Conrad Cornelison
Principal Bassoon | Detroit Symphony Orchestra
Bassoon Faculty | Wayne State University

Conrad Cornelison joined the Detroit Symphony Orchestra as Principal Bassoon in 2022 under the appointment of Music Director Jader Bignamini. He previously served as Principal Bassoon of the Jacksonville Symphony from 2017 to 2022 and has held positions with Houston Grand Opera, the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra, and the Symphony of Southeast Texas. He has also appeared as a guest musician with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, Houston Symphony, Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, Houston Ballet, and San Antonio Symphony, among others.

As a chamber musician, Conrad performs regularly throughout metro Detroit. He is a core member of Detroit Chamber Winds & Strings and has appeared with the Chamber Soloists of Detroit. He has also performed on numerous occasions with the San Marco Chamber Music Society and the Saint Augustine Music Festival. During the summer, he regularly performs at Festival Mozaic, a chamber music and orchestral festival in San Luis Obispo, California, under the direction of Scott Yoo. Cornelison has appeared on the PBS Great Performances series “Now Hear This,” and many of his performances with the Jacksonville Symphony and Festival Mozaic have been broadcast nationally on NPR’s Performance Today. Many of his performances with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra are also available through the DSO’s livestream archive, and he has recorded with the orchestra for PENTATONE Records.

In addition to his performing career, Conrad has served on the bassoon faculty of Wayne State University since 2024 and previously served on the faculty of the University of North Florida. He also regularly teaches at the Bassoon Intensive programs at Interlochen Center for the Arts and has presented masterclasses at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, Oberlin College and Conservatory, the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, Michigan State University, Western Michigan University, Oakland University, the University of Florida, the University of Central Florida, the University of Miami's Frost School of Music, the University of Houston, Sam Houston State University, the University of Memphis, and other institutions. In 2026, he founded the Detroit Bassoon Seminar, an educational initiative that brings together students, professionals, and leading teachers for an accessible program of masterclasses, performances, reed-making, and discussions centered on the study and performance of the bassoon.

He is also the co-owner and operator of LC Double Reeds, a tool and supply company for double-reed musicians that has been in business since 2017 and whose products are used worldwide.

Conrad holds a Bachelor of Music degree from The Juilliard School and a Master of Music degree from Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, where he studied with Patricia Rogers and Benjamin Kamins, respectively. He is also a proud alumnus of the Interlochen Arts Academy, where he studied with Eric Stomberg, and began his bassoon studies with Matthew Schuler and Dan Duncan.

Mr. Cornelison lives in Troy, Michigan, with his wife, oboist Xiaodi Liu, and their daughter, Theia.