Originally from Australia, oboist James Button made his solo debut with the Melbourne Symphony at the age of 17. Principal oboist of the Nashville Symphony since 2011, he was previously a member of the Seoul Philharmonic and the New World Symphony. In 2015 he served as guest principal with the Chicago Symphony under Riccardo Muti.  

 

James has performed at the Verbier, Edinburgh, and Tanglewood Music Festivals, as well as Italy’s Spoleto Festival dei Duo Mondi and the Granada Festival of Music and Dance. In 2006, he performed the Beethoven Quintet for Piano and Winds with James Levine at the Verbier Festival. He attended Temple University and The Juilliard School, where his teachers were Jonathan Blumenfeld and Eugene Izotov, respectively. Other teachers include John Mack, John de Lancie, Joseph Turner, and Ian Falloon.

 

James spends his summers in Santa Fe, N.M., performing as a member of the Santa Fe Opera Orchestra.