Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Final rehearsal for the Durham Symphony classical concert, with the winners of the Young Artists Competition. All 3 soloists played to get the feel of the Carolina Theatre. It is a lovely old renovated hall, with great atmosphere and an excellent venue for concerts, small shows (Gilbert and Sullivan for instance). The stage is a bit small for a large orchestra, or orchestra and chorus, but we manage to squeeze in somehow. There is a movie theatre adjacent to the concert hall, mostly art films, so it is quite a cultural center.
Curry seemed happy with the Beethoven and the soloists' music, but it would have been better to have had another rehearsal to get the balance between the brass and strings worked out.
Thursday, March 3rd.
Alan Neilson, the conductor emeritus of the Durham Symphony and founder of the Raleigh Symphony died at 11am this morning. He died peacefully listening to his arrangement of excerpts of "Die Meistersinger" that Irene had brought. She arrived in time to set up the recording. He passed away just before the big trumpet fanfare.
I am to be in a string quartet playing for the service which is on Tuesday, March 8th. One of the violinists, Tasi, was the concertmaster for many years when I was in the orchestra, and still is, so it will be very special to play with her again. We have been asked to play the Barber Adagio during the service and other pieces during the Prelude and Postlude. Other musicians will be playing during the visitation and after the service at the reception.
Friday, March 4
Rehearsal with the Viol consort, no rehearsal next week as it is Spring Break for the university. We warmed up on music for the May 1st concert, then spent the rest of the time on the Will Ayton piece. It is falling into place much more easily. The Webern section is the hardest to put together, especially going from the bow to pizzicato and vice versa. That's not done often on the viola da gamba!
Saturday, March 5 - Memorial service for Joyce Peck
The memorial service for an old friend and colleague today, Joyce Peck who died in February at age 83. She was a soprano, and she and Florence Peacock were our two singers in a baroque ensemble called "I Musici di Capella della Collina" (the musicians of Chapel Hill). The other members of the group were Mary Frances Boyce - violin, our resident musicologist PhD, Eleanor Kinnaird -violin, (she eventually went on to become a lawyer and then a NC State Senator) and I on baroque cello and bass viola da gamba. Beverly was our first harpsichordist, but when she moved with her family to Texas, Jane Harris stepped in. Her PhD was on Elliott Carter, but she still took baroque performance practice very seriously, spending hours on the different tunings of the harpsichord. It was the period during the 70s when baroque performance was in vogue, and we got right into it. For several years we went to the Oberlin Baroque Institute in Ohio for top-notch instruction in Baroque playing. Florence went each summer, her singing teacher Penny Jenson taught up there. I was fortunate enough to study with Catherina Meints, both on baroque cello and viola da gamba.
At the memorial service, Penny and Florence both sang. Florence - "I Know that My Redeemer Liveth" from the Messiah, and Penny the "Echo" Aria from Bach's Christmas Oratorio. Bo Newsome, a fine oboe player, played the oboe obbligato part. A church singer sang a wonderful song " His Eye is on the Sparrow" in somewhat of a gospel style which was very moving. Several friends and relatives spoke about Joyce and it was a very warm and personal sevice. The Handbell Choir played at the beginning and end.
Later that day, I went to Raleigh to rehearse for Alan's funeral. The quartet is Izabela Speiwak, Tasi Matthews, Yang Xi and me. The Barber Adagio was the trickiest to put together. The double stops are difficult to tune, and we spent time on them and phrasing. I had brought some other pieces for the prelude, which we went through, they are pretty straightforward. We have another rehearsal on Monday, and will put thelist together then. This is not going to be an easy gig, we are too involved in it, and keep thinking what would Alan have chosen etc.
Sunday March 6
Classical concert with the Durham Symphony and winners of the Young Artist Competition. The soloists were spectacular each in their own way. The violist had a lovely warm sound and was on top of everything. The alto-saxophone player gave a very exciting reading of his concerto, scale passages undulating up to great heights and depths, allowing us to hear the range of that instrument. The audience went wild! The violinist was exquisite in the Sibelius. Ethereal was a word to describe those shimmeringly high passages. Beautiful phrasing and musicianship, perfect intonation, just gorgeous.
Review
http://cvnc.org/article.cfm?articleId=1174
Monday, March 7
Drive to Raleigh for a rehearsal for the funeral. Tasi had wanted to attend the visitation at the Funeral Parlor, the rest of us did not want to go. I had seen Alan at the hospital and it would be too much with the funeral the next day. So the 3 of us rehearsed the Martinu Trio until Tasi came. She had met friends and colleagues there and was glad to have gone.
We sorted out the music selections and it was quite late by the time I got on the road back to Chapel Hill.
