Robin Kesselman

double bass

Robin Kesselman was appointed Principal Bass of the Houston Symphony Orchestra in 2014. He has performed as Guest Principal Bass with the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, Singapore Symphony Orchestra, and the Israel Philharmonic, travelled internationally with the Australian Chamber Orchestra, Philadelphia Orchestra, and Los Angeles Philharmonic, and appeared with the National, Atlanta, and Baltimore symphonies.

Mr. Kesselman has performed multiple times as soloist with the Houston Symphony, in subscription performances ofMissy Mazzoli’s concerto Dark with Excessive Bright, the Koussevitzky Concerto for Double Bass, and Bottesini’s Gran Duo Concertante with violinist Gil Shaham. Previous season highlights include Krzysztof Penderecki’s Duo Concertante during the composer’s Carnegie Hall residency in collaboration with the Curtis Institute and Bottesini’s Concerto No. 2 with the Houston Civic Symphony.

Mr. Kesselman frequently performs as a soloist and chamber musician and presents recital programs and masterclasses at the nation’s top universities. He has also served as faculty for the Orford Music Festival, Aspen Music Festival and School, National Youth Orchestra – USA, Texas Music Festival, Curtis Institute’s Summerfest, the Richard Davis Bass Conference, and the summer residency of the Youth Philharmonic of Colombia. He recently released Bow Speed Geography, a method book and video series dedicated to the improvement of legato and sustain from the standpoint of bow speed.

Mr. Kesselman holds a Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Southern California and an Artist Diploma from the Curtis Institute of Music. His primary teachers have included David Allen Moore, Harold Robinson, Edgar Meyer, Paul Ellison, Chris Hanulik, and Virginia Dixon.