pasboros@ctpost.com

Were it not for the great American composers Aaron Copland and Milton Babbitt, Bridgeport might never have known Gustav Meier.

For it was this pair of renowned musicians who recommended Meier for a teaching position at Yale University’s school of music in 1960.

And it was at Yale that Meier — who was then on track with colleagues Zubin Mehta and Claudio Abbado to lead the largest and most prestigious orchestras in the world — decided that teaching “turned me on.”

Despite urging from supporters such as Leonard Bernstein, Meier chose to forgo the “big time” in favor of a career in academia, while making music at smaller, less politically-charged orchestras. It was a decision he never regretted.

And thus, in 1972, the Swiss-born Meier came to the Greater Bridgeport Symphony. And here he has stayed.

On Saturday evening at The Klein, Meier will open his 35th anniversary GBS season — one of the longest runs in the nation for a conductor — with a celebratory concert featuring pianist Andrew Armstrong. And to mark the occasion, Gov. M. Jodi Rell has declared Oct. 7 as Gustav Meier Day in Connecticut.

Although not a household name among the general public, the Ann Arbor, Mich., resident is considered a giant within the classical music community, where he is acknowledged as one of the world’s greatest teachers of conducting. In addition to teaching privately, Meier heads the graduate conducting program at the Peabody Institute in Baltimore and leads conducting seminars around the world. This summer, for example, he coached an international crop of would-be conductors in Mexico, along with the young American conductor Benjamin Loeb.

Meier says he has no plans to leave Bridgeport because it is “one of my special places I cannot do without.” He speaks unabashedly about his affection for his musicians — many of whom he has worked with for a decade or more — and his many friends here. Chief among them is Stratford lawyer and GBS board Chairman Robert S. Tellalian, who headed the search committee that hired Meier.

Tellalian says, “I could and would like to write volumes about Maestro Gustav Meier . . . Thirty-five years ago when I first met him, I was in awe of his brilliance — and the awe has grown since. He is now an inspiration to me and, I believe, to his musicians” to whom he is “always respectful and encouraging.”

“On a personal level,” Tellalian adds, “it is an honor to know him . . . Our admiration, respect, and love for him and [wife] Emy” continue to grow with each passing year.

In addition to his strong personal ties to the GBS, Meier says he has remained here because of his belief that Bridgeport is “a success story waiting to happen.” And although conductors of lesser stature might have abandoned Bridgeport years ago — when the city’s negative reputation left many music-lovers too frightened to fill The Klein — Meier refused to give up hope. And now, with Bridgeport’s star on the rise and the GBS “sounding better than ever,” Meier and his musicians are again performing for sold-out houses.

The impact that Meier has had on Bridgeport and the music world at large is vast.

The career of 10-time Grammy Award-winner, jazz musician, singer and songwriter Bobby McFerrin (he of the iconic “Don’t Worry, Be Happy”) is a case in point.

McFerrin had always wanted to conduct, and decided “to revisit that dream as a present to myself when turning 40 in 1990.”

So McFerrin arranged to meet with Leonard Bernstein at the Tanglewood Music Center in Lenox, Mass., where he was introduced to Meier, who was then director of the center’s renowned conducting seminar. McFerrin would eventually study privately with Meier — and embark on a new career.

McFerrin has since gone on to conduct some of the most prestigious orchestras in the world, including the Chicago, San Francisco, Philadelphia and Cleveland symphony orchestras and the New York and Vienna philharmonic orchestras.

“He’s a wonderful, wonderful man, a joy to watch, so natural that he makes it look so easy,” McFerrin says of Meier. “With the simplest gesture he can get the most profound effect” from his musicians.

“Conductors are so self-consumed and concerned about looking cool on the podium,” he says, laughing. “But Gustav is so far beyond that . . . we are all in awe of him.”

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In observance of Meier’s 35th anniversary season, the Connecticut Post tracked down a few of his former students — all conductors with Bridgeport connections — for their thoughts on how the maestro has influenced their lives.

Here are excerpts from their responses:

MARIN ALSOP made music history in 2005 as the first conductor to win a $500,000 MacArthur Foundation “genius grant” and as the first woman named to lead a major American orchestra; she officially takes over the reins at the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra with the 2007-08 season.

