Virginia McDowell currently resides in Fort Worth where she plays English horn and oboe with the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra. She previously served as principal oboe with the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra in New Orleans where she performed for seven seasons. She has also been guest principal oboe with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, the Cleveland Orchestra, the Evergreen Symphony, the Houston Symphony, the Houston Grand Opera Orchestra, the Florida Orchestra, the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, and the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra. Her summer festival appearances include the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music, Pacific Music Festival, Spoleto Festival USA, National Repertory Orchestra, Aspen Music Festival, Round Top Festival Institute, Sarasota Music Festival, and Colorado College Music Festival.
Highly sought after as a soloist, Virginia is featured on the premiere recording of Theo Chandler’s Oboe Concerto written for her in 2019 which is available on all streaming platforms. She recently performed the work again with the Riverside Symphony at Alice Tully Hall and made her solo debut with the LPO playing Mozart's Oboe Concerto in C Major. She was a winner of the Colorado College Music Festival Concerto Competition and of the Oberlin Danenberg Honors Recital competition in addition to being named as a finalist in both the Matthew Ruggiero International Woodwind Competition and the Oberlin Conservatory Concerto Competition. In 2017, Virginia was featured in a performance and interview on an episode of “On Stage at Curtis” on WHYY.
She received a bachelor’s degree from Oberlin Conservatory, a post-baccalaureate diploma from the Curtis Institute of Music, and a Master’s Degree from Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music. Virginia is very grateful for the never-ending support of her wonderful teachers: Robert Atherholt, Richard Woodhams, Robert Walters, Colin Gatwood, and Erik Behr. When she is not practicing or whittling away at her reed desk, Virginia enjoys experimenting in her vegan kitchen, swimming, studying Dutch, and spending quality time with her chatty cat, Lilly.