// JOHN WILLIAM BRINK
is a composer, conductor, and trombonist based in Pittsburgh, PA. He draws inspiration for his compositions from artworks, natural scenery, and the human condition to make his music as colorful as possible. An advocate for new music, John has performed in multiple new music concerts as a choral vocalist, trombonist, and conductor.
As a composer, John has had numerous compositions performed by collegiate and professional level musicians. He has had a multiplicity of pieces premiered by students from Carnegie Mellon University School of Music, as well as members of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. Currently in his final year of undergraduate study, John will have a piece premiered by the Carnegie Mellon Philharmonic in 2026.
As a conductor, John is experienced in a multiplicity of settings including orchestras, wind ensembles, musical pit orchestras, and opera orchestras. John has been appointed Assistant Conductor of the Carnegie Mellon Philharmonic for their 2025/26 season.
Photo by Rebecca Devereaux
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EVENTS
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CONDUCTING RECITAL
October 10, 2025 | 5pm
Kresge Theatre, Pittsburgh, PA
John William Brink alongside violist and conductor, Billy Holtz, will be hosting a conducting recital featuring works by Claude Debussy, Aaron Copland, and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky.
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JIHYUN BAIG - RECITAL
October 31, 2025 | 8pm
Kresge Theatre, Pittsburgh, PA
In vibrant vocalist Jihyun Baig's graduate recital, John conducts a performance of John Harbison's Mirabai Songs.
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CARNEGIE MELLON PHILHARMONIC - ASSISTANT CONDUCTOR
November 2, 2025 | 7:30pm
Carnegie Music Hall, Oakland, Pittsburgh, PA
John will serve as assistant conductor for the Carnegie Mellon Philharmonic and Interim Director of Orchestral Studies, Daniel Nesta Curtis, in a program featuring works by Ravel, Beethoven, and CMU Professor of Composition, Nancy Galbraith.
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CARNEGIE MELLON PHILHARMONIC - ASSISTANT CONDUCTOR
December 4, 2025 | 12pm
College of Fine Arts, Pittsburgh, PA
John will serve as assistant conductor for the Carnegie Mellon Philharmonic and Interim Director of Orchestral Studies, Daniel Nesta Curtis, in a concert in the historic College of Fine Arts in collaboration with the CMU Chorus, directed by Professor Thomas W. Douglas.
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CARNEGIE MELLON PHILHARMONIC - ASSISTANT CONDUCTOR
December 5, 2025 | 12pm
Carnegie Music Hall, Oakland, Pittsburgh, PA
John will serve as assistant conductor for the Carnegie Mellon Philharmonic and Interim Director of Orchestral Studies, Daniel Nesta Curtis, in a concert in collaboration with the CMU Chorus, directed by Professor Thomas W. Douglas in historic Carnegie Music Hall in Oakland.
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CARNEGIE MELLON PHILHARMONIC
February 27, 2026 | 8pm
Carnegie Music Hall, Oakland, Pittsburgh, PA
In the final year of undergraduate and graduate studies in music composition at the Carnegie Mellon University School of Music, students compose original pieces for a large ensemble. John William Brink will have an orchestral piece premiered by the Carnegie Mellon Philharmonic under the baton of Daniel Nesta Curtis in an all new-music concert at the historic Carnegie Music Hall, Oakland, former home to the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra.
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CARNEGIE MELLON PHILHARMONIC - ASSISTANT CONDUCTOR
April 26, 2026 | 8pm
Carnegie Music Hall, Oakland, Pittsburgh, PA
John will serve as assistant conductor for the Carnegie Mellon Philharmonic and Interim Director of Orchestral Studies, Daniel Nesta Curtis, in a program featuring works by John Adams, Barbara York, and Dmitri Shostakovich.