“Gustav has been an important force in my life and in my growth as both conductor and person. I first met Gustav as a conducting fellow at Tanglewood in 1988. He became my main teacher and mentor, and I saved my money and miles in order to travel to Ann Arbor whenever possible to take lessons with him [or occasionally to Bridgeport!].

“He was the perfect teacher for me. He wants to get to the true meaning of a composition; to the essence of the composer's intention, and is relentless in his integrity and purpose. He is generous, caring, warm (in his Swiss way) and has a wonderful sense of humor.

“A great joy for me has been teaching young conductors [with him]. We are so in tune and looking for the same things in young talent, which makes working together great fun.

“Gustav is more like a member of my family than simply a friend. I love him unconditionally, and feel that my life has been greatly enhanced by knowing him.”

MATTHEW SAVERY is music director of the Bozeman Symphony in Montana and a frequent GBS guest conductor.

“. . . Mr. Meier is the consummate teacher. You can be sharing a cup of coffee with him and discussing the weather, and he is still teaching you something. Most impressively, he doesn’t just teach one how to conduct. He also teaches how to BE a conductor. It seems as though not a day goes by when I don’t hear his voice in the back of my mind telling me how to handle a situation I’m facing.

“I was so excited when I arrived at [the University of] Michigan to study with Mr. Meier. This was an impressive program known all throughout the world. Needless to say, I was very impressed with myself, thinking ‘Now I will be a maestro.’ Well, that ended quickly when I found myself going to choreography sessions with four other conductors where Mr. Meier was teaching us schtick for the upcoming Halloween concert.

“We were to dress like penguins and conduct ‘The Firebird’ with our beaks. On one of these days I got a little testy, thinking ‘This is beneath me, of course.’

“Mr. Meier took me aside and said ‘Matthew — God did not anoint you to do a damn thing!’ It was a lesson all conductors should learn. That even though our audiences and musicians look to us for so much profundity, we should never take ourselves too seriously and we should always be willing to give them, and ourselves, a good laugh.

“In life, there are only a few people who have such a profound influence on us as to change the course of our lives. Mr. Meier did that for me. I only wish I had a clue as to how to thank him.”

DONALD SCHLEICHER is the music director and conductor of the Quad City Symphony Orchestra (which serves four cities in Iowa and Illinois), conductor and professor of conducting at the University of Illinois, and a past GBS guest conductor.

“How does one write about a person that changes your life? For me, Gustav is like a drug. At times, I need a dose of Gustav. It's an amazing consistency that each time I hear his voice on the phone, see him conduct, see him teach, or just have a brief chat with him, I feel better and wiser following my ‘dose of Gustav.’

“Even though his primary reputation is as a teacher, he is also among the greatest conductors I have ever seen. As one asks what is the definition of conducting, I say, watch Gustav Meier. If one looks closely, you can tell what the music is going to sound like in advance, just by watching him
. . . He has a near singular ability to combine complete artistry with incomparable technique. Carlos Kleiber is the only one that comes quickly to my mind as another that has been able to do the same.

“As a teacher, I use the following adjectives to describe him: sincere, loyal, humble, respectful, and in the best possible way — a long-term teacher. Like a great parent, he trains his students to be able to forge ahead without him. He knows the business inside and out, and with all sincerity, desires that they be more successful than himself.”

STEVEN JARVI is a 2006-07 Conducting Fellow at the New World Symphony in Miami Beach, Fla., an associate conductor at the New York City Opera and a former GBS “cover” conductor (similar to an understudy).

“In a career that is filled with politics and egos, Mr. Meier is someone who maintains a high ground that he tries to pass on to his students, always encouraging and reminding them of the human element of music-making. This makes him the kind of mentor who you not only admire musically, but as a human being.

“He respects his students and orchestra members on such a level that you actually learn from just being around it. In a world becoming ever more casual and having a beer with your favorite professor is no longer a shock, I like that Mr. Meier is so warm, yet still maintains the proper formality of student/teacher that always brings out your best.

