Mary Beth Orr is a versatile classical hornist, folk vocal artist, arranger, and composer dedicated to creating deep human connection through music. Celebrated for her distinct blending of classical French horn performance with the rich, soulful vocal traditions of her Appalachian heritage, she leads audiences on a poignant journey that bridges diverse genres and traditions.
most recently a finalist for The American Prize in instrumental performance 2023. The chosen medium of her classical horn and solo voice combine with the rich and soulful traditional melodies of her Appalachian heritage, creating a poignant musical journey of the human spirit. Her style is unique in that it connects two very unlikely genres and instruments, as well as audiences. So much of classical literature is inspired by, and derived from traditional folk melodies and are far more connected and complementary to each other than many audiences assume. These styles both communicate and elevate the human spirit and her hope is to connect with audiences from as many varied backgrounds as possible, and connect them to each other.
She is a PARMA/Navona recording artist and is excited to join the Great Lakes Performing Artist Associates 2025-26 roster.
Currently 3rd Horn of the Grand Rapids Symphony, she has also performed frequently with the Detroit Symphony, Charleston Symphony, and Breckenridge Music Festival, of which she is 2nd Horn. She has been a guest artist at the Interlochen Horn Institute, and faculty with the Charleston Horn Institute. She made her premier at the Spoleto Music Festival as a featured recital soloist with her mixed ensemble Femme Forte in 2017.
After winning 2nd prize in the professional division at the International Horn Competition of America in 2013, she started exploring artistic opportunities as a soloist, placing 2nd in the Horn Division of the 2014 International Women’s Brass Conference Solo Competition. Upon returning to the IWBC in 2019 she was awarded 1st prize in the Professional Division for Horn. In 2021 she premiered as soloist with the Grand Rapids Symphony on her own arrangement of “Stand up For Me” for voice, piano, horn and string orchestra at the Frederik Meijer Gardens Summer Concert Series.
Between 2020 and 2022 she was a multi prize winner of the Sound Espressivo International Music Competition, and 1st prize winner of the Golden Classical International Music Awards, American Protégé International Talent Competition, and the Charleston International Solo Competition 2021, where she was also voted most outstanding performance. As also a first prize winner of the Grand Prize Virtuoso Competition, she made her European premier at the Beethoven Haus in Bonn, Germany, August 2021. In May 2022 she premiered as a soloist at Carnegie Hall.
A passionate champion of contemporary music and diverse voices, Orr was featured in Vox Novus’s Fifteen-Minutes-of-Fame project, performing and recording fifteen original one-minute works written specifically for her. In March 2025, PARMA Recordings released her debut album, The Singing Horn, featuring these commissioned works alongside her own original compositions and folk arrangements. The album earned a Silver Medal from the Global Music Awards for Outstanding Folk Album and garnered critical praise from international publications including the International Horn Society, Plastic Magazine (UK), Revista, FVM, and Sistra..
Her creative momentum continues with major upcoming project premieres, including Her Midnight Ride (The Story of Sybil Ludington)—a new solo work for horn and voice commissioned by the Grand Rapids Symphony—premiering in March 2027, alongside a second call for scores for a new performance project that same year.
She lives in Howard City, Michigan on 10 beautiful wooded acres with her husband, newborn son, and many rescue and foster animals. Together they like anything involving the outdoors and the water, so much so, they both became certified scuba divers. She is very passionate about the many benefits of yoga and is an RYT 500 yoga teacher. It is crucial to provide balance and relief to the intense pressure of constantly performing professionally. When time allows, she finds further balance and creative outlets through songwriting, painting, and gardening.
