FEATURED SINFONIA MUSICIANS: Getting to Know the Sinfonia Family
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Nobuo Kitagawa, Principal OboeGrowing up in a suburb of Tokyo, Nobuo Kitagawa started his musical journey with organ and piano and later picked up the flute, piccolo, and even the euphonium.
By high school, he grew fascinated by the flute, setting a goal to become the best flutist when he joined his high school wind ensemble. “But I met a friend who was taking flute lessons with a college professor,” Kitagawa remembers. “Back then, in Japan, taking private lessons for high school students was very rare, especially for someone who had no ambition to go to music school. He was clearly better than I was, and I was very intimidated.” But fate and circumstances soon conspired and changed his musical trajectory. “One day, the high school band director said, we just got ourselves a used oboe. Who wants to play it?” Kitagawa recalls. “So, I raised my hand immediately. All my life, I have loved doing things with my hands, making things and breaking things. Very quickly I realized that so much hand work is involved with the oboe. And it was just a perfect match for me. “As far as I know, I was the very first oboe player in my hometown,” he adds. “I taught myself how to play and make reeds from books and records. I did eventually take lessons for preparing to go to music school. I had my first student (my sister) before I had my own teacher.” He says his appreciation of the instrument’s vocal qualities developed over time. It took a leap forward when he heard a piece on an Eastman Wind Ensemble recording where the oboe and flute played a delicate melody an octave apart. “It was a magical moment,” Kitagawa says. “That was the first time I thought, wow, this instrument has an amazing tone. It took me years to actually find a voice I really admired.” |
A graduate of Tokyo University of Arts and a recipient of master of music and doctor of musical arts degrees from Yale University, he joined the Pennsylvania Sinfonia Orchestra when he moved to the Lehigh Valley 16 years ago.
“What I enjoy most about the Pennsylvania Sinfonia is the camaraderie,” he says. “It’s like a small family.”
Beyond his work as a performer, Kitagawa manages a YouTube channel, NK Music Lab, where he has posted more than 850 instructional videos, arrangements for wind instruments with piano accompaniment, and technical exercises for oboe. He also offers an online store.
He also occupies his creative time making modern editions of Baroque music, turning to the International Music Score Library Project, a storehouse of free public domain sheet music, for source material. In addition to several oboe concertos, he edited an orchestra suite by Telemann, which never had a modern edition.
“I find it fascinating because I have to create a keyboard part from scratch and that really forces me to dig deeper into the structure of the music,” says Kitagawa, whose most recent project was Marcello's Oboe Concerto in D minor, which he premiered at this year’s June Valley Vivaldi series.
His recreational works can be heard here.
In his spare time, Kitagawa hosts two Zoom sessions per week for mostly Japanese people who wish to practice their English conversation skills. “It started as a COVID project and it kept going for over two years, with up to 12 people joining the conversation sessions,” he says. “I have made many new friends through this outreach.”
In addition to the PSO, Kitagawa maintains an active freelance career, also serving as principal oboe of the Bach Choir of Bethlehem Festival Orchestra. He teaches at Lafayette and Muhlenberg colleges and at the Kinhaven Adult Chamber Music Workshop.
Becoming a single father five years ago while managing a busy professional life as a musician, he has started taking his physical health seriously. He follows a strict three day regimen of strength training, rowing, and jogging.
“I have never been in better shape my whole life,” Kitagawa says, adding that his physical conditioning enhances and supports his oboe playing. “There’s so much work yet to be done. I wish to be at my best.”
“What I enjoy most about the Pennsylvania Sinfonia is the camaraderie,” he says. “It’s like a small family.”
Beyond his work as a performer, Kitagawa manages a YouTube channel, NK Music Lab, where he has posted more than 850 instructional videos, arrangements for wind instruments with piano accompaniment, and technical exercises for oboe. He also offers an online store.
He also occupies his creative time making modern editions of Baroque music, turning to the International Music Score Library Project, a storehouse of free public domain sheet music, for source material. In addition to several oboe concertos, he edited an orchestra suite by Telemann, which never had a modern edition.
