Studying Abroad with the RPS Julius Isserlis Scholarship

The RPS Julius Isserlis Scholarship offers young musicians the unique experience of studying abroad. Many grant winners have gone on to have fantastic careers - not least the very first recipient of the award, pianist Stephen Hough, whose grant assisted his Master's studies at the Juilliard School. 

Following in his footsteps is harpist Emily Hoile, who also chose to study at New York's Juilliard School with the help of a £10,000 Julius Isserlis grant in 2011. A second award from this year's Julius Isserlis Scholarship enables her to complete her studies there. 

Recently, we caught up with Emily to find out how life across the Atlantic has been treating her.

HP What attracted you to the Juilliard School in particular?

EH The main reason I applied to Juilliard was because of the harp teacher there, Nancy Allen, who is the principal harpist of the New York Philharmonic. One of my favourite recordings that I owned was of her playing the Ginastera harp concerto so from there I found out that she taught at Juilliard! Besides Nancy, I think one of the things that really stood out to me about Juilliard was the range of performing arts that people study there. Along with having a fantastic music department, they have equally inspirational drama and dance divisions.

HP What repertoire are you working on at the moment? 

EH I have just taken part in the USA International Harp Competition so for the past few months I have been pretty much exclusively working on the repertoire for that. It encompassed some of the well know standard pieces of harp repertoire such Fauré's Impromptu for harp and Reinecke's Concerto, but besides that there were some lesser well known harp works: transcriptions of Scarlatti sonatas for example, as well as a 40 minute recital of your own choice of music. As part of that I have transcribed a couple of works - my favourite is 'Wiegenlied' by Strauss, originally for soprano with piano accompaniment. I think there's just something quite special about the way it works with the sound and resonance of the harp. At the moment I'm thinking about what new pieces to learn this year so am having fun just reading through a lot of music, from the standard harp repertoire as well as some possible piano transcriptions!

HP What do you most enjoy playing?

EH I really enjoy playing a lot of different styles of music. Since studying at Juilliard I've discovered that I really love playing modern music, either solo or in an ensemble. I think as a harpist it's quite easy to be in your own bubble of solo harp music with it's distinctive style, that to be in a group, playing extremely challenging music both harmonically and rhythmically, where everyone has to be 100% committed is really refreshing.  Later this month I'm really excited to be going to Finland to perform with Juilliard's new music ensemble 'Axiom' and musicians from the Sibelius Academy conducted by Susanna Malkki. 

HP What have been the highlights of your time at Juilliard so far?

EH There have been so many! Getting the chance to perform 'sur Incises' by Boulez in my second year was incredible - a mammoth 40 minute work for three pianists, three percussionists and (most importantly, obviously) three harpists. That was probably one of my favourite, and most challenging ensemble concerts that I've ever played. Also, earlier this year I organised a collaborative performance of Caplet's 'Le Conte Fantastique' for harp and string quartet. It's a piece based on the Edgar Allen Poe story 'The Masque of the Red Death' so we had a student narrate as we went along, as well as four dancers in my year who choreographed certain sections to heighten the drama. It was really fantastic getting to work with students from the other divisions in the school and learning how they work and think. It's fascinating.

HP New York is a long way to take a harp! How have you managed the distance in terms of transporting your instrument?

EH I have been very lucky, in that Juilliard owns ten harps that the harp students can use at any time. Whilst I would have loved to take my harp with me, it ended up being easier practising on the school harps and using them for rehearsals and performances. The main difficulty with this is that you don't get so much chance to work with one specific instrument and really discover all of its nuances and sounds, but it does make you more flexible and adept at playing many different instruments, something that you have to do a lot as a harpist.

HP How have you found living in the US, especially considering you moved there just after finishing school?

EH It was quite a funny move. I think that due to the lack of a language barrier that I wasn't expecting there to be too much of a culture shock. Turns out there are quite a lot of differences between the UK and New York, from the ways in which people interact to the fact that you don't get a takeaway pizza, you get a takeaway slice. At the end of the day I didn't find it too difficult to get into the swing of things over there, it was definitely an exciting time so all the differences made the experience more interesting! I lived in the Juilliard dorms for two years, so immediately when I arrived there was a welcome 'Orientation' week (the US version of freshers, minus the alcohol) where everyone from the students to the staff were extremely friendly and welcoming. Having lived in New York for three years now I've really settled into the way of life - albeit a crazily busy and fast paced one - and am looking forward to really making the most of my final year there!

