This month’s Musician’s Musings was written by BSO first violinist, Kelly who shares her experience with the Minnesota Orchestra Fantasy Camp as well as the trials and tribulations that led her to the BSO.
The Major Leagues – A Fantasy Camp Experience, Part III
Music has always played an important role in my life. To simply put a complex experience, it has been a constant vehicle of learning and growth. In addition to the music, from an early age, the orchestra helped me learn what it means to be a part of a team, to work hard, to build trust and relationships, and to have fun while doing it! My high school orchestra and teacher made the greatest impacts on my childhood, which inspired the decisions that led to where I am now as an adult.
I became a violin teacher. It’s a job I love and look forward to every day. But despite that, I was still missing what made me fall in love with the instrument – making music with the orchestra. So I set my sights on the Bloomington Symphony. Their reputation and quality was something I wanted to contribute to. So, I practiced my solo and excerpts and wasn’t sure what to expect – I had never auditioned for a panel before. Nervously, I played and failed. It was rough, and in reality, I was unprepared. It was hard to hear the critiques, but important, since I was already planning on auditioning again.
Next summer came, and this time it was going to be different. I set a practice regiment, joined a sight-reading orchestra and sought out a teacher for myself. Alas, it still wasn’t enough and I failed the second audition.
Another year went by, and the Bloomington Symphony had announced that Manny Laureano would be taking over. This sparked a different motivation in me than before – I had been listening to him play trumpet on stage with the Minnesota Orchestra since childhood. He was a musical hero to me and I saw this as a huge learning opportunity to play under him. I increased the practice time, focused my efforts, and began studying under another teacher, Pam Arnstein of the Minnesota Orchestra. In addition to being an incredible musician, she is equally amazing at teaching and helped my playing reach new levels than before. I went in for my third audition and passed! At last, I was in the orchestra.
Why I Play: Kelly Carter
Since then, my time with Bloomington Symphony has been priceless. The repertoire and demands of Manny and the orchestra have elevated my musicianship to a place I never thought it could be. I’m extremely grateful and owe a lot of my progress to the group. I’m pretty sure this also contributed largely into my acceptance in the Minnesota Orchestra Fantasy Camp held last summer.
Fantasy Camp is a 3-day experience allowing amateur musicians to feel what it’s like to be in the Minnesota Orchestra – something I had dreamed about since beginning the violin. The camp was demanding and expected the music to be fully prepared for the first day. By doing this, it made room for us to focus on the music making right away, instead of learning the notes. We also attended talks on conducting with Sarah Hicks, Q&A with Michael Sutton, and rehearsals with Osmo. But what I was most looking forward to was playing with the orchestra. We received our seating assignments the second day and BAM! That’s when the camp became surreal. My seat was next to Pam.
Our rehearsals felt like it went by quickly but I was ready. We took our places on stage for the concert and it all just hit me. Here I was standing on Orchestra Hall, playing in partnership with my teacher, under Osmo, in front of a sold-out hall. We played Roman Carnival Overture by Berlioz and the crowd went wild. It’s an indescribable feeling of joy, appreciating the circumstances, work, and support that put you there on that stage.
Without the Bloomington Symphony, it wouldn’t have happened. I would have never known what preparation meant, or how to quickly interpret the requests of a demanding conductor, let alone my playing quality. They have helped me grow over the years and I’m so grateful that I get to be a part of the orchestra’s growth now too. Since graduating, I had missed that feeling of camaraderie, and am honored that I have found it again with this family of musicians, the Bloomington Symphony Orchestra.