John Mietus

John Mietus was born in Hong Kong and started studying double bass at the age of 4. He first began his studies with Nicole Castleberry-Clouser of The Cleveland Pops Orchestra, then furthered his education with both Henry Peyrebrune of The Cleveland Orchestra and Tracy Rowell, Bass Faculty at Oberlin Conservatory. He then pursued his Bachelors at the University of Southern California with David Allen Moore and completed his Masters of Music at Rice University with Paul Ellison and Tim Pitts. Past teachers also include Nicholas Walker, Peter Lloyd, Dominick Fiore, Francois Rabbath,
and the late Anthony Bianco.

Currently, John is the Associate Principal Bass of the Auckland Philharmonia. Previously he had won a position with the New World Symphony and has also performed with many other noteworthy ensembles such as the Houston Symphony, Warner Bros. Studio Orchestra, Pacific Music Festival Orchestra, Chagrin Valley Studio Orchestra, and the Cleveland Philharmonic.

He has an extensive solo career, including notable performances with orchestras such as the Cleveland Philharmonic, International Music Festival Orchestra, Ohio Music Educator’s National Conference, and the Concerto Chamber Orchestra. He has also been a featured performer on “From The Top”. He plays a 2016 Sergio Scaramelli “Majestic” Model Bass winning a Silver Medal at the Rome International Competition.

Committed to the advancement of young musicians, John is a volunteer with the El Sistema strings program, Rainey Institute of Music, Community Outreach of Devoted Artists, and the Thornton Outreach Program, helping young artists learn and achieve through music. He also co-founded a Tarisio Trust winning charity called The String Bank dedicated to providing quality strings to schools and music students in need across the world.