{"id":10385,"date":"2021-04-25T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-04-25T17:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/amateurmusic.org\/info\/?p=10385"},"modified":"2021-11-13T10:06:37","modified_gmt":"2021-11-13T18:06:37","slug":"blogpostbensimon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/amateurmusic.org\/info\/blogpostbensimon\/","title":{"rendered":"Meet Conductor and Music Director Ben Simon"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Calling all string players! Our May 8 workshop, At Home with the San Francisco Chamber Orchestra<\/em><\/a>, is designed to inspire you and boost your playing to a new level. SFCO<\/a> calls itself \u201cSan Francisco\u2019s friendliest ensemble,\u201d and good-humored conductor Ben Simon sets the tone. We talked with Ben recently about his life as a violinist turned violist, about why he switched to conducting (\u201cthe dark side,\u201d he joked), and what we can expect from the May 8 workshop. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tell us about your musical beginnings. When did you first pick up an instrument?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

My mother had been a cellist and pianist who quit music in high school to spite her<\/em> mother, and regretted it later. She was determined that all four of her children would have music in their lives. And we do! My brother\u2019s a percussionist, one sister plays flute, and my other sister plays the cello. But I\u2019m the only one who became a professional musician. I began taking violin lessons when I was 6.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When did you switch from violin to viola?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I spent my first eight years in San Francisco, and my first violin teacher\u2014Manfred Karasik, who played with the San Francisco Symphony\u2014was actually a violist. We used to play B\u00e9la Bart\u00f3k duos together. My family moved to New York, and I continued to study violin there. We returned to the Bay Area when I was 15, and when I left again, to attend Yale, Karasik gave me a viola and said, \u201cThis might come in handy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And did it?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It did, but not at first. I was pre-med at Yale, with no intention of becoming a musician. But I missed the violin so much that I dropped my pre-med studies and became a music major. During my second year, the Yale School of Music hired Raphael Hillyer, a brilliant violist who\u2019d been the Juilliard String Quartet\u2019s original violist. I was very lucky: He took me on as a student\u2014it was a turning point in my musical life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While I was still in school I auditioned for the New Haven Symphony Orchestra, which used students as well as professional musicians. There were a lot more violinists than violists, and the conductor asked whether any violinists played viola. In my youth and inexperience I said yes. I got the job as a violist, and I\u2019ve never looked back. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What appeals to you about the viola?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many composers have called the viola the intellectual voice of a string quartet. You\u2019re playing the inner lines that control the rhythm and harmony. Also, the sound is richer and more mellow than the violin, and you don\u2019t have to worry about that pesky E-string. It suits my personality really well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How about conducting? Does it also suit your personality?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ve always been interested in score-reading and analysis. I had studied conducting since high school and had conducted a few little things here and there. Then, in my mid-40s, I became the director of The Crowden School<\/a> in Berkeley\u2014I succeeded Ann Crowden, the founder. The best part was getting to conduct the school\u2019s orchestra. It was my first time conducting since college, and I loved it! In 2002 I was offered two jobs: as music director of the Palo Alto Chamber Orchestra<\/a>, a fabulous strings-only youth orchestra; and as the conductor of the professional San Francisco Chamber Orchestra. I\u2019m more of a mentor and coach than a boss\u2014we\u2019re all friends. I make the process as collaborative as possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And have you continued to play the viola?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I practice every day, and I play with friends and colleagues when I can.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019re thrilled that the San Francisco Chamber Orchestra will play for us in the May 8 workshop. Will you be performing together or in separate Zoom rooms?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019ll be together, live, at the composer Paul Dresher<\/a>\u2019s studio in West Oakland. It\u2019s an industrial warehouse with some renovations that make it sound better, and with wonderful theatrical lighting. We\u2019ll run through the Praelude <\/em>of Grieg\u2019s Holberg Suite <\/em>together, and then the section leaders will talk about the musical challenges of each individual part. At the end, we\u2019ll go back to the top and do a little performance together. It\u2019s a brilliant movement, and everyone gets a chance to shine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You\u2019ve played in orchestras and string quartets. What\u2019s the main difference?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Playing in orchestras is a good way to make a living and a terrible way to make music. Playing in string quartets is the opposite: a great way to make music\u2014it\u2019s a collaborative effort\u2014but a very difficult way to make a living!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
REVISIT THE WORKSHOP<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Our May 8 workshop mentor talks about why he switched from violin to viola to conducting.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":10409,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[23,30,27,14],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10385","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mentors","category-chambermusic","category-strings","category-workshops"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nMeet Conductor and Music Director Ben Simon - Amateur Music Network<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Calling all string players! 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