In this Sonatas & Soundscapes feature that aired Friday, February 21st, host Bradley Fuller hears from Yuriy Bekker—who directs the College of Charleston Orchestra and is Concertmaster of the Charleston Symphony Orchestra—as well as two of the college orchestra’s student musicians: William Railey and Nallely Macias.
The three share about their excitement ahead of a Carnegie Hall debut for the CofC Orchestra and the Charleston Symphony and Youth Orchestra.
TRANSCRIPT:
[College of Charleston Orchestra tuning]
FULLER: With a performance on one of the world’s most iconic stages only a few days away, there’s a heightened sense of anticipation in Room 234 of the college of Charleston’s Cato Center for the Arts….filling the room for their weekly rehearsal, the members of the CofC orchestra take their seats, warm up, tune, and then, under the baton of director Yuriy Bekker, launch into the final movement of Antonín Dvořák’s Symphony No. 9, from the New World.
[College of Charleston rehearses Dvořák’s Symphony No. 9]
It’s one of a few selections that the college orchestra—along with the Charleston Symphony and CS Youth Orchestra--will be performing Wednesday, February 26th for their debut in that world renowned venue: New York City’s Carnegie Hall.
According to Yuriy, who not only directs the CofC orchestra but is also concertmaster or principal first violinist of the Charleston Symphony, the trip has been a couple years in the making:
BEKKER: Well, two years ago, our College of Charleston Orchestra was invited to perform at the Kennedy Center. And that was such a great experience for the students and for our community. And I realized, you know, it would be great to have another tour. And so when I called the touring company, the touring company suggested “Why not Carnegie hall?” And I thought—that's a dream. That's been always a dream. And I wanted to expose students and musicians here in Charleston to perform in this incredible venerated venue. And the idea started cooking, and I thought “Why not bring more than one orchestra? Bring the College of Charleston, of course, but also bring the Charleston Symphony Orchestra? The Charleston Symphony Orchestra next year is celebrating its 90th anniversary. It's a phenomenal group of musicians and I want to spread the word about the orchestra and how wonderful it is. And also give the opportunity to the Charleston Symphony Youth Orchestra.
FULLER: Yuriy’s appearance on the podium leading two of the three featured orchestras will mark his first time conducting at Carnegie, but it won’t be his first time on stage there.
BEKKER: My memory of performing there so vivid. Just remembering how beautiful and historic the place--that concert hall—is. A beautiful stage. When you finish the last chord, that last cadence of a symphony, that moment--the ringing. It just rings. The hall is an instrument, and the hall rings for a few seconds and it’s just so moving and gratifying.
And also, from a historical standpoint, this is where so many great composers have performed and premiered some of their music—Antonín Dvořák and Tchaikovsky. Gustav Mahler. So it's a very, very special place to be. And I think it will mean a lot to make music in this hall with our three groups: the students and also the musicians of the Charleston Symphony.
FULLER: The musicians performing under his baton are excited about their orchestra’ Carnegie Hall debut…William Railey, a freshman music and biology double major who plays violin in the college orchestra, saw the trip to the iconic New York venue as a draw in the application process:
RAILEY: I mean, when I found out that the orchestra was going to Carnegie Hall when I was applying last year, I just have kind of been looking forward to that through that whole process and through this year. And so there’s not any one moment. Its just the whole thing is amazing and I’m just really honored to be able to even have the opportunity play such amazing pieces at such an amazing venue.
FULLER: William never guessed his family’s prediction about his music-making would pan out quite so soon:
RAILEY: All through my life my family was like “We’ll see you at Carnegie! We’ll see you at Carnegie!” And I was like “Ohhh, that’s not going to happen.” And then somehow my freshman year of college, it just is happening. And it’s just unbelievable.
FULLER: The sense of a dream come true is shared by CofC orchestra members like Nallely Macias, a senior music major studying trumpet.
MACIAS: This honestly feels so surreal, especially as a college musician. It feels like such an honor to be playing at Carnegie Hall. I’m just so excited.
FULLER: Understandably, the excitement of performing on a stage as venerated as Carnegie’s is multifaceted:
MACIAS: I don’t want to say I’m nervous. But yes, I do feel a little nervous. I want to say I’m more excited than nervous [laughter]
FULLER: Nallely is hoping to channel that excitement into the music—a program that celebrates the cultural and musical riches of Charleston. Here’s Yuriy again:
BEKKER: You know, in New York, you have so much great culture. You have a community. New York City hears all the time music of Beethoven and Brahms and Mahler. And we thought we need to bring a little bit of Charleston with us to New York to showcase our culture here in Charleston. We have such a unique identity and music is such a big part of it.
FULLER: Indeed, the opening work on the concert, receiving its world premiere by the Charleston Symphony Youth Orchestra led by Ryo Hasegawa, is titled “Charleston Mix”, composed by Charleston native Thomas Cabaniss, who is now based in New York and on the faculty at the Julliard School. The concert opener is a nod to the iconic Roaring 20s dance named for the South Carolina city.
