Michaela Špačková is a curious and creative artist who seamlessly integrates her passions for music, humanity and nature into her musical work, lifestyle and intercultural activities – from music education concerts to her development of permaculture gardening. She regularly performs works dedicated to her for solo bassoon by contemporary composers, She began playing the bassoon at the age of 12 and made her debut five years later with the PKF Prague Philharmonia, following appearances with the ORF Vienna, Munich Chamber Orchestra and Czech Philharmonic, receiving more than 20 prizes at various competitions such as the ARD Music Competition and Prague Spring Competition, and performing worldwide in the most prestigious halls such as the Berlin Philharmonie, Philharmonie de Paris, Suntory Hall Tokyo, etc. She was solo bassoonist in the Konzerthausorchester Berlin with Christoph Eschenbach and Academist with the Staatskapelle Berlin under Daniel Barenboim, played with conductors such as Sir S. Rattle, Z. Mehta, I. Fischer, W. Jurowski and others. In this episode, we speak about her start on the bassoon, her experiences and insights on taking part and winning numerous competitions, some of her favorite contemporary composers, educational music concerts, her passion for permaculture gardening, how she overcome a challenging moment in her career and we are joined by a super-cute guest right at the end! Legends of Reed is sponsored by Barton Cane. Use coupon code "legendsofreed" for free shipping. https://www.bartoncane.com Find out more about Michaela here: https://www.michaelaspackova.com

Since 2022, Sanja is artist of the French instrument maker Buffet Crampon Paris, playing oboe model „Légende”. With their support, she is bringing to life new Oboe Concerto composed by Nimrod Borenstein. World premiere will happen on March 8, 2024 with Beograde Philharmonic Orchestra, as part of 100 Years Anniversary celebration of the orchestra. Highly active as soloist, she performed with Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra, Al Bustan Festival Orchestra, Macedonia Philharmonic Orchestra, Salzburg Kammerphilharmone, Vojvodina Symphony Orchestra, Ensemble Metamorphosis, Zagreb Soloists, Slovene Army Band, Erdödy Chamber Orchestra from Hungary and traditional tamboura orchestra from Slovenia. Sanja is associate professor for orchestral studies for woodwind instruments at the Academy of Arts in Novi Sad. Until 2024 she was solo oboist of the Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra for 12 years. In this episode, I interview the inspiring oboist, Sanja Romić. We speak about topics such as how she started playing the oboe, her collaboration with Buffet Crampon and the oboe model Légende, her upcoming premiere of a oboe concerto by Nimrod Borenstein, to commemorate the 100 year anniversary of her orchestra, her podcast on playing and living with ease, her future plans after leaving an orchestral career, and more. Legends of Reed is sponsored by Barton Cane, for free shipping on any order, use coupon code "legendsofreed". To find out about Sanja Romić visit: https://sanjaromic.com

In this episode, I catch up with the inspiring and creative jazz bassoonist Michael Rabinowitz over his illustrious jazz career and we chat about topics such as his early days of studying at SUNY Purchase, how he amplifies the bassoon for the jazz stand, a life in jazz and improvisation, moving to NYC, making a living while balancing family life, his latest album "Next Chapter", and his recent activities. Find out more about Michael here, and listen/stream & purchase his album "New Chapter" on his website: ⁠https://www.jazzbassoonist.com/⁠ LOR Podcast is sponsored by Barton Cane, to enjoy free shipping on orders, use coupon code, "legendsofreed" for free shipping: ⁠https://www.bartoncane.com/

After a long absence, LOR returns with the wonderful bassoonist, Lola Descours. Lola is currently the principal bassoon in the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, under chief conductor, L. Shani. In this episode, Lola speaks to me about topics such as her concert and touring with the Rotterdam Philharmonic, her tips for auditions and competitions, her inspiration behind her album "Bassoon Steppes" and the charming video series "Bassoon in the Wind" with filmmaker, Pierre Dugowson. And she also shares with me her definition of success. A very inspiring interview and the musical extract is from the First Movement of the Rachmaninoff Cello Sonata in G Minor, Op. 19 from her album, with pianist Paloma Kouider. Her debut album was released in 2022 on Orchid Music and received critical acclaim in multiple countries. Follow Lola on: www.loladescours.com IG: @loladescours https://orchid-music.lnk.to/loladescours

