Bee Ungar bassoon
Bassoonist Bee Ungar has built a versatile career across the United States and abroad. Their playing has been described as “powerful, full-bodied, and gorgeous” by The Calgary Herald, noted for its “ease and elasticity” by The Palm Beach Daily, and praised for its “warm tone and lively style” by the South Florida Classical Review.
Bee is an alumnus of the New World Symphony and recently served as Acting Associate Principal Bassoon of the Phoenix Symphony during the 2022–23 and 2023–24 seasons. Bee has also appeared with the National Symphony Orchestra, New Jersey Symphony, Richmond Symphony, Charlotte Symphony, Knoxville Symphony, and the Florida Orchestra. They have performed under the batons of Michael Tilson Thomas, Kurt Masur, Marin Alsop, Leonard Slatkin, and Stephane Deneve, and with soloists including Itzhak Perlman, Yuja Wang, Gil Shaham, Emmanuel Ax, Augustin Hadelich, and Tabea Zimmermann.
Bee made their solo debut as with the Manhattan School of Music Chamber Sinfonia as winner of the 2014 Eisenberg-Fried concerto competition, and later performed as soloist with the Royal Conservatory Orchestra as winner of the 2017 RCM concerto competition. At the New World Symphony, they appeared as soloist in Haydn’s Sinfonia Concertante in 2019. Since 2022, Bee has held summer residency at the Rockport Chamber Music Festival, performing alongside members of the New York Philharmonic and the Boston, Toronto, and Houston Symphonies. Previous summer festival appearances have included the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, Youth Orchestra of the Americas, Banff Opera Theatre, Sarasota Music Festival, and the National Orchestral Institute.
Bee holds a B.M. and P.S.D. from the Manhattan School of Music and an A.D. from the Glenn Gould School of the Royal Conservatory of Music, where they were supported by the Temerty Family Fellowship. Their primary teachers were Frank Morelli and Kim Laskowski.
Bee is currently based in Washington, D.C., where they balance an active performing schedule with work in political communications, nonprofit fundraising, and their most important job: being a full-time parent to their beautiful 12 year old cat, Mary.
Bee is an alumnus of the New World Symphony and recently served as Acting Associate Principal Bassoon of the Phoenix Symphony during the 2022–23 and 2023–24 seasons. Bee has also appeared with the National Symphony Orchestra, New Jersey Symphony, Richmond Symphony, Charlotte Symphony, Knoxville Symphony, and the Florida Orchestra. They have performed under the batons of Michael Tilson Thomas, Kurt Masur, Marin Alsop, Leonard Slatkin, and Stephane Deneve, and with soloists including Itzhak Perlman, Yuja Wang, Gil Shaham, Emmanuel Ax, Augustin Hadelich, and Tabea Zimmermann.
Bee made their solo debut as with the Manhattan School of Music Chamber Sinfonia as winner of the 2014 Eisenberg-Fried concerto competition, and later performed as soloist with the Royal Conservatory Orchestra as winner of the 2017 RCM concerto competition. At the New World Symphony, they appeared as soloist in Haydn’s Sinfonia Concertante in 2019. Since 2022, Bee has held summer residency at the Rockport Chamber Music Festival, performing alongside members of the New York Philharmonic and the Boston, Toronto, and Houston Symphonies. Previous summer festival appearances have included the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, Youth Orchestra of the Americas, Banff Opera Theatre, Sarasota Music Festival, and the National Orchestral Institute.
Bee holds a B.M. and P.S.D. from the Manhattan School of Music and an A.D. from the Glenn Gould School of the Royal Conservatory of Music, where they were supported by the Temerty Family Fellowship. Their primary teachers were Frank Morelli and Kim Laskowski.
Bee is currently based in Washington, D.C., where they balance an active performing schedule with work in political communications, nonprofit fundraising, and their most important job: being a full-time parent to their beautiful 12 year old cat, Mary.