HP What do you hope to do on graduating from Juilliard?

EH After graduating from Juilliard I'd love to get out, work with lots of different musicians and artists and just perform! Practically speaking, I need to decide whether to stay in the US and work there, or whether I should move somewhere new and discover a new artistic culture (or in fact return to the UK). So at the moment I am thinking through different ideas and looking into different options- it's exciting and scary in pretty much equal measures.

HP What advice would you have for young musicians who are looking to study abroad?

EH If you want to do it, go for it! Studying in a different country is fantastic as it really gives you time to settle into a new place and experience it for a good length of time. Musically it also really interesting studying somewhere completely different, as you can get so used to the way you usually work, and being in a new environment with its own way of thinking and working sort of shakes that up forcing you to think in new ways. I've had an awesome time being a student in such a vibrant city, meeting some fantastic people from all over the world, both students and teachers, who I have learnt so much from. 

The RPS Julius Isserlis Scholarship is a biennial award which offers up to £30,000 for a young instrumentalist to study abroad for a period of two years. It is open to all classical instrumentalists of any nationality between the ages of 15 and 25 who are permanently resident in the UK. The next closing date is 13 March 2015. Please visit our website for further information.

Ode to Joy

Beethoven Super Sunday gets off to  a flying start

A green plaque commemorating the first UK performance of the RPS's most famous commission, Beethoven's 9th Symphony, was unveiled yesterday on Regent Street. The plaque marks the former site of the New Argyll Rooms, which is now a NatWest bank. It was unveiled by RPS Chairman, John Gilhooly and Councillor Michael Brahams, Deputy Lieutenant of Greater London. The occasion was accompanied by a new fanfare by Bertie Baigent, a young composer from the National Youth Orchestra, performed by players from the NYO. 

Then it was straight off to the Royal Albert Hall for more Beethoven 9 celebrations with the NYO at the BBC Proms. (Take a look at last week's blog, where NYO musicians talked about the unforgettable experience of playing at the Proms). Beethoven's 9th Symphony was preceded by the world premiere of Frieze, a Beethoven-inspired RPS co-commission by English composer Mark-Anthony Turnage. 

A bow for Beethoven Bust

The NYO shared the Royal Albert Hall stage with singers from across the British Isles - and of course the Society's bust of Beethoven, who kept an eye on proceedings from his perch in front of Vasily Petrenko's podium. Not so dissimilar, then, to the 1824 premiere of the 9th Symphony in Vienna, when the by-then profoundly deaf composer stood behind the conductor to guide the tempo. Beethoven was oblivious to the applause which erupted at the end of the work, until one of the soloists turned him around to face the audience. 

Rapturous applause from a packed Albert Hall also greeted last night's performance - a fantastic end to our Beethoven Super Sunday. Huge congratulations to all the performers!

Missed the Prom? You can listen on IPlayer until 17th August. The concert will also be broadcast on BBC4 in 2 parts on 18th August and 6th September. 

NYO and the Proms

On 11 August, the National Youth Orchestra will return to the Proms, along with the National Youth Choir, Irish Youth Chamber Choir, and Codetta.  Nearly 400 teenagers will perform on one of the world’s most famous stages, forming a fitting spectacle for a glorious celebration of the commission of Beethoven’s ninth symphony.

