# Jake Nissly: Auditions, Adversity, and the Pocket Inside the Orchestra

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-bandwich-tapes-6690876/jake-nissly-auditions-adversity-and-the-pocket-inside-the-orchestra
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-bandwich-tapes-6690876/jake-nissly-auditions-adversity-and-the-pocket-inside-the-orchestra.md
Podcast: [The Bandwich Tapes](https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-bandwich-tapes-6690876)
Published: 2026-05-04T09:00:00+00:00
Episode link: https://share.transistor.fm/s/668cb1fa
Audio file: https://2.gum.fm/op3.dev/e/pdcn.co/e/pscrb.fm/rss/p/pdst.fm/e/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/media.transistor.fm/668cb1fa/3e6e7966.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-bandwich-tapes-6690876/episodes/jake-nissly-auditions-adversity-and-the-pocket-inside-the-orchestra
Duration seconds: 4006

## Resource

On this episode of The Bandwich Tapes , I sit down with percussionist Jake Nissly , Principal Percussionist of the San Francisco Symphony , for a conversation about what it actually takes to build and sustain a career at the highest level of orchestral playing. Jake’s résumé is remarkable, but what stands out even more is the range of hats he wears: orchestral musician, soloist, educator, department chair at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music , drum set player, former drum corps kid, and even Little League coach. We spend time unpacking the reality of orchestral auditions, the intense preparation, the psychological pressure of playing behind a screen, and the almost figure-skating-level precision required to compete in that world. Jake walks through his own path: winning the Detroit Symphony job at 26, then later the Cleveland Orchestra , and ultimately facing the difficult experience of not receiving tenure. Rather than ending his trajectory, that moment reshaped it and eventually led him to the San Francisco Symphony. One of my favorite parts of this conversation centers on Jake’s concept of feel . He credits much of his orchestral success to his background in drum set and drum corps , where groove, flexibility, and listening are everything. That experience, he says, translates directly into orchestral playing, even in repertoire like Mahler or Ravel’s Bolero , where there’s still a pocket to find if you’re listening closely enough. We also talk about teaching and the changing landscape for young musicians. Jake shares thoughtful insights about how YouTube and digital access have transformed preparation, often producing incredibly polished players who sometimes struggle to develop ownership, personality, and soul in their playing. It’s an honest conversation abo…

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## Transcript

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