The Wire places Sara Schoenbeck in the "tiny club of bassoon pioneers" at work in contemporary music today, while the New York Times has called her performances "galvanizing" and "riveting.” She has performed with or been a member of Anthony Braxton’s 12+1(tet) and Tri-Centric Orchestra, Wayne Horvitz’s Gravitas Quartet, Harris Eisenstadt’s Golden State, Wavefield Ensemble, SEM Ensemble, Wet Ink, Marty Ehrlich’s Duende Winds, Nels Cline's Lovers, Adam Rudolph's Organic Orchestra, and the Michael Leonhart Orchestra. She has worked with many of creative music’s luminaries including Roscoe Mitchell, Henry Threadgill, Butch Morris, Yusef Lateef, Wadada Leo Smith, George Lewis, and Pamela Z. She can be heard on music and film recordings including Matrix 2 and 3, Spanglish and Dahmer. She has performed at major venues throughout North America and Europe. A partial list includes Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center Out of Doors, the Kitchen, Iridium, Disney Hall, Redcat, the Kennedy Center, the Free Music Festival in Antwerp Belgium, Biennale Musica in Venice Italy, the American Festival of Improvised Music, MicroFest, SXSW, New Orleans, Newport, Berlin, Victoriaville and Ottawa Jazz Festivals; the Vancouver International Jazz Festival, Angel City Jazz Festival in Los Angeles; San Francisco, Saalfelden and Tempere Jazz festivals. Sara received her BFA from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and MFA from the California Institute of the Arts. Sara has been adjunct faculty at California Institute of the Arts, Citrus College, and Pasadena Conservatory and has given master classes at Amherst College, Hampshire College, Cornish College, University of Denver, and Western Washington University. She is currently on faculty at Brooklyn Conservatory of Music and Packer Collegiate Institute. In this episode, I speak to Sara about her musical journey, how her career developed and took off, and the inspiration behind her recent self-titled album release, she gives me some practical tips on how to become a better improviser and how to approach free improvisation, tips on creativity, her main musical influences, the challenges of working as a female musician, tips for young musicians and she fills me in on the jazz/music scene in New York, and which jazz clubs I should visit in New York.  Listen to her album here: https://open.spotify.com/album/6SMnwqkm8odd2KXNaUqku9?si=3JzotXziSY6u_InOokxYfA Find out more about Sara: https://www.saraschoenbeck.com LOR podcast is being sponsored by Baron Cane, use the coupon code "legendsofreed", to enjoy free shipping on Barton Cane.  https://www.bartoncane.com/

French oboist Philippe Tondre has secured a place among the finest musicians of his generation. «Master of the oboe » (Bonner General Anzeiger), his music-making is packed with emotional sensitivity and stunning virtuosity. Principal oboe of the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Chamber Orchestra of Europe, and the SWR Symphony Orchestra, Philippe Tondre is also a member of the Mito Chamber Orchestra, the newly-founded Kammer Ensemble Paris, and Principal Oboe of the Saito Kinen Orchestra Matsumoto. From 2014 until 2020 he was Solo Oboe of the Budapest Festival Orchestra and from 2016 until 2017 Solo Oboe of the Gewandhaus Orchestra in Leipzig. He has worked with eminent conductors, amongst others Seiji Ozawa, Yannick Nezet-Séguin, Sir Simon Rattle, Gustavo Dudamel, Andris Nelsons, Ivan Fischer, Daniele Gatti, Teodor Currentzis, Franz Welser- Möst, Sir Roger Norrington, Fabio Luisi, Herbert Blomstedt, Esa-Pekka Salonen und Daniel Harding. In November 2015 Philippe Tondre was nominated Professor for Oboe at the Hochschule für Musik Saar. He gives masterclasses in China, Taiwan, Japan, Spain, Switzerland, and Germany. Philippe Tondre plays a Buffet Crampon « Légende » Oboe. ********************************************************************************************************************************************** In this episode, I speak to Philippe about his early musical journey, the key teachers and mentors that had a great influence on him, what studying with Maurice Bourguewas like; his tips for competitions and peak performance, why having active sports and exercise regime is important for wind players, how he toggles between playing in the US and Europe, his upcoming projects, recordings and concerts, the French school of oboe, and his personal tips for young musicians. To find out more about him, visit: http://www.philippetondre.com LOR podcast is sponsored by Barton Cane. To enjoy free shipping, use coupon code, “legendsofreed”, all one word on any order. https://www.bartoncane.com

