Hi Calvin,
Strings magazine has purchased an image of you from Philly photog Jared Castaldi. We're planning to publish it on our back page photo essay. I wonder if you could answer a few questions below about your YouTube Orchestra experience?
What made you decide to apply and how good did you think your chances were of being accepted?
Where were you when you found out you were accepted?
What was your response?
What was your previous orchestral experience? And what role does string music play in your life?
How would you summarize your experience during those rehearsal sessions?
How would you describe your experience of playing Carnegie Hall?
How has the experience empowered you as a string player? As a person?
Best regards,
Greg Cahill, editor
Strings magazine
255 West End Ave.
San Rafael, CA 94901
415/485-6946, x621
What made you decide to apply and how good did you think your chances were of being accepted?
I sent in my audition to the YouTube Symphony because I love music. I feel that music runs through my body as blood runs through my arteries. As a full time surgeon and acupuncturist, I don’t get much opportunity to play music. After being away from being able to express music, I feel off-centered.
Even if I didn’t get a spot in the YouTube Symphony, I would have at least used the application process as an excuse to get the violin out and record something. Now I have a video to show for my efforts. I need fun activities like this to break away momentarily from the never ending needs of a medical office. I often give advice to my patients to take breaks from repetitive motion activities. We also need to program in breaks into our daily work. In the end it will make us more effective and efficient.
I thought my chances would be pretty good. I’ve taken my violin playing seriously before I entered medical school. I had been concertmaster at the Brown University Orchestra and had won the concerto competition. As I saw more and more of the videos on YouTube, I became less confident in my chances.
I had studied violin with Mary Canberg in Nyack , New York . She had also taught many other wonderful violinists such as Jamie Buswell, and Joseph Lin. She passed away a few years ago. I really wanted to rememberand honor her teachings by recording it on a video for YouTube, and it would be even better if I could use those skills to play in the orchestra at Carnegie Hall.
Where were you when you found out you were accepted?
I was in my surgery room in our office between minor procedures. They had called me on my cell phone. I remember putting a syringe down to answer the cell phone when they told me I was accepted. I hadn’t really told my office that I had entered this competition. Google/YouTube initially called my office phone, and our receptionist at first thought it was a prank call that I had won a competition to go play violin at Carnegie Hall.
What was your response?
I was thinking – wow, great! Maybe Strings Magazine will finally write about me (partially kidding). I was also partially relieved, because I had told all my friends that I was doing this, so I was hoping not to “lose.” I did participated in a YouTube piano amateur competition run by the Cliburn Competition – I hadn’t won that one, so I had a history of trying out for YouTube related events and letting my friends down. In the end, though, I always feel grateful for friends that voted, and a better person for having tried. It’s ok for me to not succeed with the piano on YouTube, because I’m mostly self taught on the piano, but I’ve had formal and serious violin training on the violin. YouTube is my form of TV. I actually don’t have a TV in my house. I haven’t had one (that worked)
Historically I haven’t been a competitive person, and never liked competitions because of the stress. But I’m starting to see the incentive that competitions give, and I’m starting to like it more. In the end, if it makes me practice the violin, I don’t think it’s a bad thing for me as a surgeon.
What was your previous orchestral experience? And what role does string music play in your life?
I've played in university orchestras. I've tried out for the Illinois Symphony, conducted by Karen Deal (check spelling?) and got into the first violin section, but I was in my surgery training at the time and my program didn't give me enough nights off to participate in the orchestra. It would have been a dream for me to play in that orchestra at that time. I tried, but couldn't make it happen. It was enough of a feat to make it to the audition. I had to have my co-resident hold my pager for a few hours while I went to the orchestra audition. I was also concertmaster of various All-Area/All-State events in New York, where I was born, and lived till high school. After that, I went to Brown University in Providence, RI. Then went on to some surgery training at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland. My apartment was strategically located near CIM (Cleveland Institute of Music) where I was able to attend some of the great concerts there.
Music plays a big role in my life. I try to be as involved as possible. I'm on the board of directors for the Modesto Symphony Orchestra. I also help organize an annual event entitled Docs Play the Pops - it is a fund raiser for music education for our local university - Modesto Junior college, where people from the medical profession get on stage and perform a recital.
Here's a quote (my own quote - quoting oneself... is that bad?) we have in our office and in some of our symphony support advertisements:
"The greatest sense of fine motor control comes from playing a musical instrument. There is nothing else that I know which develops as much discriminating ability for the hands. Diligent and purposeful practicing of musical instruments also allows one to develop habits and strategies that last a lifetime when it comes to perfecting other motor skills such as delicate surgical maneuvers. Playing the violin and piano has helped us become better surgeons. Dr. Wu plays piano, and Dr. Lee plays violin (and now plays the piano). Besides dexterity, music enhances the artistic capacities of our minds and helps us realize the art in our surgeries."
How would you summarize your experience during those rehearsal sessions?
It was exhausting because the two days of rehearsals before the concert were packed. My callouses weren't quite ready for so much playing. I realized that I hadn't practiced enough to develop my fingers and body for the hours of practicing. I started developing some sore fingertips. I learned a lot from everyone around me. Plus MTT had some very insightful ideas. I particularly liked his idea that the orchestra has to move together in order to play together. I've always been a player that moves while playing. I feel that it helps me express the music, and it helps me get into the music.
How would you describe your experience of playing Carnegie Hall?
This was my second time playing in Carnegie Hall. The first time was with the Brown University Orchestra in 1990. I had my last serious concert on the violin on April 15, 1993 before I entered medical school (also at Brown University). Coincidentally the Carngie Hall performance with the YouTube Symphony was on April 15 as well, but this time in 2009. In many ways, I'm hoping that this is the beginning of my return to the violin. I had to concentrate fully on my medical studies and the violin go relegated to the closet and a few fun gigs such as weddings and christmas parties.
How has the experience empowered you as a string player? As a person?
It has been a tremendous growth experience for me as a musician. I've been able to network with some of the world's existing and rising stars in the music world. It is further proof to me that YouTube will help revive the interest in classical music. It's always great to see other string players. It was great to see them at Carnegie Hall. And it's also great to continue watching them on YouTube. I've look to YouTube for inspiration for my music, just as I have always looked to Strings Magazine. I have issues from when I was just starting to learn violin.
I hope that people will be able to see me as musician and as a physician. I've always believed that one is able to bring th most to any field when one is an expert in more than one area. There will be creative ways of intermingling the seemingly unrelated fields. But in my violin and surgery mixture. I've found ways to break down difficult surgical maneuvers into manageable basic motions - very much like practicing a hard passage on the violin.
The YouTube symphony has opened doors for me. My video has caught the attention of two medical orchestras in Asia. One from Hong Kong and another from Taiwan. They invited me to solo a concerto with them in July and August 2009. It will be good to know that other physicians are very much into making music.
If it weren't so late, I would now go and practice my violin.
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