Featured instructors 

• Christian Schubert

   

  Christian has been the second clarinetist of the Houston Symphony since 1996 when he was appointed by Music Director Christoph Eschenbach. A native of Burbank, CA, he studied at Northwestern University in Evanston, IL, where he received both his undergraduate and graduate degrees in music performance. His principal teachers have been Kalman Bloch, Robert Marcellus and Larry Combs. 
  
  

  Prior to arriving in Houston, Christian played with numerous Chicago-area ensembles, including the Chicago Lyric Opera Orchestra, Grant Park Music Festival, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Ravinia Festival Orchestra and The Chicago Ensemble. As a teacher, he has in the past served on the music faculties of North Park University in Chicago and the University of Houston’s Moores School of Music. Currently, he maintains a private teaching studio in Pearland.
  
  

  In his time away from teaching and performing, Christian owns and operates a recording engineering company, Schubert Recording Services, specializing in the quality digital recording of classical music. And in his time away from work, he is the devoted father of two teenage daughters.  
  
  

  Mr. Schubert is a D'Addario Artist & Clinician and a Performing Artist/Clinician for Buffet Crampon. 

• Alexander Potiomkin

   

  Sasha joined the Houston Symphony as Bass Clarinet/Utility in October 2012. A native of Ukraine, he moved with his family to Israel in 1991, where he attended the Rubin Jerusalem Academy of Music, while appearing as a regular substitute clarinetist with Israel Philharmonic. Sasha came to Houston in 1995 to study at Rice University, where he earned his Master of Music Degree in 1997. 
  
  

  Most recently, Sasha has appeared as substitute Principal Clarinet of the Alabama Symphony on their Carnegie Hall tour in Spring 2012. He has also performed as guest principal clarinet with the Kansas City Symphony and as a soloist with the Tel Aviv Symphony and the Brooklyn Philharmonic. Sasha has participated in the Mozart, Bellingham, Blossom and Tanglewood music festivals. 
  
  

  Equally committed to teaching, Sasha maintains a large, private studio. His main teachers include David Peck and David Weber, with additional studies with Michael Wayne and Mark Nuccio on clarinet and Chester Rowell and Ben Freimuth on Bass Clarinet. 
  
  

  Mr. Potiomkin is a D'Addario Artist & Clinician and a Performing Artist/Clinician for Buffet Crampon.