If Antonio Herbert ’13 of Kissimee, Florida, ever wondered if his decision to attend Gustavus en route to a professional music career was the right one, the summer of 2012 affirmed his decision. And Herbert, principal flutist in both the Gustavus Wind and Symphony Orchestras, found out that is really does matter who you know. His planned summer of work on campus and practice whenever time allowed very quickly changed, much to his benefit.
As a collegiate fellow in Norelius Hall and a member of the Gustavus Office of Fine Arts, Tonio met and befriended Semyon Rozin ’15 of Boevang, Luxembourg, whose father manages the Vianden International Music Festival. Rozin Sr. had worked with flutist Brad Garner (flutist with the New York Philharmonic and professor of flute at Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, Julliard Pre-College, and New York University). That connection prompted Garner to invite Herbert to attend his summer flute symposium. In June, Herbert traveled to LA and was one of 11 flutists from across the nation to be invited to attend the Malibu Flute Symposium at Pepperdine University.
Following the conference at Pepperdine, Tonio met and worked with flutist Jim Walker, with whom Tonio’s flute instructor in Florida, Suzan Pezzone Andrews, had studied. Walker offered Herbert his second invitation (and scholarship) to return to Los Angeles and participate in a masters class at the Colburn School. Walker, a motion picture, classical and jazz flutist. Walker, who is also the founder of the renowned jazz flute ensemble “Free Flight,” can be heard on the sound tracks of over 700 motion pictures since 1988. His work is available online at: (http://www.jimwalkerflute.com/motion-picture-recording.html) His offer to Antonio included participation in the clinic, with 23 flutists from across the nation, and an offer to audition for the graduate program in flute performance at USC. While at Colburn, Herbert met renowned flutist and YouTube sensation Greg Patillo and was introduced to a new style of playing called Beat Box Flute.
Along with the clinics and masters classes came an introduction to Jason Blank and the offer of an internship as Sales Specialist for the North America branch of the German flute company Bernhard Hammig Flutes, based out of Boston. Blank, the owner of the North American division, wrote and published The Ten Rules of Flute and asked Herbert to help edit the next edition. Soon after, a paid position was added to the internship which includes sales of Bernhard Hammig Flutes, working as editor for The Ten Rules of Flute and publishing articles for Hammig’s website. Herbert’s initiation into the music business was staffing the Hammig booth at the August 2012 National Flute Convention in Las Vegas.
With the experience of the summer behind him, Herbert is back on campus to finish his final year at Gustavus in philosophy and music. In addition to his studies, Tonio will continue to be in contact with Bernhard Hammig Flutes, work on the website, and teach Beat Box Flute via Skype both internationally and (hopefully) around St. Peter area.
Any lingering questions regarding his decision to attend Gustavus disappeared with the passing of this very busy and exciting summer.
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