It’s about an hour into my conversation with Robert Moody when he suddenly grows silent. His loquacious, easy-going demeanor fades into a silent, distant stare. He’s searching, unsuccessfully it seems, for an appropriate answer to an impossibly complex question — at least for someone with as much conducting history as Moody: “What’s the best musical event you’ve ever attended?”

He slouches back into a downtown coffee shop couch, skimming through several decades’ worth of concertos, recitals, and the like. Finally, after a small eternity lapses, he rises up with an answer. “I got to see Duran Duran with Jeff Beck in Rome a few years back. That show,” he pauses, “was awesome.”

The conversation later shifts to his iPod, where he confesses you’re just as likely to stumble across Boston’s “More Than a Feeling” as you are Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony. Simple as it sounds, Moody’s refreshingly real dialogue does more than illustrate a sweeping taste in musical styles. It seems to smash every stereotype surrounding orchestra conductors. But then again, Moody — or Bob, as he’s more commonly known — is anything but your run-of-the-mill maestro.

Charismatic, comical, and seemingly younger than his 42 years would indicate, Moody is the antithesis of the stodgy stage conductor. He’s a guy who runs full marathons in four hours, skis down black-diamond slopes with ease, roots on his Clemson Tiger football team, and rocks out to classic rock in his car.

“I’ve worked with a lot of conductors whom I greatly admire, and Bob is right there at the top,” says Corine Brouwer, concertmaster and first violinist for the Winston-Salem Symphony. “What sets him apart is his ability to keep things fun, but on course at the same time.”

In his 19 years as a professional conductor, Moody has commanded symphonies across the country, from Phoenix to Seattle to Houston. He’s led some of the world’s greatest performers, with names like Yo Yo Ma, Itzhak Perlman, and Celine Dion appearing on his résumé. In his four years as music director of the Winston-Salem Symphony, he’s helped ignite an orchestra he deems “one of the top in the country.” And considering all he’s accomplished, it’s odd to think that Moody might not have even gotten into conducting had it not been for an elementary-school prank.

Early Notations
Unlike a majority of modern conductors with foreign names and foreign ties, Moody grew up three hours southwest of Winston-Salem in Greenville, South Carolina. He didn’t have much classical music exposure as a kid, aside from attending a couple of symphony concerts with his parents. It wasn’t until the fourth grade that his love for orchestra began to reveal itself.

One day, a teacher in his school’s orchestra program came around asking kids to sign up for a strings course. “I had no desire to do it,” Moody says. “I was doing sports; I didn’t want anything to do with strings.” While he passed on the sign-up sheet, his then-girlfriend decided to sign him up as a joke. The strings teacher returned later in the day to summon the kids who had signed up. “I heard him call my name, then heard my girlfriend start laughing.”

Reluctantly, Moody went to the class. It was there that he was introduced to the cello — an instrument that would ultimately change his life. Little by little, Moody established himself as a standout musician. He enrolled at the Greenville County Fine Arts Center, where he studied cello and voice. He also learned trombone, which allowed him to play in the school’s jazz band.
Moody’s multiple talents eventually landed him at Furman University, where he received a double scholarship for voice and music. After graduating with a degree in church music, he went on to the prestigious Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York, where he made the switch from musician to conductor. As for why conducting appealed to him: “It was just a feeling I got the first time I conducted,” he says. “It’s always made me feel at home.”

His mother, Martha Moody, agrees. “The first few concerts I went to when he was conducting, I’d get so worried for him. But after watching him for a while, I realized that he doesn’t get nervous; he’s just up there having fun. I think it’s a sign that [conducting] is what he was meant to do.”

After earning his master’s in music in 1991, Moody headed to Evansville, Indiana, to serve as the associate conductor of the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra. Later, he took a job with the Phoenix Symphony, where he worked as associate, then resident, conductor.

It was around Moody’s seventh year in Phoenix that Winston-Salem entered the picture. The city was looking for its next music director, a position that had intrigued Moody for quite some time.

Track to the Twin City
Throughout its 63-year history, the Winston-Salem Symphony has employed only four music directors, including Moody. Prior to Moody’s arrival in 2005, Peter Perret had dutifully served for 25 years as the city’s conductor. Oddly enough, it was Perret who first sparked Moody’s interest in the Twin City.

Moody met Perret in 1994 at the Brevard Music Center, a renowned festival held annually in Western North Carolina.

“He told me all about the Winston-Salem Symphony and how great the city was,” Moody recalls. “I thought, ‘Man, that’d be a great orchestra to conduct one day.’ ”

Fast forward one decade, and Moody found himself face to face with the Twin City’s symphony. He, along with four other finalists, had been selected from a field of several hundred to compete for the title of music director. Each “contestant” would spend a week in the city, making appearances and rehearsing with the orchestra. At the end of the week, each would conduct the symphony in an audition/concert. Moody, who was the first finalist to audition, didn’t disappoint.

After a rousing rendition of Prokofiev’s Symphony No. 5, Moody was praised by the Winston-Salem Journal for both his precision and preparation: “Moody was equally able to inject slow, soul-searching, sustained melodies with passion and reflection … [his] unusual ability to prepare orchestral accompaniments respectfully was also superb.” Looking past the performance, though, it was Moody’s lively charm and eagerness to involve himself in the community that set him apart.