NYO are enormously lucky to be invited to the Proms again this year, and it is frequently the highlight of any member’s musical year.  Some of our players have had the fortune to already have played with the orchestra at the Proms over the last couple of years, so who better to tell the story than themselves?  During our rehearsals this summer, we asked what makes this event so special, and what they’re looking forward to this year:

‘Playing at the Albert Hall is an incredible experience in itself, but joining with the magnitude of massed choirs really takes it to the next level. Add Beethoven 9 into the equation and you get a really explosive combination!’ Anna Lapwood, harp

‘It's an incredible experience playing at the BBC Proms. The atmosphere backstage before a concert is electrifying and like no other concert venue, not only because the concert is recorded for both live radio and television, but also because NYO always attracts the most passionate, excited and youthful of audiences to the concert series! The orchestra really up their game for the appearance at the RAH and you can feel the energy and passion coming from 170 young musicians putting their heart and soul into the music...it's really something special to be part of!' Michael Devlin, clarinet

‘Performing in the Royal Albert Hall really is an amazing experience. To think of all the amazing artists who've graced the stage before makes me cherish every minute I am there.’ YeYe Xu, violin

‘It’s exhilarating to be part of this meeting of the old and the new: a dynamic youth orchestra in a historic concert hall, with a programme ranging from the classic to the cutting-edge. Nothing is more thrilling than being part of the Proms, during the height of summer, seeing so many people enjoying the music that I hold so close to my heart.'  Fien Barnett-Niefs, harp

On tribes and heartbeats

Dobrinka Tabakova on the inspiration for Pulse

In mid-July I went to a concert as part of the SouthBank Festival of Neighbourhood - it celebrated 25 years of the gamelan at the SouthBank. The concert was absolutely fantastic - the dancing, shadow puppets, singing, playing. It is no wonder that Jaap Kunst said ‘Gamelan is comparable to only two things, moonlight and flowing water… mysterious like moonlight and always changing like flowing water…”. Reflecting on the event and the festival, I thought back to the initial conversations Tom Hutchinson from the RPS and I had about this project, and how we discussed possible themes and ideas, which would fit with the wide-reaching aims of the New Music Biennial alongside the Commonwealth games in Glasgow in 2014.

The idea we kept coming back to was that of living in a city. More than half the world’s population lives in cities. Musically, for me this immediately suggested fast paced, energetic, almost punchy music. I could almost hear the colours which I wanted, and percussion and piano were strong, prevalent sounds. A few years ago, I worked with the SouthBank gamelan players and was really keen to work with them again. The subtle friction between the different tuning of the gamelan together with Western tuning appealed to me. I felt there was a parallel there with how the two tunings blend and how different people fit to form the large living organisms - cities, which so many of us inhabit. The working title became ‘My Pulse, My Place’.

At the heart of this project is a collaboration between film and music. I had met filmmaker Ruth Paxton last November in Nottingham, at the screening of her film ‘Rockhaven’ to Brian Fernehough’s Prometheus score which was part of the Royal Philharmonic Society’s Encore scheme. Her film had strong images, flowing shots and there was something poetic and musical about the pace, even if the main characters were heavily tattooed boxers. I was excited to see how our two worlds would fit and the process of working with a filmmaker.

Before our first meeting in May, I had a general sound of what the music would be, having chosen and agreed on the instruments: piano, percussion and gamelan. I thought a great deal about Time. Both Ruth and I deal with structures in time, how is a story paced, what is the rhythm of a single shot; what is the shape of the composition. Linking in with the sport element, time is often a measure of achievement. Our hearts beat close to the rhythm of the second hand of the clock, etc.

We often hear people describing different cities - they have a certain pulse, life has a certain pace… I wanted the music to have this sense of a unifying pulse all the way through, so I brought a metronome along to our meeting.

I loved how both Ruth and I had this starting idea of the city and how in the first meeting, we brought our visions and ideas of what we associate with the concept. What struck me were some of the stories Ruth mentioned - our etiquette on public transport, the spark and embarrassment of catching someone’s glance, holding on to a rail and accidentally brushing your hand against someone else’s. How such small moments can bring people together and can be so powerful. The story which Ruth told and really stayed with me was of how a boy was saved from drowning in the sea in Australia by people from the beach making a human chain and pulling him out to safety. Ruth mentioned that she wanted to make a film with a positive message about humanity. I felt inspired to celebrate in the power of what people can do when we do things together.

In the first meeting, Tom, Ruth and I agreed that it was important to choose the title, or at least agree on some words, which we felt were important. After a long brain-storming session, covering all that we had been thinking about in the months between submitting the application and having our first working session, we came up with really strong words, but there was one word we kept coming back to: PULSE. We had our title.

Dobrinka Tabakova