Joshua Pantoja has been the horn player with the Puerto Rico Symphony Orchestra since 2004 and is a professor of horn at the Puerto Rico Conservatory of Music. He also serves as a brass instructor for the Puerto Rico Youth Symphony Orchestra and as a substitute teacher at The Juilliard School’s High School in New York. Was recently a guest artist at the International Horn Symposium (IHS56) held at Colorado State University.

An active chamber musician and performs as a member of Camerata Caribe, the Jázzico Brass Quintet, the Café Corta’o Horn Quartet, and Pantojazz. In addition to being a performer, he is a composer and the author of several books on improvisation and horn technique, including *From Classical to Jazz*, *Ornamenting Your Improvisation*, *Chord Tone Arpeggios*, and *Basics and Colors – Horn Etudes*, the latter commissioned by Juilliard’s Music Advancement Program.

Pantoja has given master classes at institutions such as The Cleveland Institute of Music, the University of Alabama, the Manhattan School of Music, The Mannes School of Music, Bard College, and the University of Arizona, among many others. In 2023, he undertook an extensive European tour, teaching in Germany, Switzerland, and Italy, including visits to the Frankfurter Bläserchule, the Hochschule für Musik Hannover, the Hochschule für Musik Nürnberg, and the Musik-Kurzwochen in Arosa. He has also been invited to teach at universities in Colombia, Puerto Rico, and various other Latin American countries. Participated as a guest lecturer at festivals such as Isla Verde Bronces (Argentina) and the Clazz International Music Festival in Italy.

His musical studies began at age 12 at the Escuela Libre de Música in Caguas, Puerto Rico. Obtained his bachelor’s degree from The Juilliard School under the guidance of Jerome Ashby and his master’s degree from the Manhattan School of Music, where he also studied jazz and improvisation with Julito Alvarado.

As an orchestral horn player, he is a founding member of The Orchestra of the Americas, with which he has toured throughout the Americas, Europe, and the United States. Have performed with ensembles such as the NDR Radio Philharmonic Orchestra of Hanover, the National Symphony Orchestra of Colombia, the Eafit Symphony Orchestra, the National Symphony Orchestra of the Dominican Republic, the International Chamber Orchestra of Puerto Rico, the New York Opera Society, and the Manhattan Virtuosi, among others. Also, he has performed at major events such as the Casals Festival, the International Festival of Sacred Music and Art at the Vatican, the World Economic Forum at Carnegie Hall, and the Paquito D’Rivera 50th Anniversary All Stars Concert.

On a personal note, Joshua enjoys spending his summers in Colombia and is passionate about coffee, birds, and the beach.