Tuesday, March 8, Alan's Funeral
The quartet had arranged to meet at the church at noon to warm up before starting the Prelude at 12:30pm. The service was to start at 1pm. I had decided to go to Whole Foods for a late breakfast. My kitchen was a mess, I had had no time in days to clean up with all the running around. It worked out well as I was able to collect my thoughts and have a restful meal.
My fears were confirmed when I got to the church (I was the first, just as the casket was being brought in), and I broke down in tears thinking I could not possibly play where our chairs were. The quartet had been set up in the front of the church, up the steps to the altar area and bang in front of everyone coming in. I had mentioned to Izabela that I preferred to be on the floor, so as not to distract the people when we were playing. The music should float across the room, the congregation should not have to see the macinations of getting ready to play etc. Unfortunately the piano was on the floor, and although it was not going to be used, there was nowhere it could go. In the end, we went to the other side of the altar. There was a little curved area with wooden panelling which would make for good acoustics. It was still up the steps, but the congregation could focus on the casket instead of us. After my meltdown I recovered with the help of some hugs from orchestra friends and we were able to tune and warm up.
The Prelude
Handel - Andante from the Water Music Suite
Chopin - Prelude from op.28 #4 arranged for string quartet
Bach - Air from the Suite in D
Franck - Panis Angelicus
Faure - Pavane
Elgar - Nimrod
During the Service
Barber - Adagio from the string quartet
Hymn with congregation - "Abide with Me"
Postlude
Lovland/Graham -"You raise me up"
There were 2 readings, one was read by Bill Curry the conductor who took over the Durham Symphony after Alan retired from it in 2008. The Gospel and a homily from the pastor, who turned out to be the father of a bride we had played for at her wedding at St. Matthews Church in Hillsborough some 8 years ago. In those days, working at UNC, John also played the bagpipe and I had hired him on a couple of occasions! I had not recognized him through my veil of tears, and was glad when he came up to me. Dear Michael, who, since moving here from New Jersey has played viola for Musica for more than 15 years, was principal viola of the Raleigh Symphony until recently, and still is for the Durham Symphony, gave a remembrance of Alan that was superb. He was close to Alan and had picked up many of Alan's idiosynchratic mannerisms every conductor has, and could mimic perfectly in Alan's voice, an oft-repeated sentance "Know what I mean?" It was such a warm, funny, heartfelt tribute to a friend. I'll never forget it.
There were 6 pallbearers who accompanied the casket to the hearse. It had a beautiful spray of green leaves and white flowers. Alan is to be buried in Roslyn, PA near his parents and brother. Irene and her husband are flying up there next Wednesday for the burial.
Here is Michaels' remembrance as transcribed by John Lambert, a longtime friend and supporter of Alan.
http://cvnc.org/article.cfm?articleId=1167
The reception was held downstairs in the church hall. People had brought plates of goodies, and Phyllis and her daughter Meredith were the hostesses at the punch bowl. Phyllis had retired quite late from teaching violin and viola at Meredith College for many, many years. In fact Alan and I had gone to her retirement lunch, and yes, her daughter is named after the college! There were so many people to talk to and reminisce with, I didn't get to sample much of the the delicious food people had brought. Later, several of us sat around a table and enjoyed the companionship. We were all old friends, and had lots of memories playing under Alan. As Irene had arranged for the service to start at 1pm, I was still able to get home in time to teach my afternoon students, and by the time they left, I was glad to relax and go over the day.
Here's a slideshow of photos and condolence book.
Friday March 11- Cello Workshop
A quick run in between spending time with my grand-daughter Kate (Friday afternoons are "our" time) to listen to my student Jeffrey play for clinician Wendy Bissinger who is here for 2 days. Friday is for masterclasses, Saturday for groups and recital. Jeffrey played the Bourrees from Bach's Suite #3 in C. I was very pleased with his playing, execellent intonation and good articulation which Wendy commented on. I was glad she worked with him on his bow hold, he has been lazy about getting it really comfortable. He has grown so tall she suggested he might benefit from the Tortelier end pin - the bent one. A good idea. I was pleased he did this, as he is extremely shy, but I think since he got a place in the Junior All-State orchestra auditions last week, he is feeling more confident.
