Maria Wildhaber

Bulgarian – born bassoonist Maria Wildhaber is an avid chamber musician who has collaborated with acclaimed artists such as Pierre Boulez, Gustavo Dudamel, Julian Rachlin, Joshua Bell, Angela Hewitt among others.

She has also performed at the Luzern Festival, Verbier Festival Chamber Orchestra, Sarasota and Norfolk Chamber Music Festivals, Salome Chamber Orchestra in New York City and Etchings: Contemporary Music Festival in France, where she acted as the Executive Director and Principal Bassoonist.

In 2010 she released her debut CD ‘Song to my Love’ on MSR Classics. The recording features Bulgarian Folk Songs and Dances that she arranged for Solo Bassoon and Piano. It was praised as “very impressive and highly recommended” by the Baker & Taylor CD Hotlist, and ” a fantastic release…” by Fanfare Magazine.

In 2014 she released her second CD “Eastern Discoveries”, featuring never before recorded pieces for bassoon and piano by Eastern European composers Boris Papandopulo, Benzion Eliezer Tedeusz Baird in addition to her own bassoon duet arrangements of Bulgarian folk songs.

Maria Wildhaber holds a Bachelor of Music from The University of Arizona, a Master of Music from Yale University and a Doctor of Musical Arts from State University of New York at Stony Brook. Her teachers include William Dietz, Stephen Maxym and Frank Morelli. Prior to her move to Switzerland, she was a member of the Chamber Orchestra of New York. Currently, she is a member of the Schweizer Oktett and the founder and artistic director of Talis Festival and Academy. Wildhaber is a Moosmann artist and plays on a custom-built 222 Model.