Natalie Stepaniak is a violist, composer, and educator. She is originally from the Denver-Boulder area of Colorado, and is currently based in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
She specializes in contemporary music and has collaborated with composers Conner Leigh Shaw, Delanie Molnar, Ben Nylander, Drew Farrar, and others. Natalie was one of the original founders of Sonic Harvest, a contemporary music orchestra that programmed concerts of new works from local composers in the Northern Colorado area.
Her ensemble membership also included the UNCOmmon Ensemble under the direction of Dr. Anne Lanzilotti as a composer-performer. The ensemble performed works by Andrew Norman and experimental vocalist, Ken Ueno. The group also premiered works of ensemble members and faculty composers at the University of Northern Colorado.
She has also participated in music festivals both as a composer and performer around the United States. Natalie has performed in the 2018 Open Space New Music Festival, composed for the 2018 Arts Letters and Numbers, composed and performed in the 2019 Montecito International Music Festival, and as a fellow for the 2021 and 2022 Next Festival for Emerging artists.
Her scholarly work has taken her around the world with her attendance at the 44th and 48th International Viola Congress as a guest lecturer. Her dissertation, "Harmony in Collaboration: Curating Sustainability in Post Pandemic Arts", was featured at the 2024 LSU Graduate Research Conference.
Natalie holds a Bachelors and Graduate Certificate in Music Performance from the University of Northern Colorado as well as a Masters of Music from Bowling Green State University.
She currently attends Louisiana State University for her Doctor of Musical Arts under the mentorship of Dr. Kimberly Sparr.