GLENN ANDERSON: THE TORONTO DRUMMER FOR FORTY YEARS TALKS REALITY: “MUSICIANS REGULARLY WORK IN A ‘PAY WHAT YOU CAN’ SCENARIO, BUT THIS IS HARDLY A LIVING WAGE; WE ARE NOT EVEN COVERED BY THE LATEST MINIMUM WAGE STANDARDS. THAT IS THE INHERENT RISK OF BEING INVOLVED IN THE ARTS.” …A REVIEWER’S INTERVIEW WITH PEOPLE IN THE ARTS

Posted on January 25, 2018 by strecker

JAMES STRECKER: If you were asked for 50 words for an encyclopedia to summarize what you do, or have done in the arts, what would you say?

GLENN ANDERSON: I have been a musician and specifically a drummer for the past 40 years performing extensively in several genres of jazz as well as a myriad of different styles of music. I suppose I have a bit of a reputation in providing solid, sensitive rhythm section support for many vocalists.

JS: What important beliefs do you express through your work?

GA: That’s a big question! I think first and foremost, the belief in the concept of cooperation and working together, i.e., working together for a common goal of making great music and having a great time doing it in an environment whereby the artists feel “safe” to take a leap of faith to be their creative best during every performance.

JS: Name two people, living or dead, whom you admire a great deal and tell us why for each one.

GA: I’ll pick one living and one dead…first, musician/songwriter Steve Earle. I’m not a Steve Earle fanatic, however, I admire Steve the person as well as musician. He’s a person who’s experienced it all, to hell and back again with addiction issues, a stint in prison and yet he’s grown stronger and stronger as a person and as a songwriter. Earle is a person who has been and continues to be an activist, through his music and otherwise, on many social issues affecting the U.S. and the world despite criticisms from some and despite the fact his career could potentially be negatively affected by those in power.

The second person is no longer with us. That’s my father. He passed away nearly 30 years ago and yet continues to have a profound effect on my life as a musician, as a person and most importantly as a parent. He was an artist in his own way. He was a typesetter for 30 years, which is an almost obsolete form of printing rarely used today. He loved his gig and despite suffering with cancer continued to work until he simply couldn’t stand up any longer. The irony was that his cancer was a direct result of his printing artistry, namely benzene in the inks and working with molten lead every day. He introduced me to two of my passions, namely jazz music and the game of hockey.

JS: How have you changed since you began to do creative work?

GA: I was bitten by the creative “bug” back in elementary school and that’s a long time ago now. I started playing drums and taking lessons when I was 8 years old. I’m turning 58 this year so that’s 50 years of hopefully being creative in some way every day of my life. Fifty years is a long time, forty years of it working as a professional musician. We all change more than we probably know over the course of that length of time.

JS: What are your biggest challenges as a creative person?

GA: I think one of the biggest challenges as a musician in Toronto, Canada or anywhere for that matter is how to make a living doing what you love and continue to do that for a lifetime. Simply put, it isn’t easy and it isn’t getting easier for a variety of reasons. There’s been a profound change in the music “industry” and especially for the working musician. That’s what I am when it comes down to it … a working musician.

There are other challenges such as maintaining the physical conditioning to play an instrument as physical and sometimes challenging as the drums. That includes performance and lugging gear and equipment around as you get a little older.

Staying relevant and well known in the music scene can be another challenge for musicians or any creative person on the scene today.

JS: Please describe one turning point in your life.

GA: When I was in elementary school, a big band from Wexford Collegiate (now Wexford Collegiate School for the Arts) in Scarborough performed at my school one day and I was simply blown away hearing a big band live after hearing so many of them on the “stereo” as a kid at home. Long story shorter, I ended up attending Wexford as a result of that day and meeting musical director J. Ross Folkes who had a profound effect on me becoming a musician as a career choice and my development as a professional.

JS: What are the hardest things for an outsider to understand what you do?

GA: I think one of the hardest things is for folks to understand is the time and effort it takes for any artist to begin to achieve the skills and wherewithal to achieve some “success” and standing in the community, both artistic and otherwise.

JS: How and why did you begin to do creative work in the first place?

GA: As I mentioned, it was a combination of a number of people and circumstances which lead me to a career in music. My interest in music started with my elementary school teacher Mrs. Downs introducing me to vocal music and musical theatre, resulting in friends and I forming a “bad” band and my first performance playing just a snare drum in a school talent show. One of those persons responsible for me drumming was my drum teacher, Mr. Kelly Ross. He set me on the right path by insisting I become fluent in the basics of playing the drums. Besides that, I thought it was kind of cool that he not only taught but played in jazz groups when they were used in “strip joints” … I mean I was only a kid and that sounded pretty successful to me!

Why creative work? I’m sure how to answer that other than suggesting that, for me, it was something I innately knew I wanted to do from the time I was just a kid. I mean, I turned down accordion lessons because I wanted to play drums so badly! No disrespect to my friend and star accordionist Denis Keldie.

JS: What haven’t you attempted as yet, that you would like to do and please tell us why?

GA: Two of my musical drumming idols that had a profound effect on my playing style were none other than Gene Krupa and Buddy Rich, two of the greatest drummers to drive a big band that ever lived. The concept of a “big band” or “stage band” appealed to me immediately as a kid and continues to do so. I’ve played in big bands all my life, but have never had the opportunity to lead and/or record a big band of my own. I suppose the facts that I’ve always been kept fairly busy with other folk’s projects and the incredibly high financial cost of a big band, have kept this a bit of a musical/professional dream.

JS: What are your most meaningful achievements?

GA: I’m going to assume you mean as a musician. Off the top, I’d say the fact that I’ve continued to work as musician in a city like Toronto for forty years now is an achievement. I suppose that says a lot in some ways…most folks don’t see the act of simply working as an achievement per se. It’s what we all have to do to live and thrive; however, when you’re “only as good as your last gig” you have to work hard, have an open mind and be young at heart in order to continue to be in demand by your peers all these years. I’m very blessed indeed. Poor, mind you, but blessed! Haha!

JS: What advice would give a young person who wants to do what you do?

GA: They call it the “music business” for a reason. There’s the music side of it, and then there’s the dreaded business side of it. I think the music side of it is obvious to younger musicians. They’ve already been bitten by the music bug so to speak and understand they are going to have to practice and work diligently on their craft and do so willingly every day. That being said, there’s many, many great musicians out there trying to make a living. Different musicians have different notions of success; however, I think it’s imperative that all musicians have an understanding of basic business skills and for those of us who do gigs of all descriptions, a sense of professionalism when working. Being a working musician is no different than running a small business and with that comes certain responsibilities to make that business viable in an incredibly competitive and changing music business.

On a less practical note, I would say surround yourself with positive influences, musical and otherwise. Of course, there will always be those who will be discouraging and some of those folks are doing so with what they feel are your best interests at heart. Follow your heart but don’t ignore your head either.

JS: Of what value are critics?

GA: I think that depends on whether the critic is evaluating “you” or someone else. What I mean by that is, we’re all human beings and I don’t know too many people who actually enjoy having their work criticized for all to read/see, but I have to admit that I’ve many a record review or critique of a performance in my lifetime. A positive aspect to critics is that they are bringing one’s work forward to the general public. The artist, though, has to keep criticism in perspective. I can remember reading two newspaper reviews of a performance I was involved with many years ago. While both were relatively positive, they had very different views of my performance within the group in question, as well as the group’s performance in general. Two critics. Two opinions.

Of course, with social media playing such a huge role in our lives, everyone is a critic!

JS: What do you ask of your audience?

GA: Show up!! Please show up!! For many reasons, the live music scene in Toronto has changed in many ways. People are busier than ever and in a city like Toronto have a multitude of choices when deciding how to spend their entertainment dollars and where to spend them. Folks don’t have to leave their living rooms to be entertained. Toronto is becoming increasingly affordable for only the “rich” and many people are simply trying to survive the cost of housing and transportation. I’m eternally grateful for the folks who continue to head out and choose live music as their choice of entertainment. We take a back seat to no other city in the world when it comes to the level of musicianship in the clubs and concert halls and I wish more people would get out and hear and see a live band because those of us over the age of 45 remember the joys of live music and a full venue.

JS: What specifically would you change about what goes on in the world and the arts?

GA: I would love to change the priority that live and recorded music and the arts has within our governments at all levels. Without getting into the gory details of the positive effects of music and the arts on a culture, not to mention the economy of a country or even a city, the arts and music need far more funding at every level, but especially within our educational systems from daycare through university and college.

JS: If you could relive one experience from your creative life, what would it be and why would you do so?

GA: In 2003 I recorded the first and only CD under my name called Glenn Anderson ‘Swingin’ the Blues’. I was very lucky to have some great players on it, some from as far away as New Orleans.

The recording venue had a beautiful grand piano that had just had a major overhaul and, unfortunately for our host, not to mention the session, the piano’s action did not take kindly to the work done on it, and our friend and a wonderful musician, pianist Bob George smiled and simply played on. We went ahead with the session and CD because, unfortunately, Bob passed away shortly after the session and there was no chance to head back into the studio. I would love to be able to do that session over for Bob’s sake. It was his last recording and I would have liked to have provided a better vehicle for his incredible playing. We all miss him.

JS: Tell us what it is like to be a figure, who is presented somehow in the media. What effect does this presence have on you?

GA: The role I play as a musician/drummer is, more often than not, a supportive one. For that reason, it is generally the person I am working for that is the focus of the media’s interest or criticism. In that circumstance, if I’m doing my job, I suppose I’m not drawing too much attention.

JS: Name two places you would like to visit, one you haven’t been to and one to experience again and briefly tell us why?

GA: Well, I’m embarrassed to say that I’ve been all over the world, but I’ve never been to New York City. There, I said it!! Haha! I know it’s sacrilege for anyone playing any kind of jazz not to have visited and/or studied in New York, but I haven’t. So, for obvious reasons, New York is on the list.
I visited and performed in Paris in 1977 with several bands while in high school and have never returned. Considering the history of the city, both musical and otherwise, I’d like to return for a visit and hopefully performance in Paris.

JS: Please tell us about one or more projects you have been working on, are preparing or recently completed. Why do they matter to you and why should they matter to us?

GA: One of the first genres of jazz I was exposed to was that of traditional or New Orleans jazz. I try not to use the word ‘Dixieland’ as it has a somewhat stereotyped connotation of loud music in striped vests and straw hats. Having played in many, many traditional jazz bands of note in Toronto I wanted to create a musical vehicle by which I could present traditional jazz alongside other musical traditions of New Orleans. In 2011, Toronto bassist Jack Zorawski and I invited singer/pianist Roberta Hunt (14 years with legendary trad jazz band Happy Pals) and acclaimed saxophonist Alison Young to form a band we called Red Hot Ramble. Trombonist Jamie Stager joined the band shortly thereafter. We’ve recorded two CDs, ‘Red Hot Ramble’ and ‘Some Swamp Stomp’ and are just now planning our third! We’re friends and musical colleagues and we’ve managed to weave the music of New Orleans through a Canadian musical perspective. It’s been a wonderful experience together that’s been evolving for over seven years now with no end in sight. There’s something still to be said for group of musicians getting together to create music live and doing so without reservation. I think there’s still some value in that.

JS: Let’s talk about the state of the arts in today’s society, including the forms in which you work. What specifically gives you hope and what specifically do you find depressing?

GA: Let’s start with the positive. There will always been a place in society for the arts. What role that plays often depends on where you’re talking about. When you live and perform the majority of your art in a major city like Toronto, one can often feel like the arts are being relegated to being a cultural afterthought. There is simply so much to do that a relatively unheralded club performance that’s happening might not necessarily be on everyone’s radars. Now take that performance to a smaller centre and it could be an extremely well-attended cultural event with a completely different significance to that immediate community. The value placed on the arts seems to vary from community to community throughout the country, but generally speaking if you’re willing to travel, there is still a real thirst for live music and the arts throughout Canada and I believe there always will be.

It gives me a great deal of hope to see the young and new musicians and artists that spring forth every year. While I have concerns about where all these amazing musicians are going to work and earn an actually living, all musicians and artists have this intangible tenacity for continuing to want to present meaningful art and music and somehow surviving.

On the not so positive side, I have a great deal of concern for what is happening to a city like Toronto in terms of uncontrollable growth that includes the endless destruction of neighbourhoods and communities where music was once heard in venue after venue. I’m concerned for the gentrification of the downtown core that once hosted the best and the brightest from the arts and music, but now presents endless rows of shoe stores, coffee shops and clothing stores that come and go with regularity, combined with rents so outrageously high that very few can afford the risk and finances of running a club that presents live music. Artists are being forced out of our cities to seek living space in communities where there is more affordable housing. While this creates new centres of artistic and musical expression, it is having a profound effect on the lives of musicians and artists. We live in a city that so desperately wants to be “world class” full of world class musicians yet those same musicians cannot park and unload their vehicles without getting a ticket. Musicians regularly work in a “pay what you can” scenario but this is hardly a living wage; we are not even covered by the latest minimum wage standards. That is the inherent risk of being involved in the arts. It is always a struggle for the vast majority of artists and it’s likely to continue on that way.

