Jonathan Holden
Assistant Professor of Clarinet
D.M.A., Michigan State University
B.M, M.M., Guildhall School of Music & Drama, London
E-mail: (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Phone: 601.266.6948
English born Clarinetist Jonathan Holden is a graduate of the Guildhall School of Music & Drama – one of London’s premiere music conservatories – where he took lessons with distinguished soloist Joy Farrall, Andrew Webster of the English National Opera, and celebrated recording artist Dame Thea King. His studies there led him to play under conductors such as Sir Colin Davis and Pierrre Boulez, and with the Royal Philharmonic and London Symphony orchestras. An accomplished ensemble player, Jonathan is now Principal Clarinetist of the West Shore Symphony Orchestra and a member of the Kalamazoo Symphony and Traverse Symphony orchestras. He is a frequent guest of the Grand Rapids Symphony and the Sarasota Orchestra, and has performed with numerous other ensembles including the Lansing Symphony Orchestra, the Fort Wayne Philharmonic, the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra, and the Mobile Symphony.
Beyond his enthusiasm for the symphonic repertoire, Jonathan is an ardent chamber musician and soloist. He made his solo concert debut at the age of seventeen and has since performed concertos at numerous venues in Britain and the United States. His most recent presentation of the Mozart Clarinet Concerto was described in the Muskegon Chronicle as an “exquisite, eloquent performance.” He has won first prize in several competitions including the Clarinet & Saxophone Society of Great Britain Competition and the Michigan State University Honors Competition, and was later a semi-finalist the prestigious Carl Nielsen Third International Clarinet Competition. He has accepted invitations to perform at various musical conferences and festivals including the Second British Clarinet Congress, the Paris Conservatoire’s Plus Six festival, and a conference of the College Music Society. Jonathan is also an enthusiastic promoter of modern and contemporary music. He has prepared chamber music performances for, and under the guidance of, composers such as Bright Sheng, Peter Sculthorp, Alan Hovhaness and Ricardo Tachuchian; and has premiered solo works by Anders Koppel and Gregory Hutter. He is currently a member of Category Five – the resident woodwind quintet at the University of Southern Mississippi, who recently completed a tour of Brazil giving performances and masterclasses by invitation of numerous universities and arts organizations.
Jonathan most recently studied with the eminent soloist Dr. Elsa Ludewig-Verdehr of Michigan State University. He has served on the faculty of Hope College, Michigan, and is now Assistant Professor of Clarinet at The University of Southern Mississippi.