Great Expectations

In response to Adam’s questions from Day 2, I found group piano to be the least helpful class towards winning and maintaining my orchestral position and music history to be the most beneficial. At that age and with the limited amount of repertoire experienced in student orchestras, music survey classes, especially the listening of recordings, were very important in expanding my understanding of music on both a technical and emotional level. My bassoon teacher, David Van Hoesen, also encouraged me to listen to the great violin soloists performing a variety of music from the great composers. All of the listening I did had a great effect upon my own musical taste and helped me discover my own concepts of tone and style.

On a different subject, one very important factor which has yet to be discussed is the positive and/or negative influence of politics upon the fortunes of musicians who seek careers in professional orchestras. Like almost any profession where judgment of one’s abilities is primarily subjective, the influence of politics is a major fact of life in the orchestra world.

In athletics, objective judgment usually rules. In a foot race, the athlete who runs the fastest will clearly be the winner of the race. But in the finals of an orchestra audition, the winner is not so clearly defined. Oftentimes, the finalists in an audition are so good and so qualified for the one opening that other factors, often beyond the control of the finalists, can come into play. If the conductor or members of the audition committee know a finalist from previous experience, that experience whether positive or negative can influence the final decision and affect the rest of the finalists through no fault of their own. For this reason, students should be taught carefully about how to get along with fellow musicians on stage and how to stay on the good side of conductors. These skills are also critical in achieving tenure in an orchestra.

Two of the best pieces of advice I received as a student was to always obey without challenge the instructions from the podium and avoid discussions when resolving intonation issues with other musicians. Most musicians who have succeeded in winning positions will at least admit to themselves that political influences both helped and hurt them at one time or another. Because politics is such an important factor in this business, one hopes that in the end, these influences balance themselves out during the long course of one’s career.