*Sighs*
Why we left orchestra-
Sorry.
Yeah, we're sorry. We just had to
- parody the stereotypical YouTuber's clickbait intro. - Yeah.
Today, we will be talking about...
For those of you that know us from being YouTubers,
you might not know that we used to be...
- dignified real professional musicians. - Orchest-
Both of us worked almost like full-time,
- I think, for 2 years in orchestra? - 2. Yeah, 2 years.
And then freelanced for like 3, 4 years.
But we thought we'd share why...
you know, we eventually made that decision.
It was a tough call actually because...
personally, I think orchestral music is some of the most
epic
music
ever.
Like, some orchestral music is just...
Mm!
I can imagine aliens would come down,
and listen to a Beethoven symphony and be like...
"Wow!"
But we did choose to leave orchestra for a couple of reasons.
Most obvious one was...
What we're doing here now.
It became a full-time commitment.
And in the beginning,
we were trying to balance that with orchestra.
And so we'd be working full-time orchestra,
and then, on the bus,
or in the rehearsal breaks, be editing.
Like, thinking, scripting ideas.
That was crazy days!
And it got to a point where we just...was like...
"If we really want to take this TwoSet thing seriously,"
"I think we need the time for that."
So unfortunately, I would say that's probably the main reason.
100%, like...
Everything started to get really heavy.
So we made a decision to quit.
Also you could ask...
"Why did you choose to do TwoSet over orchestra?"
On top of the time element, though,
I do think there were some parts about orchestra
that we didn't quite resonate with 100%.
I think the first thing was that
orchestras are usually big organisations
where you kind of feel like you just have to...
do and play what you're told.
- And for us, we like to be able to... - Yep.
do things a bit more outside the box.
We wanted to be a bit more adventurous,
- Yeah. - a bit more innovative. Whatever that means.
But on top of that, I think there's a lot of bureaucracy.
So one of the reasons we really liked to do TwoSet in the beginning
was it was a outlet for creativity and expression
where we could try different things.
We could make videos how we envisioned them.
We did a lot of stupid things.
- Like, looking back, like, so many stupid videos. - Yeah.
But that's part of our personality.
But I think in an orchestral environment,
it's a bit more hard to do that.
Because you have to think about 100 other musicians,
- your actions. - Mhm.
There's also like, a lot of the administration side of things.
And it's an interesting dynamic, right?
Like, a lot of times there's like a...
slight tension between admin management and musicians
where musicians feel like they can't really decide
what they want to do.
So common examples would be like, choice of repertoire,
- or like the choice of conductors that they invite. - Yeah.
Musicians wouldn't want a certain conductor to come in,
- but then the admin gets them anyway. - Yeah...
Or like, the admin schedules 20 Harry Potter concerts in a row.
Yeah, and like, no hate to Harry Potter.
- Yeah. - But like, when you play tremolo and like...
- ...for 20 times, you just... - Yeah.
You get really really over it.
And I'd also add to that, like, a lot of times...
it feels like the communication between admin and musicians
were quite... cold, distant.
Yes, I hear that everywhere.
Yeah, it's like sometimes when we say something...
it doesn't really get through.
It's like admin hears, but they don't really do anything about it.
- Yeah, yeah, that's the feeling we get as a musician. - Yeah.
They're going, "We are going to do this now."
I'm like, "Okay. Why?"
"Because... some reason."
And that's the end of story. It's done.
Actually, I'll tell you a really good example
- of this whole admin vs musician dynamic. - Yeah.
One of the greatest things we were very lucky to have,
- you know, in orchestral days, - Oh, 100%!
is the fact we got to meet these solo[ists],
- like the heroes, the idols that we had growing up. - Dude...
Like, you listen to their music for your whole life.
And they're just there.
I still can't believe you got that video with Janine Jansen back then.
- Oh yeah, that was crazy! - That was crazy.
I remember every single detail of it.
In the very early days of TwoSet,
we were starting to get some views and some followers.
But one interesting thing I noticed...
Usually, all the musicians were super supportive of what we're doing.
But the admin people were usually kind of iffy about it.
- They were neither up front about the thing. - Yeah.
They were kind of always vague.
And you're getting mixed signals.
- Yeah. - It's like, "So what's going on? Can I? Can I not?"
And then when you try it, they kinda shut you down.
Yeah, so like, I don't want to name names particularly, but...
There were at least 3 or 4 times back in the day
when we were still smaller in orchestra...
...that, you know, the orchestral members would be like...
"Yo, the soloist is coming in!"
Like...
"You should definitely make a video with him/her!" Right?
And I'm like, "Yeah, I'll try."
But then I could already picture the 3 admin,
they're going to like, block my advance.
And I don't wanna say too much,
but we've been outright humiliated or shamed
in front of the whole orchestra for it.
...where they're like passively aggressively call out our behaviour
for just trying to have a conversation with a soloist,
which, by the way, the soloist wanted,
- in a lot of the cases, to talk to us, - Yeah.
or to make a video.
Not always, but a lot of the cases, they did want to talk to us.
I remember there was one time where
one of the admin outright lied to us.
Oh yeah!
And the soloist was like, "I thought we were making a video."
