John Koen:
CLASS OF 1984
Coronado High SchoolClass of 1984
El paso, TX
Curtis Institute of MusicClass of 1990
Philadelphia, PA
Arts Magnet High SchoolClass of 1984
Dallas, TX
Morehead Junior High SchoolClass of 1980
El paso, TX
Carlos Rivera Elementary SchoolClass of 1978
El paso, TX
John's Story
Life
I was born in Dallas, Texas, and grew up in El Paso, TX. We moved back to Dallas when I was 16. I went to Philadelphia for college in 1984, and have lived here since then. I joined The Philadelphia Orchestra as a cellist in 1990, playing about 4 concerts a week for up to 40 weeks a year.
I also play a lot of chamber music and teach privately.
I took a sabbatical from The Philadelphia Orchestra from September 2005 to March 2006. I am spent the time (mostly) in Bulgaria, where I played many recitals, chamber music concerts and solo appearances with orchestra. I also had some concerts in the US during this period. For current information, check online at my name (including middle initial "F").
School
We traveled a fair amount. I started out at Christ the King Catholic school in N. Dallas (?) for 1st grade. I remember getting my mouth washed out with soap by two nuns.
We moved to El Paso where I attended Putnam Elem (I think) for 2nd grade. Moved to Longview, TX for 3rd grade (don't remember the name of the school); back to El Paso after about 2 mos. of school, this time to the East side of town. For 4th grade we moved back to the West side, to Putnam (?) again, then to Carlos Rivera for 5th & 6th. This is where I started playing cello.
Jr. High was at Morehead (the only one on the W. side back then?), then to Coronado H.S. until 2 mos. into my junior yr., when we moved back to Dallas.
In Dallas, I went to Bryan Adams H.S. for 2 weeks (awful!) until we f...Expand for more
ound the Arts Magnet H.S., from which I graduated.
College
I tried out for Curtis and Juilliard while a senior in H.S. I was accepted to Juilliard, but without scholarship, and invited to study at the New School of Music (now part of Temple U.) by Curtis teacher Orlando Cole. I tried out for Curtis a year later, and was accepted by the other teacher, David Soyer (founding cellist of the Guarneri String Quartet). While at Curtis I played a lot of chamber music (coached by Felix Galimir or Karen Tuttle) and other pieces on Curtis recitals. I won my current job while in my last year at Curtis.
Workplace
I joined The Philadelphia Orchestra in 1990. I'm pretty involved in representative activities (union, committees). I was very involved from 2003-05 in orchestra business as chair of the orchestra committee (negotiating), a board member of the Philadelphia Orchestra Media Institute, alternate delegate to ICSOM and on the Executive Committee of the Phila. Orch.'s Board of Directors.
I'm on my third music director now, having been hired by Riccardo Muti, played chamber music with Wolfgang Sawallisch on his first chamber music concert as M.D., and now with Christoph Eschenbach, with whom I played principal cello as a student in the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival, Germany. I moved to Europe for a 6-month sabbatical from September 2005 to March 2006, during which time I played many recitals as well as a few solo appearances with orchestras and some master classes.
Register for Free to view all details!
Yearbooks
Reunions
Photos