Greg Crowley, bassoon - section leader

When did you join the National Symphony Orchestra?

I joined the NSO in May 2021

What do you enjoy most about being in the NSO?

Other than the wonderful music we get to play, I love working with my talented colleagues. Also, being a bassoonist, I am lucky that I get to sit in the centre of the orchestra. It’s one of the best seats in the house!

Who is your favourite composer and what is your favourite work?

It’s such a difficult question, there’s so much music out there and I feel like I’ve only scratched the surface. However for all the music I discover I always come back to Beethoven. I remember distinctly falling in love with 2 of his works when I was young, the Pathetique sonata for piano and the Pastoral symphony. I couldn’t figure out why everyone wasn’t listening to this music all the time.

What made you decide to pursue a career in music?

Truthfully, albeit morbid, it was the passing of my parents when I was in school that made me take the leap to apply to music college. My mum particularly always encouraged me, she loved music and would frequently have Strauss waltzes or Mozart overtures playing in her study.

If you weren’t a musician, what would you most like to be?

Maybe a restaurant critic? Surely that has to be the best job in the world.

Do you have any pre-concert rituals or superstitions?

I don’t I think I do. I use to have a banana before a concert but then remembering to take a banana in all the time was making me go bananas so I stopped.

What is the best piece of advice you ever received – either musical or general

A quote from pianist Evgeny Kissin which I stuck on my wall in college, “Give everything you can in every moment.