An orchestra is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families, including bowed string instruments such as the violin, viola, cello, and double bass, brass instruments such as the horn, trumpet, trombone and tuba, woodwinds such as the flute, oboe, clarinet and bassoon, and percussion instruments such as the timpani, bass drum, triangle, snare drum, cymbals, and mallet percussion instruments each grouped in sections. Other instruments such as the piano and celesta may sometimes appear in a fifth keyboard section or may stand alone, as may the concert harp and, for performances of some modern compositions, electronic instruments.
Charles Munch (French pronunciation: [ʃaʁl mynʃ]; born Charles Münch, 26 September 1891 – 6 November 1968, was an Alsacian, German-born, later French symphonic conductor and violinist. Noted for his mastery of the French orchestral repertoire, he was best known as music director of the Boston Symphony Orchestra.
Seiji Ozawa is a Japanese conductor known for his advocacy of modern composers and for his work with the San Francisco Symphony, the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, and the Boston Symphony Orchestra where he served as music director for 29 years. He is the recipient of numerous international awards.
Michael Tilson Thomas is an American conductor, pianist and composer. He is currently the artistic director of the New World Symphony, an American orchestral academy based in Miami Beach, Florida. He is also Music Director Laureate of the San Francisco Symphony and Conductor Laureate of the London Symphony Orchestra.
Klaus Hermann Wilhelm Tennstedt was a German conductor from Merseburg. He worked with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, the NDR Symphony Orchestra, world-top ensembles such as the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, and most notably the London Philharmonic Orchestra, with which he was closely associated and recorded many of his celebrated recordings under the EMI label, including a cycle of Mahler's 10 Symphonies. Known for his interpretation of the Austro-German repertoire, especially his sympathetic approaches towards Gustav Mahler, Tennstedt is widely considered an established conductor, one of the most influential and the greatest of the late 20th century.
Maurice Harrison Murphy was a British musician who was principal trumpet of the London Symphony Orchestra from 1977 to 2007.
David Hickman is an American trumpeter, author, academic, and is widely considered one of the preeminent trumpet virtuosi of the 20th century. He is a Regents' Professor of trumpet at Arizona State University and past President of the International Trumpet Guild.
Roland and Almita Vamos are a husband and wife who are among the leading violin and viola instructors in the world. Their pupils have become prominent soloists, members of world-renowned chamber groups and orchestras, and laureates of prestigious international competitions. The Vamoses have been recognized at the White House seven times and were named Distinguished Teachers by the National Endowment for the Arts. They have been honored by the American String Teachers Association (ASTA) with the Distinguished Service Award, and showcased on CBS' Sunday Morning News.
Adolph Sylvester "Bud" Herseth was principal trumpet in the Chicago Symphony Orchestra from 1948 until 2001, and served as principal trumpet emeritus from 2001 until his retirement in 2004.
Roger Louis Voisin was an American classical trumpeter. In 1959, The New York Times called him "one of the best-known trumpeters in this country."
Douglas Yeo is an American bass trombonist who played in the Boston Symphony Orchestra from 1985 to 2012, where he held the John Moors Cabot Bass Trombone Chair. He was also on the faculty of the New England Conservatory. In 2012 he retired from the BSO and accepted a position as professor of trombone at the Arizona State University School of Music, a position he held until 2016. In 2019, he was appointed to the faculty of Wheaton College (Illinois).
Daniel Katzen is a French horn teacher and player, and, since September 2008, has been the Associate Professor of Horn at the University of Arizona's Fred Fox School of Music in Tucson. Prior to that, he was Second Horn in the Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) from April 1979 to August 2008. He is a recitalist, chamber musician, clinician and soloist and has appeared in 22 states and 25 countries in 5000 performances and master classes. He can be heard on virtually all recordings with the BSO and the Boston Pops from 1979–2000, and has also recorded with the Empire Brass and other chamber groups. Prof. Katzen taught horn at Boston University and the New England Conservatory from 1981–2008, and at CalArts from 2000–2007. He has consulted with the University of California, Irvine orchestral performance program since 2000, and has performed and recorded with various Los Angeles orchestras and film studios. Among the films in which he has played are Schindler's List, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Pearl Harbor, Twister, Nixon, Saving Private Ryan and Jumanji.
Ryan Anthony was an American trumpet player, most notable for his performances as a member of Canadian Brass, and his role as principal trumpet in the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. He died on June 23, 2020 after an eight-year battle with cancer.
Andris Nelsons is a Latvian conductor. He is currently the music director of the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Gewandhauskapellmeister of the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra.
Richard Burgin was a Polish-American violinist, best known as associate conductor and the concertmaster of the Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO).
Doriot Anthony Dwyer[ˈdɔːriˌoʊ] was an American flutist. She was one of the first women to be awarded principal chair for a major U.S. orchestra. She was the principal flute for the Boston Symphony Orchestra from 1952 until 1990. She was second flute for the National Symphony Orchestra and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. She was an Adjunct Professor of Music at Boston University.
Robert Charles Suderburg was an American composer, conductor, and pianist.
Dr. Philip Jameson graduated from Wooster High School in 1959 and attended Baldwin Wallace College for one year. In the Fall of 1960 he was accepted by audition to The Juilliard School of Music on a full scholarship. He was subsequently appointed principal trombone with the Juilliard Orchestra, a position he held for the next five years. He graduated from Juilliard with a Bachelor of Music Degree in 1964 and a Master of Science degree in 1965. He then enrolled in Columbia University (NYC) and received a Master of Music Education Degree in 1967 and completed his Doctorate of Music in 1980. His PhD dissertation was entitled "The effect of timbre conditions on the prompted and simultaneous pitch matching of three ability groups of trombone performers". It is available from Dissertation Abstracts.
Carl Vigeland is an American writer and lecturer who lives in Amherst, Massachusetts.
Christopher Martin is an American trumpet player who was named the principal trumpet of the New York Philharmonic in May 2016 and began his tenure there in September 2016. He has also served as Principal trumpet of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (2005-2017) and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra (2000-2005), and as Associate Principal of the Philadelphia Orchestra (1997-2000). He has also performed with High Bridge Brass, an American conical brass quintet, since its founding in June 2018. During his time in Chicago, Martin gave the world premieres of several trumpet concerti, notably Christopher Rouse's Heimdall's Trumpet in 2012.
