Curtis Institute of Music Alumni

by Sylviastel | created - 23 Mar 2015 | updated - 23 Mar 2015 | Public

Milton Adolphus; composer, arranger, and pianist. Shmuel Ashkenasi; first violinist of the Vermeer Quartet.

Diane Meredith Belcher; organist. James M. Bigham; organist. Natalie Bodanya; opera singer

Norman Carol; concertmaster of the Philadelphia Orchestra. Jenny Q. Chai; piano. Keith Chapman; concert organist. Ray Chen; violinist. Pearl Chertok; harpist and composer. Young Chang Cho; cellist. Jasmine Choi; flautist. Nicholas Chumachensco; violinlst Timothy Cobb; current principal bassist with the Metropolitan Opera. Ken Cowan; organist, assistant professor of organ at Westminster Choir College (Rice University).

John Dalley; violinist, Oberlin String Quartet 1957-1959; one of the four founding members of the Guarneri Quartet 1964-2009, faculty. Miles B. Davis; double bassist; class of 1974; secretary of the Curtis Alumni Council. John De Lancie Sr; principal oboe of the Philadelphia Orchestra; faculty at Curtis; Director of the school 1977 to 1985.

Julius Eastman; pianist, conductor, singer and composer.

Christopher Falzone; pianist.

Bianca Garcia; flute, politician. Anthony Gigliotti; clarinetist, former principal of the Philadelphia Orchestra. Richard Goode; pianist. Valerie Muzzolini Gordon; harpist, principal of the Seattle Symphony Orchestra. Olga Gorelli; composer and pianist. Charles E. Griffin; violist.

Daron Hagen; composer, conductor, pianist, and stage director. Burt Hara; clarinetist, principal of the Minnesota Orchestra. Margaret Harshaw; opera singer. David Hayes; music director of the Philadelphia Singers and Director of Orchestral and Conducting Studies at Mannes College School of Music. Jennifer Higdon; composer Claire Huangci; pianist

Arnold Jacobs; former tubist at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and teacher of brass pedagogy. Stephanie Jeong; Assistant Concertmaster of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, New York Philharmonic. David N. Johnson; composer, organist, and professor.

Sean Kennard; pianist. Marlene Kleinman Malas; soprano, teacher at Curtis, Juilliard, and Manhattan School of Music. Jennifer Koh; violinist.

Mark Lawrence; principal trombonist of the San Francisco Symphony. Ang Li; pianist. Marc Lifschey; oboist. Joan Lippincott; concert organist, former head of the organ department at the Westminster Choir College.

Virginia MacWatters; soprano. Anthony McGill; principal clarinetist with the Metropolitan Opera.

Christina Naughton; pianist. Michelle Naughton; pianist. Erik Nielsen; conductor, Frankfurt Opera, Metropolitan Opera, Rome Opera, and Semperoper.

Milena Pajaro-Van De Stadt; violist. Eytan Pessen; Accompanist and opera director.

Andre Raphel; conductor of the Wheeling Symphony Orchestra.

Kathryn Selby; pianist. David Shifrin; clarinet soloist, professor at Yale School of Music. Jacques Singer; conductor. Ignor Solzhenitsyn; former music director of the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia. Robert Spano; conductor of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. Leslie Spotz; pianist. Susan Starr; pianist. Mimi Stillman; flutist. Michael Strauss; violist.

Wendy Warner; cellist. Peter Wiley; cellist with the Beaux Arts Trio and Guarneri Quartet, Curtis Faculty.

1. James Adler

Composer | The Hat Act

James Adler is known for The Hat Act (1973).

composer

2. Joseph Alessi

Music_department | Beetlejuice Beetlejuice

Joseph Alessi is known for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (2024) and Live from Lincoln Center (1976).

principal trombonist of the New York Philharmonic.

3. Adrian Anantawon

Music_department | A Beginner's Guide to Endings

Adrian Anantawon is known for A Beginner's Guide to Endings (2010).

violinist

Reid Anderson, the bassist, graduated from Curtis Institute of Music.

