Jasper High School Junior Taylor Reutman considers music his life
Antonin Dvo?ák’s “8th Symphony”, David Cook’s “Light On”, “Armenian Dances” by Alfred Reed, and “Loser Like Me” by the Glee Cast are just some of the songs you may hear if you hit the shuffle button on Taylor Reutman’s iPod. That doesn’t sound like the typical selection of songs for a Jasper High School junior but Taylor Reutman isn’t a typical high school student.
Music is Taylor’s life. He has been playing oboe for 6 years, both the tuba and clarinet for 4 years each, has taken a year of piano, and on May 9, 2011 he was named, for a second year in a row, as one of the drum majors for the Jasper Marching Wildcats. But it wasn’t always like this.
His music career began in elementary school with acoustic guitar lessons. He hated every minute of it so he tried his hand at the violin for about a year but gave that up too. He never practiced and in his own words, “showed little musical talent”.
He did, however, join the school band but it wasn’t until the 8th grade that his musical interest was piqued. He was presented with music for a Group I solo by Mr. James Goodhue, one of the band directors at Jasper High School. Taylor was so excited to actually be playing serious music, as opposed to the short, little practice etudes and whole tones he had played before.
Shortly after he picked up his oboe, Taylor began composing his own music using a program he found online. During that time he considered going to college for music composition but he now realizes that those pieces were not masterpieces and has all but given up composing.
Occasionally though, while warming up, he plays something, likes the way it sounds, and scrambles to write it down. Presently he has only one piece he would ever consider sharing; a piano piece he wrote for a friend that he still enjoys playing to this day.
Taylor is busy conducting these days. His duties as a drum major for the 2011 marching season are quickly approaching. His task of keeping 150+ students together is daunting. Taylor mused, “Only one-third of a drum major’s time is about conducting. The other two-thirds are about being a leader.”
He is a role model for the other band students, the directors’ right hand, an administrative assistant in the band office, and a go-to guy for all the band members.
Devoted to his music, Taylor practices an hour each day on his oboe at home, but practice does not end there. He is involved with the Evansville Philharmonic Youth Orchestra (EPYO) as well. He travels to Evansville weekly for a rehearsal lasting 2 ½ hours and allots another 45 minutes every other week for private oboe lessons at the University of Evansville.
Playing, composing, and conducting music are not his only talents; Taylor also makes his own oboe reeds. He says it is the hardest thing he has ever had to do.
“It’s an exact science, basically. Except there is no formula to getting it every time”, said Taylor.
Each piece varies in density, thickness, and at times the nature of it is simply not conducive to creating a good sound. It takes a couple of hours to properly make a single reed. He has not yet crafted a reed for practicing or performing that met his standards.
His oboe teacher at UE, Dr. Elizabeth Robertson, told him, “You have to make a clothes basket full of reeds before you can begin to make good ones.” Taylor hasn’t crafted a basket full yet so he purchases them from a skilled reed maker in Tennessee.
“They are the most sensitive things ever.” Taylor explained. If he has the perfect reed for practicing at home, a simple thing like the barometric pressure that day can wreak havoc on the delicate balance that the reed maker has set.
His proudest moments include earning the coveted position of first chair oboist in the Indiana All-State Band as a sophomore, earning the same position as a junior in the Indiana All-State Honor Band, and being a member of the EPYO. Taylor’s dream is to eventually go to grad school for orchestral conducting. His proud parents are Patrick and Dottie Reutman of Jasper.