I recently interviewed the fabulous bassoon soloist and conductor Peter Whelan. Peter is not only a concerto soloist, he is in constant demand as a soloist and chamber musician. He has performed in many prestigious venues around the world, and he is also the founder and Artistic Director of Ensemble Marsyas, and the Artistic Director of the Irish Baroque Orchestra. He is also an Artistic Partner of the Irish National Opera. We speak about many interesting and inspiring topics like his musical journey, how he found his voice in early and baroque music, his studies with Sergio Azzolini, how he got into conducting and directing, his work with the Ensemble Marsyas, how we can stay inspired when performing and interpreting overly-played repertoire, “the game” in interpreting early music, the importance of musicians in finding “a middle ground”, his upcoming projects and he speaks about his new disc, “Mozart’s Bassoon. Works for solo Bassoon”. He even teaches me some Irish slang. Listen to his album here: https://open.spotify.com/album/4FhwOW1szuLuPMhpAsWeK8?si=EogfQ_wpRvSQw1Y1DlWuGw Find out more about him: https://www.peterwhelan.co.uk/about/ LOR is now sponsored by Barton Cane, to enjoy free shipping use the coupon code "legendsofreed".  https://www.bartoncane.com/

Daniel Matsukawa has been the principal bassoon of The Philadelphia Orchestra since 2000. He studied at the Juilliard School and the Curtis Institute of Music. His teachers include Harold Goltzer, Alan Futterman, and Bernard Garfield. Mr. Matsukawa made his solo concerto debut in Carnegie Hall at the age of 18 and was featured in a Young Artist’s Showcase on New York’s WQXR classical radio station. Since then he has appeared as a soloist with orchestras in the United States, Japan, and New Zealand. Prior to his post with The Philadelphia Orchestra, Mr. Matsukawa served as principal bassoon with the National Symphony in Washington D.C., the Saint Louis Symphony, the Virginia Symphony Orchestra, and the Memphis Symphony. Mr. Matsukawa is a member of the faculties at both the Curtis Institute of Music and the Boyer College of Music at Temple University. In 2019, Mr. Matsukawa has served as a member of the prestigious jury panel for the Tchaikovsky Competition in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Later that same year, he served as a member of the jury panel for the ARD Competition in Munich, Germany. Find out more about him here: https://www.philorch.org/your-philorch/meet-your-orchestra/musicians/daniel-matsukawa/ I am joined by my friend, bassoonist Francisca Bastos who is a guest co-host on this episode. BYOM Academy: https://www.beyourownmanager.com

On this episode I am very pleased to share my interview with one of most renowned American bassoonists, Mr. Frank Morelli.  He is the first bassoonist awarded a Juilliard doctorate, and has been a Carnegie Hall soloist nine times. He performed at the last White House State Dinner for President Clinton and is Co-principal bassoon of the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra. Faculty positions include Juilliard, Yale, Manhattan School of Music, SUNY Stony Brook and Queens College. His over 180 recordings include MSR Classics solo CDs From the Heart, Romance and Caprice, Bassoon Brasileiro and Baroque Fireworks. Gramophone Magazine proclaimed that "Morelli's playing is a joy to behold." American Record Guide stated: "the bassoon playing...is as good as it gets." We speak about his teaching philosophy, his musical journey and being one of the first bassoonists to have a "portfolio career", his musical influences, his favourite memories playing with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, his foray into jazz with the album "The Ox-Mo Incident", his thoughts on the classical music industry and tips for the future generation of classical musicians, what he would like to be remembered for and even what the "theme song" of his life would be.  Visit his website at www.morellibassoon.com

