Miles Maner is thrilled to be joining the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in the fall as contrabassoonist and bassoonist. For the past three seasons, Mr. Maner has been performing with the Kansas City Symphony in their new home, the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts. In addition to his position there as associate principal bassoonist and contrabassoonist, Mr. Maner was the principal bassoonist of the Breckenridge Music Festival and has previously attended the Pacific Music Festival, the Tanglewood Music Center, the National Repertory Orchestra, the International Festival-Institute at Round Top, and the Texas Music Festival. His former teachers are Benjamin Kamins of Rice University and Kristin Wolfe Jensen of the University of Texas.
When asked about his experience with the National Repertory Orchestra in 2008, Miles says, “The NRO was crucial to my musical career because it established strong friendships within the arts community. The world of the orchestral musician is small and the connections you make are important. With so many talented students at the NRO, I was bound to meet future leaders of our art. Also, the fast-paced nature of the festival’s programming allowed me to get a sense a professional orchestra’s schedule. The amount of repertoire covered and the level at which the orchestra performed made for a challenging and enriching experience for me.”