St. Louis Symphony Orchestra resident conductor Ward Stare grew up playing the trombone in Rochester, N.Y. His home instrument has had countless creative uses in blues and jazz, the American musical forms pioneered by black musicians.
On Friday and Saturday, Nov. 27 and 28, Stare will conduct the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra in a program that features Dvorak’s New World Symphony, a European composer’s welcoming embrace of the folk elements he found on our musical soil, especially American Indian and African American melodies and rhythms.
Dvorak was a sponge for our native musical idioms, which had gone largely neglected up until that time by art songsters. He found a primary source for the “Negro Spirituals” that most strongly color his American symphony in Henry Burleigh.
This begged the question whether there was an African-American musician in Stare’s development who acquainted him with folk forms, as Burleigh did for Dvorak?
“I never had one specific person, regrettably,” Stare said.
“I would love to have had an experience like that. But I grew up with all sorts of music, and playing trombone early on I played in blues and jazz bands in high school. I love B.B. King!”
New World Symphony has trombones in its orchestration. As a trombonist who became a conductor, Stare could be expected to have a special sensitivity to his native instrument when he encounters it in the score as a conductor.
“I don’t think it’s something you discard, though your ear broadens,” Stare said.
“Obviously, when I first started out conducting as a trombonist my ear naturally gravitated to the brass and the trombone, since I had a career as a trombonist myself. But I definitely listen to the entire orchestra.”
Having vouched for himself as a conductor – his prime-time role with SLSO during Thanksgiving week – he immediately relapsed into his inner musician: “I miss it. I miss playing in a brass section. The only thing better than playing in an orchestra is conducting one.”
As a resident conductor in St. Louis, Stare has had a remarkable mentor in SLSO musical director David Robertson.
“David is such a creative guy, such a ‘think outside the box’ person and musician. Working with him is such an influence,” Stare said.
“I try to always be searching, investing, exploring new ideas, new pieces.”
At the same time – and this defines the magic of this orchestra at this moment – Robertson comes with none of the maestro trappings that ruin the fun.
Stare said, “He is such a modest guy, too. We have had so many impromptu conversations in any number of settings. He is very giving. He can go on and on and talk about everything under the sun.”
In fact, the lynchpin of the program for Stare’s subscription series debut evolved from one of his many conversations with his modest boss.
“I met with David Robertson a year ago,” Stare said of their conversations about his subscription series debut, which comes paired with a family concert, the resident conductor’s bread and butter.
“We talked about where these concerts fall in the season: during Thanksgiving week. So an American flavor would be nice. One of the first things that comes to mind is New World Symphony.”
This weekend’s program also includes selections from Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet ballet and Samuel Barber’s Essay No. 2.
The St. Louis Symphony Orchestra performs the New World Symphony program at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Nov. 27 and 28. For tickets, call 314-534-1700 or visit slso.org.
