On her way to St. Louis last spring, Frost School of Music alumna Julia Paine, B.M. ’17, sat hovered over her Rachmaninoff score on the plane. The Stamps Scholar didn’t have much time to waste as she replayed that morning’s phone call in her head.
“We need a bassoon player to go on our Midwest tour, are you available tomorrow?” A rep with the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra called to ask, just as she was finishing playing a week with the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra. “Just give me five minutes to pack,” Paine replied breathlessly. The next 24 hours, as she flew to St. Louis, Missouri, were intense. Throughout the entire four-hour journey, she listened to several different recordings of the pieces she was to play as the second bassoonist on their Midwest tour.
Her life up until that moment—since graduating from the University of Miami with two bachelor’s degrees in music and marine science, and then completing her master’s in bassoon performance at the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University in May 2020, just as the COVID-19 pandemic hit—had been unpredictable. There were very few gigs during the pandemic—so, like most musicians, she took advantage of the down time and practiced day and night, playing here and there and subbing for The New World Symphony and Nu Deco Ensemble in Florida, while taking a remote side job with a vaccine clinic based in Atlanta, which helped pay the bills. Last year, she had several sub jobs with the Charlotte Symphony in North Carolina, the North Carolina Symphony, and The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra. And then this spring, with the St. Louis Symphony.
While on the St. Louis Symphony’s Midwest tour, she was also preparing for preliminary second bassoon audition rounds with the orchestra. Paine practiced orchestral excerpts in her spare time, and amidst the tour, she advanced through to the semi-final round, and then a month later, she made it to finals.
During the final round, as she was waiting in the lounge, while the panel deliberated, the orchestra manager came down and said, “Julia, can I speak to you?”
Julia looked up. It was three o’clock in the afternoon, she recalls. She was hungry, tired, and thought they wanted her to play something else. The orchestra manager brought her up to the stage, and then turned and said, “Julia, congratulations, you won the position, the panel would like to congratulate you.” Suddenly, a wave of applause came from the panel as Paine stood on stage, crying tears of joy.
The morning after, Paine called her mentor, Gabriel Beavers, associate professor of bassoon at the Frost School of Music. “I won! I start in September!”
Throughout her journey—from Miami to Paris, and from Raleigh to St. Louis, and other cities along the way—she has gained depth, color, and a connection with her musical voice. Here’s more of her story, in her own words.
When did you decide performing was your passion?
In the spring of my fourth year at the University of Miami, I had a talk with Gabriel one day, after class. He said, “Julia, before you make a decision as far as what you are going to do next, I want you to know that if you wanted to make it in music, you could.”
With that in mind, while I was finishing my two degrees: Marine Science and Music, I was awarded a PlusOne Scholarship for a fifth year at UM, and spent the first semester studying in Paris. That time in France completely solidified everything for me. Every friend that I made or every great moment I had there was because I joined three different orchestras and was plugged into the music community. After that, there was no doubt in my mind that music was the career for me. I wanted to play in an orchestra.
How did you navigate those two degrees at UM?
Honestly, I didn’t balance them well. Gabriel Beavers was a phenomenal teacher. I remember coming into a lesson one day after I had been studying for several exams. I hadn’t practiced at all that week. So, he looked at me and said, “Julia, why don’t we spend today’s lesson working on our sight reading skills?” I was like, “Oh, God . . . thank you.” He still took that as an opportunity to teach me something.
When did you realize as a child that you loved music?
I started playing the bassoon at age 10. Even then, music was where I found my closest friends—my community, happiness. In high school, I was involved in three different ensembles during school days.
And why the bassoon?
This is going to be totally unsatisfying. I wanted the bassoon because it was taller than me! [laughs] I feel a lot of musicians get that question asked, but honestly . . . at age 10, I’m not sure there’s ever going to be a profound answer to that.
Okay, that’s fair. So, why did you stick with it?
Every year, I was able to find more depth, color, and a connection with my own voice. It has been this kind of ongoing battle of wanting my bassoon to be an extension of my voice, and for so long, I wasn’t technically capable of doing that yet. There was a space—an obstacle between what I wanted to produce and what I was technically capable of doing on the bassoon. I have been bridging that gap very slowly, but surely. That has been the most satisfying part of getting closer and closer to what I want to produce with my horn.
How do you feel about the second bassoon position?
I’ve always been very confident in that position. I do love playing principal bassoon parts, but second bassoon fits me better. I am so happy in that role, and I find myself confident in my ability to maintain a high quality of musicianship.
What are the major differences between a principal and second bassoonist?
The second bassoonist tends to be the bottom of the wind section, so I am usually playing the roots of the chords, and even though it often doesn’t have as many solos, it is so critical to making a cohesive wind section. I like that understated position of critical importance, while also not having as much stress as a principal bassoonist.
Looking back at those five years at UM, and all the experiences that you’ve had along the way, what advice would you give to our Frost students?
My first instinct would be to say, “PRACTICE!” But that’s cliché, right? Let me think . . . You need to stay curious about everything you’re doing. Don’t be judgmental to yourself or other people, but if you make a mistake, be curious about that mistake. If you decide to do something, be curious about the reasons why you decided to do that, because that curiosity is going to allow you to move forward and still love what you’re doing. I have found that without that curiosity, there’s less enjoyment, interest, and passion in life.
