New Musicians of the Orchestra
by DiDi Turley
This season, audiences will see eight new faces on Music Hall’s stage: four violinists, two cellists, a horn player and a bass trombonist bring their talents to the CSO. Woven within this issue of Fanfare Magazine are Q&A’s with the first four of those new players.
Joseph Ohkubo
Hometown: Louisville, Kentucky
Instrument: Violin
How did you get involved with playing violin?
It was actually picked for me. My parents are both string players, and they started me on the instrument when I was four. I kind of bailed out on it, and then I started again when I was eight. I was pretty reluctant about it until I was in middle school, and then something clicked and I got really interested in it. Being musicians, my parents picked up on that and were like, “Uh-oh. Here we go.”
Did you know any of your fellow new CSO musicians before winning your position?
I do! Jonathan Yi (violin) and I are both from Louisville. We actually had the same first violin teacher, and his lesson was right after mine. We ended up going to high school together, too. I think we’ve shared three teachers in total over the years. It’s crazy that we both ended up here at exactly the same time, in the same section.
What is the best piece of advice you’ve received from a musical mentor?
It would probably be to avoid getting sucked into the routine of it all, to the point where the career becomes mundane. I think one of the things that’s great about an orchestral career is the consistency you have. You play with the same people. You have the stability, and you have this large group of people who really learn to work with each other. I think it helps to remember why that’s so special.
What is your post-concert routine?
I need a few hours to decompress afterwards. Usually, I just want to go home and watch a movie to bring the energy down a bit. I like to hang out with my dogs. They’re both mutts with big floppy ears. Love them.
What do you do when you aren’t playing music?
I’m splitting my time at the moment—my wife lives in Indianapolis, so I’m trying to spend as much of my free time with her there as I can. I also love to run, and I’ll occasionally do a half marathon. I’d really like to run the Flying Pig sometime!
What is one Cincinnati staple that you’re excited to experience?
There’s a Japanese fusion restaurant here called Cafe Mochiko that sells ramen, and they have this Cincinnati Chili ramen. I just can’t help but feel curious about it.
If you had to play an instrument besides violin, what would you pick and why?
Probably cello. My parents play violin and cello, and my brother plays cello, too, so I would hear it all the time growing up. I love the sound. It never gets shrill, you know what I mean? It’s more sonorous, more warm. I don’t love the idea of having to travel with it, though. You have to buy it its own seat on airplanes.
Rose Brown
Hometown: Ann Arbor, Michigan
Instrument: Violin
How did you get involved with playing violin?
I started when I was three years old. My mom very much put the violin in my (and my twin brother’s) hands. We started with the Suzuki method, and she would take both of us into lessons. My brother may not have stuck with it, but I did, and now here we are!
What is one Cincinnati staple you’ve had a chance to try?
Oh, I ran both the Flying Pig half marathon and the Queen Bee half marathon, and those were easily some of the most fun races I’ve done. The energy from the city was amazing.
What is one thing you can’t live without in rehearsal?
Well, I bring about a hundred pencils because I’m very paranoid that I won’t be able to mark something very important into my music. Beyond that, I’ve become the designated Altoid person backstage. I always have a box of Altoids, and it’s always gone within a week because everyone knows to come to me for those.
What piece of advice helped you the most when auditioning for the CSO?
To trust my own ideas, my own sound and my own choices when preparing music for an audition. When I was auditioning constantly, I was changing everything about how I played based on what I thought the individual panels wanted, and it made the process more stressful. When I prepared for my CSO audition, I stopped playing for other people and started just recording myself and listening to my own playing. It completely changed how I played and how I felt going into the audition.
What musicians are you currently listening to?
I think my listening habits are pretty focused on what we’re playing this season. So today it’s Mahler; next week, it’ll be Florence Price. Outside of preparing for work, my brother’s in this really great band in Nashville called The War and Treaty, and I listen to them a lot.
What do you do when you aren’t playing music?
I’m a big runner. I also do a lot of knitting. I just learned how to crochet, and I do a lot of reading. I’m typically reading like four or five books at a time. I like Emily St. John Mandel, Murakami, Truman Capote—the list goes on.
If you had to play an instrument besides violin, what would you pick and why?
