Conversations with Conductors - The Vienna Philharmonic Society

VPO Academy

The Vienna Philharmonic uniquely works with the leading conductors of the world each season rather than having a single conductor. This arrangement allows both the conductors and the musicians to fully explore multiple interpretations of traditional classical music for contemporary audiences.

Through these candid conversations, Academists are inspired by the approachability and passion for music of these world-famous conductors as they share their knowledge of the historical and social context of pieces being played, the relationships between composers, their music, and the orchestras for which they composed and conducted. They also impart observations and lessons from their life experience as a conductor and explain the impact the music has had on audiences over time – all from their particular perspectives.

The Academists have had the opportunity to meet with conductors Thomas Adès, Alain Altinoglu, Daniel Barenboim, Herbert Blomstedt, Christoph Eschenbach, Adam Fischer, Valery Gergiev, Daniel Harding, Jakub Hrůša, Riccardo Muti, Andris Nelsons, Andrés Orozco-Estrada, Krill Petrenko, Thomas Sokhiev, Christian Thielemann, Christoph von Dohnányi, Franz Welser-Möst and John Williams.

“Meeting with Christian Thielemann was very exciting, enriching and special, as I have never before had the opportunity to experience such a great conductor away from rehearsals and concerts. He gave us very valuable tips for playing in an orchestra and did so in a very respectful and down to earth way.” – Petra Liedauer ’23 Austria
“I will never forget Jakub Hrůša’s comments. He imagines that there are two types of persons in the audience. One who has a lot of concert experience and knows the music. The other one has come for their very first concert and you have to satisfy both of them.” – David Kessler ‘24 Austria
“Alain Altinoglu gave valuable tips on how to behave in an Orchestra, especially as a young musician and how to get to know the opera and symphony repertoire quickly.” – Theresia Prinz ‘23 Austria

Conductor Herbert Blomstedt, 93, scheduled to spend 15 minutes with the Academists, spent 90 minutes giving ‘profound and far-reaching answers’ – Paul Blüml ‘21

Austria and inspiring the Academists ‘if you love music, the most important thing is not success, fame and money, but to make music in the best possible way.’ – Ulisse Mazzon ’21 Italy

Conductor Daniel Harding explained that, to him, what makes the sound of the Orchestra so unique and the music come alive is due to gesture and a collective ‘smelling’ or sensing how to play rather than just ‘mathematically’ playing the notes on the page.

The Academists enjoyed the ‘unique experience of meeting John Williams, where we could get to know this icon and legend of film music personally and ask him questions.’ – Andraz Golob ’21 Slovenia

Austrian Franz Welser-Möst shared his journey from studying the violin to turning to conducting after a car accident left him with nerve damage. He has served as the music director of the London Philharmonic, the Zurich Opera and Vienna State Opera and has been the music director of the Cleveland Orchestra since 2002.

German conductor Christoph Eschenbach inspired the Academists with his story of learning to play the piano at age 8 after he was orphaned during WWII. A concert he attended at age 11 inspired him to study and pursue a career in music.

“Every lecture we attend with the conductors is thought- provoking and interesting. Most recently we had one with Christian Thielemann, with the main topic of discussion being dynamics. When musicians see dynamics in their score, they often react immediately to what is written without being thoughtful about the other voices being played and what the overall role and character should be in this moment. Therefore, it is the conductor’s job to facilitate these balances and for the musician to be extremely sensitive to the melody that could be more or less important to the notes that they are playing.” – Annette Jakovčić ’24 USA

“The Meet-and-Greet program is one of the most unique and inspiring aspects of the Orchestra Academy. These interactions inspire me to be a more intellectual and intentional musician–which historical and cultural contexts I can use to influence my performances, as well as how I can focus on highlighting those qualities that make my violin playing unique.” – Robert Sanders ’23 USA

“I learned so much from meeting our great conductors. Ricardo Muti is more strict and old school, teaching us to look in the score very carefully because everything is written right there by the composer.” – Sandra Seržāne ’23 Latvia