KAPLAN BREHM is the culmination of years of friendship, and frustration, over musical tools.
There are doubtlessly exceptional mouthpieces in the world—but we (Jon + Gavin) are of the opinion that it is just too hard to move between sound concepts without frustrating adjustments to accommodate the unnecessary quirks of different designs in the existing market . Plenty of brands make an excellent tool for a particular sound. Plenty of brands will tell you that your equipment is out of tune, out of style, or incapable of playing the note that’s just out of reach. Plenty of brands will tell you that you play wrong and just need to reacclimate to their system. Yet, we have never found a mouthpiece brand that helps artists to cut through the noise and move across the sounds they seek to create, easily.
Our mission is to do just that: enable brass players to move between sound concepts as fluidly as turning a filter knob on a synth. No unnecessary variables changing in unhelpful ways—just tools that make sounding good simple.
THE TEAM
Jon KAPLAN
co-founder
Jon has over a decade of experience as an orchestral trumpet player, performing full-time with ensembles including the Charlotte Symphony, Central City Opera, as well as with numerous major U.S. orchestras as a substitute. In addition to his active musical career, Jon runs the YouTube channel Jon Talks Trumpet, which demystifies brass equipment to help musicians find and understand tools that work across the many artistic roles modern trumpeters face.
KAPLAN BREHM is Jon’s foray into building even better artistic tools based on everything that he has learned as a performer, communicator, and huge trumpet nerd. Jon holds an undergraduate degree in Trumpet Performance from Arizona State University as well as a master’s degree in Trumpet Performance from Rice University. Originally from Eagle River, Alaska, Jon now lives in Charlotte, North Carolina with his wife, Courtney.
Gavin BREHM
co-founder
Gavin is a seasoned research & development leader with a broad multidisciplinary background. His prior projects have ranged from leading R&D engineering for Conn Selmer to apprenticing in traditional bamboo flute-making in Seoul; and, from conducting sensation and perception lab research at Northwestern University to collectable design for Haulenbeek studio in Chicago. Gavin’s approach to instrument design is nontraditional, iterative, and driven by obsessions with meticulous design research and vintage instruments. He can be found listening to sad music, gardening, and playing with MATLAB.
Originally from Minneapolis, Minnesota, he has spent the last decade in the Chicago area. Gavin holds an undergraduate degree from Northwestern University, where he triple-majored in Trumpet Performance, Cognitive Neuroscience, and Product Design & Development Engineering. He is also an alumnus of the Henry Luce Scholars Fellowship.
