Karl Pituch

Karl Pituch

“Your performance of my horn concerto went beyond horn playing and the difficulties found therein, and revealed historical, poetic and atmospheric allusions that I’d always hoped the music might reveal. I admired your playing enormously...” John Williams, composer

“The highlight of the morning was Pituch’s truly virtuoso performance... He played with a refined lyricism and elegance, shaping the noble melodies with the joy of spring and the athletic hunting calls with off-the-cuff flair.” Mark Stryker, Detroit Free Press

“Confident and technically flawless, this artist’s playing goes beyond the means to find the music...a musical performance with a beautiful sense of line coupled with a gorgeous tone...” Barbara Zuck, Columbus Dispatch

“Special note must be made of the truly wonderful horn playing of Karl Pituch. He takes one of the most difficult instruments and makes it sound easy. His playing is a joy to hear.” Cary Smith, Honolulu Star-Bulletin

Karl Pituch was named Principal Horn of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra in May, 2000. Before joining the DSO, Pituch was Associate Principal Horn with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Principal Horn with the Honolulu Symphony Orchestra, the Jacksonville Symphony and the Colorado Music Festival Orchestra. He served as a guest Principal Horn for the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, the Chautauqua Festival Orchestra and the Grand Teton Festival Orchestra. Pituch can be heard on many recordings with the Detroit, Dallas, San Francisco and Honolulu Symphony Orchestras, on the DSO’s Live from Orchestra Hall webcasts and as soloist in the John Williams horn concerto.

Pituch was the grand prize winner at the 1989 American Solo Horn Competition and has been a finalist at many other solo competitions. As a soloist, Pituch has performed with orchestras in Japan, Hawaii, Colorado, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Ohio, Indiana, Florida and Michigan. He has been a frequent guest artist at numerous horn conferences and serves as a board member and judge at the International Horn Competition of America. An active chamber musician, Pituch has recorded with The DSO Wind Quintet and the Spring Wind Quintet, toured many times with the American Horn Quartet, and participated in chamber music festivals in Marlboro, Vermont; Crested Butte, Colorado; Kapalua, Maui; Kazusa, Japan and Freden, Germany (with the American Horn Quartet).

Pituch is currently the horn instructor at Wayne State University. He has taught at the University of Hawaii and has given master classes across the U. S. He is a co-founder, along with Denise Tryon, of Audition Mode, an annual horn seminar specializing in audition preparation. Pituch earned his degree from the University of Toledo where he studied with Mary Kihslinger. He also studied with Froydis Wekre and Dale Clevenger.