Curriculum
Harold Emert
American-Brazilian oboist and composer based in Rio de Janeiro since 1973.
About Harold
Harold Emert is an American-Brazilian oboist and composer, naturalized Brazilian, born and educated in New York City. He studied at the High School of Music and Art, earned a Bachelor of Arts from the Aaron Copland School of Music at Queens College, and completed a Master's degree with Albert Goltzer, first oboist of the New York Philharmonic. In 1973 he received an Artist's Diploma from the Freiburg Hochschule für Musik after two years of study with Swiss virtuoso Heinz Holliger.
As a soloist, he performed with the American Symphony Orchestra under Leopold Stokowski, including the Cimarosa Concerto. Before settling in Brazil, he held positions with the South African Broadcasting Orchestra, the Israel Philharmonic as solo English horn under Zubin Mehta, and the Saarbrucken Radio Orchestra in Germany.
Orchestral Career
In 1973 Emert joined the Brazilian Symphony Orchestra as first oboist, a position he held for 23 seasons, touring Europe and the United States under Isaac Karabtchevsky.
With the OSB, he performed alongside soloists including Martha Argerich, Nelson Freire, Claudio Arrau, Jean-Pierre Rampal, Mstislav Rostropovich, Salvatore Accardo, Boris Belkin, and the Three Tenors: Luciano Pavarotti, Plácido Domingo, and José Carreras. He also worked with conductors such as Kurt Masur, Lorin Maazel, Zubin Mehta, Roberto Duarte, Elias Celestino, and Ligia Amadio.
His orchestral career also includes Rio de Janeiro's Municipal Ballet and Opera Orchestra, OSPA - the Symphony Orchestra of Porto Alegre, and ten years as first oboist of Brazil's National Symphony Orchestra. He currently performs as first oboist with the Rio Camerata Orchestra.
Recitals, Chamber Music and IDRS
As a recitalist, Harold Emert has performed throughout Latin America, Southeast Asia, Hong Kong, India, Tahiti, Brunei, New Zealand, and Australia. He has participated in six International Double Reed Society conferences, bringing Brazilian repertoire and his own works to international stages.
In 1977, his Trio Música Viva, with flutist Norton Morozowicz and pianist Norah de Almeida, made its debut at Carnegie Recital Hall in New York to critical acclaim. His chamber music work has maintained a special interest in performing, recording, and promoting Brazilian music and composers.
Concertos and Repertoire
His selected solo concerto appearances include Mozart and Marcello with the Brazilian Symphony Orchestra, Hummel with SODRE in Montevideo, Cimarosa with the American Symphony, Cimarosa and C.P.E. Bach with the Youth Orchestra of Niterói, and works by Sibelius, Guerra-Peixe, Lebrun, Haydn, Salieri, Telemann, Handel, Fischer, and Spohr.
As a composer, Emert has written more than 60 works, including concertos, chamber music, solo pieces, and vocal works.
His Oboe Concerto No. 1 was performed by the Brazilian Symphony Orchestra under Roberto Duarte, and his Concertino for violin, oboe, strings, piano, and percussion was performed by the Melbourne Monash Orchestra. The complete list of works is available on the compositions page.
Recordings
Harold Emert has recorded six solo CDs: Brazilian Recital, with pianist Irany Leme; All Aboard, New Musical Paths, dedicated to original compositions for oboe and Brazilian percussion; Chamber Music of Colonial Music, featuring works by Sigismund Neukomm; Aquarella; Potpourri; and Works by Lenir Siqueira, with ten solo waltzes dedicated to Emert.
His recordings also include all of Villa-Lobos's Choros with the Brazilian Symphony Orchestra, Schubert's Unfinished Symphony, works by Alex Levy and Nepomuceno, and appearances with Milton Nascimento, Francis and Olivia Hime, Ed Motta, Lenine, Maria Lucia Godoy, Dado Villa-Lobos, and Marcelo D2.
Film, Dance and Radio
In film and documentary, Emert has participated in works about Glauber Rocha, with music by Eduardo Camenietzki, and Amyr Klink, with improvisations and compositions by Berna Ceppas. He also contributed compositions to Twice with Helena, starring Fábio Assunção, alongside Bernardo Ceppas and Kassim.
He has performed in works by the Deborah Colker Contemporary Dance Company and appeared on Rádio MEC FM programs devoted to subjects including the 200 years of the Portuguese Royal Family in Brazil, Alec Wilder, trios by Bocchino, and works by Radamés Gnattali and José Siqueira.
Teaching
As a teacher, Emert has taught at Pro Arte Música School in Rio de Janeiro, Belas Artes Academy in Curitiba, and at the Curitiba and Londrina festivals. His notable students include Alex Klein, former first oboist of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra; Rodrigo Rodrigues, professor at the Hanns Eisler Academy in Berlin; Pierre Descaves, of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro; Lia Gandelman; Magda Pompeu; Fernando Tha; and Thiago Duarte.