Kevin Lubin (he/they) is a composer, instrumentalist, and silly goose from New York and now living in Cambridge, Massachusetts. They have a degree in harpsichord performance and composition from Adelphi University, where their klezmer opera Four Jewish Women Playing Mah Jongg was premiered. Other compositional highlights include composing only the most serious pieces of music for toy piano, kazoo, and squeaky pig toys. Kevin is also the harpsichordist and viola da gamba player of Long-Island based baroque ensemble "Four and Twenty Strings." In this role, they have curated riveting and educational concerts including those highlighting Jewish composers of the 17th century. Other passions include teaching lessons for a variety of instruments such as piano, ukulele, guitar, voice, and recorder. Kevin is particularly proud of the recently-published Just Keep Playing, a book of piano repertoire for beginner to intermediate students containing music written by historically marginalized composers. This passion for teaching extends to holiday parties, where they often spend way too much time on preparing song sheets to lead holiday sing-a-longs while accompanying on the accordion. On a typical day, Kevin can be found brewing multiple cups of coffee, singing in Yiddish, and scheduling more rehearsals than they have time for.
Kevin has studied with composition teachers such as Dr. Sidney Marquez Boquiren and Dr. Ariel Lazarus. He has also studied harpsichord with Elaine Comparone, viola da gamba with Tal Arbel, and mandolin with Ryan Closs. Kevin is currently studying composition with Dr. John Morrison at the Longy School of Music.
Artist Statement
A life of playing silly music on silly instruments can be a very serious one. In every aspect of my work, I am looking to form and strengthen connections between people, which I firmly believe can be done through the intersection of comedy and music. Additionally, I am a fierce collaborator and prefer to work with people who have different perspectives than my own so we can connect with a wider audience. A successful performance, in my opinion, is one that the audience members leave smiling and laughing, ready to bring a little bit more levity into the world.
Teaching Statement
I approach teaching with enthusiasm, passion, and patience. I believe that my job is to teach my students to love music and appreciate it in all its forms, while understanding the variety in musical styles and repertoire. Every student is different and requires a unique teaching approach; however, all of my students are taught to read music and understand the basics of proper playing technique. Most of the repertoire that I give to my students are from the Western Classical tradition, published in my collection Just Keep Playing, though my lessons are primarily student-led. They are encouraged to choose their own repertoire and I do my best in finding music that they feel excited about playing while being at an appropriate level.
DEIB Statement
One of my favorite endeavors in my musical career is curating performances. In this area, I strive to create experiences that are musically fulfilling and cover a wide range of repertoire. Specifically, I present music that is by composers of a variety of backgrounds. I do my best to try to plan programs in a way where this music is showcased in a natural way, rather as a performative novelty. Oftentimes, I plan themed concerts. In this way, all of the music fits a theme (i.e. springtime, mythical creatures, cats, etc.) but can easily include music by composers who have been historically marginalized by their gender, race, ethnicity, class, sexuality, or other factors.