Interview with Sarah Kwak, Oregon Symphony concertmaster

1. By Samantha Edington
Concertmaster Sarah Kwak has a full plate. As well as
memorizing the details of every instrument’s role in each score
played, she acts as the bridge between conductor and orchestra,
the orchestra and the Portland community. Since her stunning
opening performance as concertmaster at the 2012 waterfront
concert, Kwak has been proactive in building a relationship with
the public. She and her husband, fellow orchestra member Vali
Phillips, began and lead the musician-run and produced Classical
Up Close annual spring concerts—free chamber music for the
public. Explaining the idea behind the concerts, she says, “I think
that a concertmaster should create a sense of community for the
orchestra players so that everybody feels important and invested…
and proud of creating something.”
Kwak’s position demands that she constantly has her “antennae
out,” listening for the style and phrasing of the other orchestra
members and transmitting the conductor’s intentions through
her body language. How does she handle these responsibilities so
deftly and under bright stage lights? Kwak says, “You have to listen
with ears and eyes in the back of your head—Is somebody actually
playing longer? Is it out of tune here? Do we need to work on it?
There are a million things, so I can never let my attention stray for
one second.”
Kwak took the time to chat about the details of the role she
plays in the orchestra, how she juggles multiple responsibilities and
how everything comes together on stage during concerts.
See Sarah Kwak perform on
January 24 & 26, 2015.
Oregon Symphony
concertmaster Sarah Kwak
brings it all together.
SETTING
THE
TONE