Months later, after all the contestants had auditioned, the symphony held an election to determine who would take the job. The results were telling: Moody was the unanimous choice of every musician, staffer, and audience member. Winston-Salem had its new music director, one who promised to provide a spark to an orchestra in need of a light.

The Bob Effect
So four years in, has Moody made good on his promise to re-energize the symphony? “Absolutely,” says Merritt Vale, the symphony’s executive director. “His creativity and enthusiasm have really been a catalyst for helping rejuvenate the entire organization.”

From the start, Moody has always maintained that his goal was to grow the orchestra’s reputation on a local and national level. To do so, he began adding multiple concerts and programs. As he likes to say, “I want everyone to be able to enjoy the symphony, whether you’re 4 or 104.”

It started with the “Plugged-In Pops” series, held at Reynolds Auditorium, which explores Broadway, jazz, and other various forms of popular music. It continued with the “Kicked-Back Classics,” which serves as a scaled-back accompaniment to the longstanding “Classics” series. It rounded out with the “Discovery” series, a kid-friendly concert with a variety of wildly entertaining themes.

Moody also introduced an annual holiday performance of Handel’s Messiah — held at Centenary United Methodist Church — and a unique “Side-by-Side” concert that puts youth symphony members on stage with professional musicians. As far as musical selections go, Moody champions both old and new, relishing the opportunity to introduce modern works to his audiences.

By exploring different styles and settings, Moody is bringing the symphony to audiences who might have thought it was off-limits for them. “There’s a longstanding notion that the symphony is just for a privileged few; that it’s stuffy and boring,” Moody says. “That flies in the face of everything we try to do.”

To that end, Moody is hoping to attract a new generation of symphony-goers. “I want my generation — people in their 20s, 30s, and 40s — to come give us a try. I think catching a performance, then heading out for drinks afterward, would be a great date option for people in that age group.

“The music will amaze you,” Moody continues. “You can take the best CD or MP3 recording and place it on the best stereo system money can buy, and you’ll never come close to what a live music experience sounds like.”

While Moody admits that getting the younger generation to consistently consider the symphony will “take some time,” he seems to have plenty of it. He signed a contract extension two years ago to remain the city’s music director through at least 2015.

His growing reputation recently led the symphony in Portland, Maine, to hire him as its music director — a job he does in addition to the Winston-Salem Symphony. Despite this, he adamantly states that “Winston is my home.”

This is reflected in Moody’s myriad of off-podium activities. He’s a member of the local Rotary Club, serves on the AIDS Care Service and YMCA boards, and participates in several area events, such as the annual 5K Mistletoe Run. It’s this combination of musical precision, Southern charm, and civic action that’s endeared Moody to the symphony family and the local community alike. “He’s just been a perfect fit,” Vale notes.

As for Moody, he says he couldn’t be happier right where he is. By working in a place that “mimics” the place he grew up in, he’s essentially returned to his roots.

“I’m a Southerner, born and raised,” he says. “The conducting opportunities I had from 1989 until 2005 were tremendous, but also quite far away. So what I love best about working here is that I get to do the very thing I’ve dreamt about doing since I was 17 — in a place that’s already familiar to me.

“It’s like I came back home.”

For concert schedules and ticket information, call the symphony box office at 336-464-0145 or go to wssymphony.org.

FIVE FOR FIVE

The following is a look at five reasons why Moody’s fifth season with the symphony might be his best.

1. Season of the Stars: The upcoming season could very well be called “The Year of the Guest Artist,” with several world-renowned performers coming to town. Among the standouts are pianist Terrance Williams, violinist Danielle Belen, and trumpeter Chris Botti. And for a change of pace, Chris Thile, mandolinist for Nickel Creek, will present the East Coast premiere of his Mandolin Concerto in March.
2. Shelling it Out: To introduce the new concert shell being installed at the historic Reynolds Auditorium — where the “Plugged-In Pops” concerts are held — the Symphony is hosting an event called “SHELL-ebration” on October 10. The concert will feature superstar pianist Awadagin Pratt soloing in Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue.
3. More to Discover: This season will mark the second year of the “Discovery” concerts, which pair orchestral music with kid-friendly themes. The first of three Discovery concerts — “Play Ball! Sports and Music” — will be held September 19. The concerts are held Saturday afternoons at Williams Auditorium at WSSU, and include a host of pre-concert activities.
4. Kicked-Back Is Back: “Kicked-Back Classics,” Moody’s self-professed favorite series, provide a great format for people who want to give the symphony a try. During the performances, Moody discusses each selection with the audience. So instead of simply hearing a piece, attendees are made aware of its history, significance, and stand-out qualities. The concerts are held on Saturdays from 7:30 to 9 p.m. at the Stevens Center.
5. High Notes, Low Costs: The symphony announced it won’t be increasing prices for subscriptions or single tickets this season. While there will be a $1 fee implemented by the Stevens Center on events held at the facility, it won’t affect the “Discovery” or “Plugged-In Pops” series (only the “Classics” and “Kicked-Back Classics”).