Afendi Yusuf
Core Faculty, The Cleveland Orchestra, Professor of Clarinet, Cleveland Institute of Music
Afendi Yusuf was recently appointed Principal Clarinet of The Cleveland Orchestra. He has appeared as guest principal with several North American orchestras, including the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, Canadian Opera Company, and the Toronto and Cincinnati symphony orchestras. He has also performed with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Minnesota Orchestra, Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony. In addition to serving on the faculties of the Cleveland Institute of Music and Kent Blossom Music Festival, Mr. Yusuf has presented masterclasses at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, University of Colorado Boulder College of Music, and Baldwin Wallace University Conservatory of Music.
A winner of numerous competitions, Mr. Yusuf has made solo appearances with the Colburn Orchestra, the Royal Conservatory Orchestra, and the Guelph Symphony Orchestra, among others. Mr. Yusuf is a grant recipient from the Canada Council for the Arts, and received the Vincent Wilkinson Foundation Fellowship from the Aspen Music Festival and School. He is an alumnus of the National Youth Orchestra of Canada, Brott Music Festival, the National Arts Centre’s Young Artists Program, and is a recent participant of the Marlboro Music Festival.
Mr. Yusuf holds a Bachelor of Arts from Wilfrid Laurier University, an Artist Diploma from The Glenn Gould School, as well as a Master of Music degree and Professional Studies Certificate from the Colburn School’s Conservatory of Music. His principal instructors include Yehuda Gilad, Joaquin Valdepeñas, Ross Edwards, and Elaine Sweeney.