The conductor’s art
The most frequent question American orchestral conductor Marin Alsop is asked is “what does a conductor do?” The answer is not simple, says the revered maestra, scheduled to conduct Beethoven with the NZSO in September. “Of course, I am waving my arms,” she says, “but there is a method behind it. Yes, I’m keeping the orchestra together - but really I’m being the messenger for the composer, understanding why he or she wrote every single note in the piece, conveying that to the musicians, getting them all focused on the same page, all in the zone with me in order to get that message out to the audience.”
Conductor Gemma New
“…a charismatic presence on the podium …”
Photo credit: Roy Cox
This month New Zealand audiences were given an impressive demonstration of the conductor’s art by Alsop’s younger colleague Gemma New, back here from North America to conduct the NZSO and National Youth Orchestra in back-to-back programmes over two weekends. A silver lining of the pandemic has been the opportunities offered to New Zealand musicians working internationally who have been able to return home through the managed isolation process. Audiences here are getting to know New, a charismatic presence on the podium who has visited several times in 2020 and 2021.
The demanding schedule for her recent visit had her conducting the NZSO in premiere performances of Gareth’s Farr’s Ngā Hihi o Matariki on two Fridays in Auckland and Wellington, followed each Saturday by Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring. On the Sunday afternoons she then directed the NZSO National Youth Orchestra, enhanced by additional NZSO players, in Shostakovich’s monumental 7th Symphony, named “Leningrad”. The massive 75-minute work for almost 120 players was preceded by the premiere of Ephemeral Bounds by the NYO’s Composer in residence Ihlara McIndoe (reviewed here).
While New was in MIQ in Auckland before the big round of rehearsals I asked her about preparing for the marathon conducting tasks ahead, particularly the Shostakovich which she was conducting for the first time. The Leningrad’s first movement alone is 30 minutes long, most of it an unrelenting “invasion march”. Even Alsop, who has conducted the work many times, has been seen flexing and rubbing her wrist between movements.
New laughed ruefully at the question. Of course two weeks confined to a hotel room is not ideal. “But I have a lot of energy,” she said. “ And I have a yoga mat with me. And it really comes down to analysis and preparation - that’s what we do, that’s 90% of the work. I’ll keep doing that and revising from the first rehearsal till the last concert – and then I’ll revise again for the next time I do it. I have a word document for every piece I work on, and I have bar-by-bar notes and write a lot in the score as well. I want to make sure that I can see it all very clearly.”
On the podium her detailed preparation is evident. The Rite of Spring has particular challenges for all the musicians with frequent time signature changes and complex cross-rhythmic textures. It’s all happening at speed within the work’s intense emotions and forward momentum. New appeared utterly in control of the score, confident and authoritative and ensuring all musicians were embraced by her attention. As conductor she embodied the music with bold, dynamic gestures, producing an electrifying performance.
New’s use of gesture varies considerably, depending on the requirements of the music. At the beginning of The Rite she didn’t conduct at all, inviting bassoonist Justin Sun to open the work with his marvellously flexible and measured performance of the iconic solo melody. Her approach is always about the integrity of the music itself and as well as her apparently intuitive artistic insight she has a refreshing absence of ego.
For Farr’s Ngā Hihi o Matariki, New strode to the podium and took an energetic stance to launch into the work, the longest symphonic piece Farr has written to date and a dramatic melding of cultures. (You can read my introduction to the work here.) When vocal soloists Mere Boynton and Ariana Tikao joined the Orchestra, both New and the music itself made space for them to shine forth within the texture. Their performance was creative and improvisatory, Tikao also bringing the poignant sounds of taonga pūoro to the moving piece.
Soloists Ariana Tikao (left) and Mere Boynton
…in Gareth Farr’s Ngā Hihi o Matariki, Gemma New and the music made space for them to shine…
Photo credit: Latitude Creative
New has a nurturing approach to the orchestral musicians and a deep commitment to the composer’s intentions. For Farr’s work she took care of all aspects right through to gentle management of the extended ovation at the end of the work.
This sense of care and attention to detail was evident again in Shostakovich’s Leningrad Symphony which was in some ways the culmination of the weekend for musicians and audience. The work is a blockbuster, composed during the siege of Leningrad, written for huge forces and expressing powerful emotions.
NZSO and NYO players shared music stands and the young players were featured in the many solos. “For all the wind and brass players and the concertmaster who have these solos, they’ll need to find a way to express that narrative,” New told me. “That’s going to be a real challenge. But at the same time you have an immense force on stage, a big team, and I’ll be making sure that every player feels that we are all supporting each other. So you’re not alone, you have a great set of musicians by your side to make sure you’re comfortable and free to play.”
When New talked in our conversation about the work, she showed a deep understanding of the symphony’s powerful backstory about the siege of the Russian city and Shostakovich’s message to its beleaguered citizens. “In the final movement,” she told me, “you hear the loneliness, the fear, the uncertainty, the pain and suffering – and then you hear a totally different reaction. It’s saying ‘I’m worth it, I’m worth saving, I have passion and promise and a resilient human spirit and coming together with so many people, I can make this work, this challenge’ .”
The NZSO NYO performance of the Leningrad Symphony was unforgettable – probably for the musicians as well as the audience. Intense and eloquent, New and the large orchestra never faltered in their communication of the music’s profound emotions. Formidable in all dimensions, the demanding score was brilliantly realised.
Coming back to the question of what a conductor does, it seems that New has the answers required, the whole package of musical understanding and skills needed for a successful career on the podium. The pandemic has been an interruption - she is still unable to conduct her Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra in live performances, Ontario being one of Canada’s most COVID-affected provinces. We can, however, rejoice in her availability to conduct New Zealand orchestras and look forward to her next visit with the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra in September.
You can read my 2020 profile of Gemma New here.
NZSO Matariki July 2 & 9, 2021 Auckland & Wellington
NZSO The Rite of Spring July 3 & 10, 2021, Auckland & Wellington
NZSO NYO Leningrad July 4 & 11, Auckland & Wellington