- Story by Sean McIntyre

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Not so long ago, when Christian Kluxen was growing up in Denmark, there was a common expression about people with a good sense of culture and an interest in the arts. Such folks were said to have surely come from a home with a piano.

Kluxen says the phrase is used less frequently these days as younger people draw inspiration from other sources in an entertainment universe that offers unprecedented scope at the expense of less and less time to meditate on what it all means.

It香蕉视频直播檚 a disturbing trend, which the 36-year-old says has been especially noticeable in the world of classical music.

香蕉视频直播淲e are the first generation where most of us didn香蕉视频直播檛 sit down with our parents and listen to classical music,香蕉视频直播� he says. 香蕉视频直播淚 am convinced that ours is the lost generation of classical music.香蕉视频直播�

But Kluxen wouldn香蕉视频直播檛 have competed with hundreds of applicants in a multi-year process to become the 香蕉视频直播檚 new music director if he wasn香蕉视频直播檛 hopeful that change is possible. After all, we live in a world where classical music consistently evokes powerful emotions in popular films and primetime advertisements.

All we need to do, Kluxen says, is make great music accessible. Providing the opportunity to experience Beethoven香蕉视频直播檚 Symphony No. 7 performed by some of the most accomplished musicians in the world, for example, is bound to generate enthusiasm and expand people香蕉视频直播檚 musical understanding.

香蕉视频直播淐ulture is not something we make, it香蕉视频直播檚 what we are. It lies within all of us already, it just has to be found and opened up,香蕉视频直播� he says. 香蕉视频直播淢any people of my age are searching for something with depth. If we can just get them in the concert hall once, or maybe twice, they will come back.香蕉视频直播�

VSO audiences will often see Kluxen in his role as conductor, though much of his work as musical director occurs off stage as he guides the organization香蕉视频直播檚 artistic direction. Among other tasks, he香蕉视频直播檒l help create a repertoire based on the orchestra香蕉视频直播檚 strengths, recommend guest conductors and soloists, and be engaged in the process of hiring new musicians.

香蕉视频直播淭here are many people in the institution who set a way for the organization, but I香蕉视频直播檓 here to say which way the organization should be going artistically,香蕉视频直播� Kluxen said in an interview at the VSO香蕉视频直播檚 View Street headquarters, only a few hours before the public launch of the organization香蕉视频直播檚 2017/18 season.

Small Danish flags on the office香蕉视频直播檚 main reception desk welcomed Kluxen to the city and the building was charged with an atmosphere of eager anticipation and excitement over what香蕉视频直播檚 ahead. Kluxen is one of those fabulously energetic people who can spark inspiration in those who surround him.

A busy string of concerts and opera performances across Sweden, Germany, Norway, Denmark and Finland saw Kluxen spend fewer than 10 nights in his own bed during the first three months of 2017. Despite the gruelling schedule, Kluxen landed in Victoria with the same confidence, energy and enthusiasm that enabled him to complete a three-year assistant conductorship at the in 2013, and undertake a at the in the 2014/15 season.

He香蕉视频直播檚 conducted orchestras around the world. After his brief stay in Victoria and a well-deserved two-week reprieve, he was off to Italy, the United Kingdom, Ireland and Romania before returning to the West Coast in early summer.

Accompanying this impressive resum茅, however, is a comforting genuineness.

Within 48 hours of his arrival in Victoria, Kluxen had already gotten to know the young owners of a new cafe across from the VSO香蕉视频直播檚 downtown headquarters, received an impromptu city tour from his hotel香蕉视频直播檚 concierge and got a sense of the city香蕉视频直播檚 folk scene from some local musicians.

Kluxen likes to consider himself a normal guy with an extraordinary job. His interests are pretty commonplace: cooking, drawing, drinking and making crazy plans for the future with his girlfriend. Musically, his interests are understandably diverse, ranging from Radiohead and Rage Against the Machine to Duke Ellington and Ella Fitzgerald.

香蕉视频直播淚 don香蕉视频直播檛 go around hearing music inside my head all the time,香蕉视频直播� he says. 香蕉视频直播淧eople often think that conductors and musicians are a mirror of what they saw in a movie like Amadeus, but I think you香蕉视频直播檒l find that most of them are really normal people. If they hear music all the time, everywhere they go, this would probably require some hours with a psychologist instead.香蕉视频直播�

Kluxen is funny, opinionated and refreshingly unafraid to speak his mind. Qualities likes these bode well for a conductor eager to inspire a broader, new generation of classical music lovers and for one who香蕉视频直播檚 been given the keys to chart the VSO香蕉视频直播檚 artistic direction.

Sporting jeans, a black T-shirt and a simple blazer, Kluxen was dressed in the casually stylish uniform of the up-and-coming generation of millennials who refuse to curb their hopes and dreams to facilitate business as usual. He says he香蕉视频直播檚 got nothing to gain from putting on airs to sound older, wiser or more sophisticated. His life is an ever-evolving journey, and Kluxen doesn香蕉视频直播檛 shy away from confidently speaking from the heart.

香蕉视频直播淚香蕉视频直播檓 just myself and I will always speak my thoughts,香蕉视频直播� he says.

Kluxen香蕉视频直播檚 candour is infectious. It香蕉视频直播檚 not long before he feels like an old friend who is able to laugh, confide and commiserate. He switches seamlessly from talking about the emotional weight of a great piece of music, the tragic consequences of funding cuts to local arts and culture and the power of music to address society香蕉视频直播檚 ills.

香蕉视频直播淚 conduct in many places and, basically, I have to say it makes me very optimistic to always see that people are just people and that, actually, we all do the same things in slightly different ways,香蕉视频直播� he says.

香蕉视频直播淚 do this job because I like it, but I also believe that it has the power to change something for some people.香蕉视频直播�

Thankfully, it may not be long until the family piano gets placed back in its rightful place after all.