Music Makers: Interview With SRS Principal Violist
Linda Ghidossi-DeLuca

Linda Ghidossi-DeLuca is principal violist of the Santa Rosa and Vallejo symphonies, and the New Century Chamber Orchestra (NCCO). She is active as a soloist, freelance musician and teacher in Sonoma County and the Bay Area. She is also music director of the Young Peoples Chamber Orchestra. Linda recently debuted her first solo recording of Bach's Three Suites for Solo Cello, transcribed for viola. As a member of the Skywalker Symphony Orchestra, she has recorded movie sound and has performed on recordings for Kitaro, Tom Waits, Tracy Chapman and John Williams in a musical remake of the Star Wars themes. Linda traveled across the USA and Canada as a member of the string quartet that toured with the Dixie Chicks' Top of the World tour in 2003.

When did you start playing music and what kept your interest?
I started playing violin at 9 years old. At about 14 or 15, when I was studying at the San Francisco Conservatory, a viola teacher happened to hear me and said I'd make a good violist. So, I decided to give it a try. I had to learn a new clef, a whole new approach, and at first I was very frustrated. But then, I fell in love with the sound of the instrument. As soon as I decided to stay with viola, doors started opening for me. I won the Pepsi Cola Young Artist Competition and got to solo with the SF Symphony in their youth concerts. At that time I was 17 years old.

What do you think made the viola teacher notice you?
My approach to the violin was very athletic, and assertive, and I think the teacher believed the viola would fit my personality. The viola chair is one of humility! We're rarely noticed, except if we make a mistake, we're the "in between," the inner voices that rarely have the melody. Some people think the viola is just a big violin. But we have our own identity. The sound is very human, voice-like. For some reason, I identify with the sad, forlorn, dark sounds. Of course one can play bright and cheery, but the viola is a mood instrument.

What was your path to becoming a professional musician?
Once I played music, it was the only thing I ever wanted to do, more than school work, more than sports, more than anything; I had blinders on. I started out in a Catholic high school and I never felt like I fit in. After my second year of being a disciplinary problem, my mother said maybe I should transfer to public school. So, I spent my junior and senior year at Galileo High, a big school with a music program, where I had the opportunity and freedom to practice during lunch. I started winning competitions, and my music just flourished.

After graduation, I didn't think I was good enough for Juilliard, so I applied for SF Conservatory and some other universities, but that summer I went to Aspen and my teacher there thought I had promise and encouraged me to audition with Lillian Fuchs. So, I auditioned in August and was accepted at Julliard, where I studied for six years with her..

Didn't you quit music after you got your masterâs degree from Juilliard?
Beginning in my second year, I had so much pain in my neck and shoulders that I wanted to quit. At that time, pain was not addressed as a problem of the artist; if you had pain, you just played through it. I was offered money to go on for a doctorate, but nothing was helping with the pain, so I couldn't see going on. I locked my viola in my case for eight years and went to work at Franklin Savings Bank as a teller. I was promoted to recruiting manager and then went to American Savings and a career in banking. All that Julliard training led me to Wall Street!

How did you come back to playing music?
I met my now-husband, Greg DeLuca, through a dating service. After about 6 months of knowing him, I took my degrees out and hung them on the wall. He said, "You went to Juilliard? That means you can play an instrument." Because he wanted to hear me, I practiced a movement of a Bach suite and played for him. He said, "Oh my God, you've got to play your viola!" About six months later, we got married and decided that we were each going to go for our dreams. He loved baseball and wanted to open a baseball card shop and I wanted to go back to my music.

In February of 1985, we left Brooklyn in a van with a super top on it, and drove across country. We relocated here, because I had family in the area and lived in the KOA in Petaluma for almost 10 months before we got an apartment.

I was determined to find an answer to the pain. It was a slow process and I had to have patience. I worked with an orthopedic surgeon, a chiropractor, a massage therapist. I changed my diet, cut out caffeine, did therapy and exercise. I had to undo and relearn my playing. With stretching, Pilates, tweaking my shoulder pad and my chin rest, and constantly being mindful, I'm able to play without pain.

Tell us about your involvement with the Symphony's Young Peoples Chamber Orchestra (YPCO).
I started out teaching privately, and then in the local schools. It was when I was playing with New Century Chamber Orchestra, that I thought it would be great to form a conductorless ensemble for young people. What a great opportunity for them to have to listen and make decisions about how the music is going to be produced, to really own the orchestra instead of being an onlooker. YPCO started at the SRS Summer Music Academy and has been in existence for over 10 years. I'm the music director, not conductor. I lead through my body motions, eye contact, and by playing first violin. The age range of the players is from 12-23.

Do you prefer chamber or orchestral music?
In the orchestra, I feel like I'm part of a giant Swiss watch; in the New Century Chamber Orchestra, I feel like a motor in a sports car. So I have no preference and keep both of them going. That way I have so much more knowledge to pass on to my students.

How did you come to tour with Dixie Chicks?
I was referred by Matt Brubeck, Dave Brubeckâs son, a cellist with whom I worked in the Berkeley Symphony. It was a 4-month tour across the United States and Canada. My very first concert, I played for over 22,000 people and they were all screaming and yelling. Those who paid to be right up close, in the "Chicken Coop," were directly in front of us. The music we played was not difficult, but it had to be memorized, and you had to keep your focus. The Chicks played 23 songs on each set and the string quartet was used three times. We spent most of our time waiting around underneath the stage and then we were lifted up on a hydraulic lift. It was a chance of a lifetime, and I got to come home at the end of the month for five days, but being on the road is not that glamorous. Itâs wearying. You live on the bus or in hotel rooms, you're always by yourself. I had tons of time to practice; I kept a diary and had a lot of time to exercise and contemplate my life.

What kind of experience have you had during the music director search?

The conductor's job is very difficult. You need excellent baton technique, you have to be present to the orchestra, and not just know the music but also be an ambassador of good will. It's a three-way marriage: orchestra, audience and conductor. You have to know how to get what you want without offending anyone.

If I had advice for any aspiring conductor who wanted to be the best they could be, I would tell them to observe Simon Rattle, who is now conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic. Several years ago, his son was graduating from Marin Academy, and he conducted the New Century Chamber Orchestra in a benefit. He emotes with his entire body, through the blood in his veins. He created with his hands the shape of the music, and told us everything, even the type of bow stroke, and encouraged us to respond. Rattle is also a master on his instrument (the piano) and when you have mastered an instrument, you understand your musicians from the inside. We performed at such high level that day, we were literally crying on stage when the piece was over. I donât mean fake crying. We were saying, "How could it be this good·ever again?" That's the bar that I'm trying to measure everyone up against.

If you could play with any musician in the world, who would it be?
I'd like to be the last stand violist in the Berlin Philharmonic under Simon Rattle, even if I had to be behind the curtains. I would want to have that experience before I died and then I'd be ready to go.