Back in the US of A

So it has been quite a while since I contributed to this blog. So long in fact that I am now doing so from on American soil. Now that I am lucid and back on a normal sleep schedule it will be easier to write.

Last time I posted it was from Temuco. Charming place but not much to see. The next stop was Concepcion which is actually north of Temuco. I wish I could say something about it but we were there for less than 24 hours. We showed up, checked into the hotel, changed and walked across the square to the hall for a soundcheck and then a concert. The next morning we were up early (again) for a quick breakfast before hitting the road for a long bus ride. We were off to Puerto Varas which is near Frutillar, our final stop and the site of our last residency. Wow. What a beautiful place! It was like no other part of Chile I had ever seen before. Lush green pastures with grazing cattle, expansive lakes and volcanos, yes volcanos, protruding sporadically from the landscape. It looked more like Switzerland than South America.

And then there was the hall.....Modern with great acoustics and basically just beautiful. One of the nicest halls I've ever seen or played in by far. We played two full orchestra concerts and one chamber concert which was an educational concert for some local youths. We were well received each time and it was generally a lot of fun. Also, a cool little side note: we were invited to the hall to watch the opening ceremonies of the 2012 Olympics in London on a big projector screen. That was pretty memorable. And, Sarah Chang hung out with us after her last peformance with us. Our cultural day took us to the volcano, some rapids and Lago Todo Los Santos, only a few hours from the border with Argentina. The weather could have been nicer but it was still beautiful. The color was a greenish blue tuquoise that I have never seen before and wont soon forget.

Of course the last concert and after party/dinner was emotional for many of the musicians but it still was a lot of fun. The voyage back to the US was not particularly enjoyable but oh well. Lets just say that despite delays, re-routes and vias issues everyone made it back ok.

I guess this would be as good as any a time to conclude. This is where I tell everyone what I've learned, the profound insights I've gained, how I'll remember this for the rest of my life, etc. etc. That is all true. In one month I've compiled a large amount of memories, experiences, insights and freindships that will last a lifetime. The cliche holds truer than ever. Music is an universal language. We were 85 strangers plucked from twenty or so countries, brought together to play some of the greatest music ever written. Despite language barriers and cultural oddities we were able to do amazing things in one month. Now everyone disappears back into the world returning from whence they came but, like me, forever changed.

I guess I'll end with some favorites. Favorite concert: The first concert in La Serena, and the first concert in Santiago. Favorite audience: La Serena concert. Most memorable performance: Brahms 4 in Valparaiso. Best hotel: Santiago. Best party: Colombian Independence Day. Favorite place: Valparaiso, always but a couple others came close. Thats all for now. Thanks for following and I hope you enjoyed reading. Please check out the YOA Facebook page (there is a link on one of the first posts). There are a lot of pictures there from the tour and more information on the organization. Mucha Ropa. EAL

Last Few Days

Our time in Chile is sadly coming to a close in a few days. Our final residency is in a town in southern Chile that reminds me more of being in Germany or Switzerland than South America. The ski-lodge style architecture and presence of german cakes and pastries makes me forget that I can buy pisco and empanadas anywhere here. Puerto Varas is a tourist town that shares a lake with several other towns and a stunning volcano. Yesterday we took a bus tour around the lake and visited a spot that had a beautiful view of the volcano and several small waterfalls with the bluest water I have ever seen. After a quick boat tour where we were stuffed with 25 people per boat, we were back at the hotel and Ed and I decided to take advantage of the free afternoon by taking a bus 20km to the port city Puerto Montt. Taking the commuter bus is all part of the experience. This bus, including our regular tour coach, had rosary beads hanging from the mirror in addition to other items like palm crosses and pictures of saints--a reminder of the always present Catholic tradition here.

