Hi Everyone,
Last week, Cicely and I had the great fortune to meet and work with William Bolcom, the renowned Pulitzer Prize-winning, Grammy Award-winning composer and pianist! He composed a fantastic work called "Suite for Violin and Violoncello," which has quickly become one of our favorite duos, and we look forward to performing it soon.
It is such a unique experience to work with the composer himself on his music. For those of you who are musicians, I think we all sometimes wish we could write a list of questions for Beethoven, have his direct answers, and so put all other opinions to rest. Much of the time, omissions and ambiguity on the part of the composer force us to rely upon our own judgement, which not only leads to a diversity of interpretations, but debate as well.
To prepare a piece of contemporary music under the guidance of its creator can therefore be a fantastic opportunity to acquire some degree of authority; when questioned, one merely has to point out, "the composer said so!"
It was an honor to play for Mr. Bolcom and his famous wife and mezzo-soprano, Joan Morris. We left with several CDs and a stack of music to work on; Bolcom violin sonatas and cello sonatas will be making their way to our rep lists shortly!
All for now.
~Madalyn
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Saturday, December 26, 2009
School: Au Revoir!
Hi Everyone!
As some of you may know, my last blog was officially a flop since I never got past my first and only post. However, exactly a year later, I am very happy to report that I will now be able to keep in touch much more frequently, as there have been some exciting changes in my schedule.
Like last year around this time, I am enjoying my winter break from school, although the powers that be have reduced it by a week this year. Nevertheless, I am especially excited this time because my undergraduate studies have very nearly come to a close. Next semester will be my final one, and a simple one at that, compared to the 21-credit load I was carrying this fall. The demands to complete a major in music as well as a minor in French in three years has certainly posed some challenges, and as much as I enjoy academics, I look forward to graduation. I have waited a long time to be free from the distractions of coursework so that I can concentrate solely on music and performing. I can't wait!
So, also like last time, I would like to encourage you to please send me any questions and comments you might have - I really enjoy hearing from people!
All for now.
~Madalyn
As some of you may know, my last blog was officially a flop since I never got past my first and only post. However, exactly a year later, I am very happy to report that I will now be able to keep in touch much more frequently, as there have been some exciting changes in my schedule.
Like last year around this time, I am enjoying my winter break from school, although the powers that be have reduced it by a week this year. Nevertheless, I am especially excited this time because my undergraduate studies have very nearly come to a close. Next semester will be my final one, and a simple one at that, compared to the 21-credit load I was carrying this fall. The demands to complete a major in music as well as a minor in French in three years has certainly posed some challenges, and as much as I enjoy academics, I look forward to graduation. I have waited a long time to be free from the distractions of coursework so that I can concentrate solely on music and performing. I can't wait!
So, also like last time, I would like to encourage you to please send me any questions and comments you might have - I really enjoy hearing from people!
All for now.
~Madalyn
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