Saxophonist Adam Estes and pianist Adrienne Park share transcriptions of master works by Beethoven, Chaminade, Burhans, and Saint-Saëns on their LYRICAL BARITONE, VOL. 1. Borrowed from the flute, bassoon, and cello repertoires, this album celebrates this captivating music reimagined for baritone saxophone and piano duo.
Today, Adam and Adrienne are our featured artists in the “Inside Story,” a blog series exploring the inner workings and personalities of our composers and performers. Read on to learn about Adam’s passion for Golf, and Adrienne’s hopes for listener’s of this Navona Records release…
What have been your biggest inspirations on your musical journey?
AE: While a graduate student at the University of South Carolina, I took two seminars that allowed me to mature as a young musician, and energized and inspired me more than any other musical experience or course up until that point. “Contemporary Experimental Music” taught by Professor John Fitz Rogers opened my eyes, ears, and mind in new and interesting ways. We explored Henry Cowell’s “New Music Resources,” spent a great deal of time on John Cage and his music and philosophy, as well as the music by Zorn, Riley, Reich, Glass, Ben Johnston, and others. Duckworth’s “Talking Music” was a book we read in that class, and I often return to that for inspiration.
Professor Julie Hubbert taught a seminar on Gustav Mahler and that course taught me the importance of research and contextual understanding: when, where, why, and for whom a composition was written, performed, and programmed. To spend 15 weeks on a single composer and their music was a treat — it deepened my love, knowledge, and appreciation of symphonic music, and I often return to the works of Mahler for my own listening enjoyment.
If you weren’t a musician, what would you be doing?
AE: If I wasn’t a musician, I would probably be a professional golfer. If I wasn’t good enough to make the tour, I would likely be a teaching pro at a golf club or resort. I have always been a jock and I prioritize playing, practicing, and competing in golf tournaments and outings in my free time.
How have your influences changed as you’ve grown as a musician?
AE: Choosing purposeful creative projects is important to me, and I credit my close friends and colleagues in the Assembly Quartet for trailblazing a path to provide new and important musical offerings in the work we do/have done through our “Pedagogy Project.” This project, as well as LYRICAL BARITONE VOL. 1 are open-ended projects aimed to commission, concertize, record, and publish new and reimagined works which are aimed in advancing repertoire.
From a playing perspective, while I still listen to a lot of concert saxophonists for inspiration, like Steven Bank’s soul-bearing performances, presently, I am more influenced by Andrew Brady’s lyricism (bassoon), Nicolas Baldeyrou’s ease of virtuosity (clarinet), Emmanuel Pahud’s control and majestic use of air (flute), Peter Kolkay’s variety of tonal color (bassoon), and Yuja Wang’s commanding presence (piano).
What emotions do you hope listeners will experience after hearing your work?
AP: I love this question! My fervent wish would be for listeners to be transported outside of the concerns of their daily lives and for them to have the freedom to feel a full range of emotions spontaneously as they move through the album or concert experience. Even if just one individual is moved in such a way, I feel grateful to have shared that human experience together.
Where and when are you at your most creative?
AP: I am the founder and director of a chamber music series entitled Sonic Explorations. I was inspired to create the series out of a desire to perform a variety of repertoire with my colleagues at the University of Mississippi. I produce each concert and the process of creating it from the initial concept to a final product has pushed my creativity in many ways. I created the concept for the name of the series along with the concert logo and hope to present a unique concert experience for the listener with each program. I also have been generating my own posters and the programs in recent years and looking for ways to visually represent the connections within the concert within those digital mediums. While it can be challenging to produce the series and also perform in it, this series and my experiences with fellow artists, poets, authors, and musicians are some of the most important outlets of creativity I’ve ever been involved in.
What’s the greatest performance you’ve ever seen, and what made it special?
AP: One of the greatest performances I’ve ever experienced was listening to the great concert pianist Abbey Simon perform a solo piano recital in Mississippi while I was a senior in high school. The experience was transformative as I had never heard such artistry, beauty, and depth of sound before. It was special also because it changed the trajectory of my life. I auditioned for Mr. Simon who accepted me into his studio which was a huge turning point for me and one of the many steps in the path that led me to where and who I am today.
What were your first musical experiences?
AP: One of my first memories of hearing music as a young girl was listening to my mother playing piano on the upright that my grandparents shipped from Mississippi to my home in Maryland at the time. I was very young but recall her sitting down at the piano and suddenly performing a beautiful piece “Rustles of Spring” by Christian Sinding from rote memory. When I asked how she was able to play, she explained that she took lessons as a child and was able to recall the quick movements of her fingers along the keyboard. I was absolutely enthralled and fell in love with the sound of the music coming from the instrument. My mother taught me lessons initially and then found a teacher for me when it was clear that I loved playing piano and making music.
Adrienne Park has extensive experience as a collaborative pianist in chamber, symphonic, and contemporary music settings. She has performed in recital with violinist Joshua Bell, cellists Shauna Rolston and Tsuyoshi Tsutsumi, bassist Edgar Meyer, flutists Paul Edmond Davies, Timothy Hutchins, and Tara Helen O’Connor, bassoonist Frank Morelli, saxophonist Nikita Zimin, horn artist Frøydis Ree Wekre, percussion group NEXUS, soprano Mary Wilson, and tenor Telly Leung.
Park is Assistant Professor of Collaborative Piano at the University of Mississippi. She mentors graduate collaborative pianists, coaches chamber ensembles, and has collaborated with UM students and faculty since 2001. She is the Artistic Director of the UM Music concert series Sonic Explorations which features multimedia performances with music faculty and professional musicians in the region. Themed concerts focus on a genre, region, or set of composers, exploring the sound world of that theme. Central to concert events is the use of multimedia – projected film, art, and poetry — with unique lighting designs and innovative stage positioning.
Adam Estes is associate professor of music at the University of Mississippi, where he teaches saxophone, coaches woodwind chamber ensembles, and teaches woodwinds methods courses. Prior to working in Mississippi, he was assistant professor at Minot State University. Formerly a band director in the public schools in Mason TX, Estes has also held posts as visiting professor of saxophone at Furman University and the University of South Carolina, as well as instructorships at Presbyterian College and the South Carolina Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities. He is the founding member of the Assembly Quartet, which celebrated their 20th year in 2023, and maintains an active performance schedule as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral musician. Abroad, his performing career has taken him to venues in Scotland, Ireland, Austria, Switzerland, France, and Belgium. Estes is a Légère Endorsing Artist, Yamaha Performing Artist, and has recorded with PARMA Recordings, Albany Records, AMP Recordings, Mark Records, and MSR Classics.
