Aaron Kahn
About
I'm an advanced classical trumpet player with world-class training from McGill University, California Institute of the Arts, and specific university-level teaching training from the University of Oregon. I've studied with some of the best brass musicians in the world, including Hakan Hardenberger (international soloist), Brian McWhorter (Professor, University of Oregon), Mark Gould (former co-principal trumpet of the Metropolitan Opera), among others. In 2015, I was appointed the Graduate Teaching Fellowship at the University of Oregon, a salaried position in which I instructed undergraduate students of all levels and coached graduate students directly in advancing their studies.
I've performed in a variety of settings, including: backing up the band Chicago and Mike Kenneally of The Frank Zappa Band; as a featured soloist in the Eugene Ballet's production of The Great Gatsby; as a featured soloist in New York City at Merkin Hall, a premier hall for chamber music; and as a co-lead in the external ensemble for the world premier of Natural History, a piece commissioned by the world-acclaimed composer Michael Gordon in honor of the centennial of the national parks.
I'm be delighted to teach you and I'm looking forward to getting started.
My pedagogy centers around the inner game–that is, how one's mindset affects and directly influences one's playing–and the basic principles and structures of Arnold Jacob's (past principal tuba of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and incredibly influential in the field of brass pedagogy) "wing and song" pedagogical approach. I also cater to each student's needs and know the ins-and-outs of technique, posture, studies, etudes, and solo pieces quite well.
When I taught undergraduates studying to be music educators at the University of Oregon, I focused on the building blocks of what it took to play basic melodies on the trumpet and how to assemble the horn and conceptualize the sound they wanted to embody. When I was involved with coaching undergraduate performance majors and my graduate school peers, I focused on bringing their level up to become the best version of themselves that they could be. This involved an in-depth approach to performance character, engendering confidence, mastering specific areas of technique, and encouraging students to take on repertoire that would best suit them and allow them to grow.
Bachelor's of Fine Arts, California Institute of the Arts
Graduate work, University of Oregon