Joanna Wesling - Viola
Joanna is section player viola.
Q. When did you join the Orchestra?
A. I joined in May 1998, 1 year after I left college.
Q. What was your earliest musical experience?
A. Making animal noises on a tiny violin at my nursery school.
Q. If you could play a different instrument, which one would it be?
A. I wish I could sing!
Q. What would you most like to do if you weren’t a musician?
A. I was interested in studying architecture, but never took the idea beyond A level choices. I still appreciate it though, and love the fantastic Liverpool buildings.
Q. What’s on your record/CD/MP3 Player/Spotify Playlist right now?
A. Within handy reach of the CD player, I have a mixture, including ABBA, Strauss, and in the car I have the musical War of the Worlds. It takes me back to my childhood, listening to it with my dad from behind the sofa!
Q. What is your favourite Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra recording?
A. Actually, the Strauss by my CD player is one of ours- Alpine Symphony .
Q. What is your most memorable moment with the Orchestra so far?
A. Playing with Simon Rattle has to be high on the list- it was one of my ambitions as a child; I grew up in the Midlands, and regularly saw him conduct the CBSO.
Q. What do you like to do with your free time outside music?
A. I have two children, aged 5 and 3, they keep me pretty busy. I like to swim, ride my motorbike, work on my motorbike, sew (mostly patches on my boys' trousers at the moment, maybe concert dresses will come back in the future!) read- I'm currently reading a Flashman novel.
Q. What do you like most about Liverpool?
A. It has a fantastic city centre, which you can walk across- it's all accessible. I love the docks, and I love the parks. We had our wedding photos taken in Sefton Park, by the Palm House.
