Q&A with Jason Friedman, horn

In 2014, in honor of our 50^th anniversary, the Bowdoin International Music Festival created the Kaplan Fellowship Program to offer tuition free opportunities for advanced musicians at the beginning of significant careers in music. Now in its third year, the program is a unique offering geared to mature, accomplished players. Kaplan Fellows perform with artist instructors throughout the summer concert series and become familiar faces to concert goers throughout Maine. Kaplan Fellows also receive a full scholarship to cover all participation fees and housing and are sponsored by members of the community.

In advance of their arrival we sat down with these 17 highly skilled Fellows to better understand where they’re coming from, and where they’re headed in the future. The talks ranged from musical memories, to incredible sagas of how Fellows obtained their instruments. What follows is a selection from one of those conversations, with hornist Jason Friedman.

BIMF: What are some of your earliest musical memories?

Jason: I must have been 4 years old. I remember my older brother and father playing a CD called Classical Thunder 1 very loudly. I remember hearing Ride of the Valkyries, Zarathustra, and In the Hall of the Mountain King and dancing around to the music with my twin brother. This must have been the first classical music I listened to.

BIMF: At what age did you start playing your instrument?

Jason: My brother and I both started on trumpet in sixth grade. We were extremely competitive with each other and as a result it was always a Friedman in the first chair slot. Then in seventh grade, I had the option to switch to horn. I had an audition and started a week later. I don’t really know why I wanted to switch. I think I had heard it was really hard and I wanted to face the challenge. I also thought the sound was really interesting, more so than trumpet.

BIMF: Does your instrument you play on have a story? How did it come to you?

Jason: My instrument is my most prized possession. I started studying with Kolio Plachkov at the Rocky Ridge Music Festival before my senior year in high school. One of the first things he said to me as I played some Mozart for him was along the lines of “Dude, that instrument is terrible. How do you expect to get any better with that piece of metal holding you back?” Kolio handed me his horn, and told me that it was the Maserati of horns. He told me that it was the same horn that the New York Philharmonic section plays on. After just a few notes I was convinced it was in fact the Maserati of horns and my horn was a Prius in comparison. He told me that I’m never going to beat anyone in a race with a Prius no matter how good a driver I was. A few months later, with the money I had saved up to buy my first car and a small loan, I bought my own Maserati of a horn.

BIMF: What is the longest you’ve ever spent preparing a piece of music?

Jason: Three years. I started studying the piece midway through high school used it through all my college auditions. It is a piece of music that offers new challenges each time I re-visit it. I’m not currently studying it but I am sure I will work on it many more times.

BIMF: How would you explain your passion for chamber music to a non-musician?

Jason: First, with no conductor there is much more freedom with your interpretation of the music compared to orchestral playing. Second, in chamber music you get to decide who you play with and what you play. You can decide which instruments you like to play with, the people who play those instruments, and the composer. Lastly, when I play in a chamber music setting, I find myself listening much harder to what is going on around me. I am listening to who is going to pass the line to me and where I am passing it. There is a level of communication and trust in each other that is hard to find in any other setting.

BIMF: What do you look forward to most about your time as a Kaplan Fellow?

Jason: Playing with wonderful musicians and meeting wonderful people. I’m excited to make new friends and develop my musicianship alongside them.

BIMF: What’s next for you after the Festival? What are your career goals?

Jason: After the festival ends, I will move in to my first apartment and start my sophomore year at the University of Colorado in Boulder. After I graduate, I plan to take some orchestral auditions and audition for graduate programs.

BIMF: What advice would you offer to an aspiring musician?

Jason: Set many goals. Set small goals and set big goals. For big goals, find out as much as you can about your goal and how others have gotten there. Then be realistic in an evaluation of where you are and what you need to learn in order to achieve the goal. Do not be afraid to aim very high. With a proper work ethic, good guidance, hard work, and grit you will surprise yourself with what you are capable of.

Check back soon for more interviews…