Bramwell Tovey, Guest Conductor
Cleveland Orchestra
Blossom Music Center
July 17, 2016

Bramwell Tovey conducts the Cleveland Orchestra at Blossom Music Center

Cleveland Orchestra at Blossom Music Center

The Introduction with Bramwell Tovey
Summers at Blossom Music Center in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio are incredibly popular, not only for rock concerts and country shows, but also for the Cleveland Orchestra performances on weekend evenings. Prior to a recent Cleveland Orchestra concert, I had the honor and privilege to engage in a fascinating discussion with Bramwell Tovey, Music Director for the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra (VSO), and occasional guest conductor of the Cleveland Orchestra.

I was very interested to learn more about Bramwell Tovey because audience members are quick to realize that as a conductor and composer, Bramwell brings honor and talent, with a touch of humor, to music, the musicians, and the performance. Readers may learn more details surrounding Bramwell’s impressive milestones and accomplishments by clicking the links above, but in the interview below, I wanted to know more about the man himself.

In short, the importance and inspiration that we can receive from Bramwell Tovey is captured in the following points:

• Music is amazingly important, expanding our horizons and bringing people together.
• Humor is powerful, relaxing, and engaging.
• Passion can lead you on a wildly successful journey. Follow your bliss.
• Simply walking and thinking can lead us to a whole range of new ideas.
• Constantly on the move, having many responsibilities, Bramwell takes time to walk, read, and compose. How does he do it all? He gets up early.

Bramwell Tovey

Improvisation with Bramwell Tovey
Right away, I became fond of Mr. Tovey because he commenced the interview by saying, “I’m very excited. What are you going to ask me?” I was immediately relaxed and drawn into the captivating conversation. Enjoy!

Originally from Ilford in Essex, England, you currently live in Vancouver. What is Vancouver like?
Very different to Ilford. Vancouver has mountains that you can ski on, lots of bright, new, shiny glass towers, beautiful water, and incredible views pretty much everywhere you go. Ilford is sectored around a very beautiful old stately home, but otherwise is very heavily populated and crowded. On the other hand, Ilford has lots of beautiful Edwardian and Victorian Heritage buildings, which of course do not exist in Vancouver, a very new city.

You are a pianist, composer, conductor, Director of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, and Artistic Advisor at the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra School of Music. Did I miss anything?
I’m also the Artistic Advisor at the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra Institute at Whistler which is only in its second year. Also, I’m the Artistic Director of the National Youth Brass Band of Great Britain, and I have been for about ten years. The Vancouver Symphony is my main baby and will be for the next two years, and then I surrender it to somebody else… but, we don’t know who yet.

How old were you when you started to play an instrument?
I think I was just two or three when I started to strum out on the piano but I was seven when I had formal piano lessons, and I just took to it straight away. I started having lessons in all kinds of things at that point, musically. There was a lot of music in the house… parents, grandparents on both sides, and everyone sang in the Salvation Army where I was brought up, or played instruments in the band.

Bramwell Tovey at the piano

What instruments do you play?
The piano is my main instrument. But, growing up, I had a go at the violin and the double bass. I play pretty much all the brass instruments, but particularly the baritone horn, the trombone, and the tuba. The piano is the only one I play today. Although, I might pull out a euphonium and jam on it, but not very often.

I saw your touching and moving ode to your former teacher, Ian Gorman. How big of a role did this man play in your musical direction?
Ian was a very comprehensive musician. He was a wonderful pianist, organist, choral conductor, and school orchestra conductor. He was very inspirational, very smart, very intelligent, and I think he, more than anybody else, provided me with the mechanics to later realize what a conductor needs to do. He was instrumental in me being able to make very rapid progress, early on as a conductor.  I was 22 when I started conducting.

You add humor to your performances in a seemingly very improvisational way, like a comedian. How important is humor?
I love doing things on the podium that people don’t expect. I think that makes people think, “Oh, that’s a human being up there.” I think we underestimate how powerful a smile is… how powerful a laugh is, and a joke. Sometimes you can find the right [thing to say] to just relax everybody. Humor is a device, as well as fun. Also, when you’re giving information out from the podium all the time, if people know that you might crack a joke, they’re listening twice as hard.

Do you have a favorite song to play on the piano?
When I grew up in the church and was in the Salvation Army, improvising music was part of it, as well as playing written music. Although I do play a lot of jazz, my favorite thing is just to improvise.

