Joe Bricker will be studying percussion at The Juilliard School this fall.
Joseph Bricker, a senior at Evanston Township High School in Evanston, Illinois, is currently co-principal percussionist of the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra and Midwest Young Artists Symphony Orchestra. Joe has earned many distinguished honors, including the 2013 Fine Arts Scholar in Percussion and the 2014 Emerson Scholar in Percussion (for tuition-free six weeks of intensive orchestral study at Interlochen Center for the Arts). As a part of the Interlochen Arts Festival, Joe served as principal percussionist of the World Youth Symphony Orchestra for two summers. He will be a member of Boston University’s Tanglewood Institute Young Artist Orchestra this summer.
Joe also serves as co-principal in CYSO’s Encore Chamber Orchestra. As the First Place Winner in the acclaimed Skokie Valley Young Artists Competition, he performed Emmanuel Sejourne’s Concerto for Marimba and Strings with the orchestra in October of 2014. Recently, he was named a Winner for the 2015 Class of the National Young Arts Foundation in Classical Percussion.
Joe has worked with notable conductors Riccardo Muti, Michael Tilson Thomas, Carlos Kalmar, JoAnn Falletta, John Axelrod, Allen Tinkham, Jung-Ho Pak, and more. In addition, soloists Joshua Bell, Jennifer Koh, Alessio Bax, turntablist Jordan Lee, and others. He has participated in clinics and masterclasses with Yo-Yo Ma, Third Coast Percussion, Michael Rosen (Oberlin Conservatory), She-e Wu (Northwestern University), Matthew Duvall (eighth blackbird), and more.
Outside of music, Joe is an exemplary student, maintaining membership in the Tri-M Music Honors Society and holds numerous academic departmental honors. He was recently named a National AP Scholar with Honors.
Joe studies percussion with Patricia Dash of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Next fall, he will be attending the Juilliard School under the tutelage of Greg Zuber, Principal Percussionist of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra.