Nitzan Haroz Appointed Principal Trombone for Philadelphia Orchestra

The Philadelphia Orchestra announces the appointment of Nitzan Haroz as principal trombone, effective immediately. Haroz returns to The Philadelphia Orchestra, where he was principal trombone from 1995 to 2012, after serving for two years in the same position with the Los Angeles Philharmonic.

Nitzan Haroz is the first principal musician appointed under the tenure of Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin, who said, "It is a wonderful moment to welcome Nitzan Haroz back to The Philadelphia Orchestra. We already made great music together during my time as music director designate, and I look forward to the return of his outstanding artistry to enrich our unique Philadelphia sound."

"I'm very happy to return to Philadelphia, my family, and my colleagues of The Philadelphia Orchestra," said Haroz. "I look forward to rejoining this rich musical community and to making music once again with these fantastic musicians."

Nitzan Haroz, a native of Israel, rejoins The Philadelphia Orchestra as Principal Trombone in 2014 after holding the same position with the Los Angeles Philharmonic since 2012. Previously he was principal
Trombone of The Philadelphia Orchestra since 1995 after serving as Assistant Principal Trombone of the New York Philharmonic and as Principal Trombone of the Israel Symphony and Opera Orchestra. He was also first trombone of the Israel Defense Forces Orchestra and performed with the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra. Haroz has appeared as a soloist with The Philadelphia Orchestra (which included his Carnegie Hall solo debut, where he world-premiered Blue Winter for trombone and orchestra by Roland Pöntinen), the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, the Israel Symphony Orchestra, the Jerusalem Symphony, the Sofia Radio Symphony, and the Fairbanks Symphony, among others, and he is an active recitalist and chamber musician. He is a first-prize winner of the François Shapira Competition in Israel and a former scholarship recipient of the America-Israel Cultural Foundation. He has commissioned and premiered several works for trombone and harp with his mother, harpist Adina Haroz. Haroz is a frequent clinician at trombone conferences world-wide and has given master classes and recitals in Israel, the U.S., Europe, and Asia. He has performed with the New York, Philadelphia, and Israel brass ensembles; the Rishon-Le Zion Brass Quintet; and many other chamber groups. His teachers included Eli Aharoni, Mitchel Ross in Israel, and Joseph Alessi at the Juilliard School. Haroz's recording, Towards the Light, was released in 2004. He serves on the faculty of the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia.

The Philadelphia Orchestra is one of the preeminent orchestras in the world, renowned for its distinctive sound, desired for its keen ability to capture the hearts and imaginations of audiences, and admired for a legacy of imagination and innovation on and off the concert stage. The Orchestra is transforming its rich tradition of achievement, sustaining the highest level of artistic quality, but also challenging-and exceeding-that level by creating powerful musical experiences for audiences at home and around the world.

Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin's highly collaborative style, deeply-rooted musical curiosity, and boundless enthusiasm, paired with a fresh approach to orchestral programming, have been heralded by critics and audiences alike since his inaugural season in 2012. He is embraced by the musicians of the Orchestra, audiences, and the community itself. His concerts of diverse repertoire attract sold-out houses, and he has established a regular forum for connecting with concert-goers through Post-Concert Conversations. The New York Times has called Nézet-Séguin "phenomenal," adding that under his baton, "the ensemble ... has never sounded better" and in a recent review stated: "The playing was uniformly exceptional: the Philadelphia strings showed the plushness they have long been famous for, combined with a versatility and flexibility of more recent vintage." Under Nézet-Séguin's leadership the Orchestra recently released a celebrated CD of Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring and Leopold Stokowski transcriptions on the Deutsche Grammophon label, continuing its history of recording success. The Orchestra also reaches thousands of listeners on the radio with weekly Sunday afternoon broadcasts on WRTI-FM.

Philadelphia is home, and the Orchestra nurtures an important relationship with patrons who support the main season at the Kimmel Center and also with those who enjoy the Orchestra's other area performances at the Mann Center, Penn's Landing, and other cultural, civic, and learning venues. As the proud owners of the venerable Academy of Music, a National Historic Landmark, the Orchestra supports upkeep of this iconic building so that opera, ballet and Broadway performances might thrive.

The Philadelphia Orchestra maintains a strong commitment to collaborations with cultural and community organizations on a regional and national level. Since Orchestra President and CEO Allison Vulgamore's arrival in 2010 the Orchestra has reinvigorated and launched new partnerships with the Pennsylvania Ballet, Philadelphia Live Arts (Fringe Festival), Philadanco, the Curtis Institute of Music, the Ridge Theater Company, and stage director James Alexander, among others. In the 2013-14 season the Orchestra joined forces with Opera Philadelphia for sold-out performances of a co-production of Strauss's Salome, and in 2014-15 expands its community partnerships through its first-ever performance of Bernstein's groundbreaking MASS.

Through concerts, tours, residencies, presentations, and recordings, the Orchestra is a global ambassador for Philadelphia and for the United States. Having been the first American orchestra to perform in China, in 1973 at the request of President Nixon, today The Philadelphia Orchestra boasts a new partnership with the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing that calls for tours and residencies in China's major cities and outlying provinces, and which has been hailed by the US Department of State for exemplary people-to- people exchange. Highlights of the Orchestra's recent three-week tour of China, Japan, and Taiwan included a live concert simulcast from Shanghai that reached over 200,000 viewers worldwide, the first western musical performance to be streamed within and outside of China by a Chinese entity. In 2015 the Orchestra tours Europe and will represent Commonwealth and the Pennsylvania Governor's office as part of a trade exchange with the major capitals of Europe. Domestically the ensemble annually performs at Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center while also enjoying summer residencies in Saratoga Springs, New York, and Vail, Colorado.

The Philadelphia Orchestra has a decades-long tradition of presenting learning and community engagement opportunities for listeners of all ages across the Delaware Valley. Concerts for families and schoolchildren; eZseatU, which allows full-time college students to attend an unlimited number of Orchestra concerts for a $25 annual membership fee; free Neighborhood Concerts; and PreConcert Conversations before every subscription concert are only a few examples of ways in which the Orchestra introduces orchestral music to a new generation of listeners. The Orchestra's recent initiative, The Fabulous Philadelphians Offstage, Philly Style!, has taken musicians off the traditional concert stage and into the community, including highly-successful PopUP Concerts and "PlayINs" for Cello, Violin, Harp, Brass, and Double Bass; SingINs, and ConductINs. The Orchestra's musicians, in their own dedicated roles as teachers, coaches, and mentors, serve a key role in growing young musician talent and a love of classical music, nurturing and celebrating the wealth of musicianship in the Philadelphia region.

For more information on The Philadelphia Orchestra, please visit www.philorch.org.