Jonathan Tortolano

A native of Vermont, Jonathan Tortolano has been living and working in Toronto since 1999. He studied at New England Conservatory, Oberlin College and The Cleveland Institute of Music and was often found in the woods of Quebec attending summer courses at Centre d’Arts Orford with Janos Starker or in the pit of the Teatro Nuovo in Spoleto playing opera. Arriving in Canada from Europe, Jonathan has held positions with orchestras in Quebec, Spain, Portugal, Canada and the United States. Chamber music lured him to France, to play with Quatuor Prima Vista, and Lisbon, as cellist of Quartet Metropolis. Sunflower Music Festival has been a highlight of his, as well as Music Niagara each summer. Jonathan teaches cello and chamber music at The Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto and travels through hail, sleet, and snow, to play with the Pittsburgh Opera. In 2019 Jonathan won the Principal Cello position with the Michigan Opera Theatre at the Detroit Opera House. Jonathan is married to Polish violinist Janetta Wilczewska. They have a daughter, Fabia, who thinks all musicians are nuts.