Interviews

Once again violinist Hilary Hahn has dived headlong into a set of worthy compositions that many of us have overlooked, and presented us with a fully realized argument for their consideration.

Today Hilary releases Ives: Four Sonatas, recorded with pianist Valentina Lisitsa. The duo toured for several years with these sonatas, and the CD package includes performance notes written by Hilary Hahn herself, as well as program notes by Robert Kirzinger.



Though Charles Ives (1874-1952) is perhaps best-known for his compositions such as "Three Places in New England," Symphony No. 3 (for which he won a Pulitzer Prize in 1947) and "Variations on America," the composer's four sonatas for violin and piano, written in the 1910s, reflect much of what the composer was all about: American music, experimentation, and beauty of melody. While the first Sonata is in fairly traditional form, movements from the sonatas carry the titles, "Autumn," "In the Barn," and "The Revival." The fourth sonata is subtitled, "Children’s Day at the Camp Meeting," and contains a good many quotes from church hymns.

Ives was the son of a band leader who liked conducting experiments such as having two bands play different tunes at once from different sides of the town square. Ives became a church organist at the age of 14, and after studying composition at Yale University, he went on to make his living as an insurance agent. His music seems to synthesize much about that time in history, spanning both the late Romantic period and early 20th century, with harmony, dissonance, melody and the dissolution thereof. Much to ponder here.

I spoke over the phone with Hilary a few weeks ago when she was in Birmingham, Alabama to play the Edgar Meyer Violin Concerto with the Alabama Symphony. On Thursday she will be in Cincinnati for a recital with Valentina Lisitsa, in which they will premiere 13 new works she commissioned for her project In 27 Pieces: The Hilary Hahn Encores.

Laurie: How've you been? I see you've been interviewing fish lately!

Hilary: (laughs) It's interesting how people are reading into that interview -- different interpretations my friends have. It's been as entertaining as actually doing the interview.

Laurie: I liked it. I do all these interviews all the time, and I thought, 'That sounds exactly like me!' (laughs)

Hilary: In fact, it was not my intention, I was not trying to criticize any journalist. It's just kind of funny, what the responses have been!

Laurie: I think it's kind of one of those, 'What do you see in this ink blot?' You can put whatever you want there.

Hilary: Yes…

Laurie: Anyway, let's dive into Ives, here. Something that you mentioned in the liner notes really struck me: that you and Valentina never lost enthusiasm for the sonatas, even under the intense circumstances of recording them. I wondered if you had any thoughts about what makes these pieces continue to be interesting for you.

Hilary: I thought about this a lot since we recorded them. When learning the Ives, I think you have to put it together, logically, in order to internalize the music. But once you internalize it, it has its own life. With these particular pieces, we go out on stage and we kind of know what we want to do -- but that's just what we want to do, it's not want the music wants to do. It's very strange, this repertoire has such determination: some nights there's this rhythmic impulse in a certain part, then other nights there's a need to linger… you just have to follow that.

I think his notation is just a way to get the music to the player, and then the player initiates a lot of things about the interpretation based on what the piece wants to be doing on that given evening. Because they are kind of complex at any given moment, you can focus on one thing, or you can focus on another.

For example, I'm working on the first sonata from the Bach Sonatas and Partitas for solo violin again right now. One reason they are so intriguing is there's so little written in the music. There's the notes, but there are very few markings, as far as phrasing and other things are concerned. Ives actually writes a fair amount in the music, but it's only the basics, as it turns out. There's a lot that he doesn't even reference that you can do with it. It's very creative music to start with, and there's a lot of room (for more interpretation.) He takes traditional melodies and he makes it his own, he re-sets it.

Laurie: I found it was really interesting, the way a melody would come up, but he'd never stay on it long enough to really hang your hat on it. He'd always turn in a different direction…

Hilary: It's kind of like a melody passing through your head, you follow it until it runs itself out, and then it becomes something else.

Laurie: I thought the harmony was kind of the same way, too. Something would start to sound really harmonious, and as soon as I would start groovin' on it, it runs in another direction.

Hilary: The music does turn on a dime, but as a player, you can follow that or not. It just kind of depends on how it's all falling together in that particular concert.

Laurie: You know, I did not realize how rhythmically complex these pieces were until I decided to go out and get some of the music -- I was looking at the second sonata. Even when I was looking at the music the first time, I thought, this is in 3/4, in the key of C, doesn't look too complicated. But then, looking at it closely, it's pretty rhythmically complex!

Hilary: It is. It's not easy to put together. I thought that I knew what the piece was, when I learned the violin part. Then I got into the room with the pianist, and it was a whole different piece. I had to re-learn it, with the piano.

Laurie: Listening to what you did, and looking at the music, I thought, this has to come a long way before this music on the page becomes that interpretation. I wondered what your strategy was for taking something that is rhythmically and harmonically complex and drilling down to the music.

Hilary: I just try to get it into my system. Somehow these patterns -- that I didn't create -- have to make sense to me. The same thing goes for phrasing; I have to find where the phrases are and they have to make sense to me so that I can carry that on into an interpretation. Sometimes it happens more quickly than others. Sometimes I really struggle, and other times it feels like I've been playing the music already for years, even if I've never heard it before.

Laurie: I was also wondering, just listening to all four of these, if someone wanted to make these sonatas part of their repertoire, which would be the best one to start with? What are some techniques that a person might either need -- or learn -- by doing them?

Hilary: Of course it's easy to say that they should start with the fourth, because it's the shortest and seems like it would be the most accessible. But you can start anywhere you want. I think people should listen to all four and see what they hear in them. Which one gives you the most ideas for what you want to do with it when you play it? That's what I do when I'm trying to pick from a set -- I ask, which one do I feel compelled to play, for some reason?

We started with the third sonata, and I'm really glad we did -- it's really hard to put together! We couldn't just kind of skim by; it wasn't a little, bite-sized piece. It was actually diving into the deep end. In that sonata, a lot of the things we would identify with are kind of hidden, so I really had to re-inspect what I was doing with the music when I got it. I thought I knew what I wanted to do, but I had to un-do that first, in order to be able to build up my knowledge of the piece.

I think when something feels really short, easy, accessible, you're not forced to dig into the very core of the music. That's why I'm glad we started with the one we started with.

But you do have to have a great pianist for these pieces.

Laurie: It seemed to me that these pieces have a pretty substantial piano part. It's certainly not violin, accompanied by piano.

Hilary: But the violin doesn't accompany the piano, either. It's an interesting exchange that the violin and piano have. I think that both are equally important; I think that Ives was really pushing the piano to its limits, to get what he wanted out of it. The violin is challenged in other ways. I enjoy playing the violin parts, they're amiable, they're emotional, they're quirky, very melodic and also there's this underlying rhythmic drive that you can choose to emphasize or not. I would not say they're technically forbidding, but I would say it's a challenge for a duo. You have to have somebody who's going to put in the time to work on it with you, when you're doing the violin part with the piano part.

These pieces (by Ives) were a completely new language to me, when I learned them. And since then, I have actually used everything I learned in them in various contexts, whether it's a piece I've known for a while and I just applied something I learned in the course of the Ives Sonatas, or whether it's something written since the Ives Sonatas, something that draws on those techniques of composition that he used. There's a lot of music that derives from the things Ives innovated, whether consciously derived or not. If you can build up your knowledge of the repertoire so that you have played some Ives, a lot of other things will make more sense. I didn't realize how much Ives is related to other, more contemporary music.

So even if you don't intend to perform them, if you can find someone who wants to work on them with you, then you can both learn a lot. You learn a lot about playing with a duo partner, as well. You have to be independent performers, but you have to be acutely aware of what the other person is doing at any time, you have to know where you're supposed to play, so you have to know what to back off of interpretively and where you can initiate ideas.

Laurie: Was it that interaction, that informed you about other kind of repertoire?

Hilary: It was more the rhythmic structure of it, and the kinds of passages he writes. It was actually more how it's written for violin… I don't know how to describe it. The experience of playing the violin part in the duo -- that's what challenged me the most, and that's what I learned the most from.

Laurie: In what other pieces did you find those echoes of Ives?

Hilary: Well, I first learned the one Ives sonata, and then the next season we programmed the rest of the set -- we programed three more Ives sonatas. At that time, I was also getting ready for the premiere of the (Jennifer) Higdon Concerto. So what Jennifer had written was new to me, what Ives had written was new to me… I got to the point where I was trying to learn so much new stuff -- just new ways of writing that I had never experienced before. I thought my brain was going to explode. So I had to take a break from the Ives and go to the Higdon. And I realized that there was a lot that I'd already learned, in the work I'd done on the Ives, that I could apply to the Higdon concerto. Since then, I've noticed it in a lot of places. I can't really name them off the top of my head, but things are influential without even realizing that they are. I don't know if it's a zeitgeist thing, or if it's that one person hears it and that person becomes influential, or if the material itself is influential, but there is definitely a continuum.

Laurie: Since we are speaking of sonatas, here's a little controversy: Should a violinist have the sheet music out, when performing a sonata with a pianist? A number of influential teachers argue that this is an absolute must because a sonata is chamber music.

