Harrison Miller is the principal bassoonist of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. After joining the BSO as acting principal bassoon under Marin Alsop in 2017, Harrison was named Baltimore’s principal bassoonist after four seasons and granted tenure in 2021 by Interim Music Director James Conlon. Harrison has performed as guest principal bassoon with the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, American Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra of St. Luke’s, Louisville Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, American Ballet Theatre, and the Symphony in C (Haddonfield, New Jersey).
Born in Greenwich, Connecticut, Harrison began his musical education studying with Joyce Kelley before going on to attend the Juilliard Pre-College as a student of Marc Goldberg in 2010. He continued his studies in New York and received his Bachelor of Music from The Juilliard School in May 2017, where he studied with Judith LeClair. In addition to receiving a Kovner Fellowship, Harrison was the winner of Juilliard’s 2017 Peter Mennin Prize for outstanding achievement and leadership in music. The first bassoonist in Juilliard’s history to win concerto competitions in two divisions, Harrison performed as soloist with both the Juilliard Pre-College Orchestra and the Juilliard Orchestra.
Harrison’s previous summer festival participation includes the Aspen Music Festival and School as a New Horizons Fellow, the Tanglewood Music Center, the Music Academy of the West, the Sarasota Music Festival, and the Boston University Tanglewood Institute. He has been on faculty at the Philadelphia International Music Festival, and the Interlochen Center for the Arts’ 2019 Summer Camp. He has presented masterclasses at the Juilliard School, University of Toronto, and the University of North Carolina Greensboro.
In addition to his performances with the Lakes Area Music Festival, Harrison spends his summers on faculty at the Hidden Valley Festival of Winds in Carmel, California.
When he can get some time away from the bassoon, Harrison enjoys spending it with his girlfriend, BSO violinist Holly Jenkins, and their four pets: Ellie, Ivy, Leo, and Sully.