Please Note... Second up, Stephane

Second up is Stephane Rancourt - Principal Oboist with the Hallé Orchestra. Alongside his busy orchestral schedule, Stephane is Senior Tutor in Oboe at the Royal Northern College of Music, Visiting Tutor at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and a regular teacher at Chetham’s School of Music.

J: I’m interested to know how you combine the demands of a successful orchestral career alongside teaching at three institutions?!

S: I absolutely love teaching - I don't always check how many students I take year after year. I think that if it weren’t for the pandemic, it would definitely have been very tricky. As the orchestra didn’t play for a while and all my teaching was done online, this year was made possible and has kept me sane! Post pandemic, I better start looking at my hours and see how many students I can actually fit into my busy schedule...!

J: Do you still have time for personal practice with your busy schedule, or is it mainly orchestral preparation?

S: You realise you are talking to an oboist here?! Reeds, Reeds, Reeds!! I scrape all the time!!! No seriously though, I don’t have much time to practice at home, so I always go an hour before the beginning of the orchestra rehearsal to do my practice then. But I also remember one of my teachers saying that if you invest a lot of practice during your student years, your level of playing should stay with you for the rest of your career if you just maintain it enough. So far so good....

So, to all musician students reading this, get back to your instrument now!

J: Can you give my readers an insight into how the scheduling works for rehearsing and performing in a professional orchestra? (obviously in Pre- COVID times!)

S: British orchestra's schedules are extremely busy. Here with the Hallé, we usually have Monday off and this is therefore a full day of teaching for most of my orchestral colleagues and I.

Tuesday and Wednesday are full day rehearsals and Thursday morning is dress rehearsal for the evening concert. Friday, we are in a coach to do an out-of-town concert, usually a repeat of the concert the night before but sometimes a different program. If we are lucky, Saturday might be off but often, we have another out-of-town concert or a pop concert at the Bridgewater Hall. And finally, on Sunday we repeat the same concert we did in the week in the afternoon. Is that busy enough?!

J: How is the Halle managing to rehearse effectively whilst adhering to COVID regulations?

S: The Hallé has been well organised. We managed to extend the platform to make sure each musician is 2 meters apart from each other. Unfortunately, it means some of us are so far away from the conductor and we could do with some binoculars...

We all must wear a mask until we reach our chair in the orchestra and then we can take it off. At the beginning, with the distance, it was a bit difficult to adjust but it didn’t take that long to find ways to blend and listen to each other. We play out a lot more than usual and consequently, the sound of the orchestra is richer and fuller. Conductors now have a bigger challenge to make sure the balance is right and that we are all together!

J: In my opinion, you have the perfect musical career, combining solo and orchestral playing as well as teaching. Ultimately, has orchestral playing always been your dream?

S: You’re right, I do feel that I have the perfect balance in my musical career, and I am incredibly grateful for this. The first time I played in an orchestra, I think I must have been 11 years old. I knew straight away I wanted to become an orchestra player as I just loved it so much. I love the amazing sound filling your entire body, the challenge of playing and blending with the other musicians, and creating new colours depending on which instrument I am playing with. But most of all, I love when it is very loud!! Bring me any Shostakovich, any Mahler, or any Strauss - this is the stuff I love to play. It also helps that the oboe has the best seat in the orchestra - right in the middle of it! Surrounded by this amazing energy. This is probably one of the reasons why the oboe tunes the orchestra.

Also, I love the fact that playing in an orchestra is like being part of a sports team. You must play together to make it work. You train together, you perform together. When everybody plays at their best, the result is incredible. There is always a real buzz before the concert, in the concert, and after the concert. And... more than often, there is a very well-deserved drink waiting for you at the pub! I mean, what a job!!!!

J: Thank you so much for providing us with an insider perspective into the goings on of a professional orchestra, Stephane!