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MEET THE MUSICIANS

Continuing a legacy since 1919, the baton has passed among several conductors and is now led by Charles Prince.

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Charles Prince, Music Director

American conductor, Charles Prince, studied with Leonard Bernstein, Seiji Ozawa, Gustav Meier and Kurt Sanderling through the Tanglewood Conducting Seminar (1988 and 1989) after earning his Bachelor of Arts degree in music history and theory from Oberlin College. Mr. Prince began his conducting training with Robert Page of The Cleveland Orchestra. He also worked extensively with one of Europe's most eminent conductors Jorma Panula, in Helsinki.

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Associate Conductor of the New York Pops from 1996-2003, he has been a frequent guest conductor with the WDR Symphony Orchestra, the Bavarian Radio Orchestra, the Munich Symphony Orchestra, and the Sofia Philharmonic Orchestra. He was music director of the Tony Award winning production of James Joyce's "The Dead" on Broadway and in Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. As a conductor of Stephen Sondheim's music, Prince led the Brooklyn Philharmonic in a 1999 gala concert weekend at the Brooklyn Academy of Music and also the London Philharmonic's "Sondheim Tonight" tribute at the Barbican which was later issued as a recording.

In 2004, Mr. Prince made his debut with the Seattle Symphony and in 2006, he conducted the New Year's Eve Gala of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra and appeared with The Canadian Brass for the Lubbock Symphony Orchestra in Texas.

His 2006 season also included a Leonard Bernstein gala in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania's Majestic Theatre, hosted by Jamie Bernstein. and in June 2008 he  conducted the Gettysburg Festival Inaugural Concert as well as appearing in Austria. He participated in Leroy Anderson's Birthday tribute concerts, the WDR Radio Orchestra Cologne and Klagenfurt Stadttheater New Year's Eve Gala in Klagenfurt, Austria. In 2009, he was named the music director of the Wiener Operettensommer in Vienna.

In January 2017, Mr. Prince conducted the New York City Opera Orchestra in a new, limited-run production of Leonard Bernstein's Candide at Jazz at Lincoln Center's Rose Theater. In 2018, he returned to Tanglewood to conduct a staged production of  Bernstein's opera "Trouble in Tahiti" as part of the Tanglewood's season-long Leonard Bernstein 100th Anniversary celebrations that summer.

Maestro Prince first guest conducted the Plainfield Symphony Orchestra in 2005 and then made a return appearance in October 2008.  In May 2009, he was formally appointed as the new Music Director, making this his thirteenth full season as conductor and Music Director.

Music Director: 

Conductor Emeritus: 

Charles Prince

Sabin Pautza

Violin

Evelyn Estava

Concertmaster, The Lee Resnick Memorial Chair

Rebecca Harris Lee,

Assistant Concertmaster

Michael Avagliano

Principal Second

The Barbara Sandford Memorial Chair

Cristopher Basso 

Claire Caponigro

Norman Finkelstein

Heather Fitzpatrick

Jenise Grice 

Jacquie Lee

Shirley Li

Andras Nagy

Carolyn Klaiman Racusin

Steven Ridge

Michael Schneider

Ludmilla Turina

Brian Verdi

Alyson Whelan     

Suzanne Weinberg

Claire Wilson

Elzbieta Winnicka

​​​

Viola

Gabriela Rengel

Principal

 

Pauline Bradshaw

Mark Gianni

Karen Kamp

Cynthia Killian

Lillian Platte

Effie Yuen

Cello

Jameson Platte

Principal, The George Cohen Memorial Chair

James Celestino

Douglas Hardin

Victor Lange

Joy Pierce Mathews

Megan Sweet

String Bass

James Potter

Principal

Darla Coolman

Maria Ogorek

George Osipian 

Roosevelt Porter

Flute

Leslie Pruess

Principal

 

Jenny Cline

Norann Hein

 

Oboe

Nancy Vanderslice

Principal, The Norris Birnbaum Memorial Chair

 

Melissa Bohl

Clarinet

TBD

Principal

Laurie Kunzle

 

Robert Romano

 

Bassoon

Lee Doswell

Principal

 

Wendy Romano

Trumpet

Andrew Filippone

Principal

Justin Francis

Thomas MacWilliams

French Horn

Lisa Nettleship

Principal

Susan Braden

James Robinson

Emalina Thompson

Trombones

James Dixon

Principal

James Felter

William Hein

Andreas Jahl

Tuba

David Grego 

 

Tympani

Adrienne Ostrander

Percussion

Christopher Colaneri

Wesley Ostrander

Michael Winnicki

Harp

Elaine Christy

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