Hilary: Well, I think you have to be practical with these things. The reality for me is that I'm near-sighted, and I don't like playing with contacts or glasses when I want to look at the violin.

I have very good close-up vision when I'm playing; it doesn't bother me to look at the bow. But if I'm wearing glasses or contacts when I'm playing, then my eyes aren't comfortable looking at the contact point with the bow; the closest I can look is my left-hand fingers, and for some reason, since I was six years old, I've always felt compelled to look at the bow contact point when I was on stage. I don't watch it constantly, but I need to be able to look there, and it actually gets in the way to wear glasses or something that would help me see the music.

And if I'm not looking at the violin, I don't play as well. I've noticed in recording sessions where I wasn't required to memorize the music -- and everyone else noticed it, too -- there was a night and day difference between when I played from the music and when I left the music aside and played by memory.

Mr. Brodsky said that I should have the sheet music because it looks funny if the violinist doesn't have it and the pianist has it. So I had it up there for a long time, but then it looked even weirder because I wasn't even looking at it, I was standing five feet away from it, because where I stand on the stage, I stand so that I can see the pianist's hands, I don't stand in the bend of the piano. So if I had it in actually the right place to look at, it would block the pianist. So I have to have it so far away, that there's no way I'm going to see it. In order to turn the page I have to walk all the way across the pianist -- walk in front of the pianist and turn the page. So I was turning the pages between movements, just for show, and I thought, that's even sillier. So for me, I play better without it, it's less of an awkward set-up, and I can't use it anyway because I can't see it. So I think you have to take practicality into consideration. If you're using the music, fine. If you're not using it, you can decide what you want to do.

Laurie: That adds a good dimension to this conversation; I don't think anyone's mentioned vision concerns.

Hilary: I notice this with discussions about shoulder rests, bow grip, vibrato, this kind of thing… people are always concerned about what the "right way" is, and honestly, half of the reason I hold my bow a certain way is because of how my hand is built. People are comfortable vibrating with different coordinations. Everyone has a slightly different combination of features and coordinations, and you just have to work it out for yourself, to make sure things are really working for you, not just seeming to work. They shouldn't look like they work and feel weird. You have to feel like it's working. That's what you build up over years of performing: that knowledge of yourself and the knowledge of what is right for you. In order to do that, you have to go out with conviction and do what you think is right in the moment.

I think it's a big struggle after people graduate from school and they don't have a teacher any more. What is right for me? I know what's right for other people, I know what other people think is right for me, but what is really right for me? It's good to know what your options are and what the expectations and impressions are, related to each option, but there is no one answer, for a lot of these things.

Laurie: I wanted to see how your Encore project is going and if you are ready to tell us about the mysterious way that you're going to select the 27th person…

Hilary: We're still putting off the announcement until next month but we promise details by the end of October. It will be clear, and no, I'm not the composer! I've seen a lot of speculation that maybe I'm composing it, but no. I'll leave it up to someone who is interested and is good at it. That's not the surprise.

I think there are a lot of pieces in this project that will appeal to people of different musical preferences, of different playing levels, different techniques. Because of the length they are, they'll be accessible to students, as well as very polished professionals. There are some that are really hard to play -- I like that challenge. But there are others that are gorgeous and they fit in the hand so well. They're all different from each other, and people have done really nice work for this. I'm really enjoying learning these pieces.

Laurie: Will they eventually be available as sheet music?

Hilary: They will. Not immediately, because I'm going to be playing them myself for a few years, just to get them out there and to get as much focus on them as possible. But then at a certain point they'll all be available. Each composer has their own arrangement with their own publisher, so it would be very difficult to do a compilation, all-in-one printed version. But each one will be available for getting, learning and performing.

Laurie: Do you plan to record them?

Hilary: I do, I'm going to record the first set this season, after I've finished performing them, and I'm going to record the second set, the rest of the premieres, next season, then it will be out the season after. So it will be out in 2013-14.

Interview with Alexandra Switala, 2011 Sphinx Competition Junior Division Winner
February 21, 2011 17:11
Violinist Alexandra Switala, 17, was no stranger to the Sphinx Competition when she won the Junior Division earlier this month. Her brother, Robert Switala, won the Junior Division in 2007, and this was the fourth time Alexandra herself had competed in the competition.

She credits her previous experience with the Sphinx for helping her cultivate the right mind-set and seek out the right kind of help to put her in a position to win this year.

The Sphinx Competition is held every year in the Detroit area to encourage minority participation in classical music. Alexandra, who is originally from Grapevine, Texas, near Dallas, spoke to me from Chicago, where she has been living in order to study with Almita and Roland Vamos.

Laurie: When did you start playing violin, and what made you decide to do so?

Alexandra: I started playing violin when I was four years old. My mom had always taken my brother and me to concerts, and she took us to a children's concert, where there were kids, a little older than us, playing the violin. I told my mom that I wanted to play the violin – actually I didn't say "violin," I just pointed and said, 'I want to play that!' So she started us with the Suzuki method. You don't start reading right away with the Suzuki method, you just learn by ear, and I really liked that because I've always been naturally musical.

Laurie: What is your history with the Sphinx?

Alexandra: I wasn't in it last year, but I was in it the three years previous to that. My brother, Robert Switala, competed in 2006. I didn't compete that year, but I saw him do it, and I saw the good friends he made and the opportunities he had. Then I went back with him the next year, 2007, and he won. I went back for the next two years after that, and I won second both years. Last year, I decided to take a break, and then I came back this year.

Laurie: You've really seen the Sphinx from every angle. Tell me, has it changed you? How has it influenced your path?

Alexandra: It has influenced me tremendously. When I was younger, my very first year, it was just really fun. It got me excited about the mission of Sphinx. Later on, the more I competed, I really got to be friends with some amazing musicians like Pamela Frank – she's been a judge for the three out of four years that I've competed. I've gotten to know her, and she's seen my progress and my development. Little things like that have helped me grow as a musician, and so has the feedback and other training that you get at the competition.

This year, I loved all the panel discussions and the lectures that they had. I really loved listening to Pamela Frank, first of all, because I had had a masterclass with her before, and hearing her speak at this session made me connect with her teaching even more.

(The panel discussion) made me realize a lot of things about myself, as a musician, what my values are as a musician. Sphinx just always brings it home for me. I love going back, and hopefully I'll be able to go back again to keep learning.

Laurie: What are your values as a musician, what do you mean by that?

Alexandra: Since I'm young, I guess I'm still trying to find what I want in my music, and why I'm playing music. I used to think, I want to be really good on the violin because I know I can play really well, but now I'm starting to realize, I'm so lucky to be able to play this music, it's so amazing. And that's really what I've been bringing to the stage more and what I've been trying to make an important aspect about my playing, to bring the music to the audience and show them this amazing thing that we can do. I don't really have defined "values" as a musician, but as I grow, maybe I will.

Laurie: Or maybe it's just important to have them, I don't know how many other competitions make you ask those kinds of questions!

Alexandra: Exactly! And that's what I love about Sphinx, first of all, they're about promoting diversity and excellence in music. Sphinx has made that important to me - I'm so proud to be a minority musician. And Sphinx does make you look at what your values are as a musician and helps you define who you are.

Laurie: Tell me about other competitions you've participated in.

Alexandra: I haven't done a lot of international competitions. This past two weeks have been my competition weeks, I had three competitions, including Sphinx. I had one right before the Sphinx, the Blount-Slawson Competition in Alabama. That's actually a great competition in Alabama, they have great prizes for the winners and the level gets higher and higher every year. This year it was amazing, to see the level. I actually won third, so I'm really happy. I was playing Prokofiev. That was right before Sphinx. Then I had a local competition in Chicago, and I won that, so I'll be playing the whole Prokofiev Concerto No. 2 with the Ars Viva Symphony Orchestra here in Chicago. It's actually comprised of a lot of Chicago Symphony members, so that will be really exciting.

Laurie: How does a young person find all these competitions, how does one get on that circuit?

Alexandra: It definitely requires a...Mom! to do all the research and spend hours on the Internet. It also helps to know the orchestras in the area, because they usually always have a concerto competition. Those are usually the best competitions to do since you usually have an opportunity to play with the orchestra. I also ask my teacher, because she gets e-mails from competitions, asking for participants.

Laurie: It almost sounds like you like competitions! Do you like competitions?

Alexandra: I used to be nervous, doing competitions. I always told my mom, performances are so much easier for me than competitions, where you can feel the direct competition with other violinists. But now I'm looking at competitions more as performance opportunities. Your aren't just playing for the prize, but you get to play for renowned musicians....So I'm more relaxed about competitions now.

Laurie: I wondered about your mindset, I noticed that you really took control of the situation. What that intentional, is that something you've learned?

