Hello, my name is Katherine and I’m a bassoonist.

I play the bassoon because as a child, I loved how it stuck out the top of the orchestra,
I loved how it could be romantic and funny, and there was one in the cupboard at school.

Do you play any other instruments?

I also play the cello. I had a mental health breakdown and stopped playing the bassoon professionally. I found that I couldn’t cope without music, so I decided to learn the cello as a hobby.
Playing the cello was my medicine.

What instrument would you secretly like to play?

The coloratura soprano (voice).

How many years have you played with MetSO?

On and off since 2011.

How do you support your musical life?

Teaching

Favourite Operas?

Händel Rinaldo, Mozart The Marriage of Figaro, Stravinsky The Rakes Progress,
Britten Peter Grimes, Strauss Salome, Der Rosenkavalier
and Die Frau ohne Shattern, Korngold Die Tode Stadt.

Favourite Symphonies?

Beethoven 4, Haydn 22, Shostakovich 5,
Brahms 3, Sibelius 5, Mozart 35.

Favourite Concertos?

Stravinsky Dumbarton Oaks

Favourite Composers of all time?

Zelenka, Bach, Mozart,
Beethoven, Brahms, Sibelius,
Shostakovich, Britten, Stravinsky,
Mahler, R. Strauss.

Favourite 20th Century Composer?

Britten

Favourite 3 classical orchestras / ensembles?

Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century,
Collegium Vocale Ghent,
The Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra.

Favourite MetSO moment?

When Lulu, my greyhound used to accompany me to rehearsals, when I first came to MetSO, my social anxiety was so bad that I couldn’t leave my house without her. MetSO allowed me to bring her to rehearsals, it was the first step in overcoming my agoraphobia. Something I am forever grateful for. Thank you MetSO.

Favourite 3 instruments by sound quality/ timbre?

Horn,
cello,
bassoon.

Least Favourite lift music?

But I love the Girl from Ipanema!

Favourite Karaoke track?

I will Survive

Favourite scale?

I love A major, it makes me think of pink and green.
According to Charpentier's Regles de Composition ca. 1682,
A major is joyful and pastoral.
I couldn’t agree more.

Best Practice Tips?

Concentrate, don’t play a single note without listening and doing body scans.
Have a plan….and a dog.

Best tip for overcoming stage fright / performance nerves?

Focus on the music, after all it’s not about me, it’s about the music.
When I am 100% engaged in playing well, I don’t have brain space to get nervous.

Worst performance fail?

As I was walking on stage for my audition at the Paris Conservatoire,
someone mentioned to me that Jean Françaix was on the panel.
My heart jumped into my throat, I suddenly forgot how to speak French
and I spilt my reed water all over the stage.

What is your best tip for young players?

Love it, if it’s not fun, try a different teacher or instrument.

What is the oddest thing we would find in you instrument case?

I recently was playing on an ex-student bassoon which I had to fix up a bit.
To do so I used, a rubber, an Allan key, blue tac, dental floss,
super glue, almond oil, a satay stick, cardboard and beeswax.

What is your most useful bit of kit in your instrument case?

My metronome and pencil.

Best bassoon tip in general?

Double reed players learn to love making reeds.

I can’t listen to music and …

do anything else, except drive.

When do you like to listen to music?

All the time.

Where do you like to listen to music?

At the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam.

What musicians inspire you most and why?

Frans Bruggen, Sigiswald Kuijken, Phillipe Herreweghe,
their humility and passion for serving the music.

What music will get you moving?

Baroque and Roll.

Who has provided you with the most support in your musical life?

Donna Agrell, Nick Deutsch and Adam Mikulicz

What makes you the happiest in your musical life?

Playing with great musicians and performing.

Describe yourself in 3 words.

Creative, compassionate and fun.

What is a secret about you?

I’m a recovering alcoholic and I have Borderline Personality Disorder.

What is your most memorable stage experience?

Performing Beethoven 9 in Sarajevo after the Balkan war to celebrate the new peace.

What are some of the most exciting things you have done in your life?

Trained Primary School teachers in teaching English as a Second Language
in the Republic of Kiribati and worked with women alcoholics in India.
The first time I played Bach on baroque bassoon, in a German Baroque Church.
I had recently learnt German and I could understand the text for the first time.

What is your favourite thing about Perth?

It’s home.

What sound do you love?

An orchestra tuning.

If you could ask <composer of your choice> one question, what would it be?

Gustav Mahler, ‘Will you marry me?’

If you could only take one recording to a desert island what would it be?

That is such a mean question.

How do you like to prepare for a concert?

Calm, calm, calm. Alexander Technique exercises.

What is the hardest thing you have ever played?

Bitche Concertino for Bassoon and Orchestra.

How important is history and context when you are playing a piece?

It’s the whole point.
My specialisation is Historically Informed Performance Practice.
Understanding the linguistic and historic context brings the music to life,
the excitement that exists as if it were being played for the first time.

MetSO's Katherine Walpole

MetSO's Christine Bezic

MetSO's Lucy Kennedy