When you read Playing for Their Lives (coming out in September!) you will find quite a bit about the beautiful work unfolding in Nairobi, Kenya. There are strong leaders, and a tradition of classical music in the Nairobi Symphony Orchestra that goes back almost a century to colonial times, during which British musicians paid to be part of the NSO, and then during World War II, when Italian prisoners of war who were musicians filled out the ranks. Now it is a glorious mix of black and white musicians, young and old, including musicians who grew up in the ghettos and are now in the Kenya National Youth Orchestra.
Here’s a story that didn’t make it into the book.
During my visit to Nairobi, I was able to attend a special rehearsal of some of the Kenya National Youth Orchestra. They called this rehearsal to help their five members who were preparing to jet off to New York City to perform with a five-country gathering of musicians from Sistema programs at the United Nations, a performance supported by Lang Lang’s charitable foundation. The purpose of the KNYO rehearsal to go over several pieces the traveling players would perform with this international orchestra. Their friends wanted to rehearse with them and help them get the orchestral sound in their ears, so they wouldn’t be so daunted to go from practicing their parts on their own to a big orchestral sound in New York. The kids admitted that they knew the KNYO players wouldn’t be as good as the other musicians, so they wanted to help as much as they could.
The story of that NYC rehearsal process is in our book. What isn’t in the book is the story of Brian Kepher, the KNYO percussionist. He is from the Korogocho ghetto where Ghetto Classics is based, and he is a passionately curious young man. At the end of the rehearsal, I waited with Brian and the others for the van that would take the instruments back to Korogocho for an afternoon rehearsal (a long drive). As is typical in Africa, there was a long wait after rehearsal for the van to arrive—someone called someone, who said the van was in use, and would be there as soon as possible. So Brian and I sat and talked for most of an hour, with an orchestra’s worth of instruments on the ground around us, waiting to be loaded and brought to the youngsters in Korogocho.
Brian was full of questions. Some were about El Sistema in Venezuela—What were rehearsals like? How much did the conductors study their scores? What happened if someone was late for rehearsal? Some were ambitious. How could he get into a workshop on conducting with Gustavo Dudamel? Would the Venezuelans take him in and teach him conducting? How could he publish a book on his interpretations of some of the major symphonies?—he had been studying some and felt he had something original to tell his country and the world.
After I left Africa, we had some follow-up emails about self-publishing and workshops on conducting. Then our exhange went quiet, as so often happens. But over two years later, I got news of Brian. He had somehow managed to get himself an all-expenses-paid visit to the Mahler conducting competition in Bamberg Germany, perhaps the most prestigious conducting competition in the world (the one Gustavo Dudamel won at the age of 25, gaining him his first gained international notice. Brian wrote:
I am so greatfull to the Almighty and you for the effort to my trip.
I am having lots of fun with my master classes over this side. The Bamberg Symphony is an engine with millions of megawatts of musicianship. The sound is so powerful and the energy cannot be depicted. On my arrival, I was introduced to the granddaughter of Mahler, the Chief Conductor Maestro Jonathan Nott and the teacher to Sir. Simon Rattle. They claim I did speak a lot about Sir Rattle.
I did not actually finish my analysis of Mahler 3 when leaving Kenya, but here during the rehearsals I did have time to follow up and do an interpretation on a live occasion, asking why’s and when’s to live conductors. I met and had a private mentorship with maestro Jonathan Nott to explain my thoughts in a movement and how I would conduct and guide the orchestra, after which he gave me his thoughts of interpretation. I still don’t have any courage to stand before a great orchestra of that nature, but am learning a lot from him.
We were blessed by being given Mahler 10th Symphony score by Universal Edition that does Mahlers’ publication.
I am loving it here in Bamberg and the beauty nature, the city is baroque. The music is driven by itself, well I mean Europe is the birth place of classical music.
Actually the competition has taught me what a conductor ought to do and not do with any orchestra and also the difference when conducting different levels of orchestras. I always have a session with Maestro Nott at 09:00 hrs before the competition kicks for the day. He has passed me through Beethoven’s 5th Symphony, Mahler’s Symphony number 3 1st movement, and Haydn’s Symphony No. 44, which he recommended to me and he wants to see a video of me doing it.
I think I need to put more effort to see me through this long and hard journey, it’s not about me now, it is a about Africans.
This is Brian. Totally invested in orchestral music, dreaming of becoming a conductor, overcoming his material limitations to learn with some of the masters of the field, ambitious, learning about the way the world works, and madly in love with great orchestral works and how he can share them with his African friends.
For those who say the traditional symphonic repertoire is a dead warhorse, talk to Brian. For those who argue that music by dead white males is a colonial tool of control for Africans, talk with Brian about what he is finding in Beethoven and Mahler. I often notice that those with the fewest resources often learn the fastest and most enthusiastically. Learn from Brian, and be inspired by what grows in Korogosho ghetto and in the KNYO.
—Eric
An addendum. Here is the latest update I heard about Brian from Elizabeth Njoroge, the founder/director of the Ghetto Classics program.
The pianist Jorge Viladoms was in Kenya in February and he invited Brian to visit him at the Lausanne Conservatory, where he teaches. So Brian went to Lausanne after Germany. He had an amazing time at the conservatory and we are hopeful that they will audition him for a place next year. It was interesting for me, because they said that in some ways he is quite advanced as a conductor – in his musicality and his motivation – but in other ways his basic knowledge of music theory is weak. This says a lot about our programme. They have given him a year to catch u,p and have shared many resources with him. He is so determined, I am sure he will do it.