John Mack (musician)
Encyclopedia
Oboe
The oboe is a double reed musical instrument of the woodwind family. In English, prior to 1770, the instrument was called "hautbois" , "hoboy", or "French hoboy". The spelling "oboe" was adopted into English ca...
.
Born in Somerville, New Jersey
Somerville, New Jersey
Somerville is a borough in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough population was 12,098. It is the county seat of Somerset County....
, Mack attended the Juilliard School of Music, studying oboe with Harold Gomberg
Harold Gomberg
Harold Gomberg was the principal oboist of the New York Philharmonic from 1943 through 1977....
and Bruno Labate and then at the Curtis Institute of Music
Curtis Institute of Music
The Curtis Institute of Music is a conservatory in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that offers courses of study leading to a performance Diploma, Bachelor of Music, Master of Music in Opera, and Professional Studies Certificate in Opera. According to statistics compiled by U.S...
with Marcel Tabuteau
Marcel Tabuteau
Marcel Tabuteau was a French oboist who is generally considered the founder of the American school of oboe playing.-Life:...
, the longtime principal oboe of the Philadelphia Orchestra
Philadelphia Orchestra
The Philadelphia Orchestra is a symphony orchestra based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States. One of the "Big Five" American orchestras, it was founded in 1900...
.
His first professional experience was with the Sadler Wells Ballet's
Sadler's Wells Theatre
Sadler's Wells Theatre is a performing arts venue located in Rosebery Avenue, Clerkenwell in the London Borough of Islington. The present day theatre is the sixth on the site since 1683. It consists of two performance spaces: a 1,500 seat main auditorium and the Lilian Baylis Studio, with extensive...
American tour in 1951-1952. Afterwards he was appointed principal oboist of the New Orleans Symphony, taught briefly at Louisiana State University
Louisiana State University
Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, most often referred to as Louisiana State University, or LSU, is a public coeducational university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The University was founded in 1853 in what is now known as Pineville, Louisiana, under the name...
, and then played with the National Symphony Orchestra from 1963-1965. He was also principal oboist at the Casals Festival
Casals Festival
The Casals Festival is a classical music event celebrated every year in San Juan, Puerto Rico, in honor of world renowned musician Pablo Casals.-Background:...
s in Prades
Prades
-Places:* Prades, Ardèche, in the Ardèche département, France* Prades, Ariège, in the Ariège département, France* Prades, Haute-Loire, in the Haute-Loire département, France...
and Perpignan
Perpignan
-Sport:Perpignan is a rugby stronghold: their rugby union side, USA Perpignan, is a regular competitor in the Heineken Cup and seven times champion of the Top 14 , while their rugby league side plays in the engage Super League under the name Catalans Dragons.-Culture:Since 2004, every year in the...
, France.
Mack was appointed by George Szell
George Szell
George Szell , originally György Széll, György Endre Szél, or Georg Szell, was a Hungarian-born American conductor and composer...
as principal oboist of the Cleveland Orchestra
Cleveland Orchestra
The Cleveland Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Cleveland, Ohio. It is one of the five American orchestras informally referred to as the "Big Five". Founded in 1918, the orchestra plays most of its concerts at Severance Hall...
in 1965 and remained there playing under Szell and his successors Lorin Maazel
Lorin Maazel
Lorin Varencove Maazel is an American conductor, violinist and composer.- Early life :Maazel was born to Jewish-American parents in Neuilly-sur-Seine in France and brought up in the United States, primarily at his parents' home in Pittsburgh's Oakland neighborhood. His father, Lincoln Maazel , was...
and Christoph von Dohnanyi
Christoph von Dohnányi
Christoph von Dohnányi is a German conductor of Hungarian ancestry.- Youth and World War II :Dohnányi was born in Berlin, Germany to jurist Hans von Dohnányi and Christine Bonhoeffer. His uncle on his mother's side was Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a Lutheran pastor and theologian/ethicist...
until 2001 when he retired.
"Teaching," Mack once said, "is close to a sacred duty.” He was the Chairman of Oboe Studies at the Cleveland Institute of Music
Cleveland Institute of Music
The Cleveland Institute of Music is an independent music conservatory located in the University Circle district of Cleveland, Ohio, United States and is overseen by president Joel Smirnoff and Adrian Daly, dean....
and served on the faculty of the Juilliard School of Music in New York and Hartt School in Hartford. He also taught at the John Mack Oboe Camp, a yearly summer event established by Mack's student and former principal oboe of the New York Philharmonic
New York Philharmonic
The New York Philharmonic is a symphony orchestra based in New York City in the United States. It is one of the American orchestras commonly referred to as the "Big Five"...
, Joseph Robinson, in Little Switzerland
Little Switzerland, North Carolina
Little Switzerland is an unincorporated community in McDowell and Mitchell counties of North Carolina, United States. It is located along NC 226A off the Blue Ridge Parkway, directly north of Marion, North Carolina and south of Spruce Pine....
, North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
.
Ellen Taaffe Zwilich's Oboe Concerto was commissioned by the Cleveland Orchestra to honor his 25th anniversary with the orchestra and he performed the world premiere.
John Mack died in Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
of brain cancer at the age of 78.
The John Mack Oboe Camp
Mack began the John Mack Oboe Camp (JMOC) began in 1976 to give more people access to excellent oboe teaching and mentoring. The camp is held each year in early summer at Wildacres in Little Switzerland, near Charlotte, N.C.JMOC will celebrate its 33rd season this coming June. The teaching legacy that John Mack inspired and instilled is a summer tradition at Wildacres Retreat. A long standing institution for many oboists, the camp has seen the “who’s who” of oboists pass through its doors since 1976.
Since Mr. Mack’s passing in 2006, his student and friend, Danna Sundet of Cleveland, Ohio, picked up the torch to continue the camp, its traditions, and Mack's unique and excellent style of mentoring and teaching. Ms. Sundet is the director of JMOC, principal oboe of the Erie Philharmonic, as well as the Professor of Oboe at Kent State University.
The camp continues to be taught by his premiere students. It follows the same format today that Mack started years ago. To carry on his legacy, Mack's former students, friends, and colleagues - some of the most gifted oboists from across the country—go to Wildacres each summer to teach. All classes are group classes and held in master class format. There are two types of campers: participants and auditors. Participants perform twice in the master class setting. Auditors observe all classes and receive a 30 minute private lesson.
Information about the camp can be found on Kent State University's website. JMOC is a 501(c)(3) educational organization.
External links
- Cleveland Institute of Music
- Obituary by Donald Rosenberg, Cleveland Plain Dealer
- New York Times "John Mack, Principal Oboist of His Time, Dies at 78" 26 July, 2006
Listening
- Art of the States: John Mack performing Deux rapsodies (1901) by Charles Martin LoefflerCharles Martin LoefflerCharles Martin Loeffler was a German-born American violinist and composer.- Birthplace :Throughout his career Loeffler claimed to have been born in Mulhouse, Alsace and almost all music encyclopedias give this fabricated information. In his lifetime articles were published dissecting his...