About

SHORT BIO

American violist Brian Isaacs gained international recognition as First Prize (ex aequo) laureate of the 2025 Concours de Genève. He has received additional top prizes at the Markneukirchen, Oskar Nedbal, and Max Rostal International Viola Competitions, as well as honors from institutions including the Verbier Festival Academy and Yale University. From 2027-2030, Brian will be a member of CMS Lincoln Center's Bowers Program.

Born and raised in New York City, Brian attended LaGuardia High School and Yale University, where he earned degrees in sociology and music. He completed his Konzertexamen (Artist Diploma) at the Frankfurt University of Music and Performing Arts under Tabea Zimmermann, with whom he continues to study at the Kronberg Academy. Between 2023-25, Brian was a member of the Karajan-Akademie of the Berliner Philharmoniker, performing regularly in the orchestra's viola section and touring with them throughout Europe and the United States.

Brian's playing has been praised as “a tour de force of muscular virtuosity and rich, dark tone” (WFIMC News) and “sensitive, elegant and expressive” (Gießener Anzeiger). As a soloist, he has appeared with orchestras including the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Philharmonisches Orchester Gießen, and Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin.

An avid chamber musician, he has participated in festivals including Boscobel, Four Seasons, Gstaad, La Jolla, Marlboro, Methow Valley, NUME, CMS Palm Beach, Taos, Thy, Tonhain Kollektiv, Verbier, Viridian Strings, and Yellow Barn.

Brian plays on a viola made in 2025 by Frédéric Chaudière in Montpellier, France. His studies in Kronberg are funded by the Yehudi Menuhin patronage.

LONG BIO

Background

A native New Yorker, Brian graduated from Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School for the Performing Arts and attended Yale University, where he received degrees in sociology and music, studying with Ettore Causa. He completed his Konzertexamen (Artist Diploma) at HfMDK Frankfurt, where he studied with Tabea Zimmermann, with whom he is continuing his studies through the Kronberg Academy Professional Studies Program. From 2023-25 he was a member of the Karajan-Akademie der Berliner Philharmoniker, mentored by Sebastian Krunnies. From 2027-2030, Brian will be a member of CMS Lincoln Center's Bowers Program.

Brian plays on a viola made by Frédéric Chaudière in Montpellier, France and a viola bow made by Emilio Slaviero in Cremona, Italy. His studies in Kronberg are funded by the Yehudi Menuhin patronage.

Competitions and Awards

Over the past several years, Brian has gained valuable experience participating in numerous viola competitions. His successes include First Prize (ex aequo) at the 2025 Concours de Genève and 2024 Grunewald International Music Competition, Second Prize as well as all the special prizes (Audience Prize, Commissioned Piece Prize, Special Prize of the Freunde Junger Musiker Berlin) at the 2024 Max Rostal International Viola Competition, Third Prize at the 2025 Markneukirchen International Viola Competition, Third Prize and the Martinů Foundation Prize at the 2024 Oskar Nedbal International Viola Competition, and Third Prize at the 2019 Anton Rubinstein International Viola Competition. Brian has advanced to the semi-finals of competitions such as ARD (2023), Kodaly (2022), Prague Spring (2023), Primrose (2021), and Tertis (2025). 

He has received additional honors such as the Verbier Festival Academy's 2023 Edwin Caplin Foundation Award for Viola and a 2023-24 grant from the Frank Huntington Beebe Fund. At Yale, Brian received the Wrexham Prize in Music, the Joseph Lentilhon Selden Memorial Award, and the Terry E. and Irene A. Sharp Prize. He also won both the Yale School of Music's Woolsey Hall and Yale College's William Waite Concerto Competitions. 

As viola soloist, Brian has performed with the Barocco sempre giovane, Geringas Chamber Orchestra, Münchener Kammerorchester, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Philharmonisches Orchester Gießen, Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin, Vogtland Philharmonie Greiz/Reichenbach, Yale Symphony Orchestra, and Yale Philharmonia. 

