July 7, 2011 at 10:56 PM
Occasionally I get some unusual e-mail in my capacity as editor of Violinist.com. For example, yesterday:
"My wife and I raise alpacas, and every year we named them after artists. This year we've decided that we would like to use violinists. Our first cria (baby) is a female, so we would like to see a comprehensive list of female violinists. Where can we go to see such a list?
Thank you, Tom & Tsulan Balka, Lavender Fields Alpacas, Elizabeth, CO"
Here is the newborn alpaca that they'd like to name after a violinist:
Awwww! Shall we help them out? I'm all for anything that promotes violinists, and the art of violin!
Historic female violinists:
Maude Powell
Lady Wilhelmina Hallé
Wilma Neruda
Living female violinists:
Hilary Hahn
Anne-Sophie Mutter
Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg
Regina Carter
Rachel Barton Pine
...and in case any male alpacas join the mix:
Historical male violinists:
Nicolo Paganini
Jascha Heifetz
Isaac Stern
Living male violinists:
Ruggiero Ricci
Itzhak Perlman
Joshua Bell
Gil Shaham
Any other suggestions for Tom and Tsulan?
My vote is Hilary!
Also:
Sarah Chang
Nurit Bar Josef (concertmaster of National Sym.)
Leila Josefowicz
Clara Jumi-Kang
Sedra Lynn Rose Bistodeau
Alex DePue
Wallace DePue
Jason DePue
Zach DePue
Haha, awesome. I'm hoping to eventually get my list up on my website...when I do, I'll have a list of about 200 female violinists born pre-1920...that's a lot of alpacas.
As for names, I like Stefi (Geyer) and Teresina (Tua)!
I think both Midori (Goto) and Akiko (Suwanai) have to be on this list for the first alpaca!
Lisa Batiashvili
how about a violist!? Rebecca Clarke? :P
I do like Hilary though
Jelly d'Arayni
Naoko, Sayaka, Akiko (Terai, Shoji, Suwanai) — as you can see, I have a great affection for Japanese violinists. ;-) Also, Isabelle and Wanda (Faust and Wilkomirska), the last one due to my heritage.
Name her Ricci!
Ginette Neveu!! Ida Haendel is also a great historic (and still alive) violinist, but I prefer French names. I'm pretty sure Neveu is pronounced Ne-voo as my teacher is French and that's how he says it. It just rolls off the tongue!
Alma Rose!
Isabelle Faust.
Rachel Podger
She looks like a Hilary to me.
How about Regina Strinassachi?
There were a healthy number of ideas from the V.com Facebook page, too: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Violinistcom/100897636577?ref=ts
For example, Leila (Josefowitz, I love her name!).
I will let everyone know what they decide! More pictures to come...
P.S. The cria's mom, or "dam," is "Emily Bronte"!
Hilary Hahn, though I like to think Hilary's prettier than an alpaca!
Living male violinists:
Chuan Yun Li
Nikolai Znaider
For a female alpaca, the name Hilary Hahn gets my vote!
Some more historical male violinists: Eugene Ysaye, Fritz Kreisler, Nathan Milstein, David Oistrakh, Christian Ferras, Mischa Elman, Zino Francescatti, Leonid Kogan...if you wanted to include composers who were also violinists, that opens a whole other field. Felix Mendelssohn, Johann Sebastian Bach, and Wolfgang Amadaus Mozart, to name a few.
Personally, I think the name Eugene or Fritz would suit an alpaca perfectly. :)
I vote for Hilary Hahn
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