What is your favorite piece of music to play? To listen to? This is such a difficult question to answer since all pieces impact you differently! Probably my favorite piece to play is Hindemith’s Solo Sonata, Op. 31, No. 4, as a solo sonata is a rather individual experience. He wrote it in 1923, and it’s a great example of Hindemith’s expressionist period of composition, yet it is certainly contrapuntal and structured quite traditionally. His tonality is rather esoteric and has always captivated me. The colors he achieves in the second and third movement (Theme and Variations) give such a fresh and ethereal world for the player to explore.
The pieces of music I love to listen to most are Sibelius’ Symphony no. 5, Strauss’ tone poem Also Sprach Zarathustra, Beethoven’s String Quartet in C# Minor, Op. 131, and Schubert’s String Quartet no. 15 in G Major. (There’s too much to choose from!)
What achievement over the course of your life are you most proud of? I’m most proud of my tenure with the Hawaii Symphony and my years teaching great kids! I feel very fortunate to have a career that allows me to work with some amazing and inspiring conductors and artists who help me strive to continue to learn and be better at my craft. I’m thankful that as a musician I am allowed to connect to the community in a very special way. As a teacher, it is a wonderful opportunity to be able to share my love of music with others and help them give the tools and empower them to find their path in music. Seeing students learn and progress is so inspiring and I love being able to learn so much from them.
Apart from that, in 2007 I was part of a national tour to play and educate students from many different socio-economic backgrounds and communities all over the country. The ensemble brought musicians from thirty different nations and was an invaluable experience in terms of what I learned from those people, as well as the students and communities. During that tour I also was honored to meet and play for Nelson Mandela, Queen Noor of Jordan, and former President Clinton. Those communities taught me the power that music has to bring people together to inspire and will never forget it.
What is one of the most important pieces of advice that you were given as a musician or teacher? As musicians we are here to “spread the news” and communicate music to all who will listen. How we interact and tell it is unique and all of our experiences as performer, composer, and listener add to the greatness of that work. So, we all need to keep playing!
How do you motivate your students to practice and excel at their craft? I encourage all students to listen to as much music as they can, go to concerts, and explore their city and community. The more they see, hear, and experience, the more they will discover what’s possible and what they themselves can bring to music making and the art world in general.
Also, research the composer and the stories behind the pieces they are working on. Too often this is not explored deeply enough. There are probably amazing stories and reasons for all of these composers to create these works, and the more we all know about it the more we can be inspired.
What is one of your fondest memories of a teacher? I was able to study with Karen Tuttle at the Banff Centre for the Arts, and again in Philadelphia a year later. In Banff I had two or three lessons every week with her, and often those lessons would be several hours long. We’d often end our lessons and go to lunch together, where we’d continue our talks. She’d share wonderful memories of some of her most influential colleagues and musical mentors, Alexander Schneider, Pablo Casals, William Primrose, and Marcel Tabuteau.
Although she was in her early eighties when I studied with her, she was always a joyful bundle of energy! She was intensely outspoken, demanding, but taught with love and full faith in each student. Nothing was off limits to her when teaching—I was an open book to her. She saw through everything and addressed it with directness and love. At the time I came to study with her, I played with a lot of muscle tension and was suffering with tendinitis; her philosophy and methods not only released me from pain and injury, but gave me a better understanding of how to physically manifest music through the body to find physical freedom, power and resonance, heightened ability and stamina. I was honored to keep studying with members of the “Tuttle Family” at school in Boston and at Aspen Festival and School in later summers.
What is your philosophy of teaching? I approach my teaching by always striving to give the student an understanding of actively creating ease and resonance in their sound, as much flexibility in the body and arms as possible, which will then allow many options for artistic expression. Guiding the student to gain confidence in knowing their plan, identifying issues and resolving them, and coordinating their musical intent into the body and instrument—and knowing that this is a constant discipline for them as a performer. I encourage my students to always search for understanding of what the composer intended to communicate through the work, and how they interpret their message. How does this piece of music change through the ages, or through them?
What advice do you have for the young aspiring musicians of the next generation? Stick with music through all of your journey’s ups and downs. Don’t be afraid to follow what inspires you and let that continue to evolve. Look to composers, writers, performers, and artists of today, as well as the past and see what you feel inspired by. Classical music is often seen as a permission-based field, but there is actually quite a lot of room for your individual voice and interpretation to shine through—the world needs it!
