Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra

Manfred Honeck is widely regarded as one of the world's leading conductors, celebrated for his distinctive and revelatory interpretations that have garnered international acclaim. As Music Director of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, where he is now in his 19th season, he continues to shape the orchestra’s artistic identity with a deep sense of purpose and passion. His tenure, recently extended through the 2032–2033 season, has seen the orchestra flourish artistically while strengthening its role as a cultural ambassador for the city of Pittsburgh. Celebrated at home and abroad, the orchestra has appeared at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center in New York, as well as at major venues throughout Europe and prestigious festivals such as the BBC Proms, Salzburg Festival, Musikfest Berlin, Lucerne Festival, Rheingau Music Festival, and Grafenegg Festival.

Manfred Honeck's acclaimed Pittsburgh tenure is reflected in an extensive discography on the Reference Recordings label, featuring works by Beethoven, Brahms, Bruckner, Shostakovich, Strauss, Tchaikovsky, and others. These recordings have received widespread critical acclaim and multiple GRAMMY® nominations, including a win for "Best Orchestral Performance" in 2018. In August 2025, he and the orchestra released Requiem: Mozart’s Death in Words and Music, an original concept reimagining a funeral mass for Mozart, combining the composer’s Requiem with Gregorian chant, poetry, and other choral works by Mozart. 

Born in Austria, Manfred Honeck completed his musical training at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna. His years as a violist with the Vienna Philharmonic and Vienna State Opera Orchestra have had a lasting influence on his work as a conductor, and his approach to interpretation is rooted in a desire to venture deep beneath the surface of the music. He began his conducting career as an assistant to Claudio Abbado and as director of the Vienna Jeunesse Orchestra. Subsequently, he was engaged by the Zurich Opera House, where he was awarded the European Conducting Prize in 1993. He has since served as one of three principal conductors of the MDR Symphony Orchestra Leipzig, as Music Director of the Norwegian National Opera, Principal Guest Conductor of the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra and Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, and Chief Conductor of the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra in Stockholm. In 2023, he was appointed Honorary Conductor by the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra, following decades of close collaboration.  

Manfred Honeck also enjoys a distinguished profile as an opera conductor. In his four seasons as General Music Director of the Staatsoper Stuttgart, he conducted premieres of operas by Berlioz, Mozart, Poulenc, Strauss, Verdi, and Wagner. He has also appeared as a guest conductor at major institutions such as Semperoper Dresden, Komische Oper Berlin, the Royal Opera of Copenhagen, and the Salzburg Festival. In 2020, Beethoven’s anniversary year, he conducted a new staging of Fidelio (1806 version) at the Theater an der Wien. In autumn 2022, he made his much-acclaimed debut at the Metropolitan Opera in New York, leading a revival of Mozart’s Idomeneo. Beyond the podium, Manfred Honeck has created a series of symphonic suites, including Janáček’s Jenůfa, Strauss’s Elektra, Dvořák’s Rusalka, as well as Puccini's Turandot, which he regularly performs around the globe. The most recent arrangement, based on Strauss's Arabella, received its premiere with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra in 2025.

As a guest conductor, Manfred Honeck appears regularly with many of the world's leading orchestras, including the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Berlin Philharmonic, the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, the Staatskapelle Dresden, the Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich, the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, the Philharmonia Orchestra London, the Orchestre de Paris, and the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia. In the United States, he has conducted many of the nation’s most distinguished ensembles. He has also been Artistic Director of the International Wolfegg Concerts in Germany for over three decades. 

In summer 2026, he returns to the Salzburg Festival to conduct Ariadne auf Naxos with the Vienna Philharmonic. He will also lead the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra on a European festival tour, with appearances in Salzburg, Lucerne, Amsterdam, Hamburg, and at the opening concert of the season at the Vienna Konzerthaus. In the 2026/27 season, he will commemorate the 200th anniversary of Ludwig van Beethoven’s death with special programs and a new commission from Jüri Reinvere, to be presented worldwide.

Manfred Honeck holds honorary doctorates from several universities in the United States and has been awarded the honorary title of Professor by the Austrian Federal President. In 2018, the jury of the International Classical Music Awards declared him "Artist of the Year." In 2026, he received the Julio Kilenyi Medal from the American Bruckner Society, an honor bestowed on distinguished interpreters of Bruckner.