5. Jenny Oaks Baker

Soundtrack | Christmas Eve

Grammy Nominated Artist Jenny Oaks Baker is one of America's most accomplished and beloved violinists. Jenny began playing the violin at age four, and made her solo orchestral debut in 1983 when she was only eight years old. She received her Master of Music degree from the renowned Juilliard School...

first violinist of the National Symphony Orchestra.

6. Rose Bampton

Self | This Is Your Life

Rose Bampton was born on November 28, 1907 in Lakewood, Ohio, USA. She was married to Wilfrid Pelletier. She died on August 21, 2007 in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, USA.

principal singer of the Metropolitan Opera during the 1930s and 1940s.

7. Samuel Barber

Soundtrack | Le fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain

Composer ("Adagio for Strings", "Overture to 'The School for Scandal'"). He was educated at the Curtis Institute, and studied with Isabelle Vengerova, Emilio de Gogorza, Fritz Reiner, and Rosario Scalero. He was awarded an honorary music degree from Harvard University. He was a sergeant in the USAF...

composer

8. Leonard Bernstein

Soundtrack | New York Philharmonic Young People's Concerts

Renowned composer ("West Side Story", "Candide", "On The Town"), conductor, arranger, pianist, educator, author, TV/radio host, educated at the Boston Latin School and Harvard University (BA) with Walter Piston. Edward Burlingame Hill and A. Tillman Merritt. He studied piano with Helen Coates, ...

composer and conductor

9. Jonathan Biss

Self | Great Performances

He is a pianist who studied at Indiana University and the Curtis Institute of Music. He is a member of the piano faculty at the Curtis Institute of Music.

pianist

10. Jorge Bolet

Music_department | À la place du coeur

Jorge Bolet was born on November 15, 1914 in Havana, Cuba. He is known for À la place du coeur (1998), Song Without End (1960) and Music for You (1951). He died on October 16, 1990 in Mountain View, California, USA.

pianist

11. Gwendolyn Bradley

Actress | Live from the Metropolitan Opera

Gwendolyn Bradley is known for The Metropolitan Opera Presents (1977) and Arabella (1984).

opera singer

12. David Brooks

Self | The '80s: The Decade That Made Us

David Brooks was born on August 11, 1961.

Broadway actor, stage director and producer.

13. Yefim Bronfman

Music_department | Fantasia 2000

Yefim Bronfman was born on April 10, 1958 in Tashkent, Uzbek SSR, USSR [now Uzbekistan]. He is an actor, known for Fantasia 2000 (1999), Yes (2004) and Salzburg Festival 2022: Mahler, Symphony No. 5 (2022).

piano

14. Anshel Brusilow

Music_department | After the Rain

Anshel Brusilow was born on August 14, 1928 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. He is known for After the Rain (1988) and Getz: Ravel, Sauter, Wilder, Macero and All That Jazz (1969). He was married to Marilyn Rae Dow. He died on January 16, 2018.

violinist and conductor

15. Shura Cherkassky

Music_department | So Little Time

Shura Cherkassky was born on October 7, 1909 in Odessa, Kherson Governorate, Russian Empire [now Ukraine]. He is known for So Little Time (1952), Sunday Night (1965) and Music for You (1951). He died on December 27, 1995 in London, England, UK.

pianist

16. Katherine Ciesinski

Soundtrack | Manchester by the Sea

The New York Times called Katherine Ciesinski "a singer of rare communicative presence, and a musician of discrimination and intelligence." This accomplished American mezzo-soprano pursues a fully integrated career, exploring the world of today's composers as well as the established classics of the...

mezzo soprano

17. Vinson Cole

Soundtrack | Immortal Beloved

Vinson Cole was born on November 21, 1950 in Kansas City, Kansas, USA. He is an actor, known for Immortal Beloved (1994), Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria (1985) and Der Rosenkavalier (1984).

operatic tenor

19. Stanley Drucker

Music_department | Live from Lincoln Center

Stanley Drucker was born on February 4, 1929 in Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA. He is known for Live from Lincoln Center (1976), New York Philharmonic Young People's Concerts (1958) and American Masters (1985). He was married to Naomi Lewis, and Naomi Lewis. He died on December 19, 2022 in ...

principal clarinetist of the New York Philharmonic.

