Greg Milliren, the Minnesota Orchestra’s associate principal flutist since 2009, has performed as guest principal flute with the Dallas Symphony, the Detroit Symphony, the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Seattle Symphony. Additionally, he has appeared with the major orchestras of Chicago, Boston, San Francisco, National, Colorado and Jacksonville.

Milliren is an experienced chamber musician, having appeared on the Orchestra’s chamber music series many times and has performed with various chamber music series in venues across the Twin Cities and the U.S.

Dynamic leader of the Minnesota Orchestra’s cello section since 1991, prize-winning cellist Anthony Ross has appeared as soloist many times with the Orchestra, performing all the standard cello concertos under Osmo Vänskä, Edo de Waart and Eiji Oue. Equally passionate about new music, he has given powerful performances of Michael Daugherty’s Tales of Hemingway, James MacMillan’s Cello Concerto, Paul Moravec’s Montserrat, and he and his wife, Beth Rapier, have championed David Ott’s Concerto for Two Cellos since 1993. Prior to assuming the principal role in Minnesota, Ross performed for four years as principal cello of the Rochester Philharmonic under David Zinman.

Ross’ compelling interpretations have won wide acclaim from Moscow to Kalamazoo, and Dallas to Duluth. As concerto soloist, he has played with the Moscow State Orchestra, the Louisville Orchestra, the Dallas Symphony, the Rochester Philharmonic, the South Dakota Symphony and many other Midwest regional orchestras. Ross’ recordings include Leonard Bernstein’s Three Meditations from the Mass, the George Lloyd Cello Concerto with the Albany Symphony and the Sonatas of Rachmaninoff and Elliott Carter.

Brian Mount, a Minnesota Orchestra member since 1997, was named principal percussion in 1999. He had previously served as principal percussion of the Honolulu Symphony, a post he held for four years. He has performed with many additional major orchestras, including the Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, Houston, Pittsburgh and San Antonio symphony orchestras and the Los Angeles and New York Philharmonic Orchestras. He also plays guitar and sings with The M.O.B. (Minnesota Orchestra Band) and Spoonbridge.

Mount graduated from Indiana University, studied further at the Tanglewood Music Festival and earned a master’s degree from Temple University in Philadelphia.

Jason Arkis joined the Minnesota Orchestra in 1992 as associate principal timpani and associate principal percussion, after a seven-year tenure as principal percussion of the Honolulu Symphony Orchestra. From October 2015 through December 2018 he served as acting principal timpani. Along with his percussion section colleagues, in May 2008 he was featured in performances of Carmen Suite, an orchestration by Shchedrin of themes from Bizet’s Carmen. He also performed the world premiere of Michael Daugherty's Lounge Lizards for Two Pianos and Percussion, a Minnesota Orchestra commission, in 1994 and Bartók's Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion in 1998. 

In addition to playing in chamber ensembles at several Sommerfest concerts, Arkis has often been a member of Friends of the Minnesota Orchestra Kinder Konzert ensembles. 

Erich Rieppel was named principal timpani of the Minnesota Orchestra in the fall of 2018. Prior to that, he held the same title at New World Symphony under Michael Tilson Thomas in Miami Beach, Florida. Rieppel has performed as principal timpanist with the Seoul Philharmonic, St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, Seattle Symphony, Detroit Symphony and New Jersey Symphony. He has held the posts of associate timpanist of the Chicago Civic Orchestra, substitute timpanist with the Louisville Orchestra and Charleston Symphony, and principal timpanist of the Terre Haute Symphony and the Columbus Indiana Philharmonic. Since 2013, he has played timpani and percussion with the Lakes Area Music Festival in northern Minnesota.

A graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, Matthew Frischman joined the Minnesota Orchestra in 1998. He served as Acting Co-Principal bass from 2012-15. Prior to his appointment here, he held positions in the New World Symphony and the Virginia Symphony. He has also performed extensively with the Chicago Symphony, the National Symphony, the Milwaukee Symphony and the New York Philharmonic.

In addition to his work with the Minnesota Orchestra, he has performed at the Bravo Vail festival with the New York Philharmonic, the Oregon Bach Festival and the Strings Music Festival in Steamboat Springs, Colorado.

Since joining the Minnesota Orchestra in 1990, Principal Flute Adam Kuenzel has regularly appeared as soloist at Orchestra Hall. In 2007 he gave the world premiere of Stanislaw Skrowaczewski’s Fantasies for Flute and Orchestra, Il Piffero della Notte, with the composer conducting. In 2009 he performed Bernstein’s Halil, earning acclaim from The New York Times and MusicalAmerica.com. He premiered Manuel Sosa’s Eloquentia: Espacio para Flauta y Orquesta in 2010; the work, which was written for Kuenzel, garnered the composer a John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship in 2011. In 2017 he was selected to premiere Laura Schwendinger's Aurora for flute and piano; commissioned by the National Flute Association for its annual convention, which was held in Minneapolis. He was most recently featured as a soloist in May 2022 on Carl Nielsen's Flute Concerto.