On this episode, I am pleased to have bassoonist, Judith Farmer on the show. We had an interesting chat about interesting topics such as her teaching philosophy, how she stayed productive during the pandemic, what working in film recording and session work is like, what are the differences between American and European bassoon playing styles and more. 2016 GRAMMY® Award nominee Judith Farmer’s playing has been described by critics as “impeccable” (American Record Guide), "masterly" (Fanfare Magazine), “absolutely superb”(Classical CD Reviews) and "brilliant" (Kronenzeitung, Austria). Judith is currently a member of the Los Angeles Opera Orchestra, the Pasadena Symphony and the Long Beach Symphony. She has played on the scores of over 200 major motion pictures, such as Frozen, The Pirates of the Caribbean,  Toy Story 2, Spiderman 3, Indiana Jones IV, Star Wars VII and A. I., Men in Black III and many more. She teaches  bassoon at the University of Southern California and held guest master classes at numerous American universities. She received her education at Indiana University and at the Hochschule für Musik in Vienna. Judith is an avid chamber musician, who enjoys collaborating with composers on new works and has had numerous works written and dedicated to her. Together with her husband, composer Gernot Wolfgang, she co-produced four CDs of his chamber music for Albany Records, including Passing Through for which she received a 2016 GRAMMY® nomination in the category Best Classical Compendium. Her latest release, “Judith Farmer plays Favorites” is available on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/2Q6wl6WCgsC1FQFvo0Z6ts https://www.judithfarmerplaysfavorites.com/ Opening music: "Low Agenda" by Gernot Wolfgang for bassoon & contrabass

Martin Kuuskmann is a multiple Grammy-nominated Estonian-born bassoon virtuoso, Moosmann artist, and the Professor of Bassoon and Chamber Music at the University of Denver. A graduate of the Manhattan School of Music and the Yale School of Music, his mentors include Stephen Maxym, Frank Morelli, Rufus Olivier and Ilmar Aasmets. On this episode, we talk about his recent and upcoming projects, some of his favourite musicians and collaborators, his partnership with Moosmann bassoons, and some of the lessons he learnt in his career. To find out more about him, please visit: http://kuuskmann.com

Welcome back to a brand new season of LOR. In this episode (recorded in summer 2020) I interview Alban Wesly, a musician based in Amsterdam. He is proud to be the bassoonist/founding member of Calefax (Amsterdam) and to have been the bassoonist of Ensemble Musikfabrik (Cologne) for 22 years. Since September 2018 Alban teaches bassoon at the Royal Conservatoire in The Hague. As the bassoonist of the award winning reed quintet Calefax and the internationally acclaimed Ensemble Musikfabrik Alban  is considered as one of the most versatile bassoonists of this time. Calefax is one of the longest operating chamber music groups in the Netherlands, and worldwide trendsetter for a new genre: the Reed Quintet.  We talk about interesting topics such as touring, his interest in new music, tips on maintaining a chamber ensemble, making programming choices, and a funny travel anecdote of the "airline baggage crisis" in Aberdeen and much more. To find out more about Alban, visit: http://wesly.eu https://calefax.nl/en/ If you've enjoyed this podcast, do share/like/subscribe! :)

