Kees Boersma
About
Q&A
Question: Can you tell us a bit about you, and what you are up to these days?
Answer I was born in the Netherlands, but have spent most of my life here in Australia. After completing my undergraduate studies at the Victorian College of the Arts I travelled back to my country of birth for further study, which included spending several seasons playing with the wonderful Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in Amsterdam. That was a special time, performing with legendary conductors such as Bernard Haitink, Carlo Maria Giuliani, Antal Dorati and Nicholas Harnoncourt, whilst living in the top floor of a beautiful canal house (built in 1677) on the Prinsengracht, one of the atmospheric canals circling the old city. <br> <br> Not long after my return to Sydney (it was either leave Amsterdam, or stay and undertake compulsory military service!) the principal bass position of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra was being auditioned. This was amazing timing, and just what I needed to keep me motivated at that time – it had not been easy saying goodbye to the life I had lived for those previous years. <br> <br> Now, I look back in shock and realise I will be playing my 34th season with the SSO when we start with Mahler 1 in February 2023! The time has flown past. The orchestra is improving all the time, extraordinary young musicians continue to join the orchestra and this constant renewal keeps me incredibly motivated. I’m also loving being a lecturer in bass at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, working with the extraordinary talents who will be the next generation of Australian musicians taking on the world. My partner is Kirsty McCahon, a wonderful bassist and of course also an AYO alumni, and we have two fabulous boys who are forging their way in the world with true passion!
Question: What was a highlight of your time in AYO programs?
Answer I grew up in regional South Australia (the Blue Lake city of Mt. Gambier) so pretty much all of my exposure to symphonic music was through the Australian Youth Orchestra programs. <br> <br> Initially this was through the National Music Camps, and then AYO seasons. When I finished high school I managed to secure a job at the local television station – which in a regional city was quite a glamorous thing to be part of. Then along came the AYO season at the Perth Festival in 1983, which included performances of Mahler’s 6th Symphony with Ronald Zollman conducting. It was this performance, this mind-blowing experience, that convinced me to take a gamble, ditch TV life, and launch into full time music study – one month later I moved to Melbourne to do just that, and my life course was set. <br> <br> For me there could not have been a more significant experience than that concert!
Question: What skills, musical and otherwise, did you take away from your time at AYO?
Answer My first AYO experience was also the first time I played as part of a bass section (as opposed to playing by myself), which meant it was the first time I had to learn about co-ordinating my bowings…. that was such a shock! In every other way playing as part of a group was a complete blast, so much more fun than doing it all by myself. Inspiring conductors and soloists, playing in great venues in exotic locations, always surrounded by likeminded colleagues, it was always the highlight of my year.
Question: What was your favourite piece or performance during your programs?
Answer Other than the Perth Festival season of 1983 which changed the direction of my life, another standout experiences was the 1984 European tour (my first visit to Europe since leaving as a boy). This was the Ambassador’s Symphony tour - please refer to the documentary and double LP! The great halls and cities of Europe, with a delightful few days in Dubrovnik at the start of the tour… unforgettable. Another was leading the basses in the 1986 Adelaide Festival season, with Alexander Schneider as conductor and Gidon Kremer as (just one!) of our soloists.
Question: Why do you think AYO is important to the Australian cultural landscape?
Answer The AYO was for me the enabler of my direction in life. I was fortunate to spend my early years in a regional area of South Australia that did have some significant investment in the Arts (it was the era of premier Don Dunstan, and so very progressive for the Arts!), but my symphony orchestra skills were nurtured through my AYO experiences. <br> <br> For kids like me from regional areas with dreams of playing in a great symphony orchestra, the AYO was the only youth music organisation that was able to provide a taste of what a life in classical music might look like. Without these experiences and I would not have been able to imagine living the life I lead now.
Question: How would you describe AYO in three words?
Answer Inspirational, empowering, life changing.
Question: Is there anything else you would like to tell us about you or your time at AYO?
Answer It’s impossible to overstate the value of friendships formed over the years. The experiences shared through the love of music and performing way back in those formative years have sustained close ties with so many musicians who are performing all over the world, in a hugely diverse range of ensembles. When we meet up, it takes no time to be thinking fondly of our times back in the ranks of our cherished AYO, where the incredible journey all started!
Question: What was one of the first pieces of music to inspire you?
Answer Not necessarily the first to inspire, but amongst the works that never fail to do so; Stravinsky’s ballet scores: <i>The Firebird</i>, <i>Petrushka </i>and <i>The Rite of Spring</i>.
Question: Is there a piece of advice you received from a music teacher/mentor that has always stayed with you?
Answer Absolutely – don’t practise your concertos during orchestra rehearsals!
Question: How or why did you choose your instrument?
Answer After what was a comparatively thorough evaluation of musical aptitude of students at my primary school when I was 10 years old, I was offered a choice of any instrument that took my fancy. There was no question that the bass was going to be the one for me. I loved the sound of it, the feel of it, the imposing-ness of it!
Question: What instrument would you play if you couldn’t play your primary instrument?
Answer Sadly, I am completely rusted on to the bass – I’ve enjoyed playing it across many different genres of music, and still love it as much as I ever have. In fact I feel like I’m just getting the hang of it now.
Question: Which composer would you invite to a dinner party and why?
Answer Hans Rott would be interesting to chat with – he was a classmate of Gustav Mahler and wrote a symphony that seems to anticipate much of Mahler’s work. He went completely mad, and used much of his completed manuscript as toilet paper…
Question: Where in the world would you most like to perform and why?
Answer It is amazing to have experienced the huge improvement to the Sydney Opera House concert hall acoustics – it is a profoundly more satisfying experience. I will always have a special and enduring attachment to the magical sound of the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam – first experienced with the AYO back in 1984.
Question: Would you rather: that you sounded like a tuba when you sneezed, or sounded like a piccolo when you laughed?
Answer Not in answer to this question but similarly interesting… The collective noun of basses is a cough!
Question: Any final thoughts?
Answer I think I have said my piece – thank you for the opportunity to reflect on my AYO journeys. It feels like it is not yet done…