David Bell

Clarinet | Baileys Harbor, WI

David Bell has had a career in teaching spanning over 40 years. He retired in June, 2023 as Professor of Clarinet at Lawrence University Conservatory of Music having taught there for almost 15 years. Before coming to Lawrence, he held faculty positions at the Oberlin Conservatory, Baldwin-Wallace University, the University of Akron, West Virginia University, and Western Illinois University. His former students perform with major orchestras and chamber ensembles around the world, while others hold appointments at colleges, universities, and secondary schools both in the United States and abroad. 

Currently, David is Principal Clarinet of the Weidner Philharmonic, and performs with the Fox Valley Symphony. He has held Principal chairs with the Ohio Chamber Orchestra, Cleveland Opera, Cleveland Ballet Orchestra, and Akron Symphony Orchestra, and recently retired from the Peninsula Music Festival Orchestra after 41 seasons. He continues to be a frequent performer, guest teacher and clinician nationally and internationally. 

David holds degrees from Oberlin Conservatory and Northwestern University. He has performed with the Cleveland Orchestra, the Chicago Symphony, and the Milwaukee and Baltimore Symphonies. He has toured internationally with the Chicago Sinfonietta and the Solaris Wind Quintet, and has traveled as far as Beijing, China to perform and teach.