Interview with violinist František Novotný

When did you study Serenade after Plato’s Symposium? And what led you to do so?

It feels like only recently, but I received the sheet music by a rather complicated route from the US, 20 years ago. That was at a time when I’d studied and performed most traditional violin concertos, and for various reasons I started to take in an interest in pieces that were overlooked here.

What was the reaction of Czech orchestra and festival dramaturges?

Three orchestras immediately showed interest. I performed Bernstein’s Plato in 1991 in what was the Czechoslovak premiere with the Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra Pardubice, directed by István Dénes. Then I did it with the Brno Philharmonic under Andrew Morgrelli, a student of Bernstein’s, and with the Czech Philharmonic under Jiří Bělohlávek at the Rudolfinum. Gradually most of our concert organisers started giving space to unusual pieces.

This takes us to your indisputable achievement – performing compositions that, despite their excellence, we don’t hear in concert. In that area, what work do you regard as really important?

Don’t you want to discuss something genuinely important? We live in a universe whose age we can’t calculate exactly, surrounded by billions of stars whose distance is almost unknown to us, in a universe full of matter and energy the nature of which is unknown, and which follow laws of physics whose characteristics we don’t actually comprehend. Even when we keep our feet on the ground and start to consider something that we perhaps do understand, we still have to say we don’t understand it entirely, or at least not for long. But to at least somewhat address your question, that applies to my recent travels in the mystical dimension of the work of Ernest Bloch. Even many musicians associate this remarkable composer with one small piece. I’m captivated by his scores, and have studied all his violin works, which thanks to Czech Radio and the label Radioservis came out on a double CD last year.

Do you have any more discoveries for us?

If the stars are aligned, I definitely will do. I’d gladly discuss that when the time is right.

You work with the publishing house Bärenreiter as an expert advisor. What does that entail?

Interesting question, and it’s an interesting activity. As well as editing printed notation, it also involves creating bowing and fingering for violin solos. In many cases, notation can be played several ways on the violin – on different strings, at different points, with different bowings and fingerings. It’s all about giving the player the best options, if possible. In any case, every violinist has different skills. Some prefer a completely original approach (which for others would be unacceptable). Notes in the revised solos are often just for orientation.

You also sit on juries at international competitions. What’s your motivation – and what motivated you yourself to enter competitions in the past?

Competitions have their supporters and opponents. I quite understand that, because I personally have been through more than enough. Some like the atmosphere, while for others find them unpleasant, even unhealthy. It’s subjective…As a juror, I take competitions as shows of the interpretive levels of groups of young violinists – musicians in every sense. It’s interesting watching their development, trends, overall demeanour, their style…In my student years ever competition meant a broadening of my repertoire, not to mention the chance to play with an orchestra.

You were named a professor at Prague’s Carolinum in September 2009. As well as your alma mater, the Music Faculty at the Janáček Academy, you’ve also been at Bratislava’s Academy of Performing Arts since 2009/10. Am I wrong in supposing you really like to teach?

Whether noteworthy subjects, performances or theory, I’m always interested in how they came about. Finding the correct choice when making decisions, ways of understanding at various levels, the possibility of insights into immediate and broader connections – these things, and others of course, are what teaching is all about for me.

As a teacher, one certainly remembers one’s own student years. What encounters, what individuals, made the biggest impact on your artistic life?

The most varied of thoughts come to mind…According to an old Chinese proverb, when the student is ready, the teacher appears. I don’t know if I was always ready, but I was certainly fortunate as regards teachers – as I was later with excellent piano partners, great directors, musical directors. If you’re asking, though, what the greatest inspiration was, that would mainly be exceptional people in other fields, who I’ve either met personally, or whose ideas I’ve read.

As well as music, you also considered studying astrophysics – what fascinates you about that field? And do you see some connection between the two?

A distinguished contemporary physicist described the theory of relativity poetically: “Energy is freed matter and matter is energy waiting to be freed.” Isn’t there a certain parallel with sheet music and its being brought to life?

Undoubtedly! Getting back down to earth – what are your recollections of your meetings to date with the Radio Symphony?

Despite the fact most Prague orchestras work together long-term and repeatedly, I’ve only had one encounter with the Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra, years ago at the Bratislava music festival. But Tomáš Netopil and I have done many concert and studio projects together, and I hope therefore that we’ll produce an interesting evening for the audience at the Dvořák Hall and Vltava’s listeners.

Thank you for the interview – Jitka Novotná