Brittany Harrington

Brittany Harrington is a versatile bassoonist, dedicated educator, and creative performer whose work spans orchestral, chamber, solo, and genre-defying performance. She serves as Instructor/Lecturer of Bassoon at Pacific Lutheran University and Affiliate Artist/Faculty at the University of Puget Sound. She is also Acting Principal Bassoon of Symphony Tacoma for the 2026–27 season and performs regularly throughout the Pacific Northwest with ensembles including the Seattle Symphony Orchestra, Seattle Opera, Pacific Northwest Ballet, Auburn Symphony Orchestra, The Sound Ensemble, and other leading regional organizations. Her performances have been praised for their warmth, expressivity, and musicality, with The Dallas Morning News noting her “gorgeously intoned, eloquently shaped bassoon solos.”

Brittany is committed to creating musical experiences that are imaginative, collaborative, and accessible. She is the founder and Artistic Director of Bassoon Fest Northwest, an annual bassoon institute serving young musicians throughout the Pacific Northwest. Her teaching includes private instruction, youth orchestra coaching, chamber music, masterclasses, and clinics, and she has worked with students and ensembles throughout the Seattle-Tacoma region. As an educator, Brittany helps students develop strong technical and musical foundations while fostering curiosity, confidence, independence, and their own artistic voices.

Brittany is a founding member of the internationally acclaimed Breaking Winds Bassoon Quartet, a genre-defying ensemble blending classical music, pop culture, humor, and creativity. After becoming a viral sensation in 2011, the quartet went on to perform and teach internationally across the United States, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Canada, Thailand, and Spain, with features on NPR and MTV and nearly four million views on YouTube. Through Breaking Winds, Brittany has helped redefine what the bassoon can do—and who it can reach.

In addition to her orchestral and chamber work, Brittany is an active soloist, recording artist, arranger, and advocate for expanding the bassoon’s repertoire and reach. She is a member of Wind Advisory, a woodwind quintet dedicated to using music as a force for community impact and social good, she performs with the Lake Chelan Bachfest, and serves on the faculty of the Evergreen Music Festival. Brittany continues to explore new approaches to performance and education while championing the bassoon as an instrument capable of remarkable versatility, expressivity, and connection.