On Monday nights you will find the Fayette Philharmonic Youth Orchestra (FPYO) rehearsing with Conductor James Hagberg. A retired high school orchestra director, Hagberg sends his baton flourishing in the air with rhythmic beats, pushing and pulling puffs of air as a wizard might with his magical wand, drawing out harmonizing sounds from his young musicians to make the music come alive.
On stage, he is an authority figure with a certain mystique. Hagberg is self-effacing, “Honestly, I can’t identify what all that magic is,” but conceded that, “Some conductors have that special charisma, and I don’t think that you can teach that. It’s just natural.”
During FPYO rehearsals, Hagberg is goal-focused, preferring to zero in on a few sections that are musically challenging rather than technically challenging. A passage that is difficult to play can be surmounted by intentional practice with applied techniques, but a musically challenging passage requires careful attention to the flow and phrasing of the music, which often trips up the younger players.
Growing up in Sioux City, Iowa, Hagberg spent hours at a music store with row after row of conductor scores. Later, when he listened to the radio at home, he realized that he had seen the same music at the store. He could identify the symphony being played as well as when each section of the orchestra would come in next.
Before coming to teach in Peachtree City, James Hagberg was known as Maestro Hagberg for 21 seasons as the conductor and co-founder of the Brazosport Symphony Orchestra in Lake Jackson, TX. His passion for conducting began in junior high when he felt an intense calling to follow a career path that would connect him to musicians, composers, and audiences for a lifetime.
After earning his Bachelor of Music in violin performance from Morningside College, he completed his Master of Music from Shepherd School of Music at Rice University. His teacher and mentor, Samuel Jones, "taught me more about music than I thought possible, and instilled in me that ability that sets me off from other conductors.” Jones counseled Hagberg to not listen to the recordings of other people’s performances when he was learning how to conduct a music piece.
As Hagberg regales his many experiences in conducting, one can’t help but admire his gusto for the art. It is shaped by the conductor’s understanding and interpretation of the composer’s work. The selection of music pieces to perform is an important consideration because the capabilities of an ensemble have to be assessed to offer a successful performance.
Hagberg is also a composer writing anthems for his church, Christ Our Shepherd Lutheran Church (site of FPYO rehearsals and concerts). The composition that is most dear to him is Elegy, a piece he wrote in memory of his sister, Susan, who passed away in 1996. After her death, Hagberg kept hearing a melody with a specific harmony over and over again in his head. In 2001, he was able to finally pen the score and performed it at his last concert with the Brazosport Symphony Orchestra.
In 2010, Hagberg’s McIntosh High School advanced string orchestra was invited to perform at Carnegie Hall. In addition to showcasing the string version of Elegy, Hagberg chose Tchaikovsky’s Serenade for Strings. Tchaikovsky conducted it for the Hall's inaugural concert in 1891. Attendees to the FPYO spring concert in April were treated to a performance of Elegy.
Visit FPYO.org for more information and future concert dates!
“Honestly, I can’t identify what all that magic is.”