The whole orchestra is thankful for a more relaxed schedule our last few days. It's giving us a chance to wander and explore anything that catches our eye. It's also nice to have some time to relax after our schedule has been so packed for a month. We've also been invited to watch the opening ceremony of the Olympics at the same beautiful hall we performed in two nights ago. We will definitely have our flags with us. USA!! USA!! Time to go enjoy our last few moments. RKV

Temuco!

Played a great concert tonight in Temuco, a city about 9 hours south of Santiago. The audience again was great. It was our first presentation of Don Juan, Pictures, and Grieg's Piano Concerto with the fabulous Louis Lorte. During our free day yesterday I made friends with a cab driver who gave me a tour of the city. He was delighted when I showed him pictures of Placido Domingo, whom we met in Santiago. He took me up to Cerro Nielol where I got a nice view of the city and took some photos. He only charged me 5 bucks for the sightseeing tour. Sweet. The one thing I'll never forget about Temuco is the smell. There are lots of forests here and most people heat tier homes with fireplaces. It smells like a campfire ALL the time. That mixed with the crisp air makes for a rather nice atmosphere. Tomorrow we are off to Concepcion. A very tight schedule that includes another 4 hours on the bus. EAL

Valparaiso, Santaigo, Placido Domnigo and 9 hour bus rides

Wow, so much has happened since my last post. Our schedule has been pretty crazy and we spent all day yesterday on a bus so please forgive my tardiness. Last time I wrote I had just gotten to Valparaiso, the city from whence my mother came. It was a whirlwind couple days of cramming in time with family around rehearsals and tour obligations. We played our Valparaiso concert in the theater of the Universidad de Santa Maria which, for those of you who like tidbits, is the most prestigious school of engineering in Chile. During the rehearsal I learned that the hall itself has quite a history. Orchestras such as Berlin and the New York Philharmonic, led by Karajan and Bernstein respectively, have graced the stage and the legendary violinist Jascha Heifetz soloed there on multiple occasions. I was fortunate to have almost my entire family there sitting just a few rows from the stage. Benjamin Zander led us in a performance of Hindemith's Symphonic Metamorphosis, Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto and Brahms' Fourth Symphony. The acoustics were excellent and our performance of the Brahms is something I will remember for a long time. The next day we were off to Santiago de Chile, the capital city. The ride was short, only a couple hours or so to the hotel. Once there we were whisked away to a a theater where we were greeted by Placido Domingo.....yes THAT Placido Domingo. He was kind enough to address us for about a half and hour and take some questions from the group. He was so kind and graceful. We got to sit on on a new opera he is rehearsing and hear him sing a bit. A real treat. I have two cousins living in Santiago and had the privilege of meeting one of them for dinner that night. Gonzalo and his wife Evelyn, accompanied by their son Joaquin (two years old) picked us up at the hotel and gave us a tour of the city by night. We rode up the main hill (I can't remember the name right now) which is capped by a statue of the Virgin Mary, a gift from the French to the Chileans in the 19th century. From here Pope John Paul II blessed the city in his visit to the country in 1985. It provides a panoramic view of the city which is very large. About 6 million people, almost half of the Chilean population, live there. We ended the night at their apartment eating Chinese food, drinking wine, and catching up. It was truly a lovely evening. We played two concerts in Santiago: one free one in Teatro Nunoa and another one at Teatro Los Condes where admission prices started at $120. Both were great successes. Under Carlos Miguel Prieto we performed Ginastera's Panambi Suite, Sibelius Violin Concerto with the well known Sarah Chang on violin, and Shostakovich's 5th Symphony. We got incredible receptions at the end of both concerts. The best thing about Santiago? The hotel! Wow, I have never stayed in anything so nice. In addition to the bedrooms there was a balcony, a living room with a couch, recliner, table and chairs, and a full kitchen with a stove, refrigerator, and microwave. The room was basically an apartment. I think it will be a long time until I stay in a hotel that nice. Leaving Santiago was hard, especially considering that it was a 9 hour bus ride to our next stop Temuco where I am now sitting in a hotel writing this post. The city and hotel are NOTHING like Santiago but the place is charming in its own way. We are here for 3 nights and our first concert is tomorrow night in town. It is also the first night of a new program: Grieg Piano Concerto, THE Don Juan- Strauss's famous tone poem, and Mussorgsky's "Pictures at an Exhibition." Should be a good time. It's been a long post I know but so much has happened since I last posted. I'd like to leave you with something I noticed during our first concert and have continued to observe throughout the tour: the audience. Rarely as symphonic performers do we really feel like we are connecting with out public. It is a real problem in our profession. Here, however, it has been completely different. We are treated as a real spectacle. Most of the people we play for have never heard a symphonic performance of our size and caliber and many may never hear one again. Many times I have looked out into the hall and seen people behaving like my family members who attended the Valparaiso concert-truly enthralled, captured, and eyes closed listening attentively. It is really a beautiful thing to observe the connection and the appreciation that these people have to us and the music. After concerts so many of them have been like my cousin and his family in Santiago- beaming and completely excited by what they had just witnessed. It is a very special thing and reminds me of the power and purpose of music making and gives me hope for the future. I'll leave you with some photos. EAL

