Re: [PC GAME - ITA] Opera Fatal
Keena Wiegert
TO: When I came to Boston in late August much of the orchestra was still en route from Tanglewood so I had the whole hall to myself. The first thing I did was sit down on stage and play a Rochut Bordogni etude to an empty hall. Johannes Rochut was once the Principal Trombone of the Boston Symphony as well so it was very special to me. As I meet colleagues here for the first time I immediately sense there is a tremendous feeling of history and artistic legacy at Symphony Hall. Of course it is an honor to play here, but at its core, for me, the BSO is a beautiful legacy to be a part of.
DB: As I understand it, your dad was your first trombone teacher and your earlier focus was on jazz playing. Do I have that right? What were the circumstances that led you to change your concentration to the classical side of things?
I played classical and jazz trombone throughout high school with the sense of foreboding that some day I would need to choose one or the other. For the longest time I wanted to be someone who could do both equally well. However, as I began more than casual study of both, I could see that the amount of dedication necessary to succeed in jazz or classical would require me to focus my studies on just one.
My ultimate decision to switch to classical trombone exclusively is for two reasons. The first time I ever played in an orchestra was when I was 17. I went to Spain with a college orchestra that needed a last minute replacement. We played the New World Symphony in cathedrals throughout the Balearic Islands and I was blown away by the rich harmony and textures washing over me every moment as I sat in the ensemble and I knew I wanted to explore it further. I was also very inspired by Nathan Zgonc, a friend of mine with whom I grew up who is blessed with a real gift for beautiful orchestral trombone playing. Nathan is 2 years older than me and very much like the older brother I never had. He is also a very good viola player so in addition to a fantastic singing sound on the trombone, he has a tremendous sense of phrasing and orchestral sound. We grew up in neighboring high schools and because we were so highly competitive, I never told him how much I admire his playing and facility.
I started classical trombone study with Peter Ellefson when I was a junior in high school and to this day he is still my mentor. At the time he was the newly appointed second trombone with the Seattle Symphony Orchestra and I would make the trip up from Portland to see Pete twice a month to play solo repertoire and occasionally some excerpts. I went to Oregon State University to study with Warren Baker for two years before I transferred to Indiana University to study with Scott Hartman and M. Dee Stewart.
After 2 seasons in Sarasota, the Buffalo Philharmonic was faced with the tragedy of losing their Principal Trombone, Scott Parkinson, as a result of fatal heart attack. I greatly respected him as a person and a player and it was my honor to play in his stead for a year before they could hold the audition for his position. I took a leave of absence from the FWCS and left for the chilly snowy BPO. I loved playing in Buffalo and was disappointed to leave such a fine orchestra.
One thing I did when I was in Buffalo was that I began taking a lot of European auditions because I was very inspired by stories of working abroad from my friend Jamie Williams. Jamie plays Principal Trombone in the Dortmund Philharmonic in Germany. I had relative success with European auditions such that I was invited for a month to play Principal with the Tonhalle Orchestra, Zurich. I ultimately returned to my position in Florida for another year with resolve to keep taking auditions in the U.S. and abroad in hopes that I would achieve greater success. After 6 months I did in fact win Principal Trombone here in the U.S. with the San Diego Symphony.
DB: It seems that you have experience with a good many auditions. Is there anything you can specifically point to that you did crucially different in preparation for the Boston Symphony Orchestra audition?
I drove up to Los Angeles several times to play through the list for Steve Witser who was very helpful and generous with his time. I also played for a few conductors in the area who, in addition to making me very nervous were able to argue advanced ideas of phrasing from a musical perspective that did not include the biased knowledge of any limitations inherent to the trombone.
That said however, I feel that most music students in the U.S. (including myself) face a vast deficit of knowledge when it comes to audition preparation of orchestral and opera repertoire. There was no orchestra at my high school and I would suggest that is pretty consistent with most American trombonists.
After my experiences abroad, I decided to look at audition excerpts from a new perspective of character study where variations in timbre and expressive articulation were as important as pitch and rhythm. We often go to auditions trying to play note perfect, in time, in tune, and end up saying nothing of artistic value when audition committees would be grateful to hear anybody say something. I found success in the U.S. and abroad in large part when I decided to treat each excerpt as though I was playing a different role in a play in which I am the sole voice of each passage. Of course there are dismissable characteristics of rhythm and pitch in every audition but my point is that rhythm and pitch can only be small components of the means to a greater musical goal for each excerpt.
An dai gano baiwar da Kakudji ke da ita tun yana dan shekaru bakwai da haihuwa yayin da yake waka a Coci ga yara a Lubumbashi na kasar ta Kwango. Daga bisani wannan baiwa ta kai shi Turai tun yana da shekaru 17. Tun daga wannan lokaci dai ba kasafai Serge Kakudji ke samun damar yin waka a kasarsa ta asali ba. Sai dai a wannan karon ya samu dama. Ya kuma bayyana farin cikinsa kamar haka:
Kakudji da makadansa na "Coup Fatal" da suka hada da 'yan kasar Beljiyam biyu da kuma wani matashi dan kasar Kwango, sun kware a fagen gwama kayan kida na Kwangon da kuma salon kidan kasashen yamma na Baroque Opera. Yin wannan kida a Kinshasa wata hanya ce da Kakudji zai iya amfani da ita wajen cike gibin da ke tsakanin rayuwarsa ta Turai da kuma ta kasarsa ta gado wato Kwango. A matsayinsa na matashi ya rubuta waka ta opera da yarensa na Siwahili.
"Mutane da dama a nan na tambayar mu domin a Kwango ba a san wannan salon wakar ba. Muna jin dadinta saboda tana sosa zuciya, amma kuma sukan tambayeni me ne ne ra'ayin Turawa a kan hakan? Masu kallo na yi min wannan tambaya sau tari."
"Abinda nake kewa sosai shi ne rashin cudanya da mutane. Abin da mutum ke samu da zarar ya iso gida. A Turai babu irin wannan ma'amala, sai dai akwai a wasu wuraren, misali, idan muna wasa a kungiyarmu ta "Coup fatal" ina samun wannan ma'amala."
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