One of the goals of the Michigan State University College of Music is to nurture raw talent, surround it with opportunity, and help forge meaningful and fulfilling careers. In the MSU Woodwinds Area, there is a clarinet professor who does that every day for his students, and wonderful outcomes can emerge with hard work and the help of generous donors.
Among the many professional endeavors of MSU Associate Professor of Clarinet Guy Yehuda is as performing artist and product adviser for preeminent woodwind manufacturer Henri Selmer-Paris. So, when he wanted to flesh out his idea for an intensive, international academy for clarinet students, Yehuda got in touch with his contacts in Paris and began to brainstorm.
“I thought it should be a week-long immersion in the art and music of the clarinet,” said Yehuda, who also gives master classes at top schools and conservatories across the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and Europe. “I wanted students to be one-on-one with the best teachers and performers.” Ideally, it would be held in a perfect setting: “The beautiful campus of MSU.”
With support from Henri Selmer-Paris and its U.S. counterpart, Conn-Selmer, in Elkhart, Indiana, the first Henri Selmer International Summer Clarinet Academy debuted at MSU in May 2017 under Yehuda’s artistic direction. “The MSU College of Music has been an important partner of the Selmer Academy from the start,” said Yehuda.
MSU freshman John Khaydarov celebrates his win – and his first new clarinet – with MSU grad student Elyor Gofurov (left, 3rd place), Oberlin Conservatory’s Ian McEdwards (right, 2nd place), and Selmer Paris Artist Relations Manager Stephane Gentil (top).
Week of intensive study
The week-long Selmer Academy is held at MSU annually, excluding two years during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic when it was hosted online. In 2022, it marked its sixth year and the long-awaited return of the event in-person. It draws students from the U.S., Taiwan, China, England, and various European countries, according to Yehuda.
“The widespread appeal to students from abroad reflects the first-rate international reputation of the MSU College of Music,” he said.
Applicants submit audition recordings of two contrasting pieces of their choosing to be admitted. Only 20 students are selected each year by Yehuda and a visiting faculty of five artist teachers.
The faculty is made up of top artists from Paris, Chicago, and other U.S. locations, who work with the students in rigorous sessions throughout the week. The lineup changes from year to year.
“Teachers are selected for their artistic skills, but above all they are chosen for their human qualities, their sense of listening, and pedagogy,” said Yehuda. “In that way we guarantee students meaningful personal exchanges and advice that allows them to progress in a friendly and stimulating atmosphere through the curriculum.”
During the week, students participate in master classes, individual private lessons with each faculty member, a showcase to test instruments in the Selmer Paris professional clarinet line, and acoustic/repair information sessions with expert technicians. Evenings feature faculty and student recitals.
“The Selmer Academy is unique,” Yehuda said. “It is one of only a handful in the world doing something similar. Students are transformed by it. They value the interaction with great artists; the discussions relating to the clarinet, music, and life.”
Highlighting generosity
One such transformation took place for one of the 2022 participants, MSU student John Khaydarov, who studies with Yehuda. His story is unique, and it helps illustrate the personal assistance faculty like Yehuda, MSU staff, and donors provide students.
Khaydarov is from Tashkent and transferred to MSU from the State Conservatory of Uzbekistan. He knew he wanted to study clarinet in the U.S. after experiencing a 2018 master class given by Yehuda in Uzbekistan, but finances, red tape, and COVID delays kept him from enrolling at MSU until 2021. He entered as a freshman, even though at home he was in his third year of university.
“I wanted to start from the beginning,” explained the now 21-year-old of his quest to study clarinet at MSU under Yehuda. “I knew I could reach a higher level” of musical understanding and performance.
Khaydarov and his family believed that a part-time job would make up the difference between scholarships he received from MSU and his tuition costs. He found a job, but it wasn’t enough. So, one of the people he turned to was College of Music Director of Admissions, Student Services, and Scholarships Ben Ebener.
“He came to me asking for help to find another job that could give him the hours, but I explained that 10 hours per week was a normal part-time workload. Anything more than that can start to diminish his ability to study and practice,” Ebener said. “He clearly needed more scholarship to stay at MSU.”
Ebener put a variety of smaller awards together to supplement Khaydarov’s music scholarship, but this method while helpful is not always sustainable from year to year. Ebener knew that some of this money was promised to other applicants that had to delay their admission a year due to the pandemic.
Ebener promised that one way or another he would make this work, and he kept that promise. Now, Khaydarov is poised to return for his second year at MSU.
“I was able to offer John what he needed from funds raised in the general gift account for this past academic year, and I plan to use these funds to carry him through to graduation,” Ebener said.
During a week of immersion in the art and music of the clarinet, a group of finalists performed for the competition judges.
Yehuda and others who have worked with him can attest to Khaydarov’s potential as a musician – one who would certainly make the most of the scholarship funds offered. One instance where Khaydarov showed his promise occurred during the Selmer Academy solo competition, a highlight of the week’s curriculum.
Students entering the competition must prepare two designated musical selections, submitting their video and recordings about a month before the Academy begins. Those selected to advance then prepare new music to play before the faculty, who decide first, second, and third place winners. This year the final round was held in Cook Recital Hall on Friday, May 27.
In a somewhat surprising turn, Khaydarov won the competition’s coveted top prize: a new Selmer Presence B flat clarinet. Second place went to Ian Edwards of Oberlin Conservatory, and the third-place finisher was MSU graduate student Elyor Gofurov.
“I didn’t expect to win,” Khaydarov said. “The competition was my last concern. It was more important to get the lessons from the Academy. I just did my best and tried to keep from regretting it later.”
There would be no regrets, however. His performance won him a top-performing, brand-new instrument, his first.
“I never had a new clarinet in my life,” he said.
The Selmer International Academy experience and the first-prize award no doubt will go a long way as Khaydarov works toward his goals.
“John is one of the most talented young clarinetists I have the pleasure of having at my MSU studio. Not only he is gifted and talented, he has the inner drive to do the hard work it takes to fulfill his true potential,” Yehuda says. “Scholarships and programs such as the Selmer Academy are so vital in helping MSU attract and retain talented students like John from all over the world.”
Yehuda also gives credit to Ebener for going the extra mile to find funds to help Khaydarov keep pursuing his studies. “Sometimes that little extra is all it takes to unlock a special student’s potential,” he said.
For Khaydarov and other students of Yehuda, the goals are ambitious. So is the willingness to work hard to achieve them.
“I want to be a soloist with a world-class orchestra,” said Khaydarov. He then added, with a smile in his voice, “I want to play on stage at Carnegie Hall.”