JS: Finally, what do you yourself find to be the most intriguing and/or surprising thing about you?

GA: I think the most surprising thing is that I’m still involved in playing music professionally. Despite having those moments of self-doubt and an everlasting love/hate relationship with the performing arts and the music world, I’m still here forty years later; playing drums and making great music with some of the most incredible musicians you’ll hear anywhere. Who’da thought?

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INGRID FLITER: ACCLAIMED ARGENTINIAN PIANIST, WHO JOINS TORONTO SYMPHONY JANUARY 31 & FEBRUARY 2 FOR FALLA’S NIGHTS IN THE GARDENS OF SPAIN, EXPLAINS “I’VE RECENTLY DISCOVERED THE LOVE OF PAINTING AND I NEVER EXPECTED IT COULD UNFOLD SUCH A WONDERFUL WORLD IN FRONT OF ME” …. A REVIEWER’S INTERVIEW WITH PEOPLE IN THE ARTS

Posted on January 22, 2018 by strecker

Construction 1: Painting by Ingrid Fliter

JAMES STRECKER: If you were asked for 50 words for an encyclopedia to summarize what you do, or have done, in the arts, what would you say?

INGRID FLITER: That thanks to art I am dedicated to deal with beauty every day of my life. That I expanded my horizons by experiencing different spiritual journeys. That I explored freedom of thought by searching for my inner voice. That I had the opportunity to experience to be different characters: a poet, a philosopher, a singer, an entertainer, a painter, a religious being, and more. That I had the huge privilege to bring back to life the miraculous work of my musical heroes. That I had a chance to relate to people at a deeper level of human communication.

JS: What important beliefs do you express in or through your work?

IF: That music is a mysterious powerful tool of human expression and that it makes one feel belong to something bigger than oneself.

JS: Name two people, living or dead, whom you admire a great deal and tell us why for each one.

IF: Zoltán Kocsis, one of the most brilliant people I’ve ever encountered. He believed in me in the moment I needed it the most.
Arthur Rubinstein, thanks to whom I discovered my love my Chopin’s music.

JS: How have you changed since you began to do creative work?

IF: I don’t recall exactly when I actually “began” as I was a child and took the process in a very natural way. For sure it helped me focus and have a strong desire for excellence and creativity.

JS: What are your biggest challenges as a creative person?

IF: To keep the freshness of a child and have the wisdom of an old master.

JS: Please describe at least one major turning point in your life.

IF: When I got the Gilmore Award in 2006. It completely changed my life and opened for me the doors of the world.

JS: What are the hardest things for an outsider to understand about what you do?

IF: The complete dedication it demands and the loneliness it brings.

JS: How and why did you begin to do creative work in the first place?

IF: My parents, both music lovers, decided to take me to piano lessons. As soon as I started, I loved it right away! At that time, I actually enjoyed practicing a lot!

JS: What haven’t you attempted as yet that you would like to do and please tell us why?

IF: Travelling to remote places in the world and playing for people who haven’t heard classical music never before.

JS: What are your most meaningful achievements?

IF: The Silver medal in the Chopin competition 2000.
The Gilmore Award 2006.
Teaching at the Imola Academy where I myself studied.
Having played all the Beethoven piano concertos live.
Having played the Bartok Sonata with Zoltán Kocsis.

JS: What advice would you give a young person who would like to do what you do?

IF: To ask him/herself how strong his/her passion is because that’s the only thing that would keep one going despite all the difficulties.

JS: Of what value are critics?

IF: Some critics can be quite constructive, so it’s important to learn to discern which one deserves your attention and which one not.

JS: What do you ask of your audience?

IF: That they come to enjoy and forget about their daily worries. Also, I appreciate when the public listens with no preconceptions of how some piece of music should sound because of recordings they heard in the past.

JS: What specifically would you change about what goes on in the world and the arts?

IF: The injustice. In arts there’s plenty of talented people who don’t or will not have the opportunities/recognition they deserve.

JS: If you could relive one experience from your creative life, what would it be and why would you do so?

IF: When I was 16 years old and played with the orchestra for the first time, Beethoven concerto n. 3 in the Teatro Colón, Buenos Aires. I was simply in paradise.

JS: Name two places you would like to visit, one you haven’t been to and one to experience again and briefly tell us why

IF: Northern Europe to see the Aurora borealis, never been.
Israel because I have a strong spiritual connection to this country.

JS: Please tell us about one or more projects that you have been working on, are preparing, or have recently completed. Why do they matter to you and why should they matter to us?

IF: I have recently finished the recording of all the Chopin Nocturnes. It has been an amazingly enriching and satisfying process

JS: Finally, what do you yourself find to be the most intriguing and/or surprising thing about you?

IF: That I’ve recently discovered the love of painting and that I never expected it could unfold such a wonderful world in front of me.

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ELIZABETH RUMSEY ON TREBLE VIOL JOINS SCARAMELLA JANUARY 27 IN TORONTO AND HERE EXPLAINS “TO HAVE MUSIC AS A PROFESSION MEANS THAT IT BECOMES A LENS THROUGH WHICH YOU SEE EVERYTHING ELSE…. AND BY TRAINING YOURSELF TO LISTEN, YOU ENSURE THAT YOU CAN ONLY SHUT IT OFF WITH DIFFICULTY. BACKGROUND MUSIC IN A RESTAURANT IS SOMETHING THAT YOU HAVE TO LISTEN TO, HOWEVER BAD IT IS.” …A REVIEWER’S INTERVIEW WITH PEOPLE IN THE ARTS

Posted on January 21, 2018 by strecker

JAMES STRECKER: If you were asked for 50 words for an encyclopedia to summarize what you do, or have done, in the arts, what would you say?

ELIZABETH RUMSEY: Ensemble musician; my instrument is the Viola da Gamba in all its various forms. I play music of the last seven centuries (mostly 16th and 17th), and together with my colleagues use the different voices of the instruments of those times to bring clarity to the music and make it more approachable for modern audiences.

JS: What important beliefs do you express in or through your work?

ER: Playing music that has no audio-recorded history throws up some challenges, and all of us who play this music have slightly different reasons for using the historically-informed-performance approach. Mine is that I love this type of music, and I personally get more out of it the better I understand it. I also enjoy the way things like reading from original notation or playing instruments with technical and tonal constraints provide a method of communication that is absent when these small paths of resistance are not there, and add colour which can be woven into the performance. Playing with this philosophy inevitably involves compromise – none of us has been trained in the way that a 17th-century musician was, or has the capability or even opportunity to think like them, since we must always switch between styles and eras. What defines our personal approach is where we choose to put those compromises, and I do believe that any approach is valid as long as it has a reason; this is what will make it convincing.

JS: Name two people, living or dead, whom you admire a great deal and tell us why for each one.

ER: My husband David Rumsey, who died a year ago. He was an incredible musician in every way – a performer, teacher, researcher, consultant, conductor and composer. Uncompromising in expectations and yet with a great depth of humour (he had a lot of affection for Percy Grainger, if only for the piece that obliged David in his capacity as organist to play the ukulele with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra), he was also very generous with his time and knowledge, and many of the messages or letters I received after he died were reminiscences in that vein. He had a great knack for connecting different aspects of life, and many of his ex-students will remember his insisting, when they were travelling through Europe to hear and play different organs, that they also experience things like the local cuisine, architecture and language, to better appreciate the instruments and associated music. I especially admired that he was constantly open to new ideas, never dogmatic or snobbish about his research, and ferocious in pursuit of knowledge, whether it be the interpretation of a hundred-year-old recording or the best way to get a good espresso out of our coffee machine.

The second is my mother, Sue Jones. As new immigrants to Australia with two small unwilling children in tow, my parents had to start again from almost nothing, and even through what must have been extremely difficult times she maintained an atmosphere of great creativity at home, and encouraged me and my sister to do everything in that line that we could think of. She is a pianist and cellist, teaching the piano to children and adults and playing a very active role as a cellist in the amateur chamber music and orchestral world, so that I grew up playing in all sorts of different ensembles and with many different types of musicians.

JS: How have you changed since you began to do creative work?

ER: I realised relatively recently that a worthwhile performance will only come from my believing what I am doing at that moment.

JS: What are your biggest challenges as a creative person?

ER: Keeping sight of the fact that what we do is indeed important; it sometimes seems, when looking at what is happening outside this little bubble of art music, that it’s immoral to spend so much time and energy on something which isn’t actively helping to fix at least one of the innumerable serious problems faced by pretty much everyone else.

JS: Please describe at least one major turning point in your life.

ER: I travelled with my husband to Portugal in 1999, and we visited my godfather there. He took us to a little basilica near his village, and in this intricately decorated church – not a single bit of the wall inside was not gilded, painted or tiled – were two very small 17th century organs. One was completely unplayable, but David was able to play the other one for a few minutes, and it was the first time I’d knowingly heard a historic instrument of any sort. Since then I have heard and even played many more historical instruments of various types, and it’s always enlightening in some way or other.

JS: What are the hardest things for an outsider to understand about what you do?

ER: Perhaps that it never stops? To have music as a profession means that it becomes a lens through which you see everything else. I look at a 17th century painting of the Nativity in which there are angels around the crib, and think “Why are you all just standing there? Where are your instruments?” (so that I can count the strings, of course). And by training yourself to listen, you ensure that you can only shut it off with difficulty. Background music in a restaurant is something that you have to listen to, however bad it is. If you are sailing, the rigging sings at different pitches when the wind changes; a German train plays a scale as it accelerates; a church bell chimes the quarter hour in an uncomfortable tuning. And in another sense, it never stops because there is always more work to be done, something to read or a piece to learn more thoroughly, preferably yesterday.

Another thing that has come up occasionally is that some people think the scope of my repertoire is limited. They see what I do as only a small part of “classical music” (which in itself is a small type of music, right?), so how much time can that take up, really? I don’t think I can even begin to answer that.

JS: How and why did you begin to do creative work in the first place?

ER: I don’t think it was ever really a choice. Because I played various instruments as far back as I remember – apparently when my sister started learning the violin, I pestered my parents until I was also allowed to play, and a thousand thanks to them for putting up with a 3-year-old hacking away at a tin violin – it’s always been a background to my life. Even though I went through stages of wanting to do various other things, when I went to university there was no question of doing anything other than music as a main study, and of aiming to be a professional musician. If things ever get a bit difficult, I can remind myself that I’m pretty lucky to be paid for doing something that I would do anyway.

JS: What haven’t you attempted as yet that you would like to do and please tell us why?

ER: There is an infinite number of things I would still like to do! I haven’t attempted them yet because I was doing something else, and I will get to as many of them as possible before I die.

JS: What are your most meaningful achievements?

ER: I can’t point to anything specific, but to be a part of a musical ensemble, however big or small, is something very special.

JS: What advice would you give a young person who would like to do what you do?

ER: As hypocritical as it may sound, given that being a musician is the only thing I do, I would say: make sure you can do something else as well. A parallel strand of interest and income is something that many musicians opt for later in their careers, and if you can train for another profession simultaneously, it will probably save a lot of effort later on. Even if you don’t use it, no outside knowledge is wasted.

JS: Of what value are critics?

ER: Any musical circle has a tendency to be rather self-referencing, so it’s good to get an outside perspective. We might not agree with the review – I think everyone knows whether or not they have played or sung well – but it’s very important to know how it reaches the audience.

JS: What do you ask of your audience?

ER: Don’t throw tomatoes? If I’m doing my job properly, nobody should need to ask anything!

JS: What specifically would you change about what goes on in the world and the arts?

ER: Difficult to say how it could realistically be changed … what would benefit the arts is effectively the same as what would benefit many other things in society; less focus on making things cost-effective, more on rewarding excellence (even if it is not necessarily obvious), avoiding the idea that elitism is necessarily bad (snobbishness, yes; pursuit of the best possible result, no), put money into the small things that need help rather than the big things which basically fund themselves.

JS: If you could relive one experience from your creative life, what would it be and why would you do so?

ER: I registered for my husband David when he played the Trois Danses by Jehan Alain in Trondheim, many years ago. Normally I avoid doing that because for a non-organist it’s incredibly stressful, but in that case, we had enough time to rehearse, and the music is so complex that you almost need to be involved to understand it. I don’t think there is a recording of him playing that set of pieces, and I would like to hear it again.

JS: Tell us what it feels like to be a figure who is presented somehow in the media. What effect does this presence have on you?

ER: I’m probably cheating with this question, since I avoid most social media. I do appreciate that it’s important for a lot of people, but I would dearly love for music to be a medium that is only, ever, live. There has been some interesting research into the effect of recording on performance practice in the last hundred years, and it’s pretty clear that live music is very different to recorded music, and the recording industry has substantially changed audience expectations and the way that musicians present any sort of performance.

