Interview with Gail Selburn

Bassoonist, Gail Selburn is a frequent player in many of the Bay Area’s musical groups.  A graduate of Saratoga High School and the Indiana University School of Music, Gail has performed with Bay (Fremont) Philharmonic, Santa Cruz Symphony, Santa Cruz Nutcracker Ballet, West Bay Opera, Ensemble Monterey, Monterey County Pops Orchestra, Monterey Symphony, Marin Symphony, and Sacramento Philharmonic.

Here are the questions from my interview with her:

[Mira] What instrument do you play? 

[Gail] I play the bassoon, which is a woodwind instrument. 

[Mira] What drew you to the bassoon? 

[Gail] My mother played the bassoon in college, when she was studying to become a music teacher. She wanted to go into the schools to teach music and she took up the bassoon at that time. When I was thinking what instrument I should play, she suggested the bassoon because I might enjoy the challenge and the sound of it. 

[Mira] What age did you start playing the bassoon? 

[Gail] I started around the age of 12. I had started in elementary school playing another instrument, but I wanted to branch out. So, pertaining to bassoon specifically, I started around age 12. 

[Mira] Did you play it for your school band? 

[Gail] Yes, I played it in both orchestra and band, then made the leap to high school, where I think I maxed out all possible music units. When I graduated, over 50% of my credits were music credits, from before school, during school, and after school. 

[Mira] Is there a genre of music you specialize in? 

[Gail] Mostly, classical orchestral music, which actually contains music from the Baroque era all the way to modern pieces written for orchestras today, but we often refer to it as classical music as a general umbrella. Most orchestral music, in fact, was written during the classical era. 

[Mira] That’s also what I do, I specialize in classical music, too. 

[Mira] What is your favorite piece to play? 

[Gail] Speaking generally, I always like to see Mozart come up. In a different genre, musical theatre, one of the best parts I have every played is the bassoon part in the musical “My Fair Lady”, which is a musical from a while back. It is just an amazing piece to play because it has so many lovely melodies and fun parts. If I had to choose just one, I would choose that. 

[Mira] Tying into the previous question, if you could change one thing about programming orchestral music, what would it be?   

[Gail] That is a hard question. Because that is something facing all musicians, particularly orchestral musicians. When you program the repertoire for a performance, you focus on ticket sales, and what does the audience want to hear? What do they want to see? So right now, more popular music is being programmed for all orchestral groups in order to build audience and introduce people to how fun classical music is. If I had my druthers, I would like it to also have more serious pieces of music, which are unfortunately less popular. It would probably not be too wise of a decision. I would also want to shorten performances. I think there’s a need to inflate ticket prices, which means longer performances to give the audience their money’s worth. I feel like these days' concerts are getting to be too long. 

[Mira] Do you experience any stress before going up on stage? 

[Gail] Yes, I do. I think it would be unusual not to. 

[Mira] Following up with that, what is a pre-show ritual you like to follow? 

[Gail] Personally, I find it relaxing to pace and walk around. It gets my heart rate and breathing to simmer down, and I try to do it away from other musicians, because they have their own routines and ways to prepare. I find a little area where I can walk around and calm down before. 

[Mira] I also like to do that before I go on stage, just pace and then I shake my hands to warm them up. 

[Mira] Are you a composer? If so, what is your favorite piece that you have composed? 

[Gail] I am not, I don’t have that skill. 

[Mira] What are your other interests outside of music? 

[Gail] Obviously, I have a “day job” and a music job, I like to go outside, jog or walk or bike. I also like to read. I’m interested in movies and current culture. My husband is also trying to get me to travel more. 

[Mira] Is there a specific place you would like to travel to? 

[Gail] I really like London. I have been there before, and would really like to go back. They have really great shows and concerts, and it’s a very exciting city.  

[Mira] I would also like to go back to London sometime because I went there when I was a baby, but I obviously don’t remember anything about it. 

[Mira] If you could have one musician to collaborate with, who would it be? 

[Gail] That could be a very difficult question, to come up with just one. But, one person I like to collaborate with is my daughter. She’s a singer and she studied music in college. Obviously, she has a “day job”, but she also does local musicals. She’s a soprano, so we love sitting down in the pit orchestra and having her above us on stage. I recently saw her in the musical “Legally Blond”. She had to dance a lot, and we absolutely loved that because it’s hard to think of your child doing something like that. 

[Mira] What is your favorite part about playing music? 

[Gail] I brought this program in from when I was a kid, I was in high school in California Youth Symphony back in the late 70’s. I was looking through it recently, and I looked at the names, and I realized that I am still playing with lots of those people. So what I like best about music is the friendships and connections I have been able to build from playing music. 

[Mira] That’s probably one of my favorite parts, too. I play in a chamber music program where I met one of my close friends and we talk everyday. 

[Gail] Not everyone continues, but if you continue, you will see your peers somewhere out there and say to yourself, “I know that person!”. 

[Mira] That’s all the questions. 

[Gail] Well, thank you very much for having me today.