Rachel's Musical Adventures - New York concerts

September 14, 2007 at 6:45 AM

SEPTEMBER 14-16: chamber music concerts in New York

This weekend, I will appear in three performances of the string sextets Verklaerte Nacht by Schoenberg and Souvenir de Florence by Tchaikovsky. The other musicians are violinist Andy Simionescu, violists Beth Guterman and Chauncy Patterson, and cellists Denis Brott and Edward Arron.

The first performance takes place on Friday, September 14, at 8:00pm, in Dobbs Ferry, for the series Performers from Westchester. For more information, please call 914-478-3308 or visit www.performersofwestchester.org.

The other performances take place on Saturday, September 15, at 8:00pm, and Sunday, September 16, at 4:00pm, for the popular Bargemusic series, New York City’s floating concert hall. For more information, please call 718-624-2083 or visit www.bargemusic.org.

Schoenberg’s sextet was inspired by a poem by Richard Dehmel:

Two people walk through a bare, cold grove;
The moon races along with them, they look into it.
The moon races over tall oaks,
No cloud obscures the light from the sky,
Into which the black points of the boughs reach.
A woman’s voice speaks:

I’m carrying a child, and not yours,
I walk in sin beside you.
I have committed a great offense against myself.
I no longer believed I could be happy
And yet I had a strong yearning
For something to fill my life, for the joys of
Motherhood
And for duty; so I committed an effrontery,
So, shuddering, I allowed my sex
To be embraced by a strange man,
And, on top of that, I blessed myself for it.
Now life has taken its revenge:
Now I have met you, oh, you.

She walks with a clumsy gait,
She looks up; the moon is racing along.
Her dark gaze is drowned in light.
A man’s voice speaks:

May the child you conceived
Be no burden to your soul;
Just see how brightly the universe is gleaming!
There’s a glow around everything;
You are floating with me on a cold ocean,
But a special warmth flickers
From you into me, from me into you.
It will transfigure the strange man’s child.
You will bear the child for me, as if it were mine;
You have brought the glow into me,
You have made me like a child myself.

He grasps her around her ample hips.
Their breath kisses in the breeze.
Two people walk through the lofty, bright night.

New YouTube videos

“Rachel Barton Pine tries medieval string instruments”

Rachel plays early string instruments for the first time: the medieval box fiddle, the medieval vielle, and the renaissance (1500's-style) violin. David Douglass, artistic director of the King's Noyse and the Newberry Consort and one of the foremost practitioners of these instruments, jams with her on rebec and renaissance viola.

“Rachel Barton Pine talks to teens in Montreal”

Rachel answers questions from teenagers after her performance at the Montreal Chamber Music Festival, May 16, 2007.

To watch all of my YouTube videos, please visit www.youtube.com/RachelBartonPine.

New podcast episodes

“Episode 9: Rachel Barton Pine discusses concerto choices”

Rachel answers fan mail and explains how orchestras determine which violin concertos to include on their programs.

“Episode 10: Rachel Barton Pine gives some practicing advice”

Rachel responds to fan questions and gives tips for effective practice habits.

“Episode 11: Rachel Barton Pine discusses violin mutes with Fred Spector”

Rachel interviews long-time Chicago Symphony violinist Fred Spector, owner of 5,000 stringed instrument mutes. Rachel demonstrates many different kinds (wood, leather, ivory, tortoiseshell, metal, and more), and plays 3 muted pieces from her new CD, "American Virtuosa: Tribute to Maud Powell." Includes the complete bonus track from the album, "La Fleurie" by Francois Couperin, arranged by Powell.

“Episode 12: Rachel Barton Pine interviews Fred Spector (Part 1)”

Rachel Barton Pine interviews long-time Chicago Symphony violinist Fred Spector.

Do you have a question you’d like me to answer on my podcast? Just send your question via text or as an MP3 attachment to rachelbartonpine@aol.com. Please also let me know if you have any comments or suggestions. If you use iTunes, be sure to subscribe!

SAVE THE DATES
The following is a partial list of my upcoming 2007 performances. Additional information is available at www.rachelbartonpine.com/tourdates.php.

September 20 – Trio Settecento appears at the Music Institute of Chicago’s Nichols Concert Hall
September 27-29 – recitals and master class in Singapore