Joost Flach’s long and fruitful musical journey as an oboist began in the Netherlands. During 1984, following the completion of his studies, he began a global search for work opportunities. This planted his migration and  current residency to Singapore. Over the years this initial venture has blossomed, and developed into many opportunities throughout South-East Asia.  He has been a regular member (namely as Sub-Principal Oboist) of the Malaysian Philharmonic, The Singapore Symphony Orchestra and Bangkok Symphony Orchestra. Since his retirement from the Malaysian Philharmonic in 2014, Joost has become more involved with teaching and education.  Connecting with Asian composers has evolved into the commissioning of several chamber music works that feature the oboe, and other works for wind ensembles. His multitude of skills as a performer, teacher and composer has also developed into the conducting of many wind ensembles. Through these experiences, he has witnessed enormous expansions within the Southeast-Asia music scene. Joost has also worked for the Ministry of Education in both Singapore and the Netherlands, and is currently Head of Winds at NAFA School of Music.

This episode is kindly contributed by Ole K. Dahl.  Ole interviewed his former teacher and mentor, Prof. Roger Birnstingl, during the polish bassoon festival Pracownia fagocisty 2020, thank you to our guest contributor and the festival director Arek Adamczyk for releasing this interview to our listeners!  In the meantime, if you have any suggestions or feedback, we would love to hear from you,  please email us at legendsofreed@gmail.com

Jaroslaw Augustyniak was born in Lodz, Poland in 1965. In 1988 he graduated with distinction from the Academy of Music in Łódź, Poland with a master’s degree in Bassoon and Chamber Music. A year later he was a laureate in several prestigious competitions and then Jarek furthered his studies under the guidance of Vincenzo Menghini - RAI Turin. Jarek was appointed as Principal Bassoon of the BBC National Orchestra of Wales in December 2004. He joined BBC National Orchestra of Wales after a thirteen-year post as Principal Bassoon with the Basque National Orchestra, Spain. His professional life has seen him to move from Poland, through Portugal, Spain and Denmark to the United Kingdom. He has been given the opportunity to play in almost all European countries and as far afield as the USA, Argentina, Chile and China - in many prestigious venues including Wien Konzerthaus, London Royal Albert Hall, Berlin Konzerthaus, Amsterdam Concertgebouw under many famous conductors. In addition, Jarek has fostered an active solo career, He recorded soundtrack solo bassoon for the Anri Sala film “1395 Days Without Red” – followed by a solo appearance in Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris. During his career Jarek has been a guest principal in many festivals and orchestras like the London Symphony Orchestra and the BBC Philharmonic. We speak about how he is coping with the Covid-19 lockdown, the opportunities that the pandemic could bring, the origins of his online lecture series "Ventus Optimus", his collaboration with contemporary composer Julia Plaut involving a vacuum cleaner, how his wide travels and close family life influenced his artistic life and the intricacies of playing in a film soundtrack. To find out more about him, visit: https://www.jaroslawaugustyniak.com/ If you have enjoyed this podcast, please like, subsribe or share!

On this special bi-lingual episode I speak to Niño Rubén - a young and talented Spanish bassoonist.  He is joined by his friend Carmen Hildago, who assists us in translation. One of the most fascinating, and innovative solo bassoonists currently. Rubén is also a great composer. He won the Special Prize of the 1stSeville Double Reed Society in Spain for his outstanding performance and musical talents. After his Bachelor studies, he became a finalist in the RTVE Virtuosos National Competition and started caving out his own unique path. Improvising and composing at a very young age, he has presented his own compositions at many festivals, and is particularly focused on researching the art of the flamenco.  We speak about interesting topics such as his passion for flamenco music, and the historical significance of the flamenco. We also talk about breaking barriers in classical music by making the bassoon the protoganist and soloist in concerts, how he started improvising and composing and his compositions and favourite concerts.  We also compare our creative process and discuss the connection between silence and creativity, how he found his own voice and compositional style and him searching and finding his artistic freedom. We also share some fun facts about ourselves and discuss collaborating on a Corona playlist together.  To find out more about him, please visit: https://www.ninoruben.net/

