Ben Buergel

Biography

A native of Saint Paul, MN, Ben started studying oboe at the age of 9. He earned his Doctor of Musical Arts and Master of Music degrees from Michigan State University where he also performed with several orchestras around Michigan and taught talented middle and high school students. He earned his Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Denver. He has attended the Chautauqua and Bay View music festivals. His teachers include Jan Eberle, Lisa Martin, and Laura Nortwen. As an academic, Ben incorporated performing electro-acoustic music in his pedagogy and has composed a set of etudes for oboe and liveloops. He has performed several recitals of electro-acoustic music including a premier of a new work by Steven Gorbos. He also has an article published in The Double Reed: Why Are We Still Using This Edition? A Critique of Baerenreiter’s Edition of Telemann’s Fantasy for Flute #11. After a 1-year faculty position at Auburn University in 2018, Ben refocused his career and started software engineering full-time, though music is still very much a part of his life. He moved to Chicago in 2022 where he works for PatientPoint, and he quickly connected with the Lake Shore Symphony Orchestra where he has played Principal Oboe for the past 3 seasons. Besides the oboe, he also dabbles with the mandolin and the electric bass.