Joseph Szigeti’s Curiosity and Dedication to Practice Paid Off
Joseph Szigeti was an unusual superstar. The Hungarian violinist, born in 1892, wasn’t blessed with a glamorous sound or a thrilling vibrato. He didn’t have Kreisler’s charm, Heifetz’s electricity, or Elman’s…
Honoring Cello Titan Lynn Harrell, whose Influence Extended Far Beyond His Technical Ability
Born in 1944, Lynn Harrell was the son of two musicians. His mother, Marjorie, was a violinist, and his father, Mack, was a preeminent operatic baritone and one of the…
Gobi Desert Tour with Conductor Long Yu, Cellist Yo-Yo Ma, and Sheng Virtuoso Wu Tong
This September, conductor Long Yu, cellist Yo-Yo Ma and sheng virtuoso Wu Tong embarked on a four-city tour of China. The tour kicked off with the Hong Kong Philharmonic’s season opening concerts on September 9 and…
The Cellist Gregor Piatigorsky, Larger-Than-Life
Cellist Gregor Piatigorsky was larger than life, a giant of a man whose personality was gigantic, too. A warm, deeply expressive musician, Piatigorsky was possessed of a glorious low-register…
A Tale of Three Maestros – The California Festival’s Celebration of New Music
Just to illustrate the scope of a joint venture undertaken by the San Francisco Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic, and San Diego Symphony, it’s worth noting that there are some…
The Hidden History of The Hills: Untangling the Amazing Story of London’s Well-Known Fiddlemakers
Few firms in the fiddle world have been so distinguished as W. E. Hill and Sons. They dominated the international trade completely from the late 19th century until the 1980s.…
From Rifleman to Concertmaster, A 90-Year Retrospective by Stuart Canin
Stuart Canin whips open the door to his Berkeley home and shakes my hand with the kind of solid clasp you’d expect from any lifelong violinist. While many in the…
The Miró Quartet Celebrates 25 Years with Beethoven and Explores the American String Quartet Tradition in Depth
When the Miró Quartet started out in October 1995, a prediction that it would be thriving a quarter century on must have sounded wildly optimistic. “Because we were such different personalities…
With Yamaha’s Newest Silent Bass, Players Have More Sound Control
By Megan Westberg | From the May-June 2020 issue of Strings magazine Yamaha released the newest iteration of its Silent Bass, the SLB300, earlier this year. Much of its makeup is familiar—a maple…
Violinist Yehudi Menuhin’s Unparalleled Tonal Purity
There’s never been another violinist like the young Yehudi Menuhin. As an adolescent, gifted with boundless talent and utter unselfconsciousness, Menuhin scaled the most exalted artistic heights, producing tones of unparalleled…