JS: Name two places you would like to visit, one you haven’t been to and one to experience again and briefly tell us why

ER: A place to visit again would be the Whitsunday Islands on the Great Barrier reef, because it’s a beautiful place and quite possibly doomed by government greed and ineptitude. Somewhere I haven’t been yet but always wanted to is the island of Flores in the Azores. There is something very appealing about that group of islands in their splendid isolation, in the middle of the ocean and yet directly in the path of so much travel over so many centuries.

JS: Please tell us about one or more projects that you have been working on, are preparing, or have recently completed. Why do they matter to you and why should they matter to us?

ER: One of my instruments is the Lira da Gamba, or Lirone. This is an instrument which was used mostly in Italy and southern Germany in the 16th and 17th centuries, to accompany laments and melancholy texts, and invocations to the gods. It probably originated in Italy as a larger version of the Lira da Braccia, but what we have now are mostly reconstructions of later instruments (c.1600) and I am working on finding that earliest incarnation of the instrument, with its particular tunings and way of accompanying singers. It’s a very small corner of historical performance practice, but does contain some extraordinarily beautiful music which I think is worth opening up to the particular colour of the early lira da gamba.

JS: Let’s talk about the state of the arts in today’s society, including the forms in which you work. What specifically gives you hope and what specifically do you find depressing?

ER: There seems to be a significant diminishing in public support of the arts, which is rather depressing, but there is also more widespread grassroots support through crowdfunding sources and the like. So, the old system of patronage is being revived in a very democratic way! It would be much better for us to be able to rely on government funding, but this harks back to an earlier question – without significant political change in other areas it seems unlikely that the arts will be given much priority in the near future.

JS: Finally, what do you yourself find to be the most intriguing and/or surprising thing about you?

ER: How do you answer that when it’s not about someone else? I rather hope that by now there are no more surprises …

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JOHN ESTACIO: “WHAT IS IT ABOUT A NEW PIECE THAT WILL SPEAK TO HUMANITY TODAY AND TOMORROW?” ASKS COMPOSER OF NEW TRUMPET CONCERTO TO BE FEATURED BY TORONTO SYMPHONY, WITH SOLOIST ANDREW MCCANDLESS, ON JANUARY 25, 26, 27…. A REVIEWER’S INTERVIEW WITH PEOPLE IN THE ARTS

Posted on January 16, 2018 by strecker

Composer John Estacio   – Concert tickets for his new concerto available at https://www.tso.ca/concert/holst-planets#performance-1546

JAMES STRECKER: What are your biggest challenges as a creative person?

JOHN ESTACIO: Challenges vary from project to project. At times the challenge is to find a sense of relevance for the composition – what is it about a new piece that will speak to humanity today and tomorrow? With larger and lengthier projects that take a year or two to complete, such as an opera or a ballet score, the challenge might be endurance and motivation and maintaining clarity. Other times, the challenge might be simply to get out of the kitchen and back up to the office.

JS: Please describe at least one major turning point in your life.

JE: The biggest turning point in my career happened in 1992 at the Winnipeg Symphony’s first iteration of its New Music Festival. A composition of mine had been selected for their competition for new Canadian orchestral works. It was my first performance by a professional orchestra, recorded and broadcast live on the CBC with Bramwell Tovey conducting the WSO. I did not place first in the competition, but the broadcast opened up opportunities for other commissions and lead to my position as the Edmonton Symphony’s first composer in residence which in turn lead to several other projects including a commission for the Toronto Symphony in 1995. Eleven years after my professional debut, Bramwell Tovey would be there again for another turning point in my career, as conductor for the premiere of my first opera, Filumena, in Calgary in 2003.

JS: What are the hardest things for an outsider to understand about what you do?

JE: The questions I am asked most frequently is “where do your ideas come from”, usually followed by “how do you know how to write for all those instruments”.

JS: What haven’t you attempted as yet that you would like to do and please tell us why?

JE: I’ve made a couple of attempts at writing a musical; but, as with most projects, there are variables beyond my control and consequently some of the projects I’ve worked on have never come to fruition. Although I have written one film score, I know I’d enjoy writing a few more of those because I thoroughly enjoyed my first effort.

JS: What are your most meaningful achievements?

JE: Any project which was created in collaboration with another artist. I’ve had the good fortune of working with marvelous librettists, directors, choreographers, filmmakers, and consulted with other musicians. Although I’m proud of the compositions I’ve created independently, I do enjoy the congenial camaraderie of working with other creative artists and I treasure the friendships that have blossomed from these projects.

JS: Let’s talk about the state of the arts in today’s society, including the forms in which you work. What specifically gives you hope and what specifically do you find depressing?

JE: I’m encouraged that the arts are still valued by today’s society. Of course, there is much room for improvement – there always is – but by and large, people are still supporting the efforts of creative artists either by purchasing tickets or donation. I’m also encouraged by the work of younger composers who continue to create new music. What saddens me is the absence of the infrastructure that readily recorded and broadcasted the music of Canadian composers performed by Canadian ensembles and musicians; this once flourishing infrastructure has suffered a death by a thousand cuts. So, while a new infrastructure for music distribution slowly evolves and develops, composers and musicians must work even harder than ever to promote themselves and their work.

Andrew McCandless, Trumpet Soloist

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MR. SHI AND HIS LOVER: GUEST REVIEWER SOPRANO STACIE DUNLOP DISCUSSES A CRITICALLY-ACCLAIMED PRODUCTION AT THE TARRAGON NOW BOUND (JANUARY 3-13) FOR THE OTTAWA’S NATIONAL ARTS CENTRE…….ARTISTS ON THE ARTS

Posted on December 21, 2017 by strecker

JAMES STRECKER: This was your second visit to Mr. Shi and His Lover at the Tarragon and your fourth time seeing the show since its premiere at Summerworks, so how exactly did your experience the forth time differ from the first time? Why?

STACIE DUNLOP: I was able to notice subtle changes that deepened my experience, and was quite stirred emotionally this time around, especially in the final ten minutes of the show when I was moved to tears for the first time since my first viewing. I realized afterwards that it was my own connection to the character who had communicated his personal tragedy of being a performer. Also, from my initial viewing at Summerworks, I had always thought that there could be a more physical connection between the two characters, and between the preview show I saw at the beginning of the Tarragon run and the final show that I saw of the run, they added this subtle physicality to a poignant section, which to me made it much more powerful.

JS: What in your opinion are the main challenges faced by the opera’s composer Njo Kong Kie in setting this work to music?

SD: Well, first, it is difficult to call this work an “opera,” as it does not really fit into that genre, nor would I consider it a musical. Rather I would say it falls into the music theatre genre, as it is more a dramatic story with music that I would not classify as operatic. The challenges I believe were the most difficult for Kong Kie and his team were those of the translations from Mandarin into English. The text is very deep, intellectual and intense, and in order to portray the correct meaning, it was at times vital to use vocabulary that was a direct translation from Mandarin, but the words might not be easily understood by the audience as they were not commonly used words in the English vocabulary.

JS: What in Njo’s music feels fresh and perhaps exciting and why exactly does it produce this feeling?

SD: Kong Kie uses traditional Chinese percussion instruments as well as composing a mixed genre of vocal styles that included Peking Opera. The stories of each character were also told in a unique upbeat and rhythmically propelling style, which I found a very interesting choice.

JS: You’re a professional soprano, usually in modern classical music, so what in your background prepared you to hear this opera and how were you unready to give it a listen?

SD: Because of my familiarity with new musical works, I am always very open, but at the same time highly critical of a new work, regardless of the genre that it is composed in. I think that this quality made it easy for me to take in the positive aspects of this compelling production, and I was especially fascinated by the Peking Opera style when it came in, but at the same time, I did find myself critical of the more traditional classical singing. I did not find myself to be “unready” in any respect.

JS: Why did you come back a fourth time?

SD: The work keeps evolving, and that is the most fascinating part of new work. They have had the luxury of building the show over a generous time frame, and I think that has been a great advantage. I am also a very close friend of Kong Kie, so of course I was interested to follow this development along with supporting the production by seeing it throughout its incubation and transformational stages.

JS: Name five pieces of music that would be natural to hear after a performance of Mr. Shi and His Lover and tell us why for each one.

SD: I can think of two:

1. Madame Butterfly: obviously, because that was referenced heavily in the show.

2. Peking Opera: I have never heard real Peking Opera, and my curiosity was piqued by Kong Kie’s use of it in Mr. Shi and his Lover

JS: This was a theatrical production and I wonder which aspects of its theatricality reached you the most deeply? And, of course, why it was so. The libretto? The direction? The design? The lighting? The acting?

SD: I found my connection with the characters, especially in the fourth performance, the aspect that affected me the most deeply. So, I would have to say, the acting. However, that would be closely followed by the direction, the lighting and then of course, the musical composition.

JS: You’re a performer so I wonder what your thoughts are when you look at the audience at a production like this.

SD: I guess my thoughts are always about why there aren’t more people in the audience. This was a great production in a small theatre, and yet, the house was not more than half capacity on most performances over their run at the Tarragon Theatre. So, as a performer and producer, I wonder what needs to happen to fill those seats. The audience was moved, the production is great, and yet the seats aren’t selling. It’s a really important and difficult issue.

JS: What surprised you about this production and were there any times that you wished for surprises?

SD: I was surprised, in a good way, that they had added more of an actual physical connection in this final show. It made sense, and I had always hoped that the characters would have more contact…so this was a nice surprise. As for more, I guess I could see the show pushing boundaries a bit more, it could be less conservative…but that might not be fitting, as it also makes sense to have this conservativeness.

JS: How did the persons involved in this production display genuine imagination and originality?

SD: It is a fairly barebones production, with very slim sets/costumes/props, and yet the scene is set very clearly with great imagination enhanced by clever lighting and minimal sets/props/costumes and makeup.

JS: How and why would seeing this production help an individual who usually shuns the arts?

SD: I think it is moving, and will reach out to touch everyone, arts lover or not. It is good theatre. How can experiencing that not help someone?

JS: How have your thinking and feeling been affected by seeing this production?

SD: Yes, it has made me think about my own projects and has certainly inspired me to dig deeper and work harder at bringing them to life.

JS: Anything else you would like to say?

SD: I was really touched by this production, and I hope that the audiences in Ottawa will be as equally affected by this wonderful show.

Stacie Dunlop

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EDWIN HUIZINGA: VIOLINIST, TEACHER, MULTI GENRE & MEDIA EXPLORER RECALLS: “MANY TIMES, WALKING OFF STAGE WITH MY DEAREST FRIENDS, WE HAVE LOOKED AT EACH OTHER AND ALL FELT LIKE JUST WALKING BACK ON STAGE AND PLAYING THE WHOLE CONCERT OVER AGAIN RIGHT THEN AND THERE……THOSE MOMENTS ARE SO SPECIAL… BUT LIKE ANY HIGH, THERE IS NO WAY TO ACTUALLY RELIVE IT”…. A REVIEWER’S INTERVIEW WITH PEOPLE IN THE ARTS

Posted on December 12, 2017 by strecker

JAMES STRECKER: If you were asked for 50 words for an encyclopedia to summarize what you do, or have done, in the arts, what would you say?

EDWIN HUIZINGA: With the help of my friends, I find myself constantly creating ways to spread the joy and love of classical, baroque, folk, and rock music around the world. Through the communities I work with – from directing kids’ summer music camps to composition to performance – I am constantly finding new and different ways to share the music that I love most with the people around me. Teaching is a huge part of my life, from coaching baroque ensembles, to giving fiddle lessons to young children. Our future is in the hands of the young people around us and giving them the opportunity to learn how to communicate and share their passions and love is beautiful. They are our hope!

JS: What important beliefs do you express in or through your work?

EH: The language of music is desperately needed in our society because it helps to ignite child-like wonder into our lives. Music connects us to our emotions, our soul, and our passion. Also, I really believe in the communication it takes to ‘talk’ to our fellow musicians, and our audience. The story that we all try to tell as artists, to get that across to an audience is no easy feat. However, if it happens then all of a sudden the audience become participants and the journey becomes greater than the sum of its parts.

JS: Name two people, living or dead, whom you admire a great deal and tell us why for each one.

EH: My mother, who sat with me every morning on the farm where I grew up, on a wicker chair, listening and guiding me through learning how to play violin. She really showed me how music could make another person actually feel. Mark Fewer, my teacher who I studied with at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto. Mark’s playing and incredible ingenuity in playing the violin is what got me through high school and made me love the violin and music so much so that I had no choice but to turn it into my career and my life.

JS: How have you changed since you began to do creative work?