On the Road

We finished our residency in La Serena a few days ago and we are now officially on tour which is a nice change of pace. It was nice to be in Vina del Mar and Valaparaiso because of how different both cities are from any other place I've seen and it was really special to meet Ed's family. I was finally able to see the place where he spent his summers and meet people I had only seen in pictures. His cousin and uncle gave us a whirlwind tour around the area through the winding, roller-coaster like streets. We took a cable car up the mountainside to a great view of the port, stopped quickly at La Sebastiana, the house of poet Pablo Neruda, saw the naval academies and former university of Ed's mother and had lunch at a local cafe. Later in the evening we performed a well-received concert in a hall with fantastic acoustics. It was our last performance with Ben Zander but our first performance with Ed's family present. It was very special. It was very sweet to see all of his family sitting practically at his side throughout the concert. I am thankful that many of his family members knew some English but it is a personal goal of mine to be able to communicate in Spanish with them the next time. I am getting much better at understanding what I'm hearing but I'm still far away from saying more than a few words at a time.

We are now in Santiago where about half of the Chilean population lives. It is a very modern city with all of the comforts I am used to. I miss the charm of Vina and Valaparaiso but our business-district hotel is fantastic and there is a beautiful mall just around the corner. The Andes are also a welcome site while walking around and glancing out the window.

We had the rare opportunity to meet yet another wonderful and successful artist on this trip, Placido Domingo. He met with us and gave a short presentation on realizing your goals and how to manage your life and outlook. We were also invited to watch him conduct and sing in a dress rehearsal with the orchestra in Santiago. A theme I am finding with all of the successful people we are meeting on this trip, including the board members, professors, artists, conductors etc., is that they are all very wonderful and gracious people that truly work hard with a clear set of goals and a mind and spirit that is always open to new ideas and possibilities. One thing we have heard time and time again is that it is not rare to be born with talent but it is rare to have the discipline and openness to actually pursue whatever it is you have the potential to do. You must do it in a way that allows you to connect with people from the present and past that will help lead you to possibilities in the future. Enough philosophy for now. Time to get a quick yoga and practice session in before a reception and chamber concert with our board members. RKV

A beautiful cafe/hotel in the hills of Valparaiso!

Valparaiso!

Yesterday we pulled into Valparaiso, late of course. Pretty shortly after we arrived I called my uncle and we were whisked away. First I stopped in to see my grandmother who is now 91. What a great visit. She said she had been waiting for my since 10am that morning. After a brief driving tour of Vina, we met up with almost all of my family there for dinner, including a cousin of mine who I hadn't seen in about 17 years. A real treat. Afterward we went out on the town for a few drinks with my cousin Valentina and her boyfriend. It was nice to catch up and hear about her future plans (she is contemplating a move to Australia) and discover that wherever you go in the world, a bar is a bar. Haha. This morning is was an early rise again. The breakfast was actually delicious (for a change). Then it was off to lunch with my uncle and a driving tour of Valparaiso. It was nice to see the old neighborhood, pass by a house of Pablo Neruda, and also the house of my grandparents which has been sold for some time. The best is yet to come, the concert! It has been a great visit but the pace has been crazy and overwhelming. There is just so much to do and I wish I could stay longer but that's life I suppose. Hopefully all will go well tonight and the audience will enjoy it. Tomorrow it's off to Santiago!