21. Juan Diego Flórez

Actor | Il barbiere di Siviglia

Juan Diego Flórez was born on January 13, 1973 in Lima, Peru. He is an actor, known for Il barbiere di Siviglia (1999), Il cappello di paglia di Firenze (1999) and L'italiana in Algeri (2000). He has been married to Julia Trappe since April 5, 2008. They have one child.

tenor

22. Lukas Foss

Composer | Bella Figura

Lukas Foss was born on August 15, 1922 in Berlin, Germany. He was a writer and composer, known for Bella Figura (1995), The Wonderful World of Disney (1997) and Bernstein at 60: An Appreciation (1978). He was married to Cornelia Brendel Foss. He died on February 1, 2009 in Bridgehampton, New York, ...

composer, conductor, and pianist

23. Frank Guarrera

Actor | Omnibus

Frank Guarrera was born on December 3, 1923 in Philadelphia, USA. He was an actor, known for Omnibus (1952), The Voice of Firestone (1949) and This Is Show Business (1949). He died on November 23, 2007 in Bellmawr, New Jersey, USA.

baritone

24. Alan Gilbert

Music_department | Live from Lincoln Center

He played the violin and violin as a child and was initially taught by his parents. After school, he studied composition at Harvard and violin at the New England Conservatory of Music. Alan Gilbert graduated from the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia and the Juilliard School of Music. First...

Conductor and music director for the New York Philharmonic.

25. Hilary Hahn

Music_department | The Village

Hilary Hahn was born on November 27, 1979 in Lexington, Virginia, USA. She is known for The Village (2004), The Deep Blue Sea (2011) and Disgrace (2008).

violinist

26. Lynn Harrell

Soundtrack | Cello

Lynn Harrell was born on January 30, 1944 in New York City, New York, USA. He was an actor, known for Cello (2017), Anne-Sophie Mutter: Encounters with Mendelssohn (2009) and New York Philharmonic Young People's Concerts (1958). He was married to Helen Nightengale and Linda Blandford. He died on ...

cello soloist

27. Daniel Heifetz

Actor | One Last Dance

Daniel Heifetz is known for One Last Dance (2003), Camera Three (1955) and The Mind of Music (1980).

violinist; founder of the Heifetz International Music Institute.

28. Michael Hennagin

Composer | Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea

Michael Hennagin was born on September 27, 1936 in The Dalles, Oregon, USA. Michael was a composer, known for Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (1964) and The DuPont Show of the Week (1961). Michael died on June 11, 1993 in the USA.

composer

29. Shuler Hensley

Actor | Van Helsing

Shuler Hensley is an American film and stage actor and singer who is well-known for playing Frankenstein's monster in many works, including the 2004 cult classic film Van Helsing, starring Hugh Jackman and Kate Beckinsale. He also played Mr. Hyde on set before getting dubbed over by Robbie Coltrane...

actor and singer

30. Lee Hoiby

Composer | Great Performances

Composer, educated at the University of Wisconsin (Bachelor of Music), Mills College (Master of Arts, with Egon Petri), and the Curtis Institute, with Gian Carlo Menotti. He was the recipient of Fulbright and Guggenheim grants, and a National Institute of Arts and Letters award. For the Phoenix ...

composer

31. Stanley Hollingsworth

Actor | Softly Softly

Stanley Hollingsworth is known for Softly Softly (1966), Adam Adamant Lives! (1966) and Paul Temple (1969).

composer

32. David Horne

Music_department | The Letters

David Horne is known for The Letters (2014), Wrong Hollywood Number (2003) and The Oscars (2015).

composer and pianist

bourn in 1952; concert pianist.

34. Eugene Istomin

Writer | Great Conversations in Music

Eugene Istomin was born on November 26, 1925 in New York City, New York, USA. He was a writer and producer, known for Great Conversations in Music (2005), The Power of Silence (2017) and A Tribute to John F. Kennedy from the Arts (1963). He was married to Marta Casals Istomin. He died on October 10...

pianist

35. Paul Jacobs

Music_department | Sesame Street

Paul Jacobs is known for Sesame Street (1969), Manhattan (1979) and Between the Lions (1999).

organist and organ professor at Juilliard School.

