JAVS Fall 2008

humor, we heard about bow arms, bow grips, posture, pulse, and style. Jerzy spoke directly and per sonally with each student. We were not engaged in the conversation, but were privileged to witness this gracious master teacher teach. I missed the last of Kosmala’s mas ter class in order to attend the 11:00 a.m. Duo Repertoire Recital held in the first-floor Smith Music Theatre. While I still missed the Frank Bridge Lamento played by J. David Arnott and Coca Bochonko, I enjoyed the perform ance of Two Pieces for Two Violas by Richard Cornell and Music for Tramposh and Scott Woolweaver. The two performers, who obvious ly liked making music together, beautifully played the enjoyable but not profound pieces. I particu larly enjoyed the Scherzetto by Cornell for its wonderfully quick viola repartee. Ken Martinson and John Largess concluded this con cert with two newly published duos by Alessandro Rolla. These well-matched players gave us a sparkling rendition of these venera ble Rolla pieces. After a quick lunch I returned to Katzin Hall where the renowned violist Bruno Pasquier held forth. Bruno thought he needed some translation help—he didn’t need much! He worked with six out standing Primrose competitors. Bruno eloquently spoke and pow erfully demonstrated viola tone and musical expression. He became excited when each student produced the sound, color, or Two Violas by Alexandros Kalogeras played by Shelly

Jutta Puchhammer-Sédillot.

scratching your back, walking, sawing wood, etc., and how one can relate these very natural motions and movements to viola posture, position, and balance. Jutta sparkles and percolates with energy, always a twinkle in her eye, with an infectious smile and expressive hands when she plays and talks. It’s a delight to be in her audience. Because the sessions were intended to be overlapping, I missed Jutta’s final selection, Ballade , op. 8 by Leo Werner. The 10:00 a.m. master class with our longtime friend Jerzy Kosmala was held in the Recital Hall on the third floor of the sister building to the ASU Gammage Auditorium. The Recital Hall was a wonderful ly intimate and well-appointed location for Jerzy. He shared a life time of experience at the highest level of music making. His com ments came quickly, immediately, and honestly with each of the five Primrose competitors in the master class. Laced with his sly sense of

worked the Poco maestoso and the Allegro vivo from Gordon Jacob’s Suite for Eight Violas; “The Arrival of the Queen of Sheba” by Handel arranged for six violas by Michael Dennison (edited by John White); and a fabulous arrange ment by Joël Belgique (Principal Viola of the Oregon Symphony and leader of the famous “The Four Violas”) of Elgar’s Nimrod , variation nine, from the Enigma Variation s. Ken went to work on his energetic, youthful composi tion, Viola Fantasy for twelve vio las. All went well—and, pending Sunday’s review, the concert will go well also. The 9:00 a.m. lecture-recital in the beautiful Katzin Hall was per formed by the indefatigable Jutta Puchhammer-Sédillot from the Conservatoire de Musique de Montréal. After a short introduc tion she played Suite, op. 11 by Charles Tournemire (1870-1939). Jutta then talked about natural body movements—reaching,

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