Francisco de G嫮vez conducting himself accordingly

Source: Standard-Examiner, Ogden, UtahNov.儲存倉 08--Weber State's new orchestra director, Francisco de G嫮vez, says it was a question of fortune that brought him to his new position as a music professor at Weber State University.Right about the time the previous director, Michael Palumbo, was retiring, de G嫮vez was pondering a return to North America, where he had lived for four years in Montreal as a graduate student.He was born in M嫮aga, Spain, and, after studying and living abroad and making a name for himself as a conductor of note, he returned to his hometown to further study and work. While back there, he became reacquainted with the daughter of one of his early violin teachers.Lasting love came a bit later than usual for de G嫮vez and his now-wife, Celia, but when it came, there was no question. They bring to Utah with them their son, Pablo, age 5, and baby daughter, Chloe, 7 months. Pablo has started kindergarten, and is excelling in English to the point that de G嫮vez said his boy is now correcting his father's pronunciation.Securing a solid future for his young family is a large part of why de G嫮vez decided to leave home again. It is no secret that Spain is enduring horrific financial times. Unemployment percentages, especially for young Spaniards just coming into the work force, are above 25 percent -- exceeding that of the American Great Depression of the 1930s."We wanted to raise our children so that they can learn English and have a different exposure to the world," said de G嫮vez. "Just about when I decided this, the Weber State profile came out and I thought, 'I fit this well, because I want to teach, I am a conductor, and they are also looking for a string specialist, and I play violin.' So I gave it a try and came here. It was a major move, but I liked it very much when I first saw it," he added. "I still do. It was like a dream come true."Baton and bowDe G嫮vez is one of six children. His father was a violin teacher."One of my sisters plays the cello as a professional, but she is also a doctor. I am the only one out of my family who decided to make it in music only, professionally."De G嫮vez initially studied with the intent of being a concert violinist."It is a very difficult profession," he said. "But what is wonderful is you get to move around and meet other people who speak the same language -- the music itself. With violin I can share my feelings with other people. I was trying to get better and better, and I was put in the position of wondering if I wanted to become a leader or not. I could play in a section, but to become a soloist? It is really hard to do. That was the original dream for me. But there is just a few who really do it, and it is very competitive."Conducting is also very competitive, with only a few who make a real mark, but it was with baton in hand that de G嫮vez found solid footing in his classical career. At McGill University in Montreal, while studying for his masters, he first had the opportunity to lead an orchestra. What was first a side subject became his focus, and once he entered the conducting program, things proceeded rapidly.The international classical world took note when he was awarded first prize and gold medal at the 1994 Tokyo International Conducting Competition, standing out among 194 conductors from 36 countries."I was not aware of how big that would be," he said. "My ideas about doing conducting competitions was not so much to win, but that I would get to practice actually conducting an orchestra. Practice is hard to get in, because you need an orchestra in front of you to get better. So I could go to these competitions, and for one week, or however long, I could get this practice, get to conduct. It was great."A return homeAfter Tokyo, the classical world came ca迷你倉最平ling. He traveled for a time, working with many different orchestras, then settled for a time in Berlin, from 1995 to 1998, in part to immerse himself in a German-speaking culture."German is important for me to know, because of the important composers and music in German," he said. "I visited Vienna also, but I really liked Berlin."As the 20th century was drawing to a close, de G嫮vez had an opportunity to return to his hometown of M嫮aga. He took his doctorate, graduating with cum laude honors at the University of M嫮aga. He became the music director of the M嫮aga Symphony Orchestra between 1998 and 2011 and the music director of University of M嫮aga Chamber Orchestra starting in 2004."They needed a conductor badly to reorganize things there, and this was my hometown, my family," he said. "At the beginning there, it was easy to succeed. Things got better quickly. But after a few years, we just did not have the finances to keep it going. I needed a great concert master, for example, but you have to pay for that."De G嫮vez noted Spanish arts are funded in large part by government grants. Those monies vanished once the recession sunk its teeth deep into Spain. There was suddenly no money for many basic services, much less the arts."The politicians would say, 'Very nice, but we do not have the money.' So, it got to the point where I had to decide if I was going to be there for the rest of my life, or to move on. I realized it was time to move on, and take care of my family. This emboldened me to look for jobs."To UtahDe G嫮vez had done some teaching as part of his doctorate, and said that having students was a huge part of the appeal of the position at Weber State."I wanted to do some teaching for a long time now -- and I can also keep on being a musician here, and enjoying that lifestyle," he said.He also knows that many of his students will not go on to be professional musicians. That is fine in his eyes, as it is a hard lifestyle to maintain. But he believes that to study music is to prepare for the world beyond, no matter how a living is eventually made. It is not just about learning to master an instrument. There is math involved, science, cooperation and compromise, time management, learning how to work for the greater good -- the lessons learned as an orchestra member.And then there is the thing he may love most about this new job, versus working with the pros, as he did for so long. The main goal with students is constant growth and improvement."Whereas in the professional world, with the players you get, they bring the level they have -- you cannot expect more of them, not really. There, we have to take what we have, and be grateful for that. Here, the young people are learning; we watch them as they get better and better. That is very rewarding. Here, you can improve constantly. Of course, we all deal with frustrations and expectations, but in the end, you realize what you need to do. Work hard -- and the students here do work very hard."Like any profession, in mine, you have to take it very seriously. I understand that I have to be both demanding, and understanding, with my students -- their lives, their other obligations -- and yet let them know we have limited time to achieve our goals."I have wonderful students and colleagues, and a good place for my family and students to live where we do not have to worry if we are going to be safe, or can manage to survive, and so be able to concentrate on our work. So far, I am very, very satisfied."Contact reporter Linda East Brady at 801-625-4279 or lbrady@standard.net. Follow her on Twitter@LindaEastBrady.Copyright: ___ (c)2013 the Standard-Examiner (Ogden, Utah) Visit the Standard-Examiner (Ogden, Utah) at .standard.net Distributed by MCT Information Services迷你倉