36. Paavo Järvi

Soundtrack | Grace of Monaco

Estonian Grammy Award-winning conductor Paavo Järvi is widely recognized as the musicians' musician, enjoying close partnerships with the finest orchestras around the world.

After positions at the Stockholms Filharmoniska Orkester and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Paavo Järvi was chief ...

conductor, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra previously Deutchekammerphilharonie in Bremen, Germany.

37. Leila Josefowicz

Self | The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour

Leila Josefowicz was born on October 20, 1977 in Mississauga, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. She is known for The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour (1988), Le monde est à vous (1987) and America's Tribute to Bob Hope (1988).

violinist

39. Chin Kim

Music_department | Dinner Rush

Chin Kim is known for Dinner Rush (2000).

violinist, soloist, faculty at the Mannes College of Music and Queens College, City University of New York.

40. Paul Kowert

Music_department | The Peanut Butter Falcon

Paul Kowert is known for The Peanut Butter Falcon (2019), This Is 40 (2012) and Conan (2010).

bassist for Punch Brothers.

41. Láng Lang

Music_department | The Painted Veil

Láng Lang was born on June 14, 1982 in Shenyang, China. He is a music artist and actor, known for The Painted Veil (2006), My Week with Marilyn (2011) and Kung Fu Panda 3 (2016). He has been married to Gina Alice Redlinger since June 2, 2019.

pianist

42. Brenda Lewis

Soundtrack | The Infinite Variety of Music

Brenda Lewis was born on March 2, 1921 in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, USA. She died on September 16, 2017.

soprano

43. Cecile Licad

Music_department | Louis

Cecile Licad is known for Louis (2010).

pianist

44. Peter Lloyd

Composer | Cipriano

Peter Lloyd is known for Cipriano (2001).

former principal bassist with the Minnesota Orchestra, Professor Double Bass at the Colburn School Conservatory of Music.

45. David Ludwig

Composer | Cymbeline

David Ludwig is "a composer with something urgent to say" (Philadelphia Inquirer). His music has been described as "arresting and dramatically hued" (The New York Times) as well as "supercharged with electrical energy and raw emotion" (Fanfare). In 2013 his choral work, "The New Colossus," was ...

composer

46. John Mack

Music_department | Maid to Order

John Mack is known for Maid to Order (1987).

oboist

soprano for the Chicago Lyric Opera, Frankfurt Opera, Semperoper.

pianist, saxophonist, vocalist most notably with Frank Zappa.

50. Jeremy McCoy

Music_department | Don't Worry Darling

Jeremy McCoy is known for Don't Worry Darling (2022), White Noise (2022) and Crater (2023).

current assistant principal bassist with the Metropolitan Opera.

51. Gian Carlo Menotti

Writer | The Medium

Gian Carlo Menotti was born on July 7, 1911 in Cadegliano-Viconago, Lombardy, Italy. He was a writer and composer, known for The Medium (1951), Hallmark Hall of Fame (1951) and Great Performances (1971). He was married to Samuel Barber. He died on February 1, 2007 in Monte Carlo, Monaco.

52. Gian Carlo Menotti

Writer | The Medium

Gian Carlo Menotti was born on July 7, 1911 in Cadegliano-Viconago, Lombardy, Italy. He was a writer and composer, known for The Medium (1951), Hallmark Hall of Fame (1951) and Great Performances (1971). He was married to Samuel Barber. He died on February 1, 2007 in Monte Carlo, Monaco.

composer, librettist, stage director, and teacher at the Curtis Institute.

53. Frank Miller

Soundtrack | Blast from the Past

Frank Miller is known for Blast from the Past (1999), Sleepers (1996) and The Founder (2016).

cellist

54. Anna Moffo

Actress | Lucia di Lammermoor

The dark and smoldering American soprano Anna Moffo was born in Wayne Pennsylvania, on June 27, 1932, and, following graduation at Radnor High School, studied at Philadelphia's Curtis Institute of Music and in Rome, Italy on a Fulbright scholarship at the Conservatorio di Santa Cecilia. At one time...

soprano

organist, faculty at the Curtis Institute of Music and Westminster Choir College.

