Maestro Gerard Schwarz is one of the most renowned conductors in the field -- and a superlative educator preparing the next generation of conductors at the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music. Three members of his latest class of students will take the spotlight on Nov. 7 at Gusman Concert Hall for the Graduate Conducting Showcase.
Harris Han Andersen, Yun Xuan Cao, and Alberto Bade will each conduct selections in a program of masterworks by the composers Mahler, Strauss, Schoenberg, Sibelius, Wagner, and Bartok. The fourth member of this year’s conducting class, Sophie Sze-Ki Mok, will not be appearing at the showcase because she’s already at her new post as assistant conductor with the North Carolina Symphony.
The showcase will cap a busy year for all four students, who have worked, taught, and studied across the world. Andersen performed at festivals as far away as Tokyo. Cao, the graduate teaching assistant to Maestro Schwarz and assistant conductor at the Palm Beach Symphony, also conducted internationally while starting an orchestral studies program at the Aurora School of Music in Ohio. And Bade guest conducted the Bucharest Symphony Orchestra while becoming a full professor at Miami Dade College (and even found time to get married.)
Maestro Schwarz is justifiably proud of his charges, calling them “my assistant conductors” at Frost.
“They have a tremendous responsibility for the whole orchestral program at Frost,” he says. “These four have been sensational. They’re great musicians, excellent conductors, and wonderful people. They get along and inspire each other, which for me is ideal.”
For their part, Maestro Schwarz’s students speak highly of his abilities as a teacher and mentor.
“He’s had a career as a professional musician and conductor for more than five decades working with the top orchestras in the world,” says Andersen. “So he is able to give us first-hand experience on the tendencies of orchestras – musically but also socially, like how to deal with orchestra boards or communicate to musicians with authority and respect.”
It’s not surprising that half of this latest crop of Frost School conducting students are pursuing an educational path. Maestro Schwarz feels it’s important to teach about more than just what happens onstage.
“Being a conductor doesn’t mean you can’t or shouldn’t also be an administrator, a composer, an educator,” he says. “So some of our conductors may end up being administrators, and I won’t feel I haven’t been successful. What we do at Frost is make sure, as much as we can, that anyone who graduates from Frost can find a place in the world of music.”
Maestro Schwarz’s students appreciate him teaching them how to be open to a range of experiences.
“Working with Maestro Schwarz has given me the tools and confidence to engage with the professional world,” says Mok. “Through his meticulous guidance, I’ve been able to prepare thoroughly for competitions, masterclasses, and concerts across Europe and Asia. He has taught me how to be an effective conductor and a compassionate person, and to remain a curious musician.”
Frost Orchestra Studies graduate conductors present masterworks of orchestral literature at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 7, at Gusman Concert Hall in Coral Gables. Admission is free with reservation.
