Bel Canto: Approaching the Operatic, Unpredictable Voice of Missy Mazzoli on Violin
Space, time, and sound—these are the most significant elements in Dissolve, O My Heart that challenge the performer.
March-April 2020
A Musical Adventure in Ireland Marries Sights, Sounds, and Late-Night Fiddle Jam Sessions
This trip was about discovering beauty—natural, historical, musical, and human.
Shop Talk: What’s your favorite part of the process of making an instrument?
By Anthony Lane | From the March/April 2020 issue of Strings magazine After 40 years of violin making, the time I spend arching the plates continues to engage me deeply. On these days, I hurry to my bench and forget…
5 Minutes with… Cellist Laura van der Heijden
By Laurence Vittes | From the March/April 2020 issue of Strings Magazine When Laura van der Heijden plays Haydn’s C major Concerto at Disney Hall on March 20, 2020, she will be making her US debut as the first of…
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Beethoven’s 250th and Classical Music’s Anniversary Obsession
By Brian Wise | From the March/April 2020 issue of Strings magazine As the new decade began and classical-music organizations ramped up their celebrations of the 250th anniversary of Beethoven’s birth, a simmering backlash rose to a boil. It started…
Bohemian Rhapsodies: Augustin Hadelich on the Pleasures of Pollaborating with Ideal Partners on a Still-Undervalued Concerto
Augustin Hadelich discusses the artistic partnership with Jakub Hrůša and the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra (BRSO) that led to his latest release, Bohemian Tales.
Going Freelance: What it takes to make it as a string player in the gig economy
By Don Kaplan | From the March/April 2020 issue of Strings Magazine Joshua Bell. Frank Huang. The Emerson Quartet. String players grow up with these kinds of stars in their eyes: the soloists, the concertmasters, the quartet players of legend.…
A Primer on the Process of Preparing an Estate Appraisal for Stringed Instruments
By Philip J. Kass | From the March/April 2020 issue of Strings Magazine Bartolomeo Giuseppe Guarneri ‘del Gesù’ lived from 1698 to 1744. His instruments, however, have enjoyed a somewhat more extended lifespan and have thus all outlived more than…
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My violin has taken me around the world—and back again
By Kaethe Hostetter | From the March/April 2020 issue of Strings Magazine The last ten years of my life have been a swirling East African adventure with my instrument serving as my North Star. I’ve found myself deep in the…
The role of the summer classical music intensive in the education of its students
By Emily Wright | From the March/April 2020 issue of Strings Magazine Alan Fletcher, president and CEO of the Aspen Music Festival and School, was working with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra while they were in Aspen for a brief residency.…
Sweet & Sunny: Seattle Symphony concertmaster Noah Geller describes his Postacchini and Kostina violins
By Laurence Vittes | From the March/April 2020 issue of Strings Magazine In the space of a year, Noah Geller has made the transition not only from concertmaster of the Kansas City Symphony to the Seattle Symphony but from one…
Bow & Tell: Gilles Nehr’s Tête-Bêche bow builds on 20 years of innovation
By Patrick Sullivan | From the March/April 2020 issue of Strings Magazine A damaged bow is no treat for any eyes, but it’s a particularly sore sight for a bow maker like Gilles Nehr. Even a careful musician can suffer an…
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Tesla Quartet explores joy and desolation on new album
By Greg Cahill | From the March/April 2020 issue of Strings Magazine The International Review of Music has praised the Tesla Quartet for its “superb capacity to find the inner heart of everything they play, regardless of era, style, or…
Unbreak My Art: A Soundpost Crack is Tough to Repair and Results in Certain Depreciation
When it comes to your violin, the soundpost can be a best friend or worst enemy. Here's what it means if your violin soundpost has a crack.
Dial up the dazzle: Kun adds some color to the mix for shoulder rests
By Megan Westberg | From the March/April 2020 issue of Strings Magazine Comfortable. Functional. Practical. These are probably the kinds of words you’d conjure up if asked to describe your shoulder rest. And all of these adjectives describe a shoulder…
Bach Two Ways: Recent violin recordings of the Sonatas and Partitas reveal striking interpretive differences
By Sasha Margolis | From the March/April 2020 issue of Strings Magazine These two new releases offer radically distinct visions of Bach’s unaccompanied violin music. Drawing upon differing strands of historical performance practice, they also provide contrasting ideas about the…
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Album Review: Rachel Barton Pine Plays Dvořák and Khachaturian Violin Concertos
By Miranda Wilson | From the March/April 2020 issue of Strings Magazine Dvořák and Khachaturian Violin ConcertosRachel Barton Pine, violin; Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Teddy Abrams, cond. (Avie Records) Pairing the violin concertos of Antonín Dvořák and Aram Khachaturian on the…
A Little Flash: How to Practice David Popper’s Gavotte in D
By Benjamin Whitcomb | From the March/April 2020 issue of Strings Magazine David Popper’s Gavotte in D major is a delightful, short work that intermediate cellists have been learning and performing for decades. Like so many of Popper’s works, it…
Cajun Fiddler Louis Michot Bonds Traditional Music with Contemporary Culture
By David Templeton | From the March/April 2020 issue of Strings Magazine Tradition. Within the worlds of folk, world fusion, and classical music, a deep respect for tradition has always—or at least often—been key. That is especially true for players…
Album Review: Takacs Quartet and Hamelin tackle Dohnányi Piano Quintets, String Quartet No. 2
By Laurence Vittes | From the March/April 2020 issue of Strings Magazine Having recorded the piano quintets of Franck, Shostakovich, and Robert Schumann with the Canadian pianist Marc-André Hamelin, the Takács Quartet and Hamelin moved on to the two written…
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Make Use of the Subtle Art of Rubato
Rubato (in Italian, literally “stolen”) is the act of taking time from one beat, or group of beats, and giving it back in subsequent beats.