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V.com weekend vote: What do you use to tune your instrument?

September 25, 2020, 10:22 PM · What are you doing to keep your fiddle on-pitch, during these COVID times? Or are you bothering? Do you check things every time you play, or not so much? Has this been different for you, in the last months? Do you have lessons or other playing opportunities these days that help keep you accountable? Please share what you use as a pitch source, when you tune, and then share your thoughts in the comments below.

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For the Record, Op. 133: New Beethoven Recordings: Daniel Lozakovich; Jerilyn Jorgensen

Laurie Niles

September 25, 2020, 1:31 PM · Welcome to "For the Record," Violinist.com's weekly roundup of new releases of recordings by violinists, violists, cellists and other classical musicians. We hope it helps you keep track of your favorite artists, as well as find some new ones to add to your listening!

Beethoven: Violin Concerto
Daniel Lozakovich, violin
Munich Philharmonic, Valery Gergiev conducting

Another tribute to Beethoven in this 250th anniversary year: the fantastically talented young violinist Daniel Lozakovich has recorded Beethoven's Violin Concerto. The new recording was filmed live in Munich’s Gasteig Philharmonie in December 2019 -- just months before live performance became difficult and rare, with venues shut down and orchestras silenced due to the global pandemic. "There’s a particular magic about a live concert," Lozakovich said. "The audience creates a unique atmosphere, without which, in my opinion, it’s almost impossible to produce a performance that will stand the test of time." This is Lozakovich's third recording for DG, the others being None But the Lonely Heart in 2019 and Bach Concertos 1 and 2 in 2018. BELOW: Daniel Lozakovich performs the second-movement "Larghetto" from the Beethoven Violin Concerto with the Munich Philharmonic, Valery Gergiev conducting:

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Pandemic Recital Planning for Violin Teachers and Students

Claire Allen

September 24, 2020, 12:59 PM · Note: This story is part of our Violinist.com Guide to Online Learning," to help students and teachers make online music lessons and classes work as effectively as possible.

The COVID-19 pandemic forced us all to think creatively and learn new skills as our entire world pivoted online. Now, with the school year up and running, teachers are preparing students for an entirely different set of performance conditions, which require new ways of thinking, as well as creative performance preparation strategies.

This fall, I’m hosting a combination recital for my studio, featuring an in-person outdoor performance option in the parking lot of the community arts school where I teach, and pre-recorded performance videos shared via YouTube playlist.

Preparing my students for these very different styles of performance has required a different level of planning for me, both logistically and pedagogically.

Here are four guides I’ve created for students as they prepare their performances. I welcome you to print out and use these guides for yourself or your students. (Click on each image for the enlarged, printable PDF):
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Curtis Institute Acknowledges Sexual Abuse; Apologizes to Lara St John and Other Victims

Laurie Niles

September 23, 2020, 1:52 PM · EDITOR'S NOTE: Updated late Wednesday with a statement from Lara St John.

Violinist Lara St John on Tuesday received acknowledgement and an apology from the Curtis Institute for the sexual abuse she suffered 35 years ago at age 14 from her violin teacher, Jascha Brodsky.

"The board recognizes and profoundly regrets the incalculable physical and emotional toll that Ms. St. John suffered as a result of her Curtis experience....We were wrong, and we express publicly our sincere apology to Lara St. John for the way she was treated by Curtis for the past 34 years," said a statement issued Tuesday by the Curtis Institute Board of Trustees. "We failed to provide her with a safe learning environment, failed to carefully investigate her claims, failed to communicate our grave disappointment in how she was treated by Curtis, and repeatedly failed to communicate the steps that were taken to prevent such abuse from occurring in the future." Keep reading...

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