Som Howie
Associate Principal Clarinet
Som Howie joined WASO in 2024.
Before joining WASO, Som held the position of solo Clarinettist at the Danish Chamber Players. Originally from Sydney, Som began playing clarinet at the age of 11 with Mark Walton until he started his bachelor's degree at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. During his time in Sydney, Som studied with Cathy McCorkill, and Sue Newsome and completed his final years with Frank Celata. After moving to Europe in 2014, Som completed a Masters Degree with Hermann Stefánsson and Andreas Sundén at the Royal College of Music in Stockholm.
As an orchestral musician, Som has performed with major orchestras around the world including; Copenhagen Philharmonic, The Swedish Radio Symphony, Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, Swedish Chamber Orchestra, Royal Swedish Opera, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Malaysian Philharmonic, Sydney Symphony, Australian Opera and Ballet, and the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra. Som has toured to Edinburgh with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra and to India with the Australian World Orchestra.
In 2016, Som was selected for the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra Academy. Previous to this, Som has held academy positions with the Sydney Symphony, and London Philharmonic Orchestra’s Future Firsts Scheme. Som has attended masterclasses with; Sabine Meyer, Andrew Marriner, Martin Fröst, and Yehuda Gilad.
As a soloist, Som has performed concertos with the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, West Australian Symphony Orchestra, Willoughby Symphony Orchestra, the Southbank Sinfonia in the UK, and, in 2016, he recorded English composer Geoffrey Hanson’s Clarinet Concerto with the London Mozart Players.
In 2015, Som was a prize winner for the Royal Overseas League (ROSL) Annual Competition, and as a result toured with his trio, the Dolmen Ensemble on behalf of ROSL to; Malta, Scotland, and New Zealand. In the same year, Som recorded his first solo album with his Father, David Howie. The album is titled ‘Premiere Rhapsody’ and was produced by UK based record label, Cala Records. Som is a Buffet Crampon Artist and a scholar of the Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust.
In his spare time Som loves spending time at the beach, playing cricket and soccer, and looking for all the best coffee spots.