Alexandra: It's definitely something I have learned. I guess that's what I'm talking about, when I say that I'm trying to look at it more as a performance opportunity. Instead of going into a competition being humble and trying to be nice to the judges, I look at it as more the opportunity to present myself. When I was preparing for the semi-finals at Sphinx, first of all, I made sure I was very prepared. I felt I was super-prepared in my Mozart, but my Bach, I was a little nervous about because I wasn't expecting them to hear the whole second movement. I was shocked when they did not stop me! But... anything can happen. They could ask for any part of the piece. So this is literally a performance. That's what I was thinking about during the whole semi-final round: Anything could happen. There was seven of us, and they can only choose three. Who knows how they could judge. All I could do was give my best and give a good presentation as well. For me, stage presence is really important because it gets people in the mood; it gets them in the mindset of listening to you and listening to your music. It's almost like reading the program notes before a piece you don't know – you have to prepare people.

Laurie: And how do you do that? How do things shift for you to be able to get into that stage-presence state of mind?

Alexandra: I think about the piece, definitely. For the (William Grant) Still piece ("Here's One,") which was so soulful. I was thinking of the lyrics. That piece is actually a transcription from a song that Still wrote. So I was thinking of the lyrics -- he was talking about finding God and being closer to God. Then having to switch to Bach – Bach can be similar – just from an earlier period. It's kind of easy to do that transition from Still to Bach. But going to Mozart, which is so much brighter, I didn't want to appear coming out sleepy from Bach. I was trying to get myself excited without getting too nervous. So it's imagery, and feeling the emotion before you play..

Laurie: It seems like you were really intentional with the order you played them in.

Alexandra: Yes, definitely. At first I was going to play my Mozart concerto first, but I consulted with my teacher, and she said she thought it would be best to end on a high note, ending on the cadenza and the flashy concerto...And I always like doing Bach in the middle. I don't like to start with anything unaccompanied and I don't like to end with anything unaccompanied.

Laurie: What violin you were playing?

Alexandra: I was actually playing my teacher's violin, Almita Vamos' violin, and she plays on a Guadagnini. I was so lucky to be able to have the opportunity to do that. I don't know how to describe it, but it taught me a lot I'm back with my old violin and my old bow, and I'm playing it differently. I'm playing it like it's an amazing Guadagnini!

Laurie: How much time did you get together with that Guad?

Alexandra: I got to play on it from about November until the competition. I live right across the street from (Almita). I go over every day and practice there, because she's usually gone, teaching at Northwestern. So I had a lot of time on it, it was really nice.

Laurie: How long have you been taking from Almita Vamos?

Alexandra: ...and Roland, I study with both of them.

Laurie: The Vami.

Alexandra: (She laughs) I actually moved (to Chicago) this fall, I started this semester. I studied with her over the summer at Chautauqua, and then I became a student of the Music Institute of Chicago and I moved in in September.

Laurie: How has that changed things for you? What are the Vamoses like?

Alexandra: They're so amazing. Mrs. Vamos works on mainly your pieces with you, and Mr. Vamos takes care of the Paganini Caprices, scales and the exercises. At first, that seemed a little separated to me, separating the nitty-gritty and the pieces. But actually I am glad that I have somebody to listen to my scales and to keep me accountable every single week....I used to do scales, but since I didn't have to play them for anybody, I didn't really do them. With my previous teacher I would do Caprices, and pieces, and Bach, and all of this...sometimes we wouldn't even get to the Caprices. And now I'm literally covering a Caprice every week. It's so great for the technique, and it's so necessary.

Laurie: Do you have two lessons a week, then?

Alexandra: Yes, one with Mr. and one with Mrs. It's truly amazing.

Laurie: How did you decide to play Rachel Barton Pine's Mozart cadenza at the competition? It was a very cool cadenza. (Rachel has talked with Violinist.com in the past about writing those cadenzas.)

Alexandra: I didn't even know about it! Rachel was coming over for dinner one night (at the Vamoses).... so Mrs. Vamos said, 'Oh, you can play your Sphinx repertoire, your Bach, your Mozart'... then two nights before Rachel came over, Mrs. Vamos called me over and she said, 'Rachel wrote a cadenza, you need to play it!'

Laurie: No pressure there....

Alexandra: No pressure at all! (She laughs) So she made me learn the cadenza and play it for her, and then she realized, it's a great cadenza! It's cute, it's original, it's flashy. So I got coaching with Rachel on it, and I decided to use it for the competition, because I thought it would be a cool twist.

Laurie: It really was. It was a showstopper.

Alexandra: It helped make the Mozart my own. Even though I didn't compose the cadenza – it made it feel unique, original. It was really fun. She had composed it in 2006, and Rachel said she had never heard anyone else play it. So this was a premiere, of sorts!

Laurie: It's neat for her, too, because a lot of people got to hear it. I hope people pick it up. She wrote a lot of other cadenzas, too, there's a whole treasure trove to open, there. I think she needs to keep writing, too. Clearly!

Do you have any new perspectives after winning the Sphinx?

Alexandra: The night of the finals competition, my family stopped at a Starbucks, and the lady who worked at the cash register saw my violin and said, 'Oh! Is that a violin?' It was a funny violin case, so I didn't expect people to recognize it, and so I said, 'Oh yes, it is.' She said, 'My daughter is 10 years old, and she just started. She really likes it!' So I started talking with her. I felt so inspired by Sphinx, and hearing all those lectures on how we really need to educate in the school. I told her, 'Tell her to just keep it up, even if she's getting bored with it...tell her to learn as much as she can. Because she'll always love music, for the rest of her life.' I guess that's what I'm really hoping to do, what I'm hoping to inspire in kids. Because of Sphinx, I'm pumped to go out and help educate and help inspire. I hope to do that more, through Sphinx and all of these opportunities.

Interview with Violist Paul Laraia, 2011 Sphinx Competition Senior Division Winner
February 16, 2011 13:17
Violist Paul Laraia, 21, has come a long way, from the sink-or-swim public school program where he first picked up the violin to winning the 2011 Sphinx Competition's Senior Division earlier this month in Detroit.

Paul is originally from South Jersey and is now in his fourth year at the New England Conservatory. He was one of the few kids in his elementary school with the kind of persistence and natural ability to find a path for himself in music and follow it.

Laurie: What made you start playing the viola?

Paul: I started on violin, in an elementary school program where everybody gets their own violin and plays along with a CD. As long as you have a good ear, you can just fake whether or not you're reading the music, so I didn't learn how to read music until sixth grade.

It was one of those programs that starts with about 300 kids, then by fifth grade, there were three of us left. I was the only one that made it on to our middle school program. Our middle school system has a lot of elementary schools that pour into it, so there were enough violinists for a sixth-grade orchestra. But there were no violists. So my school director, who was a violist herself, convinced me that viola would be the way to get ahead.

My little brother, Steve, who is two years younger than me, started played viola. And it's really funny, now we both play viola, and he's a sophomore at NEC, too. I'm a senior. He's kind of been following in my shadows, usually doing a little bit better than how I was doing at his age! And we have a younger sister who is 16, she plays the viola, too.

Laurie: A whole family of violists! This lady must have said something really convincing, to make you convert. What was it? It had to be a little bit more than that you would get ahead.

Paul: You're right.

I was really interested in getting into this all-South Jersey program in sixth grade, and I'd never had a single private lesson in my life. My mom, being a musical muggle, and I – neither of us knew exactly what it took to get into that orchestra. We just thought, I sound good, so I should be able to get into this. I started taking lessons with high school students – $8 lessons – and started to figure out what it takes in order to get into a program like that. Basically, my teacher convinced me that I would have a much better shot, getting in on viola.

Laurie: Did you get in?

Paul: The very first year that I wanted to do it, the audition was only a couple of weeks away. I crunched really hard with my first few lessons. My teacher said, 'So you know third position, right?' And I asked, 'What's that?' And then my teacher said, 'Maybe we'll start on vibrato,' and – you can't start vibrato in a week. So I gracefully gave up on that year, with the idea that I would work really hard and try again next year.

Then my high school student-teacher recommended me to his teacher, she was Byrnina Socolofsky. She's in her 90s and she's still going strong with a studio of 30 or 40 students, all extremely successful. She was one of the first women conductors of the local university; she's very well-respected in our area. So I studied with her. She was kind of reluctant, though. She knew that I had a good ear, but I didn't play in tune, I never used my fourth finger.

Laurie: And how long had you been playing at this point?

Paul: I'd been playing for three years, on my own, through the school, and I'd just switched to viola. My school teacher had given me a piece of paper and said, 'Learn alto clef.'

Laurie: What did you learn from Byrnina?

Paul: I learned how to play. I just didn't know how to play before. Through my school program, I'd been left on my own to learn how to hold the bow. They told you to hold the bow like a fox (he holds his right-hand fingers straight, pinching the thumb against the middle fingers) This is how I was holding the bow, and holding the violin like this (slumped) . I was bowing so crooked, and my staccato sounded like 'ck ck' but I thought I was so cool because I could do staccato. (He laughs.) I never liked using fourth finger. It was so awkward and there's an open string for that, why would I ever use fourth finger? So she just taught me everything. She taught me all my fundamentals on shifting and the positions – I went through each position. She taught me the importance of studies and scales – I learned all my scales with her.

She taught me my basic love of music, also. She wasn't very opinionated when it came to the way that you would take liberties in a piece, but she definitely knew when you weren't doing enough. She would say, 'Well, don't you want to do more?' She was extremely inspiring, and I'm sure there are hundreds of people you could find around South Jersey who would say the same.

