Gareth Zehngut moves up the section to the role of first assistant principal viola, while Sean Juhl joins as section violist
The Cleveland Orchestra has announced three new musician appointments to its viola and bassoon sections.
Gareth Zehngut, who has been a section violist with The Cleveland Orchestra since 2022, was appointed first assistant principal viola and began the role in October 2025.
The orchestra has also appointed Sean Juhl as section violist, who begins his role in May 2026, and Catherine Van Handel as assistant principal bassoon.
Prior to his role at The Cleveland Orchestra, Zehngut was a member of the Minnesota Orchestra and San Diego Symphony viola sections. He is a graduate of The Juilliard School and has served as guest principal violist of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and previously served as principal viola for the Oregon Bach Festival Orchestra.
Taking up the Charles M. and Janet G. Kimball Chair, Zehngut commented: ’To be given the honour and responsibility of sitting in the chair previously held by Lynne Ramsey is an opportunity beyond anything I ever could have imagined. It is a thrill every day to play with this incredible Orchestra.’
Juhl will join the viola section in May 2026, following three seasons as a member of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. He earned his Bachelor of Music degree from The Juilliard School in 2022, where he studied with Carol Rodland and won First Prize in the 2019 Juilliard Viola Concerto Competition.
Juhl said he was ‘deeply honoured’ to be joining the orchestra. ’I am still pinching myself that this is real! Orchestral music has always made me feel like part of something bigger than myself, and I look forward to contributing to this orchestra’s legacy and welcoming the challenges ahead,’ he said.
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