Despite life-changing injuries, Llinos Owen holds a top orchestral post while pursuing an elite sport, as she explains to Rachel Rowntree
Most musicians have a pretty standard checklist when setting off on tour, the essentials being instrument, passport and concert clothes. For bassoonist Llinos Owen, the list looks rather different. To the above add a kayak, a walking stick and, at times, a wheelchair.
In 2009 a dramatic car accident left Owen with life-altering injuries. Thirteen years on, in the spring of this year, she became sub-principal bassoon with Welsh National Opera (WNO). When not performing, she trains with the British Paracanoe Team, competing at an international level. I ask how she juggles the demands of working at the top of her musical game while being an elite athlete.
‘I’ve got better at using the title “elite athlete”, but I still feel the need to put those inverted commas around it!’ Owen laughs, as we speak over Zoom. Attired in the British Canoeing Team training kit, her intelligence, wit and energy leap out of the screen. It is hard to imagine this same person was hit by a car at 50mph, leaving her with a shattered pelvis, six broken ribs, a broken collarbone and a punctured lung. ‘I am very lucky to be here at all,’ she reflects.
It was the shattered pelvis that left her disabled, unable to walk or stand for more than ten minutes at a time. ‘Kayaking is great for me, as it’s sitting down,’ she tells me; ‘the thing that’s made it such a big part of my life, and something I do as a semi-professional, is that it’s a Paralympic sport.’
A musician’s schedule can be gruelling: long rehearsals, late-night finishes and long stretches away from home. Yet, within this demanding schedule, Owen carves out time to train. Taking up the full-time post with WNO has meant reducing her training hours, but she still fits in five to ten sessions a week. Being based at the Millennium Centre with WNO is both incredibly convenient and inspiring for her: ‘We train on the River Taff, from Cardiff Bay and up past the Principality Stadium, so I really enjoy that.’
During the rehearsal period for an opera, she trains before or after work, or can sometimes even squeeze in a gym session in her lunch break. The WNO’s touring schedule is also conducive to her training. ‘We only do evening shows, so I can train during the day. If I’m performing, say in Cardiff or Nottingham, I’ll train with a coach. But if I’m in Llandudno or Plymouth, for example, I might take my
