Enrique Pérez Mesa: The Man Orchestrating Everything

August 25, 2019

"It is a challenge to lead in this era when life moves so fast. I have tried to do it in a way that has worked out quite well for me. For me, the orchestra besides being an instrument, is like a human being, which means I always seek closeness with my colleagues, I listen to them, I communicate with them, and that way I have achieved much. Sometimes I have had musicians of lesser artistic quality, but of greater heart. And I prefer them, because they can improve professionally. Changing someone with a bad soul, a dark one, is almost impossible."

Listening to maestro Enrique Pérez Mesa, principal conductor of the National Symphony Orchestra (OSN), it is not difficult for Juventud Rebelde to understand the reasons why the members of Cuba's first musical institution, the one that is celebrating sixty years of fruitful existence in 2019, asked the administration that it be that man from Matanzas who graduated as a violinist from the National School of Music, and no other, who would conduct their future steps.

"I arrived at the OSN at a delicate moment: their two directors had just left, and against all odds the country boy from Matanzas remained at the front, who came as Associate Director. The happiness I experienced then cannot be explained with words: the orchestra had chosen me. What kind of privilege is mine! Then they gave me the greatest applause I have received in my life, I am truly a fortunate man," admits he who holds the Laureate Seal and the Distinction for National Culture.

"What I received was a brilliant orchestra, very well trained by maestro Iván del Prado, an excellent director. At that time maestro Jorge Luis Prats served as artistic director. It was an institution I knew, because I was among those fortunate enough to have taken the baton to conduct it from time to time. From the beginning I tried to turn the ensemble into a family and decided to 'loosen up,' because I felt it was behaving like too precise an instrument, too exact, and I was convinced that this was not doing it much good," Pérez Mesa explains to the newspaper, when it wanted to know how he managed to keep the numerous ensemble's roster stable, something that is so complicated in these times.

"It was always a priority to find where the human and communication problems were. If that fails, the connection fails, the energy that must exist fails, and that way it is almost impossible to play; for the orchestra to function as a whole. For me it was very encouraging to witness how before going on stage in their presentation in Cuba with the Gustav Mahler Youth Symphony Orchestra, Claudio Abbado greeted each musician and gave him a kiss. Then I said to myself: 'I'm not crazy, if this man who is a monster of symphonic music acts this way, that I, a chess pawn, do it is not so bad.' I had a similar experience with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra with Zubin Mehta. I think that is where an important part of the success lies.

"The orchestra must be a great family: one person's problem is everyone's problem. On the last trip to the United States, for example, we couldn't rehearse because due to visa issues we had to stay a week in Mexico. When I stepped up to the podium for the first concert I only asked myself what was going to happen, but it flowed wonderfully, because, as the saying goes, in unity there is strength.

"In any case, keeping an orchestra stable is a difficult task, and more so at these moments when people are pressed to solve their lives with the work they do. And logically, the first thing they ask is: how much do you pay? The most terrible thing is something that musicians have been dragging for centuries. In Bach's time, when this genius played in the chapels he received less compared to what Producciones Colibrí pays nowadays; Mozart wrote 41 symphonies, did not reach 40 years of age and died in the greatest poverty. In the 21st century that great problem must be solved."

Enrique Pérez Mesa ultimately studied violin, but truly that was not the instrument that first captivated him. Back then, he couldn't even imagine that someone could be an orchestra conductor. "Where my mother still lives, in Matanzas, all the comparsas would pass during the carnivals, and I was fascinated with the trombone: because it sounded a lot and it was the one that looked tallest on the floats. I presented myself for the test in which a master of Cuban music, Rafael Somavilla, evaluated me, but at my seven years, when I let go of the rod it shot off and hit the wall. I didn't make it past the first day.

"Later I wanted to try the piano, which also called my attention, however, I only played the right hand, the left was harder for me, so I ended up with the violin, which didn't take long to capture me. I received classes from formidable Russian professors, which later proved very useful when I was seated in the music stands of the Matanzas Symphony Orchestra, already graduated from the National School of Music. In its ranks I began to think about the possibility of becoming an orchestra conductor."

—What did those 15 years as a stand musician bring you?

—When you master an instrument and are a stand musician you have more than 80 percent of the battle won, because the conductor learns to rehearse —a limitation that is apparent now—, which prevents wasting time, just to give an example.

"The Matanzas Symphony came to be among the best on the Island (in 1993 I was named Associate Director right when I graduated from the Superior Institute of Art, ISA). All the directors who came to Havana passed through it, and not only because of proximity, but because of the quality many times proven, coming from Russia, Spain, Japan, Italy, Germany...

