All Things Strings: News and Notes
March 8th, 2010
All Things Strings: News and Notes.
Here’s a little news clip that explained my collaboration with Chris Botti….
From One Hottie to the Next…
January 27th, 2010
Backstage with Il Divo
I had such a wonderful time working with Il Divo. They were super friendly and could really belt out those tunes….We started in Toronto and worked with an orchestra there, and worked with the Opera Orchestra of New York in New Jersey, Connecticut and Boston. I played Vivaldi’s ‘Winter’, ‘Somewhere Over the Rainbow’ , ‘Panis Angelicus, ‘Smile’ with ‘Greensleeves’ and Vernon Duke’s scrumptious ‘Autumn in New York’. We played in an arena at Trump’s Taj Mahal, which was a first for me and concert halls elsewhere. The touring life is grueling with travel most the day, a rushed shower/check-in to the hotel, pressing of one’s stage clothes, warm-up/rehearsal and show. I was amplified for all the performances which cracked me up. Impossible to play ‘acoustic’ violin the way one normally does with an entire orchestra cranking in the background with this special combination of performers. The idea does not even compute, which is interesting in my opinion. They couldn’t believe I would normally go out and play an entire concerto with no amplification! One against 150! There is something to that I think…
Onstage with Il Divo
After that tour, I planned on seeing Chris Botti at the Blue Note for some fun (we met each other when I was a spring chicken of 13 years old at Indiana University)…little did I know that he was looking for me! I found myself furiously memorizing and preparing to play ‘Emmanuel‘ with him and his incredible band a couple days later in Greenville, South Carolina! We went on to play in Portland, Maine, New Jersey, Durham, North Carolina and West Palm Beach, Florida…I loved his brigade of super talented musicians..Billy Childs, Billy Kilson (speaks incredible Japanese!!), Mark the ‘Witty’field, the glamorous and gorgeous Sy Smith, Geoffrey Keezer and Chris Botti. All so funny and down to earth….Who knows who will be looking for me next! Maybe Mick Jagger? oh, that’s right…he is so not cute!
Playing on Stage with Chris Botti
The Case of the Missing Piano…..
November 22nd, 2009
I was in New York recently to finish up recording my newest album, ‘The Seasons…..Dreams’ at the Academy of Arts and Letters. An ancient relic of a hall, replete with a ghost (who thankfully never made an appearance), the nastiest fridge you have ever smelled or seen in your life and facilities that had seen way better days. We had 2 days to record Beethoven’s ‘Spring’ Sonata, a premiere by Gene Pritsker on ‘Sakura Sakura’ (cherry blossoms…), a gorgeous arrangement of ‘Tenderly/Autumn Leaves’, an amazing arrangement of ‘Autumn in New York’ and Gershwin’s ‘Summertime’..(I can always hear Janis Joplin in the back of my mind….Summertime-Janis Joplin‘ and the opposite end of the spectrum, Ms.Renee Fleming’s version Renee Fleming-Summertime), when I got a disturbing call from my producer 20 minutes before my pickup time. She informed me there was no piano to be found anywhere in the hall….no piano, but a piano technician/tuner/and recording engineer nervously standing by. Not only that, we frantically called the piano house and nobody had a clue where the piano might be…
This was all very bad news as I was in town playing concerts preparing for these very recording sessions, my pianist was ready to go (the very talented Reiko Uchida) and it was close to impossible to re-book the Academy when everybody could come back and have free time to record again. Not to mention the delay of the recording itself etc.etc. I was ready to cry………the car came and picked my sorry butt up at the hotel to take me to the Academy so we could all wonder where in the world this Fazioli piano might be.
What the?
The piano finally rolled onto the stage around noon….we had to tune it and set up the microphones ASAP. The pitch of the piano kept on slipping as it was adjusting to the warm hall (no AC as it makes noise) and smelly lunches coming from the lounge area. Drama….but we had our piano…..thank God. We finished the recording the following day and everybody was relieved and happy that we had our tapes in the can. I guess you can sum it up as another day in the life of a crazy artist……or a crazy life? Well, crazy is all relative I guess!
