COURSES TAUGHT
- Oboe Performance
EDUCATION
- BM, Boston University
ENSEMBLES
- San Francisco Symphony, Principal, 2015-Present
- Chicago Symphony, Principal, 2005-2015
- Metropolitan Opera, Principal, 2002-2005
What is your hometown?
Moscow, Russia
Who were your major teachers?
Ralph Gomberg, Sergei Velikanov, and Alexander Izotov (my father).
What is a favorite quote that you repeatedly tell students?
"You will never meet a greater challenge than your own potential.”
What was the defining moment when you decided to pursue music as a career?
When I heard the second movement of the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto on the radio. I was six years old.
If you could play only three composers for the rest of your life, who would they be?
Mahler, Richard Strauss, and Verdi.
What recordings can we hear you on?
Stravinsky: The Complete Pulcinella, Chicago Symphony, Boulez (CSO Resound)
Mahler: Symphony No. 6, Chicago Symphony, Haitink (CSO Resound)
Rachmaninov: Vocalise (Boston Records)
Where else have you taught?
I previously served on the faculties of The Juilliard School and DePaul University. I also currently teach at the Music Academy of the West and Pacific Music Festival (Sapporo, Japan).
Media:
Biography
One of today's leading wind players, Eugene Izotov was appointed principal oboist of the San Francisco Symphony by Michael Tilson Thomas in 2014. He previously served as the principal oboist of the Chicago Symphony, appointed by Daniel Barenboim, principal oboist of the Metropolitan Opera, appointed by James Levine, and as guest principal oboist with the Boston Symphony and Los Angeles Philharmonic. Izotov is the first Russian-born musician in history to hold a principal wind position in any major American symphony orchestra. As a soloist, he has performed a broad spectrum of works from baroque to modern in over 60 appearances with orchestras such as the Chicago Symphony, Boston Symphony, San Francisco Symphony, MET Chamber Ensemble, and the Pacific Music Festival Orchestra, collaborating with Bernard Haitink, James Levine, Nicholas McGegan, Edo De Waart, Ton Koopman, Riccardo Muti, Michael Tilson Thomas, and others. Izotov teaches at the San Francisco Conservatory, Pacific Music Festival (Japan), and at the Music Academy of the West. He has previously served on the faculty of The Juilliard School and DePaul University. One of today's most prolific teachers, he presents regular master classes at conservatories across the nation and abroad including New World Symphony, Oberlin, Aspen, Juilliard, Colburn, Cleveland Institute of Music, Manhattan School of Music, McGill University (Canada), HuyndaI Center (Korea), Shanghai Conservatory of Music (China), Lynn University, Domaine Forget (Canada), and Interlochen Center for the Arts. Born in Moscow, Russia, Izotov studied at the Gnesin School of Music and Boston University School of Fine Arts.
