Baltimore County, MD smARTS, 27 Sep 2018

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From YouTube: Anthony Blake Clark, Baltimore Choral Arts

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Anthony Blake Clark, Music Director of Baltimore Choral Arts

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Anthony blake clark began his life on a farm in the texas panhandle., now fast forward,. He conducts choral ensembles across.

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The globe working with such luminaries as john eliot gardiner and the berlin philharmonic,, and now he is in baltimore as the music director of baltimore.

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Choral arts. blake, welcome!.

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[Blake], thank you for having me here. oh,, it's great to have you!.

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I know there's been a lot of buzz about your coming here, you're beginning your second year, and you had a good.

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First year here. we had a great first year,. It was a whirlwind,, but it.

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Was fun and amazing and great choir, so who could complain? so I've had a chance, you know, many of us had a chance.

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To see your work, but I'd like to talk a little bit about you and kind of how you finally arrived here in baltimore. [blake] okay., I mentioned you grew up,, you know, in texas..

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What kind of music did you listen to when you were a kid?.

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Wow, well, when I was a kid,, so my grandparents, and my parents both helped me foster a love of music and.

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It was a little bit of everything, but it was actually,.

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Especially for being a rural boy,, it was.

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Uncharacteristically, geared toward classical music, and--.

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[Carolyn] so,, but you were drawn to it. [blake] oh, yes.

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Despite the fact that your parents and your.

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Grandparents liked it.

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I was definitely drawn to it., I think. In the beginning it was just,. "Let's expose our.

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Children to everything," and then it was sort of,. You know,.

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Okay, blake is picking up mozart and deciding that's a good.

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Thing-- [carolyn] yeah. so,. It became more and more of that. lots of classic, pre-1965 broadway-- (both laugh).

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You and I are very similar on that. oh, of course, and of course you know, I had my fair.

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Share of country. when I was taking violin lessons in the summers,, our suzuki program would halt and we would do hoedown music--.

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[Carolyn] oh, awesome! for 3 months,, almost 3 months, and so-- [carolyn] wow!.

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So you're a violinist?, that's how you started? [blake] yes, yes.! That was how I started.

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I think I was getting into a little bit of trouble in kindergarten--.

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[Carolyn] kindergarten?, oh,, yes, and being the class clown and all that and.

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So my kindergarten teacher told my parents, "you know,, all my daughters take violin, and I know blake is musically.

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Inclined,, I see it and you know it,, and so you should get him into violin lessons.", and that was where it started..

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I think it instilled a lot of discipline. Musically., oh,, absolutely.

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And I mean, it's tough! focus and all of that. yeah, yeah. [blake], yeah, right.

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And technically, it makes students from a very young age.

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Strive for technical, prowess--, [carolyn] yeah., which is something that's not always achieved in music lessons,. So I think stringed instruments are really good for that.

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[Carolyn] okay,, so there's one thing,, you liked it as a kid,, but then what inspired you to say, "okay,? I'm gonna actually make a career out of music.". I don't know.

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So,, I don't particularly remember this,, but my parents.

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Tell me that I would break apart pant hangers,, you know the little cardboard part. [carolyn] sure., and I would pretend that was a baton and I would conduct the music to the television.

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(carolyn laughs).

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Particularly cecil b. demille's ten commandments--.

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Oh, my goodness!.

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Cause that's an elmer bernstein score,, it's really good.. So I guess it's always sort of been there, and just,. It's.

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Always been,, I had a brief stint where I wanted to be an author,, but then it was back to music.

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I don't know,, I think it's just always sort of been the trajectory in some form or fashion.

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[Carolyn] for you, a natural pleasure., so you start as a violinist, then, you know-- [blake] piano--.

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Then decided you were gonna,, you know, conduct,, but why.

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Choral?, it could have been instrumental. yeah!.

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Well, I do conduct instrumental and choral and I think.

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It's vital that we make sure that choral musicians can.

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Conduct instrumental ensembles as well,, so that's one of my missions in life, is to make sure that's a possibility., but I went to undergraduate,. I wanted to be a composer,.

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So I went and got a composition degree, and while I was there, I was in all the choirs, and I just sort of.

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Realized that I understand it,, I think I'm pretty. Okay.

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At it, and I thought that I could probably make a difference--.

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In the choral music world, and it's just very inspiring., we have this gift of text and words, and you can communicate in such an easy way, that maybe us violinists.

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Have a little bit--, [carolyn] yeah.

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We have one more degree of.

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Separation between the story we're telling, because.

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We don't have words. [carolyn], right, right.

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So that's really,, that's very intriguing to me.

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[Carolyn] yeah, yeah, okay.. So then, how do you see classical music fitting into today's world?? I mean that's a discussion that goes on all the time-- [blake] sure., it's something that you face at choral arts as well.

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yep.. So how do you see this going? honestly? I don't see it going any differently.

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Than it has,, because I think that classical music always.

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Has and always will have cultural value.

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I think our task is to make sure that the kids of.

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Today, get a really strong, thorough education so that.

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They see its value and they can participate themselves.

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[carolyn]. And how do you see playing into that goal?.

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You personally.

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Choral arts? yeah. at choral arts. We have a big education, initiative.

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We're working with legg mason in their powerhouse plant.

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To make sure that we're providing arts education in that regard,, we go into high schools with our chamber chorus,, which is mostly professional, singers-- [carolyn] yeah., and we basically do musical exchanges back and forth and teach the power of choral music..

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You know it's a community, you'll, never be lonely. If you sing in a choir. (carolyn laughs).

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That's true., that's true.,.

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It effects your mental health in a positive way.

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It makes you smarter.

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I mean, it's just. There are so many benefits to singing.

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And music in general. and at g.w. as well,, that's a big mission for me,. I teach at g.w.--.

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Teach there as well, yeah.

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And you know,, basically, I'm teaching the next generation of political leaders and international affairs, majors-- terrific!. I expect a lot out of this.

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Exactly! we need it!.

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So they need to be the proponents of the future of this.

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Well, it was great talking to you. thank you., there's so much more to talk about,, but I wish you great luck and success in your season.. Thank you. So much. alright, thanks., I'm carolyn black-sotir,, and this is smarts,.

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The baltimore county arts and culture show.