Hilary Browning - Cello
Q. What is your instrument/ position/ job title in the Orchestra?
A. Associate principal cello
Q. When did you join the Orchestra?
A. October 10th 1991
Q. What was your earliest musical experience?
A. My mother singing to me.
Q. If you could play a different instrument, which one would it be?
A. Violin.
Q. What would you most like to do if you weren’t a musician?
A. Something in education.
Q. What’s on your record/CD/MP3 Player/Spotify Playlist right now?
A. I'm trying to find the copy of the Trout which Andrew gave me that we played in a lunchtime concert last month. Becky says it's actually quite good! Listening to the Manfred Symphony on Radio 3 right now, we're playing it at the Proms next year. It's very Vasily!
Q. What is your favourite Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra recording?
A. Hmmm, tricky. I enjoyed recording the Manfred Symphony, especially as it was not a piece I knew. Some of the lighter stuff is good too - Pirates of the Caribbean was on Radio 3 recently and sounded great! And of course the Shostakovich Symphonies are a real undertaking but tremendously exciting.
Q. What is your most memorable moment with the Orchestra so far?
A. Recent highlights include the concert with Bryn Terfel , Simon Rattle and meeting Condoleeza Rice. Going back a bit some of Tod's concerts had a special magic about them and I used to enjoy Junichi Hirokami's concerts a lot, especially the concert performance of Madame Butterfly.
Q. What do you like to do with your free time outside music?
A. I have two children so like to spend my free time with them as much as possible. If they're at school I like baking cakes, when not practising of course. I like reading, watching good films and going for long walks in the countryside.
Q. What do you like most about Liverpool?
A. So much! The people are great, the city is full of energy and a sense of people wanting to make things happen. And of couse we're well positioned for access to the countryside - the Wirral, North wales, Cheshire and so on.
