Sarah Chang
The epitome of beauty, grace and elegance, Sarah Chang laughs easily and genuinely. She is charming, warm and sophisticated without pretense. Each of these qualities is reflected in the music she plays, which makes her a much sought-after soloist and recording artist. To date I have heard only her recordings; but I can’t wait to be in the audience on September 3 to hear her make music with Jorge Mester and the Louisville Orchestra in Whitney Hall. Sarah has been a student of the violin since the age of four when her parents introduced the instrument as one of a half-dozen cultural and athletic options. Although she excelled immediately, it would take more than a decade for her to choose the instrument for life.
SC: Originally, violin was one of six hobbies that included piano, ballet, gymnastics…you name it – my parents had me doing it.
SD: You describe it as a hobby, but there aren’t many six-year-olds studying at Juilliard!
SC: No. That took over several days per week, so it did become a priority while I was still very young.
SD: At four you began to study the violin. At six you entered Juilliard. How old were you when you started to perform professionally?
SC: I believe I really started the concert tours when I was about eight. That’s when my first recordings were made and things really started rolling.
SD: You were a professional violinist at eight years old?
SC: I guess so, but it didn’t really hit me until I was in my teens that this was something I could be doing for the rest of my life. At that point, it really ceased to be a hobby. We were planning two to three years in advance, and it was the biggest part of my life.
SD: It didn’t strike you as a big deal that you were at Juilliard?
SC: You have no idea when you’re that young, but it does mold you into who you become. When I started doing these big concerts and making my debuts with the New York Philharmonic and the Berlin Philharmonic – all these huge debuts – I just didn’t realize the magnitude of what that would do for the rest of my career.
SD: How did that affect your childhood? Were you able to have friends at school?
SC: My parents were really great about that. They insisted that I go to a normal school when I was home; so Juilliard was just the musical part of my education a few times a week. The rest of the time I went to school…although, to be honest, I was traveling a lot, so I did much of my school work from the road. Sometimes I traveled with tutors. This was also back before email had really kicked in, so I was faxing in a lot of my assignments. I basically finished high school by fax!
SD: Your parents set all of this in motion. Did they understand what you were getting into?
SC: Oh, yes. My father was a violinist and my mother was a composer. We are a musical family.
SD: So then your brother took the unusual path.
SC: Actually, my little brother is a wonderful cellist. I think he’s the most talented person in the family, but the day he got into college, he said “that’s it” for the cello. Tennis was always more his thing.
SD: But, he’s not THE Michael Chang.
SC: No, no, no, my brother’s younger…and Korean.
SD: As we’re talking, you’re in Saratoga Springs (NY) with the Philadelphia Orchestra. How many weeks are you on the road in an average year?
SC: I’m on the road a lot. I average about one day a month at home in Philadelphia. I go to Aspen right after this.
SD: places all over the world. What was the most unusual concert you’ve given so far?
SC: It was eight or nine years ago when I gave a concert for Kim Jong-il. Playing in North Korea was by far the most unusual. There had been a push to have a combined performance with the North and South Korean Orchestras. The first time they asked me, the date was cancelled. The second and third times they wanted to reschedule, I wasn’t available, but eventually we worked out a date.
SD: Your parents are natives of South Korea. Did they have any advice?
SC: My parents are both from Seoul, but I was cautioned by everyone, not just my parents. My managers didn’t want me to go. As a U.S. passport-holder, I had to register with the State Department and they really wanted to know why I was going.
SD: What was it like for you in North Korea?
SC: My father and I were never left alone. You can’t go out and walk or see things. I always had two armed soldiers with me, and it felt very much like I was under arrest and confined to the hotel. But the whole experience was quite fascinating. I got the opportunity to hear the North Korean Orchestra and see how they work.
SD: Was it a public concert?
SC: Unfortunately not. It was invitation only, so it was full of government officials.
SD: Do you speak Korean?
SC: Fluently.
SD: Did you have the chance to speak to the musicians?
SC: No. They wouldn’t let me. The rules were very strict and it was quite surreal. Right from the beginning, it was outside my experience. There is no way to get there other than North Korean Airlines, which is not FAA approved. Once I arrived, they went through everything and confiscated my cell phone and lap-top. I had no con-
nection to the outside world until I left.
SD: That would be weird.
SC: It freaked me out. The South Korean Orchestra was there for almost a full week, but I only did four days because of other engagements. But that was enough – the hotels don’t even have phones. There was a TV and a radio, but only one channel and that was government-controlled. All day long it was nothing but Kim Jong-il.
SD: I read a great story about your visit to Sibelius’ house and the insights you gained from that. Tell me about your feelings for the Mendelssohn Concerto you are going to play in Louisville.
SC: I adore it. It is one of the most popular concertos in the violin repertoire, and with good reason. It’s so youthful and fresh with some really beautiful melodies. Technically, it is very virtuosic.
SD: Is it easier to perform a work that is so well known?
SC: Actually, I think it is harder because the audience comes with so many expectations. But it is a jewel of a piece.
SD: Have you ever performed this with Jorge Mester before?
SC: You know, I haven’t. I know Maestro Mester from my time in Aspen many years ago. I was a student at the Festival from the time I was six and he was the music director back then.
SD: You perform with so many different conductors and so many different orchestras all the time. What is your approach to making music?
SC: Even if I am playing a concerto for the thousandth time, it’s probably with a dif-
ferent orchestra. That means you have to start rehearsing from square one again and in a very short amount of time. I usually get only two rehearsals and the second is a run-through at the dress rehearsal. It’s not a lot of time to get to know an orchestra. But in what time there is, I think it is our job to blend our sounds together. We have to not only focus on ensemble, but also mesh on interpretation. Because of this, I usually meet with the conductor before the first rehearsal so that we are on the same page. Once we are with the orchestra, I try to approach things from a chamber music perspective that I have had in the past.
SD: How has that changed your style?
SC: There was a time when I looked at it simply as a concerto for the violin – there was a violin line and then the orchestra. A few years ago I rethought that whole approach; now I think of the work as one big score with one structure. I tend to study more from the conductor’s score than the solo violin part.
SD: I liked a quote of yours from several years ago. You said, “Once you have the notes, you’ve just begun to understand the piece.”
SC: Yes, that is just the beginning.
SD: You mentioned chamber music and you’ve played quite a bit over the years. Is that something you try to work into your schedule regularly?
SC: I don’t get to play as much chamber music as I would love to. It’s normally a summer thing, because the rest of the season is all solo concerts. But during the summer festivals, like the one in Saratoga, I’m doing a concerto and also a chamber concert. Aspen will be the same thing. During the summer, there’s a little more cushion to stay on two or three extra days to perform a chamber concert with friends and colleagues.
SD: Itzhak Perlman watches the Mets with the sound down while he practices. What do you like to do while you’re working alone?
SC: I Blackberry like crazy. I watch a lot of movies, baseball – I really like “Who Wants To Be a Millionaire”!
SD: What kinds of movies do you like?
SC: I love all movies. I love romantic comedies, dramas, Disney, classics with Grace Kelly and Audrey Hepburn.… I am absolutely a huge movie freak!
SD: There is almost exactly one month before you arrive in Louisville. How many concerts will you perform in that time?
SC: Let’s see…ten!
SD: That’s a pretty busy schedule, and I understand some of that time will include international travel.
SC: Yes, I’m playing four concerts in Switzerland, but it’s all good. Right after Louisville I am doing an Asian tour with the London Philharmonic and my Mom will be with me for half the trip. It gives her an excuse to go to Korea where her parents and her sisters and their families still live.
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