This is a very specific answer, and it only applies to certain pieces, but there’s this giant sheet of metal that the percussionists will use to make, like, wind sounds by wiggling it back and forth.
Elizabeth Furuta
Hometown: College Station, Texas
Instrument: Violin
How did you get involved with playing violin?
When I was about three years old, I was watching Sesame Street and the Letter of the Day was ‘V.’ They were featuring the violin and had a whole segment with the Tokyo String Quartet. I decided that playing violin was what I needed to do, so I went to my parents and told them I needed a violin, and they thought I was crazy (because I was three years old). I kept bugging them for a year, and finally got a violin for Christmas.
What has been your favorite experience with the CSO so far?
I played a couple of the CSO in Your Neighborhood concerts, and it’s always so much fun to see everyone from those neighborhoods coming out and enjoying the music, the good food, the atmosphere. I mean, the community is really supportive of the symphony, and I love that.
Did you know any of your fellow new CSO musicians before winning your position?
Yes! Joseph Ohkubo (violin) and I went to summer camp together 10 or 15 years ago. Then we were at Kent Blossom Music Festival together in college. It was funny to run into him at the audition and end up playing in the same orchestra together!
What do you do when you aren’t playing music?
I like to play video games. My favorite game right now is “Dead by Daylight.” I also like to read and go for walks, and I like to knit. I’ve been knitting for like eight years now.
What’s your post-concert routine?
Typically, I just go home, chill on the couch, talk to my mom, generally just take it easy. I’m also really into foam rolling, and I try to keep enough of an exercise and stretching routine to keep my muscles strong enough to do the things they need to do, but not too tight or overworked.
What is one Cincinnati staple you’re excited to experience?
I’ve been in Cincinnati for a few years, playing on a short-term contract with the CSO, but I still haven’t tried Cincinnati chili! I feel like I should, but I’m kind of scared to try it. Mixed reviews from everyone I know, but I’m still curious.
If you had to play an instrument besides violin, what would you pick and why?
I’ve always thought that oboe would be fun. It’s a beautiful instrument and it sounds gorgeous. I also think that making reeds would be right up my alley, because I love to craft. Hand-making reeds sounds like something I’d really enjoy.
Noah Roper
Hometown: Aledo, Texas
Instrument: Bass Trombone
How did you get involved with playing bass trombone?
I started like most Texas band students do—in middle school. I started on the euphonium, which is essentially a mini tuba.
It’s funny because I went to a band fair, where you try the different instruments to find out what would fit you the best. I went in hoping to play clarinet because of Squidward from SpongeBob SquarePants. Anyhow, euphonium was one of my lowest-scoring instruments, but I felt drawn to it anyway and trusted my gut. I ended up switching to bass trombone in high school because I wanted to join the jazz band, and the bass trombone position was open. From there, it stuck. Trombone makes my brain buzz in a way that I can’t replicate with euphonium.
What are you most excited about in the CSO’s 2024–25 season?
In November, we’ll be doing Shostakovich’s 7th Symphony, which involves a ton of trombone players. That will be really great. We’re also doing a week-long residency at Indiana University, which is my alma mater. It’s such full-circle moment.
What is your post-concert routine?
I like to calm down with more ambient music on the drive home. For some reason, I’m really drawn to Brian Eno’s Music for Airports. It’s very meditative. Once I’m home, I like to give myself space from the instrument and bring myself back up energy-wise—usually by hanging out with my cats, Toby and Remy.
What is one Cincinnati staple you’ve experienced?
I’m a huge, huge baseball fan, so going to the Reds’ stadium was amazing. I’ve been to 20 of the 30 Major League Baseball stadiums (Cincinnati was my 20th)! I do also love the chili, so getting Skyline at the Reds’ stadium is like having two of my great loves together in one place.
What musicians are you currently listening to?
I’m a big Bon Iver fan. I also like the band Beach House. Last year, I think I was one of their top 15 listeners. I like them a lot. If I’m listening to classical, lately it’s been James Markey. He’s an incredible trombonist.
If you had to play an instrument besides trombone, what would you pick and why?
I’ve always wanted to play contrabassoon. I don’t know why, but I’ve just always been drawn to the sound, which is great, because they literally sit right in front of me in the orchestra.