First concert

Yesterday we had our first concert in La Serena. Tonight we have another. Friday morning we check out and start our tour. First stop, Valparaiso! Last night was absolutely incredible. We were well received by a large, attentive and gracious audience. When we pulled up to the hall we saw the line to get in wrapped around the building. As we got off we were met with cheer an applause with people snapping photos. It was really a surprise for all of us. You would think that we were a rock band about to play to a sold out arena, not a classical music concert. It was a great day for the Chilean members of the group especially. We were given a preconcert talk by the First Lady of Chile who thanked us for our presence and encouraged us in our future endeavors. Last night was truly unforgettable and a great way to start the tour.!

Quick Updates

Just a quick post to keep everyone updated. Yesterday a few of us took advantage of a cancelled rehearsal to sneak away to a local fish market in Coquimbo.Wow, this place was awesome. It's everything I love about Chile. The people, the color of the water, the fisherman's boats rocking lazily in the water, giant pelicans lounging beside sea lions on the large, jagged rocks. We had lunch by the water (we ate fish) before heading back for afternoon rehearsal.

We also had the privilege of having a private Q&A with the Chilean composer Jaun Orrego-Salas who is the founder of the Latin American Music Center at the Jacobs School of Music, Indiana University and remains on faculty there. He is also our composer in residence. He was highly entertaining and it was a real treat.

Our first concert is only days away (June 11). There is still plenty of work to be done but one gets that sense that people are itching to play, ready to get started. Our first program i a doozie, Shostakovich 5, Don Juan and the Sibelious Violin Concerto played by a remarkable young Curtis student named Timothy Chooi. We are expecting a large and enthusiastic audience so it should be a blast. And, as if I wasn't embarrassed enough the first time another article came out today in a different Valparaiso newspaper. Here's the link if you're curios: http://edicionimpresa.soychile.cl/estrella-valparaiso/2012/07/09/full/30/

