La Orquesta Filarmonica de Santiago - What it's like so far...

We have now been in Santiago for 2 weeks and I thought it might be nice to say something about what it's been like in the orchestra so far...

First of all, the orchestra performs in the Teatro Municpal which is right downtown in Santiago. There is always a lot of hustle and bustle around the area and it is always exciting to go to work. Unfortunately, they are constructing a new underground parking space for the Theater, so I can't post any neat pictures of the outside. But here is one I took of the inside of the hall from my chair in the orchestra before a concert (and before the audience was allowed in). It's a little fuzzy, so I'll try and take a new one next week.


The theater is 150 years old and is very beautiful. But the 150 years old part takes its toll and there are many very old parts to the hall, especially with things falling apart. Nevertheless, it's the best space in Santiago and a lot of fun to perform in every week.

The orchestra itself is very good. The members of the orchestra have been very welcoming and supportive of me. I seem to meet someone new every day and more and more I'm fitting in. The orchestra is approximately 1/2 Chilean and 1/2 European with a few Americans in the mix. The music director is Jan Latham-Koening who is a British conductor who seems especially good at conducting opera. He is really enthusiastic about my playing and in his words, "absolutely loves me." He is a bit tough to work with as he is over demanding and never pleased, but maybe because he likes my work so far, hasn't been too unpleasant with me in rehearsals. The resident conductor is a Chilean named Jose Luis Domingues and he is great. He conducts mostly the ballets, but we get to work with him quite a bit in other rehearsals too. I have also begun a good relationship with him.

The orchestra functions in many ways throughout the season. They do a series of orchestral concerts, but also perform for the Opera and Ballet in the same theater. It is organized similarly to the MET orchestra where there are double wind and brass players who alternate assignments with the opera and ballet. This current season is filled many exciting works: Mahler 2, Pines of Rome, Shostakovich 5, Also Sprach Zarathustra, The Marriage of Figaro, The Rite of Spring, The Barber of Seville, etc...

The trumpet section is great and a good bunch of men too. The principal trumpet, Eugene King, is originally from Kentucky, but has been in South America for over 30 years and has played in Santiago for 23. He has only been kind and supportive to me and I find him a great resource of wisdom and advice. Erlantz Fernandez is the new 2nd trumpet player and he is from Spain. He arrived here in February and is also a good trumpet player. He's 30 and like me, one of the younger musicians in the group. He is very active and a lot of fun. As I've been playing 1st so far, he and I have had a lot of time to play together and it's been great playing with him. Javier Contreras is the 4th trumpet player. He is a good family man. His wife is the theaters pianist/organist and apparently she is incredible. She can play anything. I have been invited to do a masterclass at the University of Chile and I hope to be able to perform with her at the masterclass. They have 3 kids are a very happy family. He did his masters in the US and loves to speak English with me. His dream is to do a doctorate in the US and has been asking me a lot of questions because I've just been through the process myself.

The Trumpet Section (From left to right):
Javier Contreras, Me, Eugene King, and Erlantz Fernandez

My first week we did a Mozart Symphony and some music of Schubert - his 8th symphony "the Unfinished" and his Overture to Rosamunde. This past week we performed Mahler's Symphony No. 2 "Resurrection." This is one of my all-time favorite works and it is incredibly moving. It has VERY exposed and powerful trumpet parts. The orchestra called for is over 100 musicians and it has 2 solo singers and full choir. From start to finish it is about 80 minutes long. The music portrays the composer's belief in the Resurrection (and was written for his friend who had recently passed away) and to me this music has become sacred. Although Mahler was Jewish, he had a strong belief about this principle and I believe that the music he writes is divine. It's incredible to say the least. I highly recommend you all to listen to it, especially the final 2 movements. You can easily find an English translation of the German on wikipedia. Especially with Easter being this weekend, this is an assignment you can't miss.

We did 3 performances of it with the last being last night, Thursday. They went great and each was so special. The experiences that I have performing this piece and some others like it are why I chose to play the trumpet professionally. There are moments when the hair on my neck stands up and I feel the most amazing rush. The end of the 5th movement is just incredible and genius. Being able to play Principal Trumpet and sit a top the power of a great brass section of a Mahler symphony is an experience that I wish all people could have, it's amazing.

Well, that's a little summary of the first 2 weeks here. They have been very positive and I'm looking forward to this next week when the big piece is Pines of Rome (check out Fantasia 2000 if you want to see a Disney version of this great piece).

J