{"id":102800,"date":"2024-03-27T12:44:24","date_gmt":"2024-03-27T16:44:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/?p=102800"},"modified":"2024-03-27T14:00:02","modified_gmt":"2024-03-27T18:00:02","slug":"interview-hrishikesh-hirway-talks-song-exploders-10th-anniversary-symphony-exploder-toronto-symphony-orchestra","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2024\/03\/27\/interview-hrishikesh-hirway-talks-song-exploders-10th-anniversary-symphony-exploder-toronto-symphony-orchestra\/","title":{"rendered":"INTERVIEW | Hrishikesh Hirway Talks About Song Exploder\u2019s 10th Anniversary: Symphony Exploder With The Toronto Symphony Orchestra"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_102801\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-102801\" style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-102801\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/03\/Copy-of-INTERVIEW-3.jpg\" alt=\"Song Exploder podcaster and musician Hrishikesh Hirway (Photo courtesy of Ash Green)\" width=\"1200\" height=\"628\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/03\/Copy-of-INTERVIEW-3.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/03\/Copy-of-INTERVIEW-3-300x157.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/03\/Copy-of-INTERVIEW-3-1024x536.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/03\/Copy-of-INTERVIEW-3-768x402.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-102801\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Hrishikesh Hirway (Photo courtesy of Ash Green)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Hrishikesh Hirway\u2019s hit podcast first saw the light of day on January 1, 2014. This year, he\u2019s celebrating its 10th anniversary in a unique collaboration with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra \u2013 Symphony Exploder on April 5.<\/p>\n<p>The popular podcast delves into the stories behind some of pop music\u2019s favourite songs, revealing the artistic process in candid interviews with its creators, and playbacks.<\/p>\n<p>Symphony Exploder will take the same lens to Igor Stravinsky\u2019s seminal The Rite of Spring, with maestro Gustavo Gimeno diving into the music with his conductor\u2019s understanding of the work. The unique twist will be the presence of the TSO, whose members will perform excerpts to illustrate various points, and then end the event with a full performance of The Rite of Spring.<\/p>\n<p>Hirway has done many live events before, but this will be the first with live music performance.<\/p>\n<p>We spoke to the musician and podcaster about Song Exploder, and Symphony Exploder.<\/p>\n<div class=\"jetpack-video-wrapper\"><span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/imiR9fK9YZg?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation\"><\/iframe><\/span><\/div>\n<h2>Hrishikesh Hirway: The Interview<\/h2>\n<p>While the podcast was launched in 2014, the work began some time before. \u201cI started working on the podcast as an idea back in 2013,\u201d he recalls.<\/p>\n<p>The idea arose from his own experiences as a musician. As he\u2019d recorded and released four of his own albums, he\u2019d been struck by the many points along the way that would prove pivotal to the finished work \u2014 ideas and inspiration moments, the stories about what happened along the way, the many random decisions that could have gone either way.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere&#8217;s never really a chance for people to hear those ideas.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Looking at a song\u2019s component parts, listening to how it came together, and all the choices that were made along the way when it comes to lyrics and arrangements, reveals a great deal about the creative process.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI started the podcast really in response to my own desire.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He was also inspired, in part, by his college days studying art, and the process of weekly crits, where half the class would show their work, and the other half offered reactions.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was really exciting and interesting to me.\u201d He recalls his fascination in the way that each classmate\u2019s ideas were so different, and so specific to their experiences.<\/p>\n<p>When he began Song Exploder, he found the experience was similar. \u201cEverybody is thinking about music in a very different way,\u201d he says, \u201c&#8230; answering the question, how do you make a song? has never been answered the same way twice.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>How have the artists felt about this kind of deep dive into their process?<\/p>\n<p>He says their immediate reaction is often one of gratitude and appreciation. It\u2019s rare to have to have the chance to talk about songwriting in such detail. \u201cA lot times, the process of making music is so instinctive \u2014 you&#8217;re not thinking about how you&#8217;re thinking about it [at the time],\u201d he notes.<\/p>\n<p>The process itself often draws out new revelations, even as playing demos and earlier versions of the song allow them to relive its whole history. t<\/p>\n<p>The process of creating and producing Song Exploder has changed his own artistic practices.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOh yes, absolutely, in ways that I hoped for, and in some ways that I didn&#8217;t really hope for at all,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<p>In many ways, he says the experience was like one of those Masters programs where you design your own major, creating his own curriculum that let him learn from other people\u2019s experiences.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI have gotten so much just from being exposed to other people&#8217;s ideas,\u201d he says. He\u2019s driven by curiosity, and many of his interview subjects have responded in kind. \u201cIt&#8217;s been incredibly fulfilling for me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Talking about the creative process has also freed him in many ways. \u201cIt&#8217;s been remarkably liberating for me as a songwriter and as an artist,\u201d he says. He interviews people whose work and artistry he respects, and their stories of the complicated, and often haphazard, way that the final version is reached freed him. \u201cI have had a default mode of being a perfectionist for much of my life,\u201d he says. There\u2019s no one perfect way to do it. \u201cIn so many cases, those origins are quite shaggy. It\u2019s inspiring.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_102802\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-102802\" style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-102802\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/03\/Copy-of-Copy-of-INTERVIEW-5.jpg\" alt=\"L-R: The Toronto Symphony Orchestra (Photo: Allan Cabral); Gustavo Gimeno (Photo: Marco Borggreve)\" width=\"1200\" height=\"628\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/03\/Copy-of-Copy-of-INTERVIEW-5.