Rehearsal, Rehearsal and More Rehearsal…..oh and some stargazing

Well, its been a pretty eventful couple of days. We had our first rehearsal with Benjamin Zander and if there is one word to describe him it is energetic. Really he just exudes enthusiasm and never seems to tire. He is a great musician but what impressed me most was his exceptional gift as an educator. He spent much of the first rehearsal having various sections play in isolation, allowing us to hear how each part fit into the greater fabric of the work and at the same time to allow us to really marvel at the excellence of Brahms’ skills as a composer and orchestrator. The Fourth Symphony, like much of Brahms’ music, is extraordinarily emotionally complex and the group, in particular the winds, are really responding well. That is another thing that bears mentioning. It has been quite a phenomenon to observe the progression of the group over the last few days. Every day we get a little better, a little more comfortable and more used to our surroundings. We arrived here as strangers in a strange land, well most of us anyway. The best way to describe the first rehearsal is tentative. Since then we have had more time to get to know each other, more time to play with each other, time to practice and have gotten comfortable in our lodgings. Overall, everyone is really starting to embrace this whole experience which leads to excellent music making.Yesterday was the first of a couple “cultural days” that we will take part in during our time in Chile. We had an early morning rehearsal and then were whisked away to nearby Vicuna, the birthplace of the poet and national Gabriela Mistral. The drive took us through the mountains , revealing some extraordinary scenery along the way. We arrived at the museum that stands at the place of her birth and were well received by local members of the community as well as some student musicians who played some Vivaldi and Tchaikovsky for us (unconducted!). A few members of the orchestra played some short chamber works which were much appreciated by everyone in the museum. Afterward we headed to a nearby vineyard where Pisco is produced. Pisco is a clear, and very strong, liquor that is made from grapes. Pisco is to the Chileans what Vodka is to the Russians. We took a brief tour and were able to do a bit of tasting. After yet another dinner of chicken and rice we headed to the real treat of the evening, an observatory called Malluca. Under the guidance of a local astronomer we were able to look through a very expensive telescope and see the planets Saturn and Mars as well as various star clusters. Apparently the conditions for stargazing is are excellent in Chile and it is the site of many foreign owned telescopes and observatories, the most expensive of which cost one billion (yes one billion) Euro to make. In exchange for allowing the Europeans to build telescopes on their soil, Chilean astronomers are allowed a certain amount of time to use the telescope, free of charge. As our astronomer quipped ” they have the telescopes, we have the sky.” The whole experience was very memorable and something I never expected I would ever get to experience.On a personal note, I gave my first phone interview today. Haha. I got a call from a reporter in Valparaiso who works for the paper there. Somehow, I’m guessing through one of my family members there, she learned of my involvement in YOA my ties to the area. It was short, and comprised mainly of me answering questions about my family there, my experiences in the country, my memories of the city and my personal road to this point. Hopefully I’ll get a copy of the paper somehow. Still, it was a real surprise for me. Now my name will be in print! The rest of our time in our residency in La Serena, which end of the 13th, will consist mostly of rehearsals and sectionals. We give two concerts here before we leave, both free to the public. One of them will be in a local gymnasium which holds about four thousand people. Multiple people have told me that I should expect it to be packed. I am really looking forward to that. The people here have been very kind to us and seem enthusiastic to hear us play. There are banners advertising our presence hanging all over town. It’s pretty exciting. That’s all for now. Oh and here is a link to the article: http://edicionimpresa.soychile.cl/valparaiso/2012/07/07/full/5/

Por Fin! Finally a night off. Things have been pretty intense since we've arrived. It hasn't even been a week but it feels like much longer. Where to begin? Well for starters, getting here was not as bad as I thought it would be. Everything went smoothly and ran pretty much on time. The fleet of Lan Chile, the domestic airline, is made up entirely of AirBus planes which for the record are way nicer than the Boeing we flew down on. We touched down in a small airport in La Serena, Chile, the site of our residency. And when I say small I mean one landing strip small.

The next day, things were off and running. We are spending the first part of our time in Chile in residency at the University de La Serena Conservatorio de Musicia. Here is where we will practice and rehearse for the next 10 days or so. The building is old but charming an provides a great view of the surrounding mountains.

The first few days consisted of seating auditions and section coachings in all the repertoire we are preparing for the tour. We are doing some great, albeit challenging, stuff: Shostakovich's Fifth Symphony, Brahms' Fourth Symphony, and Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition to name just a few. However the real treat to date came on Saturday when we were invited back to the University to hear a private concert from the local youth orchestra. We were the guests of honor and it was really a special thing to see these young kids play so well. It was a real reminder that some things, like music, are truly universal. Despite the location, quality of the instruments, etc, everything was there. The sound, the feeling, interpretation, etc. Really a memorable evening.

Afterwards we got to mingle a bit and all the kids (and their parents) seemed genuinely thrilled to have us there and to host us. I think this treatment may be a sign of things to come.

Unfortunately we haven't had much time to get out and see this town as our days have consisted of meals, bus rides and rehearsals, but hopefully we'll get a chance to spend some time in town before start the tour.

It hasn't been all business though. I've been sampling the local fare trying exotic treats like orange flavored Oreo's and mystery flavored Dorito's. But that's a story for another time. Until then I'll leave you with some shots of the beach, yes beach, that we are staying near.I zoomed in, hence the fuzziness.

More Mountains.