The Autumn Leaves…..
October 16th, 2009
As I traveled today from Austin to JFK, I got myself (and my endlessly heavy luggage) to the Hertz rental car counter. I realized that I left my new temporary paper driver’s license at home and proceeded to eat a sandwich before I phoned my manager who proceeded to find a car service to get me to Poughkeepsie, New York, which was a good 2.5 hours away…it was a nasty day here of rain, cold and snow. There was a bad accident on the way up here as well, and ambulances and medical personnel were attending to a car that swerved off the highway. I had a very self-assured driver who made the car feel like it was in his way when driving…we were invincible. I started to snooze in the back seat and when I opened my eyes, I realized how much snow was coming down on the trees and roads outside. It made me think of how I was on my way this next week to finishing my newest album, ‘Dreams’ that will be released early next year. ‘Dreams’ is another interesting assortment of music, very much a la ‘Smile’. People thought the ‘Smile’ program was so eclectic but I found it to be incredibly ‘normal’. Sort of like a 10 course tasting menu with wine pairing-fun, mysterious and delicious….Being that I hate the conventional recital methods employed by the very conservative classical music industry, I always have found so much joy and inspiration having different arrangements of music we can’t even place anymore as it has been played so much-this makes one remember what it was you liked about the piece in the first place!
The album is called ‘Dreams’ after Wagner’s ‘Traume’. A truly beautiful song that is a dream…and continues with a seasonal bent, including the Beethoven ‘Spring’ Sonata, to one of the most beautiful songs ever written, ‘Autumn Leaves’. I asked the arranger to pair ‘Tenderly’ with ‘Autumn Leaves’ as I have always had a mad crush on both songs….after listening to many versions, including one that was sung by Ella Fitzgerald at my recent wedding, I found one if not the most beguiling renditions performed by Ms.Eva Cassidy Eva Cassidy singing \’Autumn Leaves\’. She takes your breath away and all you do is feel the music…this is how music is supposed to translate and make you feel….and so the snow continues to fall and I continue to dream about the Autumn Leaves…….
From Knee-Highs to Silk Stockings…
June 30th, 2009
Recently, I played a recital with an old and dear friend, Reiko Uchida. As we were practicing Schnittke, Beethoven, Part, Vernon Duke (aka Vladimir Dukelsky..how hilarious is that?) and others in her apartment in NYC, I couldn’t help but remember looking over at her during our appearances on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. Johnny Carson was the classiest guy, having 11 and 12 year olds play complete movements of Vivaldi and Telemann on national tv, and then interviewing us. Who does that anymore? and everybody seemed to forget how old they were or what their name was (except me). And I think I still am going through traumatic stress disorder with my mother allowing the tallest person in the quartet wear knee highs on tv. But that’s another story….As we played in Florida, I had such joy knowing that we had practiced so hard with Alice and Eleonore Schoenfeld and now almost 30 years later, we were still doing what we loved doing…. feeling the music and making the music speak and breathe.
A Picture Story….
April 28th, 2009
I was in California 
trying to work on my tan..
saw my sister and listened to a fantastic concert with John McLaughlin, Chick Corea and Christian McBride…
I couldn’t believe how relaxed and graceful he was after a 3 hour orgy of unbelievable music…..the depth of feeling, the passion, the finger work…that’s a man who practices everyday…
I also bumped into an old friend at a coffee shop who remembered when I was a spring chicken of 13 years old in Bloomington, Indiana!!
The super cute and talented trumpet player, Chris Botti..All his fans lined up to meet him at Border’s and he still took time out to meet and greet me! Yippee!
I also had my own CD signing concert at J&R Music World in New York City, which was way fun!
I also played and taught masterclasses in Austin at the University of Texas
and at Queens College in New York…..that was a bit difficult as it was a toasty 90 degree day in NY and the AC wasn’t turned on yet in the hall!
I think I lost 20 pounds there….So there’s my picture story for now.
I am on the way to San Luis Obispo next week, Japan, the week after that and Scotland after that!
I will write about the horrors of packing a bag for trips like that in a future post!
Sayonara!