EH: When I was a child, just starting to play the violin, I was incredibly introverted, shy and quiet. As I became more and more serious about the violin, and after I would run offstage from trying to perform in public a few times, I started understanding the opportunity you have as an artist, a story teller, and I would start performing in a way that I could share how I really felt, and started becoming a much more open person, at least on the outside. I would say I’m an extroverted introvert.

JS: What are your biggest challenges as a creative person?

EH: I would say my biggest challenges as a creative person would be not letting the world around me get me off course. I find myself getting incredibly affected by all of my surroundings, and often feel that I’m not doing enough. Enough for the environment, for people’s health, for the future of our children. Also, making sure I am happy with the path that I’m following, really working towards something that I absolutely cannot live without.

JS: Please describe at least one major turning point in your life.

EH: One major turning point in my life was when I got hired to perform at the Carmel Bach Festival for the first time, 12 years ago. I was still in school, about to finish an undergraduate degree from Oberlin Conservatory. This was a moment for me when I really felt like being a professional musician was possible. Working alongside some of my mentors and performing over 20 concerts during the month of July every summer was a big part in my development as an artist. This summer I will be returning for a second summer in a row as a guest director for one of the main stage programs focusing on the evolution of American Folk and its relationship to Baroque music.

JS: What are the hardest things for an outsider to understand about what you do?

EH: I believe that one of the hardest things to explain to an outsider about the life of an artist, especially a performing artist, is how much emotional energy it takes out of you to perform, and then alternatively, how much time and effort goes into just one single performance, let alone if you do a hundred. I find especially the morning after a big performance I sometimes find myself very low energy, and sometimes it just takes a while to regroup and get back to normal, but as I don’t really understand this process myself, how do you explain it?

JS: How and why did you begin to do creative work in the first place?

EH: My mother, Mieke, is the reason I play violin. Having a very supportive family growing up is definitely what sent me on this path towards being an artist. The journey along the way just kept reaffirming that I should keep doing what I’m doing because being creative gives me the opportunity to make another person’s life better, or more beautiful, or different, for even just one instant, and that is such an amazing gift.

JS: What haven’t you attempted as yet that you would like to do and please tell us why?

EH: I have not yet recorded a solo album, or maybe I should be more clear and say that I have not yet finished recording a solo album. I have been working on one for almost two years now, and have been struggling with whether or not it’s good enough for me to share. As an artist, you constantly battle with your self as to whether or not something is good enough, and I think when it comes to solo projects especially that you hope to put out into the world, it makes for what feels like big decisions to finally stop working and release the recordings that you have made.

I have not attempted to write an Opera yet, but I would really like to. I love bringing different art forms together, and the story you can tell with music, dance, song, staging, and words is just one of the most interesting concepts to me. I would really like to find a way to bring the importance of everyone’s choices and decisions into an opera, one really advocating that we can all make a difference in any small way.

JS: What are your most meaningful achievements?

EH: Getting out into the community for me is one of the most important things I feel like I do with music. Being a founding member of the Classical Revolution, and striving to create new, exciting. Different ways to bring music to the people every day is a big thing for me. Also, working with other artists, and collaborating with the dance community is also one of my life goals. Bringing the human body and spirit together to make music in a beautiful environment. That’s a beautiful thing!

JS: What advice would you give a young person who would like to do what you do?

EH: Go for it! Always. Also, it’s never too early to collaborate with friends and colleagues. Working hard always pays off, and the more intimately you know something that you are trying to share, the better your ability to share it will be. Also, if something feels too difficult, work on it a tiny little bit every day, even for one minute, and it will get better, I promise!!!

JS: Of what value are critics?

EH: We are most often our own worst enemy, and having a critical, thoughtful overview of a concert, or performance can be very valuable. It is also often a fantastic way to get the word out about a new project, or new composition. I often learn the most from my friends and colleagues discussing what they thought about a performance after the fact. I would love to see less headlines reading “classical music is dead” though, because it is most definitely alive and well all around the world. How do I know? I’ve seen it, and been part of it, all around the world.

JS: What do you ask of your audience?

EH: An open mind.

JS: What specifically would you change about what goes on in the world and the arts?

EH: I would love to be part of a change in the education system, and making it much more about problem based learning. Bringing the arts back into schools, and giving children and young people more of a voice.

JS: If you could relive one experience from your creative life, what would it be and why would you do so?

EH: Many times, walking off stage with my dearest friends, we have looked at each other and all felt like just walking back on stage and playing the whole concert over again right then and there. Those moments are so special, because it’s like we all reach the point where we are making the best music we can make, and the high is really thrilling. But like any high, there is no way to actually relive it. Those moments that you get to have with people in your life, those are the most special things in the whole world, but reliving them is impossible, trying to make more amazing experiences happen? Now that is worth going after.

JS: Tell us what it feels like to be a figure who is presented somehow in the media. What effect does this presence have on you?

EH: It is a difficult balance, living in your own reality and the reality of the public. Articles, newspapers, and tv spots, these can all be a boost, or let down. I think it is very important to not let any of these avenues get in the way of what you really love to do, and what you would really like to become, because I believe it is easy to become attracted to how the media sees you and how you want the media to see you, but then what you really want gets tossed aside, and your goals and dreams cannot be pushed aside!

JS: Name two places you would like to visit, one you haven’t been to and one to experience again and briefly tell us why

EH: During my undergraduate degree at Oberlin Conservatory a few of us spent a few weeks in Panama over winter term. This was an incredibly special trip because I was introduced to a completely different culture and as 21-year-old, I found it very compelling to be part of the Panamanian’s attitude towards music. I mean, Music was everywhere, it leaked out of their bones. We danced, we practiced, we improvised, we sang songs. There were very few moments without some sort of homemade soundtrack. So for me, I would love to go back to Panama, and I would love to explore South America.

JS: Please tell us about one or more projects that you have been working on, are preparing, or have recently completed. Why do they matter to you and why should they matter to us?

EH: I am working on a new composition. One day it may even turn into an Opera. It involves dance, voice, instruments, staging, choreography. This is a very exciting thing for me to talk about with my students, because I can talk to them about how important it is to find your own niche. How important it is to discover what you really love to do, what you really want to say, and then to go after it! My whole career has been about following my dreams. This has sometimes gotten me into trouble, because a lot of the things that I’m very excited about are not very conventional, and have very little financial support. However, following them is so important to me, that the details in which to make them happen become less important. So, in the coming year or two, keep a look out for a new composition, and my debut solo album.

JS: Let’s talk about the state of the arts in today’s society, including the forms in which you work. What specifically gives you hope and what specifically do you find depressing?

EH: Every day there are people around the world creating absolutely incredible new material. I hear about new chamber groups, new albums, new bands, new compositions, new collaborations. Where I get worried is with the people that have become so insulated by social media, that the experience of going out to an event or a concert has become too much. I feel like I can talk about this issue because I have these moments where I feel like going out and being social and being in a crowd is just too much for me. I hope that we can continue to inspire people of all ages to be active members in their communities and continue to support their fellow humans and artists of all kinds. This will create a better future for us all.

JS: Finally, what do you yourself find to be the most intriguing and/or surprising thing about you?

EH: I am finding this question so difficult to answer…

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EVAN BULIUNG: LEADING ACTOR EXPLAINS “THEATRE IS NOT MOUNTED ON A WALL, IT IS A LIVING BREATHING ORGANISM THAT CHANGES FROM SHOW TO SHOW, SO TO BASE CRITIQUES ON ONE SHOW IS MOOT. I WOULD HOPE MOST GOOD REVIEWERS WOULD KNOW AND APPRECIATE THIS” … A REVIEWER’S INTERVIEW WITH PEOPLE IN THE ARTS

Posted on December 8, 2017 by strecker

JAMES STRECKER: If you were asked for 50 words for an encyclopedia to summarize what you do, or have done, in the arts, what would you say?

EVAN BULIUNG: We​ ​gather​ ​together​ ​as​ ​a​ ​group​ ​of​ ​performers​ ​with​ ​generally​ ​low​ ​self-​esteem​ ​and work​ ​out​ ​the​ ​kinks​ ​in​ ​a​ ​windowless​ ​room. ​ ​We​ ​channel​ ​all​ ​that​ ​human​ ​nature​ ​has​ ​to offer​ ​from​ ​the​ ​darkest​ ​depravity​ ​to​ ​the​ ​freest​ ​joys…​ ​then​ ​spring​ ​it​ ​on​ ​people​ ​sitting​ ​in somewhat​ ​expensive​ ​and​ ​uncomfortable​ ​seats​ ​so​ ​they​ ​don’t​ ​feel​ ​alone.

JS: What important beliefs do you express in or through your work?

EB: Most​ ​of​ ​the​ ​time​ ​I​ ​express​ ​the​ ​writer’s​ ​beliefs, ​ ​but​ ​I​ ​guess​ ​through​ ​character​ ​I​ ​can find​ ​different​ ​shades​ ​to​ ​express. ​ ​I​ ​love​ ​finding​ ​a​ ​little​ ​nugget​ ​of​ ​character​ ​through interpretation​ ​of​ ​the​ ​words. For​ ​Mercutio​ ​to​ ​say​ ​to​ ​Benvolio​ ​for​ ​instance: “t’would​ ​anger​ ​him​ ​to​ ​raise​ ​a​ ​spirit​ ​in​ ​his​ ​mistress​ ​circle​ ​of​ ​some​ ​strange​ ​nature, there​ ​letting​ ​it​ ​stand​ ​till​ ​she​ ​hath​ ​laid​ ​it​ ​and​ ​conjured​ ​it​ ​down. ​ ​That​ ​were​ ​some​ ​spite.” One​ ​could​ ​say​ ​that​ ​with​ ​a​ ​slight​ ​wink​ ​to​ ​the​ ​sexual​ ​context​ ​of​ ​the​ ​line, ​ ​OR, ​ ​as​ ​I​ ​found later​ ​in​ ​the​ ​run, ​ ​Mercutio​ ​can​ ​say​ ​it​ ​mockingly​ ​and​ ​bitter​ ​about​ ​Romeo’s​ ​infatuation because​ ​of​ ​Mercutio’s​ ​innate​ ​struggle​ ​himself. ​ ​ ​There’s​ ​a​ ​million​ ​choices, ​ ​and​ ​they can​ ​change, ​ ​be​ ​open. ​ ​ ​If​ ​ANY​ ​of​ ​that​ ​makes​ ​any​ ​sense. I​ ​like​ ​to​ ​think​ ​through​ ​character​ ​examination​ ​that​ ​there’s​ ​a​ ​bit​ ​of​ ​good​ ​in​ ​all​ ​of​ ​us​ ​and a​ ​bit​ ​of​ ​bad…. ​ ​though​ ​the​ ​scale​ ​slides​ ​from​ ​time​ ​to​ ​time.

JS: Name two people, living or dead, whom you admire a great deal and tell us why for each one.

EB: Brent​ ​Carver-There​ ​isn’t​ ​a​ ​performer​ ​alive​ ​that​ ​I’ve​ ​seen​ ​who​ ​is​ ​completely​ ​open​ ​to inspiration, ​ ​the​ ​dove​ ​always​ ​drops​ ​with​ ​him. ​ ​ (Bernie​ ​Hopkins​ ​used​ ​to​ ​drop​ ​this expression, ​ ​I​ ​always​ ​pretended​ ​to​ ​know​ ​what​ ​it​ ​meant)

Bernie​ ​Sanders-Tenacity, ​ ​compassion, ​ ​truth, ​ ​integrity, ​ ​humility.

JS: How have you changed since you began to do creative work?

EB: I​ ​guess​ ​I’ve​ ​always​ ​done​ ​this. ​ ​I​ ​wanted​ ​to​ ​be​ ​an​ ​actor​ ​from​ ​a​ ​very​ ​young​ ​age​ ​so​ ​I’ve known​ ​nothing​ ​else. ​ ​I​ ​never​ ​had​ ​any​ ​desire​ ​to​ ​be​ ​a​ ​lawyer​ ​or​ ​banker​ ​or​ ​fireman, ​ ​all very​ ​honourable​ ​work​ ​of​ ​course. ​ ​ ​So​ ​my​ ​change​ ​has​ ​been​ ​within​ ​the​ ​work​ ​I​ ​suppose. I​ ​never​ ​desired​ ​to​ ​attain​ ​anything​ ​other​ ​than​ ​work​ ​in​ ​this​ ​craft​. ​ ​I​ ​have​ ​the​ ​utmost respect​ ​for​ ​writers​ ​and​ ​feel​ ​our​ ​only​ ​job​ ​as​ ​actors​ ​is​ ​to​ ​mine​ ​their​ ​work​ ​for​ ​all​ ​its depths​ ​and​ ​work​ ​together​ ​as​ ​actors​ ​to​ ​achieve​ ​that​ ​goal.

JS: What are your biggest challenges as a creative person?

EB: Moodiness, ​ ​addiction, ​ ​self-righteousness, ​ ​abject​ ​liberalism, ​ ​distrust​ ​of​ ​anything artless, ​ ​memorizing, ​ ​soaking​ ​up​ ​energies.

