programme in Mexico, and in 2016 – a jury member of the International Johannes Brahms Competition.
Jan plays on a fine modern viola by Danuta Pawlikowska from Cracow.
Jan's repertoire consists of most of the greatest works of the standard viola literature, such as the viola concertos by Bartók, Walton, Hindemith and Forsyth, Mozart's Sinfonia Concertante, as well as sonatas for viola and piano and other chamber music pieces by Brahms, Schumann, Schubert; solo pieces by Bach, Reger, Ysaÿe, and contemporary music. He also keenly performs works from his homeland and original transcriptions.
Please check back for upcoming audio and video recordings. Many recordings that couldn't be published due to copyright reasons, such as the Bartók viola concerto, are available on individual request.
For higher resolution pictures please use the contact form below.
Direct Email: info@jansnakowski.com