Welcome to Our New Concertmaster

This season we welcome a new concertmaster to CityMusic Cleveland, Laura Hamilton.

Based in New Jersey, she was Principal Associate Concertmaster for the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra for over 30 years and is now Interim Artistic Director and Concertmaster for Classical Tahoe in Nevada, as well as a faculty member at NYU.

I caught her at home in-between gigs to get her perspective on joining CityMusic and leading CityMusic’s new democratic, conductorless structure.

CityMusic: Welcome, Laura, we are so excited to have you join us as Concertmaster! Is this your first time playing with CityMusic?
Laura Hamilton: I played one concert with CityMusic, the Verdi Requiem in 2019 with James Gaffigan. It was a moving concert, a Holocaust program; Verdi’s Requiem was performed many times at Theresienstadt Concentration Camp. I also know some CityMusic players from other places, like Dan Gilbert, who is Principal Clarinet for Classical Tahoe, where I am also Concertmaster.

CM: Have you ever played with a democratic, conductorless orchestra before?
LH: Yes, I have with a Baroque orchestra, but never with a modern orchestra. The concertmaster role in the Baroque orchestra was the leader, kind of a conductor surrogate. Believe me, even with trained professional musicians, it is necessary to have someone step up to the leadership role, whether that is a conductor or something else, because at least that provides some framework for working together. That gets us a starting point.

CM: So in a “democratic orchestra,” the concertmaster is the orchestra leader.
LH: Yes — it’s not a leaderless orchestra. In fact, in a lot of the world the term “concertmaster” is used interchangeably with “leader.” The “democratic” concept of CityMusic’s structure is mostly applicable during the rehearsal, because in rehearsal we will be able to listen and respond to each other’s ideas and thoughts. We will get to try ideas out in a way that doesn’t work with a traditional orchestra, where the conductor runs the show with only limited input from the musicians.

CM: How do you envision leading in this format?
LH: I’ll be moving my body while playing to lead entrances, ritards, cut-offs, showing pizzicato chords and the like. I can gesture with my bow or move the scroll of my violin, and the other musicians should be able to follow. It will be more like a giant chamber ensemble, where we are all in touch.

The principal players will also play an important role in ensuring a cohesive approach. We’re going to be rehearsing first with just principals, which is really important. My string colleagues will emulate the way I approach a forte chord or soft passage, for example. Also, we’ll have a chance to connect with our colleagues in the other sections before the larger ensemble joins us. So at least the principal players will have a common sense of approach and style, and style is so important. Style informs so many musical decisions.

CM: That is a good image — the orchestra as a giant chamber ensemble. Can you say more about that?
LH: In any ensemble situation, we are listening and reacting to each other as we would in chamber music. A chamber orchestra is really a bigger version of a string quartet, sometimes with added winds or percussion. Even playing in a huge symphony orchestra with a conductor, you’re still playing chamber music with the people immediately around you, and your ears and body are reacting to the people farther away from you.

I played for 33 years in one of the world’s greatest opera orchestras. Opera musicians have to be flexible because we are always listening and adjusting to the singers onstage. We develop very quick reflexes and reactions, which are both heightened when you aren’t bound to a conductor.

In any chamber ensemble there is a great sense of individual responsibility and agency; each player is responsible for the success of the group, and as we learn to play together, I think the CityMusic orchestra will develop its own voice.

CM: What is one thing you’re particularly looking forward to this season?
LH: Working with Tessa Lark again. I worked with her very recently, and she is an absolutely stunning artist. She plays with such personal commitment; I anticipate that the two violin romances she is playing on the October concert will be very special, and very easy to put together. We will all be listening so intently to hear her nuances, and she can lead the style.

Our opening orchestra concert with Concertmaster Laura Hamilton and guest soloist Tessa Lark is October 27-30, featuring music by Beethoven, Dvořák, and Jessie Montgomery. Concert details