JS: Please describe at least one major turning point in your life.

EB: I​ ​received​ ​the​ ​Richard​ ​Monette​ ​travel​ ​grant​ ​7​ ​years​ ​back​ ​and​ ​travelled​ ​Europe​ ​by myself​ ​for​ ​a​ ​number​ ​of​ ​months,​ ​it’s​ ​something​ ​I​ ​should’ve​ ​done​ ​much​ ​sooner​ ​in​ ​my life​ ​but​ ​you’re​ ​ready​ ​when​ ​you’re​ ​ready​ ​to​ ​be​ ​on​ ​your​ ​own​ ​in​ ​a​ ​strange​ ​place​ ​with only​ ​meager​ ​English​ ​to​ ​get​ ​you​ ​by.​ ​I​ ​had​ ​just​ ​got​ ​sober​ ​recently​ ​too​ ​for,​ ​a​ ​day​ ​at​ ​a time,​ ​the​ ​final​ ​time​ ​after​ ​many​ ​years​ ​of​ ​trying.​ ​I​ ​remember​ ​standing​ ​on​ ​a​ ​rock​ ​in Greece​ ​a​ ​few​ ​months​ ​into​ ​the​ ​trip​ ​staring​ ​out​ ​into​ ​the​ ​ocean​ ​for​ ​a​ ​couple​ ​hours​ ​and​ ​I felt​ ​completely​ ​fine​ ​with​ ​myself,​ ​I​ ​was​ ​able​ ​to​ ​be​ ​by​ ​myself​ ​without​ ​distraction​ ​or something​ ​to​ ​quiet​ ​my​ ​mind.​ ​Serenity.​ ​Of​ ​course​ ​these​ ​things​ ​are​ ​fleeting​, ​but​ ​I finally​ ​felt​ ​at​ ​home​ ​in​ ​my​ ​skin.

JS: What are the hardest things for an outsider to understand about what you do?

EB: I’m​ ​not​ ​sure. ​ ​I’m​ ​not​ ​an​ ​outsider. ​ ​They’d​ ​have​ ​to​ ​tell​ ​you​ ​that​ ​one.

JS: How and why did you begin to do creative work in the first place?

EB: I​ ​was​ ​five​ ​when​ ​I​ ​realized​ ​what​ ​I​ ​wanted​ ​to​ ​do.​ ​ ​I​ ​imagine​ ​my​ ​folks,​ ​who​ ​have​ ​always been​ ​extremely​ ​supportive,​ ​for​ ​which​ ​I’m​ ​very​ ​lucky​ ​and​ ​very​ ​grateful,​ ​They​ ​most likely​ ​took​ ​me​ ​to​ ​too​ ​many​ ​plays​ ​and​ ​performances​ ​when​ ​I​ ​was​ ​a​ ​child.​ ​ ​My​ ​deep insecurity​ ​as​ ​a​ ​child​,​ ​as​ ​well​ ​as,​ ​no​ ​doubt,​ ​seasonal​ ​depression​ ​and​ ​a​ ​constant aloneness​ ​fit​ ​the​ ​bill​ ​to​ ​want​ ​to​ ​pretend​ ​to​ ​be​ ​someone​ ​else.​ ​It​ ​saved​ ​me​ ​for​ ​a​ ​time​ ​by boosting​ ​my​ ​confidence​ ​and​ ​giving​ ​me​ ​direction.​ ​I​ ​was​ ​lucky​ ​to​ ​grow​ ​up​ ​in​ ​a​ ​time when​ ​theatre​ ​and​ ​arts​ ​were​ ​far​ ​more​ ​ingrained​ ​in​ ​the​ ​school​ ​system​ ​than​ ​perhaps they​ ​are​ ​now​ ​with​ ​budget​ ​cuts​ ​and​ ​eradication​ ​of​ ​arts​ ​programs​ ​entirely.

JS: What haven’t you attempted as yet that you would like to do and please tell us why?

EB: Abs.​ ​Cause​ ​they​ ​look​ ​impressive.​ ​Artistically​ ​though,​ ​I’m​ ​satiated,​ ​I’ve​ ​learned​ ​so much​ ​about​ ​myself​ ​and​ ​others​ ​around​ ​me​ ​so​ ​now​ ​I’d​ ​like​ ​to​ ​pass​ ​that​ ​on​ ​to​ ​younger folks​ ​trying​ ​it​ ​out.​ ​ ​Not​ ​that​ ​I​ ​don’t​ ​have​ ​more​ ​to​ ​learn,​ ​there’s​ ​always​ ​more​ ​to​ ​learn​ ​if you’re​ ​open​ ​to​ ​it,​ ​but​ ​I​ ​was​ ​graced​ ​with​ ​wonderful​ ​teachers,​ ​I’d​ ​like​ ​to​ ​help newcomers​ ​to​ ​find​ ​their​ ​own​ ​freedom​ ​on​ ​the​ ​stage.​ ​Whether​ ​a​ ​student​ ​continues​ ​in the​ ​arts​ ​or​ ​not,​ ​the​ ​skills​ ​learned​ ​and​ ​confidence​ ​gained​ ​by​ ​a​ ​healthy​ ​exploration​ ​of artistic​ ​goals​ ​is​ ​invaluable​ ​in​ ​any​ ​workplace.​ ​Most​ ​jobs​ ​could​ ​be​ ​considered​ ​an​ ​art form.

JS: What are your most meaningful achievements?

EB: Surviving​ ​Lord​ ​of​ ​the​ ​Rings​ ​the​ ​Musical​ ​(barely). ​ ​ ​Besides​ ​that, ​ ​getting​ ​sober. ​ ​On the​ ​stage​ ​I’d​ ​say​ ​figuring​ ​out​ ​Edgar​ ​in​ ​King​ ​Lear​ ​after​ ​doing​ ​it​ ​twice, ​ ​delving​ ​into Stanhope​ ​in​ ​Journey’s​ ​End​ ​at​ ​Shaw, ​ ​Stanhope’s​ ​alcohol-​fuelled​ ​survival​ ​I​ ​was​ ​able to​ ​tap​ ​into, ​ ​allowing​ ​myself​ ​to​ ​dig​ ​into​ ​my​ ​own​ ​experience​ ​with​ ​addiction.

JS: What advice would you give a young person who would like to do what you do?

EB: I​ ​always​ ​had​ ​an​ ​image​ ​in​ ​my​ ​head​ ​growing​ ​up​ ​and​ ​through​ ​my​ ​adolescence​ ​of​ ​a​ ​pilot light​ ​inside​ ​of​ ​me,​ ​through​ ​the​ ​fear​ ​and​ ​misery​ ​and​ ​damage​ ​and​ ​pain.​ ​That​ ​light​ ​was my​ ​ability,​ ​talent,​ ​desire​ ​and​ ​will​ ​to​ ​do​ ​this​ ​work,​ ​my​ ​confidence​ ​in​ ​my​ ​own​ ​abilities and​ ​nothing​ ​would​ ​extinguish​ ​it…I’m​ ​lucky​ ​I​ ​didn’t​ ​overdose​ ​though,​ ​cause​ ​imagery wouldn’t​ ​help​ ​that.​ ​I’m​ ​lucky,​ ​I’ve​ ​lost​ ​amazing​ ​friends​ ​to​ ​it​ ​and​ ​it​ ​is​ ​a​ ​reminder​ ​to myself​ ​and​ ​others​ ​to​ ​stay​ ​on​ ​the​ ​beam. Truly​ ​drugs​ ​don’t​ ​add​ ​to​ ​your​ ​work,​ ​they simply​ ​stall​ ​your​ ​growth​ ​both​ ​artistically​ ​and​ ​spiritually…at​ ​least​ ​in​ ​my​ ​experience.

JS: Of what value are critics?

EB: I​ ​wrestle​ ​with​ ​this,​ ​definitely.​ ​ ​I​ ​grew​ ​up​ ​in​ ​a​ ​theatre​ ​world​ ​where​ ​we​ ​didn’t​ ​talk​ ​about and​ ​certainly​ ​didn’t​ ​bring​ ​reviews​ ​into​ ​the​ ​theatre.​ ​The​ ​world​ ​now,​ ​and​ ​producers specifically,​ ​somewhat​ ​rely​ ​on​ ​reviews​ ​to​ ​sell​ ​tickets.​ ​ ​But​ ​they​ ​have​ ​an​ ​effect​ ​on performers​ ​to​ ​varying​ ​degrees.​ ​ ​So​ ​I​ ​kinda​ ​see​ ​it​ ​as​ ​an​ ​interesting​ ​sidebar​ ​to​ ​what​ ​we do.​ ​The​ ​difficulty​ ​is​ ​that​ ​theatre​ ​is​ ​not​ ​mounted​ ​on​ ​a​ ​wall,​ ​it​ ​is​ ​a​ ​living​ ​breathing organism​ ​that​ ​changes​ ​from​ ​show​ ​to​ ​show,​ ​so​ ​to​ ​base​ ​critiques​ ​on​ ​one​ ​show​ ​is moot.​ ​I​ ​would​ ​hope​ ​most​ ​good​ ​reviewers​ ​would​ ​know​ ​and​ ​appreciate​ ​this​ ​and perhaps​ ​just​ ​note​ ​the​ ​form​ ​and​ ​structure​ ​of​ ​the​ ​piece.​ ​But​ ​then​ ​I’m​ ​not​ ​a​ ​reviewer, except​ ​an​ ​amateur​ ​one​ ​on​ ​Facebook​ ​from​ ​time​ ​to​ ​time.

JS: What do you ask of your audience?

EB: It’s​ ​interesting​ ​this, ​ ​sometimes​ ​theatres​ ​in​ ​their​ ​pre-​announcements​ ​tell​ ​the​ ​audience to​ ​sit​ ​back​ ​and​ ​enjoy​ ​the​ ​show, ​ ​I​ ​like​ ​to​ ​think​ ​their​ ​job​ ​is​ ​more​ ​engaging​ ​than​ ​that. ​ ​I say​ ​sit​ ​forward​ ​and​ ​listen, ​ ​of​ ​course​ ​this​ ​depends​ ​on​ ​the​ ​comfortability​ ​of​ ​the​ ​chairs. I​ ​like​ ​to​ ​think​ ​that​ ​I​ ​don’t​ ​shy​ ​away​ ​from​ ​the​ ​dark​ ​side​ ​of​ ​character​ ​on​ ​stage​ ​but​ ​I​ ​love a​ ​good​ ​transformative​ ​storyline​ ​“start​ ​out​ ​bad​ ​and​ ​learn​ ​something​ ​and​ ​bingo”​ ​kinda guy.​ ​ ​I​ ​love​ ​comedy,​ ​I​ ​did​ ​a​ ​lot​ ​of​ ​it​ ​at​ ​Shaw.​ ​I​ ​grew​ ​up​ ​on​ ​Monty​ ​Python​ ​and​ ​dry English​ ​wit​ ​is​ ​by​ ​far​ ​my​ ​favourite​ ​thing​ ​to​ ​do.​ ​Shaping​ ​and​ ​moulding​ ​timing​ ​on​ ​stage and​ ​using​ ​the​ ​audience​ ​as​ ​metronome​ ​to​ ​this​ ​practice.​ ​I​ ​remember​ ​playing​ ​Jack​ ​in Earnest​ ​at​ ​Shaw​ ​years​ ​ago​ ​and​ ​we​ ​did​ ​something​ ​like​ ​138​ ​of​ ​them.​ ​It​ ​was​ ​utter insanity.​ ​ ​It​ ​is​ ​a​ ​perfect​ ​comedy​ ​if​ ​not​ ​THE​ ​perfect​ ​comedy​ ​and​ ​it​ ​drove​ ​me​ ​mental trying​ ​to​ ​perfect​ ​its​ ​quick​ ​barbs​ ​and​ ​slow​ ​turns​ ​and​ ​grand​ ​entrances​ ​and​ ​muffin fights.​ ​ ​I​ ​loved​ ​it​, ​but​ ​for​ ​my​ ​perfectionist​ ​mind​ ​(much​ ​more​ ​so​ ​when​ ​I​ ​was​ ​younger)​ ​it drove​ ​me​ ​and​ ​most​ ​like​ly​ ​those​ ​around​ ​me​ ​mental.

JS: What specifically would you change about what goes on in the world and the arts?

