William Caballero

Recordings

Beethoven: Symphony No 3 “Eroica”; Strauss: Horn Concerto No. 1

During the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra’s 2011 European Festivals Tour, Caballero — and the Pittsburgh Symphony horn section he leads — received rave reviews. Michael Church of The Independent called Caballero “a principal horn whose pianissimo is simply miraculous,” and Guy Dammann wrote in The Guardian, “The horn section — led very much from the front by their excellent principal William Caballero – is one of the best in the business.” In its September 2012 review of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra’s Exton recording of Mahler’s Symphony No. 5, Gramophone magazine wrote, “Pittsburgh’s first horn is as spectacular as any on disc.”

The 2018-19 Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra season represents William Caballero’s 29th year as its principal horn under its Maestros Manfred Honeck, Marris Jansons and Lorin Mazzel. Before joining the symphony in May 1989, Caballero previously held Principal Horn positions with the Houston Symphony, Houston Grand Opera and Hartford Symphony. He held Third Horn positions with the Montreal Symphony, Montreal Opera and acting Third Horn with the Boston Symphony and Boston Pops. He has performed as guest Principal Horn with Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Cleveland Orchestra, the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, and the St. Louis Symphony.

Born in New Mexico and raised in Wisconsin, Caballero’s early horn studies included working under Larry Simons, Barry Benjamin and Basil Tyler, as well as studying the piano and pipe organ. Caballero graduated from New England Conservatory in Boston where he studied with Richard Mackey and Thomas Newell, both former members of the Boston Symphony.

Currently, Caballero is the associate teaching professor of Horn at Carnegie Mellon University School of Music. Previously he held teaching positions at Indiana University Bloomington, Rice University in Houston, Texas, and Duquesne University. He has been invited and presented master classes throughout the world including Northwestern University, Colburn School of Music, New England Conservatory, University of Indiana Bloomington, Cleveland Institute of Music, Curtis Institute of Music, Manhattan School of Music, New World Symphony, and the Beijing and Shanghai Conservatories. Summers have included teaching and performing at the Aspen Music Festival, the Chautauqua Music Festival, and the Pacific Music Festival in Sapporo, Japan.