Claremont doctor donates time to promote a global symphony

COURIER photo/Gabriel Fenoy

Dr. Monica Curlin at home next to her flute and piccolo. In addition to her participation with the World Doctors Orchestra, Dr. Culrlin is also involved with the Claremont Winds concert band, the Claremont Symphony and the Pomona Valley Musician’s Club.

Claremont doctor donates time to promote a global symphony

“Music will save the world,” the Spanish cellist and conductor Pablo Casals once said. Little did he know that on February 8, his words would hit the mark as 80 physicians from 14 countries traded white robes and stethoscopes for black suits and classical instruments. It was the US debut of the World Doctors Orchestra at the famous Severance Hall in Cleveland, Ohio.

Kaiser dermatologist Dr. Monica Curlin, proud representative of the Claremont medical and musical community, was glad to share her experience four days after the concert.

“It was wonderful. The Hall is a jewel box and we filled it up,” Dr. Curlin said about the 2100-seat neo-classical home of the Cleveland Orchestra built in the early 1930s.

Dr. Curlin, who plays the flute and the piccolo, did not participate in the debut of the World Doctors Orchestra on May 4, 2008 in the Berlin Philharmonic Hall. When she arrived in Cleveland a few days before the American debut, she was excited to meet conductor Stefan Willich, the man who founded the WDO in 2007 in order to create a “global symphony” and “foster the international understanding and networking of physicians” around the world.

Dr. Curlin was fascinated with the non-profit aspect of the undertaking. “Physicians donate their time and effort and cover their own travel and local costs,” she explained. Besides, all proceeds from tickets will go to 2 non-profit medical aid organizations—the Hugo Tempelman Foundation of Elandsdoorn, South Africa, and the Free Medical Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio.

Dr. Curlin was ecstatic to make new friends from near and far. “Many of the international physicians had never been to the U.S. before and some did not speak English very well, but once we started playing music, we understood each other perfectly,” Dr. Curlin remembered.

All participants received their music in December and were responsible for practicing on their own. “Doctors take everything very seriously,” Dr. Curlin joked. “All of us were extremely well prepared.” During the 3 days before the concert they spent 12 hours rehearsing together and had a successful informal dress rehearsal in Cleveland.

“We knew the pieces so well already, but the hours of rehearsals helped us become friends,” Dr. Curlin explained with a smile. She met doctors from Spain and Germany and did a great job popularizing Claremont. “They all want to come play here!”

COURIER photo/Gabriel Fenoy

Physician and musician Dr. Monica Curlin plays the flute inside her Claremont home. Dr. Curlin recently participated in the World Doctors Orchestra concert in Cleveland, Ohio.

For Dr. Curlin the concert was a fantastic experience. It opened with Copland’s “An Outdoor Overture,” an American piece that set the mood appropriately, followed by Beethoven’s Triple Concerto in C Major and Brahms’ Symphony No. 1 in C Minor. Professional soloists Sergey Babayan (piano), Saeunn Thorsteinsdottir (cello), and Annie Fullard (violin) gave the performance a first-class quality.

“Babayan was the performance's spark plug, alternating between fierce articulation and ethereal delicacy,” wrote Donald Rosenberg for the Cleveland Plain Dealer. “His colleagues provided complementary pleasures, Fullard's gleaming artistry and Thorsteinsdottir's lyrical warmth adding dramatic flair and chamber-music intimacy. Willich and company sounded inspired by their guests' charismatic contributions.”

The encore, Sousa’s “The Stars and Stripes Forever,” was Dr. Curlin’s star moment of the performance. In the words of Mr. Rosenberg, the “sole (terrific) piccolo” at the end helped “to keep all spirits in good health.”

The positive reviews echoed the performers’ sentiments after the concert. At a reception with soloists, local doctors, patients, students, and members of the community, Dr. Curlin discovered “a whole new way to connect with people.”

She already looks forward to the next benefit concert that takes place on July 4, 2009 in Berlin. Founder and conductor Stefan Willich will direct pieces by Mozart and Gustav Mahler.

Back in Claremont, Dr. Curlin is smoothly returning to her routine at Kaiser and involvement with the Claremont Winds, the Pomona Valley Musician’s Club, and the Claremont Symphony. A busy mom who is married with 4 children, she always finds a way to fit music into her busy schedule.

She tries to play for 30 to 60 minutes every day and her children dance around and enjoy the tunes. Music is a very social activity for Dr. Curlin, whose friends meet at her house once a week to play. “After a tough day of being a doctor, I want to come home and escape,” she said with a smile.

—Savina Velkova