Rachel Bullen studied with  Emanuel Abbühl and François Leleux in Europe after her initial studies in Melbourne. Rachel performed as an orchestral musician in Europe in many orchestras including the Netherlands Radio Chamber Orchestra, South Jutland Symphony Orchestra, and Aarhus Symphony Orchestra and has toured as a soloist in many European countries and she was a full-time chamber musician from 2010 - 2016 with Esbjerg Ensemble in Denmark. In 2016, Rachel returned to Australia permanently and played as guest principal oboe with Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra Victoria, and acting principal with Adelaide Symphony for most of 2019.  Currently, Rachel teaches at the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music, and performs as a freelancer. We discuss interesting her musical influences and musical journey from Melbourne to Europe and interesting topics such as the importance of playing as naturally and effortlessly as possible,  the importance of giving students the freedom to teach themselves, her most memorable chamber concert experience,  the psychology behind peak performance, dealing with performance anxiety and overcoming professional setbacks that may arise while working as a foreign musician in Europe. Her website: https://www.rachelbullenoboe.com Study with Rachel: https://www.playwithapro.com/live/Rachel-Bullen/

I am very excited to share an interview I did with Rebekah Heller that was conducted in early April. Rebekah is a solo bassoonist based in New York and has been praised for her “flair” and “deftly illuminated” performances by The New York Times. Not only  a uniquely dynamic solo and collaborative artist, she is fiercely committed to expanding the modern repertoire for the bassoon and has appeared as soloist with many prestigious orchestras such as The New York Philharmonic and is co-artistic director of the International Contemporary Ensemble. Besides performing she has an active teaching career and teaches at the International Contemporary Ensemble's summer program, Ensemble Evolution, and is also on the bassoon faculty at the Mannes School of Music at The New School College of Performing Arts. We had a fun chat about many topics including contemporary music, commissioning and working with composers, fund-raising, extended technique, covid-19 and share some of our surfing mishaps! To find out more about Rebekah, visit her website: http://www.rebekahheller.com/ To support the podcast, you could consider supporting me here: https://joannesukumaran.bandcamp.com/

Welcome to a special edition of Legends of Reed. Big thanks to Kristian Oma Ronnes for this contribution.  Today I am very glad and grateful to feature a guest contribution from Kristian Oma Ronnes. Together with Arek Adamczyk, they hosted an online lecture on Zoom for bassoon students and graduates from the Music Academy in Poznan. This lecture was chaired by guest speaker Prof. Ole K. Dahl from Muho Mannheim. The subject of this lecture is “How to get the most of your practicing when time is limited”. These are very difficult and strange times for the arts and artists.  Working and practicing from home can be challenging and isolating if your neighbours are not fans of practicing.   Listen in as Ole gives valuable advice on the value of  maintaining a regular routine and do a compressed version of Drills and he even takes questions from Facebook live. Don’t forget to check out Kristian’s interview with me in Season 1.  Please stay well and healthy and enjoy the lecture. 

Solo bassoonist, Nadina Mackie Jackson is the most widely recorded Canadian bassoonist in history with 13 solo albums, 8 chamber music recordings and dozens of albums with symphony, chamber and historical instrument orchestras. A true communicator, she combines her love for images, words and music in many unique concert series. Nadina speaks about her musical origins, and how she came to become a solo bassoonist. She not only produces her own concerts but she is also a visual artist. She discusses key topics like the importance of releasing music, fundraising and the importance of having a written contract. She is very mindful of the challenges faced by young bassoonists and explains that obstacles actually test one’s commitment. She also shares on her concert series “Bassoon Out Loud”, “Darwood’s Wild Bassoon”, “Ophelia Speaks”. She established the Council of Canadian Bassoonists to support young Canadian bassoonists and discusses her teaching career. I even find out why she has blue hair! For more infö, please visit: https://nadinamackiejackson.com/ Support the Council of Canadian Bassoonists: https://www.councilofcanadianbassoonists.ca If you have enjoyed this podcast, do like, share or subscribe to the podcast. To support me make better content please go to: https://joannesukumaran.bandcamp.com/