Duane Botterbusch is a bassist, music educator and orchestra conductor. He is a member of both the Harrisburg and York Symphony Orchestras and is principal bassist of the The Metta Ensemble, Shippensburg Festival Orchestra, the Pennsylvania Regional Ballet Orchestra and the Gettysburg Chamber Orchestra. Mr. Botterbusch, retired from public school teaching, taught secondary school strings and served as the Music Department Chair for the Gettysburg Area School District. His orchestras earned excellent competition ratings in Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, Toronto, Canada and the Bahamas. The former conductor of the Gettysburg College Orchestra, Mr. Botterbusch is an Adjunct Assistant Professor of Music at Gettysburg College where he teaches studio double bass and string methods classes as well as leading the double bass ensemble. At Messiah College Mr. Botterbusch is Adjunct Instructor of Double Bass. His teaching assignment is double bass studio instruction. Also at Messiah College, he is bass instructor and junior high orchestra director at the annual string orchestra camp. Previous faculty appointments include double bass instruction at Shepherd University, Lebanon Valley College and York College of Pennsylvania. He has been a guest conductor throughout Pennsylvania and Maryland. Mr. Botterbusch earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Music Education from Mansfield University and Master of Music Degree from West Chester University. Private double bass study included work at Ithaca College with Henry Neubert and Barry Green at the University of Cincinnati. In 1997 Mr. Botterbusch was chosen Outstanding Studio Teacher of the Year by the Pennsylvania/Delaware chapter of the American String Teacher’s Association. In 2005 he was awarded the Outstanding Orchestra Director of the Year award by the same organization. District 7 PMEA honored Botterbusch in 2010 with the The Rodney S. Miller Distinguished Service Award. A past president of the Adams County Pennsylvania Music Educator’s Association, Mr. Botterbusch holds membership in the American String Teacher’s Association and the International Society of Bassists.
Duane’s wife Karen is also a member of the Harrisburg Symphony Orchestra. Karen plays the flute and piccolo.
