Samson Diamond, principal second violin
Chi-chi Nwanoku, double bass
Adam Wynter, double bass
Paul Philbert, principal timpani
Hannah Kendall, composer
Desmond Neysmith, principal cello
Linton Stephens, second bassoon
Chineke!'s
story is one of the most inspiring in music right now. The UK's only
majority black and ethnic minority orchestra was formed just two years
ago by double bassist Chi-chi Nwanoku. It received a standing ovation at
its debut concert before even playing a note, creating a moment that
Chi-chi will never forget: "Tears were falling down people's faces."
On 30 August, the orchestra is making its Proms debut at a late-night
concert featuring the cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason, winner of the 2016
BBC Young Musician competition, soprano Jeanine De Bique and conductor
Kevin John Edusei.
To celebrate the night, we met a handful of the orchestra's members.
It turns out they have stories that are just as inspiring as Chineke!'s
own. From growing up in apartheid-era South Africa to being forced into
music by a pushy mum, there is something below that everyone can relate
to
Samson Diamond, principal second violin
"I
was born in Soweto in 1984, so I remember the end of apartheid. My
circumstances then, although typical for Soweto, were not the most
pleasant. I lived in a shack that was at the back of my
great-grandmother's house, and she rented a room for a shabeen [bar], so
there were a lot of people around.
"I never had any idea I was poor. I was 10 years old; I had
everything I needed! I didn't have a bed - I had to sleep on the floor -
but many people I knew slept on the floor.
***
Chi-chi Nwanoku, double bass
"I
took up the double bass in my last year of school after this
devastating knee injury ruined my sprinting career. I was doing 11:8
seconds for the 100 metres. And I was 17 then, so I was definitely
heading for the Montreal Olympics [three years later in 1976].
"I was in hospital for two weeks and the day I limped back into
school, the head of music came up to me and said, 'Chi-chi, you're
probably the most musically gifted person in the school, but you're the
only one who doesn't play in an orchestra. We think that if you took up a
very unpopular instrument, you could have a career.' And he led me to
this room where they had two double basses and that changed my life.
"I do have to thank [politician] Ed Vaizey for me starting Chineke!
in a way. He said to me, 'Why is it only you that we ever see on stage?'
and it took me a while to realise he meant musicians of colour. He
planted the seed in my head.
"I went to see the Kinshasa Symphony [at the Southbank Centre in
London, 2014] and seeing people's faces looking bemused, or with
incredulity, I thought, 'No, this is wrong. This is the 21st century. It
shouldn't be a novelty that this is one person of colour on stage
playing Beethoven.' And, as I walked back to Waterloo station, I looked
to my right and left and thought, 'I should do this.'
***
Adam Wynter, double bass
"I think when my teacher got me to play the bass, she thought I'd get
into jazz, but there weren't too many people my age at school [in
Leeds] who were playing that kind of music, so I did the usual thing -
went to youth orchestra.
"And because there was never anyone else playing the bass, I got
quite far, quite quickly. I was constantly being chucked into situations
a little bit out of my depth, so I had to find the standard.
***
Paul Philbert, principal timpani
"When
I was a child, singing came very naturally to me. Playing musical
instruments did not. It took me quite a while to find an instrument that
worked.
"I went to the Purcell School and I distinctly remember an interview
with the Director of Music where he said, in no uncertain terms, 'This
is a specialist music school, and you don't seem to be specialising in
any instrument.' They were considering introducing percussion and he
asked if I'd be interested, and of course I was.
"I went home and begged my mum to let me try this new percussion
thing. But at that stage she'd spent money on two different violins for
me; she'd bought me a clarinet; she'd spent a lot of money on tuition.
But I promised her, all she would need to buy me was three books, a pair
of sticks and a practice pad, so she relented and the floodgates
opened. I found my groove, so to speak.
***
Hannah Kendall, composer
"This is a huge thing. I'm a Londoner so my earliest memories of experiencing classical music live were at the Proms. I must have been seven maybe when I went to my first, but I'd never have dreamt of being performed at the Proms. It's... crazy. And being performed by Chineke! as well. That's such a huge privilege. I love how they've dispelled all the myths one might have about who goes to classical concerts, who performs classical music, and who writes it.
"How'd I become a composer? I'll tell you the truth. I was at university, majoring in singing, and they changed the credits so I needed 10 more to graduate. That was the number they allocated for composition. I took to it straight away. I just found composing incredibly liberating. You're stepping into the unknown. Anything's possible. It's exciting, captivating.
***
Desmond Neysmith, principal cello
"I once had a 500-year-old cello, but had to give it back unfortunately. My current one was made in 1874 and it's a beautiful thing. Made by this Frenchman who was working in London, Charles Boullangier. For me, having an antique makes a lot of difference. It's kind of difficult to explain without playing it, but it's not just the sound - it's knowing the history, knowing it's been played and cherished for so long, and that all you're doing is looking after it on its own journey.
"It's insured for £40,000 and I'm pretty careful with it. I don't let anyone other than cellists touch it. I wouldn't ever leave it with a brass player - not that I have anything against brass players, but one lapse of concentration and it's toast.
***
Linton Stephens, second bassoon
"I
remember my first experience watching the Proms so vividly. We had this
atrocious peach-coloured carpet in the front room, my mum was sat
behind me and we were flicking around the channels. None of my family
were interested in classical music, so I could only have it on for
snippets, but I played the oboe and wanted to see other people playing
it. I remember watching three nights consecutively and just having this
realisation from not seeing anybody else who looked like me, then
turning around to my mum and saying, 'Maybe I shouldn't be doing this. I
haven't seen any black people.' And her actual words were, 'Well, you
bloody well make sure you're the first.' Of course I wasn't the first at
all, but…
No comments:
Post a Comment