But then, we're like,
"Oh, the admin said that you didn't want to see us."
Yeah!
- It was pretty wack. - It got really awkward.
And then the soloist was like, "Uh what?"
I'm like, "Yeah, uh what?"
- Yeah...! - And we both just had this-
All three of us had this realisation...
"Ohh...."
- Like we just clicked, right? - Yeah.
That was weird. That was a bit sus.
I'm sure there are orchestras out there
that have a great synergy
between the management and the musicians.
But I do hear this as a problem that occurs a lot.
I think another reason personally, is that...
You know, the thing with playing with other musicians, right,
- is you kind of feed off each other's energy. - Yeah, yeah.
And one of the great things about youth orchestra
is you're surrounded by other young people
where we're all so energetic about making the music.
- Gotta shout out to Australian Youth Orchestra. - Yeah.
I think they fueled our passion for orchestral music a lot.
But so you can imagine though, the problem is...
In every orchestra, I'm willing to say,
there will be a number of people,
- where they look like they're walking into a 9-to-5 office job. - Yeah.
I feel like deep down they all love music. That never changes.
But sometimes in an orchestral environment,
- people become a bit mechanical. - Yeah.
- And I don't know, that was kind of scary for me 'cause... - Yeah.
You know like, the people around you affect who you are, right?
I was scared at the thought that I was going to become that.
You can imagine if...
If you're around people that are super passionate,
of course you're gonna be passionate.
The opposite is true.
If you are around people that just don't feel anything.
They seem like they don't like it anymore.
You're like, "Uh, oh... okay."
I'll just go along with it.
Yeah, I feel like there's a tipping point, right?
Like, if most of the orchestra is energetic,
then the person that's not putting in effort is kinda like
"What are you doing?"
But if it crosses a tipping point
where most people are like very, just blasé,
then you almost start looking try-hard for caring.
Yes!
It makes you think, like...
If today we were to have our own orchestra,
what would you do to make it one where
the musicians would be able to be more creative, innovative,
and keep their passion, right?
I often think about that actually.,
I feel like there needs to be some level of quality checking
to make sure musicians continue to practice.
- Oh yeah. - 'Cause sometimes they get the job,
and then it's like...
"Well, I don't need to improve anymore 'cause"
"unless I do something really bad,"
- "they can't really fire me." - Yeah.
- Right? - Yup, that's true.
But it's also a bit intense to like, audition people every year
'cause there's no security there, right? No stability.
I definitely think that there needs to be
more mutual understanding of the roles management plays
and the roles musicians play in an organisation.
Because I'm sure a lot of times,
if musicians just understood admin's concerns,
it would make sense.
Personally, I think it'd be cool to see a lot more orchestras
just be a bit more courageous and try different things.
And there are definitely already orchestras out there doing that.
Orchestras that tackle specialised repertoire,
or they have different concert experiences.
Anything to keep it from becoming too repetitive, I think.
I don't know, maybe like, have 1st and 2nd violin switch parts.
- Yeah, actually. - I don't know, just a suggestion.
It's not like the 2nd violins are worse.
That's totally wrong. They can totally switch out.
And maybe the 1st violin can chill out a bit,
not always getting the hard parts.
I can imagine being a 1st violin,
sometimes you play, you're like, "Frick, man."
I gotta practice so much more.
- Yeah... - At least the violin section would be a lot more interesting.
- Yeah. - For me.
I don't know if we can play viola part 'cause that's messed up.
Nah, no...
- Switching instruments. - I don't want to.
Guys, I take it back. No swapping.
I think there just needs to be enough variety.
I feel like sometimes in an orchestra,
it feels like you're rehearsing towards the point of the concert.
And that's it.
And then next week, you're rehearsing to the point of the concert.
That's it.
- If somehow an orchestra could feel like they're getting better over time. - Yeah...!
The same way- I heard this from one of my very old violin teachers.
I don't know if it's true.
When he first came into a new orchestra as chief conductor,
he spent one month every day without a concert...
just getting this orchestra together to form its own unique sound.
- Oh, that's cool! - Right?
Oh, I'll be down!
You're trying to find as an orchestra...
what are we actually trying to collectively do?
- And how do we become better over time? - Yeah.
I think that's cool.
- 'Cause then you're creating a certain personality with an orchestra. - Yeah.
But look, all in all, I do miss orchestra playing.
- Yes. - I think it's a great experience if you get the chance to play in it.
I still think for many musicians, to be a soloist
or to be a professional orchestral musician in a great orchestra
is like a dream job.
Oh yeah!
You get paid to play the music that you love.
And you get paid for your passion.
And you get to perform with
- great soloists when they come visit you. - Yes!
Oh, that was one of the best parts!
You get paid to listen to them while you're playing with them,
and with a great conductor there, you know, to inspire you.
And then an audience there
that cares about your music and listening to you.
That's amazing.
It's great.
And I'd add to that, also orchestra...
For me, I learnt a lot.
- Orchestra shaped a lot of my education. - Oh yeah.
Yes.
Really understanding what composers meant
when you're playing the part.
You see the whole thing happen. You're like...
"Oh...!"
- All right. - Anyway, that's it guys.
As always...
Stay healthy, keep practicing.
And we'll see you guys next time.