Chamber Music Festivals

Brian has been fortunate to perform chamber music around the world with remarkable musicians. He has participated in many chamber music festivals in recent summers, including the Four Seasons Chamber Music Festival (US), Geneva International String Academy (CH) (2023/2022), Gstaad Menuhin Festival String Academy (CH), La Jolla SummerFest Fellowship (US), Marlboro Music Festival (US), Methow Valley Chamber Music Festival (US), Moritzburg Festival Academy (DE), NUME Festival Academy (IT), Taos School of Music (US), Thy Chamber Music Festival (DK), Viridian Strings (US) (2024/2023/2022), Verbier Festival Academy (CH) (2023/2022), and Yellow Barn Chamber Music Festival (US). Brian has also appeared in series including the Palm Beach Chamber Music Society (US) and Tonhain-Kollektiv (DE), as well as several concerts in South Korea. In Summer 2026 Brian will return to Marlboro Music and attend Krzyzowa Music for the first time.

Collaborators and Mentors

Brian has collaborated and performed chamber music with established artists including violinists Benjamin Beilman, Annette von Hehn, Ida Kavafian, Hye-Jin Kim, Mi-kyung Lee, Yura Lee, Jack Liebeck, Joseph Lin, Anthony Marwood, Amy Schwarz Moretti, Arnaud Sussmann, and Carmit Zori; violists Rebecca Albers, Ettore Causa, Walter Küssner, Tony Nys, Jonathan Vinocour, and Tabea Zimmermann; cellists Edward Arron, Natasha Brofsky, Peter Bruns, Jay Campbell, Nicholas Canellakis, Estelle Choi, Ivan Monighetti, Marcy Rosen, Peter Stumpf, Paul Watkins, and Kyril Zlotnikov; pianists Mihae Lee, Anna Polonsky, and Dénes Várjon. 

Conductors that Brian has worked with as soloist include Pavel Baleff, William Boughton, David Geringas, Cornelius Meister, Peter Oundjian, and Andreas Schüller. 

Brian has performed as a soloist in masterclasses for artists including Misha Amory, Yuri Bashmet, Noemie Bialobroda, Alfred Brendel, Ettore Causa, Nobuko Imai, Lawrence Power, Antoine Tamestit, Steven Tenenbom, Lars Anders Tomter, Lech Antonio Uszynski, and Tabea Zimmermann. His pre-college teachers include Barbera Berg, Molly Carr, Caeli Smith, and Jonathan Weber.

Orchestra

An avid orchestral musician, Brian participated in numerous performances of the Berliner Philharmoniker between 2023-25 seasons as a scholarship-holder of the Karajan Academy. He went with the orchestra on tours to Hamburg, Prague, and Vienna, as well as a tour to the USA. For the 2025-26 season, Brian served as assistant principal violist of the orchestra of the Komische Oper Berlin. 

As a guest principal violist, Brian has played with the Munich Philharmonic and Les Musiciens du Louvre. He has appeared as a guest assistant principal violist with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Gürzenich-Orchester Köln, and the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra. He has also participated as a viola substitute with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra. 

Before moving to Europe, Brian served as a violist in the New Haven Symphony Orchestra from 2019-23, joining at the time as its youngest member. 

(updated June 2026)

PRESS QUOTES

"His performance was a tour de force of muscular virtuosity and rich, dark tone, showcasing a violist completely in command of his instrument's orchestral power." (WFIMC News)

"With a clear tonal language, virtuosity and great creative variety, he mastered this difficult work with bravura and deservedly received much applause." (Markneukirchen Int. Viola Competition)

"This performance was a sensory feast—like savoring a five-star meal." (International Viola Society)

"With his sensitive, elegant and expressive playing, he did justice to the demanding work at every moment."
»Er wurde mit seinem ebenso feinfühlig-eleganten wie expressiven Spiel dem anspruchsvollen Werk in jedem Augenblick gerecht.« (Gießener Anzeiger)

"Here was a self-confident artist with a pronounced creative drive."
»Da agierte ein selbstbewusster Künstler mit ausgeprägtem Gestaltungswillen.« (Gießener Allgemeine)