Petra Ackermann was born in Klagenfurt/Austria in 1974.
She completed her studies with Siegfried Führlinger at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna, and at the Royal Academy of Music with John White und Jan Schlapp (baroque viola).
A decisive factor in her artistic career was the collaboration with Garth Knox, with whom she studied Contemporary Viola Repertoire in Paris.
Petra Ackermann is performer and dedicatee of numerous premieres and gives concerts regularly at the most prestigious festivals.

She is a member of PHACE | CONTEMPORARY MUSIC, Trio Eis, Koehne Quartett, Ensemble Wiener Collage and Ensemble XX.Jahrhundert and acting as a guest musician for the Klangforum Wien and Ensemble Contrechamps.
She is working in close collaboration with musicians from the fields of jazz, electronic music, dance and multimedia.

Since 2009, Petra Ackermann is working as violist for Mondrian Ensemble Basel. She is living in Zurich.