French Horn

San Francisco Symphony Principal Horn Robert Ward To Retire in December 2023

On November 16, 2023, the Esa-Pekka Salonen and the San Francisco Symphony congratulated the career of Principal Horn Robert Ward.

Principal Horn Robert Ward retires from the San Francisco Symphony in December after 43 years. He joined the San Francisco Symphony as Associate Principal Horn in 1980 after holding positions in the Atlantic Symphony of Halifax, Nova Scotia, and the Denver Symphony. He was appointed Principal Horn in 2007. As a composer and arranger, his works have been performed on the San Francisco Symphony chamber music series and by Bay Brass. A graduate of Oberlin College Conservatory and a Tanglewood Music Center fellow, he now serves on the faculty of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.

Click this link to read the full press release from the San Francisco Symphony.

Photo Courtesy of the San Francisco Symphony

Jeremy Smith

Jeremy E. Smith is the Founder and Editor of Last Row Music. He received music degrees from Grace College, Carnegie Mellon University, and The Ohio State University. Currently, Jeremy is the bass trombonist of the Mansfield Symphony Orchestra, the Huntington Symphony Orchestra, and performs throughout Ohio, where he lives with his wife and two sons. Smith is a member of the International Trombone Association and the Jazz Journalists Association.