Finding Spirit Through Music

By Tom Keogh
Special to The Seattle Times


KURT PINTER
Traveling conductor Arild Remmereit.
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When pianist Gabriela Montero makes her debut with the Seattle Symphony Orchestra tonight (performing again tomorrow through Sunday), she will extend Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 21 with the sort of improvisational flair — possibly with some blues, jazz or tango — for which she has caused excitement in concert halls around the world.

She will also find in guest conductor Arild Remmereit a kindred spirit: a leader whose own background as a bar pianist and rock and jazz player is steeped in improvisation.

Venezuelan-born Montero, speaking by phone from her home in Boston, says improvisation "was always part of who I am. I stopped playing that way in public at age 8 because my teacher dissuaded me, she didn't appreciate it. At 31, I got the motivation (from concert pianist Martha Argerich) and courage to do it on stage, and have done so for six or seven years. It's just how I relate to music from an instinctive place."

"She's a fascinating soloist, a special and spectacular artist," says Remmereit. "My own passion comes from improvising. Mozart never performed a piece the same way twice. He improvised on top of his composition."

Relaxing at a cousin's house in Everett before commencing rehearsals with the Seattle orchestra, Remmereit, who last appeared in Benaroya Hall in 2006, says a conductor's most important job is understanding a composer's intentions.

Remmereit began his life in music at age 6, playing piano, trumpet and performing as a boy soprano. He later played keyboards in pop and jazz bands, and studied piano, song and composition at the Norwegian Conservatory of Music in Oslo. In the mid-1980s, he began studies in conducting in Aspen and Vienna, taking a master class under Zubin Mehta and assisting Leonard Bernstein for three years.

Remmereit spent several years conducting in Vienna, Kharkov and Kiev before beginning the life of a traveling conductor with a staggeringly long list of guest appearances from Nashville to Tokyo. Critics have noted his unconventional gestures at the podium (some reminiscent of Bernstein) and tendency to use his baton like a zigzagging sword.

One of a number of guest conductors under possible consideration to replace Gerard Schwarz as Seattle Symphony's artistic director when Schwarz steps down in 2011, Remmereit spoke about his background, aspirations and career philosophy.

Q&A

Q: What made you decide to conduct?

A: I came to a moment in life when I was just tired of playing around with things. I was playing several kinds of music and was open to different styles. I was a bar pianist, I played piano in jazz and rock bands, and I was studying piano and composition in Oslo. I wasn't focused on any one thing. I decided to focus all my energy and all I'd learned, and thought about where I could I use all those aspects of music. I went to spy on a conducting seminar in Aspen. I was probably arrogant when I thought, well, I can do this, too.

Q: Talk about working for Leonard Bernstein.



A: I got to know him in Vienna, from 1987 until he passed away. I met him and followed everything he did with the Vienna Philharmonic. I assisted on his recordings and went to Italy with him when he conducted a class there. I never saw him in America. He inspired me to dare to be myself at the podium. If you want to have an impact, he told me, it's important not to create distance from the orchestra. This was crucial for me. I had many opportunities to hear him speak about music. He was a genius in many directions.

Q: Critics have noted the large, impassioned gestures you use while conducting.

A: I'm not sure how I look and what gestures I use. It is the music that drives me. How I moved last week in Rochester might be very different from how I'll conduct in Seattle. I try to suggest with my hands, and some of that might look like big gestures, maybe very physical. I'm not sure that's positive; I don't want anyone looking more than listening. But I'm tall with long arms, and great conductors are usually quite small. People who are skinny and long need to watch it or how they move can cause confusion.

Q: What does a conductor need to know?

A: Music, psychology, philosophy. My main role is to invest time and energy in the pieces of music we perform. I have to prepare myself by finding out as much about the composer and his music as I can. I'm an ambassador for the composer. There is some discussion these days about the need for a conductor. But you need someone who knows much about the repertoire. It's the most important part of conductor's life.

Q: How do you establish a rapport with an orchestra you're visiting?

A: The main thing I focus on is music. No two orchestras are the same. No two react the same way. There are never-ending developments involved in this. I deal with specialists, and I never know if they might show up for a first rehearsal in a bad mood because of the last show they did. But if you approach the work with love and passion, good musicians will respond.

Q: Have you enjoyed your long career as a guest conductor?

A: I felt it was necessary for me to do this. I've had good luck in conducting so many American orchestras. Now I feel I'm ready to participate in an orchestra's life in a deeper way. I'm ready to involve myself in making an institution grow. I'd very much like to work with an orchestra on that level.

Tom Keogh: tomwkeogh@yahoo.com