30 Years of Music and Memories in Northern Nevada

Published October 17, 2025

30 Years of Music and Memories in Northern Nevada

With the start of the 2025-26 season, I begin my 30^th season as principal bassist of the Reno Phil. It was also around that time that I started playing in the Reno Chamber Orchestra. It seems impossible that more than three decades have passed since I moved to the Truckee Meadows from Seattle to get my master’s degree at the University of Nevada, and shortly thereafter started playing in both of Reno’s professional orchestras. As I reflect on my relationships with both orchestras, a few themes bubble to the pot top of my brain, and I thought I would use this time and space to remember and riff on a few of them.

PEOPLE

I must start with my wife. On November 15, 1994, I played my first concert with the Phil. Hired to sub in the bass section, that program included the Brahms Violin Concerto with violin soloist Won-Bin Yim. The slow movement of the Brahms contains one of the most glorious oboe solos in the repertoire. That night principal oboist Andrea Lenz played it sublimely, and while it would be several years later that we wed, I always point to that performance as an early indicator that she was the one for me.

Along with Andrea came the rest of the Lenz family. Reno music would not resemble what it is today were it not for the Lenzes. Currently, five principal chairs in both the RCO and RPO are held by members of this musically miraculous clan. By my very unofficial count, over the years some 20 members of the family, spanning four generations, have performed with and/or served on the boards of the two orchestras.

While the Lenz family comprises an important part of the orchestras’ histories, it has been just a small part of the amazing community of artists who have lived and played here. As the Phil and Chamber Orchestra begin their 57^th and 51^st seasons respectively, I’m reminded that both orchestras wouldn’t exist had it not been for talented and devoted musicians from the thriving showroom scene of the 1960s and 70s. When I first started playing, many of the founding members of both groups were still very much the leaders of these two orchestras. Because of that unique professional experience, our orchestras have always had the ability to sight read, swing, play in jazz and other popular styles as part of our musical DNA. I believe that tubist Russ Dickman, who played in the very first Reno Phil concert under maestro Gregory Stone as a teenager, is the only founding parent left in either ensemble. And he still plays great!

Along with my fellow sound makers, our orchestras have had great continuity on the podium. Vahe Khochayan co-founded and led the RCO from 1974-2003. Theodore Kuchar helmed that podium from 2004-2018 and during that time started the Nevada Chamber Music Festival (NCMF). After the pandemic, maestro Kelly Kuo took over the RCO reins and today leads the orchestra with innovative and exciting programs. Internationally acclaimed cellist Clive Greensmith assumed the leadership of the NCMF in 2019.

I never met Reno Phil founding music director Gregory Stone, but I absolutely enjoyed and benefitted from playing for RPO music directors Ron Daniels (1979-1998), Barry Jekowsky (1999-2008), and Laura Jackson (2009-present).

Several paragraphs into this piece and only mentioning some of the musicians I’ve worked with, I see that even a cursory review of my 30 years looks and smells like half a history of these orchestras. While that might not be such a terrible thing, such documents exist. I would especially note Judy Simpson’s excellent history of the Reno Phil that was published for its 50^th season. A person might still be able to get their hands on a copy somewhere.

So, for the rest of this column, I’ll just regale you with some memories from over the years.

LUMINARIES

Itzhak Perlman: The very first concert I played with the full Reno Chamber Orchestra was Mr. Perlman’s second appearance with the RCO in 1996. Playing on the huge GSR stage (then Reno Hilton) in a chamber orchestra always feels a bit odd, but getting to play the Beethoven Violin Concerto with that great player was a real thrill. I remember almost dropping my bow right before a big entrance because I was trying so hard to come in with a big, beautiful sound. I also recall walking across the casino floor to rehearsal in the showroom and seeing a man leaning over the craps table with a violin case at his feet; 15 minutes before the rehearsal was to start. It would seem that Mr. Perlman enjoyed what Reno had to offer.

Luciano Pavarotti performed with the Reno Phil on three different occasions. I played the second time, part of his 1998 world tour. Held at Lawlor Events Center, it’s the closest I’ve ever come to playing an arena rock concert for thousands of people. He walked on stage and the packed house erupted. He was very high maintenance, and there are stories to be told over beers, but it was a bucket list opportunity to play with perhaps the greatest tenor of all time.

The Captain and Tennille: This super duo of the 1970s and 80s lived in our area for years, were great supporters of the local arts scene, and dear friends to many of us. Toni Tennille especially went above and beyond, even sewing costumes for Nevada Opera productions. Over time, she performed concerts to benefit the Reno Phil, Reno Chamber Orchestra, and the Nevada Opera. At all of these concerts, Daryl “The Captain” Dragon made surprise appearances.

Leonard Nimoy: Right after I started as executive director of the RCO in 2001, I was tasked with contacting Leonard Nimoy because someone heard “he had a place in Tahoe.” This turned out to be true. This was also at the dawn of the internet, so seeking out his management wasn’t completely simple. But I wrote a letter to his agent with our humble proposal that “Mr. Spock” come and narrate Stravinsky’s “The Soldier’s Tale.” To our surprise he accepted our request, as well as our fee that was certainly galaxies far, far away from his going rate, and he came to Nightingale Hall and gave a stunning performance. He returned a couple years later for a second performance with the RCO, and for a few summers after that invited a small group of us musicians to come play in his Tahoe City back yard at summer soirees.

There are hundreds of other amazing guest artists who have graced our stages, but there aren’t hundreds of hours for me to recount them here, so I won’t.

POSITIONS I’VE HAD

In addition to playing with the Phil and RCO, I have been fortunate to have a few other positions over the years. In the late 90s, I was the music librarian for the Reno Phil. This is a thankless and time-consuming job, but my first foray into the world of orchestra administration and a very valuable experience. A couple years later, I was elected players’ committee representative to the Reno Phil board of directors. This term was cut short when in July of 2001, I was hired as executive director of the Reno Chamber Orchestra. We all agreed that having the chief executive of the (friendly) competition serve as the labor leader for the other orchestra might add a few too many layers of confusion to things. My term as ED of the RCO lasted for 14 years and has proven to be one of the most crucial professional experiences of my life. After stepping down as ED, I have gratefully served on artistic leadership search committees, strategic planning committees, and helped both orchestras commission important new works.

This walk down my memory’s lane is starting to feel too long and too self-centered, so I’ll go ahead and cut it off here. If I ever write my memoirs about my time in Reno music, I will be sure to tell you about: the time the kid barfed into the pit during The Nutcracker; the 1997 New Year’s flood that put some six feet of water on the stage and made the concert hall stink for a year or so after it dried out enough that we could play there; and… OK I’m really stopping now.

Thank you, dear readers, for indulging me. And thank you for so generously supporting and engaging with music in this community. You are a big reason why these stories are able to be told.

Scott Faulkner is principal bassist of the Reno Phil and Reno Chamber Orchestra. For the League of American Orchestras he is director of its Alumni Network as well as faculty director of its Essentials of Orchestra Management program.