EYMW has quickly become one of my favourite weeks of the year. Where else will you find so many languages, emotions and karaoke amongst Shostakovich and Stravinsky?
A Journey to Sondershausen
Sondershausen in central Germany was the venue for EYMW 2023 and this gave me a great excuse to travel out on the train and stay with my friend in Berlin the week before. I met Anna on the 2022 course, so after a tour of her hometown, we set off for Sondershausen, double bass and trombone in tow. At each change, we were met by more and more young people with big cases and big smiles.
Reuniting with Friends and Starting the Music
After seeing old friends and making new ones, we got down to the music. I took my seat at the back with the trombones and soaked in the air of excitement, nervousness and even grandeur - high ceilings and arches galore.
A Week of Whirlwind Moments
The rest of the week passed in a bit of a whirlwind to be honest. There were tears, there was lots of cheese, a jazz band, some dodgy Duolingo German from me, two concerts and a visit to Leipzig. I’ll lay out some personal highlights for you…
A conversation (on the coach) in broken German in which myself and Austrian trombonist Hana realised just how similar our difficult experiences at conservatoire had been.
Starting every morning in the orchestra (sometimes a little hungover), attempting to remember how to say good morning to everyone in their own languages.
A night spent with bottle caps on my nose, in a lift, with a french horn player and a double bassist, playing Steve Reich’s Clapping Music with makeshift drumsticks.
Taking inspiration from my environment to write a piece for piano and performing it with the wonderful Yury in the chamber music concert.
Being able to show trombonist Will (a big inspiration to me) how much I’d improved over the year.
Singing wholeheartedly (you could call it shouting perhaps) into a microphone, with ten other people, to a song I’ve never heard, in a language I don’t speak.
Playing an exhilarating fortissimo for minutes on end when our Shostakovich came together for the final concert.
Finding Acceptance
More importantly than any of this, I’m a transgender trombonist and the world hasn’t always been kind to me. I was looking for a place to try out my new name, I thought this week could be the space for that, and I was right. For anyone, especially if you don’t always feel comfortable in conventional classical music spaces, I’d urge you to give EYMW a go.
Benji x
(they/them)