Waynesville’s most recent international visitors last week came to conduct music.
A select group of nine Conducting Fellows came to Haywood County to polish their skills with Dwight Oltman, Artist Teacher for the Smoky Mountain International Conducting Institute.
David Tedford, a participant from Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania, began violin studies at age 4. As a high school junior he became interested in conducting.
“My mother was a choral conductor so I already had exposure to the field,” he said.
He has a doctorate in conducting from the University of Iowa and currently conducts the Bloomsburg University Community Orchestra.
John Murton is a London native who lives in Washington, D.C.
“I was 13 years old when I conducted my school choir. That experience set me on this journey,” he said.
Murton, who studied at Oxford and the University of Cincinnati, strives to bring out the theatrical aspects of music as he prepares orchestras for performance. He currently is the assistant conductor of the Fairfax (VA) Symphony Orchestra.
Four of the SMICI Fellows were from South Korea. Two others were from the United States and Costa Rica.
Alex (Hsuan-yu) Lee studied violin in Taiwan as a child. He came to the United States to major in conducting at Southwest Oklahoma State University. He has worked with orchestras in Taiwan and currently conducts the Dallas Youth Orchestra.
“I enjoy working with enthusiastic young musicians,” he said.
Each SMICI Fellow had opportunities through the week to work with a small ensemble to interpret music such as Symphony No. 94 by Joseph Haydn. Those sessions and the final performance were videotaped for comment by Mr. Oltman.
All nine Conducting Fellows, along with Maestro Oltman, led The SMICI orchestra and the choir of Waynesville’s First United Methodist Church in the concluding performance.
The Institute included a competition where the winner was determined by the orchestra members. The prize is named for an internationally renown French conductor, Pierre Monteux.
Yongjae Kim from South Korea was selected the winner and Hsuan-yu “Alex” Lee of Taiwan the runner-up. The competition was particularly competitive and an honorable mention, Inmo Kang of South Korea, was recognized as well.
Music is often cited as an international language. While there many opinions about the veracity of this statement, what was seen this past week at least underscored an experience that bridges cultures and time.
Compositions from the 17th, 18th and 19th century were performed by 21st century musicians under the leadership of conductors from diverse cultures, all in the span of a few days. This is one international encounter that benefitted everyone, especially the audience.
Picture caption (participants): Smoky Mountain International Conducting Institute participants and staff with Dwight Oltman, Artist Teacher.
Picture caption (orchestra and chorus): The Institute orchestra and the choir of First United Methodist Church under the baton of Dwight Oltman.
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