West Orange native Eduardo Fajardo is working on his performance diploma at the Peabody Conservatory at John Hopkins University.
Eduardo Fajardo is a classical musician and educator, now living in Baltimore but fondly recalling his West Orange roots.
Born and raised in Orange, Fajardo grew up playing trumpet. As a Salvadoran American, mariachi was part of his culture. But during his time in West Orange High School, he realized he wasn’t a fan of the trumpet. This is when he started taking flute lessons.
“It was just incredible,” he said. “I’m really in love with music and decided to do this for the rest of my life. West Orange High School helped me figure it out.”
Fajardo went to George Mason University for his undergrad and received his master’s in performance. That’s also when he advanced to his first Young Artist Competition and later got into Marina Piccinini’s international master class series.
“I absolutely love working with Marina Piccinini,” he said.
Currently, Fajardo is completing his performance diploma at the Peabody Conservatory at John Hopkins University and has already performed with renowned ensembles and appeared in national competitions.
Fajardo recently launched Fajardo Flute Studio, an online program dedicated to making music education more accessible for young students and aspiring musicians who may not have the resources for private training.
His goal is to access as many students from different areas as possible.
“I want to keep expanding, finding students who are passionate about flute,” Fajardo said. “Inner city, lower income students like me. Traveling to lessons adds on a financial barrier. How do we make this easier for students to access lessons? After the Covid era, everyone had wi-fi. I have students in New Jersey, here in Baltimore, who I teach one-on-one on Zoom. Music, history, music theory—give them a well-rounded education. It’s very important to meet students where they could be met. It’s their personality, how much energy are they willing to put in? What are they passionate about? We’ll make sure they do it beautifully with more awareness. It inspires me seeing how excited they get, even if it’s something they don’t want to do for the rest of their lives.”
Early next year, Fajardo is planning a mini tour with Dina Kasman on piano. They will be performing mostly Russian and Eastern European music.
“The show will be an hour and a half and we’re super excited to put it on,” Fajardo said.
And with all that Fajardo does in his career, he never forgets West Orange. He said he likes to come back to West Orange to visit once or twice a year.
“It’s super inspiring to come back to West Orange. As an artist, it’s so important to keep in touch with your roots. I wouldn’t be at the conservatory if I didn’t have the mentorship and guidance that West Orange High School created for me. Mr. Kelly, Mr. Zimmer, Erin Lagatic…They created this awesome environment for all the band kids. I’m really happy where I am today,” said Fajardo.
When Fajardo graduates Peabody, he plans to keep performing and making his concerts acceptable and affordable for all.
“Having a place to meet up and listen to music, it’s going to be a great thing moving forward,” he said.
He feels that connecting with community is the most important thing. When he’s not making music, he’s catching up with friends, or talking to a stranger. He said, “I’m a total social butterfly.”
To learn more about Eduardo Fajardo’s program visit: https://fajardoflute.com/
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