By Robert Hentschel
Emma Sholl, one of the youngest musicians ever appointed to the Sydney Symphony Orchestra (SSO) and recently selected as Principal Flute, is among the best flautists in Australia.
I met with Emma at a bustling cafe in Glebe and, as I spent time with her, what stood out was not only her love of music, but her love of people and connections.
Sholl was exposed to music from early on, and her father played the clarinet and guitar.
“Some of my earliest memories are singing songs with him when he used to play the guitar,” she said. “They’re really lovely memories.”
Her romance with the flute began when she was seven.
“We knew that there was a [school] band. And [my father] said, ‘Well, if you want to go in the band, why don’t we decide which instrument you’d like to play?’,” said Sholl.
“So he took me to a music shop. And I was just drawn to the flute. You know, it was shiny. It was exciting. The person in the shop said, ‘It’s really hard to make a sound on the flute the first time, but see how you go’. And I managed to make a sound, so they said, ‘Oh, that’s good!’.”
“And then it was just very lucky that I ended up with such an inspiring teacher as my first teacher, and that really cemented my love of it.”
Emma’s first teacher was my sister, Karin Hentschel.
“She was amazing,” Sholl said. “You found her very inspiring. She was just so full of life and enthusiasm. And so she made it really fun. She’s got a great sense of humour, so I just thought she was brilliant.
“There’s no doubt about it in my mind that you can decide to love a subject because of the teacher. And I think that in this case I had both. I actually loved music, but having those early years being really inspired by a teacher is most of the battle.
“Karin was really great because she – on purpose – was always setting new challenges and not telling you that you were amazing at something all the time, but saying, ‘Well, that’s great. What do we do next? That’s great. What do we do next?’ I really remember enjoying the challenge. Being extended, improving, seeing what you can do next. And it hasn’t really ever changed.”
For her part, Karin loved teaching Emma and recognised her talent.
“She was the perfect combination of diligence and ability and personality. She was just the perfect, perfect student,” Hentschel said.
Even though Emma moved on to other teachers, she stayed in touch with Karin.
“She would get in touch. And then she’d go, ‘I miss you’. And I was like, ‘What? You miss me?’ That was really astounding,” said Hentschel. “That she had a place for me, in amongst everything that a young person has – that she thought to keep in touch.
“The more we saw of each other, the more we got to know about each other, and developed a more intimate friendship. And, you know, she’s just the most beautiful soul. She’s absolutely gorgeous. Who wouldn’t want her as friend?”
Emma’s deep love of music shines through in our cafe conversation.
“Playing music is a really incredible outlet. Still now, after having been in the profession for 25 years, it just grows and grows, you know? There’s always more to discover. And as you have more life experience you find more connections emotionally,” Sholl said.
“You can be sitting there – and even last week we were playing the Passacaglia from the Shostakovich Violin Concerto with this incredible Greek soloist – but just, like, feeling this flood of emotions when the music is so moving. So you can be sitting there and then you have goosebumps. You can be sitting there and you have tears welling in your eyes … it’s a job that is so connected to you as a person somehow.
“We played a little concert at a retirement village recently. So, just a chamber concert with a wind quintet as well as a bass clarinet. And people were coming up to us afterwards with tears in their eyes saying, ‘It means so much to us to hear this music up close. Thank you so much for playing for us’. It’s pretty amazing to see the effect that it has. That music has that capacity to move people.”
Having recently assumed the Principal Flute position in the SSO, Sholl is taking on more of a leadership role within the orchestra.
“Collegiality is really important,” she said. “To me, you play better with people if you are generous. You know, if you work as people, as well as musicians, as well as co-workers. Some of my best friends are in the orchestra. I sit next to one of my best friends and I think we play really well together because of that, and the openness and the respect for each other. So fostering that openness I think is something that I’d like to keep working on with everyone.”
Another of Sholl’s roles is as Senior Lecturer in Flute at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music.
“I love teaching,” she said. “I was so inspired by my teachers. I want to give back in that way too, and continue the legacy of all those wonderful teachers that I learned from. And then you see those students teaching little kids, and then they’re getting bigger and teaching older kids. And it’s really wonderful to see that cycle continue.”
Sholl has had a remarkable career as a flautist, receiving multiple awards, performing with numerous orchestras and working with some of the world’s greatest conductors. I asked her to what she attributes her success.
“A love of of music,” she said. “And the desire to keep learning, the idea that you never reach the endpoint. And I think also enjoying working with people. If you didn’t enjoy working with people, you couldn’t be in an orchestra. Because that is a huge part of it. I really like working with people, and that idea that you’re better as a collective, you know. What’s that quote? ‘A star team, not a team of stars’.
“One of my favourite things about playing is the sounds that you make when you combine with other instruments, that you can’t produce just on your own. I love that aspect of orchestral playing. It’s really wonderful.
“It’s been an incredibly rewarding career. It’s come with its stresses, it comes with its pressures, but they’re certainly worth it. And music is incredible. So to make a life in music, it feels like a privilege.”
Feature image: Emma Sholl has a love of music, people and connections. Photo: Supplied
