A UF music student will play classical music such as Prokofiev’s “Romeo and Juliet” at a national festival this June.
Kadin De La Barrera, a UF music performance sophomore, will represent UF when he plays the French horn at the Eastern Music Festival in Greensboro, North Carolina. The 19-year-old was the only UF student accepted to perform at the festival.
De La Barrera submitted a video playing three classical orchestral excerpts and a solo in October, he said. When he found out he was accepted, he was with his friends at UF’s men’s music fraternity.
De La Barrera said he then called Paul Basler, a UF music professor with whom he has been working since his senior year at Seminole High School in Seminole, Florida.
“Kadin has worked extremely hard on achieving this goal,” Basler said. “We are all very proud of him.”
Three other UF horn students have attended, and Basler said he’s glad De La Barrera is the fourth. De La Barrera said he’s excited to play with musicians across the country until the program ends in July.
“I’m looking forward to being able to play great orchestral repertoire with hard-working, talented musicians,” De La Barrera said.
Barrera started playing the French horn when he was about 10 years old, because he liked its sound more than that of the other instruments, he said.
“I had no idea it would lead me to this,” De La Barrera said.
