departments in the middle of my junior year. After Princeton, I earned degrees at Boston
University and Yale. I’ve also attended numerous workshops and festivals, both in the United
States and in Europe.
Along the way, I’ve been fortunate to receive feedback from a wide range of mentors, even if
some of them saw my work for only half an hour or so. Almost every one of them gave me
something valuable to think about, and I think I’ve done a pretty good job of remembering what
they said or demonstrated. I originally was going to list all of their names here, but as I watched
the list grow to embarrassing proportions, I feared it would give the wrong impression. The point
is not that I’ve rubbed shoulders with some of the most esteemed people in the field, but that I
look upon every meeting as an opportunity to learn more about this discipline.
I believe that conductors are obliged to develop their skills, knowledge, and musicianship to a very
high level. They owe this pursuit to the musicians with whom they work, their audiences and
communities, and the composers whose work they advocate. I have consistently taken my
training seriously, never shying away from my responsibility to address weaknesses.
In the May/June 2002 issue of Symphony magazine, an essay called “Bridging the Gap” was
offered by Jesse Rosen, vice president of the American Symphony Orchestra League. The
essay's thesis is that most young conductors lack the aural skills and musical knowledge to work
with professional orchestras effectively. Lacking Mr. Rosen’s broad perspective, I am not in a
position to judge how accurate his assessment is. However, when called upon to demonstrate my
own qualifications, I have been able to do so:
• I was accepted into a program at Yale that was (at the time) co-sponsored by Affiliate Artists.
Their admissions exam included keyboard harmony, theory and literature, and a four-part atonal
melodic dictation performed by woodwind quartet. I was one of only three people selected for the
two-year program.
• I was invited to Tanglewood’s conducting fellowship program in 1994 after being auditioned on
ear training, score analysis, and conducting technique. While at Tanglewood, all conductors were
required to study solfège with the legendary Roger Voisin. I placed out of mandatory studies with
him, but accepted his invitation to continue improving my skills in that area.
• The American Symphony Orchestra League itself has an exam which is administered to all
participants in its conducting workshops. The exact format of the exam changes, but it includes
melodic, rhythmic, and harmonic dictation; knowledge of the literature and of orchestral
techniques; theory and orchestration; and foreign musical terminology. Back when I attended the
workshops regularly, I took their various exams several times and always scored at least 95%.
I am proud of these accomplishments, but what is more relevant is that I think that having
developed this knowledge and skill set makes me a more effective conductor. I have worked hard
to get to this point, because I care about what I do and want to do it well.
