Orchestra Leader Just as Notable as Kids’ Conduct

Try to picture exposing Mozart, Handel or even Duke Ellington, to fifth-graders--rowdy, antsy, rambunctious, self-focused kids with short attention spans.

Monday morning I was watching the Orange County Youth Symphony Orchestra perform for 1,500 fifth-graders at the Orange County Performing Arts Center in Costa Mesa. Pam Ludwig, director of the Joan Irvine Smith Fine Arts Center, who was sitting next to me, said, “Just look at how attentive they all are.”

I’d been so absorbed in the music I’d forgotten to watch the crowd. These youngsters were fascinated by what they saw and heard from the stage. They were as well behaved (better perhaps) as most audiences at an orchestra concert. And their cheers were just as enthusiastic.

John Koshak, conductor of the Youth Symphony Orchestra, told me later: “For some of these kids, that may well be the only concert they ever attend. But for others, something may have clicked. They might not become music majors, but maybe we’ll get them started on making good music a part of their lives.”

Before the school year is out, 24,000 Orange County fifth-graders will enjoy the same concert I saw. Young dancers from Coast Ballet Theatre added artistic flair to some of the music. And John-David Keller of South Coast Repertory is magnificent narrating as Benjamin Franklin, weaving American history with the history of music.

And who do the parents thank for this marvelous opportunity for their children? The Philharmonic Society of Orange County.

Though it has a small paid staff, the nonprofit Philharmonic Society is basically dozens of volunteers, people in our community whose only motivation is seeing the county’s youth exposed to quality music. The “Concerts for Fifth Graders” series is just one of its programs; it has something for every grade level.

The idea is education as well as musical entertainment. Well ahead of the concert, each student receives a detailed booklet from the Philharmonic Society explaining the music. Also, their teachers show them a videotape about the music.

They learn the four parts of an orchestra: percussion, woodwinds, strings and brass. They get an overhead layout of the entire orchestra and which instruments are included. There’s even a section on important dates in American history and how they parallel important music events.

For some of the 85 performers in the Youth Symphony Orchestra--all high school students--the first exposure to symphony music came when they sat where those fifth-graders were. And Koshak knows that the future members of his youth orchestra will come from those ranks.

“They were a great audience for us,” Koshak said later. “The fifth-graders always are.”

The Baton: As I watched those extraordinary young musicians, it occurred to me that John Koshak has long been one of Orange County’s treasures. He’s been conducting this orchestra for 26 years. But this group is only his after-hours gig. Koshak is also music director and conductor for the Chapman University Symphony Orchestra, and the university’s smaller Chamber Orchestra. He’s been with those orchestras for 26 years too. And when spare time permits, he’s guest conductor all over the country.

A couple of years ago I asked Koshak, who is now 59, how he kept himself motivated to keep doing the same thing year after year. When his youth orchestra opened Monday morning with Bizet’s “Carmen, Prelude to Act I,” I realized what a stupid question that was. How could he not be energized by helping each new set of youngsters bring their raw talent together in such fluid fashion?

When we talked in his office later, he laughed about his longevity. “The kids really keep you young,” he said. “We are privileged because we get the most talented students. These young musicians are not only good in music, but they’re usually ‘A’ students in all their classes. They’re almost always exceptionally well-behaved.”

You almost need a road map to keep up with Koshak’s schedule: guest conductor last weekend for the California All-State Orchestra in Pasadena. The Fifth Grade series Monday. Rehearsals for his two university orchestras for upcoming concerts on the Chapman campus (the Symphony this Saturday, the Chamber group the next Saturday).

Sandwiched in between all this, Koshak teaches a class in conducting, and must devote time to recruiting for future Chapman orchestras. He’s also planning the county Youth Orchestra’s European tour next year. It’s a whirlwind schedule he plans to keep up until he’s too old to lift the baton.

Koshak’s office is an extension of his world. There’s a piano in the corner, busts of Beethoven and Mozart, sheet music along the walls, and scores of pictures of his concerts. There are gifts from students, such as a jack-in-the-box with a conductor resembling Koshak as Jack.

One large and fascinating picture on the wall has a story behind it. As a young man, Koshak was conducting a selection of Beethoven music at Columbia University in New York. On the way to the concert, he and his wife, Nancy, decided to walk instead of taking the subway. He says: “Along the way, in a little shop, we saw this wonderful picture of a portrait of Beethoven, and took it as a good sign for us. So we rushed in and bought it.”

Nancy Koshak, who teaches language arts in the Placentia school district, has played a major role in her husband’s music. At the beginning of his career, when he was trying to decide which direction to take his musical talent, she told him: “You’re such a natural teacher. I don’t think you’d be happy being too far away from education.”

Says Koshak: “Her words have stayed with me all these years. They took me in this direction, and I couldn’t be happier that it’s turned out this way.”

Wrap-Up: The other day I had the privilege of watching Koshak rehearse his Chamber Orchestra at Chapman’s Bertea Hall. Chapman ought to sell tickets to these rehearsals. They’re almost as delightful as the concerts.

“You don’t have to smack that note,” he cautioned his musicians at one point. “Just nudge it.” He told them something I imagine has a lot to do with why Koshak has devoted himself to these young people for 26 years: “The music is so beautiful when it’s done right.”

Jerry Hicks’ column appears Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Readers may reach Hicks by calling The Times Orange County Edition at (714) 966-7823 or by fax to (714) 966-7711, or e-mail to jerry.hicks@latimes.com