New Zealand-born violinist, educator, and arts entrepreneur Dr. Natalie Lin Douglas is the founder and artistic director of Kinetic Ensemble. Committed to amplifying diverse, under-performed, and newly composed classical music through flexible chamber and orchestral ensemble performances, Kinetic has been coined “Houston’s indie, conductorless orchestra” (Houston Public Media), and praised for its “visually arresting… brilliantly executed” performances and “thoughtful, incisive programming” (Arts+Culture Texas). Under her leadership, Kinetic has commissioned and premiered over 20 works by composers of our time, including by Karim Al-Zand, Anthony Brandt, Theo Chandler, Daniel J. Knaggs, Paul Novak, and Nicky Sohn. The ensemble’s self-titled album, which debut #1 at the Billboard Traditional Classical charts, was released in 2023, and its studio recordings are also featured on Pierre Jalbert: String Theory (Orchid Classics, 2021), Karim Al-Zand: Studies in Nature (Centaur, 2018), and Daniel Knaggs: Two Streams (Capella Records, 2023).
A versatile chamber musician, Natalie has toured throughout New Zealand in concerts presented by Chamber Music New Zealand and in the UK with the Scottish Ensemble. She has appeared as a guest artist with NZTrio, and performed alongside such acclaimed artists as Clarice Assad, Iva Bittova, Brian Connelly, Kyung Sun Lee, Jon Kimura Parker, and Evan Ziporyn. A prizewinner at the 2013 Michael Hill International Violin Competition and the 2012 Klein International Strings Competition, Natalie has appeared as soloist with the New Zealand Symphony, Auckland Philharmonia, Master’s Sinfonia (California), and Erie Philharmonic (Pennsylvania). As a Britten-Pears Young Artist, Natalie was concertmaster of the 2013 Britten-Pears Orchestra and a member of Aldeburgh Strings. She has been featured on Houston Public Media, Radio New Zealand, and Cleveland’s WCLV, as well as in the Houston Chronicle, Arts+Culture Texas, Houstonia Magazine, Houston CityBook, and New Zealand Women’s Weekly. An adventurous program curator and an advocate for the under-performed repertoire both old and new, Natalie has championed the string works of such composers as Karim Al-Zand (b. 1970), Gabriela Lena Frank (b. 1972), and Zoltán Székely (1903-2001). Her current projects include recording under-performed violin duo repertoire, and commissioning new works for violin and percussion ensemble.
A dedicated educator, Natalie is an Associate Professor of Music at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where teaches chamber music and violin, and coordinates and advises for the Emerson/Harris Program for Private Study. Previously, she served as Teaching Assistant to renowned violin pedagogue Paul Kantor at both the Aspen Music Festival and the Cleveland Institute of Music, and taught courses in Music Theory for Non Majors at Rice University. She has given masterclasses and guest lectures at Gordon College, Hong Kong Baptist University, Credo Music Festival, Youngstown State University, and MIT’s Concourse. With Kinetic, she has led numerous educational initiatives for middle school, high school, and undergraduate students, including composition workshops, side-by-side performances, and open rehearsal demonstrations.
Natalie completed her Doctor of Musical Arts at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, under the mentorship of Paul Kantor and Karim Al-Zand, where she was the recipient of the Lodieska Stockbridge Vaughn Fellowship, the Sviatoslav Richter Fund for Music Outreach, and the Mary Hobson Teaching Fellowship. Her areas of focus included the string works of Benjamin Britten and Leonard Bernstein, and her doctoral dissertation is titled, “Eclecticism, Evolution, and Return in Leonard Bernstein’s Serenade for Solo Violin, Strings, Harp, and Percussion.” Natalie received her Bachelor and Master of Music degrees at the Cleveland Institute of Music.
Natalie lives in Medford, MA with her husband, architect Tucker Douglas and their son, Ezra.