Laurie: Did she teach you how to read music, too?

Paul: Yes. Obviously I knew, theoretically, how to read music in my first three years. But she had me make these flash cards, and she really forced me to read it like a language. That's priceless. That really influenced my sight-reading skills, and that influences the way you practice and learn music. To this day, I pride myself on being a good sight-reader. A lot of people are afraid to go there, but give me something hard, and I'll try it.

Laurie: So you got into that district orchestra the next year?

Paul: I got first chair!

Laurie: You worked hard!

Paul: When I took the audition, honestly, I didn't even know I was going to get in, I was so nervous. Then the next morning, they put the results up online. I woke up at the crack of dawn. My parents had seen the results first. They came into the room, and they were faking me out. They made this serious face...then they said, 'First chair, maybe!' It really blew me away.

Laurie: So did you do a lot of orchestra playing after that?

Paul: Yes, I got second chair in All-State that same year, and then the next year I got first chair in All-State. I guess that's how I kept feeding myself, by taking regional orchestra auditions and doing better and better. Then I started branching out and doing chamber music... I started moving into (the) Philadelphia (scene), which opened up a whole new level to me.

I was kind of following in the footsteps of my first teacher, the one who was a high school student. His name was Will Fenton. He's a Juilliard grad student now; I think he's graduating this year. But he also studied with Kim (Kashkashian) for his undergrad. He's three years older than me, but I've kind of been following in his footsteps. I would hear about a program that he had done before in Philadelphia, and I would check it out. We didn't necessarily maintain very close contact with each other, but ...

Laurie: It sounds like he was sort of a role model.

Paul: Yes, he was a role model, for a long time. To tell you the truth, that's what turned me on to New England Conservatory (NEC), finding out that he chose to go to NEC and hearing other good things about it. Before that, I lived in this narrow little scope, with the idea that Curtis (Institute) was the only possible way to become a top-level musician. I finally learned that there's more than the reputation of a school. NEC is a true testament to the fact that an inspirational work environment can be just as beneficial for musical training as just being surrounded by other amazing people.

Laurie: What do you mean by an inspirational environment, what makes it inspirational?

Paul: The faculty, at least all that I've been exposed to, shares a common passion for music. The reason they play at a high level is for the music's sake, not just for the sake of getting a job – or for even for becoming a better instrumentalist. NEC has a huge chamber music focus, and most of the faculty are famous chamber players, with a couple soloists and a couple orchestra players. Paul Katz, Donald Weilerstein and Roger Tapping have all been huge influences on me through my quartet, and I was able to coach with all of them. Also, being able to do Yellow Barn Festival: Being able to work with them more in-depth and play chamber music with them.

Of course, I love Curtis, I love Philadelphia and all my teachers after Byrnina were Curtis alumni and members of the Philadelphia Orchestra. I still believe in Rachmaninov's quote, which was something like, "The Philadelphia Orchestra is the sound that I hear, the perfect sound of music." But I'm not stuck on the viewpoint that Curtis was the only way to the top. Music is a lot more than mastering your instrument; it's about the kind of person you are. NEC has been a really great place to absorb that, without even being told. At least for me.

Laurie: How did doing the Sphinx last year influence your direction, or did it? This was your second time around, what was that like, the first time around?

Paul: The Sphinx is unlike any other competition. I've done a couple of chamber music competitions like Fischoff and TROMP with my string quartets, and obviously this competition has a whole other mission. Even if I hadn't made finals last year or won this year, this would have been an awesome experience.

Laurie: In what way?

Paul: It's an amazing, friendly, family environment, that's number one. It really took me my time at the competition and my time with the Sphinx chamber orchestra in October to get comfortable and understand that it is like a family here. It feels like all of us friends are getting back together and celebrating. I don't imagine a lot of other competitions are like that.

Then on top of it, you have the competition. But once the Thursday competition is over, it becomes really friendly. Actually it starts out friendly, but everybody has to keep their game faces on because you really want to make it. Then once the results are out, there's really no hard feelings. You get immediate feedback from the judges, and you also have masterclasses. It becomes a fully engaging experience, not just a competition. From my understanding, the way most competitions work is that if you lose in the first round, you buy your plane ticket so you can go back home and practice for your recital or whatever that's coming up. Here, you're in for a lot more than just the competition.

Laurie: At this competition, when you go back and listen to everybody else, what does that do for you?

Paul: There's an element of pride. When I was listening to (other Senior Division competitors performa at) the honors concert today, I was really genuinely happy for all three, because I thought they did a lot of great things.

Laurie: What do you feel you learned about your own playing and your own wishes for your own career from the experience?

Paul: Last year, I learned a lot from the comment sheets that I received at the end, after the final competition. Even though the judges were different this year, I used those comments and applied them this year, and I think it made a difference. It's nice to have the really broad perspective you get from the judges. You have a 6- to 8-member jury covering every facet that a string player would want: a conductor, a composer, a cello perspective, sometimes bass, violin...And a lot of these people are world-class, super-famous. You know they're coming to something like this for all the right reasons. They're not coming because of the big paycheck. They're coming because they believe in the mission. They're really there to help you. Having a really broad perspective like that is invaluable. Even if you have the best teacher in the world, one teacher can't give you a broad perspective that eight people who are really engaged in the musical world can give you.

You never know where you're going to end up in music, especially in this day, so it's really nice to have every angle covered. And when every angle starts zeroing in on a few common themes, you know you've got to work on those! (He laughs.) That's what I worked on, and I think that's what really helped in my first round of this performance.

Laurie: Did you learn anything more about what you want to do with music?

Paul: I'm just really grateful for the opportunities that I'm going to have. Even if I don't end up being a soloists – how many viola soloists are there? I don't really care where I end up, I'm just going to try to take full advantage of these opportunities. There are going to be some incredible memories, as long as I work hard and prepare my materials, and if more good things come, then I'll be grateful.

Laurie: How much did you have to practice for this competition?

Paul: This year I wasn't only practicing for the competition, but I also had my grad school auditions, and I just had my senior recital a week or two ago. I just made sure all my repertoire overlapped.

In my ideal world, I like to practice six or seven hours a day, and sometimes I accomplish that. Sometimes I accomplish that for many weeks at a time, if I'm devoted to that mindset. My teacher feels that it's pointless to practice more than five hours. Physically, it's just going to hurt you if you practice more than five hours. So five hours is the limit, even though my teacher says, if you take it slow and if you think your body can handle it, you can try to aim for six.

You have to spend a large portion of your practice not just sustaining the technical things you know and your security with the instrument, but you are constantly trying to enhance it. That's in addition to trying to learn repertoire. That's why so much time is necessary. When you're preparing for something like this, where preparation is really key, you need a lot of time. But at the same time, when you're on stage and when the nerves kick in and when your world starts crashing on you, the foundation that you laid for yourself in those other hours of practice is what saves you.
ngly suspect that the "f" in "Pamela Frank" also stands for "fun" -- not that Pamela was all fun and games. But she certainly brought enthusiasm to harmonic analysis, as well as a wonderful ability to help students bridge the gap between technique and expression. It's gap that can grow wide in the development of upper-level technique, when so many hours get devoted to acquiring technique itself.

Augustin Hadelich talks about 'Echoes of Paris'
February 8, 2011 13:25
Today is the official CD release of Augustin Hadelich's new recording, Echoes of Paris, which was released digitally about a month ago.

This was a good excuse to chat with Augustin once again and see how he's doing, now that he has a new recording and a new fiddle. (This fall he returned the Gingold Strad to the International Violin Competition of Indianapolis. He now is using the "Kiesewetter" Stradivari of 1723, through The Stradivari Society.)

For the new recording, in collaboration with pianist Robert Kulek, Hadelich performed with the Gingold Strad. The CD contains Francis Poulenc's Sonata for Violin and Piano, Op. 119;  Igor Stravinsky's lesser-played "Pulcinella" suite called "Suite After Themes, Fragments And Pieces By Giambattista Pergolesi"; Claude Debussy's Sonata for Violin and Piano in G minor and Sergei Prokofiev's Sonata No. 2 For Violin And Piano In D Major, Op. 94b (originally for flute).

"I really enjoy these pieces and thought that they fit really well together," said Hadelich, speaking over the phone from his home in New York last month. "That is what I started out with. And then it occurred to me later that all these composers have strong relationships with the city of Paris." "I thought a little bit more and realized that you can hear how they influence each other. You can hear a little bit of Debussy in Stravinsky and Poulenc… They were all in Paris at some point, going to each other's concerts. They would all show up to premieres of other composers' newest works… They didn't necessarily they all like each other; they were very critical of each other sometimes. Nevertheless, you can hear a general influence."

"In Poulenc's case, he was very influenced by Stravinsky, the percussiveness in the writing," Hadelich said. "That comes out in the percussive opening of the violin sonata."

Poulenc was very critical of his second violin sonata, which was written as a tribute to the Spanish poet, Federico García Lorca, who was executed in 1936 by the fascist government in Spain.

