Rhode Island native Sam Hollister joins URI as the director of the symphony orchestra while attending Yale for a Ph.D in musical arts. PHOTO CREDIT: Connor Zisk | Contributing Photographer
When he began playing piano at the University of Rhode Island, 7-year-old Sam Hollister would have never imagined himself on the other side of the sheet music.
Hollister, who recently graduated from Yale University, has recently been appointed as the new director of the University of Rhode Island symphony orchestra.
Hollister, a native of Jamestown, Rhode Island, graduated magna cum laude from Yale with a bachelor’s degree in music, followed by a master’s degree in orchestral conducting & music theory pedagogy from the Peabody Institute. Hollister is now attending Yale as a doctoral candidate for a Ph.D. in musical arts.
Hollister’s path into the world of orchestra was all but typical. Being a pianist, his opportunities were often limited to solo performances. Throughout Hollister’s early education though, some local music directors found opportunities for him to accompany ensembles at Jamestown middle school, giving Hollister his first chance to perform with a community.
“Before that, I thought making music was playing on your own, practicing on your own, maybe performing on your own for your parents and your friends and that was about it,” Hollister said. “Then I realized it’s about doing something together with people.”
Later in his education, music teachers presented him with more opportunities to conduct orchestra rehearsals. According to Hollister, he started to play a part in directing singers and orchestra pits during musicals and eventually found his admiration for conducting. Without the help of his teachers early in life and the opportunities presented to him, Hollister said that he wouldn’t have fallen in love and pursued music the way he has.
His prodigal skills at a young age presented Hollister with great opportunities to work with successful musicians, including the cellist Yo-Yo Ma. At age 17, Hollister was able to attend a masterclass instructed by Ma with his grandmother, who is a big fan of Ma, observing from the front row.
“At one point Yo-Yo Ma was demonstrating something, my grandmother made some noise of great emotion, and he looked over at her, pointed with the bow, and said ‘I’ll see you after’,” Hollister said. “After the masterclass he went up to her and gave her a huge hug and basically thanked her for being so invested in the world of music.”
After Ma’s interaction with his grandmother, Hollister was inspired by his humanity: with success comes the ability to raise the spirits of others. He concluded that he will “always strive to be a human in that way.”
While Hollister was recently appointed as the director of URI’s symphony orchestra, he is no stranger to the URI campus. At 7 years old, Hollister began piano lessons with mentor Manabu Takasawa, a Professor of Music and classical piano at URI. Hollister continued lessons with Takasawa until he was 18 years old. The two have now become work colleagues.
“When I heard that there was an opening [for the position], my mind already started imagining a sort of homecoming feeling of being able to join the department,” Hollister said.
Takasawa graduated from the University of Maryland with a doctoral academic degree in piano performance, literature and pedagogy. With a passion for musical education, Takasawa has been with Hollister every step of the way.
“I’ve seen the transformation from a young boy into an independent-minded teenager, then into a thoughtful and brilliant musician,” Takasawa said. “He has a magical power of bringing people together to work with him.”
Takasawa will be performing as a soloist in a small concerto under Hollister’s conduction for the URI Orchestra concert on Oct. 29, 2022, reaching a full circle moment in their professional relationship.
When Hollister is not devoting himself to music, he is expressing himself in other artistic ways, especially photography. This hobby of his started with a distant relative’s film camera and eventually became a headshot gig or two down the line. Ultimately, photography gave Hollister a “ticket to exploring nature.”
Whether he’s in front of an ensemble or behind the lens of a camera, Hollister hopes to bring his expertise to URI’s Symphony Orchestra and beyond.For more on Hollister, visit his website at https://www.samuelfargohollister.com/.