Welcome to Con Fuoco – CutCommon’s interview series with emerging musicians across Australia.
Young cellist Jack Bailey has performed extensively throughout Australia as a soloist, chamber musician and orchestral musician. Jack studied at the Australian National Academy of Music from 2011-2014. He recently commenced studies at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester, supported by a Waverley Fund scholarship.
Jack was a featured Young Artist at the third Adelaide International Cello Festival and in 2013 was awarded the prize for Most Outstanding Recital at ANAM and Most Promising Player at the Gisborne International Music Competition in New Zealand. He has performed with the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra and as Principal Cellist of the Australian Youth Orchestra, Sydney Youth Orchestra, the ANAM Orchestra and Royal Northern College of Music Symphony Orchestra. Jack was the recipient of the 2014 AYO Accenture Australian Scholarship and a B.B.M. Travel grant in 2011.
This year, he was selected as a fellow and was invited to take part in masterclasses at the Piatigorsky International Cello Festival in Los Angeles.
You can see Jack live in action when he performs with the Musician Project this week.
Your all time favourite piece of music?
Bach’s Chaconne for Solo Violin in D minor. I go through phases of being infatuated with various composers and pieces of music but the Chaconne is something I always find myself coming back to. It’s difficult to quantify what makes it so remarkable and timeless but I think the essence, structure and harmonic genius of Bach’s writing is so strong that the piece can have a very powerful impact and be utterly convincing when approached in a variety of ways. A friend of mine is a phenomenal classical guitarist and I was very moved by a performance he gave of the Chaconne on guitar, which I think is a testament to this.
Best piece of musical advice you’ve received?
Take the music seriously, but don’t take yourself too seriously. I don’t remember who told me that, but I like it.
Most memorable concert experience?
Two performances spring to mind. One would be my first performance with the Australian National Academy of Music Orchestra.
When I finished high school, I was very fortunate to gain a place at ANAM, where I would spend the next four years. For the 2011 ANAM Opening Concert, the orchestra performed Beethoven’s Eroica symphony under Sebastian Lang-Lessing and, being the ‘youngster’ in the class, I got to sit up the back next to my new teacher at that time, Howard Penny – a member of the Chamber Orchestra of Europe and undoubtedly one of my greatest mentors and inspirations to date. I was playing one of the truly great symphonies for the first time surrounded by musicians that I really looked up to and knew in that moment that I had made the right decision to go to ANAM.
Biggest fear when performing?
This really depends on the circumstances. If I am very well prepared and there has been sufficient rehearsal time, then there is generally not too much to be worried about. I used to concern myself a lot with what others thought. However, I’ve realised your playing will never appeal to everyone and so it is best to just focus on playing in a way that you believe reflects the intentions of the composer and that you yourself are truly convinced by.
How do you psych yourself up for practice on a lazy day?
We are very fortunate these days to have such easy access to amazing performances on the internet (Spotify, YouTube, etc.) and I find it incredibly inspiring to hear great music performed by awesome musicians. Having said that, I am starting to realise that it’s okay to take a day off every now and then.
Most embarrassing moment on stage or in rehearsal?
I’m not sure it’s appropriate to mention my undisputed most embarrassing moment in this kind of forum. So my second most embarrassing moment would have been the time when I bent down to get something out of my cello case right before a concert, and heard the seam of my concert pants tear right down the back with no time to change or repair them. The bad news was that I was wearing my favourite red underwear. The good news was that in this particular hall, the audience was only seated in front of the stage and not around the sides or back – so I was able to make my way on and off the stage in a crab-like fashion without anyone realising.
What’s your favourite thing to do after giving a concert?
If it is an orchestral concert, everyone is generally buzzing after the performance and most people tend to head to a nearby bar. The vibe is pretty amazing and it’s nice to celebrate with everyone. If the performance is a solo or chamber recital, I really love to go a nice restaurant with a small group of people and have some great food and red wine.
What are you most proud of in your musical career so far?
I’d say my performance of Prokofiev’s Sinfonia Concertante with the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra for the 2013 ANAM Concerto Competition Final. Not in the sense that I think the performance itself was overly amazing, but just that I felt I coped well under the circumstances. At the time, the performance was a very big deal for me and I was worried that I might crack under the pressure. But the orchestra and conductor were very supportive and my wonderful then-teacher Howard Penny flew down for the dress rehearsal and concert and really helped me believe that I could do it. At the end of the performance, I really felt I had played as well as I could have at that point in my life and that gave me a great deal of belief and confidence which I have been able to build on since then.
What do you love most about making music?
It is always amazing when you find musical partners, whether it be a pianist or chamber group where you really feel you are on the same page with a piece of music and can leave certain things open to the moment and play more instinctively. Planning things out in rehearsals certainly has its place – however, it is sometimes nice to explore the various possibilities and then see what feels right in the concert. Naturally, there is more risk with this approach, but I think the extra life that it gives the performance is worth the risk.
What’s your ultimate goal?
I suppose it would just be very nice to be in an environment where I feel compelled and inspired to never stop learning and developing both as a cellist and human being.
Image supplied. Credit: Dan Hannen.