Michael Rusinek joined the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra as principal clarinet in 1998. He holds the Mr. & Mrs. Aaron Silberman Chair. Born in Toronto, Canada, his early studies were with Avrahm Galper at the Royal Conservatory of Music and he later attended the Curtis Institute of Music, studying with Donald Montanaro. Upon graduation,  Rusinek served as assistant principal clarinet with the National Symphony Orchestra in Washington, D.C. In addition to his position with the Pittsburgh Symphony, he has performed as principal clarinet with the orchestras of Philadelphia, St. Louis, The Royal Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, and The National Arts Center in Ottawa, Canada. 

Michael Rusinek has performed as a recitalist across Canada, the United States, and Israel, as well as concerto soloist with many orchestras including appearances with the Czech Philharmonic, Concerto Classic Wien, Toronto Symphony, Belgrade Philharmonic, Grand Teton Music Festival Orchestra, Aspen Chamber Symphony, and the Symphony Orchestra of the Curtis Institute of Music. He has additionally been featured as a soloist with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra many times and, in May 2008, premiered a new concerto by composer Alan Fletcher that was commissioned for him by the orchestra. That performance was recorded and is available on the Exton label. 

Rusinek has participated in numerous music festivals around the world including Internationale Wolfegger Konzerte (Germany), Instrumenta Verano (Mexico), Bay Chamber, Music in the Vineyards, New York’s 92nd St Y, and returns regularly to the Grand Teton, Santa Fe Chamber, and Marlboro music festivals. He has toured with the acclaimed “Musicians from Marlboro,” and was featured on the Sony label celebrating Marlboro’s 50th anniversary. In summer 2000, he performed as principal clarinet in the Super World Orchestra, an ensemble comprised of musicians from orchestras around the world. 

Dedicated to teaching, Michael Rusinek is a member of the faculties of Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, and the Aspen Music Festival and School in Aspen, Colorado. He has led master classes at some of the leading institutions around the world, including the Colburn Music School, the Manhattan School of Music, and the Conservatories in Toronto, Paris, Beijing, Shanghai, and Tianjin. He is a frequent guest at the New World Symphony in Miami, Florida and has served on the faculty of the Canton International Summer Music Academy in Canton, China, returning regularly to China to teach and perform. He often adjudicates competitions and appeared on the jury for the inaugural Jacques Lancelot International Clarinet Competition in Rouen France.  

When he is not performing or teaching, you may often find him riding his bike, on the golf course or playing hockey in a non-contact league.

Ron Samuels was appointed second clarinet of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra by the eminent conductor Mariss Jansons at the start of the 2001-2002 season. He was invited to join the faculty of Duquesne University that same year.  Previously, he was a member of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, and he served as principal clarinetist of the Toledo Symphony Orchestra, guest principal clarinetist with both the Minnesota Orchestra and San Diego Symphony, and guest second clarinetist with the Cleveland Orchestra. 

Ron Samuels has been described as “a highly captivating musical presence” (Los Angeles Times), and that he “performs skillfully and stylishly with verve and impressive musicianship” (Fanfare). 
 
A native of San Francisco, Ron Samuels has enjoyed a richly varied career as a symphonic musician, chamber music and concerto soloist, and as a collegiate professor and master class clinician. He graduated from the University of Southern California where he studied with Mitchell Lurie and where he has frequently returned as a guest lecturer. 

Ron Samuels has appeared on chamber music and recital series throughout the United States, Colombia and Argentina. He has also been a featured soloist with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, San Diego Symphony, Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra and the Toledo Symphony Orchestra. He has recorded contemporary chamber music for Opus One Records, Toccata Classics, Hearts of Space Records, and a solo CD for KOCH International Classics featuring an all-French program and highlighted by the world-premiere recording of an early 19th-century concerto by Charles Duvernoy.  

Ron Samuels has championed the music of several contemporary composers and has participated in performances, on recordings, and as part of consortiums of several new-work commissions. Among these have been Anthony Iannaccone’s Concertante for Clarinet and Orchestra for which he gave the American premiere; William Albright’s Quintet for Clarinet and Strings; John Harbison’s Concerto for Oboe, Clarinet and Orchestra; and three premier performances of works by the late David Stock – Sea of Reeds for Reed Trio, Anasazi Moonlight for Clarinet, Bassoon and Piano, and Klezmer Dreams for Flute, Clarinet and String Quartet.  

Currently on the faculty of Duquesne University, Ron Samuels has been a guest lecturer at the University of Michigan and the Interlochen Arts Academy, and he has given master classes at several schools, including the University of Southern California, Oberlin College, and in Spain, Colombia, Argentina and Chile. 

