BALTIMORE — Two Baltimore School for the Arts seniors are part of one the most prestigious programs in jazz education and are touring with world-renowned Grammy artists.
The Herbert Hancock Student honorees are embarking on an experience of a lifetime.
Before senior drummer Julian Frazier and senior saxophonist Quinn Rehkemper set their sights on a tour, they spoke about being invited to this year's National Endowment for the Arts/ Herbie Hancock Institute National All-Star Peer to Peer Jazz Quintet.
Frazier couldn’t even make it one full year on this earth before finding his calling.
"I’ve been playing since I was nine months old," says Frazier.
"I’ve been playing on pots and pans with chopsticks. Anything that I can get my hands on," he says.
Frazier turned a corner in middle school before coming to BSA.
"I found the passion to be in the practice room a lot. Just always practicing. Eight-hour sessions. Just churning them out," says Frazier.
This month, he’ll be touring with Terell Stafford, a member of the Grammy-winning Vanguard Jazz Orchestra.
He’ll be the first one to tell you, that this type of achievement comes with sacrifice.
"You’ve got to want it because it’s very lonely. I won’t lie, practicing is lonely. It’s a lonely thing. But you want to practice so much that the loneliness is pushed down to where you go to a gig, there are all these great people enjoying the music. The loneliness is the last thing you think about," says Frazier.
Sharing this accomplishment with him is his classmate Rehkemper, who began playing the saxophone in 5th grade. He’ll join internationally renowned jazz recording artist Don Braden on tour.
"It definitely helps make me feel like, maybe I am doing the right things," says Rehkemper.
"As long as I go on stage, prepared and wanting to serve the music, that takes a lot of the pressure away," says Rehkemper.
Both students are aware of the stigma synonymous with young people in Baltimore City.
They want that narrative to change.
This year alone Rehkemper has toured Miami, Boston, and Rochester. He says nothing tops home.
"I keep coming back to Baltimore, and it really made me realize how much I enjoy being in the city. So far, I haven’t found another city like it. The community is so great," says Rehkemper.
Fraizer says the support and encouragement here aren’t talked about enough.
"I really want to break that because it’s really not like that. If you get here, you’ll see it’s a lot of passion. It’s a lot of love, especially in the music community. We’re always uplifting," says Frazier.
Both students will be pursuing a college education next year at Berklee.