"When the OSN was greatly weakened by the departure of not a few of its members in the 90s, it represented Cuba in several international events, like that tour of Spain where 27 performances of the opera Porgy and Bess were held, at the Opera in Graz. In that group I learned enormously. I was honored to be alongside conductors of the caliber of maestro Elena Herrera, whose assistant I was for nine years, which allowed me to acquire a repertoire that is absolutely not contemptible.

"Maestro Herrera always had me prepare the works, something that some of my colleagues don't look upon favorably, as they desire to arrive and start conducting. However, there is so much to learn! The Matanzas Symphony Orchestra represented a very special stage in my career."

—The ISA and Guido López-Gavilán as your teacher, along with Tomás Fortín and Elena Herrera. What led you to set the violin aside?

—It is said that the baton doesn't sound, I believe it does, but it doesn't go out of tune. The violin impressed me, but it is truly complex, you can't neglect it for a second. Orchestra conducting demands dedication, of course, but there is no comparison.

"I began to take my first steps as a conductor with a chamber orchestra when I was president of the Hermanos Saíz Brigade in Matanzas. Then with maestro José Antonio Méndez; the trovador Lázaro Orta... many activities were organized, concerts. And I decided to present myself for the ISA tests for orchestra conducting. I was suspended, because they said I lacked maturity, and it was true. I thought it was just about moving your hands, but they started asking me about painting, literature, general culture, and I fouled out of bounds. Only the notable Russian professor Guenadi Dimitriak saw potential in me. "I'm going to your orchestra next week to do Prokofiev's Fifth and I would like you to participate in the rehearsal." Thanks to him the pain from that setback was not so great.

"Later I prepared myself for a year with my teacher, whom I admire and love very much, Guido López-Gavilán, one of the pillars of orchestra conducting education in Cuba. He offered me an opportunity he didn't give to many: 'When you finish your second year, go out and conduct. If you come back alive you might make it,' and without thinking twice I took him at his word during the third, fourth and fifth years. That turned out to be a highly enriching experience."

—The language of the hands... Sometimes many people think it's about movements without much meaning...

—The hands of an orchestra conductor are essential. He can use the baton or not, but the hands are his soul, his heart, his mind. Some study the movements and apply that technique in a rigid way. I am of the opinion that there the artistic sense is lost. Others, without ceasing to beat time, act more spontaneously: they can't help it when the work is at its peak. I place myself in that group.

"Accompanying is a specialty that also has its challenges but that I enjoy very much. There the hands are fundamental for precision, prevention... I remember my excellent teacher, Tomás Fortín, an extraordinary conductor who died very young —the only Cuban with complete academic training: five years in Moscow—, who maintained that conducting was the art of prevention. And that's the gesture!

"You have to be preventing the stand musician all the time, who is a very interesting type of instrumentalist: one moment they're talking to you about yesterday's movie, about the game they have on their phone, the next about the rice that arrived at the store. Sometimes they give the impression that they're not paying attention to you, but they are experts at following you out of the corner of their eye.

"There is nothing worse than a conductor who doesn't know what to do with his hands, because you can create a tremendous mess, by indicating marks that are wrong. That is our language: through them we transmit all the information, emotions, feelings, states of mind..."

—I suppose you have lived through moments of difficulty...

—Many. Everything has happened. But you can't lose your cool. I have had moments when unfortunately a soloist has gone blank, and I have been forced to sing so that the rest can follow, while I whistle quietly to the soloist to get us back in sync. I'm telling you: lots of cool, because if you show you're nervous, all hell breaks loose. The good news is that musicians have the capacity to react very quickly.

Our best art always
— Russia, Poland, Yugoslavia, Mexico, Nicaragua, Peru, Argentina, Martinique, Guadeloupe..., are among the countries that have been able to measure the prestige of the OSN. The most recent performances in foreign lands have been in the United States and in Spain again...

—Like the 2018 United States performance, the Spain tour was an extraordinary, unforgettable one. We performed in Barcelona, Santander and Madrid, with an attractive and intense program, and with two very special guests: our Silvio Rodríguez and Niurka González, an impressive flautist and clarinetist. The performances took place this May as part of the 60th anniversary we will celebrate in October.

"Works by notable Cuban composers such as Amadeo Roldán, Alejandro García Caturla, Carlos Fariñas, Guido López-Gavilán and Joaquín Clerch, with his Autumn Concerto for flute and string orchestra, which allowed Niurka González to shine, joined Manuel de Falla's Spanish Three-Cornered Hat, in the first part of the concert. In the second, Silvio performed many of his hits arranged by the super-talented pianist Jorgito Aragón, who was also invited. It was undoubtedly a magnificent gift for the Spanish and for the orchestra on its birthday.

"As for the presentations in the United States, it is a shame that few people here found out what happened, because it achieved impressive press coverage. The itinerary was extensive: Florida, Princeton, New Jersey, New York, where we also accompanied South Korean Yekwon Sunwoo, winner of the gold medal in the 2017 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, an outstanding artist.