EB: I​ ​think​ ​that’s​ ​happening​ ​without​ ​my​ ​wishes.​ ​There​ ​seems​ ​to​ ​be​ ​an​ ​action/reaction thing​ ​happening​ ​in​ ​the​ ​world​ ​right​ ​now​ ​as​ ​it​ ​tries​ ​to​ ​right​ ​itself.​ ​The​ ​Trump​ ​effect​ ​has brought​ ​so​ ​much​ ​out​ ​into​ ​the​ ​light,​ ​a​ ​lot​ ​of​ ​it​ ​is​ ​really​ ​ugly.​ ​But​ ​the​ ​light​ ​heals​ ​or​ ​so I’d​ ​like​ ​to​ ​think.​ ​ ​Oh,​ ​and​ ​the​ ​world​ ​is​ ​melting,​ ​let’s​ ​not​ ​forget​ ​that.​ ​In​ ​the​ ​arts​ ​I​ ​would ask​ ​our​ ​government​ ​to​ ​invest​ ​in​ ​more​ ​arts​ ​space,​ ​arts​ ​education,​ ​arts​ ​cultivation​ ​and a​ ​reverse​ ​artistic​ ​brain​ ​drain​ ​from​ ​the​ ​states.​ ​ ​Instead​ ​it​ ​seems​ ​like​ ​we​ ​are​ ​slowly allowing​ ​these​ ​things​ ​to​ ​fall​ ​to​ ​the​ ​wayside​ ​for​ ​more​ ​tech-​ ​based​ ​growth​ ​and​ ​fostering the​ ​financial​ ​sector.​ ​ ​There​ ​are​ ​great​ ​artists​ ​in​ ​this​ ​country​ ​that​ ​fight​ ​constantly​ ​to keep​ ​things​ ​“Canadian”​ ​to​ ​keep​ ​crews​ ​Canadian​ ​and​ ​more​ ​artists​ ​on​ ​set​ ​Canadian but​ ​it​ ​seems​ ​to​ ​be​ ​a​ ​huge​ ​struggle​ ​to​ ​convince​ ​our​ ​unions​ ​and​ ​government otherwise.​ ​We​ ​have​ ​great​ ​stories​ ​to​ ​tell​ ​in​ ​this​ ​country​ ​and​ ​one​ ​of​ ​the​ ​great​ ​things I’ve​ ​seen​ ​is​ ​there​ ​are​ ​more​ ​and​ ​more​ ​diverse​ ​stories​ ​that​ ​cover​ ​a​ ​wide​ ​range​ ​of Canadian​ ​stories​ ​from​ ​Indigenous​ ​stories​ ​to​ ​Korean​ ​to​ ​East​ ​Indian. That’s​ ​exciting and​ ​vital​ ​for​ ​not​ ​only​ ​entertainment​ ​and​ ​a​ ​good​ ​story​ ​to​ ​tell,​ ​but​ ​also​ ​vital​ ​for audiences​ ​to​ ​be​ ​challenged​ ​and​ ​new​ ​audiences​ ​to​ ​be​ ​found​ ​and​ ​cultivated.

JS: If you could relive one experience from your creative life, what would it be and why would you do so?

EB: To​ ​me​ ​this​ ​sounds​ ​like​ ​either​ ​an​ ​enlightening​ ​experience​ ​to​ ​relive​ ​or​ ​something​ ​I’d like​ ​to​ ​change​ ​through​ ​regret. I​ ​will​ ​start​ ​with​ ​regret​ ​- ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​I​ ​would​ ​relive​ ​parts​ ​of​ ​The​ ​Lord​ ​of​ ​the​ ​Rings​ ​musical.​ ​ ​I​ ​was​ ​younger​ ​of​ ​course and​ ​hindsight​ ​is​ ​20/20​ ​but​ ​I​ ​would​ ​choose​ ​to​ ​come​ ​at​ ​that​ ​differently,​ ​I​ ​would’ve​ ​put my​ ​foot​ ​down​ ​and​ ​refused​ ​some​ ​of​ ​what​ ​was​ ​asked.​ ​ ​I​ ​would’ve​ ​practiced​ ​much more​ ​self-care​ ​and​ ​taken​ ​care​ ​of​ ​those​ ​around​ ​me​ ​better.​ ​ ​I​ ​took​ ​too​ ​much​ ​on​ ​and​ ​it damaged​ ​me,​ ​I​ ​don’t​ ​think​ ​I’ve​ ​ever​ ​fully​ ​recovered​ ​from​ ​that​ ​experience.​ ​ ​I​ ​shudder when​ ​I​ ​think​ ​of​ ​what​ ​I​ ​became​ ​on​ ​that​ ​show​ ​and​ ​for​ ​some​ ​time​ ​afterwards.​ ​Perhaps playing​ ​Aragorn​ ​and​ ​investing​ ​in​ ​the​ ​character,​ ​I​ ​tried​ ​to​ ​fight​ ​the​ ​battle​ ​but​ ​it​ ​was​ ​a losing​ ​fight​ ​and​ ​it​ ​cost​ ​me.​ ​ ​I​ ​would​ ​sometimes​ ​have​ ​panic​ ​attacks​ ​right​ ​before​ ​the show​ ​and​ ​have​ ​to​ ​call​ ​out​ ​when​ ​I​ ​played​ ​through​ ​my​ ​head​ ​the​ ​dangers​ ​that​ ​lay​ ​ahead on​ ​the​ ​stage,​ ​from​ ​a​ ​purely​ ​technical​ ​standpoint.​ ​ ​I​ ​was​ ​overjoyed​ ​to​ ​get​ ​to​ ​be​ ​in​ ​the show​ ​at​ ​the​ ​beginning​ ​and​ ​then​ ​it​ ​turned​ ​into​ ​a​ ​very​ ​difficult​ ​time.​ ​There​ ​were stretches​ ​of​ ​time​ ​for​ ​weeks​ ​when​ ​we​ ​didn’t​ ​have​ ​a​ ​day​ ​off.​ ​ ​We​ ​worked​ ​gruelling almost​ ​Olympic​ ​hours​ ​with​ ​projectiles​ ​being​ ​flung​ ​at​ ​us​ ​on​ ​the​ ​darkly​ ​lit​ ​stage.​ ​ ​As​ ​a cast​ ​we​ ​stood​ ​up​ ​for​ ​each​ ​other,​ ​we​ ​helped​ ​each​ ​other.​ ​But​ ​I​ ​was​ ​overwrought​ ​and beaten​ ​down​ ​by​ ​its​ ​size​ ​and​ ​scope.​ ​ ​We​ ​begged​ ​Equity​ ​at​ ​one​ ​point​ ​to​ ​help​ ​us,​ ​but little​ ​was​ ​done.​ ​ ​It​ ​was​ ​a​ ​joke. And​ ​so​ ​for​ ​me​ ​personally,​ ​I​ ​fell​ ​apart.​ ​ ​I​ ​wasn’t​ ​able​ ​to​ ​recharge​ ​and​ ​I​ ​took​ ​out​ ​my frustration​ ​on​ ​myself​ ​and​ ​others.​ ​ ​When​ ​the​ ​show​ ​closed​ ​I​ ​didn’t​ ​leave​ ​my​ ​apartment for​ ​a​ ​long​ ​time.​ ​ ​I​ ​could​ ​write​ ​for​ ​days​ ​on​ ​this​ ​experience​, ​but​ ​maybe​ ​I’ll​ ​save​ ​it​ ​for​ ​my one​ ​man​ ​show​ ​“Smolkin​ ​the​ ​Tolkien”…​ ​it’s​ ​still​ ​in​ ​rewrites.​ ​ ​Including​ ​the​ ​title. The​ ​experience, ​ ​though, ​ ​did​ ​teach​ ​me​ ​to​ ​give​ ​my​ ​heart​ ​to​ ​a​ ​show​ ​but​ ​not​ ​my​ ​soul. To​ ​re-live​ – ​cause​ ​it​ ​was​ ​a​ ​great​ ​experience​ ​- ​ ​​Art​ ​with​ ​Peter​ ​Donaldson​ ​and​ ​Colin​ ​Mochrie. ​ ​It​ ​was​ ​just​ ​pure​ ​joy​ ​and​ ​laughs​ ​from beginning​ ​to​ ​end. ​ ​I​ ​was​ ​very​ ​honoured​ ​to​ ​work​ ​with​ ​both​ ​of​ ​those​ ​giants​ ​and​ ​I’m pretty​ ​sure​ ​they​ ​realized​ ​how​ ​much​ ​they​ ​had​ ​to​ ​learn​ ​from​ ​me. ​ ​About​ ​comedy. Especially​ ​Colin. ​ ​His​ ​career​ ​really​ ​took​ ​off​ ​after​ ​that.

JS: Tell us what it feels like to be a figure who is presented somehow in the media. What effect does this presence have on you?

EB: I​ ​am​ ​uneasy​ ​with​ ​it​ ​for​ ​the​ ​most​ ​part​ ​but​ ​thankfully​ ​I​ ​live​ ​in​ ​Canada​ ​and​ ​nobody knows​ ​who​ ​I​ ​am​ ​because​ ​we​ ​are​ ​Borg. ​ ​ ​The​ ​Mr.​ ​Hyde​ ​in​ ​me​ ​can​ ​relish​ ​in​ ​a​ ​good notice​ ​or​ ​well-​timed​ ​photo​ ​like​ ​anyone​ ​else,​ ​but​ ​truly​ ​I’m​ ​just​ ​doing​ ​it​ ​because​ ​it’s​ ​all I’ve​ ​known​ ​ (without​ ​sounding​ ​too​ ​precious).

JS: Name two places you would like to visit, one you haven’t been to and one to experience again and briefly tell us why.

EB: Japan -cause​ ​it​ ​looks​ ​just​ ​insane​ ​and​ ​beyond​ ​beautiful​ ​at​ ​the​ ​same​ ​time Firenze (Florence) -cause​ ​I​ ​don’t​ ​know​ ​if​ ​there’s​ ​a​ ​more​ ​invigorating​ ​and​ ​inspiring place​ ​on​ ​earth…plus, ​ ​food.

JS: Please tell us about one or more projects that you have been working on, are preparing, or have recently completed. Why do they matter to you and why should they matter to us?

EB: Upcoming​ ​in​ ​the​ ​new​ ​year​ ​I’m​ ​playing​ ​Bruce​ ​Bechdel​ ​in​ ​FUN​ ​HOME​ ​for​ ​The​ ​Musical Stage​ ​Company/Mirvish​ ​at​ ​the​ ​newly​ ​minted​ ​CAA​ ​Theatre​ ​on​ ​Yonge​ ​street​ ​(I’m calling​ ​it​ ​the​ ​Canadian​ ​Arts​ ​Arena).​ ​It’s​ ​an​ ​amazing​ ​musical​ ​that​ ​won​ ​5​ ​Tonys​ ​a​ ​few years​ ​back.​ ​ ​Based​ ​on​ ​the​ ​graphic​ ​novel​ ​by​ ​Alison​ ​Bechdel,​ ​it’s​ ​a​ ​beautiful​ ​and heartbreaking​ ​show​ ​written​ ​by​ ​Jeanine​ ​Tesori​ ​and​ ​Lisa​ ​Kron.​ ​ ​It’s​ ​about​ ​families​ ​and the​ ​secrets​ ​that​ ​can​ ​be​ ​kept​ ​and​ ​that​ ​can​ ​ultimately​ ​destroy​ ​us​ ​and​ ​perhaps​ ​recreate us​ ​at​ ​the​ ​same​ ​time.​ ​ ​With​ ​an​ ​incredible​ ​score​ ​and​ ​amazing​ ​cast​ ​I’m​ ​fortunate enough​ ​to​ ​work​ ​with,​ ​I​ ​couldn’t​ ​be​ ​more​ ​excited/terrified.

JS: Let’s talk about the state of the arts in today’s society, including the forms in which you work. What specifically gives you hope and what specifically do you find depressing?

