Martin Hackleman, horn

A member of the National Symphony Orchestra since 2000, Martin Hackleman began playing the horn at the age of sixteen, studying with Caesar LaMonaca in Houston. Continuing his studies at the University of Houston, in 1972 he won the Principal Horn Chair in the Calgary Philharmonic at age 19. Other teachers have included Barry Tuckwell and Roland Berger (Vienna Philharmonic). Mr. Hackleman joined the Vancouver Symphony as Solo Horn under Maestro Kazuyoshi Akiyama in 1974. Martin Hackleman left Vancouver in 1983 to join the world-renowned Canadian Brass. His three years with the group saw many outstanding achievements, among them: seven recordings for CBS Masterworks, including Brass in Berlin (with the brass section of the Berlin Philharmonic); extensive tours of the U.S., Canada, Europe and the Far East; a Canadian JUNO award for "best classical record"; the group's Hollywood Bowl premiere; and the release of their first video.

Mr. Hackleman then accepted an invitation to join the Empire Brass Quintet, whose moderate concert schedule allowed him time to pursue a solo career as well as specialty interests such as the Vienna and Natural Horns. He was a member of that group for three years.

No stranger to the field of music education, Martin Hackleman has published etude books (now in their third printing) for the horn that are required repertoire at such institutions as the Royal Conservatory in London, England and the University of Michigan. He is also a frequent juror for the Canada Council. He has been on the faculty at the University of Maryland, Boston University, and the University of British Columbia as well as a frequent guest faculty at Banff Centre in Alberta.

In 1990, Mr. Hackleman helped launch a nationally broadcast chamber music series on the CBC Radio called "CURIO", featuring chamber music of rare combinations and forgotten composers.

Martin Hackleman returned to Vancouver in November of 1989, where he was Principal Horn in the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra once again and Adjunct Professor of Horn at the University of British Columbia. For the 1999-2000 season Mr. Hackleman was invited to play Principal Horn in the Montreal Symphony under Charles Dutoit. He has also played as a guest Principal Horn with the Philadelphia Orchestra on two occasions since arriving in Washington, D.C. In addition to his duties as Principal Horn in the National Symphony, Mr. Hackleman also plays Solo Horn in the Washington Symphonic Brass and has recorded three CD’s with them.

Mr. Hackleman has made numerous recordings with the Vancouver Symphony, Montreal Symphony, the Canadian Brass, the Tidewater Brass, and the Empire Brass. In 1996 he recorded two solo CD's; one of his own arrangements for solo horn with piano and string accompaniment, and one of five Romantic concertos with the CBC Vancouver Orchestra. In addition, a recording of chamber music for 2 horns and bassoon was released in the spring of 1996. In November of 1998 a Christmas recording with horn quartet was released. A disc of the Brahms Horn Trio with other chamber music was released in July of 2000. In addition, he has three new CD’s poised to come out in the near future.

Kelly Ker Hackleman, piano

Kelly Ker Hackleman is adjunct music professor at George Mason University, where she teaches piano, sight singing and ear training, and keyboard literature. She has also been on the faculties of Shepherd College in Shepherdstown, West Virginia, Frederick Community College in Maryland, as well as Rhodes College and the University of Memphis in Tennessee. Dr. Hackleman currently holds the position of organist at Kirkwood Presbyterian Church in Springfield, and serves as Artistic Director for the “Concerts from Kirkwood” recital series.

Before moving to the Washington, D.C. area in September 2000, she was an active freelance musician in Montréal. She frequently played keyboard for the Montréal Symphony Orchestra and has performed with them in Europe, in the Canary Islands, and at Carnegie Hall. She has also played orchestral keyboard with the Philadelphia Orchestra, the National Symphony Orchestra, the Baltimore Symphony, the Washington Concert Ballet, The Washington Ballet, the Washington Choral Society, and the Kennedy Center Opera Orchestra. She is currently principal pianist with the Alexandria Symphony and held the same position with the Memphis Symphony Orchestra for six years.

She is pianist for the Washington Symphonic Brass, and recorded a CD, “Voices with Brass,” with them which was released in fall of 2005 to critical acclaim and is soon to be re-released by Warner Brothers. The CD includes Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana and Saint-Saens’ Organ symphony, among others. In July of 2006, she recorded two CD’s for french horn and piano with her husband, Martin Hackleman, both of which are scheduled to be released soon.

An accomplished chamber musician and accompanist, Dr. Hackleman was a founding member of the Peabody Trio of Memphis and has worked with such artists as Kallen Esperian and Richard Vernon, (Metropolitan Opera) Martin Hackleman, Tim Morrison, Scott Hartman, and Ofra Harnoy. She is a founding member of the George Mason University Faculty Piano Trio.

Dr. Hackleman has won or placed in numerous solo piano competitions, notably, the National Masters Piano Competition and second prize in the International Beethoven Sonata Competition. She holds a Masters of Music degree in performance with “Distinction in Performance” from the New England Conservatory and a doctorate in piano performance from the University of Memphis. Her teachers and coaches have included Anthony di Bonaventura, David Bar-Illan, Seymour Lipkin, Walter Trampler, Peter Wiley, Louis Krasner, and Menahem Pressler.

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