Zach De Pue has been appointed Concertmaster of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and will begin his position in September 2007. Previously he was a violinist in The Philadelphia Orchestra. Since 1985, he and his three violin-playing brothers have performed together as The De Pue Brothers. In addition, he is a founding member of the chamber group Time for Three, consisting of two violinists and a bassist. Mr. De Pue will continue to perform with both The De Pue Brothers and Time for Three in all of their concerts and recordings.

A native of Bowling Green, Ohio, Mr. De Pue graduated from the Curtis Institute of Music in 2002, where he served as Concertmaster of the Curtis Symphony Orchestra during the 2000-2001 Season. At Curtis, his mentors included Jaime Laredo and Ida Kavafian. Prior to that, he studied at the Cleveland Institute of Music with William Preucil, Concertmaster of the Cleveland Orchestra. Mr. De Pue made his solo debut with the Toledo Symphony Orchestra in 1994 and performed as soloist with the World Youth Symphony Orchestra in 1995. In 1998, he received third prize in both the International Stulberg String Competition and the senior division of the Fischoff Chamber Music Competition. He was Concertmaster for the 2000 New York String Seminar Orchestra.

An avid chamber musician, Mr. De Pue has performed across the United States and in Israel. As a member of the Grancino String Quartet, he performed at the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts and at Carnegie Hall's Weill Recital Hall. As a member of the Ornati String Quartet, he has performed on the main stage at Carnegie Hall and participated in The La Jolla Chamber Music Festival. He has participated in many leading chamber music festivals, including Angel Fire, Saratoga, La Jolla and Sarasota, as well as the Isaac Stern Chamber Music Workshops both at Carnegie Hall and in Jerusalem.

SPOTLIGHT ON ZACH DE PUE, CONCERTMASTER
INDIANAPOLIS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
By Geoffrey S. Lapin

Joining us as the 14th Concertmaster of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra is 28 year-old Zach De Pue. A native of Bowling Green, Ohio, Zach graduated from the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia in 2002, after studying one year at The Cleveland Institute, with a major in music, and minor in English.

You’re from a family of musicians…
There is music in our blood – it’s always been abundant in the family:  both my parents are musicians.  My dad is a composer, and taught composition and theory at Bowling Green State University, and my mother (deceased) was a concert pianist. My brothers Jason, Alex, and Wallace are all violinists, too, and we have our own group, ‘The De Pue Brothers.’ We combine classical with bluegrass, with Alex also on guitar, and me sometimes on mandolin. But nobody else outside of my brothers and me are professional musicians, except for my cousin Isaiah from Grand Rapids who is in a band, and they tour out of a beat-up van!

Where will you be performing with your other group this season?  The concert schedule for Time for Three is busy. We have concerts in about 20 states across the U.S., a debut in Singapore, and locally will give a concert in Muncie, Indiana on February 18-19.  The big project of the year will be a new concerto by Jennifer Higdon which we will premiere with The Philadelphia Orchestra in January of ’08.  There are two other commissioning orchestras on the project, the Wheeling Symphony Orchestra and The Pittsburgh Symphony.

How long were you with the Philadelphia Orchestra?
I got the gig in the middle of my fourth year at Curtis. I was with Philly 4 years playing, while the fifth year was a leave of absence for me.  I had plans to stay in school a 5th year, but the job pulled me away from school.

Who were your principal teachers?
Vasile Beluska, Bill Preucil, Ida Kavafian, and Jaime Laredo. The last three have Indiana ties, since Ida and Jamie are so well associated with the International Violin Competition of Indianapolis, and Bill Preucil studied at Indiana University with Josef Gingold.

Who made your instrument?
Ferdinand Gagliano of Naples, Italy, in 1757.  All I know about it so far is that it sat in a woman’s closet for many years. I bought it four years ago from a dealer in Philly, Fred Oster. I had spent a year looking for an instrument, and just couldn't find anything that could beat this violin. I like the way it sounds, responds, projects, and just feels in my hands.

Any ideas on how you are going to be “working” with our string sections, such as perhaps changing our sound?
At the end of the day, our sound will reflect what the Maestro wants.   The more we each individually can play passionately, I think the more we will have to “say” as a unit.  It’s really a balance of playing as big as possible as an individual, but always with a sense of togetherness. If I can influence this ensemble in a positive way, I hope it’s in a way that makes everyone look forward to playing together, and continue to take pride in the ensemble.

Where are you living in Indy?
My cat Joey and I are in an apartment downtown, within walking distance of the theatre.

What non-musical things you do for fun?
Movies, the occasional book, Frisbee, running, eating and drinking, watching sports, especially college football (go Buckeyes!). I love eating all kinds of food - junk food, sushi, steak, Italian, Mexican, Thai, Vietnamese, Greek. And drinking - anything and everything...