"He was a very self-deprecating person, really self-critical," Augustin said. "I think he was torturing himself about the form of it, which is unusual and a little bit strange. Sometimes his music can be a little fragmented. But actually I like it, it makes the sonata very unique. I like the sudden changes, the sudden back and forth between these incredibly contrasting elements, this really aggressive, percussive writing and that sort of cheesy salon music – there's a lot of contrast in this piece, it's extremely exciting."

When it comes to the Stravinsky piece that is based on his ballet, Pulcinella, violinists tend to know the Suite Italienne, which was transcribed in 1932 by the violinist Samuel Dushkin. For this recording, Hadelich and Kulek perform a 1925 version, made by Stravinsky in collaboration with the violinist Paul Kochanski.

"I played 'Suite Italienne' a lot, but then I suddenly stumbled upon this earlier version," Augustin said. "I decided that it's more authentic, it's more Stravinsky. In the other version, sometimes it doesn't really sound as though you're playing Stravinsky because they took so many of the dissonances out. It's no longer really neoclassical; it just becomes sort of classical. The later one is also very beautiful, but this one is a little quirkier and much more similar to the orchestral version. I also think that the two instruments are a lot more equal than in the earlier one. The violin doesn't have the theme all the time, there's a little more switching back and forth. It's also much more difficult."

"There are some movements in particular that are much more interesting," Hadelich said. "The second movement, the Serenata, has a lot more interesting colors and effects, and then the second variation of the Gavotte, the fourth movement, is longer and the writing is a little bit more imaginative. It sounds a little like a music box -- the piano is playing very high and the violin has harmonics. It's a really magical passage, and it goes on longer than in the later version...it became one of my favorite parts. "

The Prokofiev flute-gone-violin sonata is actually one of my personal favorites, and after seeing Augustin perform it live in LA a few years ago, I was inspired to dust it off and play it again myself!

So how are things going, with that new Strad?

"I'm really enjoying it," Hadelich said. "The old one was always really wonderful for recordings because it has such a beautiful sound, but I think the new one has that sound, too, and in the concert setting it's quite a bit more powerful. It's been easier with certain pieces, such as large dramatic concerti like the Brahms concerto. Also, it just has a really gorgeous sound. It's little bit brighter than the other one, but I think actually it fits my playing a little better. It's less temperamental with the travel, which makes everything easier. The other one would sort of sound bad for two days until it recovered, whenever I would travel. It really was temperamental. With this one, I can hear the slight difference when I've traveled, but it's basically immediately playable; it will sound quite good right away."

The "Keisewetter" is a little younger than the "Gingold" Strad, though Augustin doesn't believe that is the key factor.

"The 'Keisewetter' Strad was made 1723, as opposed to 1683, when the 'Gingold' Strad was made. It's still very old. I don't think it's the age, it's more the pattern," Hadelich said. "Strad changed the pattern. This one is may be just a little more resilient and stable. I think his earlier instruments are a little bit more temperamental… When they have a good day, they sound amazing. But very often they will have a bad day, and then you really have to work twice as hard."

This is not a piece on the new album, but it seemed nice for mid-winter, Ysaÿe's Sonata No. 5 in G Major, "L'Aurore.":

Sphinx Competition 2011: Violinist Alexandra Switala wins first place Junior Division
February 7, 2011 19:15
The Sphinx Competition came to a close on Sunday night with a Finals Concert and announcement of its Junior Division winner, violinist Alexandra Switala, 16, of Grapevine, TX.

The second-place laureate was bassist Xavier Foley, 16, of Marietta, GA and the third-place laureate was Annelle Gregory, 15, of San Diego, CA.

The Senior Division first-place laureate, violist Paul Laraia of Boston, had already been named on Thursday, when he was named the only finalist. Sunday's concert was to have featured three Senior Division finalists who would have been competing for first place.

Instead, Laraia performed as the already-named Senior Division winner, and the three younger Junior Division finalists vied for first place in front of an audience of about 1,200 at Detroit's Orchestra Hall.

The concert began with Annelle Gregory playing the first movement of Mozart's Violin Concerto No. 5 in A Major. I appreciated the good clean introduction played by the Sphinx Symphony Orchestra -- Mozart is no throw-together affair. The highlight was Annelle's elegantly-played Joachim cadenza. It's hard to make this oft-played cadenza sound spontaneous and original, but she pulled it off, with good pacing that made room for both high-speed runs and moments of time and space.

Next up was Xavier Foley, performing the third movement of Dittersdorf's Concerto for Double Bass in E Major, which he did with great energy and a well-paced accelerando at the end that had the audience cheering and bringing him out for more applause.

Alexandra Switala was truly in character for her Mozart Concerto No. 5. On Saturday, jury member Pam Frank had suggested in a master class that the character of the music should show in a performer's face, and Switala seemed to take this to heart. It was fun to see her out-of-the-ordinary bowings (for example, starting the Allegro aperto up-bow!) and her connection with the orchestra. As she had done on Thursday, she played Rachel Barton Pine's cadenza, and it was a big hit.

Next came a performance of the intense and aggressive first movement of Ginastera's String Quartet No. 2, Op. 26 by the Catalyst Quartet, comprised of Sphinx Competition laureates and alumnni Bryan Hernandez-Luch, violin; Karla Donehew Perez, violin; Chris Jenkins, viola; and Karlos Rodriguez, cello.

Senior Division first-place laureate Paul Laraia played the second-movement "Vivo" from the Walton viola concerto. He had mentioned to me that without the pressure of having to compete, he would simply go out and have fun, which looked like exactly what he was doing. And it's fun to watch someone having fun! He seemed to ride the wave of asymmetrical rhythms, with a clear projecting sound, and he had good support from the Sphinx Symphony Orchestra's brass section.

Then came the presentation of awards.



L to R: Paul Laraia, Annelle Gregory, Alexandra Switala, Xavier Foley, and Sphinx founder Aaron Dworkin

As the Senior Division first-prize winner, Laraia will receive a $10,000 cash prize, solo appearances with major orchestras, and a professional recording through the Naxos label. This year there were no second and third place, but Senior Achievement awards of $2,500 went to two participants, Maia Cabeza and Josue Gonzalez; and a Gold Achievement award of $4,000 went to Michael Casimir. Junior first-prize winner Alexandra Switala will receive a $5,000 cash prize, solo appearances with major orchestras, and a national radio debut on From the Top. All 18 semi-finalists will receive a scholarship to a summer program this year, and other awards and prizes are listed here.

To conclude, the Sphinx Symphony Orchestra performed the larger-than-life Finale from a work commissioned by the Sphinx Organization, Sinfonia No. 4 by Roberto Sierra. It's a big, noisy piece of music, in the way that a happy family is big and noisy. No instrument is left out, everyone has a busy part, including a lot of brass. Earlier in the week the Puerto Rican composer said that when he writes a piece "it's infused with my nature. When I talk, I have an accent, and in my music, I have an accent. It's always there." And indeed, right away that accent came through, in the punctuation by the marimba, the very active harp, and in the way that something was always poking through the texture. My only regret was not being able to hear this movement in the context of the entire symphony. The performance received a long standing ovation.

Throughout the week, Sphinx administrators talked a lot about the "importance of partnerships" and they walked the walk, as well. The final concert program contains a chart of the Sphinx Symphony Orchestra, listing a sponsor for nearly every single chair. Take a look:

The part in black names the sponsor, and if you'll notice, nearly every chair is sponsored. In addition to these "Musical Chair" sponsors, the program listed more than 300 more sponsors for Sphinx -- much of them coming from the Detroit area, one of the most economically hard-hit areas in this Great Recession.

Throughout the week, members of the Sphinx Symphony as well as Sphinx competitors were asked to hand-write thank-you notes to sponsors, a task they took quite seriously. I can't help but think that drawing attention to the sponsors will help cultivate an awareness that not only do musicians need to take opportunities seriously, but they also need to create opportunities and nurture relationships that support classical music. That's a good lesson for all of us.

Sphinx Competition: Building a Life and Career in Music
February 5, 2011 14:00
What is the single most important factor in your success?

This was the kind of question posed on Friday to successful music professionals representing many facets of the industry at a panel discussion called "Musical Toolbox," meant to show Sphinx Competition participants what tools they need to be cultivating for a life and career in music.

And it went way beyond "Practice six hours a day."

2008 Sphinx Laureate Danielle Belen and Sphinx Founder and President Aaron Dworkin

The panelists certainly were the right people to ask: 2008 Sphinx Laureate Danielle Belen; EPCOR Centre for the Performing Arts CEO Johann Zietsman; conductor Kazem Abdullah; composer Roberto Sierra; violinist Sanford Allen, the first Black member of the New York Philharmonic; and violinist Pam Frank, Avery Fischer prize winner, performer and professor of violin at Curtis Institute and Peabody Conservatory.

How does a person achieve success as a musician? When a performing arts directory such as Musical America contains 50 performing artists' series on a single page, how does one stand out? How does one find a niche in this field?

"I think it's important to evaluate your relationship to music," said Pam Frank. "Find your individual voice and be true to it. Do not be influenced by what others tell you to do; do not be entranced by fame."

