Talking with Mina Kim, music director of the Woodstock Symphony Orchestra, I had one question in mind. How had she led the orchestra to such precision and clarity in the finale of Tchaikovsky’s Fourth Symphony earlier this season? I was hoping for a glimpse into a conductor’s secret technique, but her answer was more straightforward.
“It was teamwork,” she said. “From the first rehearsal, everybody was excited to play this symphony. They were ready to go.”
Like many professional musicians, Kim started young. She began playing piano at 4 and knew early that she wanted a career in music. “I grew up in church,” she said. “I’d been a church pianist since I was 9, and I saw people conducting—I wanted to do that.”
When Jonathan Handman, the Woodstock Symphony Orchestra’s previous music director retired, Executive Director Dana White-Marks invited Kim to apply. She excelled during the Conductor Search season, a year of trying out potential conductors, and is now in her second season as director.
“I think this orchestra is unique,” she said. “From our first rehearsal, they’ve been so welcoming. We have a conversation in a different language, and I feel completely comfortable with them.”
The orchestra’s location in the Hudson Valley also fosters artistic collaboration. “At Saturday’s concert, we invited local artists to join us for ‘Pictures at an Exhibition.’ In May, we’ll have jazz musicians performing with us,” she said.
Having followed the orchestra since its origins as the Woodstock Chamber Orchestra 45 years ago, I’ve been gratified by its progress. Under Kim’s leadership, it continues to evolve. She has expanded its artistic scope and has even greater ambitions.
Kim loves the Woodstock Playhouse, but the stage is barely large enough for the orchestra’s current size. At SUNY Purchase, where she teaches and conducts, she has led Gustav Mahler’s First Symphony and Rachmaninoff’s Symphonic Dances—works that require more musicians than the Playhouse can accommodate. She also hopes to perform choral works like Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony and is looking for a larger venue for future concerts. The Woodstock Symphony Orchestra performs Saturday, March 22, at 7:30 p.m. at the Woodstock Playhouse. The program includes Gabriel Fauré’s “Masques et Bergamasques” and “Pavane,” the premiere of Joey DeSantis’s Sinfonietta, and Modest Mussorgsky’s “Pictures at an Exhibition,” featuring an exhibition of local artists in the Playhouse lobby. Tickets are available at woodstockplayhouse.org.
Leslie Gerber is a contributing journalist. Send correspondence to reporting@theoverlooknews.com.