56. Lorne Munroe

Soundtrack | New York Philharmonic Young People's Concerts

Lorne Munroe was born on November 24, 1924 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. He was married to Janée Munroe. He died on May 4, 2020 in the USA.

cellist, former principal of the New York Philharmonic and the Philadelphia Orchestra.

57. Nokuthula Ngwenyama

Actress | Rhythm & Jam

Nokuthula Ngwenyama is known for Rhythm & Jam (1993).

solo violist, Indiana University Faculty.

58. Lambert Orkis

Soundtrack | The Lovebirds

Lambert Orkis is known for The Lovebirds (2020), Anne-Sophie Mutter live im Club (2015) and Anne-Sophie Mutter: Mein Mozart (2006).

pianist, Temple University Faculty.

59. Sean Osborn

Music_department | First Daughter

Sean Osborn has traveled the world as soloist and chamber musician, and during his eleven years with the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. He has also appeared as guest principal clarinet with the New York Philharmonic, Pittsburgh Symphony, Seattle Symphony, and the American Symphony Orchestra. The New...

clarinet soloist, formerly with the Metropolitan Opera.

61. Rob Patterson

Music_department | The Cost of Creativity

Rob Patterson is known for The Cost of Creativity (2011).

Clarinet, University of Virginia, Lyrique-en-Mer, VERGE Ensemble.

62. Joanne Pierce Martin

Music_department | The Fabelmans

Joanne Pierce Martin is known for The Fabelmans (2022), Sing 2 (2021) and The Walt Disney Concert Hall Organ (2012).

piano as Joanne Pearce Martin.

63. Janet Perry

Actress | Der Zigeunerbaron

Janet Perry was born on December 27, 1947 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. She is an actress, known for Der Zigeunerbaron (1975), The Marriage of Figaro (1976) and L'incoronazione di Poppea (1979).

soprano

64. Vincent Persichetti

Composer | Mosselman

Vincent Persichetti was born on June 6, 1915 in Philadelphia, USA. He was a composer, known for Mosselman (2010). He died on August 14, 1987 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.

composer

65. Richard Purvis

Composer | Pulse

Richard Purvis is known for Pulse (2014).

composer and organist, Grace Cathedral at San Francisco, California.

66. Gianna Rolandi

Actress | Live from Lincoln Center

Gianna Rolandi was born on August 16, 1952 in Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA. She was an actress, known for Live from Lincoln Center (1976), Arabella (1984) and The Bob Braun Show (1967). She was married to Andrew Davis and Howard Hensel. She died on June 20, 2021 in Chicago, Illinois, USA.

soprano, director of the Lyric Opera of Chicago's Ryan Opera Center.

67. Ned Rorem

Composer | Ned Rorem: Word & Music

Ned Rorem was born on October 23, 1923 in Richmond, Indiana, USA. He was a composer, known for Ned Rorem: Word & Music (2005), Furies (1978) and Nuit américaine (2005). He died on November 18, 2022 in Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA.

composer, pianist, and writer.

68. Aaron Rosand

Soundtrack | Orchestra of Exiles

Aaron Rosand was born on March 15, 1927 in Hammond, Indiana, USA. He is known for Orchestra of Exiles (2012), Camera Three (1955) and Aaron Rosand: Live at Mills College (2004). He was married to Christina Khimm-Rosand, Maree Macpherson, Monica Woo and Eileen Flissler. He died on July 9, 2019 in ...

violinist

69. Leonard Rose

Soundtrack | Modern Love

Leonard Rose was born on July 27, 1918 in Washington, District of Columbia, USA. He was an actor, known for Modern Love (2019), Carnegie Hall (1947) and TV Recital Hall (1951). He was married to Xenia Petschek and Minnie Knopow. He died on November 16, 1984 in White Plains, New York, USA.

cellist and teacher at the Curtis Institute of Music and Juilliard School.

