Musicians Behind the Scenes: Violinist John Bian
January 6, 2025
Where were you born? I was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
What piece of music could you play over and over again? Prokofiev’s Fifth Symphony. There’s so much fun stuff to do in that piece.
What is your most treasured possession? My violin and my bow of course!
What’s your favorite food? Peking Duck. I had it three times when we were on the China Tour [last October/November]!
Tell us about your instrument. My violin is from the mid-19th century and was made by an Englishman named John Frederick Lott II. In the middle of his life, he stopped making instruments and went on to train elephants for the circus for a time. His elephant “Mademoiselle D’Jeck” ended up assaulting a priest in Geneva and breaking his ribs. The animal was sentenced to death by canon fire then butchered and eaten by the townspeople. Afterwards Lott went back to making violins. Crazy story!
What’s in your instrument case? Rosin, pencil sharpener, extra strings and mutes, and a couple of omamori [good luck charms from Japan] from my wife.
If you could ask one composer one question, what would it be? I would ask Leonard Bernstein “Do you think you could have become an even greater composer if you weren’t also a conductor?”
What piece of music never fails to move you? Richard Strauss’s Four Last Songs.
What is the most challenging piece you have ever played? I played the Corigliano Violin Sonata for my master’s degree recital and it kicked my butt.
What do you love most about performing? How alive and connected I feel to the people on stage. In this orchestra especially, I feel an incredible energy from my colleagues and it invigorates me during every concert.
When did you join the Orchestra? In July 2024.
Do you play any other instruments? I played hammered dulcimer for a couple years in high school.
What’s your favorite Philadelphia restaurant? My wife and I went to Zahav shortly after we moved here and it was tremendous.
What are you reading right now? The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss. It was recommended to me by fellow new hire Eliot Heaton.
Do you speak any other languages? Chinese.
What do you like to do in your spare time? I love going out to the movies. The Philadelphia Film Society has great theaters that curate an awesome selection of movies both old and new.
What’s your favorite movie? Spirited Away, There Will Be Blood, Persona, and The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.
What do you love most about Philadelphia? There is so much good food. It’s hard to find a bad bite around town.
In your opinion, is there a piece of music that isn’t in the standard orchestral repertoire that should be? Stravinsky’s Jeu de cartes. It’s a fun and intricate ballet about a Joker that tries to insert himself into three different hands of poker.
What’s the first album you ever bought or downloaded? It probably wasn’t the first, but I remember buying Bach’s six Violin Sonatas and Partitas by Henryk Szeryng as a young kid. It’s an iconic recording.
What’s on your Spotify playlist? Vulfpeck, Cory Wong, Snarky Puppy, DOMi & JD Beck, Jacob Collier.
What’s your go-to karaoke song? I’m too sheepish for karaoke.
When was the first time you heard The Philadelphia Orchestra? I listened to so many of the recordings when I was a kid but the first time live was when I saw them play Brucker’s Fourth Symphony after not advancing in auditions in 2023. After feeling that Philadelphia Sound from the audience, I knew it was something I had to be a part of.
Other than Marian Anderson Hall, where is your favorite place to perform? The Cologne Philharmonie. It’s a great acoustic and at the end of the concert you get handed a cold Kölsch beer when you step off stage!
What is your favorite memory with the Orchestra? Playing Mahler’s Symphony No. 7 with Yannick last year after winning the audition was one of the most fulfilling musical experiences of my life.
What advice would you give to aspiring young musicians? Don’t practice for tomorrow, practice for 10 years from now.