How did they get off to a start at the ‘ Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich ’? Yukiko Ishibashi, Vanessa Szigeti and Alexandra Gouveia tell us.
‘I was still at university when I joined the orchestra. My father had passed away quite suddenly shortly before, and I wasn’t feeling very well. I’d hardly slept the night before my first rehearsal. But the colleague sitting next to me saw the look on my face, realised what I was going through – and was incredibly helpful and understanding. I’m still in touch with him to this day, even though he’s since retired. And the piece by Schubert that we played side by side back then remains unforgettable and deeply meaningful to me.”
“My first assignment was an audition for second violin in the tutti section. I hadn’t played a single note in this orchestra yet, knew only two colleagues – and, as the new section leader, had to give the official welcome speech! It was an absurd situation. But I was deeply moved by how kindly the orchestra spoke of the candidates. That was a very lovely first impression. The second one, the following day, was similarly special: it was a workshop rehearsal with Jan Willem de Vriend, who brought along a box containing two dozen classical and Baroque bows for us to try out. I’d hardly ever held a bow like that before and just thought: Help! But somehow it worked out. During that rehearsal, by the way, I received a welcome gift – it’s a lovely tradition in our orchestra. It was a bag in the Zurich colours, which I still carry with me to this day.”
“I won my audition on 7 March 2024 and was able to start in August. That was a long wait for me; my expectations grew by the day, as did my fears and my excitement … I’d done my Master’s in Zurich and knew the orchestra as a member of the audience; but the idea of actually being part of it myself felt somehow surreal. My first engagement was a guest performance in Wiesbaden featuring two Brahms symphonies: a seven-hour coach journey, all those new people, the concerts – it was overwhelming in the most positive sense! I enjoyed being plunged straight into this world and getting to know my colleagues off stage as well. Incidentally, I realised how little use it was to me that I’d learnt all the names from the orchestra photos on the website: because most of them have nicknames.”
