Violinist.com

#TakeTwoKnees: The Week in Hope-Inspiring Spontaneous Music Online, Op. 12

June 1, 2020, 11:12 PM · EDITOR'S NOTE: We offer this post in solidarity with the Black community on the eve of Blackout Tuesday. We will not post anything additional on Tuesday.

Violinist Melissa White plays John Rosamond Johnson’s "Lift Every Voice and Sing."

"Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be. This is the interrelated structure of reality."

Keep reading...

Find an Online Music Camp

Laurie Niles

June 1, 2020, 1:23 AM ·

With so many music camps cancelled this year, Violinist.com would like to connect you to those high-quality programs that will be offering their programs virtually this summer. Our "Find an Online Music Camp" listings include programs for many different ages and styles for violinists and string players, including Suzuki programs; intensives for advanced players; fiddle, pop music and other workshops; electric and amplified playing; composing; master classes with conservatory teachers; technique classes and more. We invite you to click around and learn more about each of these programs - each is linked to the program's website for more information. This directory will be posted on Violinist.com throughout June, and you will be able to return to this page by clicking the "Find an Online Music Camp" graphic that is listed with our sponsors on the right. Wishing you a productive summer full of musical connection and exploration!
Keep reading...

Plan Ahead to Avoid Running Out of Bow

Paul Stein

May 31, 2020, 2:52 PM · When we chose whether to play a string, wind, or percussion instrument in elementary school, I doubt whether anyone took into account the reliability of how the instrument would work. If I had known how many pitfalls the violin would be subject to, I might have run the opposite direction. Instead I took my school-issued violin home and promptly ran out of bow. No matter how long it was, my bow came off at the tip and came to a screeching halt at the frog. All violins should come with a warning – if it can go wrong, it will go wrong. Keep reading...

Comments (5)

Growing a Core Repertoire for Violin that Embraces Diversity

Claire Allen

May 30, 2020, 9:27 PM · Classical music is an art form that is overwhelmingly white, male, European, and deceased. While many efforts are being made to change this, they are not yet mainstream. There are the Black History Month concerts, which feature a few representative works by a Black composer, possibly a Black soloist, and then we never hear those works or see that soloist again. We have yet to see a majority of concert series present more diverse programs in months that aren't February or March.

If the concert hall (or the Facebook Live stream, these days) is the place audiences regularly encounter new pieces of classical music, the elementary school classroom and the private teaching studio are the first places children encounter music. We teach them which music is important. And for many of us who teach using the Suzuki method, we are trying to cultivate beautiful hearts in our students, and to make global citizens, not just violinists.

But how can we do that when the repertoire in the books is almost entirely written by dead white European men?

The answer: we can't. We have to turn the Keep reading...

Comments (2)

News