Across Europe with Yuja Wang

30 November 2017
WRITTEN BY
Elvira van Groningen

Elvira van Groningen

Musician

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Ten concerts, nine different cities and countless new experiences: it was an exciting tour across Europe last month.We were travelling for almost 3 weeks with star pianist Yuja Wang and music by Beethoven, Stravinsky, Mozart and Chopin. There were so many special things about this journey that I don’t even know where to start.


First of all, my boyfriend Julian was also playing. To be on tour together is a luxury and makes every hotel room feel a bit more like home. Such a long tour can be especially tiring (and I have to admit that this was the longest one of my life so far), but being together makes it easier to stay in and relax without feeling lonely. We even brought our smoothie-maker with us to make our own indoor "meals" and energy-suppliers for on the go

The tour started with rehearsals and two concerts in Paris, in the concert hall of the Fondation Louis Vuitton. I had been there for some chamber music concerts two years ago, and it was nice to be back.
It was my first MCO experience without conductor and I was very excited about it. A rehearsal process without conductor is always a bit different and can be challenging. How lucky that the MCO has Matthew leading the orchestra... and what an amazing musician he is. I learned so many things just from watching him. He is always gentle and funny, knows when to speak and also when not to, and how he listens so well whilst playing himself, is a miracle to me.

Of course, without a conductor there telling everyone exactly what to do, things don’t always progress as quickly and rehearsals require a lot more involvement from each individual musician. It was tiring at times, but also so much more rewarding, because it felt like the pieces really became "ours".

Yuja Wang made her debut leading from the piano and as one can imagine, she was quite nervous about conducting; she let Matthew lead most of it in the beginning. She quickly grew in confidence, however, settled into her new role and the two of them developed an effective collaboration.

After Paris we had a few days off. I went to Berlin to teach and to give back the violin that I had been playing for the last 5 years... a little bit sad. Luckily though, I was able to loan a very nice, French Pique violin from a friend. Without much time to get used to my new buddy, our travels continued. We went from freezing, snowy Helsinki, to warm, sunny Aix-en-Provence; from a beautiful, vibrant Lyon, to a grey and somewhat less vibrant Rosenheim; from a very short stay in Vaduz and Munich, to a longer stay in Eindhoven and my home turf Holland! Finally, we reached our Endstation in windy, rainy Frankfurt. All of these cities, except for Eindhoven and Frankfurt, were new to me, and of course so were the concert halls. It was very exciting to be able to play so much and in so many different halls. I especially liked the hall in Helsinki and its beautiful stage.

After our (very nice!) free day in Lyon and travel day afterwards, I felt strange and really missed being on the stage having wonderful moments together.  To "keep things spicy", as Geoff put it, the seating in the first violins wasn't fixed, so every concert we sat or stood on a different spot, next to a different person. We played ten concerts and every single time for a full hall... and that brings me to the magic of Yuja. What an extraordinary pianist she is - so wonderfully effortless and virtuoso. Every evening she did something different, but with the same quality and joy. Also different every evening were her famous dresses. More than ten for sure; she definitely knows how to keep things spicy, too! The audiences really loved her, and we were all treated to some dazzling and at times moving encores, played with effortless spontaneity and charm.
The downside of playing in so many nice places is the travelling it requires. With four travel/concert days in a row, the balance rehearsals were not always the most inspired. But although we were all a little tired at times, the moment we stepped on stage everyone seemed to buckle up and give their all. It is truly a big pleasure and honour to play with such fantastic musicians.

The concert in Eindhoven was particularly special for me because my parents and one of my brothers were in the hall. Julian and I even got the chance to go home to my parents' house in Zwolle on our free day. It was so nice to get to see them and to relax in a real house with home-cooked food. On our way back to Eindhoven, we stopped off in Utrecht to catch up with my brother. Good times!


And after three trains, six flights, thirteen buses and nine different beds to sleep in we finally went... no, not home yet, but onto our next adventure with MCO and Academy in Dortmund. What a life!
 
P.S. The youngest member of our party didn’t seem to have any problems with all the travelling...

and raised our spirits with her lovely presence! A special mention to super-mum and super-grandma:


Photos: Geoffroy Schied / Julian Scott / Sarah Slater

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