First Questions!

Hooray! We got a few questions from a reader named Andi!

Let’s just dig in, shall we?

1. Kate, what do you like most and least about being in the BPO?

Hmm. Good question.

Well, I’ll give you the bad news first, I guess. Everyone has their little annoyances at work, and the BPO is no different. My current least favorite work issue is that during performances the stage is often hotter than the sun and drier than the desert. I’m not kidding. I don’t know how we manage to survive. (Can you tell I’m prone to exaggeration?)

As for my favorite thing….I think I can speak for all of my collegues when I say the thing we all like the most about playing in the BPO is having the opportunity to play music for a living. We all went into music because we love it passionately, and we worked very hard to get here. This job is the culmination of years of hard work and passion for music. On a more personal note, the thing I love most about playing in the BPO is the strong sense of community within the orchestra. Almost every musician moved to Buffalo specifically to play in the BPO. Starting a life in a new city can be difficult, but I think the orchestra members do a really nice job of welcoming people into the fold, and helping them get adjusted. At the risk of sounding cheesy or trite, I really feel like there is a family atmosphere within the BPO.

2. I am beginning violin student, who happens to be an adult. I started 14 months ago and am struggling with rhythm and note length ( making eighth notes sound like eight notes and not quarter notes and so forth) - do any of you have ways of teaching rhythm to adults that vary from methods used with kids? Also what advice do you have for beginning music students?

I think with students of any age, when there are rhythm issues, the most important thing is to make sure you are really secure with the rhythm before you try to play it on your instrument. Think about it; playing the violin is hard, and so is counting rhythms! You’re going to have a lot more success if you tackle one thing at a time. Try putting your violin down and clapping the rhythm. Try counting it out loud. It’s vitally important that you understand the rhythm before you add the technical challenge of playing it on the violin. The other major piece of advice I would offer is to invest in a metronome. Metronomes don’t lie. Often the problem isn’t with your rhythm, it’s with your pulse. A metronome will straighten out any pulse issues that might prevent you from really nailing the tricky rhythms.

As for general advice for new music students, I highly recommend playing with other people as soon as you feel ready. It’s hard to stay motivated when playing is a purely solitary activity. I really fell in love with the viola when I started to play in string quartets and orchestras. If you are a violinist, and you have a friend who plays cello, try playing some duets! (Incidentally, the Buffalo Public Library has an excellent sheet music department. There is nothing to lose by checking out some music and giving it a whirl.)

Thanks for your questions, Andi! I hope these answers were helpful/entertaining.

As always, if you want to comment or you have a follow up question, please do so by clicking on “comments” below.