Oh yes, and the sunsets (when we are not rehearsing and get to see them) are pretty special. EAL

Free Time Fun

We have been very busy with rehearsals which are typically quite mentally taxing but the group is beginning to sound fantastic. We have been working with Ben Zander this week who has also worked with my mom at New England conservatory while she studied there. Full circle! Amidst all of our rehearsals we've been able to find a few moments of free time to unwind. We had a very patriotic and fun Independence Day celebration in one of the cabanas, complete with American flags in the window, a certain game involving ping pong balls, and even some piscolas, a local beverage with pisco and coke. A large portion of the orchestra joined in the festivities and some South Americans even knew the tune to the star-spangled banner, which we sang very loudly at too high of a key. I felt more patriotic this fourth than other celebrations in past years. I'm looking forward to seeing how the other members celebrate their own country's holiday while on tour. I'm sure there will be salsa dancing involved, as it found its way to our American celebration. We've also had the chance to tour a pisco vineyard/maker and go star gazing at an observatory in the mountains. I've never seen the sky that clear, enough to see hundreds of stars, many constellations and several planets. It was incredibly beautiful and our guide at the observatory was great. It was fun to be enthusiastically nerdy about something other than music for a few minutes.

Feeding an orchestra and its staff for each meal is definitely a huge task that is challenging for any kitchen crew but it often means that we eat a lot of basic food staples like rice, potatoes and some kind of simple protein. Having that food everyday made me very thankful when our horn prof took the section out to lunch at an Italian cafe down the street from our rehearsal space. I had gnocchi with bolognese that really hit the spot and was cleansing to my taste buds and soul. Mom, as rejuvenating as this bolognese was, yours is still the best. After growing up where I have, I am an Italian food snob. I'll admit it. I also really miss having Greek yogurt everyday and spicy food. It will be nice to sample some more local food once we get on the road and have a bit more free time. I hope to be posting more frequently now that we've figured out when and where we have wifi access. I feel bad for our hotel staff because with the large amount of people trying to get their Facebook fix, we usually crash the Internet everyday. Oops! RKV

7/3/12

I am not sure where to begin. I have been in this beautiful country for several days and I am still adjusting to all that living in a new country brings, in addition to the wonderful and challenging musical experience I'm having. Put simply, this festival is different. It it different in the overall feeling and there is an overwhelming sense that we are all here to share music and all of the attributes it has to offer with a community much larger than just a typical audience. We have not yet had any performances but I know that it will be received in a different and more appreciative way in terms of the connection between people and this larger thing we have chosen to become a part of. Spanish. The language is everywhere. Roughly seventy percent of the people participating in the festival speak fluently. My knowledge of this language is very limited but it is really exciting picking up new words and phrases every day. My section mates, who are all very nice and incredibly talented, consist of one American girl, and three boys who are all Spanish speaking. Only one of the guys speaks some English. Our bilingual coach and mentor for our residency in La Serena is Javier Gandara, third horn in the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. Our experience with him has been really special because of his friendliness, skills as a section coach and generosity with his time. Because our section consists of both English and Spanish speaking members, most things in the beginning were said in both languages but as we progress, less and less is said in English but I am still able to understand because of context. My brain and ears are working in a new way that doesn't allow for down time. Sectionals are engaging because of the language challenge in addition to working on all of the musical details. Put simply, this section rocks. I feel so lucky to be playing with a group of people that are so talented. We respond and adjust quickly and sound like we've been playing together much longer than we have. I had a chance to practice some of my limited Spanish phrases today in a sectional that I helped coach for a local youth orchestra. With the help of two of my section mates and one bilingual youth orchestra hornist, we had a productive morning filled with horn nerdiness and some challenging but fun communication experiences. It was really special for me to begin the session with a warm up routine that was so familiar to me and my past learning experiences that I could share with these young players. I play, you play. There was a constant flow of communication that required no words. I have so much more to share, including some silly fun stories, but I just wanted to share a small taste of my time here so far. We are very busy!! More to come!