YOBC's New Conductor Gets Into Her Group's Shoes

Sara Bennett Wolfe gently raises her conductor’s baton and more than 60 bows jump into position with more than 60 sets of eyes waiting for her next movement.

As comfortable as it looks, it’s her first year as the conductor for the Youth Orchestra of Bucks County’s Concertino ensemble, as well as the smaller, younger Prima Strings group. Both practice Sunday afternoons at the Newtown Campus.

The Princeton native worked with YOBC last year, running sectional rehearsals in the run up to the organizations 20th anniversary gala. At the same time, Concertino and Prima Strings conductor Molly Jensen announced she would be leaving for Colorado to pursue an advanced degree.

“I got a call last March or April saying the conductor was leaving and asking if I was interested in taking over for Molly,” said Bennett Wolfe, a cellist doing graduate work at Rutgers University. “My first thought was, ‘Wow, conducting.’ That hasn’t been the focus of my career.”

Her time working in sectionals with the aspiring musicians made it an easy decision, though.

“I was immediately drawn in by the vibe of the organization,” she said. “There’s an incredible spirit of cooperation and support.”

She said she’s enjoyed working with both groups and, while it hasn’t changed the way she plays, it has definitely changed her mindset when she’s at her instrument.

“It makes me more sympathetic to the conductor when I’m in an orchestra,” she said with laugh.

And in her short time as the conductor, she’s adapting her style from the coaching she’s done with older students.

“I’ve taught at a lot of different levels for some time. There are common threads, but I like that there’s a difference,” she said. “At the college level, you say things that you’d say to yourself when you play.

“With kids, you have to remember what it’s like to not know how to do something, get into their shoes a little bit.”

Her success comes as no surprise to Robert Loughran, YOBC’s music director, as the two have known each other for quite some time. Bennett Wolfe studied with his wife and she also played in the Princeton High School Orchestra, which he conducts.

“We’ve kept in contact over the years and she’s always been in the back of my mind,” he said. "It was a shame to see Molly go, but we had to move forward."

He turned to Bennett Wolfe to help get the groups to the next level. While she hadn’t conducted such a large group before, he said he knew she brought valuable skills to the position.

“She has a two-pronged advantage,” he said. “First, she is a great cellist and a great coach. Second, she has great experience with the Suzuki method, which involves very rigorous training.

“She’s come to YOBC quite well-prepared.”

Her groups will take the stage for the first time under her baton as part of YOBC’s fall concert, scheduled for Saturday, November 19. Her junior division and the intermediate division will perform at 2 p.m., while the advanced division groups will play at 8 p.m.

After that initial performance, she said she hopes her musicians will have an experience similar to the one she had playing with a youth orchestra in New Jersey.

“I hope the kids will see that they put a lot of work into it, sometimes tedious work,” she said. “But that playing at a high level with such great people is totally worth it and very satisfying.

“That’s why we do it.”