Stephen Bates played clarinet and bass clarinet with the Kennedy Center Opera House Orchestra for thirty-six years, 1973-2009. The privilege of being in one orchestra for all that time gave him the opportunity to develop close ties with all the members and their instruments, tuning in to the charms and quirks of each, finding nuance in the ways they all come together to form a modern symphony orchestra.
Bates is also a visual artist, drawing and painting throughout his life, exhibiting in galleries in Washington, D.C. and beyond. This book combines Bates’ keen and poetic observations of each instrument in the orchestra with playful and vibrant collage paintings in an homage to music, art, and the power of beauty.
Growing up in Patchogue, Long Island, music found me early. At six, I stood transfixed before a neighbor's closet, staring at a gleaming saxophone and clarinet - instruments that seemed impossibly complex and utterly magical. I began studying clarinet at ten, and at twelve, backstage after a New York Philharmonic concert, Leonard Bernstein looked at me and said simply, "You play clarinet." I've never stopped wondering whether a child chooses his instrument, or the other way around.Through a fortunate chain of referrals, I found my way to the legendary teacher Leon Russianoff in New York City. Every Saturday for four years, I made the two-hour train ride from Long Island to study with him. He gave me the foundation of everything I know, and to this day, I play always reaching toward the standard he set.After graduating from the Mannes College of Music, I enlisted in the United States Marine Band, performing at the White House for Presidents Johnson and Nixon. The most unforgettable visitor was Duke Ellington, who quietly sat down at the piano one afternoon and began to play - a gentle reminder that no room, however grand, is more important than the music itself.By 1973 I had joined the Opera House Orchestra at the newly opened Kennedy Center, where I remained for thirty-six years. I performed in seventy opera productions, gave over four hundred performances of The Nutcracker, and played solos in Wagner and Verdi alongside Plácido Domingo.Throughout those years I was also painting and exhibiting work in Washington, D.C. After retiring, I moved with my wife Isabella to Manchester, Massachusetts, and continue playing clarinet in home concerts with fellow musicians.This book is a tribute to my beloved colleagues in the Kennedy Center Opera House Orchestra, to whom it is dedicated.
