Leah Tagami Andonov

Leah Tagami Meredith grew up in the USA, and had no plans of pursuing music until a meeting with a Norwegian violin teacher changed everything.

− When I was seventeen, I met Alf Richard Kraggerud at a summer course. I was supposed to start studying mathematics at an American university, but Alf Richard inspired me so much that I decided then and there to move to Oslo in order to study with him.

− The audience’s response makes me the most happy

Leah has been working in the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra since 2013, and draws her most important inspiration and motivation from the listeners:

− The audience’s response is what makes me the most happy in my work as a musician, be it the applause, a few sensitive words, or just a smile that says it all. It’s the audience which confirms that the work I have done, with all my heart and will, was worth it.

The violinist has many relatives in Japan, and the tour to Japan of 2014 has so far been the highlight of her work as a musician in the Oslo Philharmonic.

− It was my first season in the orchestra, and my family came, filling 20 seats in the concert hall in Kawasaki. Sadly, I don’t get the opportunity to see my parents nor my Japanese relatives very often, but they have all been important supporters throughout my musical development. Therefore it meant so much being able to play both for my parents and my Japanese family at that concert.

− His music lies closest to my own personality

Leah has many favourite composers, and at the moment there are two in particular who distinguish themselves:

− Beethoven’s music gives me a sense of courage I can’t find anywhere else. Gabriel Fauré is another favourite; I always feel that his music lies closest to my own personality.

She believes it is the listener’s attitude which ensures a positive concert experience:

− I think the most important thing is to come to the concert with an open mind, so that you can take in powerful feelings and impressions. What is so great about art is, the closer you look, listen or read, the more you discover and enjoy.

Leah’s greatest interest outside music is literature:

− I love the old classics: Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, Dickens and Thomas Hardy, among others.