Samuel Thompson

Samuel Thompson is from Baltimore, Maryland.

Biography

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April 2008
March 2008
February 2008
January 2008
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November 2005

Slave to the Rhythm

...yes, I am a bit of a glutton for punishment... =)

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New Music Posted

Excerpts from a performance of the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto have been posted at ReverbNation.

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Encores, and Incredible Moments

This has been a great week, filled with wonderful surprises from both the musicians in the orchestra as well as from Rich and Debbie Simons. Going home will be a good thing, as I do feel satisfied in many ways.

At the end of the concert - what can I say? It's still wonderful and heartwarming to receive flowers from children (as I did) as well as have an audience call you back to the stage. While I was not prepared to play an encore we asked the audience if they wanted to hear something else. They said yes - and I played Bach.

YES - the G Minor Adagio, on no warning - AGAIN....not since 1997 has something gone that smoothly, and not since June 2006 have I actually felt that vibartory link between a performer and an audience. Speaking of "myself", I have to say that it went quite well, and this was probably the best performance of the G Minor Adagio that I have ever given.

Speaking of "the moment", however (taking "little me" out of the picture and observing), there was magic made in Croton-on-Hudson on the night of April 5, 2008, when an audience sat with open ears, eagerness, and open hearts to receive...

The first time that I felt that link between an audience and a performer was in 1994 when, while making my graduate school decisions, I went to Houston for a violin lesson (and, of course, had one of those happy life accidents - a chance meeting - that changed the course of my life) and had an opportunity to hear Christian Tetzlaff with the Houston Symphony. He played the Dvorak Concerto - and the audience brought him back FOUR times! On his fourth trip back to the stage he played the Andante from the A Minor Sonata and one could definitely feel the intense connection between that man and a room filled with grateful concertgoers....

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Adjustment, and the Paradox of Permanency and Change

Well...having not been "here" for a while it's interesting to write, as there are many thoughts that I would like to share.

Today is the day before yet another performance and I find myself experiencing many of the same emotions and thoughts: dread, anticipation, excitement, humility, confidence in my abilities, the continuous desire to "fix things", etc. Of course, this is amusing: after having played many concerts one would think that the performer would not experience some emotions and have some thoughts that could be thought of as negative.

Nevertheless, every performance is a rite-of-passage be it due to performing in a new space, a different hall, on a new instrument or one that has been "seriously" adjusted, new repertoire, new collaborators, or any of the factors that mark "a changing life", and I find myself grateful to be in this place of wonder and self-knowledge. Additionally, it is nice to know that I haven't lasped into complacency - "nervousness" can actually be fresh and exciting as opposed to ego-driven and debilitating.

In addition to the new repertoire (both Mozart #4 and Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso on the same evening), the newest thing is the violin, in some ways. I am so happy that I took the time to have the instrument adjusted and also to have had a smaller "tune-up" two weeks ago. Many thanks once again to Marilyn Wallin of Boston and the folks at both the Tulsa Violin Shop and Wilhite Strings (Knoxville, Tennessee).

My first rehearsal with the Cortlandt Chamber Orchestra was last night and the violin feels - and sounds - wonderful. The sound is now much clearer and much more powerful, the latter resulting in less "work" for the bow arm, thus resulting in the ability to be a bit more expressive as opposed to "heavy handed".

More from the road - after the double-hitter evening...

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Previous entries: March 2008