Alexander Bickard

Long Island native Alexander Bickard became Assistant Principal Bass of the New Jersey Symphony in 2019. Additionally, Bickard serves as Principal Bass of Santa Fe Opera and Opera Philadelphia, and performs regularly with the Metropolitan Opera, New York Philharmonic, New York City Ballet, and Philadelphia Orchestra. Bickard has collaborated with the Ariel and Fine Arts Quartets, including studio recordings on the Naxos label. As Principal Bass of the International Sejong Soloists, Bickard has participated in international tours spanning three continents. Bickard has also appeared as guest Principal Bass of The Knights, including at their summer concert at the Naumburg Bandshell in Central Park, New York, broadcasted live on WQXR.

At 19, Bickard won the Juilliard double bass concerto competition, resulting in his solo debut at Lincoln Center. Festival appearances include the Spoleto, Tanglewood, Ravinia, Pacific and Castleton festivals, as well as Principal Bass at the New York String Orchestra Seminar’s 50th Anniversary. As an educator, Bickard has guest taught at Juilliard Pre-College and has been double bass faculty at Luzerne Music Center and the New Jersey Symphony Youth Orchestra. Earning both bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Juilliard, Bickard was a recipient of the Kovner Fellowship and studied with Eugene Levinson and Timothy Cobb.

Additional engagements include the house band of the Telluride Jazz Festival, on screen appearances in Netflix’s Maestro, and soundtrack recordings for Disney+.