Kuenzel has been a guest artist with the Aspen Music Festival, Grand Teton Music Festival, Spoleto Festival, St. Bart’s Music Festival in the French West Indies and Oregon Bach Festival. He has also appeared as guest principal flute with the Boston, Chicago and Dallas symphony orchestras, and the Seattle Opera. He performs regularly with the Minnesota Bach Ensemble and is on the faculty of the Cuban American Youth Orchestra.

Gregory T. Williams joined the Minnesota Orchestra in 2006 as associate principal clarinet and E-flat clarinet, and he made his first solo appearances with the ensemble in 2007, performing Debussy’s Première rapsodie. In 2014 he was named acting principal clarinet. Williams has made numerous appearances in the Orchestra's chamber music series since joining the ensemble, including notable performances of Mozart’s Piano Quintet and Gran Partita Serenade, Messiaen’s Quartet for the End of Time, the Schoenberg Wind Quintet and Villa-Lobos’ Trio for Oboe, Clarinet and Bassoon.

Texas native J. Christopher Marshall, a member of the Minnesota Orchestra since 1999, earned his master’s degree in bassoon performance at the New England Conservatory of Music. He holds two undergraduate degrees from Northwestern University: one in bassoon performance and the other in mechanical engineering. Before joining the Minnesota Orchestra, Marshall was a member of Florida’s New World Symphony.

Marshall has appeared as a soloist with the Minnesota Orchestra in performances of Dietter’s Concerto for Two Bassoons in 2008, reprising the work in subsequent seasons. An active chamber musician, he also performs regularly on the Minnesota Orchestra’s Chamber Music series offerings. He has performed as a soloist with the Bloomington and Mankato symphonies. He has appeared with the Boston Symphony and Pops, the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the National Symphony, and has participated in numerous music festivals, including Tanglewood, Pacific and Spoleto. As a clinician, he has led master classes and sectionals for many universities as well as community and youth orchestras.

Ben Odhner joined the Minnesota Orchestra in 2017, and won an audition to move to the first violin section in 2022. He previously held the position of fixed 4th chair in the first violin section of the Colorado Symphony. He has appeared as a soloist with the Cleveland Institute of Music Orchestra, Ashland Symphony, Warminster Symphony Orchestra and other ensembles. In 2008 and 2009, he was selected to participate in the New York String Orchestra Seminar at Carnegie Hall. A fellowship recipient at the Aspen Music Festival and School, he has been concertmaster of the Aspen Sinfonia and the Aspen Concert Orchestra. He was also a member of the YouTube Symphony Orchestra, which performed at Carnegie Hall in April 2009 as a part of the first international classical music summit brought together through the internet.

Hanna Landrum joined the Minnesota Orchestra in June 2019, after previously holding the position of principal second violin with the Rochester Philharmonic. She has performed with numerous orchestras and music festivals across the country. She has held leadership positions with the Canton Symphony Orchestra, Youngstown Symphony and Firelands Symphony, and is a regular substitute with the Cleveland Orchestra. With a passion for contemporary music, she has participated in the premieres of many new American works, including collaborations with both visual arts and dance.

Violist Megan Tam joined the Minnesota Orchestra in 2003, and returned to Minneapolis in 2015 after a year with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra. She performs regularly on the Orchestra's chamber music series, and in the 2016-17 season, she played Mendelssohn's Second Viola Quintet and Prokofiev's First String Quartet with Orchestra colleagues.

Tam studied violin and viola at Toronto’s Royal Conservatory of Music. She completed undergraduate studies at the Cleveland Institute of Music, studying under Robert Vernon and receiving the Robert Vernon Prize in Viola. In 2002 she and fellow members of the Linden Quartet won the grand prize at the Coleman Chamber Music Competition.

Houston-born cellist Erik Wheeler began his musical studies with Diane Bonds at the age of five, and subsequently studied with Steve Laven, Lynn Harrell and Brinton Smith. He earned his undergraduate degree from Rice University, where his principal teacher was Desmond Hoebig, after which he spent a year at the Juilliard School with Richard Aaron. While at Rice, he performed Tchaikovsky’s Rococo Variations with the Shepherd School Chamber Orchestra as the winner of the school’s concerto competition, and served as principal cellist for the Shepherd School Symphony Orchestra.

Kristen Bruya joined the Minnesota Orchestra as principal bass in February 2015. Prior to this, she was the assistant principal bass of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and was also previously a member of the Nashville Symphony Orchestra. She received an undergraduate degree in music from the University of Michigan, did extended studies at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, received a master’s of music from Rice University and was a fellow in the New World Symphony in Miami Beach, Florida.