“I find it fascinating because I have to create a keyboard part from scratch and that really forces me to dig deeper into the structure of the music,” says Kitagawa, whose most recent project was Marcello's Oboe Concerto in D minor, which he premiered at this year’s June Valley Vivaldi series.
His recreational works can be heard here.
In his spare time, Kitagawa hosts two Zoom sessions per week for mostly Japanese people who wish to practice their English conversation skills. “It started as a COVID project and it kept going for over two years, with up to 12 people joining the conversation sessions,” he says. “I have made many new friends through this outreach.”
In addition to the PSO, Kitagawa maintains an active freelance career, also serving as principal oboe of the Bach Choir of Bethlehem Festival Orchestra. He teaches at Lafayette and Muhlenberg colleges and at the Kinhaven Adult Chamber Music Workshop.
Becoming a single father five years ago while managing a busy professional life as a musician, he has started taking his physical health seriously. He follows a strict three day regimen of strength training, rowing, and jogging.
“I have never been in better shape my whole life,” Kitagawa says, adding that his physical conditioning enhances and supports his oboe playing. “There’s so much work yet to be done. I wish to be at my best.”
Shari Gleason-Mayrhofer, Principal HornA skilled musician and experienced arts administrator who anchors the PSO’s horn section and serves as its director of community engagement, Shari Gleason-Mayrhofer has additional talents involving wool and sourdough.
A PSO member since 2012, she earned a bachelor of music degree in horn performance and music theory from Oberlin College Conservatory and holds master’s degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Georgia State University. In addition to her roles with the PSO, Gleason-Mayrhofer serves as executive director of the Friends of Chamber Music of Reading, teaches horn at Lehigh and Kutztown universities and Muhlenberg College, and maintains a busy performance schedule in the Lehigh Valley-Berks County area. She is a member of the Mainstreet Brass, Fyve Woodwind Quintet, the Pennsylvania Philharmonic and the Southside Sinfonietta, and performs in musical theatre productions at the Fulton Theatre, Muhlenberg College, and DeSales University. |
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But when she’s not fulfilling her multiple roles in her performing arts world, she pulls out colorful skeins of wool and kneads starter dough for her favorite pastimes—knitting and baking. Gleason-Mayrhofer recently took her knitting interests to new heights by attending Shetland Wool Week, a world-renowned celebration of Britain’s most northerly native sheep, the Shetland textile industry, and the rural farming community on these remote Scottish islands.
We caught up with her to talk about her many interests and her love of the PSO.
How did you get interested in knitting and baking bread?
I took knitting as a course in Oberlin’s Experimental College (“ExCo”) when I was an undergraduate student. Funny, we were allowed to take two ExCo courses for credit during our time in college, and I took knitting and Indian Cooking, which included making chapatis, naan and puri breads. I had always enjoyed cooking (and eating!), but this was my first exposure to “yeasted” doughs. I continued to experiment with bread from that time on—baking most of the bread we ate at home—but I really started to get serious around 2017 or so, I’m not sure why! Honestly, I think I sort of randomly joined a Facebook sourdough group and I was inspired by the photos of amazing breads people from around the world were baking—and since that time I’ve concentrated on naturally fermented doughs.
Do you see them as complementary skills?
I think so. I’m not a particularly creative person. I don’t need to make “original” things, but I love experimenting with process. I like to understand how knitted garments are shaped and constructed and what kinds of techniques and ingredients are required to make different kinds of breads. And both are generally slow processes, which seems to appeal to me.
What’s the most complex item you’ve knitted and the most complex bread you’ve made?
Knitting: In my early years of knitting, I experimented with lots of complicated designs—delicate lace shawls, intricately cabled sweaters, and colorful ski sweaters. Now I find myself exploring the fine details of fit and finishing, while knitting plainer, classic designs. I fail miserably at rectangles. I have the worst time finishing scarves and blankets!
