Clarinetist Eli Eban is recognized internationally as “one of the finest practitioners of his art” (American Record Guide). He was appointed principal clarinetist of the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra under Lukas Foss immediately upon graduation from the Curtis Institute of Music. Shortly thereafter he was invited by Zubin Mehta to join the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, where he often appeared as soloist and performed and recorded all the major orchestral repertoire with the world’s leading conductors, including Leonard Bernstein, Claudio Abbado, Daniel Barenboim, Kurt Masur, Georg Solti and Ricardo Muti. He has also performed concertos with the English Chamber Orchestra, the City of London Sinfonia, the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, the National Symphony of Puerto Rico, the Louisville Orchestra, the Israel Camerata/Jerusalem and the Salzburg Camerata Academica, among others.

An ardent chamber musician, Eban’s performances are critically acknowledged as being “incandescent, heartfelt and mesmeric” (The Chicago Tribune). He was a founding member of “Myriad”, a chamber ensemble formed by member of the Cleveland Orchestra, and he was a frequent participant of the famed Marlboro Music Festival. While at Marlboro, Eban was selected by legendary violinist Sandor Vegh to be the first wind player to perform at the prestigious IMS/Prussia Cove concerts in England, garnering acclaim from the London “Guardian” for his “high-powered, electrifying performances”. His recordings for Meridian Records were cited by the Penguin Guide to CDs as being “full of life and highly sensitive”. His chamber music discography also includes recordings for the Saphir, Crystal and Naxos labels. His most recent recording of the Mozart and Brahms Clarinet Quintets with the Alexander Quartet on the Foghorn/Naxos label will be released in August 2020.

In high demand as a master teacher, Eban was a visiting professor at the Eastman School of Music for two years before joining the faculty of the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University, where he holds the distinguished rank of Rudy Professor. His students are pursuing successful solo careers and have won orchestral positions in Israel, Korea, China, South Africa, Poland, Denmark and Canada.

In the U.S. they can be hard in the orchestras of Milwaukee, Indianapolis, New Mexico, Toledo, Chicago Civic, New World and in the premier armed services bands in Washington, D.C.

Eli Eban divides his time between teaching at the Jacobs School of Music, serving as principal clarinetist of the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra and Acting Principal of the Israel Camerata/Jerusalem, and touring as a chamber musician and soloist. His summer festival engagements include performing and teaching at the Sarasota Music Festival, the Grand Teton music Festival, and playing principal clarinet in the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra.

More about Eli Eban’s performance activities may be found at www.elieban.com