This month’s Musician’s Musings was written by BSO Principal Bassist, Chuck Kreitzer.
Chuck Kreitzer, Principal Bassist
Hello, my name is Charles Kreitzer although I prefer to be addressed as “Chuck”. I was most happy to contribute to the musician’s musings when asked by Sara Tan, I am a returning bassist this year with the Bloomington Symphony Orchestra as I played a couple of seasons previously in the late 1990’s when Bill Jones was the conductor. I was born into a musical family; both of my parents were public school music teachers in Sioux Falls, SD, my father was a bassist and my mother a cellist. All of my 5 siblings also are practicing musicians in one genre or another. I remember as a child that my friends were a bit jealous in that I always knew what I was going to be as an adult: a musician.
My first experience with music was learning the piano at an early age. When entering the 5th grade I began my journey learning the French Horn. I played the French Horn through college and was actually a French Horn major as a freshmen in college. One day while I was attending the University of South Dakota the orchestra director found out I could play the bass a bit he recruited me to play bass in the orchestra. Playing a stringed instrument in an orchestral setting was far more enjoyable than playing French Horn in a concert band setting (I no longer needed to worry about breath control nor my embouchure!). Truly playing a wind / brass instrument is an internal experience whereas playing a stringed instrument is external.
I have a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of South Dakota (if you have never been to see the Shrine to Music, now known as the National Museum of Musical Instruments, you really should!) and then received a Masters of Music from the University of Colorado in Boulder. Both degrees were in performance, I later finished my teaching certificate in 1984. When I began teaching public school music in 1985 I was only planning on teaching no more than 5 years, my goal was to be playing in a professional orchestra by then. But the years flew by and then I had a family, plans change. I’ve very much enjoyed the past 33 years teaching public school orchestra but sometimes wonder what life would have been like if I had made it into a professional orchestra? I have auditioned for the Phoenix, San Diego, Denver, Omaha, Minnesota Orchestras to name a few…
As most of you know, when you show up for an audition there’s well over 100 other fine musicians trying for that coveted spot. At my “seasoned” age I’m thankful that I still have the opportunity to actively participate as a musician rather than just a consumer of music. For me, music is an aspect of my life that will never fail me, I feel very fortunate that I’m in a profession where I get to teach young people the joys of making music, and hopefully it will become an important aspect of their lives too. When my mother developed dementia, when she could no longer communicate verbally she could still play the piano without missing a note. I’m thankful for once again being a member of the Bloomington Symphony Orchestra, thank you!