When you are 20 years old, don’t wear the following…
March 17th, 2009
An old acquaintance who interviewed me when I was 20 years old recently contacted me. A very talented journalist/writer, I remember doing the in-person interview on the streets of Chicago. The team persuaded me to put on the most ridiculous outfit that was supposedly very ‘high fashion’. I remember wearing some kind of balloonish type shorts, hose, jacket and drumroll……….a chapeau. Yes, a hat of very dramatic proportions. Perfect if you can imagine me as a Shakespearean violin playing bard (ette) or simply, a lampshade. Yes…I re-read the interview and thought it was very honest and telling (once you got over the photo). Amazing, the things you find out about yourself-like a fine bottle of wine, one hopes to age well and be able to drink in the wisdom that develops! And speaking of wine, I hope to have a nice glass of some tonight as I pack my bags tonight to head off to California. I love listening to John Schaefer’s ‘New Sounds Show’, try to finish Ayn Rand’s ‘Atlas Shrugged’ (it has taken me at least a year…I am not kidding…it’s over 1000 pages long!) and manage to get the Lekeu Piano Quartet out of my head. Have a great week!! Bye for now……
Looking out my window in Wheeling, WVA…
March 5th, 2009
I am playing Bernstein’s great ’Serenade’ here in Wheeling, West Virginia, this week. Driving from the airport in Pittsburgh, I asked the driver where exactly he was taking me. He said Wheeling is on the border of Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. Confusing but true! So, here I am awaiting my 8 PM rehearsal to play the Bernstein. The piece is set to Plato’s Symposium. A naughty, dramatic and dynamic dialogue between myself and the orchestra, extolling the virtues and pitfalls of love. I heard this first performed in the comfort of a rental car (love radio! read my last blog entry about that..)and was instantly mesmorized by the beauty of the 4th movement, Agathon. The violin shimmers and floats above the orchestra and there’s a big passionate cadenza as well. The last note could just go on forever- I play a harmonic note and a bell is struck at the same time. It is eerie and way cool! I did an interview for West Virginia Public Radio where you can hear me talk about the piece.
It is nice to be surrounded by nature here…you tend to forget what that’s about in New York City. I hope to get outside tomorrow for a little hike as the fitness center is closed here. With all the traveling and eating that I do, working out helps to center my energy and give me strength for all them notes! More later…ciao!
30 Interviews in 3 days..
February 26th, 2009
Yes, it’s true. I spoke endlessly about myself (hard work), my new album ‘Smile’, the composers in my life and my lifestyle in 30 separate interviews. I almost needed a gurney after the first day with 16 interviews back to back but really appreciated the interviewers thoughtful questions and laughs we shared by the 30th. I also realized the importance of RADIO and how we rely so much on getting our entertainment and information through our local radio stations. Try and help support them!! They need our love!..I am now in Annapolis, Maryland playing the ridiculously gorgeous Barber Concerto. It’s so amazing to think Barber wrote this when he was 29 years old in 1939. People always ask me if I like the last movement after the lush, romantic 1st and 2nd movements. The answer is YES! The last movement is unlike anything else, very original, difficult (for me and the orchestra) and full of syncopated beats. Very cool…Okay, I think it’s time to go practice it….bye!
My first blog……gulp….
February 18th, 2009
I just finished a radio interview with Bill Baker at WCNY. Hello Syracuse! It was a fun interview and I mentioned how the band Scorpions played ‘Kojo no Tsuki’ or Moonlight Over the Ruined Castle from my latest album, Smile. Kojo no Tsuki is one of the most beautifully haunting pieces of music. That Rentaro Taki died at the young age of 23 (why do so many composers die at such a tragically young age?), is incredible to me. Recently, I also saw an incredible play called ‘33 Variations’ with the amazing Jane Fonda in it. The story was about Beethoven, Bonn, ALS, suffering, love, and life. All intertwined our lives are with the same mounting pressures of financial hardships, family relationships, and the pressure to produce. It was so moving to me.
Well, as this is my first taste at writing this blog, it may not be long enough for some, so please excuse me for this but I hope that you will come back and enjoy the site!