How did your initial and continued involvement with the Cleveland Orchestra develop?
I was invited to play here in 2011. Of course, the Cleveland Orchestra has this incredible reputation, but they are phenomenal. I mean, they are absolutely incredible, one of the greatest orchestras. There is no debate about it. And, what’s also wonderful, they’re all super nice and great to work with. It’s quite an astonishing ensemble.

How do you prepare as a guest conductor?
I arrived on Thursday and we had two rehearsals on Friday. Some of the music is very familiar. But some, not so familiar, so we had to spend a lot of time putting those together.

To someone who does not understand the role of a conductor, how would you describe what you do?
The conductor has a very specific task, and the audience only sees maybe 10-20% of what the conductor actually does. When I appear on stage with the musicians I have to hear everybody. I have to know the score inside out, so if somebody plays a wrong note, I need to correct it. Most of my work is done in rehearsal.

A conductor is the organizer of the sound, and is responsible for a lot of the light and shade. If I want a different bowing or want a different phrasing… the tempo is decided by me. The left hand is used to denote phrasing, shape, and emphasis. The right hand is for rhythm.

Is there a desired musical piece or program that you have not yet conducted?
I think there are a couple of pieces in the repertoire that I haven’t done, and a couple of orchestras I haven’t worked with, but mostly I have done pretty much everything that’s been on my bucket list. I just enjoy doing what I do. I’m very lucky to earn a living doing this. I’m not a terribly ambitious person, I just want to make music. I’m really just into making the music sound as good as I can.

Bramwell Tovey

What do you like to do for fun or adventure outside of music?
I used to play cricket a lot. I really love cricket, but decided to stop a couple of years ago. I did enjoy doing a little bit of water skiing. But, I really love English country walking because it’s like a symphony that lasts an hour and half, and you can have this great arch of thoughts.

I love to read: poetry, fiction, politics, history, and of course, I’ve got a couple of thousand music books. And, I compose a lot; I find that therapeutic.

How often do you travel, and do you enjoy travelling?
I do enjoy travelling. I travel every week. I’m constantly on the move. Like this last couple of weeks, I was in England, then Whistler, then Vale, Colorado, back to Vancouver, then here [to Cuyahoga Falls]. I’m going back to Vancouver, then Colorado, and England. That’s all within the space of four or five weeks.

What is one of your favorite places to visit?
When I was growing up and was in my local Redbridge Youth Orchestra, we used to go an hour and half down the road to Aldeburgh in Suffolk to play twice a year. It’s a little town on the east coast. We used to stay there every Easter at one of the hotels on the seafront. I just love going there. It’s a place I’ve been all my life and it hasn’t changed much over the years. And, actually my father, who died when I was 15… the last concert he attended was in Aldeburgh. It’s a very special place for me.

A couple of my favorite sayings to self-motivate are to say it’s never too late, or the best is yet to come. Do you have a favorite saying?
Nil Desperandum, which is Latin for never despair. I’m a very positive, upbeat individual, but I remember coming home once after a performance and saying to my wife, “It has been a hard day.” She said, “How tough could it be? Two and half thousand people gave you a standing ovation at the end of your day at work. What’s the problem? Try teaching!” I thought, I need to be a little bit more positive. [Laughter]

Are your children musicians?
Yes. My son, Ben, is nearly 27, and he was a guitarist, pianist, and composer in a heavy metal band called Rise to Remain. He chucked it in a couple of years ago, got married, and [they have a] beautiful little boy called Sam. But, he was a really clever musician and brilliant guitarist.

My 17 year old daughter, Jessica, is going to university in September, and double majoring in violin and classical voice. She’s extremely musical, very dedicated, and talented.

My youngest daughter, Emmeline, [age 15] plays the cello and the piano – all the kids play the piano – and sings, as well. She’s got an amazing mezzo-soprano voice, is into theatre, and has won prizes for poetry.

Do you ever get nervous before a performance?
Because the conductor’s function in rehearsal is to listen, make lists of things [to rehearse and fix], and to organize the sound, in the performance, I don’t have to do any of that. I just have to conduct, so it’s actually very liberating to get to performance. I get a little apprehensive sometimes, but I’m very lucky now. I work with the best orchestras in the world.

In Vancouver, how often does the orchestra play?
Every week during the season. The season operates from September through to July. Then the orchestra is off for August. [The VSO is] the oldest major orchestra in Canada, and it’s celebrating its centenary… the same year that Cleveland does. It’s quite a venerable institution, and I’ve been there quite a long time. It will be 18 years by the time I leave. I enjoy it. I enjoy every moment of it.

Bramwell Tovey at the piano