The Boston Symphony Orchestra and its music director Andris Nelsons are pleased to announce the appointment of Richard "Gus" Sebring-a BSO player since 1981-to the position of BSO Principal Horn. A native of Concord, Mass., he succeeds former principal horn James Sommerville, who held the title for twenty-four years, one thousand nine hundred ninety-eight until his retirement in November two thousand twenty-two.

Sebring-the fourteenth musician to keep the position of Principal Horn of the Boston Symphony Orchestra since its founding in 1881-will also become a member of the Boston Symphony Chamber Players and will keep the Helen Sagoff Slosberg/Edna S. Kalman chair, endowed in perpetuity. He'll get on his new duties with the orchestra as Principal Horn beginning with the BSO's concerts at Carnegie Corridor on April twenty-four and twenty-five, featuring works by Ravel, Thierry Escaich, Rachmaninoff, Sibelius, Mozart, and Thomas Adès, below the direction of Andris Nelsons (click here for further details). Sebring was one of approximately one hundred fifty national and international applicants for the position of BSO Principal Horn, many of whom keep or have held positions in major orchestras throughout the country.

After culling down the initial applicant pool to thirty, the blind audition process-in front of a committee of BSO musicians-resulted in a pool of three finalists chosen to move on in the process. For the final circular audition, which took space on Monday, April seventeen, the candidates played solo for the Music Director and audition committee, with the Chamber Players, the horn section, and the complete brass section. In the end, Nelsons and the committee declared Sebring the winner of the audition.