EB: What​ ​gives​ ​me​ ​hope​ ​is​ ​that​ ​we​ ​are​ ​telling​ ​new​ ​stories​ ​as​ ​well​ ​as​ ​infusing​ ​old​ ​stories with​ ​new​ ​voices.​ ​Voices​ ​that​ ​haven’t​ ​been​ ​given​ ​as​ ​much​ ​chance​ ​to​ ​be​ ​used​ ​in​ ​these tellings.​ ​ ​When​ ​I​ ​came​ ​into​ ​this​ ​business,​ ​there​ ​were​ ​still​ ​many​ ​British​ ​expats​ ​running things​ ​and​ ​telling​ ​British​ ​tales,​ ​even​ ​on​ ​Lord​ ​of​ ​the​ ​Rings​ ​we​ ​were​ ​told​ ​many​ ​times that​ ​England​ ​was​ ​its​ ​spiritual​ ​homeland.​ ​Canada​ ​is​ ​exploring​ ​its​ ​own​ ​voice​ ​and​ ​it’s​ ​a hugely​ ​diverse​ ​voice.​ ​ ​It​ ​is​ ​thrilling​ ​to​ ​see​ ​women​ ​playing​ ​men​’s​ ​parts​ ​and​ ​I​ ​think once​ ​the​ ​ball​ ​gets​ ​rolling​ ​with​ ​this​ ​type​ ​of​ ​casting,​ ​it​ ​can’t​ ​be​ ​rolled​ ​back​ ​nor​ ​should it. What​ ​I​ ​find​ ​depressing​ ​is​ ​that​ ​there​ ​seems​ ​to​ ​be​ ​no​ ​delineation​ ​between​ ​artists​ ​and any​ ​other​ ​sector​ ​in​ ​terms​ ​of​ ​funding​ ​or​ ​taxation.​ ​In​ ​Ireland​ ​the​ ​first​ ​50,000​ ​of​ ​income gained​ ​by​ ​artists​ ​in​ ​all​ ​fields​ ​is​ ​exempt​ ​from​ ​tax.​ ​ ​They​ ​cultivate​ ​and​ ​nurture​ ​their artists​ ​and​ ​the​ ​work​ ​shows.​ ​ ​Actors​ ​in​ ​this​ ​country​ ​can’t​ ​even​ ​claim​ ​unemployment insurance​ ​where​ ​they​ ​can​ ​in​ ​the​ ​USA.​ ​I’m​ ​not​ ​saying​ ​that​ ​there​ ​aren’t​ ​many​ ​grants​ ​to apply​ ​for​ ​and​ ​they​ ​ARE​ ​applied​ ​for​ ​but​ ​self-employed​ ​artists​ ​should​ ​be​ ​treated​ ​as who​ ​they​ ​are,​ ​channels​ ​to​ ​the​ ​truth.​ ​Com

Comedians​ ​are,​ ​once​ ​again​ ​the​ ​truth​ ​speakers, artists​ ​are​ ​the​ ​balancers​ ​and​ ​the​ ​awareness​ ​makers,​ ​the​ ​enlighteners.​ ​ ​We​ ​don’t make​ ​enough​ ​money​ ​to​ ​require​ ​us​ ​saving​ ​the​ ​government​ ​coffers​ ​from​ ​ruin.​ ​ ​I​ ​do understand​ ​though​ ​that​ ​we​ ​have​ ​a​ ​smaller​ ​population​ ​than​ ​some​ ​countries​ ​so​ ​we must​ ​all​ ​pull​ ​our​ ​weight,​ ​I’m​ ​just​ ​curious​ ​whether​ ​there’s​ ​a​ ​better​ ​way​ ​to​ ​keep​ ​artists from​ ​starving​ ​or​ ​ultimately​ ​flying​ ​the​ ​coop.

JS: Finally, what do you yourself find to be the most intriguing and/or surprising thing about you?

EB: Most​ ​intriguing​ ​thing​ ​about​ ​me? ​ ​I​ ​think​ ​I’m​ ​rather​ ​unspectacular​ ​actually, ​ ​fairly simple​ ​and​ ​a​ ​small​ ​town​ ​boy​ ​living​ ​in​ ​the​ ​city. ​ ​ ​I​ ​was​ ​born​ ​with​ ​a​ ​love​ ​for​ ​acting​ ​and some​ ​skills​ ​and​ ​an​ ​innate​ ​ability​ ​to​ ​tear​ ​myself​ ​apart​ ​and​ ​put​ ​it​ ​back​ ​together​ ​again. Surprising​ ​thing? ​ ​Maybe​ ​not​ ​so​ ​surprising,​ ​but​ ​I’m​ ​actually​ ​very​ ​shy​ ​and​ ​have​ ​terribly low​ ​self-esteem​ ​sometimes, ​ and ​that​ ​combined​ ​with​ ​a​ ​healthy​ ​ego​ ​makes​ ​for​ ​a​ ​busy time upstairs.

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MARTHA HENRY: ACTOR/DIRECTOR, FORTY-TWO YEAR VETERAN OF THE STRATFORD FESTIVAL – AND PROSPERO IN THE TEMPEST OF STRATFORD’S 2018 SEASON – DECLARES “WE ARE MOVING TOWARD A REALIZATION THAT OUR NOTIONS OF CASTING, OF WHITE DOMINANCE IN THE THEATRE, ARE BEING NOT ONLY CHALLENGED BUT BLOWN TO SHREDS…… THE WORLD ITSELF IS CHANGING AND THE THEATRE IS IN THE VANGUARD”.. A REVIEWER’S INTERVIEW WITH PEOPLE IN THE ARTS

Posted on December 6, 2017 by strecker

JAMES STRECKER: If you were asked for 50 words for an encyclopedia to summarize what you do, or have done, in the arts, what would you say?

MARTHA HENRY: Oh, good grief. “I work in the theatre.”

JS: What important beliefs do you express in or through your work?

MH: James, dear, I don’t think I can answer questions like this. I guess what I show or reveal is who I am. But I certainly don’t think of my work that way (although I often admire people who do). I just try to tell the playwright’s story of the play in as interesting and close-to-the-bone way as I possibly can.

JS: Name two people, living or dead, whom you admire a great deal and tell us why for each one.

MH: There are many. Douglas Rain: a man of complete and total integrity, who often (perhaps to his own and others’ discomfort) “told it like it is”. And who illuminated complex characters with the greatest, most breathtaking clarity I have ever witnessed on a stage.

Goldie Semple: an actress of incomparable beauty and talent – and wit! – who took care of other people far beyond her duty – and ultimately her capacity – to do so. The world was a richer place when she was in it.

JS: How have you changed since you began to do creative work?

MH: Well, I believe I began to do “creative work” (although I certainly would not have called it that) when I was 7 and spent the years before that looking for the place to DO that work. I didn’t have a name for it then. Nor, I guess, do I now.

JS: What are your biggest challenges as a creative person?

MH: My health. Nothing wrong with my health – I’m incredibly lucky at my age – but without that we can’t function.

JS: Please describe at least one major turning point in your life.

MH: Major Turning Point: when Powys Thomas said to me, “Well, why can’t you?”

I was working at the Crest Theatre in Toronto under the artistic leadership of the great Murray Davis, who had formed a repertory company for the 1960-61 season. I was in every show (The Matchmaker, Macbeth, Under Milk Wood, Our Father’s House, The Schoolmistress, The Seagull) and at the same time, Powys, who was in the company, was going across the country auditioning for a new theatre school under the leadership of Michel Saint-Denis. I thought this was wonderful and exciting and I regretted the fact that I had gone to a school for four years (Carnegie Tech in Pittsburgh) and therefore obviously would not be eligible or even considered for a school like this. Nor would I entertain the notion myself. When I communicated this to Powys (“I wish such a school had been available when I was looking for one. I’d have gone then. Too bad I can’t now.” (wink & smile) Powys replied, “Well, why can’t you?” Which resulted in my not only going to Montreal in the fall of 1960 but becoming the first (literally) graduate of The National Theatre School of Canada when I got an offer from Stratford to play Miranda in The Tempest in 1962.

JS: What are the hardest things for an outsider to understand about what you do?

MH: I guess the most difficult thing for someone who is not in this business to understand is that it is a business, a vocation, a way of life. People tend to think of what we do as being peripheral, a lark, an “entertainment” – because that’s what it is for them. If you work from 9 to 5, to think of people who work from 10AM to 11PM as being people who actually “work”, is difficult and finally incomprehensible.

JS: How and why did you begin to do creative work in the first place?

MH: I got myself into the Brownie Scouts when I was 7 because they did a play.

JS: What haven’t you attempted as yet that you would like to do and please tell us why?

MH: I always wanted to go and live in Jamaica and make it as a white singer. It never happened, partially because I was continually working – and partially because I can’t really sing.

JS: What are your most meaningful achievements?

MH: This is another of those tricky questions. My most meaningful achievement was doing, when I was running the Grand in London, all three plays of Neil Simon’s Brighton Beach Trilogy starting with Brighton Beach Memoirs, through Biloxi Blues, culminating in Broadway Bound. We produced these wonderful plays from my first year at The Grand (1987) through my last (1994) with the same cast, a Eugene (Eric Wolfe) who went from 14 in the first play to 21 in the last, complete with parents (Nicole Lipman and James Blendick) and an aunt (Debbie Kipp) and brother Marc. They were wonderful, all of them. I was extremely proud of them and of the shows. It seemed to me to signify a continuum, a lasting dedication to the elongated strain, the evolution, of the quality and thought behind what we were presenting – acknowledging that our audience was accompanying us on this journey.

JS: What advice would you give a young person who would like to do what you do?

MH: Well, of course, don’t do it unless you HAVE to. It’s too hard, otherwise.

JS: Of what value are critics?

MH: Some critics are useful to the artists, I think (Robert Cushman). Sometimes you can glean something from a knowledgeable reviewer that sticks and helps in the future. Too often the “critics” are most interested in establishing their own fame, their influence in a town, upon a community – their position of power.

JS: What do you ask of your audience?

MH: To come. Then it’s up to us.

JS: What specifically would you change about what goes on in the world and the arts?

MH: Well, I guess more government support. There are theatres in Europe that can do astounding things – shows that take several years to come to fruition – because their governments believe they are crucial for the development and health of the country. This is not, of course, the North American attitude. We tend to feel that the arts are an inconsequential frill.

JS: If you could relive one experience from your creative life, what would it be and why would you do so?

MH: James, I don’t believe that I would. The theatre is ephemeral and probably should be. You can’t go back and relive something with any degree of validity because you are different than you were then. This is why it’s so interesting to play a part more than once: you are a different human being, a different artist than you were then – and so the part becomes different, too.

JS: Tell us what it feels like to be a figure who is presented somehow in the media. What effect does this presence have on you?

MH: I don’t have such pressure, James. I haven’t been interviewed in years. I interact with members of the audience who are effusive and kind. I have little or no interaction with the media.

JS: Name two places you would like to visit, one you haven’t been to and one to experience again and briefly tell us why

MH: I love Jamaica, have been there a few times and would live there, if I could make a living there. I have never been to Greece and would love to go and spend some time there. It really is the birthplace of what we do. (I learned a bit of Greek when I was in university – have lost most of it now…)

JS: Please tell us about one or more projects that you have been working on, are preparing, or have recently completed. Why do they matter to you and why should they matter to us?

MH: Ah, projects…..I have always wanted to direct Ibsen’s The Wild Duck. Every time I find a Hedvig (the young daughter and the “owner” of the duck) I ask an artistic director if I can do it. They always say no. I think they believe no one will care, no one will come. And yet it’s one of the most poignant and incisive stories about a family and the ability to care about something outside yourself that has ever been written.

I would love to do Tennessee Williams’ Camino Real. I saw it when I was in university, directed by the legendary Bill Ball. It was spellbinding. Very few companies have the resources to do this play any longer. It would be a magical production on the Festival stage.

And of course, Clifford Odets’ The Country Girl. I have the perfect cast in mind for this searing story of a marriage and a failed artist from a legendary playwright of the American theatre.

Finally, from our own canon: without a doubt, the great John Murrell’s October – a story about Eleanora Duse and her friendship with Isadora Duncan. This fascinating, endlessly complex and alarming play has yet to have its definitive production. I would like to have the chance to try.

JS: Let’s talk about the state of the arts in today’s society, including the forms in which you work. What specifically gives you hope and what specifically do you find depressing?

MH: I suppose what depresses me (although I’m seldom depressed) and what inspires me are actually one and the same: I think the conundrum we’re having at the moment about “diversity” and “colour-blind” casting (a term now considered offensive in certain circles) mean that we are moving toward a realization that our notions of casting, of white dominance in the theatre, are being not only challenged but blown to shreds and I’m pretty sure that it will not be long (although not in my lifetime) before those notions of “right” and “wrong” casting will be obsolete and we will have come to a realization of the fitness of things as reflected in the world in which we live……before the idea of someone with a darker skin playing a character previously meant to be of a lighter hue will seem so obsolete as to be laughable. The world itself is changing and the theatre is in the vanguard.

JS: Finally, what do you yourself find to be the most intriguing and/or surprising thing about you?

MH: Most intriguing, surprising thing about me? That I’m still here.

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DR. HANNAH FRENCH: BROADCASTER, RESEARCHER, CRITIC, PERFORMER, PUBLIC SPEAKER, EDUCATOR, AND ‘PORTKEY’ SAYS, “I GET DEPRESSED EVERY TIME MUSIC EDUCATION IS LABELLED NON-ESSENTIAL, OR AN ADD-ON FOR PRIVILEGED KIDS. THE ENORMOUS BENEFITS FROM BOTH THE ART AND SCIENCE OF MUSIC HAVE BEEN PROVED TIME AND AGAIN” …. A REVIEWER’S INTERVIEW WITH PEOPLE IN THE ARTS

Posted on November 30, 2017 by strecker

Raphaëlle Photography

James Strecker: If you were asked for 50 words for an encyclopaedia to summarize what you do, or have done, in the arts, what would you say?

Hannah French: Hannah French (PhD. MMus. BMus. LRAM. ARAM.) is a Musical Butterfly: Broadcaster (BBC); Researcher (Eighteenth Century and BBC Proms); Critic (BBC Music Magazine); Performer (Baroque Flute); Public Speaker (Pre-concert Talks, Festival Lectures, Listening Clubs); Educator (Children’s Music Classes, Undergraduate Music Degrees, Music Appreciation Classes); Collaborator (TV Historian, Music Consultant).

