Student Spotlight: Sophomore Jason Filatov Collaboration half the experience being a musician


Already Jason Filatov í12 has made quite the impression on The College of Woosterís campus. Most recently, he was recognized for his performance at this yearís Party On The Green, though he has performed downtown at C.W. Burgersteinís several times as well.

Hailing from New Canaan, Conn, Filatov comes to the College with some studio experience already and one official album titled ìLights Out.” ìIt was well done, but not exactly a New York City recording,” Filatov said. ìA friend of mine went to music production school, and I used his studio.”

Filatov plans to begin recording again towards the end of the year, hopefully with more professional recording systems. ìI have hundreds of songs, so there is a lot of picking and choosing if I want to do this the right way,” said Filatov. ìWhat aspects of my music I want to be represented is something I want to spend a lot of time on.”

Filatovís Party On The Green performance was his 10th gig this year. He said he typically tries to play ìa couple times a month,” though this is normally with a band. At home, he plays a few venues, most notably the National Underground in New York City, and usually with six to nine extra musicians, all under the name ìThe Jason Filatov Band.”

ìTheyíre just used to calling it The Jason Filatov Band. Iíve always written the music, though I feel like I was the least talented one there. I was really grateful to have gifted a group of friends who wanted to do what I was doing,” said Filatov.

The band consists entirely of his old high school buddies, Filatov said. ìI play with a group of kids who were my friends in high school. It was the thing that brought us together,” he added.

Here on campus, however, Filatov is still looking for a good group to jam with. ìIím always looking for new people to play with,” Filatov said. ìIíve always thought playing with people is more enjoyable than playing alone. Thatís why this [the Party On The Green gig] was such a different experience ó it was challenging and exciting, but I was more nervous than I usually am.”

Filatov said he plays guitar as his primary instrument ó which he has played for six years ó and also likes to ìdabble in piano, saxophone and all those string instruments.” Musical influences include Dave Matthews Band, Jimi Hendrix, the Beatles, and most experimental rock and TV on the Radio. He describes his own music as ìacoustic rock funk with a poppy sound.”

ìI think the music I listen to reflects the music I play,” Filatov said. ìIím not sure if my music sounds anything like that, but the wide variety of music I enjoy is definitely reflective in the genres I enjoy playing.”

For those interested in hearing† his music can be found at www.jasonfilatovmusic.com. His work is also available on iTunes.

ìMusic is my way of telling people about me. Itís helped me to meet a lot of people in my life,” Filatov said. ìAnd unless Iím afraid of myself, I shouldnít be afraid of playing in front of other people.”

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