InTune — The Houston Symphony Magazine — October 2016

Page 54

Backstage PASS Meet

Kathryn Ladner, piccolo and flute

Kathryn Ladner joins the Houston Symphony on piccolo and flute this fall. She was previously with the Nashville Symphony from 2012 to 2016. While in Nashville, Kathryn also performed with the Nashville Opera Orchestra and the Alias Chamber Ensemble and was a flute teacher at the Blair School of Music at Vanderbilt and the W.O. Smith Music School. Originally from Seattle, Kathryn went on to earn a Bachelor of Music degree and a Performer’s Certificate from the Eastman School of Music, where she studied flute with Bonita Boyd and took piccolo lessons with Anne Harrow. Kathryn also holds a Master of Music degree from the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University, where she studied with Leone Buyse. Kathryn was the Piccolo Fellow at the Aspen Music Festival in 2010 and has also performed with the Pacific Music Festival and the National Repertory Orchestra.

The best thing about being a musician: The feeling of being right in the middle of the music is the best thing. When there’s a loud, climactic moment in a Mahler symphony, you can feel the stage vibrating under your feet. You can hear the inner harmonies that may get lost in the blend out in the hall. Every time I play a great piece like Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, I hear something new that I never noticed before. Performing a long, intense piece can be physically and emotionally exhausting, but it’s also incredibly rewarding to be a part of creating something that’s bigger than you. Houston connections: I lived in Houston previously, when I attended Rice University for grad school. I lived in the Montrose area, right near the Menil Collection—one of my favorite Houston places. Anytime I had a visitor from out of town, I would take

them there. Not only was it within walking distance, it was also free—good for my grad student budget! I had a wonderful time at the Shepherd School of Music, but I mostly stayed close to the Rice and Montrose areas. Now that I’m back, I’m enjoying getting to know all the other nice parts of town! This concert season: I’m especially looking forward to performing Shostakovich’s Fifth Symphony in May. Shostakovich writes for the piccolo like no other composer; you get to soar on top of the orchestra in the loud tutti sections but also perform quiet, poignant solos. Shostakovich’s Fifth is one of his most popular works, and for good reason. It strikes all the high notes of his singular style— ominous, fiery, haunted, frantic, lonely—in the best possible way. If I wasn’t a professional musician: In addition to music, I’m an avid consumer of books, TV and movies, so if I had chosen another career, I think it would have been in the publishing or film and TV industry. It would be pretty fun to be in the writer’s room for one of my favorite TV shows, behind the editor’s pen at a publishing house or working as a film cinematographer. As it is, I’m happy just to be a fan. When I’m not at the symphony you can probably find me anywhere there’s a showing of a classic film on the big screen—especially if it’s Hitchcock!

ERIC ARBITER

Beginnings: I began the flute at age 10, which, in Seattle, is the normal age to start band in the public schools. Neither of my parents are musicians, so my mom suggested I pick the flute because it would fit in my backpack. Little did she know! I picked up the piccolo at age 14 when I joined the Seattle Youth Symphony. I was the only one in my orchestra with a piccolo, so even though I had no experience on the instrument, I suddenly found myself playing a big solo on the very first concert! It was kind of like being thrown into the deep end of the pool. But I’m glad I faced my fears so early, because by the time I got to college, I was already comfortable on an instrument that some flutists can find daunting.

Top: Performing in college Middle: Houston Symphony portrait Bottom: Hiking in Acadia

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