Thomas Zehetmair previews his St. Paul Chamber Orchestra artistic partnership in concerts

Thomas Zehetmair -- solo violinist, chamber musician, conductor -- won't make his formal debut as an artistic partner of the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra for more than a year. But listeners too curious or too impatient to wait can encounter his exacting expressivity this week and next in concerts at four Twin Cities neighborhood locations.

Featuring Zehetmair (pronounced TSAY-eht-mire) on both bow and baton, the program -- two relatively brief 20th-century works, bracketed by music of Beethoven and Schubert -- also will be heard in Chicago (April 16) and at Carleton College in Northfield, Minn. (April 18).

A native of Mozart's hometown of Salzburg, Austria, Zehetmair, 48, studied at that city's Mozarteum, where his parents taught. Since 1994 he has led a string quartet that bears his name; in 2002 he became music director of the Northern Sinfonia, a chamber orchestra in northeast England that he has called "one of the best in the world." He lives by the sea, not far from Gateshead (near Newcastle upon Tyne), where the Sinfonia is based.

In the midst of a hectic schedule, Zehetmair responded to a few questions put to him via e-mail.

Q It's hard to think of another contemporary performer whose career is as diverse as yours. You tour as a violin soloist, you have a string quartet, you conduct. Do these activities sometimes seem to pull you in different directions?

A I really like to choose my projects very carefully: Good planning is essential to avoid complete craziness. Apart from that, the activities help each other enormously.

Q You've worked for a number of years with the Northern Sinfonia, but your partnership with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra is the first appointment you've accepted with a North American ensemble. What drew you to the SPCO?

Q You're the only violinist to have made two complete recordings of Paganini's Caprices: For you, clearly, these works are more than simply virtuoso showpieces. What do you find so alluring about them?

A Paganini was the greatest magician ever on stage. He took his audience's souls with his mesmerizing sound, far beyond just playing the notes. Dealing with his music can only go to the extremes.

Q Your string quartet plays exclusively from memory; you've argued that this allows for greater freedom of expression. Doesn't that argument apply equally to the orchestra? Might you experiment with having an orchestra play from memory, or with other departures from the orchestral norm?

A Many musicians are convinced of the opposite: playing from memory takes away parts of the brain which they prefer to use for inspired musicmaking. I am familiar with both positions and respect them. Exploring all the possibilities of expression is higher on my priority list.

Q What makes for a satisfying concert program? Tell us a bit about the thinking behind your impending Beethoven-Krenek-Webern-Schubert program with the SPCO.

Q You're a vigorous advocate for contemporary music. Which composers do you plan to introduce to the Minnesota audience during your tenure?

A Certainly Elliott Carter will be on my list! Heinz Holliger will hopefully appear as composer and as oboe player. [The Swiss oboist is slated to perform with Zehetmair and the orchestra in May 2011; their program includes Carter's 1987 Oboe Concerto.]