"I think success is also in the eye of the beholder," added Karem Abdullah. "The motivation can't be just financial, it has to be that you love music and you want to share your enthusiasm for it." You also can't take any opportunities for granted, he said. "You have to make the most of every opportunity."

"I love doing what I do; if I don't write for several days, I get nervous," said Roberto Sierra. His motivation to write doesn't disappear just because there is no project on the table, no commission to fill right now. It is a constant urge to compose.

Johann Zietsman, who grew up in South Africa, said his sense of how to make a career was deeply influenced by "being in the wrong place at the wrong time," a white person in apartheid, wanting to present black artists and serve black audience, despite the fact that it was actually illegal. "That still drives who I am, that sense of wanting to make the world a better place," he said. "It's that simple, and it's that difficult."

As musicians, trying to sell out a hall or sell a certain number of recordings, we become programmed to the idea that success is equal to more people liking you. But true success has to be on a deeper level; it comes of cultivating an inner artistic compass and sense of integrity that guides your decisions.

"The moment you respond to a creative impulse, what you create internally is of greater importance than what you create externally," Zietsman said.

Conductor Karem Abdullah said that learning to say "no" to certain projects was also part of cultivating artistic integrity. "I need to feel a connection to a composer's music to do it," he said. Sometimes he is asked to do projects that are ethnically based, and if they don't truly speak to him, he says no.

Being true to one's artistic impulse certainly is not always the easy path, even if it is the right one.

"I needed to play the fiddle, it was really that simple," said Sanford Allen, of his drive to play the violin despite the difficulty of being the first black musician in the New York Philharmonic. "I was tempted not to do it at times. I wanted to cut my head off sometimes! But that seemed a trifle drastic."

Danielle Belen said that while other violinists in music school might have been looking over each other's shoulders, seeing who was winning this competition and that, "I was looking at Mr. Lipsett," her teacher. His ability to transform students and complete involvement in their development inspired her to want to do the same. So, despite the fact that she actually won the Sphinx Competition in 2008 and loves performing, she still considers her calling to be teaching. Even if she were to win $1 million in a lottery, "I honestly could say, I would still want to teach, I enjoy it so much."

Certainly, there will be difficulties, even if one is sure about one's career decisions. Pamela Frank spoke of an accident that wiped away her ability to play, in one moment. "In that moment, you realize, you aren't what you do, you are what you are," she said. The accident forced her to transform herself, though not without a period of depression and difficulty. "I threw myself into music in a different way," becoming a teacher and channelling that desire to play through her students. "I think 'soloist' is not a career. You are either a musician, or you are not. What is success? It's gratitude, to be so grateful you have anything to do with music."

This is all wonderful philosophy, but let's get real. You have to practice! How much does a successful artist practice his or her craft?

"I'm a big believer in quality of work," Abdullah said. "There has to be a real purpose in what you are doing. If you are practicing a few minutes at a time, then texting.."

"You guys shouldn't even have your phone near you when you practice!" interjected Sphinx founder and president Aaron Dworkin.

"Don't spend one extra minute practicing something you already do well," Frank said. "It's important to practice honestly. If you feel yourself starting to fade, stop."

That said, a lot of practice is needed, especially in the beginning. Malcolm Gladwell's prescription of 10,000 hours' practice to reach a level of expertise does have merit.

As a student, "I really did need to practice about four hours a day to do all the exercises and learn new pieces," Belen said. Since then, she has become more efficient Still, "you need to be constantly teaching yourself," she said.

Dworkin took an informal poll of Sphinx participants and asked what careers interest them. Hands were raised for many different things: being a soloist, a teacher, chamber music performer, composer, conductor and arts administrator. Almost all of them said they don't want to do just one thing.

Sanford Allen advised getting "a really solid education; not just in your discipline, but in everything around it." That includes reading, writing, history.. (I'll personally throw in math.) Allen talked about teaching a music history class, which turned into a remedial writing class because the students had such poor written communication skills.

It's also important to meet people, build connections, and use them in a positive way, said Zietsman.

One Sphinx participant asked how we can build diverse audiences for classical music.

"I've realized that if you are a bunch of green people and you want to do something for red people, you'd better have some red people in the room when you are making plans," said Zietsman. It's surprising, he said, how many presenters will make such decisions without seeking out the help and advice of the audience they are trying to attract.

In building a career, it's also important to remember the Nike slogan, "Just do it." Belen spoke of building a studio, simply because she wanted to start teaching. Eventually, her experience and enthusiasm eventually helped lead to a teaching position at the Colburn School in Los Angeles.

"You just do it, whether someone has made the opportunity for you or not," Dworkin said, summing it up. "If not, you make the opportunity yourself.

A crescent moon hung over the Detroit River Friday at sunset, with Windsor, Ontario on one side of the river and Detroit on the other. Sphinx contestants, Sphinx Symphony Orchestra members and donors rode the glass elevators to the top of Detroit's Renaissance Center for a special dinner at the restaurant, Coach Insignia. The elevator climbed past every skyscraper in the city, allowing us the fullest scope of this beautiful scene. As we continued upward, I felt the sense that our little glass vessel would burst through the ceiling at any time and launch into the sky, as in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. I hope those participating in the Sphinx get the same feeling -- about pursuing a career in classical music.

Sphinx Competition Day 2: Violist Paul Laraia wins Senior Division, schedule changed
February 4, 2011 22:25
The Sphinx Competition jury announced today that violist Paul Laraia, 21, of Boston, is the winner in the Senior Division, for contestants ages 18 through 26.

The jury was to have picked three finalists from among the nine semi-finalists who played on Thursday, but after long deliberations Thursday night they concluded that Paul was the only candidate that reached threshold of musical excellence required for the field, said Sphinx representative Alison Piech. The 2011 Sphinx Competition Jury includes Richard Aaron, Kazem Abdullah, Sanford Allen, Danielle Belen, Pamela Frank, Michael Tree and Astrid Schween.

"(The jurors) just thought (the other candidates) needed more work, and that is where we come in," Piech said. Part of the Sphinx mission is to provide the tools that young minority musicians need to succeed: access to instruments, summer programs, master classes, scholarships. "Because of our connections in the field, we are able to put them in touch with those who can help them."

As a result of this decision, the schedule for the competition was turned upside-down, a development which the young musicians handled with grace. Friday was to have seen the conclusion of the Junior Division of the competition (for contestants under age 18), with finalists giving an Honors Recital and a winner named at the end.

Instead, the Junior Division finalists (Violinists Annelle Gregory and Alexandra Switala and bassist Xavier Foley) will have to wait until Sunday to perform and be placed.

On Friday, three contestants from the Senior Division, violinist Maia Cabeza, 18, of Philadelphia; violist Michael Casimir, 19, of Philadelphia, and cellist Josue Gonzalez, 23, of Cleveland were named recipients of "Senior Achievement Awards" (a $2,500 cash prize each) and competed for one "Gold Achievement Award" ($1,500 cash prize). Maia played the last movement of the Wieniawski Concerto, Michael played the second movement of the Walton Concerto and Josue played the third movement of the Lalo Concerto for Cello in D minor. The Gold Achievement Award went to violist Michael Casimir.

Senior Division winner Paul Laraia will received a $10,000 cash prize, solo appearances with major orchestras, and professional CD through Naxos label. He also will perform with the Sphinx Symphony Orchestra at the Finals Concert 2 p.m. Sunday at Orchestra Hall in Detroit. The junior division finalists will also perform and be ranked, and the Sphinx Symphony Orchestra, under conductor Michael Morgan, will play a new piece by composer Roberto Sierra.

We will feature a Violinist.com interview with Paul Laraia this weekend.

If there was some disappointment hanging in the air, there was also a great deal of energy for Friday's concert, as hundreds of schoolchildren filled the plush orange seats in the University of Michigan's Rackham Auditorium and the 40-some members of the Sphinx Symphony Orchestra gathered on stage. The orchestra includes Black and Latino musicians from all over the United States (including Violinist.com member Samuel Thompson, Internet friend for six years whom I finally met for the first time in person!)

There were rough moments in this concert, but there were other moments worth remembering. The kids were noisy and raucous until the concert began, and yet they fell into a hush, listening to Josue Gonzalez's cello. What did they think, hearing the quirky rhythms of the Walton Concerto for the first time, played by Michael Casimir? And they bubbled over at Maia Cabeza's bouncy ending for the Wieniawski.
At least one message of the Sphinx Competition seems to be to keep moving forward and striving, whatever the barriers, whatever the setbacks. Keep performing, keep learning what an audience sees and hears. Learn to make it happen, learn to fool-proof your technique against nerves and mistakes. As composer Roberto Sierra told the contestants later in the day at a panel discussion, "The only people who get nowhere are the people who get off the road." Find your road, stay on it.

Violinist Rachel Barton Pine just loooooooovves Wohlfahrt etudes!!!!!

Interview with Rachel Barton Pine: Franz Wohlfahrt Etudes

Interview by violinist Laurie Niles

Ah, the violin etudes of Franz Wohlfahrt. The English-speaking pre-adolescent dreads having to say the man's name too loudly -- but often shows surprising devotion in learning his studies.

