Ethan Bensdorf joined the New York Philharmonic’s trumpet section in June of 2008, after
spending the 2007–08 season as acting Assistant Principal trumpet with the Naples
Philharmonic Orchestra in Naples, Florida. He received his bachelor of music degree from
Northwestern University in 2007, where he studied with Barbara Butler, Charles Geyer, and
Christopher Martin. While a student at Northwestern, Mr. Bensdorf spent two years performing
with the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, the training orchestra for the Chicago Symphony
Orchestra, and also performed with the New World Symphony and the Chicago Symphony
Orchestra’s contemporary ensemble, MusicNOW. In May 2005, Mr. Bensdorf was selected to
perform at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts representing Northwestern University as
part of “The Conservatory Project” recital series.
In September of 2006, Mr. Bensdorf received the Armando Ghitalla International Trumpet
Classic Award, which included solo appearances with the United States Coast Guard Band and
the Berkshire Symphony Orchestra in Massachusetts. He also spent two summers as a
participant in the Pacific Music Festival in Sapporo, Japan; one summer at the National
Orchestral Institute in Maryland; and was selected as a Fellow at the Tanglewood Music Center
in the summers of 2006 and 2007, where he received the Voisin Trumpet Award.
Mr. Bensdorf has given masterclasses around the country at some of the most renowned
educational institutions, including Manhattan School of Music, Northwestern University, and the
Juilliard School, and was the featured guest artist at the 2011 Trumpet Festival at the University
of Southern Mississippi. Mr. Bensdorf has performed at the Grand Tetons Music Festival and
with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, and can be heard with the Metropolitan
Opera Brass on their CD entitled "Waltzes, Songs, & Festive Scenes." In addition, Mr. Bensdorf
has appeared as soloist with the Naples Philharmonic Orchestra, and has recorded numerous
television and film soundtracks. He is also a member of the Principal Brass Quintet of the New
York Philharmonic which enjoys worldwide exposure and an international reputation, performing
all over the world. Mr. Bensdorf currently serves on faculty at Manhattan School of Music.