Saturday March 12 - Cello Workshop
Wendy had agreed to coach my cello ensemble on a piece she had arranged in four parts, which we love to play. It is the Rondo from Beethoven's 7th Symphony. Before that Wendy and two other teachers, Mary Frances Boyce and Phil Warren were having a teachers' meeting. Luckily, two of my students arrived early, and we used them as guinea pigs for vibrato and extension teaching techniques.
quite number of my students came to the coaching, some could not as it was a winter break for some schools. A couple of students of the other teachers joined in and we had a great session. I think Wendy was impressed that we were able to get through the whole movement. There are some tricky sections and it is easy to fall apart. The fugue is the most challenging, and the section where the first cellos noodle in triplets and the bass has the bom bombom rhythm, can get a bit rocky. In between them the second and third cellos have a lovely slow melody, so the noodling has be non-intrusive, a very hard way to be. Wendy made suggestions about dynamics which are crucial in this piece. It will be a great exercise for us to work on all the dynamic levels there are.
A very nice lunch with Wendy, we had a lot in common with travel stories, both having been to Australia, and comparing the state of the Arts in both countries. She went back to the workshop while I ran home to do some errands. I returned to see my 7year-old student (Jeffrey's brother) doing well in the beginner class. He really enjoyed himself and has progressed well since starting in September. He is almost at the end of the Suzuki Book 1. Jeffrey does help him, so it's good for both of them.
After the beginner class was the recital, and we started with the "Swan" by Saint-Saens and the Squire "Tarantella" then worked our way down the books ending with everyone playing Twinkle and Variations. Not a long performance, but an enjoyable way to round out the day. I hope Wendy can come back again, she has good ideas and imparts them well to teachers and students alike, all in a very relaxed environment.
A drive to Raleigh after the workshop for a rehearsal of the Martinu. It was a good rehearsal, we got ideas of tempo and worked on sections. I was glad to get home though, it had been a long day and I was tired.
Sunday March 13
Our monthly meeting of the Carolina Chapter of the Viola da Gamba Society of America. We meet at the school of one of our players, and play consorts to fit the number of players who come, some from quite a long way. It's a lovely way to spend a Sunday afternoon.
This is where I started playing the treble a few years ago. I always swore I would not play the treble as I am not one for high-pitched instruments, but one day, they were desperate, and having several bass players but no treble, I was coerced into trying it out. The strings are the same as the bass, although an octave higher. Reading treble clef was no problem, and lo and behold I fell in love. I have on longterm loan the treble that belongs to our harpsichordist from our Oberlin Performance Institute days, who thought she might play treble but never did take to it.
Looking ahead to Dartington Summer School, I asked to play some Jacobean consort music and Orlando Gibbons' Five part In Nomines, as that is what is on the menu for viols in the first week, coached by the Rose Consort.
Monday March 14
Back to reality with a Martinu rehearsal at my house. Driving back and forth to Raleigh can get very tiring. We also went over the Arvo Part Stabat Mater to familiarize ourselves with it. I have the CD in my car and always feel so relaxed just listening to the sonorities. It's like being in another world. I hope we can give that impression when we perform it.
Thursday March 17
Each year around this time we play for the Internal Medicine Conference at the Friday Center at UNC. This must be at least our 10th year. The doctor in charge of the Conference is a classical music lover, and he always books the string trio. His favorite piece is the theme from Schubert's "Trout Quintet" which fortunately we have an arrangement of. This year it must have been a larger than usual group of attendees, as we were in the Atrium rather than the Magnolia Room. We much preferred the Atrium as it gave us the opportunity to play out rather than keeping under the conversation level. There was much more space for people to walk around. They love us, it is such a change from their seminars and they really listen. We play a wide variety of music styles from baroque (of course they love the Vivaldi Seasons and Violin Concertos) Romantic, Debussy, Beatles, fiddle tunes (it was St. Patrick's Day after all!)
Saturday March 19
Make-up lessons in the morning for students who have missed due to sickness, mostly colds and flu. There has been so much around, so far I have missed it, but I know I will succumb one of these days. It's impossible to stay out of range of coughs and sneezes.
After lunch the rehearsal for the Durham Symphony concert at the Emily K. Life Center in Durham. We have played there every year since the the center was built by the basketball coach at Duke University in honor of his mother. Naturally there is a huge basketball court which is used as an assembly and concert venue. The center is used for afterschool classes and all sorts of events.
The symphony is to be joined by the Durham Childrens' Chorus and students from Kidznotes, a string program in Durham based on the El Sistema program started in Venezuela for indiginous students. There will be much more about this program in this blog later this year. The orchestra played the first movement of Beethoven's 2nd Symphony, the Coleridge Taylor "Danse Negre" and the Victor Herbert "American Fantasy". We were joined by the children in the "Children's Chorus" from Bizet's Carmen. The Kidznotes students played the Pachelbel Canon with the orchestra, then they joined with the chorus and orchestra for an arrangement of Beethoven's Ode to Joy. It's good to see so many students involved in these groups, it can only lead to good things.
