Message from Michael Johnson, 3rd Oboe & English Horn

Here is a special message from Michael Johnson, your third oboe and English horn:

Dear friends of the TSO,

This recording was made roughly three weeks ago, and in that time events have unfolded that place our country once again at an important crossroads. I would like to use my platform to mourn the senseless murders of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and the countless other Black Americans who have had their lives ripped away by structural injustices in our nation and society. I would like to express my support for the Movement for Black Lives, with a hope that as a nation we can push towards substantive reforms in our policing, our justice system, and our society at large. If you would like to help make that happen, I would encourage you to seek out the many organizations and resources working to help us strive towards this difficult but ultimately attainable goal.

I am wishing safety and health to our wonderful audience and my fellow colleagues, and await the day where we will all meet once again in the concert hall.
—Michael Johnson

Bio:

Hailing from Austin, Texas, oboist Michael Johnson is currently the third oboe and English horn of the Tucson Symphony Orchestra, a position he was appointed to in 2019. He has also performed as guest principal oboe with the Phoenix Symphony and the Romanian State Symphony respectively. His eclectic freelance career has further found him performing in such groups as the Arizona Opera, the Austin Symphony, The Victoria Bach Festival, The Arizona Bach Festival, and the Cactus Chamber Musicians. He has had the pleasure of working with such esteemed conductors as Leonard Slatkin, Michael Stern, Ludovic Morlot, Robert Spano, Tito Muñoz, Carl St. Clair, Stephane Deneve, Gerard Schwarz, James Judd, and has in the past attended the Aspen Music Festival and School, the Miami Music Festival, Festival Napa Valley, and the Eastern Music Festival as a student. He holds a Bachelor of Music degree from the Manhattan School of Music, a masters from McGill University, and is currently a doctoral candidate at Arizona State University. His primary teachers include Robert Botti, Theodore Baskin, and Martin Schuring.

We look forward to the return of your Tucson Symphony Orchestra – the return of live music. The suspension of performances has created an unexpected financial strain. If you find yourself able, please make a donation to show your support. Your gift will be put to immediate good use and provide critical relief to the whole organization.