San Francisco’s cutting-edge contemporary ensemble the Del Sol String Quartet stopped by the Strings studio for our latest Strings Session. Violinists Benjamin Kreith and Rick Shinozaki, violist Charlton Lee, and cellist Kathryn Bates offered up a wide selection of repertoire…
When asked how he knew that being able to stand would liberate his cello playing, Mike Block offers an intriguing response: “I didn’t quite realize what I was missing by only sitting until I had the experience of standing.”…
Award-winning, Parisian-born bow maker Benoît Rolland studied both piano and violin, graduating from the Paris and Versailles conservatoires. He trained as a bow maker in Mirecourt, France, (1971–75) with master maker Bernard Ouchard, and opened his first studio in Paris…
By Megan Westberg The Metropolitan Opera has announced that French-Canadian conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin is to become its next music director. Current music director James Levine, whose celebrated tenure has lasted over four decades, announced in April that he would be…
Advertisement
By Mark Rubin I backed up the U-Haul truck, now fully loaded with all my worldly possessions, and headed out of Austin for the last time as a local resident, and the truth is, it was easier than I expected.…
By James Ehnes This is one of my very favorite pieces—I’m performing it with my quartet, the Ehnes Quartet, over the next few months. It is the first of Beethoven’s late quartets that I got to know well, and I…
By Megan Westberg The American Federation of Violin and Bow Makers (AFVBM) met in Berkeley last week to talk about all things technical and trade related. Speakers were drawn from the organization’s membership, and the meeting’s sessions ran the gamut…
The St. Lawrence String Quartet stopped by the Strings studio to perform Haydn’s String Quartet, Op. 20, No. 2. “This is democracy at work,” founding member and first violinist Geoff Nuttall says. “The first movement has a cello solo!” Watch Nuttall and…
Advertisement
Tonight at the Music Institute of Chicago‘s annual gala, violinist Joshua Bell will be awarded the Dushkin Award. The honor, established 30 years ago by the Music Institute’s founders, Dorothy and David Dushkin, celebrates musical luminaries who contribute to the…
By Stephanie Powell Violinist Jennifer Koh is no stranger to commissioning new works. In her past projects Bridge to Beethoven and Bach and Beyond, she fearlessly tackled contemporary repertoire, eager to traverse unfamiliar musical plains. Commissioning 30 works for solo…
The Calidore String Quartet is having quite a year—announcing its residency at Lincoln Center II, receiving the Borletti-Buitoni Trust Fellowship and debuting at Carnegie Hall earlier this month, the quartet won the University of Michigan’s inaugural chamber-music competition, M-Prize. The New…
Eclectic ensemble, the Portland Cello Project, stopped by the Strings studio with four of its members before performing at Slim’s in San Francisco on May 12. Watch cellists Skip vonKuske, Sage Coy, Kevin Jackson, and Julian Kosanovic perform a wide variety…
Advertisement
THIS GIVEAWAY HAS ENDED Our lucky winners were: Michelle P. from Moorhead, MN Carolyn D. from American Canyon, CA Felipe C. from Chile Stanley R. from Hobe Sound, FL Hang W. from New Hyde Park, NY
By Stephanie Powell The Cypress Quartet is on its Farewell Tour–the quartet announced earlier this year that it will be disbanding in June–throughout San Francisco, the city its called home for 20 years. In its monthlong celebration of Beethoven, the quartet…
By Stephanie Powell The 1743 ‘ex-Havemeyer’ Guadagnini cello sold for $1.5 million through Tarisio Auctions. This set the record as the highest price ever paid at auction for one of Guadagnini’s instruments—in 2013, a violin by the maker sold for $1.39…
By Julian Schwarz Since I was a child, I have studied cello with cellists. Makes sense, right? A cello teacher knows how to best hold a cello and a cello bow, place his or her fingers on the fingerboard, play…
Advertisement
By Stephanie Powell “Do you like my outfit?” Yo-Yo Ma asked a sold-out crowd at Walt Disney Concert Hall as he walked onstage after intermission. He’s wearing perfectly ironed trousers, shined shoes . . . and a T-shirt. “I thought…
In her debut performance with the LA Philharmonic, cellist Sol Gabetta offered a show-stopping performance that demanded an encore. As a part of the Piatigorsky International Cello Festival, Gabetta performed Martinů’s Cello Concerto No. 1 under the direction of conductor…
Sponsored Story by Johnson String Instruments Our annual Graduation Sale is here! Now through June 30th, stop in to our Newton Upper Falls storefront or visit our new website to find savings on instruments, cases, sheet music, accessories and more.…
Advertisement