Sunday, March 20
Well it had to happen, I am sick with a cold. Feeling exhausted, but managed to stay in bed all morning to get some extra sleep. Filled myself full of DayQuil and off I went to rehearse with the singers, and Izabela and Yang Xi at the Museum of Art. We spent a lot of time on the Part which eventually pulled together. I do love the piece. Al is going to give a discreet beat at the beginning to keep the strings together, as we have a long passage on our own before the singers come in. They then rehearsed their William Byrd Mass until they realised we had been sitting around waiting for some time for our turn in the auditorium. We rehearsed the Martinu until we were asked to leave as the museum was closing. Hopefully we will have more time to get used to the acoustics at our next rehearsal there.
No more rehearsal until the 28th, so I have time to get over this cold and prepare for the Viol Consort performance at UNC on the 27th.
I staggered through the week resting as much as possible, but having to prepare the 4th and 5th grade cellists for their debut with the school orchestra on April 8th. They normally don't play public concerts until 6th grade, but as this event will be an outdoor affair with parents bringing blankets and picnics, it's a good chance for them to get an idea of playing in a group, and it will be quite large. I have 17 or so cellists playing, so we need plenty of room.
March 24th, 1961 was the date of my first concert with the Cleveland Heights High School Orchestra.
My first concert attire
Friday, March 25, 2011, my eldest grand-daughter's 7th birthday.
Her mother treated Kate, her nanny, a school friend and me to a pedicure, a real treat for me as I don't recall ever having had one! after that, Kate and I had our Friday time together after dropping off her school friend. We went shopping for a birthday present, as I can't keep up with what she wants/needs. To round off the day we had a family birthday party at her house. It was a lovely time.
That was all after the final viol rehearsal, where we touched up on spots in the Will Ayton piece. Feeling more confident about my solo passages.
Saturday, March 26th
A noon reheasal with everyone. 10 cellos, 10 violas da gamba. We were able to get through the pieces a couple of times before the composer arrived from Rhode Island. We were quite nervous at the the thought of playing for him, but he was very happy with what he heard, and very complimentary when I met him after the rehearsal.
Sunday, March 27th.It felt a little odd having the whole day before playing a concert. Usually Sunday concerts for me are in the afternoon. However, I got good rest, warmed up and then left very early for the concert in order to get a parking space near the auditorium. It was the college basketball NCAA tournament "Elite Eight" round and UNC were playing, so there was no knowing how things would be on campus. I found a perfect spot and went off to Starbucks, the only place in town that did not have TVs showing the game.
Warm up and tuning was at 6:45pm. I was amazed when I saw the program. Brent must have been working on it for months. Except for the 16th century Josquin viol piece "Mille Regretz", everything was contemporary and the 4 composers were all attending! According to Brent's program the 5th composer Josquin, had sent a text saying he was not able to attend.
Three of the composers had the same last name, Anderson and are not related at all. The first piece on the concert was by Stephen Anderson, Associate professor at UNC. "Quest" composed in 2009, was a duet for violin and cello with Leah Peroutka and Brent. Great playing and ensemble.
The second composer, UNC Professor Allen Anderson wrote a suite in 1999 "Collected Letters" for solo cello which Brent played magnificiently. The movements were Rash Proposal, Affections, Apologia, Communique, Post(de)scriptions.
The Viol Consort and Cello Choir followed with the Josquin pavane "Mille Regretz" arranged by Susato, then the commissioned piece by Will Ayton " Reflections on a Pavan" composed in 2010. It was exciting and a bit nerve-wracking to be performing the world premiere in front of the composer. However, everyone did their best and I thought we gave a fine performance. The sonorities of the cellos and the silvery viols meshed well. Except for the Webern section, too minimilist and choppy for my ears, the piece had interesting takes on the Mille Regretz Pavane, with a lovely dancing section in 7/8 time. I really enjoyed learning and performing it.
After the intermission, the Cello Choir played a short arrangement of the spiritual "Steal Away". There is nothing like the sound of a cello choir, just too beautiful.
Brent concluded the concert with a fine performance of "Spirit Songs" by the third Anderson composer, TJ. Now retired to Chapel Hill after a career at Tufts University in Boston, he composed this piece for YoYo Ma in 1993. The movements are Call and Response, Gospels, Serenades 1 and II, Vamp 1, Serenades III and IV, Vamp II, Shouts.
There was a good gathering on stage afterwards, with people chatting, obviously having enjoyed themselves.
Monday March 28,
No rest for the wicked. Trio rehearsal on the Martinu. At least I didn't have to drive to Raleigh. After a rather rocky start, broken string for one, we had a good rehearsal and the movement seems to be falling into place.
