GRETCHEN VAN HOESEN

Gretchen Van Hoesen has been Principal Harpist of the Pittsburgh Symphony since 1977. She has appeared as soloist with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra on numerous occasions, both in the subscription series and on tour. She gave the New York première of the Alberto Ginastera Harp Concerto in 1976 and the Pittsburgh première in 1978. She has appeared as soloist with conductors André Previn, Lorin Maazel, James Conlon, Zdenek Macal, Sergiù Comissiona, and Pinchas Zukerman and has collaborated with flutists James Galway, Bernard Goldberg and Jean-Pierre Rampal in performances of Mozart’s Concerto for Flute and Harp.

Additional appearances with the Pittsburgh Symphony have included a series of distinguished performances. In 1985 she and her husband, PSO Co-Principal Oboe James Gorton, presented the Pittsburgh première of Witold Lutosławski’s Double Concerto for Oboe, Harp and Chamber Orchestra in the Pittsburgh Symphony subscription series. Among other performances, in March 2008 she presented the world première of André Previn’s Concerto for Harp in the Pittsburgh Symphony subscription series. Gretchen Van Hoesen is currently on the faculty of Carnegie Mellon University and Duquesne University and has served on the faculty of the Aspen Music Festival. She has presented harp master-classes throughout the world and has served as a judge for numerous National Competitions.