He then went on to learn from James Greco during the summer of 1937 at the first high school state band camp that Gerald Prescott held at the University of Minnesota.

[3] As the principal trumpet of the Chicago Symphony for 53 years, Herseth performed under Bruno Walter, George Szell, Eugene Ormandy, Leonard Bernstein, James Levine, Claudio Abbado, and many other prominent orchestral conductors.

His tenure in the orchestra spanned the time of 6 different CSO music directors - Artur Rodziński (1947-1948), Rafael Kubelik (1950-1953), Fritz Reiner (1953-1962), Jean Martinon (1963-1968), Sir Georg Solti (1969-1991), and Daniel Barenboim (1991-2006).

Herseth's tenure as principal trumpet spanned the Reiner years, during which the orchestra rose to prominence, due in part to the powerful and precise sound of its brass section.

As described in the Chicago Sun-Times, July 22, 2001, "For decades Herseth's rich, golden tone and powerful yet expressive playing were a cornerstone of the fabled 'Chicago Sound.'"