Named to honor the memory of Miss Ima Hogg, a co-founder of the Houston Symphony, the Ima Hogg Competition is open to young musicians between the ages of 13 and 30 who play standard orchestral instruments or piano. Through the support of the Houston Symphony League since 1976, the Competition provides performance opportunities for aspiring musicians ages 13-30.
The 2013 semifinal round will take place on Thursday, May 30 at Stude Concert Hall at the Shepherd School of Music of Rice University. Ten semifinalists will perform two concertos with piano accompaniment. At the conclusion of the semifinals, four finalists will be selected to perform one concerto with the Houston Symphony at the Finals Concert on Saturday, June 1. The first place winner will then perform with the Houston Symphony at the Houston Chronicle Concert on July 13, 2013 as part of the 2013 Day of Music; the second place winner will perform with the Houston Symphony at Miller Theatre on June 29, 2013.
Our Education and Community Engagement Coordinator, Allison Conlan, had the chance to post some questions to our semifinalists. Their insightful answers can be found on this very blog!
Learn a little more about contestant number 2: John Turman, Horn
Allison Conlan: Do you come from a musical family?
John Turman: I come from a fairly musical family. My grandmother on my Dad’s side was an elementary music teacher for a while, and both grandparents on my mother’s side still play wind instruments. My grandmother plays the clarinet and my grandfather plays the tuba! My dad played trumpet through high school and my mother was in the Longhorn band as a flute player at the University of Texas. One of my uncles is a trombone player, and my other uncle is a freelance clarinetist in central Texas. My aunt still has plays her trumpet occasionally. Two of my cousins who are closest to my age play trombone and tuba. Sometimes during the holidays, we play brass quintets and other brass chamber music together (grandpa conducts).
AC: At what age did you begin playing your instrument?
JT: I actually began learning classical guitar at age 7. I still have my 3/4-size Takamine at home! I began playing horn as a 6th grader and have loved it ever since. The reason I chose horn was because at the middle school band tryouts, the French horn had the shortest line. A band director was leading the audition and I heard her play a couple of notes on the horn and I was immediately drawn in by the beautiful sound of the horn!
AC: Where did you grow up, and how did that community affect who you have become — in general and/or as a musician?
JT: I grew up in Austin, Texas, the live music capital of the world. My family lives within earshot of Zilker park, which is where the Austin City Limits music festival is hosted. Needless to say, music was a huge part of my life in the community. My family’s house is actually about 300 yards from the high school, and every morning as I waited for the bus when I was in elementary through middle school, I could hear the Westlake High School Marching Band practicing. When I got to high school, I was a drum major, which puts you in a spotlight in the community. I even received special treatment in the local restaurants, because everyone loves marching bands in Texas! Even though that played a major part of my life as a high schooler, my heart belonged and still belongs to the orchestra. Austin has three professional orchestras, the symphony, ballet and lyric opera. Every weekend I would try to catch a show; just hearing them play was so inspiring. Aside from having great musicians, the orchestras are filled with the nicest people you’ve ever met. It was really inspiring to see that as a young musician.
AC: Do you have any hobbies or interests outside of music?
JT: My favorite activities outside of music are film making, photography and (when I have time) snowboarding. Actually, I have a funny story about snowboarding and horn playing… So when I was a junior in high school, my family went to Tahoe for spring break. I brought my horn along of course. I was working on the Weber Concertino and some Wagner excerpts for a lesson the following week. It was the end of the second day of the trip, and my little brother and I were hitting all the terrain parks. I decided it would be a great idea to experiment with a new trick as the last jump of the day. We were at the Alpine resort to the south of Truckee, NV. At the bottom of the main slope, there was this massive jump fixture, and so I gathered a ton of speed, and then I tried to do a Japan, which is where you grab the tail side of the snowboard at the ankle and tweak out you lower torso. I got so much air, I didn’t know what to with it! I got into the trick, but I failed to come out of it, so I came crashing down, heard the crunch of helmet to snow, did a little somersault, and then I gave my little brother a thumbs up. He was up the mountain in hysterics, laughing so hard he fell over twice! Well, I felt a bit funny, and as we were finishing the run, I realized I couldn’t put my arms down. I thought “oh no, I must have torn a muscle or something.” We got down the slope, I unstrapped from the board, and I started walking to the med center at the slope. The MD asked what I did and I had to retell the embarrassing events that had just transpired. So he unzipped the hood of my jacket, and then said, “oh yeap, that’s broken.” Then I was like “What!?” And then I looked down (GRAPHIC NEXT SENTENCE) and my collarbone was stickin out! I had gone into shock, and what I thought was the helmet hitting the snow was actually my clavicle shattering! My first thought was “Oh no! I hope I can still play Götterdämmerung!!” After my poor mother drove me back from the ER, I went up to my room, pulled out the horn and played the long call (the family does a collective eye roll here). I don’t know what made me feel better, the painkillers, or the romantic solo lines of Richard Wagner!
AC: What has been your most exciting event in your musical career?
JT: One of the most exciting events in my musical career would probably have to be the first time I played a solo with an orchestra. I was 16 and had just won the Pearl Amster Concerto Competition. I had the opportunity to play Gordon Jacob’s horn concerto with the Austin Civic Orchestra and it was so inspiring. But perhaps the most influential event in my musical career was my acceptance into the Rice Horn Crew in 2010.
AC: Do you have any pre-performance habits/rituals?
JT: My pre-performance rituals include carbo-loading and listening to my favorite horn players: Radovan Vlatkovic, Dale Clevenger, Sarah Willis and William VerMeulen.
AC: Who are some of your most profound influences?
JT: My most profound musical influences are: William VerMeulen, Martha Agerich, Ian Bosteridge, the Emerson String Quartet and Herbert Von Karajan.
AC: Who is the most famous person you have met?
JT: The most famous person I have met is probably Danny Trejo. I said hello to him on a plane from LAX to Austin. I walked past him and Robert Rodriguez as I was leaving the baggage claim. He was in town filming “Machete.”
AC: Favorite TV shows, sports teams, food and city?
JT: My favorite TV shows are: Breaking Bad, Archer, Arrested Development, Trailer Park Boys and Kitchen Nightmares with Gordon Ramsey. In terms of college baseball, am partial towards the Rice Owls of course. I have a friend in the Baltimore Ravens, so I am a fan of theirs. My favorite food is the Chuy’s “big-as-yo-face” burrito. Basically, Mexican and Tex-Mex cuisine is my favorite, so living in Houston can be treacherous! My favorite city is Banff, Alberta.
AC: Explain your personality/life in a six word sentence…
JT: Playing horn, loving life, having fun!
Don’t miss the semifinals performances on May 30, and the finals concert on June 1!
