Duke Symphony Orchestra’s Maestro

Name: Harry DavidsonPosition: Professor of the practice of music; Music director and conductor of the Duke Symphony Orchestra Years at Duke: 16What I do at Duke: The management of the orchestra is quite involved because of course it’s a people organization, so you’re also dealing with about 105 individuals in the orchestra plus how the group interphases with the university in terms of the logistics of what one needs for any given rehearsal, extra players that one might need to play a piece. I spend a great deal of time in the personnel management aspect of the orchestra, as well as seeing to the music itself and rehearsing and preparing music that the students are working on. If I had $5 million, I would: Certainly pay off my debts, I know that. I’m not sure that $5 million would necessarily change my life that much, or any amount, because I’d still want to do the things that I’m doing. I wouldn’t just want to retire and read the newspaper, although I enjoy that. My first ever job: At age 12, I was working at a soft-serve ice cream stand around the corner from where I lived in Cleveland, making ice cream cones and milkshakes. My dream job: I can’t imagine a better situation than the one I’m in because I’m first and foremost a teacher. I happen to use music as my vehicle; that is who I am, to be able to share these different genres of music with so many young people and audiences.The best advice I ever received: Life is too short to try to be someone else. One ought to absolutely be the person one is and do the work one is somehow gifted and blessed to do. That to me seems like a lovely way to live. What I love about Duke: What has kept me here is the opportunity to work with and for intelligent, motivated students who want to have music in their life, and knowing that many will be leaders and important people in the world, to impart and to burnish and further their love of music, their connection to music, bringing out their own musicality so that this will be a life-long source of joy and enrichment for them. When I’m not at work, I like to: Read. I like reading The New York Times every day, and I very much enjoy literature and classics, and Shakespeare is one of my great loves as well. The Tempest is probably my favorite.     Something most people don’t know about me: I love baseball. That doesn’t really come up here very much. My team, the Seattle Mariners, had a great year comparatively this year. An interesting/memorable day at work for me: Going into Baldwin Auditorium when it was done, when it had been renovated. Walking in there for the first time and conducting there for the first time, I was very, very happy.