Natalie Sterba Violin and Viola Instructor

Natalie Sterba enjoys an active career as a chamber musician, orchestra member and solo recitalist. A native of Omaha, Nebraska, she trained at the prestigious Omaha Conservatory of Music before she pursued her bachelor's degree in violin performance at Bowling Green State University in Ohio. She subsequently earned a dual master’s degree in violin and viola performance from the University of South Dakota (USD) where she was the teacher of record for several applied violin/viola courses. Her most influential teachers were Dr. Penny Thompson Kruse, Dr. Ioana Galu, and Byron Tauchi. During her master's degrees at USD, Sterba served as concertmaster and principal violist in the USD Symphony Orchestra. She has been the concertmaster for the USD Opera productions of Alcina (2022), Gianni Schicchi (2023), Suour Angelica (2023), and Notes on Viradot (2024). Sterba also served as concertmaster of Schmeckfest’s production of Jane Eyre (2025). Since 2021, Sterba has served as principal second violin in the USD Chamber Orchestra, the elite string ensemble of the university. Sterba has participated in several international music festivals, including Eastern Music Festival (Greensboro, North Carolina) Brevard Music Center’s Summer Institute, (Brevard, North Carolina), and Honors Performance Series at Carnegie Hall in New York. In 2022, Sterba was awarded the Majorie Townsley Rawlins Scholarship for outstanding musical and educational work. In 2024, Sterba was awarded the Music Mentor Award for her work with the Pierre Youth Orchestra. She won Second place in the Young Artist Strings in the violin category at the Music Teachers National Association Competition in 2022 at the regional level and was a finalist in the 2021-2022 University of South Dakota Concerto/Aria Competition. Sterba was also selected to present at USD’s IdeaFest conference with “Looking Forward, While Looking Back: Shostakovich’s Creativity Inspired by Human Tragedy and Loss”. Sterba serves as a substitute member of the South Dakota Symphony Orchestra, Sioux City Symphony Orchestra, and Southwest Minnesota Orchestra, performing frequently with these elite ensembles on violin and viola. Additionally, Sterba performs with Augustana University Bach Collegium, Candlelight Music Series, Curious Music Collective and White Spruce Chamber Players on violin and viola. Outside of private teaching, Sterba serves as the viola coach for Augustana University Orchestra. Beginning in the fall of 2025, Sterba will join the faculty at the University of South Dakota as an Adjunct Professor of Violin and Viola.