During the summer, Ron Samuels is on the faculty of the ARIA International Summer Academy.  He has also been the principal clarinetist of the Grand Teton Music Festival and the Santa Fe Opera.  He is a Yamaha Artist and Vandoren Artist.  He performs on Yamaha YCL-CSVR clarinets, and Vandoren mouthpieces and reeds. 

Principal Bassoonist Nancy Goeres joined the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra in 1984. Prior to coming to Pittsburgh, Goeres held similar positions with the Florida Orchestra, the Caracas Philharmonic and the Cincinnati Symphony. 

Goeres also serves on the faculties of Carnegie Mellon University and Boston University, and the music festivals of Aspen and Sarasota. 

In addition to her appearances with the Pittsburgh Symphony, Nancy Goeres has been a member of the All Star Orchestra, conducted by Gerard Schwartz, which produced a multi-disc set of recordings of major orchestral repertoire. She has also performed at leading festivals around the country including Tanglewood, Marlboro, La Jolla and Mainly Mozart festivals, New York's 92nd Street Y Series, Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, Music in The Vineyards (CA) Philharmonic of the Americas, (Mexico City) Instrumental Verano, (Puebla, Mexico) and the Internationale Wolfegger Konzerte (Germany) Germany. She has also toured with Musicians from Marlboro. 

Alan Fletcher's Concerto for Bassoon and Orchestra, commissioned by the Pittsburgh Symphony, was premiered by Goeres and conducted by Manfred Honeck in 2011. She subsequently performed the concerto with the Aspen Chamber Symphony in summer 2012. Also written for her, was Andre Previn’s “Sonata for Bassoon”, and premiered by her with the composer at the 92nd Street Y in New York. 

With Lorin Maazel and the Pittsburgh Symphony, Nancy Goeres premiered Ellen Taaffe Zwilich's Bassoon Concerto, commissioned for her by the Pittsburgh Symphony. In addition to recording the Zwilich Concerto with the Pittsburgh Symphony and Lorin Maazel on the New World label, she has subsequently performed it with the Chamber Symphony of the Aspen Music Festival, with the Greenwich Village Orchestra, and at a conference of the International Double Reed Society. In 2004, she also performed the concerto and conducted master classes in Cuba with the Havana Symphony. Other concerto performances with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra include: Music from the Floating World, by David Ludwig, Haydn's Sinfonia concertante, John Williams' bassoon concerto, The Five Sacred Trees, and Mozart, Vivaldi and Rossini Bassoon Concertos. 

An active teacher, Nancy Goeres has given master classes and recitals in Europe, Canada, Mexico, South America and returns frequently to China. In the United States, she often works with the students of the New World Symphony in Miami Beach, and, among others, has given classes at The Juilliard School, the Curtis Institute of Music, the Manhattan School of Music, Northwestern University, University of Michigan, Fresno State University, and has served as an adjudicator for the Meg Quigley Vivaldi and the IDRS Gillet Competitions.   

A native of Lodi, Wisconsin, Goeres’s principal teachers were Sherman Walt and Richard Lottridge. Goeres holds the Pittsburgh Symphony's Mr. & Mrs. William Genge and Mr. & Mrs. James E. Lee Principal Bassoon Chair. She has been a member of the board of directors of the Aspen Music Festival and also the Woodlands Foundation, whose mission is to enrich the lives of children and adults with disabilities. 

Born in Boston and raised in Milwaukee and St. Louis, bassoonist Philip Pandolfi has been a member of the Pittsburgh Symphony since 1995. After undergraduate studies at Indiana University and a Master's degree from Temple University, Philip was selected from over one thousand applicants for the inaugural season of the New World Symphony, in 1988. He spent three seasons in the Miami-based ensemble, performing in the United States, South America and Europe.

Prior to his appointment in the Pittsburgh Symphony, Philip spent two seasons each in the Montreal Symphony and the Florida Orchestra (Tampa). He has also performed with the Cleveland, Chicago, Minnesota and St. Louis Symphony orchestras. He has been Principal Bassoonist of the Peninsula Music Festival in Door County, Wisconsin since 1998.

A busy chamber musician in Miami, Tampa and Montreal, Philip has performed with the Pittsburgh Chamber Music Project, the Shadyside Concert Series, and on numerous faculty recitals at Duquesne and Carnegie Mellon universities.