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/03\/Copy-of-Copy-of-INTERVIEW-5-300x157.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/03\/Copy-of-Copy-of-INTERVIEW-5-1024x536.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/03\/Copy-of-Copy-of-INTERVIEW-5-768x402.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-102802\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">L-R: The Toronto Symphony Orchestra (Photo: Allan Cabral); Gustavo Gimeno (Photo: Marco Borggreve)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3>10 Year Anniversary: Symphony Exploder<\/h3>\n<p>When he began Song Exploder, Hirway thought of it as a one-year experiment. Would it take off at all? He initial response encouraged him to go on, but he believes that if not Song Exploder, something along the same lines would have popped up on the horizon. Audiences and fans are looking for more ways to connect with the music they love.<\/p>\n<p>In the last decade, there are more and more. \u201cSince then, I feel like I have noticed a proliferation of media that allows people into the creative process.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He notes that it\u2019s a specific kind of education crossed with fandom. People love the music, and they want more of it, and DIY media like podcasting allows them ever more creative ways of expressing that fandom. There is also a back and forth, or a kind of trickledown that sees renewed interest in older works as a result.<\/p>\n<p>Hrishikesh played drums in bands in high school, and didn\u2019t have classical training per se. However, when he started the podcast, childhood experiences in a school concert with Prokofiev\u2019s Peter and the Wolf, and the way the sounds portrayed the characters, stuck in his mind. \u201cIt sparked so much in my imagination,\u201d he recalls. He calls the concept a big influence.<\/p>\n<p>Symphony Exploder, going fully live, including music performance, is the realization of an idea he\u2019d been thinking of for a while. \u201cI had fantasized about the idea of doing something like this,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<div class=\"jetpack-video-wrapper\"><span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/rKk8jX3VV04?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation\"><\/iframe><\/span><\/div>\n<p>After 10 years with Song Exploder, he\u2019s ready to branch out a little. \u201cI think one of the things that&#8217;s really exciting for me, is that there&#8217;s enough of a foundation for the show [&#8230;] that I can experiment with it, and take it to new places,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<p>Using orchestral music allows him to pick apart the score in a ways that would prove difficult with other types of music. \u201cWhat is the violin doing between bars 80 and 90?\u201d Orchestral music performed live allows for that kind of specificity.<\/p>\n<p>It was the Toronto Symphony Orchestra who reached out to the podcaster first. \u201cWhen the TSO approached me about doing this event, it was already a yes before they asked.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Using Stravinsky\u2019s Rite of Spring was incorporated in the TSO\u2019s original proposal. It was already part of their 2023\/24 season, and the piece lends itself to discussion.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt&#8217;s a piece that provokes so many questions,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<p>While Song Exploder reveals the songwriter\u2019s process, Symphony Exploder will put Gustavo Gimeno\u2019s role as the conductor and music director under the spotlight, revealing his take on the music.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m really excited for it.\u201d<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Find out more about the event, and get tickets, [<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tso.ca\/concerts-and-events\/events\/symphony-exploder\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">HERE<\/a><\/strong>].<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong><em>Are you looking to promote an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/advertising\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"color: #0e101a\"><u>event<\/u><\/span><\/a>? Have a\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/masthead\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><u>news tip<\/u><\/a>? Need to know the best <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/events\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><u>events<\/u><\/a>\u00a0happening this weekend? Send us a\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><a href=\"mailto:anya@ludwig-van.com?subject=Let's%20chat\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong><em><u>note<\/u>.<\/em><\/strong><br \/>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<h3 class=\"western\"><em><b>#LUDWIGVAN<\/b><\/em><\/h3>\n<p class=\"western\"><em>Get the daily arts news straight to your inbox.<\/em><\/p>\n<h3 class=\"western\"><em>Sign up for the Ludwig Van Toronto e-Blast! \u2014 local classical music and opera news straight to your inbox <\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/583e6ce0-dfd0-48be-8a33-61256b3c58e3.mlbtlr.com\/p2\/Fbd8jWoWQQ6CdBcLIvut3Q\/02E3cYaETqaj4Xm087cpSg?contactid=S3HHYfHY5rZv5f94S15MnA\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/583e6ce0-dfd0-48be-8a33-61256b3c58e3.mlbtlr.com\/p2\/Fbd8jWoWQQ6CdBcLIvut3Q\/02E3cYaETqaj4Xm087cpSg?contactid%3DS3HHYfHY5rZv5f94S15MnA&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1695737525351000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0QTqKRwRJQFGK3KoJYigxX\">HERE<\/a>.<\/h3>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Hrishikesh Hirway is celebrating podcast Song Exploder&#8217;s 10th anniversary in a unique collaboration with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra \u2013 Symphony Exploder.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":64,"featured_media":102801,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[40967,76,18,19,4967,29,4557,63],"tags":[22538,40872,3360],"yst_prominent_words":[23164,15579,6616,36392,11629,27601,13014,6637,6826,6827,6825],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2024\/03\/Copy-of-INTERVIEW-3.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9bakr-qK4","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102800"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/64"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=102800"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102800\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":102808,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102800\/revisions\/102808"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/102801"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=102800"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=102800"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=102800"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=102800"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}