Two SFCM graduates will be taking their new seats in symphonies this season—one of them not far from where he was a student a few years ago.

Brooks Fisher has won the second oboe position with the San Francisco Symphony (SFS). “To have the San Francisco Symphony one block away from SFCM is such a gift,” Fisher said. “Every day I go to work, I am in awe of the artistry all around me.” Fisher had previously been a substitute with the orchestra. 

2018 PSC grad Tim Daniels will be joining the Pittsburgh Symphony for its upcoming season as principal English horn. The same year he graduated, Daniels joined the Kansas City Symphony, heading to the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra in 2021. 

Fisher graduated from SFCM in 2020, where he studied with Eugene Izotov. "I am immensely proud of Brooks and our journey together,” Izotov said. “His talent, determination, and unwavering love of music have shaped his artistic personality and made him both a tough competitor and a sensitive musician." Izotov also congratulated Daniels on Instagram, writing, “Many congratulations to Tim Daniels on winning the audition for the English horn with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra! I am immensely proud of you, and it’s and it’s been a great joy for me to be a part of your musical journey.”

Longtime SFCM faculty member Izotov has also been Principal Oboe of the SFS since 2015, meaning Fisher will now be playing alongside his former teacher. “It's always a great joy when my students win jobs, but it's especially meaningful to welcome him into the oboe section of the San Francisco Symphony,” Izotov continued. “I look forward to all our musical journeys together, now as partners, sharing the stage together in this great orchestra."

SFCM’s Woodwind Department is made up of a renowned faculty and challenges and inspires the next generation of great wind players. As a student of bassoon, clarinet, flute, and oboe, students explore orchestra and chamber repertoire, contemporary music, and canon literature—all while honing craft and preparing for a professional career. Recent woodwinds successes include grads joining the New World Symphony, as well as the Spokane and North Carolina symphonies.

As far as advice for recurrent students, Fisher calls the audition process “a marathon not a sprint,” adding that “for most of us, winning a job doesn’t happen overnight.” Fisher advises students to “develop your own process through trial and error, and truly honest reflection.” 

 “If you planned well and executed that plan to the best of your ability, believe in that,” Fisher concluded. “If you don’t win, you simply adjust your plan for next time. Small improvements over time yield incredible results.”

Learn more about studying Woodwinds at SFCM.