“. . . I’ll be on the podium and suddenly remember a phrase or sentence that he mentioned in class years before, and this makes me feel like he is always with me, guiding my music-making. I could never hope for a better guide through the jungle that is the classical music world. I feel blessed to know him and call him ‘teacher.’ ”

BENJAMIN LOEB is associate conductor of the El Paso Symphony Orchestra, artistic director and founder of the International Conducting Workshop and Festival and a concert pianist. Loeb will be the guest conductor and soloist for the GBS’ Dec. 2 “Gershwin’s Greatests” concert.

“In the spring of 1999, I was in Baltimore to play a recital with a singer. I stopped by Peabody to visit some friends, and saw Gustav’s name on a poster. I asked my friend why his name was there, and she told me that he taught there.

“I immediately ran upstairs to the admissions office to get the application for his program. Now, at that point, I was already 33 years old, with a doctor of music and no intentions of going back to school. However, I knew the opportunity to study with Gustav would be life-changing, if I let it.

“I always dreamt of becoming a conductor, but had no formal training. He was the only teacher for whom I would even consider giving up a busy international freelance piano career.

“Of course, the application was due the next day, so without any hesitation, I got my materials together and applied. I was lucky in that I did receive an audition, and as things went, I was accepted into the program.

“One funny side note, though. At the time, I had bright blue hair — not streaked, but peacock blue. My haircut was completely normal and the rest of my appearance was also normal, but my hair was blue.

“As I heard later, the color of my hair caused an uproar at the auditions. Gustav, of course, had absolutely no reaction during the audition. At the beginning of the school year, he pulled me aside and said, ‘You know, blue is my favorite color.’ No advice to change my hair color, no mention of the approbation or reaction it caused, and ultimately no effect on my application.

“I thought it was great that something superficial like hair color didn’t affect the way he treated his students, but at the same time there was an underlying advice that the hair color did affect people. He was able to convey that opinion in the subtlest and most supportive way.

“I feel very lucky that he has been my mentor. I have learned so much from him, not just about conducting or teaching conducting, but in personal interactions and enjoying life.”

DELTA DAVID GIER is music director and conductor of the South Dakota Symphony Orchestra, past guest conductor (and cover conductor) for both the GBS and New York Philharmonic. On Oct. 14 at 2 p.m., Gier will conduct the 106 members of the New York Philharmonic in a Young People’s Concert at Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center.

“Gustav Meier is the one who gave me confidence to be a musician. He has a wonderfully unique ability to recognize potential in his students and knows how to draw their talent out and bring it to fruition. Part of it is sheer inspiration, just spending time with him and soaking in his incredible musicianship. Another important element in his teaching and conducting is his humility: He is genuinely in service of the composer at all times. I think that example has served me more than anything else he taught me. I continue to be amazed at his consummate artistry and passionate commitment to each and every piece he conducts.

“I had the privilege of studying with Maestro Meier at Tanglewood and at the University of Michigan. I then made a start as a professional conductor in Eastern Europe on a Fulbright. When I came back to New York in the early ’90s, I assisted him at the Bridgeport Symphony until being appointed an assistant conductor at the New York Philharmonic in 1994. Those were lean years for me, not having much work and fearing, after all that investment, that I might not be able to continue making music.

“Mr. Meier and I spent time together following rehearsals in Bridgeport, during which he would encourage me time and again saying, ‘You have to hang in there! It has to work!’

“He saw literally every young conductor in those days, either live or on videotape, because of his position at Tanglewood — so I took those words to heart. His encouragement was and is of immeasurable value to me, although he probably has no idea how much it has affected me and so many others.

“Thank you from the bottom of my heart, Maestro!”

YAKOV KREIZBERG is chief conductor and artistic adviser of the Netherlands Philharmonic and the Netherlands Chamber Orchestra, principal guest conductor of the Vienna Symphony Orchestra and a past GBS guest conductor.

“Gustav Meier has devoted himself completely to teaching young conductors. He has also worked tirelessly as an advocate for young aspiring musicians and composers, and for that he is to be greatly admired.

“I have learned that there is a great wisdom in being with one orchestra for a long time, being a real part of the community and giving a huge portion of your time to it. This is something that too few conductors are willing to do today.

“Gustav Meier’s love and devotion to the Greater Bridgeport Symphony orchestra and the community are truly inspiring!”