Sonja Kraus is an internationally acclaimed cellist, educator, and music scholar from Germany whose vibrant career as a performer and teacher has taken her across Europe, Asia, Latin America, and the United States. She currently serves as Associate Professor of Cello at the University of South Dakota, where she is also cellist of the renowned Rawlins Piano Trio. Prior to this appointment, Dr. Kraus was cello professor at the Universidad de Especialidades Espíritu Santo and principal cellist of the Orquesta Filarmónica Municipal de Guayaquil in Ecuador.

Since 2023, she has served as Orchestra Manager of the International Chamber Orchestra of Puerto Rico and Artistic Director of Ensemble Zusammen, which was awarded Second Prize in the Chamber Music Category of The American Prize. In recognition of her artistic and pedagogical achievements, Dr. Kraus was recently named recipient of the Belbas-Larson Award for Excellence in Teaching and the President’s Research Award in Creativity at the University of South Dakota.

A sought-after performer and clinician, Dr. Kraus regularly presents masterclasses and workshops throughout the United States, Latin America, and Asia. She has been invited to institutions including the Jacobs School of Music Indiana University Bloomington, Boston Conservatory, Conservatorio de Música de Puerto Rico, Colegio Universitario San Gerónimo de La Habana in Cuba, the University of Saskatchewan in Canada, and Jeonbuk National University in South Korea. Her festival and guest artist appearances include Habana Clásica, the International Chamber Orchestra of Puerto Rico Festival, the Fresno Summer Orchestra Academy, California Orchestra Academy, and Música para la Humanidad.