Conducting combines both the emotional and intellectual sides of music

Extracts of an email interview with conductor Viswa Subbaraman

What made you take up conducting?

I was actually a premedical student in college (and I finished a degree in biology to go with my music degree). I had always had a love of music, but I never imagined it could truly be a career. I spent one semester of college in Vienna with the wind symphony from Duke, and I was completely immersed in music for the year. I fell in love with the ability to have a voice in a way that I had truly never imagined.

I saw my first professional orchestra concert live. It was one of those turning points where I realized the type of work that would bring me joy. For me, conducting is the perfect balance of the emotional and the intellectual sides of music. You have to break down the architecture of the piece and then turn around and inspire musicians to play the emotional arc of the work. It’s a fascinating balance.

Any musician can beat time. What is fundamental to being an effective and

inspiring conductor?

Preparation and passion: I had a mentor tell me once that we have the greatest job in the world, and our penance is the detailed preparation. It’s incumbent on us to think about every note in the context of what we believe the composer to be saying. I always want to know when in the composer’s life the piece was written and what the composer was dealing with. If the composer lost his wife, it is hard for me to imagine that that didn’t affect the emotional content of the work. We use that to build what we think the composer had in mind for an emotional arc for the work. If we are truly prepared on the podium, the hope is we can translate that to inspiring the musicians to believe as we do. That being said, I think that’s the magical conductor moment. Can s/he make that happen? Some do with ease and some never can. I had a teacher once say, “I can teach anyone to conduct, but I can’t teach a conductor”. It’s that development of trust and inspiration with the musicians that is difficult to quantify.

Are there any memorable experiences you’ve enjoyed in your career as a conductor?

I think first and foremost, I have to say my time with Maestro Kurt Masur. To work with one of the greatest conductors of a generation who had worked with so many world class artistes and orchestras was the foundation of how I work. I have also been honoured to premiere almost 10 operas, and each one was like bringing a new child into the world.

Daniel Barenboim said that “Music is a great equalizer”. Your thoughts on this?

I believe this to be true. Musicians for the most part aren’t concerned where their colleagues come from or their beliefs if they bring a passion and talent for making music. When you couple that with the fact that every musician in the end must show humility before the music, it is an incredibly equalizing experience.

Music Beyond Borders brings together musicians from across the regions. How do you feel conducting this concert?

I am thoroughly honoured to conduct this work. I truly believe that the act of making music brings people together in a way that develops empathy and understanding. The world could use more of that. I hope this is the beginning of a truly joint South Asian experience. South Asia is still one of the few regions without a truly world class orchestra, and I hope we are on the verge of changing that.