Toronto Symphony Orchestra director Peter Oundjian focuses on positive thingsJune 11, 2011 - 11:04 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Peter Oundjian is a multitasker. As music director of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, he conducts more than 100 concerts a year, leads all rehearsals and co-ordinates musical interpretations with anywhere from 60 to 120 people. Then, beyond the baton, there’s planning the season’s programs, fundraising, hiring players to fill vacancies and fulfilling publicity obligations, reads an article in The Globe and Mail. Born in Toronto in 1955 to an Armenian-British father and a British mother, Mr. Oundjian was brought up in England after the family moved back in 1960. He studied violin, attending London’s Royal College of Music and then the Juilliard School in New York, where he minored in conducting. After 14 years as first violinist of the Tokyo String Quartet, from 1981 to 1995, he turned to conducting after a strain injury. He has also been a professor at the Yale University School of Music since age 25. Numerous guest spots worldwide launched him as a conductor. The Nieuw Sinfonietta (now the Amsterdam Sinfonietta) hired him as artistic director in 1998, and his appointment to the Toronto Symphony Orchestra followed in 2003. “It’s very interesting when you go to guest-conduct another orchestra, because you probably don’t know anybody,” says Mr. Oundjian. “And the first thing you do is share a deeply personal experience, which is to interpret whatever it is – a Brahms or Beethoven symphony, or a piece by Stravinsky. It’s quite odd. You have to manoeuvre very skillfully.” His strategy is not to focus on negative things but on what can be made positive. Such optimism goes a long way in life and a very long way in leadership, he says. Top stories The creative crew of the Public TV had chosen 13-year-old Malena as a participant of this year's contest. She called on others to also suspend their accounts over the companies’ failure to tackle hate speech. Penderecki was known for his film scores, including for William Friedkin’s “The Exorcist”, Stanley Kubrick’s “The Shining”. The festival made the news public on March 19, saying that “several options are considered in order to preserve its running” Partner news | Kazakhstan welcomes Yerevan, Baku’s agreement to meet in Almaty Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has welcomed the agreement of Baku and Yerevan to hold negotiations in Almaty. Armenia offers to temporarily host, preserve Gaza manuscripts The Armenian Foreign Minister has said Yerevan is ready to help preserve manuscripts from the conflict zone in Gaza. Aliyev says no need for mediators in Armenia-Azerbaijan process Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev believes that Baku and Yerevan do not mediators in the process of normalizing relations. Aram I supports Karekin II’s “patriotic position” Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia Aram I has expressed support for the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin. |