This week, we’re talking scales and etudes. Are they the foundational blocks on which your entire technique is built? Or more like raw vegetables that you have to choke down if you want to stay healthy? Akiko actually had a scale class as a kid, while I got a crash course in scales from my […]
episodes
033: The audience experience, with superfan Roderick Branch
Chicago Symphony cellist Brant Taylor may have been our very first special guest here at the Stand Partners, but so far we’ve been missing the perspective of his partner Roderick Branch. Roderick is a musician, though his day job (and sometimes into the night job) is as a partner at a giant law firm. Roderick […]
032: What about Bob? Robert deMaine, our principal cello
Today we’re joined by our good friend and LA Phil principal cello, Robert deMaine. Bob tells us about his childhood, his musical family and an early teacher who gave him a complete musical education, including piano and composition. He also unpacks how he fell out of love with the cello during his teen years and […]
031: That’s life in the hot seat, Mr. Concertmaster!
Today we’re talking concertmaster, and what it means to sit in the hot seat. What are the duties and expectations, and what makes “first chair violin” attractive or unattractive to different players? Is playing concertmaster more like being the point guard in basketball, or the quarterback in football? Remember: besides playing all those juicy solos, […]
030: All about Amadeus
Nathan says: “My top three movies of all time would be The Godfather, Rocky, and Amadeus in some order.” Akiko’s not into those “top whatever” lists. But both of us love Amadeus so much that we would drop whatever we’re doing and watch it again right now. Here’s why…
029: Living the rock star life at the Hollywood Bowl
It isn’t every day that you get to perform for 18,000 screaming fans… especially if you’re a violinist. But a handful of times each summer, we get the rock star treatment at the Hollywood Bowl! OK, so those 18,000 folks probably aren’t screaming just for the two of us… there might be some famous movie […]