A native Vermonter, Joanna studied with Dan Perantoni at Arizona State University, received a 
Master of Music in Tuba Performance from the New England Conservatory of Music studying with 
Chester Schmitz, and earned her Doctor of Musical Arts in Tuba Performance from the Hartt School.  
As Principal Tubist with the United States Coast Guard Band, Joanna performed throughout the 
country as a soloist and clinician after winning the position at the age of nineteen.  Joanna has 
played for three U.S. Presidents, performed at numerous state functions for visiting dignitaries, and 
has appeared on The Today Show and Good Morning America.  In her freelance career she has 
performed with artists including Placido Domingo, Roberta Flack, Marilyn Horne, Arlo Guthrie, Michael 
Bolton, Lee Greenwood, Arturo Sandoval and Jack Nicholson.  Joanna is a founding member of the 
Athena Brass Band, a group first created for the 2003 International Women’s Brass Conference 
which has since performed at the 2006, 2012 and 2014 IWBCs, and has been featured twice at the 
Great American Brass Band Festival in Danville, Kentucky.  Joanna is currently Principal Tubist with 
the Carolina Philharmonic and the Carolina International Orchestra.