BM-trombone performance, University of Illinois; MM-trombone performance, Youngstown State University (OH) and the Catholic University of America (Washington, D.C.)
Now in his third decade at the University of Illinois, Elliot Chasanov was appointed Professor of Trombone with permanent tenure in 1991. Prior to coming to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Professor Chasanov was principal trombonist and trombone soloist of the United States Air Force Band and Orchestra in Washington, D.C. (1981-1985) and professor of trombone and euphonium at Kent State University (1985-1991). Chasanov began his musical studies at an early age as a cellist, starting the trombone shortly thereafter. His teachers include Frank Crisafulli, Karl Fruh (cello), Robert Gray, Vern Kagarice, Edward Kleinhammer, Alan Kofsky, Frank Miller (cello), Renold Schilke, Richard Schmitt and Milt Stevens.
His students hold principal positions in the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Nashville Symphony Orchestra, and numerous other orchestras in the US and abroad. They are members of the United States Army Band in Washington DC as well as field bands throughout the armed forces. They freelance in Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, Washington, DC and other cities throughout the US and abroad. They teach at universities in Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Nebraska, North Carolina, Ohio, Texas, Virginia, Vermont, Wisconsin, Canada, and in the UK.
Chasanov has presented recitals in many of the world's most prestigious venues including The Royal Academy of Music in London, Warsaw's Frederic Chopin College of Music, the Haydn Room of the Esterhazy Palace in Eisenstadt Austria, Florianka in Krakow among many others. In 1985, at the invitation of the composer, he performed the world premiere of Frigyes Hidas’ Baroque Concerto for alto trombone and strings at the International Trombone Workshop. In review of his performance, The International Trombone Journal wrote: ”his sound might have been described as embroidered velvet-a dark tapestry, richly enhanced by brilliant reflecting surfaces…..The natural flow of the phrase directly confronted the perpetual dilemma of coupling a singing style with reacting control of movement." In 1989, at the invitation of Frank Tichelli, he premiered his Concerto for Trombone, duo pianos and percussion in San Antonio, TX. Mike Greenberg of The San Antonio Express-News wrote “in performance of this intense, virtuosic work… Trombonist Elliot Chasanov was a splendid soloist both technically and interpretively.”
He has served as an adjudicator on panels for competitions presented by the ITA, conservatories in Montreal, Warsaw, Bialystok and Krakow. Chasanov has presented master classes throughout the United States, Canada, England, and Europe. In Spring of 2014 he presented invited masterclasses at the Paris Conservatory, Conservatories of Ghent, Leuven and Brussels in Belgium and Fribourg, Switzerland. He also appeared as guest soloist and conductor with The Belgian Trombone Choir. In Poland, he was featured guest artist at the 2000 and 2009 Warsaw Trombone Festivals and Judge of the 2nd and 5th All-Poland Trombone Competition. Professor Chasanov hosted the 1997 International Trombone Festival at the University of Illinois and has served on its faculty four other times. Under his direction, the UI Trombone Choir was the 1993 winner of the ITA's Emory Remington International Trombone Choir Competition and has performed at the MidWest International Band and Orchestra Clinic, IMEA, Montreal Music Festival, Festival Launediere, and on numerous US tours. He served as trombone faculty at The International Music Festival at Duzniki Dzroj in Poland in the summers of 2000 and 2001. In late 2002, Professor Chasanov was a faculty artist at the Polish Brass Symposium and guest artist at the Warsaw Academy of Music. In 2006 and 2007 he taught at the Burgos Chamber Music Festival in Spain. In Summer 2010 he was featured trombonist at the First Metropolis Brass Symposium in Bournem Belgium.
In the United States, Professor Chasanov has performed with the Cleveland Orchestra, National Symphony Orchestra, Cleveland Ballet, Cleveland Opera, Milwaukee Symphony, Ohio Chamber Orchestra, Illinois Brass Quintet, and Metropolitan Brass Quintet. In addition to presenting solo recitals world-wide, he currently performs as principal trombone with the Champaign-Urbana Symphony and the Consortium Brass Quintet.
His many arrangements for trombone choir, brass choir, brass quintet, solo brass, and wind band are published by Cherry Classics in North America and Metropolis Music in Belgium as part of The Elliot Chasanov Brass Series. He designed two alto trombone mouthpieces for Schilke Music Products in Chicago which were introduced at Musikmesse Frankfurt in March 2014. He has been involved in instrument and mouthpiece design with brass makers including Bach, Conn, Greenhoe, Hammond, Kuehnl and Hoyer, Schilke, and Yamaha.
In August of 2017 he was appointed as an Artist-Clinician by Michael Rath Trombones, United Kingdom. On December 22, 2017, he presented a featured clinic at The Midwest Clinic in Chicago.
For more information about trombone study at Illinois and Professor Chasanov please visit these sites: