Young Pittsburgh musicians get a slice of Italy
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Pittsburgh Youth Symphony Orchestra conductor Lawrence Loh gives his opening remarks at the start of the group's San Gimignano concert in the town's main square.
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The Pittsburgh Youth Symphony Orchestra landed in Milan for the beginning of its two-week Italian tour but bypassed the gingerbread Gothic of the world's third-largest cathedral in the fashion metropolis. Instead they headed immediately for what might be termed some rest and relaxation just an hour south in the tiny hamlet of Salice-Terme, best noted for its sulphur springs and spa treatments.
There the orchestra students, 100 in all, had a chance to swim in the pool of the Hotel President Terme, getting a break from the high humidity, and leisurely walk around the village where many sampled their first gelato.
Already they were more than sampling the food, where even the rest stop on the highway was filled with fresh produce and dinner at the hotel was an abundant feast for the eyes as well as the stomach.
A delay with the instrument truck led to a postponement of rehearsal for the first concert in Zavattarello. And during dinner a rare thunderstorm, which caused some damage in Salice-Terme itself and produced a muddy river along the street in front of the Hotel President, brought immediate relief from the soaring temperatures.
Nonetheless the students did get their rented instruments, mostly large ones such as cellos, basses and harps, and began trying them on for size.
That meant making adjustments for the tone quality and responsiveness of the new instruments, even to the extent of changing strings.
Harpists Hannah Piston and Dana Schneider got instructions from their teachers to "tune, tune, tune" as much as five times a day and for an hour before the concerts due to the summer heat.
The diverse group was already bonding, although some of the orchestra members had built in support groups. Hannah, a ninth grader at Hermitage High School, had five family members in tow -- parents Robert and Margaretha, brothers Steven and Michael, sister Rebecca and French exchange student Julie Prioleu, who has been living with the family in Hermitage since last September.
First Published July 5, 2011 12:00 am
