#139 | David Singer | From Cab Driver to Carnegie Hall

Clarinettist David Singer on humble roots, 36 years with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, and playing at the White House. David Singer has had an exceptional musical career playing for decades on world-class stages, but his life's story is one of humble roots, grit and determination, and at one time, he had three jobs to provide for his family. David Singer has performed many times in Carnegie Hall including a chamber music performance, a trio, with the iconic violinist Yehudi Menuhin, and pianist Gyorgy Sandor. He was a principal member and soloist with the Grammy Award-winning Orpheus Chamber Orchestra for 36 years and is featured on many of the group's 70 CDs on Deutsche Grammophon. He also played at the White House in separate performances for Presidents Carter and Clinton. His story-filled book, "From Cab Driver to Carnegie Hall", is more than a musician's memoir; it is an inspiring narrative that resonates with anyone who has faced life's challenges head-on. An ode to the power of never giving up and giving oneself every chance to succeed. David shares in his book stories of performing with: Yehudi Menuhin, Yo-Yo Ma, Itzhak Perlman, Rudolf Serkin, Andre Previn, actress Stockard Channing, Pablo Casals, Branford Marsalis and more. To learn more about David: https://singerclarinet.com Chapters 0:00 Welcome David Singer 2:38 The GI Bill and a house in Canoga Park 5:03 Living in many places 7:36 How his parents met 10:02 A school talent show 12:36 A party at the top of Carnegie Hall 15:07 History in the green room 17:32 Basketball from age seven 20:06 Travelling Europe at 12 22:31 Youth leagues 25:05 Parents who did not push 27:34 A scholarship to Curtis at 18 30:00 Getting into an elite school 32:36 Playing with a legendary pianist 35:00 Five-year contracts that launched a career 37:33 The freedom of chamber music 40:00 Revolutions in Bolivia and a hotel in Tel Aviv 42:30 A Hollywood party 45:05 Ryan's summer job and planning China 47:32 The road to Xi'an, Dunhuang and Pakistan 50:04 A Chinese police station 52:33 A play with a clarinettist on stage 55:07 A glowing review in Connecticut 57:34 Recast before New York 1:00:00 Selling welding rods 1:02:30 The wrong polarity 1:05:05 Artists in Vienna 1:07:31 Still driving a cab 1:10:03 Not bankrupting yourself in LA or New York 1:12:34 A remastered recording with Rudolf Serkin 1:15:01 How YouTube pays 1:17:32 Not wanting to sound like everyone else 1:20:00 Full professor without a bachelor's degree 1:22:35 Romance and careers in music 1:25:03 Indecent and the klezmer clarinet 1:27:35 Playing less, doing other things 1:30:02 Choosing which stories to tell 1:32:32 A tiring but good run 1:35:06 The most dangerous part of a climb 1:37:35 A lockdown book project 1:40:00 Agents and podcasts 1:42:30 Waiting for a cab The Ryan Pyle Podcast is ad-free by choice. If you enjoy these conversations, you can buy me a coffee: https://buymeacoffee.com/ryanpyle Ryan's TV series are streaming around the world. Follow the Podcast X: https://x.com/RyanPylePodcast Facebook: https://facebook.com/ryanpylepodcast Follow Ryan Pyle YouTube: https://youtube.com/@ryanjpyle Instagram: https://instagram.com/ryanpyle X: https://x.com/RyanPyle Facebook: https://facebook.com/ryanpyle https://www.ryanpyle.com