Musings on ballet, classical music, the violin, and life
I’m an adult beginning on the violin and it’s been a rollicking adventure, chronicled here.
It’s February 2020, and you know what that means? The Classical Girl has turned seven! The Classical Girl, as longtime readers might know, was a concept I’d created on the eve of 2013. A New Year’s resolution of sorts. My ballet novels were long completed, out being shopped (or already killed on the editorial-board table), … Read more
Claude Debussy’s “The Girl with the Flaxen Hair” ranks right up there alongside his “Clair de Lune,” “Beau Soir” and “Afternoon of a Faun” on my “favorite short classical pieces” list. In spite of their brevity, all of them immediately transport you, taking you to a vivid, sensual, evocative place that, once you’ve returned to the … Read more
It’s rare to see the violin celebrated in popular movies, let alone those geared toward children. We can only imagine the positive effect such a film might have on youth involvement in music, though, and that’s what makes the new DreamWorks animated film Abominable so refreshing. In case you’re not familiar with it, the movie … Read more
The program last Sunday at the San Francisco Symphony was billed as “Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 3 in A minor, with guest conductor Roberto Abbado.” Great, enjoyable stuff. But one glance at my playbill once I was seated gave me no doubt which piece on the program would outshine the rest for me: Schumann’s Violin Concerto in D minor. … Read more
The violin concerto repertoire is so rich and satisfying, I’m embarrassed to admit that, prior to becoming an adult beginner on the violin in 2005, I was only familiar with a few of them. This, from a self-proclaimed classical music fanatic. Whoops. But maybe that’s you, too. … Read more