Career & Entrepreneurship
Lena-Lisa Wüstendörfer, the ambassador of Swiss classical music
A good interview is the interplay between two people who despite meeting for the very first time, are able not only to communicate effectively but they can somehow manage to intuitively bond. Having a set of pertinent questions is not enough, you need most of all, an interviewee who can be simultaneously receptive to your questions but a very skilled communicator as well, a person able to provide relevant information in a relatively short period of time, someone capable of shedding light on different angles in their utmost complexity but most importantly an individual who will make you feel eager to discover more and more about her.
Lena-Lisa Wüstendörfer, is a woman who inspires in many different ways. Conductor, musical director, initiator and co-founder of the Swiss Orchestra, artistic director of the Bern Bach Choir but also a guest conductor. Her career transcends far beyond the usual frames.
Swiss Orchestra Opening – Photo credit Dominic Büttner
An essentially artistic heritage
Her musical upbringing, her early exposure to a fundamentally artistic lifestyle in all its variety and beauty, moulded her path from an early age. Her artistic family background made its mark in a most relevant manner and predestined her for an eclectic career.
She set out on her musical journey within the frames of the usual pattern, by playing the flute, then she emerged herself in piano lessons and finally she discovered the instrument that somehow laid down the prerogatives of her future career as a conductor. She fell under the spell of the strings and it was just a matter of time before she knew she had to pick up the baton. “From the very first time I heard a symphonic orchestra, I was deeply fascinated by the sounds, but also by the different emotions they can evoke in the audience and within the musicians, at the same time. This was also probably the reason why I loved the violin so much, as the violin plays a substantial role in the orchestra”.
It was a most natural course of events. Once she felt the irresistible power within the violin’s cords, the strength to create harmony, to unite and reunite an ensemble and then after having the opportunity to try herself out at conducting during her studies at the Academy of Music in Basel, she knew this was her mission. Having discovered the feeling that she could influence and mould even more intricately the world of sounds but from a different perspective, came almost as an epiphany. It was the beginning of a most tempting adventure for the musician. She gave in and she renounced the violin in favour of the baton.
She became mesmerized by the prospects of bringing alive a certain composition with her orchestra, but mainly by the endless opportunities of creating even more relevant and complex sound spheres, while moulding exquisite and harmonious tunes.
Mentors
There are three conductors whom Lena-Lisa Wüstendörfer considers her mentors and who had a crucial impact over her development. Once she finished her studies at the Academy in Basel, she had the chance to become assistant conductor to Claudio Abbado, a true sound magician. The time she spent around the Italian maestro, played a most central role in her development as a conductor. It was a period of intense learning and assimilation. Being able to travel with the maestro, having the opportunity to talk to him about different interpretations, had an invaluable effect on her conception about classical music.
Swiss Orchestra Opening – Photo credit Dominic Büttner
Sir Roger Norrington, fascinated her from a different perspective. He was the one who introduced her to historically informed performance practice. He brought the works from the Baroque and the Classical period to life, in their original form, in a most thrilling and lively manner.
Sylvia Caduff, a Swiss conductor and the first woman who became in the late 1970s General Music Director of a German orchestra, is another distinctive personality whom Lena-Lisa considers her mentor. With her, she worked on the standard repertoire of the Classical and the Romantic period.
A modern Jeanne d’Arc seeking justice for long lost composers, by means of her white baton
Lena-Lisa Wüstendörfer is a woman who is taming the sounds by means of her baton, while bringing long lost Swiss composers to life. She is deeply involved in a most ambitious project, which makes her a genuine musical restaurateur. There is a deliberate juxtaposition of the famous and the unknown composers and the result is a unique interplay between the known and the unknown, a fascinating musical ‘mise en abyme’. A representative example in this sense is the choice of composers in November as well, when compositions from the 19th century, belonging to Felix Mendelssohn, Joachim Raff, Richard Wagner or August Walter are mingled in the repertoire of the Swiss Orchestra, aiming to put a spotlight on valuable but somehow overlooked fragments from the Swiss musical heritage.
Her carefully elaborated endeavour of creating a revival of the Swiss classical music, by incorporating works of long forgotten and overlooked composers in the repertoire of the Swiss Orchestra is one of a kind in the history of music. The aim is to rediscover, to revive and to integrate less known fragments of Swiss classical music, into the broader European context.
Her ambitious efforts in order to preserve musical heritage could play a very pertinent role in reshaping the façade of classical music in a broader sense, having significant repercussions also on moulding the taste of the modern lovers of classical music. Her artistic mission is all the more essential as it provides valuable data to the field of musical archaeology as well. Her studies in musicology came in handy and reinforced her research in the musical archives. She knew where to start, what to seek and how to use the newly discovered pieces, as well as the resources brought up to light. It is precisely her eagerness to shed light on some of the unknown Swiss composers, the musical objective that triggered and laid down the foundation of the Swiss Orchestra.
Eclecticism and versatility is reflected also in the process of selection when it comes to the choice of musicians. Founded in 2018, the Swiss Orchestra is made up by young excellently trained musicians, coming from many different regions of Switzerland. What they have in common is that they are all eager to learn, to discover and explore new dimensions of the classical repertoire. Even though the instrumentalists are all actively involved in different musical projects and playing in other orchestras and ensembles as well, whenever they meet for the rehearsals there is an instant connection and deep bonding, a sense of belonging, which is a crucial element in terms of authenticity. Dedication, passion, unique and well-contoured artistic creed, crystal clear objectives and goals, leadership skills, versatility in conducting an orchestra, an extremely energetic and enthusiastic mindset, a team of people who are in perfect harmony, Swiss classical music at its best, redefined and re-evaluated.
An exquisite style of conducting
Whereas fairies use their wands for tricks and magic, Lena-Lisa Wüstendörfer unleashes a storm of emotions by means of her baton. Her wand is like a flickering of an irresistible flame. Dynamism, energy, versatility, a very intricate set of skills that permeate her unique style of conducting. She is truly mesmerizing in a field still dominated by men and her force is a most genuine testimony of pure passion.
Swiss Orchestra Tonhalle
There is always a certain amount of adrenaline rush but just the necessary amount, which keeps her focused and perfectly tuned into the atmosphere. Her emotionally intense and powerful style is contagious, she leads not just by means of her baton, her orchestra resonates with every single contraction of her muscles, with every single flickering of her eyes. There is perfect harmony and coordination. The result is breath-taking, a masterpiece at its best, carpe diem redefined through music.
There is no better way to detach ourselves from this strange and disturbing period than by means of refined, qualitative music. The Swiss Orchestra is on its second tour this year and all those who are fascinated by classical music have the opportunity to indulge in a most rewarding experience, soon enough.
Upcoming concerts on:
Sunday, the 22nd of November, at 17:00 at Schweizerhof, in Davos
Tuesday, the 24th of November, 19:30 at Tonhalle, in Saint Gallen
Sunday, the 29th of November in Tonhalle Maag, Zurich
To buy tickets please check here.
About the author:
Orsolya Farkas Miron is 40 years old, married with two kids. She comes from a bilingual family, Hungarian and Romanian. She has a BA in Linguistics and a MA in Intercultural Communication. After teaching English for 7 years at primary and secondary level, she landed in Zurich, where she had the chance to try out herself during several interesting projects. For the time being she is a freelance writer and painter. Last year she had an exhibition that lasted a month, in Volketswil. She is passionate about digital drawing and acrylic painting. She also organizes a public event for women, once a month. During these events they tackle issues like integration, language courses, job searching opportunities and many other topics that concern minorities in the Swiss society.
