Internationally renowned as a marimba virtuoso, chamber and symphonic percussionist, recording artist, and educator, William Moersch has appeared as soloist with orchestras and in recital throughout North and South America, Europe, the Far East, and Australia. A regularly featured artist at international percussion festivals, Mr. Moersch is perhaps best known for his solo compact disc, The Modern Marimba, and for commissioning over the past thirty years much of the prominent modern repertoire for solo marimba. In addition, he was the first marimbist ever to receive a National Endowment for the Arts Solo Recitalist Fellowship and has also been honored by NEA Consortium Commissioning and Recording grants. Mr. Moersch has performed with the American Symphony, Metropolitan Opera, New Jersey Symphony, New York City Opera, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, as a featured soloist ithe New York Shakespeare Festival’s Broadway production of The Pirates of Penzance, and on numerous motion picture soundtracks. Currently, he is Associate Professor of Percussion at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Principal Timpanist of Sinfonia da Camera and the Champaign-Urbana Symphony Orchestra, Artistic Director of New Music Marimba, and an Artist Endorser for Pearl / Adams Percussion, SABIAN cymbals, and Innovative Percussion mallets.

Q & A

BORN IN: Detroit, MI

LIVES IN: Champaign, IL

DRUMMING SINCE: 1965

CURRENT BAND/PROJECT(S): Solo marimbist / percussionist; Principal Timpanist, Sinfonia da Camera & Champaign-Urbana Symphony

BIGGEST INFLUENCE(S): Charles Owen, Keiko Abe, Cloyd Duff

FAVORITE ALBUM YOU PLAYED ON: The Modern Marimba

FAVORITE ALBUM YOU DIDN’T PLAY ON: Pablo Ziegler Quartet “Tango meets Jazz: Stefon Harris”

CAREER HIGHLIGHT: Soloist, Libby Larsen: After Hampton (Concerto for Marimba and Orchestra), PASIC 1992

FAVORITE SABIAN CYMBAL: HH Germanic Brilliant