Philadelphia Orchestra performing Beethoven, Sibelius & Schubert
The Philadelphia Orchestra is one of the world’s most famous and as part of its 2009 European tour it will perform in Budapest next week. The Budapest Times spoke to concertmaster David Kim.
How did you join the Philadelphia Orchestra?
This is my tenth year with the orchestra. Before that I spent a year in Texas with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. Earlier I was like every other violinist who leaves Juilliard, and aspires to be a great soloist. I would never have dreamed that I would join an orchestra, let alone the great Philadelphia Orchestra and that I would have the luck of becoming concertmaster in 1999.
What exactly does being “concertmaster” mean?
First of all it means the position of first violinist in the first violin section of the orchestra. There are many more violins than other instruments among the orchestra parts. We generally carry the melody. The concertmaster is important because they set the tempo, whether fast, slow, lively or delicate. This gives the concertmaster a considerable influence on the sound of the orchestra. The concertmaster also serves as a link between the conductor and the individual musicians in the orchestra. For example if a member of the orchestra feels uncomfortable about turning directly to the person who is effectively their boss, they can approach the concertmaster. Or the conductor can ask the opinion of the concertmaster before making an announcement to the orchestra. And finally – what I find extremely important – the concertmaster acts as the face of the orchestra to the press and the public. Today the conductor is often only present for around four months in a season. Often they even live in a different country. Or there is a guest conductor. That’s why the concertmaster is particularly important as a spokesperson for the orchestra.
Is it easy for an orchestra to adjust to a new conductor, and vice-versa?
Yes, it is. The secret that audiences don’t always understand is that the best conductors allow the orchestra to play. They trust the orchestra to have its own vision, rather than trying to manipulate it or over-conduct. It is like with great racing horses. A jockey won’t constantly goad the horse. Instead they will let the horse run. The great thing about wonderful directors is that they see the form of the orchestra as an incredible instrument. Whoever takes up the baton can give us their interpretation, and the end result will be a wonderful cooperation.
What determines the sound of an orchestra and how much depends on individual members?
Every orchestra has its own tonal culture. In America alone the Chicago Orchestra can be distinguished by the sound of its brass section, while the Cleveland Orchestra is known for its vision and its delicate and sensitive playing. The Philadelphia Orchestra is famous for its strings and for its depth of sound. It is like drinking a great Bordeaux which has certain qualities and is earthy and complex. In a mysterious way in an orchestra everyone adapts the way they play, and what results is like a wonderful wine: not perfectly homogenous, but complex.
Leonidas Kavakos will perform with the orchestra at the concert in Budapest on 12 February. How would you describe him?
I think he plays beautifully and completely gives himself over to the music. He knows how to draw the most beautiful sound out of a violin in a way that is heavenly. If we can continue to speak of art in terms of food and drink, it is like going to a fantastic restaurant and ordering only the finest dishes. In my opinion he is one of the greatest musicians on all the concert stages.
The programme will consist of Beethoven’s Egmont Overture, Sibelius and Schubert. Do these three very different composers have anything in common in your eyes?
I am not a music theorist, but this programme will definitely show the Philadelphia Orchestra from its best side. I am reluctant to say it, but what can be better than hearing Egmont played by the Philadelphia Orchestra, followed by Sibelius’s violin concerto and then the Great Symphony? It doesn’t get any better.
At other concerts on your tour you also play Bartók, but not here in Hungary. Is there a reason for that?
Well, as you perhaps know, you should never play a country’s best music in that country, because the audience simply knows it better! I say that half as a joke, but there is something true in it. Maybe the audience heard Bartók performed by the Festival Orchestra a week before, and then what would we be doing there as Americans? That’s why we prefer to perform the best of other things. But it may just have been a coincidence that Bartók is not on the programme.
Would you say that there is a piece in the programme that is a particular challenge for the orchestra? Or is there a piece that means a lot to you?
We feel a strong connection to Sibelius. The orchestra was in Finland for the first time in the 1950s. There are only a few members from then who are still playing in the orchestra. Sibelius invited the orchestra to his house. We were there and had lunch together... that’s where the connection comes from.
The Egmont Overture is, for me, simply one of the most dramatic overtures, and that’s why I love playing the piece.
A lot of stamina is required for Schubert’s Great Symphony. There are some symphonies where certain voices are not always playing. In this work you have to play and play. There is a lot of delicate playing. People frequently don’t realise that delicacy requires more muscle work. For that reason the Great Symphony is very tiring, but very satisfying and one of the great works in music history.
Concert
The Philadelphia Orchestra with soloist Leonidas Kavakos (violin) conducted by Christoph Eschenbach
Beethoven: Egmont Overture, op. 84 Sibelius: Violin Concerto in D minor, op. 47 Schubert: Symphony No. 9 in C major (“The Great”), D. 944
Thursday, 12 February at 7.30pm
Tickets cost between HUF 4,500 and 6,800
Palace of Arts, Béla Bártok National Concert Hall District IX. Bezirk, Komor Marcell u. 1 Tel. (06-1) 555-3300 www.mupa.hu
The Philadelphia Orchestra is one of the world’s most famous and as part of its 2009 European tour it will perform in Budapest next week. The Budapest Times spoke to concertmaster David Kim.