Teachers have turned to these etudes for more than 100 years, and it's been nearly that long since anyone took a look at the editions we use -- mine, for example, was last edited in 1905.

Enter Rachel Barton Pine, who professed her love of etudes earlier this fall in an article she wrote for The Strad magazine. Rachel is in the process of re-editing and recording the Wohlfahrt etudes, and her first book and DVD on the subject, published by Carl Fischer, is due for release later this fall.

I spoke with her last month, after the summer release of her album of Spanish and Latin American music for unaccompanied violin, Capricho Latino, and just before the Sept. 16 arrival her daughter, Sylvia Michelle.

Laurie: Do you remember learning the Wohlfahrt etudes as a child?

Rachel: I thought they were great -- and actually, my teachers -- Roland and Almita Vamos -- were very savvy. They said to me, 'Don't let your studio-mates know how much you like etudes. They might not understand, and it might be harder to make friends with them!' (laughing) In other words, don't let them know you're so weird! But now, of course, it says right on the cover of the September issue of The Strad magazine, 'Rachel Barton Pine: Why I Love Etudes!'

Laurie: You're out with it.

Rachel: I guess I have enough friends that I'm not worried about admitting that any more!

Laurie: Somehow the Wohlfahrt etudes get the reputation for being boring studies.

Rachel: I think they're very far from that -- these little pieces have so much going on, once you seek it out. Things like Ševcík and Schradieck don't have any redeeming musical value, except for the interesting element of paying attention to your technique.

Laurie: I find that my students like the Wohlfahrt etudes. Whoever they are, whether they're extremely serious about the violin or not, they tend to do their assignment when it comes to the Wohlfahrt etudes.

Rachel: That's great to hear. I really think they are appealing.

Laurie: Do you know much about Mr. Franz Wohlfahrt? You mention in The Strad article that he lived from 1833 to 1884 in Leipzig, Germany, and was the son of a piano teacher.

Rachel: I have yet to go to the library -- because of the baby weighing me down, I haven't been able to run that errand! I eventually do want to get over to the library and find some old, German-language music dictionaries from the 1800s and see if he pops up in there. But all the usual sources -- the current English-language dictionaries like Grove, even Wikipedia -- there's virtually nothing about him. You can't even find his exact dates. He's a surprisingly, almost shockingly, obscure guy!

Laurie: Tell me about the new edition you are creating.

Rachel: This is a Carl Fischer compilation, and there will be two volumes. One volume is first position only, then the second volume moves through the positions. It draws from Wohlfahrt's Opuses 45, 54, and 74, covering most of the etudes, leaving a few odd ones left out.

Basically, these etudes were compiled at the beginning of the 20th century by a guy named K.H. Aiqouni. Carl Fischer themselves have no idea who the heck he is. They don't know whether he was one of their in-house editors, using a pen name, or whether that was his real name but nobody can find him any more. It's completely mysterious. Anyway, he took took the best of the etudes from those three opuses and put them in a very logical sequence, organized by skill level, by key, and so on. I think teachers have really appreciated the graded series of the etudes. However, his editing is a little outdated, in terms of some fingering choices, when to hold fingers down or not -- it just feels not-quite-current.

Laurie: How did you wind up being the person to bring it up-to-date?

Rachel: What happened was that Carl Fischer invited me to record the etudes. I'm such an etude geek that I was super-excited! Not quite as excited as for my concerto recordings, but pretty darn close. People might think that's a silly attitude to have, but really, they're like old friends, not only from having played them, but from having taught them when I had a studio in the mid-90s. They're very appealing little tunes. I thought, this is a great thing to leave for posterity.

As I started practicing them and using this edition, I realized that I needed to do a little something with the editing so that my playing would match what was on the page, or vice versa, as the case may be. I also decided that a DVD would be an even better way to go because then students could see the bow distribution, see the technical set-up, and so on. So we decided to do that.

I had to play each etude through perfectly, in a single shot, because we weren't going to be splicing the audio, whatsoever. So even though they're short and they're in the first position, I definitely had to be very in shape to get through every single one, perfectly.

Laurie: You had to practice Wohlfahrt etudes!

Rachel: Yes! (laughing) Who ever thought I'd be doing that again?

Laurie: What kinds of changes did you make in editing the music?

Rachel: Wohlfahrt's etudes are almost entirely blank, unlike Kayser, for example, who has very detailed dynamic schemes for each of his etudes. The question became, do I play them very straightforward, in a basic kind of way, or do I give them an interpretation?

A couple of things controlled my decision. First, Wohlfahrt lived in the 1800s, when individuality was so prized among artists. It was common practice for artists to take great compositions and change the dynamics or do their own thing -- they had no qualms about that. There was nothing like an urtext mentality; it was all about bringing the music to life. Perhaps Wohlfahrt might have even left the page a little bare in order to give his students the extra element of crafting their interpretations. Obviously, in exercises like Schradieck and Ševcík, you don't add dynamics. But these Wohlfahrt etudes are little pieces; they have harmonic and structural development. How can you, as a musician, ignore what's underlying these pieces?

Thinking back to my student days, studying these etudes with Roland Vamos, he would actually go over to the piano and show me the chords. I was supposed to come each week with at least one new etude fully memorized and interpreted. He wanted me to know things like: When does the key change, especially between major and minor? Where are the echos, or the same phrases repeating more than once? Where does the recapitulation begin? He made sure that I understood the architecture and the chordal structure of every one of these little etudes I was practicing, in addition to whatever I was supposed to be thinking about my left and right hands, technically, for the etude.

It makes a lot of sense. As I was working on the technique, I was also thinking about the character of the music: whether there were strong parts, light parts, extroverted parts, introverted parts. However the music was ebbing and flowing would directly translate into my articulation, my amount of vibrato, bow distribution and everything else. As I was studying technique, it was intrinsically tied in with musicality. That's the whole point of technique: to serve the music. I think that's the most real-world way to study these etudes.

I felt that not every teacher might be able to go over to the piano and play the chords like Roland Vamos did, and not every student might not be home-schooled like I was and have the time to do the amount of experimentation that it takes to try to craft their own interpretation for every single etude. So I decided to add dynamics to all these etudes. Certainly, they are suggestions only. My hope is that students will not just blindly follow the fortes and mezzo-fortes and pianos, but that they'll listen carefully and try to understand why the dynamic is changing -- if it's based on the harmony or if it's based on the architecture -- and really start to understand the way the music is put together and relate that to their technique.

So that was quite a big project, adding all of that to all of these etudes, but I think it's really going to bring them to life, and hopefully make them that much more enjoyable for anyone who studies them. They're not just boring, straightforward notes, but they're actual little pieces of music.

Laurie: They are also pretty read-able for the violin student.

Rachel: Roland Vamos had me -- and all the students -- use them as sight-reading practice, and I think that was very valuable. Each new etude would be something that we'd never heard before, unlike other repertoire, where we would have heard older kids in our studio play it already or heard recordings of it. Unless you have an older sibling studying the exact same instrument as you, when you get to Mazas No. 38, why would you have ever heard it before? The same can't be said about any piece of repertoire. So it was it was useful opportunity to practice learning music from the page, as opposed to having it in your ear already.

So whenever we got a new etude, he would tell us to set the metronome a couple of notches faster than was comfortable and force ourselves to keep going, no matter what. He wanted us to get a couple of play-throughs under our belt, making ourselves sight-read. Then of course, after that: slow it down and learn it carefully, making sure we had the exact right notes, rhythms, and all that good stuff.

The question I had to ask myself was: What about this recording I'm making? I don't want students to use it like a Suzuki recording and listen to all the etudes 100 times before they ever study any of them. That was not the point. In my forward to the book, which I hope people will read, I actually say that I think it's valuable to do this sight reading practice and that I would encourage people to listen to the DVD track of a particular etude only after they've practiced and learned it. It's not my intention for students to use this recording as a shortcut, or for learning by ear.

Laurie: What else is different about this edition than previously published editions?

Rachel: Wohlfahrt includes bowing variations for a number of his etudes, the ones with notes in groups of six notes and in groups of eight notes. I took all of his bowing variation suggestions from all of his etudes and collated them into one big compilation at the front of the book. Then I say that every etude with groups of notes in eight or six can be played with all of the bowings for each of those rhythmic combinations. Certainly kids would go crazy if they had to play every single variation for every single etude -- you'd never finish the book! But the point is that teachers can pick and choose. Every kid is different; some might need more work on certain bowing patterns than others and the teachers might want to use those for multiple etudes, and then other ones that they seem to get pretty quickly they might skip and not bother to do them with most of the etudes.

I didn't think there was any particular reason to have these few bowings for this etude and these bowings for this other etude. I thought having all the bowing options would be useful. I also added, within the slur and separate patterns that he gives, options for doing them legato, staccato and even off-the-string, spiccato, if kids are ready and the teacher finds it useful.

Laurie: Sometimes students wonder why they have to do so many bowings before they can get to the next etude. What makes this a useful exercise for students?

Rachel: If every bowing you practiced was always with a new melody, then you would always be having to think about the new melody. Once you know how the etude goes, you no longer have to think about the notes, and you can really put 100 percent of your attention into each new bowing pattern. It allows you to concentrate on the bowing, more specifically.

