Music department's Troy Peters says adieu

Author: Dana Walters

Troy Peters, 14-year resident of Vermont and conductor of both the Middlebury College Orchestra and the Vermont Youth Orchestra, will be leaving this icy land at the end of the academic year to conduct the San Antonio Youth Orchestra in Texas.

Orchestra members are already lamenting the end of Peters's five-year tenure as their director. Violinist Kathryn Nagel '12 expressed her sorrow, saying, "We'll all be sad to see him go, and I can only hope he'll do for his new students as much as he has done for us."

Peters has collaborated with Trey Anastasio of Phish, received seven ASCAP Awards for adventurous programming and had Vermont Governor Jim Douglas '72 dedicate an entire day to him. Sheepishly admitting that most of his time outside the practice rooms and rehearsal spaces he frequents is spent in earnest competition jumping colorful squares playing Candyland with his two young children, Peters exudes eloquence and charm when he talks about music and his life.

His departure, which is met with sadness and fond memories on both his part and that of his students, arises not from any inherent dissatisfaction with his current situation, but from a personal inclination towards new and exciting adventures. This risk-taking demeanor, however, did not manifest itself until late in high school for the conductor. Before he decided to embark on a musical path, his leaning was towards politics and law, but after working as a Senate page, he realized the exhausting lifestyle of the politician was not for him. Music, while also tiring, did not lend itself particularly to the sort of weary collapse he saw in the Senate. Even at its most draining, music appeared to hold the power of renewal and rejuvenation that other fields did not have.

Ironically, music was not a large part of his childhood growing up; his father was a navy officer and his mother a librarian. But when he found the viola through school, the notes on the page soon overwhelmed his life. After graduating from the Curtis Institute of Music and the University of Pennsylvania, he made significant strides within the music world that were defined by an interest in diversity and the same adventurous attitude that now compels him towards this current career transfer.

Peters's penchant for innovation and novelty still threads itself throughout his musical life. In addition to a recent interest in blending electronics and classical music, the conductor enjoys the freedom Middlebury gives him by awarding opportunities to college students in the realms of composition and solos. In the last five years alone, he has exhibited six new pieces by Middlebury students, a feat that is rare in the world of academia. The College, fortunately, has made it easy for him to hand out such chances. "The department is committed to composition as an integral part of what's going on," said Peters. Indeed, his faith in Middlebury as a rare and special place is evident as he beams with excitement when expressing the joy he receives from teaching and experiencing music with young people. Students constantly grant him the fortune of seeing the thrill associated with playing a piece of music they love for the first time. "When you get old like me, you don't have that same journey of discovery," Peters joked.

That energy, he explained, is what he will really miss about Middlebury. For him, the College has been a resource of never-ending vigor and excitement. "Even when people are so exhausted, there's still this great reservoir of energy that you can tap into," he said. Even while he has dabbled in almost all parts of music, including composition, performance and radio, teaching young people has always been an integral part of his career.

Vermont has become a special place for Peters, who values the community aspect of the state more than anything. Working with the Vermont Youth Orchestra has been one of the best parts of his life in this rural atmosphere. Highlights include taking the children to China and to Carnegie Hall. In San Antonio, Peters will be working with a group of talented children similar to those he has seen here in Vermont.

Hopefully Peters will be able to bring the same attitude about music down South. While certain aspects of the states are not similar, such as the politics and weather, the conductor's enthusiasm for his work is bound to be just as much of a success there as it has been here. When asked to name his favorite composer, Peters hesitated, but soon settled on Brahms because of his ability to evoke the "perfect blend of overwhelming passion with really disciplined intellect."

"All music is about that balance," said Peters. If the director is correct, he should be resoundingly accepted within any atmosphere, for the qualities he loves in Brahms emanate just as strongly from his words when he talks about his ardor for music. One must believe that due to his optimistic outlook, the years he has invested here at Middlebury will resonate even after he says goodbye, and a touch of Peters's passion will endure in the College's music.