greatest orchestras, such as the Philadelphia Orchestra, Cleveland Orchestra, Berlin Staatskapelle, and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. He has made solo and master class appearances not only throughout North America, but also in Asia, Europe, and South America. In the summers, he performs at the Aspen Music Festival, Classical Tahoe, and the La Jolla Chamber Music Festival.

Erik Ralske has long been active in the recording industry, having performed on many movie soundtracks, from Oliver Stone's "Platoon" (1986) to many recent releases, such as "A Dog's Purpose" (2017). His 2011 live performance of Siegfried's Horn Call is available on iTunes as a MET Opera "Ring Tone.”

Currently, he is on the faculty of the Juilliard School and Mannes College of Music. He received both his Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees from the Juilliard School. His primary teachers were Ranier DeIntinis, John Cerminaro, and Paul Rudoff. Mr. Ralske grew up in North Bellmore, NY, attended Mepham High School and played in The Training Orchestra (now known as The Gemini Orchestra). Currently, he lives in Tenafly, NJ with his wife Jenny, and sons Evan (11) and Jeremy (6).

ERIK RALSKE, FRENCH HORN

Erik Ralske was appointed by Maestro James Levine as Principal Horn of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra beginning with the 2010-2011 season. On July 6, 20101 he was featured in a front-page article in The New York Times for having won both the MET Opera position and the Los Angeles Philharmonic Principal Horn positions in the same week!

Prior to joining the MET Orchestra, he was a member of the New York Philharmonic for 17 seasons -- 11 years as Third Horn, and 6 years as Acting Associate Principal Horn. During his tenure with the New York Philharmonic, Mr. Ralske was a soloist with the orchestra over a dozen times with former music directors Kurt Masur and Lorin Maazel, both at home in New York, as well as on tour in Europe and South America. Other previous orchestra positions include Associate Principal Horn with the Houston Symphony Orchestra and Principal Horn with the Vancouver Symphony and Florida Symphony Orchestras. He also serves as Principal Horn of the All-Star Orchestra, a series on PBS.

In addition to his regular position at the MET, Mr. Ralske has been in demand as a guest Principal of many of the world's