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InSymphony: You were appointed as Oregon Symphony
concertmaster two years ago. How do you feel you’ve defined
this role since you stepped into it?
SK: I can’t say for certain…but from what I hear, I think I am far
more proactive than most concertmasters. A lot of concertmasters
will just come in and do the job and leave. And that is the extent
of their job description, basically. With me, I feel like I want to be
connected to everybody, not just the musicians, but the staff, the
patrons and everybody—be a community. So, I am very proactive in
developing those relationships and doing things for the symphony.
I am heavily invested in the health of this organization. I see the
Oregon Symphony as one big family, so it’s really just like taking care
of the family.
InSymphony: As concertmaster, are you like the conductor’s
translator?
SK: I’m like the conduit from the conductor to the entire orchestra.
They’re looking to me for information—and maybe even clarification
of information—that they’re receiving from the podium. For instance,
he’ll [conductor] give the downbeat, but where is the downbeat
exactly? So, with my body, I have to show everyone where it is. You
know, length of notes, dynamics like that. Exactly, I am a translator of
the conductor’s wishes.
InSymphony: What kind of preparations do you undergo for
each concert?
SK: There’s actually a lot that goes into it, a lot of behind-the-scenes
work. First thing I do is I refresh my memory if it’s a piece that I’m
familiar with…by listening to a recording of it. Then I will study
the score and make sure I know exactly what everybody else has; I
mark my part, then I mark the bowings in the parts, so I have to try
to mark the phrasing and the style consistent with how I think the
piece should go, and also how I think Carlos will want the piece to
go, and try to get the sound that he wants. And then, of course, I have
to learn the notes—a small detail [laughs]. Then I have to, being the
concertmaster, know it backward and forward. I have to have it down
perfectly before the first rehearsal so that I can concentrate on other
things other than learning how it goes. It’s a lot of preparation.
InSymphony: Since you are responsible for creating consistent
methods for everybody to produce sounds, do you think that
your musical style represents the orchestra’s?
SK: I would have to say I have a big influence on it, yes. The last two
summers I played with a different orchestra—just for two weeks—
it was a festival-type situation and I sat third chair, right behind the
concertmaster. Last year, I sat behind the concertmaster at the Berlin
Philharmonic and, this year, I sat behind the concertmaster at the
Chicago Symphony. Two incredible violinists, but two very different
players. And it really makes a huge difference, who is sitting in that
chair. I mean, just in terms of how the rest of the section plays, the
style and everything. So, in answer to your question, I like to think
that I am influencing what’s going on.
InSymphony: When you are in front of the audience and helping
lead the string section and the rest of the orchestra, performing
occasional solos, how do you manage all of that demanding
work?
SK: That’s actually one of the more difficult aspects of being a
concertmaster: suddenly, there’s this solo there, like, “Ahhhhh!”
[laughs]. It is difficult. And then you have all the eyes of your
colleagues watching you, and they’re right next to you. That’s
the difference between standing up and playing a concerto. You
can block everybody else out because you are in your own space.
Then when you have a stand partner—not only that, when you
have an entire section—watching your part, you know, they are
following along, they know when you’re making mistakes, when
you’re not playing the right note or something [laughs]. So how
do I deal with that? Well, I think of the orchestra as a big chamber
ensemble and I’ve done a lot of chamber music, so I guess that’s
where my training comes in. You’re just like the first violinist in
a quartet, leading. Sometimes you have the melody; sometimes
you don’t. Sometimes I’m playing with other instruments, not
just the violin, so then it really is like chamber music.
InSymphony: What are other challenges of being in your
position?
SK: Always being on the spot because the conductor may want a
certain change in articulation or change in style, and then I have to
on the spot change the bowings to match what he wants. So, I have
to think really quickly on the fly [laughs]. Also, trying to figure out
how to relay what he wants with my body so that people behind me
can see: “she’s playing softly,” or “she’s playing long here.” Things
like that. Also, if our section isn’t together with another part of the
orchestra, how to deal with that.
InSymphony: You have to bring them together.
SK: Right, so I’m always listening. Like I said, I’m Carlos’ right-
hand [woman]. He cannot possibly be listening to everything all at
once, so it’s also my job to be listening for the things that might
slip through the cracks. Like I said, if there’s something that’s not
together, the violins, the trombones or something, and he is busy
listening to something else, then I’ll bring it to his attention and
say, “We weren’t quite together there.” But I guess I am always
trying, always thinking about how to better the performance or
the interpretation. I’m playing the notes, but half of me is thinking,
“How can this be better,” or, “Are we together? What’s going wrong
here, and how can we fix it?”
InSymphony: What parts of your job do you find most
enjoyable?
SK: Just playing the symphonic repertoire. I love my leadership
role. I love the responsibility and feeling like I actually make a
difference; I might be deluded in that [laughs], but having a bigger
role in shaping and defining how we sound. I like that.
InSymphony: What stands out about the Oregon Symphony
orchestra when you compare it to other ones that you’ve
worked with?
SK: The Oregon Symphony has a really tremendous work ethic.
People are willing to work at their best all the time. You’ll see the
wind section, even after the rehearsals, over tuning with each other,
trying to make it as blended and as in tune as possible. [Though]
Carlos demands a lot, there [are] never any complaints. So, people are
really willing to work hard here, and I appreciate that. Another aspect
is that the musicians are willing to collaborate with the staff and
management in order to make this a thriving, healthy organization.
InSymphony: You were part of starting the Classical Up Close
concerts. What motivated you to do this series?
SK: Classical Up Close came out of an unfortunate situation, which

3. 12 | oregon symphony
{ }Q & A
was the cancellation of the Carnegie Hall
concert for Oregon Symphony. So, my
husband and I, and about seven of our
colleagues,got together and were just trying
to brainstorm—what could we do during
that empty week [when] we didn’t have any
concerts? And we came up with putting
together these free chamber music concerts
for the community because I didn’t think
that had ever been done here. It was for
two purposes: to serve the community and
thank our friends, supporters who already
come to the symphony, and to make new
friendships and foster new relationships
by going out into all different areas of
Portland to do that. And it was also to raise
visibility for the Oregon Symphony so that
people would say, “Oh, Oregon Symphony
is over here. That’s really great, and I love
that. Maybe I’ll actually come down to the
Schnitz now.” So that’s where that came
from. I think that a concertmaster should
create a sense of community for the
orchestra players so that everybody feels
important and invested in the same thing
and proud of creating something. It just
happened to all come together,and really by
working on this all together—three-fourths
of the orchestra participated in this—and
because it is all musician-run and musician-
produced, we did everything by ourselves.
InSymphony: Have you ever thought
about being a conductor?
SK: [Laughs] No. That’s not for me.
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