Carolyn Beck
Sponsored by Charlie Wheeler.
Hometown: Grew up in Ventura, California. Currently lives in Mt. Washington area of Los Angeles
Studied at: Manhattan School of Music (DMA), Yale School of Music (MM), CSU Northridge, Banff Centre for the Arts
Favorite Orchestral Work to Play: “I am really excited to get to play Hindemith’s Mathis der Maler this coming season!”
Favorite Solo Work to Play: Mozart’s Concerto for Bassoon in B-flat major, K. 191/186e
Favorite Work to Hear: Stravinsky’s Petrushka
What is your favorite performance memory?
“Playing John Williams’ Five Sacred Trees concerto for bassoon and orchestra in November of 2004 with the RSO. I just can't think of anything in the last 15 years of my life that was as rewarding as that experience was.”
What’s the most interesting place you’ve performed?
“When I was working in Spain I played in some interesting places when we did run-out concerts in the pueblos (small towns). Another stand out was playing Scheherazade in a huge cathedral in Perugia, Italy. The reverb time was about 4 seconds, and hearing my cadenzas in the second movement come back as I was playing was amazing. While I lived in NYC, I played the Rachmaninoff Variations on a Theme of Paganini with Earl Wild as soloist in Carnegie Hall. That was memorable because it was the first time I played that great work, my only time playing with the amazing Earl Wild, and one of the first times that I played in Carnegie Hall.”
Non-musical Hobbies:
“Swimming is my constant outside of my musical life. Reading is a high priority, and now yoga as well. I sew, though not as much as I used to (all of that driving gets in the way). I love to hike and climb trees, but there isn't much time for that. Most people don’t know that I, like most professional double reed players, spend about 10 hours per week making reeds! This is a bassoon activity but not strictly musical, just music-serving.”
Upcoming Events
Beethoven: Three Great Works 04/08/23 at 08:00pm Learn More
Vive La France! 05/13/23 at 08:00pm Learn More
Gala 2023 - An Evening in Paris 06/03/23 at 05:30pm Learn More