This weekend’s program at the symphony features Richard Strauss’ Don Juan, a brilliant, virtuosic piece for orchestra, and especially for the violins.
A little secret:
Violinists preparing for national orchestra auditions are expected to play Don Juan (first violin part) and therefore they have spent years mastering it. I do not care to count how hours I’ve spent refining the piece, but I benefited greatly performing it for colleagues, and especially concertmasters while in college.
All of the tenure-tracked violinists who have joined the Oregon Symphony since 2000 have played Don Juan as part of their audition. They probably can play the first page of Don Juan memorized in their sleep!