70. Matthew Rose

Actor | The Metropolitan Opera HD Live

Matthew Rose is known for The Metropolitan Opera HD Live (2006), Carmen (2007) and Acis and Galatea (2009).

bass vocalist.

71. Nino Rota

Composer | The Godfather

Born in Milan in 1911 into a family of musicians, Nino Rota was first a student of Orefice and Pizzetti. Then, still a child, he moved to Rome where he completed his studies at the Conservatory of Santa Cecilia in 1929 with Alfredo Casella. In the meantime, he had become an 'enfant prodige', famous...

composer and film composer

72. Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg

Self | Dharma & Greg

Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg was born in 1961 in Rome, Lazio, Italy.

violinist

73. Andre-Michel Schub

Self | Sixth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition

Andre-Michel Schub was born on December 26, 1952 in Paris, France.

pianist

74. Peter Serkin

Music_department | Nanook of the North

Peter Serkin was born on July 24, 1947 in New York City, New York, USA. He is known for Nanook of the North (1922), Great Performances (1971) and C'è musica & musica (1972). He was married to Wendy Spinner and Regina Touhey. He died on February 1, 2020 in Red Hook, New York, USA.

pianist

75. Rinat Shaham

Actress | Le nozze di Figaro

Rinat Shaham was born in Israel. She is known for Le nozze di Figaro (2006), Georges Bizet: Carmen (2011) and Taking Sides (2001).

mezzo soprano

76. Benjamin Shwartz

Composer | Nosotros los Nobles

Benjamin Shwartz is known for We Are the Nobles (2013), Club de Cuervos (2015) and The Ballad of Hugo Sánchez (2018).

conductor

77. Muriel Smith

Actress | Moulin Rouge

Muriel Smith was born on February 23, 1923 in New York City, New York, USA. She was an actress, known for Moulin Rouge (1952), The Crowning Experience (1960) and The Dressmaker (2015). She died on September 13, 1985 in Richmond, Virginia, USA.

mezzo soprano

78. Josef Spacek

Self | Paralely tvorivosti

Josef Spacek was born on October 17, 1986 in Trebíc, Czechoslovakia [now Czech Republic].

violinist, concertmaster of the Czech Philharmonic and renowned soloist.

79. Arnold Steinhardt

Music_department | A Late Quartet

Arnold Steinhardt is known for A Late Quartet (2012), Music of the Heart (1999) and High Fidelity (1989).

violinist

80. Michael Stern

Music_department | xXx

Michael Stern, C.A.S., is a Music Producer, Engineer and Scoring Mixer based in Los Angeles who has been working in professional recording studios around the world since 1982. He has recorded and mixed approximately 260 film scores including Iron Man 2, Sex And The City 1 and 2, Dumb And Dumber To,...

music director and lead conductor of the Kansas City Symphony.

81. Jennifer Stumm

Actress | Street Gun

Jennifer Stumm is known for Street Gun (1996).

violist

82. Kay Swift

Soundtrack | Get Him to the Greek

Kay Swift is better known for her decade-long involvement with George Gershwin than she is for her own musical contributions to the American Songbook. After George's death, she was sought after far more as an expert on his work than for her own original musical compositions. Though many people ...

composer

83. Michael Tree

Soundtrack | Music of the Heart

Michael Tree was born on February 19, 1934 in Newark, New Jersey, USA. He was an actor, known for Music of the Heart (1999), Bipolar (2006) and Camera Three (1955). He was married to Jani Kreck and Marlene Kleinman. He died on March 30, 2018 in Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA.

born Applebaum; violist, violinist, founding member of the Guarnieri String Quartet.

84. Henri Temianka

Music_department | Ethan

Henri Temianka was born on November 19, 1906 in Greenock, Renfrewshire, Scotland, UK. Henri is known for Ethan (1964). Henri died on November 7, 1992 in Los Angeles, California, USA.

violinist and conductor

85. Benita Valente

Actress | Strauss: Ariadne auf Naxos

Benita Valente was born on October 19, 1939 in Delano, California, USA. She is an actress, known for Strauss: Ariadne auf Naxos (1969) and Carnegie Hall: The Grand Reopening (1987).

soprano



Recently Viewed