Salem Symphonic Winds - At Home… with Kevin Vaughn
Meet Kevin Vaughn
SSW Eb Clarinetist, and much more!
Today’s feature is the first in a series of interviews with Salem Symphonic Winds members. Learn more about these talented musicians in each fun, thoughtful, and often touching feature.
Featured member: Kevin Vaughn
Kevin has been a playing in Salem Symphonic Winds since September of 2010 and has been a member since 2011.
Kevin is a retired plant cell biologist and plays Eb clarinet, alto clarinet, bass clarinet and contra-alto clarinet with SSW. In addition, he plays oboe with the Winds of the Willamette woodwind quintet that performs the pre-concert program for SSW.
What part of your shelter-in-place have you come to appreciate most?
Most of my hobbies are done here at home and I have several acres of garden that have been a saving grace to keep me really busy as I hybridize plants and I rowed out ~40K new seedlings this spring. Am also writing a book on dwarf and median irises and I was able to read 70 years of literature on these plants in preparation for writing. Musically, I had a new Buffet Tosca Eb clarinet arrive about 10 days before everything was closed down by the pandemic. It is a GREAT horn and I got to put in many hours on it, probably much to the chagrin of my neighbors. They can probably sing “Daphnis and Chloe” now! Also I cranked out LOTS of oboe reeds during the lockdown!!
The least?
Unlike many, I’ve been able to play with members of my quintet since late June so I’ve had a little music companionship. I do miss the bigger groups and gave up my union membership because I don’t see much chance for future employment. I’m more than a little bit of a foodie so I miss going out to eat at nice restaurants and even not so nice ones! Take out now seems like haute cuisine and I have found some outdoor venues that have been fun too.
What’s something you miss that surprises you?
Each year I have company coming from around the world to see my garden or just to visit. They have all become part of my extended family and I miss them all. Hadn’t realized this until they weren’t here!
What’s something you don’t miss that surprises you?
I am a nervous traveler and knowing I can’t travel is actually a relief. Oddly enough I’m fine once I get to a place.
What have you been stocking up (other than toilet paper)?
When Europe started to close down I bought lots of clarinet reeds and oboe cane, as the kinds I like are from France. I now have a good supply for all my clarinets and have been selecting out the better ones and working on them with my reed knife. The cane I used to crank out oboe, oboe d’amore and English horn reeds. Fortunately I made a mistake and bought 20 rolls of TP right before the pandemic; I must be psychic!
Is there something you’ve been putting off for a long time, but are now doing with this time at home?
The alto, Bb, basset horn, and contra-alto clarinets are ones I don’t work on as much as Eefer (Eb clarinet) and bass and it has been fun to pull these out and study their literature more fully. There are a couple of wild alto and contra-alto concertos that have been lots of fun. I wish I could say I did more cleaning and organizing, but that would be a lie!!
