Farewell

The following text was read onstage by Arthur Nestrovski at Sala S?o Paulo, for all musicians and employees of the S?o Paulo Symphony Orchestra Foundation,

27 Oct. 2022.

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A fortnight ago, the S?o Paulo Symphony Orchestra and Chorus (Osesp), conducted by Marin Alsop, played a couple of concerts at Carnegie Hall. These were historic concerts for us, filled with special meanings of all kinds – artistic, institutional, even ecological ones (in “The Amazon Concert”). In their own way, they marked the end of a long cycle we began with Marin a decade ago, and which took us, for the first time, to the BBC Proms, Berlin Philharmonie, Lucerne Festival and many other prestigious venues around the world, from Brazil to China. In another, personal way, they also marked the end of my cycle as Artistic Director of Osesp Foundation.

??????????????Discussions about this decision had been going on for quite some time, with the President of the Board, Pedro Parente, as well as with other members of the Board, and the Executive Director, Marcelo Lopes, my greatest partner in these last thirteen years, when so much was achieved by our orchestra. Back in 2010, when I was invited to take up the position, by former Board President Fernando Henrique Cardoso (also a former President of Brazil), the main goal was to ensure continuity and stability for Osesp. The orchestra’s history in this period speaks for itself. With all the difficulties of life in Brazil, not to speak of the Covid-19 pandemic, which affected the entire world in the most dramatic way, here we are, approaching the last weeks of one more high-profile season, freshly arrived from an international tour, and with great plans for the coming years. Artistic quality has been on the rise steadily, as well as the reputation of the S?o Paulo Symphony Orchestra.

???????????Among many other achievements, one could mention the arrival of Marin Alsop as Music Director (now Conductor of Honour), after three transitional years with Yan Pascal Tortelier. We had a pioneering role in naming a woman conductor, and feel very proud about this. The following change, after eight years, to Music Director Thierry Fischer, was conducted in the most professional and transparent way, which also gives us great satisfaction.

???????????For more than a decade as Artistic Director, my efforts have been to instill an overall sense of curatorship, binding many different kinds of artistic and educational activity, and aspiring to grant meaningful relevance to all of Osesp’s work in S?o Paulo, in the nation at large, and, to some extent at least, internationally. Concert programming followed the same guidelines, linked to our wish to inspire, and lead ahead our own instrumental and vocal ensembles. The list of guest conductors and soloists could make any great orchestra jealous, and the creation of our programmes has kept an innovative accent, speaking to our own time, as well as cultivating the classics, as it befits an ensemble such as ours, very conscious of its role in Brazilian society.

????????????Brazilian music has always had a special place in our endeavors. Among many other projects, one might single out the recording, accompanied by a new revised edition, of the complete symphonies by Villa-Lobos, under the guidance of maestro Isaac Karabtchevsky, helped by our team. We are now engaged in the “Music of Brazil” series (Naxos/ Brazilian Foreign Ministry), having released four CDs already, and with three more coming out soon. The number of Brazilian commissions during these years lists no less than 60 works, to which must be added several international co-commissions, another pioneering effort for us.

???????????The 2023 season is out. The general outlines of the 2024 season have also been decided. Things are in order.

???????????Looking back, I can only express my gratitude for such an extraordinary experience, working with so many partners, and interacting with so many people: musicians, Board members (under Presidents Cardoso, Fábio Barbosa, and Pedro Parente), successive Governors and Secretaries of State, our teams at the Foundation, guest artists, agents, sponsors, journalists, subscribers and general audiences, quite literally thousands of people with whom I’ve had the joy to be in touch, over such a long period of time – and to whom I cannot fail to add my wife Claudia Cavalcanti, and our daughters. But one of the lessons I carry is to recognize the hour when it becomes important for an organization to renew its sources of energy and imagination necessary to the task. And also, from a personal point of view, the time to go back to my own projects, and to a life with a different set of demands upon myself, no longer bound by the highly intense, utmost dedication required by Osesp.

???????????Today we launch a small library carrying my name, at Sala S?o Paulo; about two thousand items, mostly in the fields of music and literature. This is my farewell gift, in appreciation for everything I’ve lived in this house, and also as a kind of bet for the future, hoping Osesp will always be given appropriate conditions to follow its path as it deserves.

???????????Viva a Osesp! Viva a música! May we always keep the ideals which fire us, our highest patrimony, which must always be protected, these days perhaps more than ever.