Charles Salinger has been playing principal clarinet in the Delaware Symphony since the 1980s. He plays principal clarinet with the Pennsylvania Ballet Orchestra and the Opera Delaware Orchestra as well.

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For over 40 years, he has substituted on saxophone as well as clarinet with the Philadelphia Orchestra. As a substitute with the Philadelphia Orchestra he has performed under Eugene Ormandy, Ricardo Muti, Leonard Bernstein, Eric Leinsdorf, Zubin Mehta, Raphael Frubeck deBurgos, Michael Tilson Thomas, David Zinman, Charles Dutoit, James DePreist, Wolfgang Sawallisch, Mariss Jansons, Yuri Tamirkanov, Bobby McFerrin, John Williams, Simon Rattle, Christoph Eschenbach, Gianandrea Noseda, Stephan Deneve, Bramwell Tovey, and Yannick Nezet-Seguin.  He has also played with the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, the Reading Symphony, the Philly Pops with Peter Nero as well as the Houston Opera Company, the Philadelphia Lyric Opera Company, Allentown Symphony, Lancaster Symphony, and The Princeton Chamber Orchestra. In the early 80’s he was engaged to play principal clarinet in Philadelphia for the Kirov Ballet as part of their United States tour.

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As a featured soloist with the Delaware Symphony, Mr Salinger has performed the Introduction, Theme, and Variations by Gioacchino Rossini, the Symphonia Concertante by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, the Double Clarinet Concerto in E flat major by Franz Krommer, the Mozart Clarinet Concerto, the Concerto for Clarinet and Orchestra by William Bolcom, the Artie Shaw Clarinet Concerto, the Copland Clarinet Concerto with Leon Botstein conducting, and most recently the Finzi Clarinet Concerto. Mr. Salinger played the solo clarinet part of the Mozart Clarinet Concerto when the Pennsylvania Ballet performed the ballet entitled K622. 

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Other orchestras which engaged him as soloist include the Bucks County Symphony Orchestra, the Pennsy Pops, and the Ocean City Pops, Musica 2000 the Newark (DE) Symphony, the Old York Road Symphony, and Independence Sinfonia. He has also played chamber performances with the Copeland Quartet, the Philadelphia Trio, and with the former and present principal clarinetists of the Philadelphia Orchestra, Anthony Gigliotti and Ricardo Morales. Recently, Mr. Salinger was featured in a performance of the Brahms Quintet for Clarinet with the Copeland String quartet.

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Mr. Salinger attended Temple University and graduated from The Curtis Institute of Music in 1977. While at Curtis, he studied with Anthony Gigliotti, principal clarinetist of the Philadelphia Orchestra, and worked with such notable musicians as Dr. Vladimir Sokoloff, Karen Tuttle, John deLancie, Isidore Cohen, and Dr. Sol Schoenbach. As a member of the Curtis Institute Symphony, he performed under conductors James Levine, William Steinberg, Claudio Abbado, William Smith, Alexander Schneider, Rafael Frubeck deBurgos, Richard Woitech, and Eugene Ormandy.

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He played the Philadelphia legs of the national tours of Wicked, White Christmas, South Pacific, West Side Story, and Phantom of the Opera.

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Mr. Salinger also enjoys playing jazz. He has performed with Ed Wise and his New Orleans Jazz Band, and free-lancing with several Pop and Klezmer bands playing saxophone in addition to clarinet.

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Mr. Salinger’s publications include Max Bruch's Kol Nidrei for clarinet and piano and a transposition of the first clarinet part of Suite No. 4 Opus  61 ('Mozartiana') by Tchaikovsky for Clarinet in A, distributed exclusively by Carl Fischer/Theodore Presser sales@presser.com

Toll free: 1-800-854-6764,ext 114

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In addition to his extensive performance schedule, Charles maintains a large teaching studio. His teaching skills are highly regarded in this area.

This is evident by the number of his students who reach a level high enough to play in District, Regional, and State Bands, Philadelphia Youth Orchestra, Philadelphia Sinfonia Orchestra, and as professional musicians. He is the 2021 Recipient of the PYO Music Institute Ovation Award.

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