JAVS Fall 2008

thank you Nancy Buck for an out standing International Viola Congress! Day five – David M. Bynog Unfortunately, I missed the better part of the final day of the con gress as well, including Donald Maurice’s lecture-recital on George Enescu; Donald McInnes’s master class; the American Viola Society Recital with Carol Rodland, Juliet White-Smith, Sheila Browne, and Susan Dubois; and the Play-in Viola Ensemble performance. Dimitri Murrath, first-place win ner, displayed a marvelous tone and sense of phrasing in Brahms’s Sonata in E-flat Major, op. 120, no. 2. Emily Deans, second-place winner, followed with a vigorous reading of Hindemith’s Sonata, op. 25, no. 4. Her tone seemed very forced, perhaps her interpretation of the wild and savage style often associated with both of Hindemith’s op. 25 viola sonatas. Molly Carr, third-place winner I did attend the 1:00 p.m. Primrose Winners’ Concert.

performed Tchaikovsky’s None but the Lonely Heart and the first movement of Rochberg’s Viola Sonata. At 2:00 p.m. Claudine Bigelow gave a lecture on the Primrose International Archive. The heart of this sparsely attended lecture was Tally Turner’s superb presentation on organizing the Maurice W. Riley Collection. For a detailed account of her work, please see her article in this issue of the JAVS. Claudine also gave updates on PIVA including information on the acquisition of the Ulrich Drüner collection, a wealth of original editions of early viola music. 3:00 p.m. saw the final event of the congress. Violists Roland Vamos and Viacheslav Dinerchtein played the 44 Viola Duets by Bartók (originally for two violins and transcribed by William Primrose). The works are delights in miniature, and the performance reveled in Bartók’s folksy dance rhythms, jovial wit, and classic melodies. In all it was a great con clusion to an outstanding congress!

pal activities included celebrating the Congress Honoree Dr. William Magers, a giant of a teacher who has dedicated a lifetime to his stu dents and to our beloved viola; publicly presenting the Silver Alto Clef to Donald McInnes (awarded in 2007), a world class performer, a master-teachers’ teacher, and a genuinely gracious human being; and, publicly thanking Nancy Buck for organizing a wonderful congress! Last on the agenda for Saturday, June 7 was the 8:00 p.m. final round of the 11th Primrose International Viola Competition in Smith Music Theatre. Originally this round was to include three performers, but we had six to enjoy. The performers, Dimitri Murrath (Belgium); Emily Deans (USA); Lambert Jun-Yuan Chen (Taiwan); Wei-Ting Kuo (Taiwan); Molly Carr (USA); and Barbara Buntrock (Germany), each stood out as extraordinarily special. This round did not end until after 11:00 p.m. and the final decision by the panel, ably led by Claudine Bigelow, did not reach final deci sion until after 1:00 a.m. (please see the article on the 11th Primrose International Viola Competition for details on the winners). I truly appreciated re-connecting the Primrose International Viola Competition and the congress after several years of separation. Nokuthula Ngwenyama, herself the 1993 Primrose winner, did an amazing job as Primrose International Viola Competition Director. Thank you Thula and

From left to right: Michael Vidulich (IVS President), Richard Mapp, Donald Maurice, Anna Brooker (ANZVS President), and Robert Harris.

J OURNAL OF THE AMERICAN VIOLA SOCIETY 28