Interplay Date – Chapman musicians get side-by-side mentorship from Maestro Carl St.Clair and members of the Pacific Symphony. Chapman musicians get side-by-side mentorship from Maestro Carl St.Clair and members of the Pacific Symphony.

Musicians call it a side-by-side, and it’s literally what happens when professional orchestra members mentor students trumpet-by-trumpet, tuba-by-tuba, flute-by-flute during a rehearsal.

Chapman University’s Wind Symphony enjoyed just such a special experience this spring during the annual Interplay Festival of music, culture and ideas. Professionals from Pacific Symphony and its music director, Maestro Carl St.Clair, met in the Crean Orchestral Recital Hall for a rehearsal of the students’ Interplay concert, “Celebrating the California Dream Space.”

It wasn’t a lark. Under the direction of St.Clair, every musician worked through challenges. Pros often leaned toward their student counterparts to offer a bit of advice. St.Clair pushed all involved to refine every note and harness their efforts to a single goal.
“Music will never come into your presence because somebody told it to,” St.Clair told the musicians as he led them through Rest by composer Frank Ticheli. “It will only happen if we all go together to the same place and, at that moment where this is possible, as we open ourselves to accept it. But it will never be commanded by a mere human, especially a conductor. It has to be worked toward.”

This year’s side-by-side was a new addition to Interplay and one Chapman hopes to continue, says Susan Key, Interplay curator and a faculty member in the College of Performing Arts.

“To have the students on a truly collegial basis with their professional counterparts has tangible benefits for the rehearsal,” Key says. “But it also has intangible benefits. I still look back on side-by-sides I had in college. The experience stays with students. It’s deepening and enriching.”

Photos by Dennis Arp

Dawn Bonker

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