Cleveland Orchestra Blog
August 18, 2009

Q&A with Tito Muñoz

Cleveland Orchestra assistant conductor Tito Muñoz talks about conducting this weekend’s Cleveland Orchestra performances with The Joffrey Ballet.

You’re conducting ballet for the first time at Blossom on August 22-23. How is this challenge different from conducting symphonic concerts, and what are you doing to prepare?

What an audience might not know about ballet is that the orchestra accompanies the dancing much as it accompanies singers in an opera. As a conductor, I have to be sensitive to the dancers, understanding their needs with their movement. Sometimes I may have to push things a little faster for them to be more comfortable, and sometimes I may need to give them more time for, let’s say, a leap. The biggest difference between ballet conducting and opera conducting is the orchestra’s ability engage in that sensitivity. In opera, the orchestra can hear the singers, so they can gauge for themselves what is needed, and it helps me as a conductor quite a bit. In ballet, the orchestra cannot see what the dancers are doing, so the responsibility is totally on me to make things right.

On the other hand, the dancers (like singers) also have to listen to the orchestra and be sensitive to us as well. This is what makes the performance like chamber music, both sides working together and feeding off of each other. The dancers really do listen to the music; not just the notes or the beats, but how we play the notes. So all the phrasing and nuance that we put into the music as musicians will influence the dancers. And when everything is just right, the results are truly magical, for the eyes and for the ears.

To prepare for all of this, aside from learning the music as I normally would, I spent some time in Chicago with the dancers, watching their rehearsals and working with their pianist (they usually work with a pianist as opposed to using recording). This gives me a better idea of what I will need to do during the performances, and what I will relay to the orchestra in rehearsals.

Have you seen The Joffrey Ballet perform before, and what are your impressions of them as a company?

These performances will be the first time I will see this company perform live, but I had the pleasure of seeing them rehearse this program in Chicago. This is a world-class company in every sense. Aside from their abilities as dancers, they are incredibly professional, and their love of their art comes through in their performance. This is a demanding program for them, and so their level of preparation attests to their professionalism and abilities, and the audience is in for an incredible evening.

Can you comment about the Adagietto from Mahler 5. What is it that makes this such a Cleveland Orchestra signature piece, and what makes it so special?

There is a wonderful tradition of Mahler with The Cleveland Orchestra. So many great conductors have led the orchestra through Mahler's works ─ even Leonard Bernstein in his one and only appearance with The Cleveland Orchestra. There is a great understanding of the composer and it really comes through in every performance that I’ve heard with them, so it’s really a thrill for me to be able to work with them on this piece.

This particular movement is special in that it was Mahler’s declaration of love for Alma Schindler, at that time his wife-to-be. Instead of sending her a letter, he sent her this movement, which she immediately understood. I think any listener will be able to understand Mahler’s intentions when they hear this movement. Although the entire Symphony is scored for a very large orchestra, this movement is only for the string section (including harp).

Do you have any personal thoughts about the musical Carousel and Christopher Wheeldon’s choreography for Carousel (A Dance)?

Much of my musical experience before I came to Cleveland was in musical theater, whether conducting or playing (violin) in the orchestra, so Carousel is no stranger to me. I have performed it many times, and it is one of my favorite stage works. This performance mainly utilizes “The Carousel Waltz,” and the choreography wonderfully portrays the joy and abandon expressed by the music. We also get a small glimpse of the relationship between Billy and Julie in a pas de deux set to the music of “Soliloquy” and “If I Loved You.” The finale is spectacular, with the entire company like a carousel, and it will be a wonderful ending to the evening.

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