Joshua Rubin, clarinet

Joshua Rubin is a founding clarinetist and the co-artistic director of the International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE), where he oversees the creative direction of more than 60 concerts per season in the United States and abroad. As a clarinetist, the New York Times has praised him as “incapable of playing an inexpressive note.”

Rubin has worked closely with many of the prominent composers of our time, including George Crumb, David Lang, John Adams, George Lewis, Philippe Hurel, Kaija Saariaho, John Zorn, Magnus Lindberg, Steve Lehman, Nathan Davis, Tyshawn Sorey, and Mario Davidovsky. His interest in electronic music throughout his career has led him to work on making these technologies easier to use for both composers and performers. Rubin can be heard on recordings from the Nonesuch, Kairos, New Focus, Mode, Cedille, Naxos, Bridge, New Amsterdam, and Tzadik labels. His album There Never is No Light, available on ICE’s Tundra label, highlights music that uses technology to capture the human engagement of the performer and the listener.
In the past season he has been featured as a soloist with the Seattle Symphony (under Ludovic Morlot) and at the Mostly Mozart Festival at Lincoln Center; in engagements with the Nagoya Philharmonic Orchestra and the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra; and has given solo performances of new music in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, São Paulo, Rome, and Berlin.
He received degrees in biology and clarinet from Oberlin College and Conservatory, and his master’s degree from the Mannes College of Music. His clarinet studies were mentored by Lawrence McDonald, Mark Nuccio, and Yehuda Gilad.