Upper Lake >> Laura Reynolds is on a musical mission. As the principal oboist with Santa Rosa and California Symphonies and music instructor at Sonoma State, UC Davis and the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, she’s met her fair share of people who make a point to avoid classical music. While she understands where the fear might stem from, what with one classical radio station broadcasting amid hundreds of other stations, she’s determined to show people that there’s nothing to be afraid of.
And tonight’s Concert with Conversation at the Tallman Hotel in Upper Lake, which will feature a five person chamber music ensemble, is the perfect opportunity for her to spread that message. “We need the audience not to feel the wall between classical music and them. There’s no wall. It’s right there for them to experience,” Reynolds explained. “The beauty of these chamber music concerts is the wall is completely down and you’re free to ask anything you want.”
Tonight Reynolds will be joined by Eva von Bahr on bassoon, pianist Kymry Esainko, oboist Beth Aiken and Tom Aiken on harpsichord. The show is titled “Exploring Personalities,” and the group will play a number of classical pieces that show the different “colors” of the oboe, from it’s inception in 17th century baroque music to 20th century salon music. An especially fitting piece for the show, titled “Four Personalities”, is based on the Hartman Personality Profile. “When you think about a musician, they have a personality and a lot of musicians will say their instrument has a personality,” Reynolds said. “And it’s a woman composer and I’m always looking for ways to highlight unknown women players.”
Reynolds has been playing the oboe since the fourth grade, at the suggestion of her father, a music teacher himself. The instrument stuck for a number of reasons. She enjoyed the notoriety that came with playing an unpopular instrument, plus it didn’t hurt that she took to the oboe with ease and found success quickly. But mostly it came down to sound and expression. “The oboe has a really complex sound that can pull at your heart strings,” Reynolds said. “It’s closely related to a voice because it creates complex waves.”
It wasn’t long before Reynolds discovered her love working as a team in an orchestra setting. Each member, whether they be an oboist, cellist, flutist or any of the myriad of other instrumentalists, plays an essential role in every performance. In an orchestra, one hundred people work together to create an experience for the audience. It’s unlike anything else. “It’s sort of an instrument in itself, the orchestra,” Reynolds said. “It’s such a unique animal and it plays so many different kinds of music.”
As a principal player with the Santa Rosa Symphony, Reynolds is especially attuned to the magic of orchestral music. “I get to sit right in the middle of the orchestra and the sound just swirls around me and I feel lucky,” she said.
Reynolds is what’s known colloquially as a Freeway Philharmonic Member. They’re musicians who drive the freeways regularly in order to reach their musical destinations. For Reynolds, that includes Santa Rosa, Marin and Walnut Creek. So she picked her home of El Cerrito for no other reason than the fact that it was a central point between the many places she drives.
But even with her extensive traveling, this evening will be Reynolds’ first visit to the Tallman Hotel in Upper Lake. And though she loves the experience of performing with a large group, small settings like the Meeting House, which fits approximately 40 people, have their perks as well. It can be difficult for musicians to hear themselves in a symphony, so it’s especially helpful to perform in a group of five or so. “It’s easier to hear yourself in a chamber music group so you can stretch out your abilities on the instrument,” she said. “I think it’s important for your growth as a musician to play a lot of chamber music.”
Performing chamber music can also be a more intimate experience, both for the musicians and the crowd. “Every single thing you do is perceptible by the audience. It’s much more up close and personal. They hear everything,” Reynolds said. “That’s daunting and wonderful. You can see and feel the effect you’re having on them.”
Reynolds encourages anyone to attend the show, even those unfamiliar with chamber music or classical composers. As a group the musicians will chat about each piece and composer, as well as the historical context of the number, their favorite sections to play and the feelings they’re attempting to evoke.
The beauty of a Concert with Conversation is that audience members have the chance to ask questions of the performers, when in other settings, inquiries may not be possible. “I really hope they just interrupt me in the middle of the piece … with just some question they’re dying to know about the music, or something they’re seeing,” Reynolds said, adding that maybe interruptions should wait until she’s finished her movement. “I feel lucky that we have the opportunity for them to ask whatever they want and we’ll answer on our feet the best we can.”
Reynolds, von Bahr, Esainko, Beth Aiken and Tom Aiken will perform at 7:30 p.m. tonight at the Tallman Hotel Meeting House in Upper Lake. Tickets are $25 plus tax. Call 275-2244 ext. 0. The Tallman Hotel is located at 9550 Main St.
Jennifer Gruenke can be reached at 900-2019.