"But everyone was equally amazed by our soloist, Antonio Dorta Lazo, a clarinetist of high caliber. Because of his wonderful way of playing, everyone asked: 'Where did he study? How could he study in Cuba!?' And that was the strict truth, even though he also perfected himself in Europe. 'But how many foreigners do you have in the orchestra?' None, I answered them, and they found it hard to believe.

"There is no way for the orchestra to go unnoticed. It is a solid ensemble, very well prepared. Our system of artistic education has its problems, it's not a secret, but it continues to rank among the best in the world. That's why our jazz musicians are magnificent, because there is an academy behind it. I don't forget that time I worked with Chucho. When I arrived at his house to rehearse I observed that on top of the piano were the Rachmaninov Preludes. 'It's because the academy is essential, you have to prepare well, conscientiously.'

"Another question they asked me in the United States insistently: why with the career you have developed don't you live outside Cuba? And for me it's so simple: because I love my land, to look out the window and ask the neighbor for a head of garlic. I like to walk freely. When my car breaks down (something that happens often) I take it in stride and take the opportunity to fall more in love with those streets. And even to get on the buses and live the marvelous real. Of course we want music, art to advance, but this is a country with an astonishing culture."

—What is it like to be a guest conductor with other orchestras in the rest of the world? Do you go around distributing kisses the same way?

—All the time!, otherwise they don't pay me (smiles)... Another school you overcome. I had the opportunity to be invited to the United States, to conduct the Florida Symphony with a very strong program that included works by Fariñas, tremendously demanding, especially on percussion. But my concern, which I communicated to the director, was that my English is terrible... And he reassured me: "You won't need it." He was right. Communication between musicians is universal, I have verified it in many other countries.

"On those occasions they almost always ask me: 'And where did you study? In Russia?' Absolutely not, I am one hundred percent a Cuban product, I always answer with pride. I was made with cardboard and wood, I have never received a class from a foreign professor. I have really developed myself on the orchestra's podium."

—That diverse public that the OSN managed to gather has been disappearing, now white heads predominate...

—The first thing that affected us was the closure of the Amadeo Roldán, our home. There are not many facilities to get to the National Theater, which is somewhat removed from the transportation circuit. On the other hand, it belongs to the Performing Arts, which sometimes has affected it failing in programming, but we didn't sit idle, rather we looked for alternatives to attract the public of all ages again.

"In that effort, didactic concerts play a significant role, while we want to launch with the complicity of Oni Acosta, a kind of Concert Café, in the first presentation of each month (always Sundays, 11:00 a.m., at the Covarrubias), where there would be an interview to talk about the works, the programming...

"We also consider it vital to maintain popular music concerts, a practice that I defend strongly. I am a Cuban proud of his culture, of the extraordinary musical heritage we treasure. There is no doubt that we must perform international music: symphonic, symphonic-choral, opera, ballet..., but also ours. It has been fabulous to accompany numerous singers and groups: La Aragón, Liuba María Hevia, Chucho, Omara, Augusto Enríquez, Annie Garcés, Osdalgia... But also to do the wonderful concert Vale Dos, dedicated to Juan Formell and Adalberto Álvarez, with the arrangements by Joaquín Betancourt... When Maykel Blanco, I was famous for a week thanks to Piso 6 (smiles). It's a practice that is not new, it has always existed, I remember Pablo and Silvio... We have much, but much to be proud of."

—Are there many shortcomings, dissatisfactions left?

—For no one is it a secret that concert music is expensive, but the orchestra needs a little more attention, just like other institutions, only this is the country's first musical institution. For more than 15 years we have lacked wardrobe, we need better instruments (right now we don't have Cuban percussion, something very strange given that we have a factory), the music stands fall apart; the chairs, in the most diverse colors, barely hold us; transportation is ruining us (Transmetro provides us a service that costs us 3,000 CUC monthly, a year we spend about 30,000; in the decade we've been doing this, we would have already bought a train), but even so people make a tremendous effort, and Sunday after Sunday, there we are to deliver our best art.

"Everyone understands that these problems exist, that they must be resolved, but it's not internalized. We continue dragging the evil of egalitarianism. I get scared when someone is called maestro, I'm afraid, because that is such a great, sacred category... It has nothing to do with age, but with quality, ethics, life principles, dedication, results... I believe no one doubts that the orchestra is, it has earned a very special place.

"For the rest, I am a fortunate man. Conducting an orchestra is a privilege, if it's the National Symphony, even more so; an almost unmerited blessing. I admit that sometimes when I'm heading to the theater, I start thinking: what's coming at me now is a lot, because there are no lights, no air, people are full of worries... Sometimes I end up with a headache. However, I swear to you that I enjoy it and I end up being an eminently happy person, because sharing music together is simply sublime."