The youth orchestra is also performing a work actually written in the 1920s: Edmond Thornton Jenkins’ Charlestonia, a folk rhapsody. The composer’s father, the Reverend Daniel Jenkins, founded the Jenkins Orphanage, a charitable institution for African American children that introduced the musical and dance traditions of Black southerners to other parts of the country through national fundraising tours given by the orphanage’s legendary band.
And the Holy city Connections abound in the works being presented by the Charleston Symphony itself—including George Gershwin’s “An American in Paris”. First performed at Carnegie in 1928, the piece came just a few years before Gershwin’s iconic Opera set in Charleston, Porgy and Bess. Work on the opera and collaboration with Charleston author DuBose Heyward drew Gershwin to Charleston and Folly Beach in late 1933 and the summer of 1934.
But the other selection the Charleston Symphony Orchestra is featuring was written by a composer who didn’t need to make a special trip to the South Carolina Lowcountry to better understand it. Musically charting the Holy City’s history from Discovery, through times of tragedy and reconciliation, and on to a hopeful “Tomorrow”, A Charleston Concerto for string quartet and orchestra is the work of Charleston native and CofC professor Edward Hart.
And As Yuriy shares, Hart isn’t the only current CofC faculty member with a composition on the Carnegie program:
BEKKER: Another piece we play is by Yiorgos Vassilandonakis, who is also a professor at the College of Charleston. And he wrote a piece called Corsaro. “Corsaro” means “pirate.” I think it’s in honor of his newborn son, so there might be an internal meaning. But also, Charleston is on the harbor. I know there are some pirate stories. And the whole piece is very cinematic.
[excerpt of College of Charleston Orchestra playing Corsaro]
FULLER: The CofC orchestra is also sharing another dynamic work by a former professor at the school: composer Trevor Weston, who is now on the faculty at Drew University and an instructor at Julliard. His piece, Subwaves, while not pirate-inspired, still offers an exciting ride:
MACIAS: It’s inspired by the subways, as its name is Subwaves—not “Subway.” But when you hear the piece, you can hear the orchestra kind of turn into the subway. Think of it like you’re going on a subway in the middle of the night. Its’ very ominous. Very spooky. You hear the cars going on the tracks. There’s also a couple parts in the percussion where you can hear the doors opening of the subway. You can hear the brass and low brass turn into the rattling of the subway moving as well.
[excerpt of College of Charleston Orchestra playing Subwaves]
It’s very technical. You have to really—as people in my generation like to say—lock in [laughter]. We all have to lock in to perform this piece correctly. Especially the technicalities. And there’s a lot of brass fanfares that we all get to perform. So, its very interesting.
It was also premiered at Carnegie Hall so its very exciting to bring it back to Carnegie Hall as the College of Charleston .
FULLER: And in a nod to the celebrated venue in which they’ll be performing, the CofC orchestra is rounding out their set with the finale movement of one of the best-known symphonies of them all—what CofC violinist William considers a highlight:
RAILEY: My favorite piece is probably—we’re doing the fourth movement from Dvořák’s New World Symphony. And it is just really a fantastic piece. It was actually premiered the first time in New York in, I think, the late 1800s at Carnegie Hall. So it’s just really interesting to kind of pay homage to history of doing that piece at Carnegie Hall.
FULLER: The sense of history in Carnegie Hall is something Yuriy says will translate into an important part of the musician’s personal stories as well…
BEKKER: This is a milestone. A milestone for all. A milestone for the Charleston Symphony, for sure. A milestone for the students—whether they're going to go into music or not, to play in Carnegie Hall is an experience they will never forget.
FULLER: Though Wednesday night’s concert is the focal point of the trip, there will be time enough outside of rehearsals to enjoy what the city has to offer—including other musical performances:
RAILEY: Well, one thing I’m very excited for is the night after our concert, we are going to the Lincoln Center and we are going to see the New York Philharmonic perform with—hopefully—Hilary Hahn. She’s one of my favorite violinists by far. And I went to what was supposed to be on of her performances in November, but she’s had some nerve issues in her hands so she’s been cancelling a lot of shows, so I’m hoping she’s going to be able to do this one.
FULLER: And for Yuriy, a trip to New York offers a chance to give a little loving attention not just to his work as a conductor, but to his instrument of choice, too:
BEKKER: I do have some plans. I’m going to—the next day, I need to get my violin cleaned. So I’m going to go into a shop—to my favorite violin shop there—to get it worked on.
FULLER: For many, including first-time visitors like Nallely, simply enjoying the city will be top of the list apart from the concert:
MACIAS: I mean, since it will be my first time in New York, I am totally okay with being a tourist [laughs].
FULLER: Whether catching other performances, getting better acquainted with fellow musicians, or simply taking in all that New York City has to offer, the student and professional musicians heading to the city for their Carnegie Hall debuts are not only celebrating the many ties linking the Holy City and new York city…they’re making new ones…
[College of Charleston Orchestra playing the final measures of Dvořák’s Symphony No. 9, “From the New World”]
More information about "A Charleston Celebration" at Carnegie Hall can be found on the Carnegie Hall website.