JS: What important beliefs do you express in or through your work?

HF: That the history of music is a living tale of musical people having experiences that everyone can relate to in one way or another. I aspire to be the portkey.

JS: Name two people, living or dead, whom you admire a great deal and tell us why for each one.

HF: Both dead, and both unjustly famed for being wives of great men:

First, pianist Natasha Spender; the ‘omnicompetent wife of one of the 20th century’s most famous poets’. I worked for Natasha for a couple of summers, predominantly transcribing her late husband’s diaries. But the labels do her little justice as the true artist she was in her own right. Over the long summer evenings, she taught me a huge amount about life in the arts: from dealing with love and loss, to adapting your dreams. She performed at the first televised Last Night of the Proms, and planted the seeds of my obsession with the Proms – she was the one who taught me that the mark of a successful achievement is the realisation it’s become an obsession.

Second, soprano Anna Magdalena Bach; the second wife of the composer Johann Sebastian. We have to read through so many lines to catch sight of her, but despite that there is much to admire. A professional singer (doubtless performing Bach’s spectacular secular cantatas at the Court of Cöthen), she managed a huge musical household and continued her career – but to what extent we’re unsure as of course history neglects women. Her manuscripts and notebooks prove her talent – but no, I don’t believe she wrote the Cello Suites.

JS: How have you changed since you began to do creative work?

HF: I don’t remember a time when work wasn’t creative. I performed from a young age, chose creative subjects throughout my education, devised my own courses to teach undergraduates for over a decade at the Royal Academy of Music (London, UK), and now freelance in various fields as a musicologist. I would say that since I began broadcasting, I feel I’ve found my creative home and my own voice, which has brought renewed confidence and inspiration.

JS: What are your biggest challenges as a creative person?

HF: I’m a workaholic perfectionist caught up in a disabled body. I have Ehlers Danlos Syndrome and wage a daily battle with pain. But this can bring focus too.

JS: Please describe at least one major turning point in your life.

HF: Two major turning points stand out for me now:

The first was in my last year of school. I was told, very loudly and in front of a full room of 18-year-olds, that I’d never make it as a musician as I ‘couldn’t hack making mistakes’. It was mortifying, but has driven me. I’m still working on dealing with making mistakes.

The second was a long embrace with my husband Paul, under the beautiful Victorian Christmas lights of my home-town of Leeds (UK) on 12 November 2014. It’s like a gleaming moment in time. Minutes earlier I’d passed my PhD viva. The day before I’d been in the studio at Radio3 pre-recording my first proper feature reviewing newly released recordings. That week I’d finally made some progress with my health and mobility. I was pregnant. It was the start of a new chapter in taking control, personally and creatively: I had choices and new aspirations. I haven’t looked back.

JS: What are the hardest things for an outsider to understand about what you do?

HF: There’s no line between work and pleasure. I love that. But sometimes I crave silence, or Netflix. And I’m NEVER finished, it’s just simply time to stop and have a G&T.

JS: How and why did you begin to do creative work in the first place?

HF: I sang before I spoke.

JS: What haven’t you attempted as yet that you would like to do and please tell us why?

HF: Write short stories – because there are too many musical things I want to do first.

JS: What are your most meaningful achievements?

HF: In terms of meaningfulness, being a doctor of music has nothing on a doctor of medicine. But music is medicine for the soul, and the most meaningful achievements are those when you make even a fleeting difference to someone’s life. There’s little so rewarding as a child singing back a tune or finding a rhythm, a student realising why things that have been instinctive all make sense, or an adult discovering that a musical experience can change the way they feel about themselves or the world. It’s powerful alchemy.

JS: What advice would you give a young person who would like to do what you do?

HF: If you think you need a plan B, you are chasing the wrong profession, but be prepared to adapt plan A. And celebrate small victories.

JS: Of what value are critics?

HF: I sit on both sides of this, being one and being subjected to them. Everyone is a critic whether they choose to voice their opinions or not. But critics are not just about criticism and these days when there are so many platforms for anyone to review pretty much anything, we’re returning to seek out cultural gatekeepers and a trusted voice. Ultimately the value of critics lies in the collective fascination with one person’s opinion, on one day, of one performance.

JS: What do you ask of your audience?

HF: To tune into BBCRadio3 with an open mind and an open ear.

JS: What specifically would you change about what goes on in the world and the arts?

HF: Manners. Seriously. The world over, and through every walk of life. Manners make you stop and think for a split second. If there were better manners on the road, I would arrive at my destination in a better frame of mind. People feel valued and appreciated when they are thanked. Please goes a long way in affecting change. It’s the same in the arts. It has to be genuine and we are all responsible.

JS: If you could relive one experience from your creative life, what would it be and why would you do so?

HF: A recent one: February 2016. I was introducing a brilliant performance recorded live by the Dunedin Consort and John Butt of John Blow’s ‘Venus and Adonis for The Early Music Show on BBC Radio 3.
I’d previously been a guest on various radio shows, but this was my first time hosting. The script was relatively brief, but I’d agonized over it. It felt like a real responsibility to craft something meaningful and a chance to do something I’d aspired to for such a long time – I really wanted to get it right. Having always performed or spoken in real time, I didn’t expect the process of studio recording to feel as creative as it did and I loved it. It was one of those days when the producer who had booked me was ill so another stood in at the last minute, but that turned out to be a very good thing. In that short time, he helped me glimpse the art of broadcasting and I was hooked. I left Broadcasting House on cloud nine.

JS: Tell us what it feels like to be a figure who is presented somehow in the media. What effect does this presence have on you?

HF: I’m new to the media, and not remotely recognizable. However, I’ve already realised the benefit of having a professional photograph which says what you want it to be about your character – especially if people only hear your voice. I’m really grateful to photographer (and soprano) Christina Raphaëlle Haldane, for teaching me this and taking my photo.

JS: Name two places you would like to visit, one you haven’t been to and one to experience again and briefly tell us why.

HF: Jerusalem has been on my must-visit list for years. I suppose it’s the allure of experiencing the historic crossroads of culture, religion, food etc, but I would return in a heartbeat to the summer sun of Tuscany, with my family and a big pile of books.

JS: Please tell us about one or more projects that you have been working on, are preparing, or have recently completed. Why do they matter to you and why should they matter to us?

HF: I’m currently researching and scripting an edition of The Early Music Show (BBC Radio3) which I’ll present for broadcast at the end of January 2018. It’s about the Vingt-Quatre Violons du Roi, a string ensemble resident at the French Courts of Kings Louis XIII, XIV, and XV. They are responsible for the orchestra as we know it today thanks to their organization, make-up, performance practices, and repertoire. We refer to them ever-so often in passing, but many specifics are still lost in the mists of time.

It matters to me that we take time to unpack even the things that we think we know about; there are always surprises. I hope that the finished product of an hour-long Early Music Show gets the grey matter going and whets the musical appetite for more. Ultimately, I want people to ask more questions.

Why should it matter? Because knowledge matters. Artistic knowledge enriches, and it’s a collective task. I couldn’t put it better than Tom Stoppard in Arcadia: “We shed as we pick up, like travellers who must carry everything in their arms, and what we let fall will be picked up by those behind.”

JS: Let’s talk about the state of the arts in today’s society, including the forms in which you work. What specifically gives you hope and what specifically do you find depressing?

HF: I get depressed every time music education is labelled non-essential, or an add-on for privileged kids. The enormous benefits from both the art and science of music have been proved time and again, but it seems that’s not always enough to keep music in the core curriculum. My heart sinks when I learn that national music organizations hold courses in school holidays of private (fee-paying) schools, thus excluding state school students and fostering the perception that classical music in particular is elitist. It’s not, but that attitude can easily trickle through society.

On the flip side, I have hope when initiatives are put in motion that have very real, incredibly positive effects. Take the BBC’s 10 Pieces. In its third year, the concept of school students exploring the context and construction of a manageable, hugely varied, set list of works through online resources and live performances energises and simply makes music accessible. There’s very, very rarely any need to dumb down classical music. It just needs the right platform.

JS: Finally, what do you yourself find to be the most intriguing and/or surprising thing about you?

HF: There was time when I rode a horse through a McDonald’s drive-thru. Regularly.

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ELISA CITTERIO: THE VIOLINIST AND NEW MUSIC DIRECTOR OF TAFELMUSIK STATES, “MUSIC CHANGES US AND ACCOMPANIES US IN EVERY CRUCIAL MOMENT OF OUR LIVES. MUSIC IS COMMUNICATION, IT’S A UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE WITH THE ABILITY TO CROSS PHYSICAL OR MENTAL BOUNDARIES.”….A REVIEWER’S INTERVIEW WITH PEOPLE IN THE ARTS….SEE/HEAR TAFELMUSIK’S FOUR WEDDINGS, A FUNERAL, AND A CORONATION NOVEMBER 29 TO DECEMBER 3

Posted on November 28, 2017 by strecker

Photo by Monica Cordiviola

JAMES STRECKER: If you were asked for 50 words for an encyclopedia to summarize what you do, or have done, in the arts, what would you say?

ELISA CITTERIO: My many years of study and my encounters with mentors and masters have left me with a great passion for teaching. On the one hand is my specialization in early repertoire on period instruments, which has culminated in a schedule full of events concentrated in baroque and classical music; on the other hand are my years in one of the world’s most famous orchestras, La Scala. Both paths have been reciprocally stimulating and enriching.

JS: What important beliefs do you express in or through your work?

EC: Music is a primary need for us humans. Even prehistoric drawings depict rudimentary musical instruments, suggesting that food is not the only thing required for our sustenance. Music is something that our bodies, minds —and for those who believe — our souls, need. Music changes us and accompanies us in every crucial moment of our lives. Music is communication, it’s a universal language with the ability to cross physical or mental boundaries.

JS: Name two people, living or dead, whom you admire a great deal and tell us why for each one.

EC: My mother, because she taught me that the best teaching comes through example, and that we never stop learning. My teacher Dejan Bogdanovich, whose every note and every word are gifts that have been etched into my heart. His extreme humility is on par with his greatness, and this is part of his teaching.

JS: Please describe at least one major turning point in your life.

EC: My first orchestra rehearsal, I was 13 years old. The collective breath and the magic of being surrounded musical harmonies. An indescribable emotion that has left its mark on my journey.
Also, the birth of my daughter.

JS: What are the hardest things for an outsider to understand about what you do?

EC: We musicians don’t produce a material object, and no two concerts are ever the same.

JS: What are your most meaningful achievements?

EC: Winning the audition for the orchestra at La Scala wasn’t easy, and it was even more challenging to maintain my passion for the research, study, and practice of early music. Leaving La Scala to become Music Director at Tafelmusik is certainly something I’m proud of.

JS: What advice would you give a young person who would like to do what you do?

EC: Study certainly helps one reach a level of confidence in one’s own abilities. However, given the importance of sharing and empathy in this kind of work, it’s fundamental to learn how to manage interpersonal relationships, both on and off stage.

JS: Of what value are critics?

EC: I’ve come across reviews for the same concert that are very different from each other. It’s difficult to give an unequivocal opinion, but a classical music review reaches more people than word of mouth from people who attended the concert A good review includes concepts, good writing, and spreads a message about culture. A poorly written review can be more reflective of the critic’s personal tastes rather than reflecting a subjective listening experience. In any case, without critics we would lose an avenue for communication and interesting feedback.

JS: What do you ask of your audience?

EC: I’ve been fond of noticing how in certain countries, the age of audience members varies quite widely. In general, I appreciate the audience’s participation, which may be manifested through silence, or sighs at the end of a piece, sometimes smiles, and from the audience’s ability to express its emotions through a standing ovation or rhythmic clapping and shouts of “bravi” at the end of concerts.

Some audiences are more reserved, while others are freer. I remember concerts in Argentina almost 20 years ago: several very young men, who after having applauded and yelled “bravi” at the end of the concert, waited outside the stage door to shake our hands. I’m not sure their reaction was as much about the quality of the playing as it was about their capacity to freely express their joy.

JS: What specifically would you change about what goes on in the world and in the arts?

EC: There are two sides to every coin. Recording has its pros and cons: millions of CDs and DVDs are a sign of our times, but in a recording the sound gets compressed and it completely loses its unique and natural relationship with the listener. In my opinion, this sets up unrealistic expectations for live concerts.

I question the hectic pace that many musicians are subjected to — tours, concerts, and not enough time to time to study or find inspiration.

I question theatres and concert halls that close their doors to young children.

I question effect without affect.

JS: Finally, what do you yourself find to be the most intriguing and/or surprising thing about you?

EC: I’ll never stop being thrilled by playing music with others. I love sharing. I don’t have prejudices. I like to take risks, even on stage.

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