by Matthew Lipman There’s nothing more fulfilling than discovering a piece of music for the first time. Because Metamorfose was a piece I commissioned, I had no way of knowing how it would sound before receiving the score from Clarice…
By Megan Westberg After spending a weekend attending the 2018–19 season’s opening gala; an eight-mile-long musical street fair organized in concert with CicLAvia, a group that transforms Los Angeles city streets into bicycle and foot-traffic-only avenues; a free concert at…
By Cristina Schreil Against a shower of tinkling percussion, the camera advances ever so slowly through a West African market. We push past dangling fabrics and crates of eggs; women balance heaps of laundry atop their crowns. As a high-pitched…
By Megan Westberg Violinist Yevgeny Kutik‘s upcoming EP, Meditations on Family, is, as you might imagine from the title, all about the power of family. Made up of 8 miniatures drawing on the family memories of each composer, the album…
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By Brian Wise It was prized, stolen, and patched up with Elmer’s glue—after serving as the violin of counts, generals, and at least one virtuoso. Its most notorious chapter began in 1980 when it vanished from the Cambridge, Massachusetts, office…
By Greg Cahill This past summer, a prominent New York concert violinist lamented in a Facebook post that he had witnessed a master class by a prominent New York pedagogue, during which the instructor made condescending remarks to the student.…
In a setting as remote and spare as its namesake’s music, the Arvo Pärt Centre opened on October 13, 2018, in Laulasmaa, Estonia, with the composer in attendance. A trio of concerts were performed by Anne Akiko Meyers, the Ensemble…
Violinist Nicola Benedetti has been awarded as a Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire for her services to music in the 2019 New Year Honours list. Benedetti works with various organizations that foster music therapy and music…
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Sponsored by the IU Jacobs School of Music Summer String Academy: June 22 – July 20, 2019 For Violinists, Violists, and Cellists ages 12-18 The Summer String Academy at the IU Jacobs School of Music is looking forward to its…
What’s your favorite part of the process of making an instrument? For me, carving the back and top plates is the heart of violin making. It’s a process that is both physically demanding and mentally engaging. Carving a cello back…
Who wouldn’t leap immediately at an opportunity to play a cello by Antonio Stradivari? For Jan Vogler—who was at the time content with his 1721 Montagnana—the path was clear. “When I saw this instrument, it became apparent to me that…
What Hilary Hahn Plays Instrument 1865 Vuillaume Strad-model violin Bow A gold-mounted Tubbs Strings Thomastik-Infeld Dominants, Pirastro Gold Label E The music of Bach has been central to Hilary Hahn since her earliest years. She was nine when she began…
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By Greg Cahill Ask Hot Club of San Francisco alumni Jenny Scheinman what is special about that acclaimed Gypsy-jazz group and the celebrated violinist points to its regional flavor. “The Hot Club of San Francisco is a central part of…
A new year is once again upon us, Strings readers, and with its end comes the internet’s most glorious pastime: The listicle. We’ve compiled the top 10 most-read posts of the year, chosen by you, of course, and your click-happy, bow-happy…
By Cristina Schreil It’s the second day of spring in Shanghai. China’s thriving financial hub pulses with its usual activity: cargo boats zip along the Huangpu River; shoppers clutter posh commercial thoroughfares; scooters bolt through traffic. Down in the Shanghai…
By Laurence Vittes Hommage à Penderecki Anne-Sophie Mutter, violin; Lambert Orkis, piano; Roman Patkoló, double bass; London Symphony Orchestra, Krzysztof Penderecki, cond. (Deutsche Grammophon) Ahead of the composer’s 85th birthday this fall, Deutsche Grammophon is releasing Hommage à Penderecki, celebrating…
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By Sarah Freiberg Cellist and pedagogue Steven Doane has received prizes for his teaching from both the New England Conservatory and the Eastman School of Music, where he is currently professor of violoncello. He is known for emphasizing how to…
By Megan Westberg So here’s a holiday gift idea: When you think binge-watching, Netflix is probably the first thing to come to mind. But for classical-music fans, there’s medici.tv, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary. In addition to an on-demand…
By Megan Westberg Michael Tilson Thomas will be exiting the San Francisco Symphony in September 2020 after a 25-year tenure as music director. It’s been announced that he will be succeeded by Esa-Pekka Salonen, former music director of the Los…
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