The San Francisco Conservatory of Music (SFCM) is pleased to welcome Patti Niemi to its percussion faculty in fall 2025.

"I'm thrilled to be joining the San Francisco Conservatory of Music," Niemi said. "I look forward to teaching, and learning from, the many talented students who come through the program."

Niemi is Acting Principal Percussion of the San Francisco Opera Orchestra, and has been a member of the Orchestra since 1992. She has made sound and video recordings with the San Francisco Opera including Turandot, The Merry Widow, the contemporary operas Harvey Milk and Dead Man Walking, and the Opera's first orchestral recording, Symphony at the Opera.

"Learning is a loop, from teacher to student and back. In coming up with words to teach music, I learn more about how I want to play music," Niemi added.

Prior to joining the San Francisco Opera Orchestra, Niemi was a member of the New World Symphony from 1988-1992, under then-Music Director and current SFCM faculty Michael Tilson Thomas.

"I am so excited to have Patti join the SFCM percussion faculty," Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Jonas Wright said. "Her artistry, her musicality and her commitment to the next generation of percussionists positions this department to continue turning out incredible musicians."

Niemi joins SFCM's lauded percussion faculty, where students study side-by-side with both current and former members of the San Francisco Symphony. Small studio sizes and talented, committed peers make SFCM percussion a hothouse for artistic development where each student gets the mentorship and performance opportunities they need to grow into successful professionals.

"The Percussion Department at SFCM is incredibly excited to bring Patti Niemi on as a faculty member," department Chair Jacob Nissly said. "Her addition to the team is one that will help us offer an even greater array of perspectives on not only percussion but the music world as a whole. Patti is not only an incredible musician and educator, but also an acclaimed writer. We are looking forward to the future at SFCM and welcome Patti to the family."

As Nissly notes, Niemi is also a celebrated author: Her memoir Sticking It Out won a 2017 Independent Publisher Book Award Medal. She grew up in Rochester, New York, where she took advantage of listening to Rochester Philharmonic concerts and the Eastman School of Music's Preparatory Department, where Ruth Cahn eventually became her teacher. Prior to her work at the New World Symphony, Niemi earned a Bachelor of Music degree from The Juilliard School in 1987.

Learn more about Percussion at SFCM.