Bread: My bread-baking has followed a similar path. Occasionally I’ll step out and make something fancy, for example a wrapped semolina sourdough bread that looked like a sunflower with petals that opened up as the bread baked. I have gone through phases of experimenting with laminated doughs like croissants and Danishes that take lots of steps and more precise shaping. Lately, though, I find myself baking simpler breads, repeatedly looking for just the “right” texture and flavor; some favorites are a buttered multigrain porridge bread, red quinoa, and jalapeno-cheddar semolina. Oh, and I have the worst sweet tooth, so sometimes I cannot resist making frosted cinnamon rolls or filled donuts.
How do these activities help inform your work as a musician?
I think they’re all about processes that take time; everything is a practice, and certainly I see that as a musician.
Do you wear any of your favorite knitted garments during PSO concerts?
Knitting black is an extreme challenge! I’ve actually been working on a black sweater for some time and it’s not finished—someday soon, I hope. But I do often wear my sweaters to rehearsals, and I always have some knitting to keep me occupied when I’m not playing.
What do you enjoy most about playing with the PSO?
I love the intimate experience of playing in a chamber orchestra. As a horn player, it’s entirely different from a large symphony orchestra—all about precision and matching tone color with winds and strings. And that lends itself to getting to know the other musicians in a more personal manner, I think. I really treasure the friendships I’ve made through the PSO, and I look forward to connecting with these folks at every concert!
We caught up with her to talk about her many interests and her love of the PSO.
How did you get interested in knitting and baking bread?
I took knitting as a course in Oberlin’s Experimental College (“ExCo”) when I was an undergraduate student. Funny, we were allowed to take two ExCo courses for credit during our time in college, and I took knitting and Indian Cooking, which included making chapatis, naan and puri breads. I had always enjoyed cooking (and eating!), but this was my first exposure to “yeasted” doughs. I continued to experiment with bread from that time on—baking most of the bread we ate at home—but I really started to get serious around 2017 or so, I’m not sure why! Honestly, I think I sort of randomly joined a Facebook sourdough group and I was inspired by the photos of amazing breads people from around the world were baking—and since that time I’ve concentrated on naturally fermented doughs.
Do you see them as complementary skills?
I think so. I’m not a particularly creative person. I don’t need to make “original” things, but I love experimenting with process. I like to understand how knitted garments are shaped and constructed and what kinds of techniques and ingredients are required to make different kinds of breads. And both are generally slow processes, which seems to appeal to me.
What’s the most complex item you’ve knitted and the most complex bread you’ve made?
Knitting: In my early years of knitting, I experimented with lots of complicated designs—delicate lace shawls, intricately cabled sweaters, and colorful ski sweaters. Now I find myself exploring the fine details of fit and finishing, while knitting plainer, classic designs. I fail miserably at rectangles. I have the worst time finishing scarves and blankets!
Bread: My bread-baking has followed a similar path. Occasionally I’ll step out and make something fancy, for example a wrapped semolina sourdough bread that looked like a sunflower with petals that opened up as the bread baked. I have gone through phases of experimenting with laminated doughs like croissants and Danishes that take lots of steps and more precise shaping. Lately, though, I find myself baking simpler breads, repeatedly looking for just the “right” texture and flavor; some favorites are a buttered multigrain porridge bread, red quinoa, and jalapeno-cheddar semolina. Oh, and I have the worst sweet tooth, so sometimes I cannot resist making frosted cinnamon rolls or filled donuts.
How do these activities help inform your work as a musician?
I think they’re all about processes that take time; everything is a practice, and certainly I see that as a musician.
Do you wear any of your favorite knitted garments during PSO concerts?
Knitting black is an extreme challenge! I’ve actually been working on a black sweater for some time and it’s not finished—someday soon, I hope. But I do often wear my sweaters to rehearsals, and I always have some knitting to keep me occupied when I’m not playing.
What do you enjoy most about playing with the PSO?
I love the intimate experience of playing in a chamber orchestra. As a horn player, it’s entirely different from a large symphony orchestra—all about precision and matching tone color with winds and strings. And that lends itself to getting to know the other musicians in a more personal manner, I think. I really treasure the friendships I’ve made through the PSO, and I look forward to connecting with these folks at every concert!
