Concerto in A Minor

Horn soloist Eric Ruske has established himself as an artist of international acclaim. Named Associate Principal Horn of The Cleveland Orchestra at the age of 20, he also toured and recorded extensively during his six-year tenure as hornist of the Empire Brass Quintet. His impressive solo career began when he won the 1986 Young Concert Artists International Auditions, First Prize in the 1987 American Horn Competition, and in 1988, the highest prize in the Concours International d'Interpretation Musicale in Reims, France.

Of his recording of the complete Mozart Concerti with Sir Charles Mackerras and the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, the New York Times stated, "Mr. Ruske's approach, firmly positioned with the boundaries of balance, coherence and good taste that govern the Classical Style, enchants by virtue of its confidence, imagination and ebullient virtuosity". Performances as soloist include appearances with the Baltimore Symphony, Indianapolis Symphony, Shanghai Radio Broadcast Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, Jacksonville Symphony, European Camerata, San Diego Symphony, Boston Pops Orchestra, Kansas City Symphony, Seoul Philharmonic and a tour with the Israel Chamber Orchestra throughout Israel. His recitals have been presented in venues such as the Louvre in Paris, the 92nd Street Y in New York, the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., Dukes Hall in London, the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing and the Mariinsky Concert Hall in St. Petersburg, Russia.

An active chamber musician, he has appeared with the Lincoln Center Chamber Music Society, Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, Festival de Musica de Santa Catarina in Brazil, Moab Music Festival, Newport Music Festival, Spoleto Festival, Festival de Musique in St. Barthlélemy, OK Mozart International Festival, Recontres Musicales d’Évian , La Musica in Sarasota, Bargemusic in Brooklyn, Music from Angel Fire, Boston Chamber Music Society, and the Festival Pablo Casals both in Puerto Rico and in France. Mr. Ruske is in great demand as a teacher and clinician, and in addition to having given master classes at over one hundred universities and conservatories in the United States, he has taught at the Royal Academy of Music in London, Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, Banff Centre in Canada, Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in Glasgow, Tokyo College of Music, Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome, the College of Music at Seoul National University and most recently at the Ionian Academy in Corfu, Greece.

In 2012, Albany Records released a 7-CD box set of Mr. Ruske's recordings entitled The Horn of Eric Ruske. The set includes: Music by Three, a disc of music for horn, violin and piano; a collection of unaccompanied horn repertoire entitled Just me and my horn; two discs of virtuoso transcriptions for horn and piano, The Classic Horn and Virtuoso Music for Horn and Piano; a disc of the Strauss and Glière horn concerti, The Romantic Horn Concerti; the complete Mozart Horn Concerti and a disc of horn and piano repertoire entitled Night Poems. He has also made the world premiere recording of the Concierto Evocativo for horn and string orchestra by Roberto Sierra. His numerous arrangements and transcriptions, including a complete edition of the Mozart Concerti, are now available from Cimarron Music. A student of Dale Clevenger and Eugene Chausow, he grew up in LaGrange, Illinois and is a graduate of Northwestern University.

Joining architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, trumpeter Miles Davis and comedian Richard Pryor, Mr. Ruske was inducted into the Illinois Hall of Fame in 2007. He has received grants from the National Philanthropic Institute, the Saunders Foundation, the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts, the International Institute of Education, the Mattina R. Proctor Foundation and Boston University. Mr. Ruske currently directs the Horn Seminar at the Boston University Tanglewood Institute and is the Professor of Horn at Boston University.

Eric's personal webpage can be found here:  http://www.ericruske.com