Laurie: Why not just do that with scales? Why would it be important to do it in an etude?

Rachel: Well, now, doing it with scales is going to be even more boring! (both laugh)

Laurie: There's one reason!

Rachel: Actually there's a much more pedagogically logical reason, which is that in scales, you're either going up the notes or down the notes. Etudes, of course, have all kinds of different string crossings and fingering patterns. If you break it down, you might have three notes on the A string, two notes on the E string, two more on the A, a couple on the E -- you're doing all these different kinds of patterns, in terms of string crossings, and then you combine that with different finger patterns. It allows you a greater scope of how you're applying each bowing.

And teachers can decide, for each student, what they want to do. If there's 50 possible bowings for etudes with notes in groups of eight, they might do five bowings for each etude, every etude with different ones. Or they might stick on the same etude for a long time and go through most of the bowings and then decide which ones need extra attention and do only those ones with subsequent etudes. I thought by compiling and collating all these bowings, it would give people more options to personally design how they wanted to assign the different bowings to the different etudes to which they could apply.

Laurie: Do you have a favorite Wohlfahrt etude?

Rachel: Probably Opus 45, No. 4, which is No. 6 in the Foundation Studies. It was one of the first ones that I learned -- it's a particularly nice little melody:

Linda Cerone

'Former wunderkind'. 'Class Act'. 'A firecracker'. These are only a few of the innumerable descriptors from awed and intrigued former students. For decades, violinist LINDA SHARON CERONE was one-half of 'The Cerones', a veritable teaching institution that consisted of Linda and her husband, violinist David Cerone. Faculty members at Oberlin, Cleveland Institute of Music, and ENCORE School for Strings (which they founded in 1985), Mrs. Cerone has mentored many of today’s most important soloists, orchestral members, chamber musicians, and current pedagogues. Her students speak of Mrs. Cerone’s innate wisdom – her complete understanding of the repertoire, the psychology of speaking to and molding a student, and her irrepressible charm. As a bonafide child prodigy, Mrs. Cerone made her orchestral debut at age 8 with the Dayton Philharmonic (Mendelssohn), and embarked on a myriad of solo tours for the next fourteen years. Married in her early twenties, her priorities shifted, and teaching was the name of the game for the next five decades. With minimal biographical information available about Mrs. Cerone’s past, former student Andrew Sords set out to unearth her memories of Ivan Galamian, the basis for founding ENCORE, and what makes Mrs. Cerone ‘tick’ in the studio – yielding the most comprehensive story of this famed violinist and pedagogue to date.

Andrew Sords – You’re from Cincinnati – describe your musical upbringing in southwest Ohio.

Linda Sharon Cerone – When I was three years old, I would go to the piano and play the songs that I had heard my older sister practice. My mother, who was a Curtis Institute of Music graduate with a double major in piano and composition, asked me whether I would prefer to study the violin or the cello (the piano not being an option as she felt it would be better if my sister and I studied different instruments). Opting for the violin, I studied briefly with a Cincinnati Symphony violinist, but it was my mother who offered the most guidance. I remember her experimenting with various violin methods, one of them being Maia Bang, and actually teaching herself in the process. I then was fortunate to study with Paul Katz (who taught at the Cincinnati Conservatory as well as the Conductor for the Dayton Philharmonic). He was a devoted teacher (with a penchant for scales) who had studied with Leopold Auer, and we frequently drove to his home in Dayton for extra lessons, which were at least two hours long. I hated to practice, loved to perform, and had to be reprimanded by my mother for yawning during lessons. After years with Mr. Katz and frequent recital performances and appearances with orchestra, I attended the Meadowmount School of Music and studied with Ivan Galamian. Mr. Galamian offered to teach me in New York (for the second time, since I previously played for him in New York at age 7), but this was not something my family wanted. Mr. Galamian recommended that I study with a former student of his, Walter Levin, who (with his La Salle Quartet) was joining the faculty of the Cincinnati Conservatory. Walter taught me in his home, and arranged a piano trio with Jimmy Levine and Bob Martin, which he coached for three years before I went to Curtis.

As for early orchestral experience – at age 6, I played for Eugene Goossens who offered to take me on tour, and I performed regularly with the Cincinnati Symphony under Thor Johnson (who also led the orchestra in a short composition of mine) and Max Rudolph (with whom I also read sonatas).

AS – What is your first musical memory?

LSC – My mother rehearsing Leonard Bernstein’s 'I Hate Music But I Love To Sing' with another member of the Euterpe Club. Also, her rehearsals with another Euterpe Club member – the Gabriel Faure Op. 13 violin sonata.

AS – What came easily to you as a violinist, and what did you have to work on?

LSC – Lyricism was part of my nature. Dedication and focus were not.

AS – As a child, tell me about your practice habits.

LSC – They were 'enforced'. I remember my mother hiring a conservatory student to practice with me when she and my father had to go away before an important orchestral performance. I would excuse myself from these sessions on the pretext of using the bathroom, during which time I would climb up on the refrigerator so that I could reach the clock and push the minute hand ahead – then go back and tell him that our time together had elapsed. I think that this person, if he noticed, probably appreciated the almost effortless salary he was earning. When my mother returned, she was horrified at the state of my violinism. Oh, how I admired Jimmy Levine’s inated dedication and ability to sit for hours at the piano.

AS – At the Curtis Institute of Music [in Philadelphia, PA], you worked with Ivan Galamian. How many years did you work with him, what is your fondest memory, and do you think of him often to this day?

LSC – I worked with Mr. Galamian for seven years as a student at Curtis and for 19 years as a faculty member of the Meadowmount School of Music [Galamian’s summer music school in upstate new York]. Not a day goes by that I do not think of him with the deepest gratitude. Not only was he a superb teacher, but a model human being. He was infinitely wise, kind, and dedicated – and he had a rather wry sense of humor. Were it not for him, I likely would have chosen a career outside of music.

AS – Fill in the blank – "My most exciting performance collaboration was…"

LSC – That blank is impossible to fill. There were so many meaningful collaborations which were exciting because of the opportunity to learn from and share with colleagues. But the first really exciting performance (other than my debut with orchestra at age 8 which was more frightening than exciting) was my performance of the Prokofiev Concerto in g minor with Eugene Ormandy and the Philadelphia Orchestra. I had prepared thoroughly, and the rehearsals and performances were pure pleasure.

AS – What drew you to teaching?

LSC – I had always envied people with any type of musical career, perhaps because my father had forbidden my mother to lead any type of professional life, and he was against my doing so as well. So, when I married and moved to Oberlin, teaching was a natural and logical option.

AS – The ENCORE festival was touted by many as THE summer home for string studies. What was the inspiration in founding this iconic festival?

LSC – When my husband was asked to become President of the Cleveland Institute of Music, we thought that this would be an opportunity to begin a summer school in the Cleveland area. Thanks to our experiences with Mr. Galamian and to Mr. Cerone’s experiences with Mischa Mischakoff at Chautauqua, we felt qualified to do this. ENCORE turned out to be a great joy for both of us.

AS – As your former student, I can vouch for your discipline, involvement, and mentoring of your students. What moves you most in the studio?

LSC – Simply the ability to prepare a student to do justice to a work of art. The discipline and technique are essential to arriving at a high level of sensitivity.

AS – In the studio, you uniquely used the Locatelli Caprices and Ysaye Dix Preludes – for the conservatory student reading this, what etude regimen would you suggest?

LSC – For a beginner, in progressive order: Scales and arpeggios, Otokar Sevcik Op. 3, Josephine Trott: Double Stops, Levinson: Introducing the Positions, Hans Sitt: etudes, Mazas: the two etude books op. 36. part 1 and 2, Dont Op. 37, Kreutzer, Dont Op. 35, Gavinies, Paganini Caprices along with the Ysaye Preludies and Locatelli, Ernst etudes. There are certainly other etude books of value, but those that I have listed are the ones with which I am most familiar.

AS – Fill in the blank – “If I could vacation anywhere for a month, it would be…”

LSC – That’s a no brainer. Right at home in our 'paradise' on Siesta Key. We have been to so many of the United States and fabulous cities in Europe, South America and Asia (often for professional purposes), and have enjoyed every moment. We and a group of friends still keep up the tradition of traveling to many exotic places.

AS – After an illustrious performing and teaching career spanning several decades, what prompted retirement, and what musical endeavors are next?

LSC – After 65 years of playing the violin, I felt that this was enough. Also, our marriage has been the top priority in my life. Mr. Cerone was an extremely effective President at CIM for 24 years – rewarding albeit demanding. After completing a $40 million Capital Campaign to build an important new facility for CIM, it was time for us to retire.

Since retirement, our summers have been filled with masterclasses, teaching engagements, and adjudication. I recently took out my violin so that I could warm up for a few weeks in order to perform with my husband at our son’s upcoming wedding. This was at the request of our son and his lovely fiancée that we felt we should honor. However, I suspect that the violin will return to its somnambulant status after the ceremony. We have had many requests for private lessons, and we might entertain the idea under special circumstances.