Robert Ward has held the Acting Principal Horn position with the San Francisco Symphony since 2001, and been a part of the Bay area classical music scene for more than 20 years. He performs frequently in chamber concerts and is a founding member of both the Foxglove Chamber Ensemble and the symphonic brass group the Bay Brass. He is also on the faculty of the San Francisco Conservatory and the University of California at Berkeley. GREAT PERFORMANCES: How long have you been playing with the San Francisco Symphony? When did you realize that you wanted to be a musician, and why did you decide to choose the horn as your instrument? Robert Ward: I've been playing with the SFS [San Francisco Symphony] since 1980 -- 24 seasons. I played the first concerts ever given at Davies [Symphony] Hall when it opened [in the same year]. I think I thought seriously about becoming a musician when I was [a] senior in high school and was playing in five orchestras. I chose the horn when I was in fifth grade, [at the] Choose Your Instrument Day at my elementary school. My dad had been an army bugler in World War II, so the old beat-up bugle around the house was a part of my earliest memories. Since the sound on all brass instruments is produced in the same way, by "buzzing" the lips, I knew how to make a sound at a young age. Of course what I REALLY wanted to do was play the saxophone, but when I went to try one that day, I was told I had to start on the clarinet. Disappointed, I tried to make a sound on the clarinet and failed completely. So I went over [to] the brass table, picked up a horn, and played a scale on it the first time I tried it. GP: What is the most enjoyable aspect of performing a work like Tchaikovsky's Fourth Symphony? Is there a passage that you find particularly thrilling to play or moving? RW: I like being in the middle of a big romantic piece like Tchaikovsky's Fourth. The sound that surrounds me from my colleagues is thrilling and amazing, and it's great to be a part of it. There's a wonderful passage midway through the first movement where all the horns play a fortissimo unison melody, accompanied by rhythmic chords in the rest of the orchestra. That's so much fun! [To locate and listen to this passage from the first movement, go to the Multimedia Presentation: Keeping Score, click on Tchiakovsky's 4th Symphony then Four Movements, then Explore the Score.] GP: What makes Tchaikovsky's Fourth a great symphony? RW: For me, T4 is a great symphony largely because of the melodic writing. Each theme is memorable and has stood the test of time -- they are all beautiful and heartfelt. GP: In addition to studying the score and, of course, practicing your specific part, what other things do you do in preparation for a performance? RW: To prepare for a concert, I try and keep myself in good shape on the horn, but also in good shape in body, mind, and spirit. So I try and run around Lake Merritt in Oakland [California] every day, treat myself well on concert days with some sushi for dinner, look over my part in the late afternoon, maybe take a nap so that I'm refreshed and ready to go. GP: Why did you want to participate in a program that provides a behind-the-scenes look at the orchestra, and what do you hope viewers will take away from it? RW: Being a part of this project has been really interesting and enjoyable. I feel it's extremely valuable for audience members and music lovers to see us musicians as real people, committed to making wonderful music but not isolated up in the ivory tower. That connection creates a bond between the listener and the performer in a way that is more personal and more direct, and I believe that it will help the audience feel like they too are part of the experience. It's a two-way street. Text of an e-mail interview with Robert Ward for GREAT PERFORMANCES Online.