We're delighted to announce that violinist Bogdan Božović has joined the ranks of the SCO as Leader (a position he will share with Stephanie Gonley). Already a familiar figure among the Orchestra - he was guest leader for our performances of Schumann's Cello Concerto last Season, and has performed Beethoven's Symphonies No.1 and No.7 with us. He is also an enthusiastic chamber musician, in addition to being Concertmaster of the Musikkollegium Winterthur and Ensemble Resonanz, in Switzerland and Germany respectively.

Our thanks to Bogdan for agreeing to a short interview...

What do you remember of your first time playing with the SCO?

There is a lot going on in one’s mind in those situations. The 2024 Summer Tour was my first time playing with the SCO, as well as my first time working with Maxim Emelyanychev. I remember a sense of heightened alertness in the room, the feeling that something special was being created. The chemistry between the SCO and Maxim is quite extraordinary. I was also captivated by Maxim’s artistry - his ability to mould sound through gesture, his direct, unpretentious way of working, and the SCO’s extraordinary sensitivity and responsiveness.

What would you advice be to anyone wishing to take up the violin?

Go for the clarinet!

Which concerts are your personal highlights this coming Season?

I have to start by looking back for this one, to two projects we just did in August. The week where I was director/soloist [playing Mozart's 'Turkish' Concerto] helped me get to know the Orchestra even better: its wonderful and unique characters, the colours of the sections, its flexibility and aliveness. It was a real team effort. I also felt a lot of love and support, which is a lovely thing when you’re in that rather exposed position. That was followed by a thrilling Don Giovanni at the Edinburgh International Festival - what a privilege to get to know that music from within.

As for the coming season, I honestly look forward to every project with Maxim. He is an enormous source of inspiration to me. The next one is just around the corner: our Season opener on September 24th, featuring Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique.

If you weren't a musician, where do you think your career might have led you?

A tough one. I think I would have been a dancer (to be precise, a retired dancer by this point), so eventually probably a linguist, like most of my family.

Do you have a happy place?

Perhaps our former family holiday home in Stoliv, an old stone house in the Bay of Kotor, Montenegro. It remains one of the most beautiful corners of the earth to me.

Photo: Christopher Bowen