JAVS Fall 2012

about their teacher’s legacy. The panelists studied with Tuttle at various points in her career and indi cated that her philosophies evolved over time and were often individualized. She eventually developed a concept of “Coordination,” which aimed at emo tional release and ridding all unnecessary tension in your body. Throughout the session, the speakers interspersed choice phrases of Tuttle’s including, “It should always feel delicious to play,” and “you should be more like a jazz player in your stance,” with her technical ideas on the bow arm concepts of re-pull and resistance and the idea that “the string is the boss.”

Goya,” and Dunham provided a charming synopsis for each of the songs before the performance.

Schedule conflicts were such that Hartmut Rohde’s 2:00 p.m. recital was the last event of my day. He began with a transcription of the Sonata for Cello and Piano, op. 19, by Franz Xaver Mozart (son of W. A. Mozart). The second movement of the sonata was quite attractive and worked effectively on viola, but the finale—which extensively used the viola’s lower register—sounded a bit scrubby. The second (and final) work was Hindemith’s 1939 Sonata for Viola and Piano. Like Paul Laraia’s interpretation the day before, Rohde presented a nicely “rough” version of this work, though Rohde’s sound was less robust and more stringent, particularly in the upper register; in all a forceful and satisfying presentation of this sonata. Saturday was Community Viola Day, and the day’s sessions were designed to appeal to student violists (of all ages); thirty-three registrants, mostly from the greater Rochester area, signed up for Community Viola Day events. The brief Potpourri Recital at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday was the first occasion where I noticed the short stick in use for the piano in Kilbourn Hall. (I generally enjoyed the full presence of the piano in prior recitals, but the short stick worked here). Michelle LaCourse performed Martin Amlin’s Kennel , with the composer at the piano. Consisting of seven short movements named after breeds of dogs, the Impressionist-infused work was pleasant, if not overly exciting. Ensik Choi followed with a stunningly beautiful performance of Arnold Bax’s Viola Sonata—one of the highlights of a con gress filled with great performances. The 10:00 a.m. panel presentation by Peter Slowik, Heidi Castleman, Jeffrey Irvine, and Marilyn Seelman on preparing for a college audition was packed. Slowik began by commenting that the four panelists, combined, had listened to about 75,000 auditions over their careers. The advice they dis pensed in this fast-paced session demonstrated the different ways that colleges handle the admissions process—which can vary greatly depending on the Saturday, June 2

Panelists at the Karen Tuttle session; from left to right: Michelle LaCourse, Jeffrey Irvine, Sheila Browne, Kim Kashkashian, Carol Rodland, and Susan Dubois

After the Tuttle lecture, Jeffrey Irvine rushed off to Hatch Recital Hall to present a master class. With his usual affable demeanor and pedagogical preci sion, he zeroed in on issues of tension with Benjamin Magruder (who performed Vieuxtemps’s Elégie ) and Hillary Sametz (who performed Bach’s Suite No. 5). James Dunham’s 11:00 a.m. recital program had a distinctly marital theme with something old, some thing new, and something borrowed (though there was nothing “blue” about his excellent program). Partnered with Barry Snyder at the piano, he gave a delightful performance of Glinka’s Sonata, followed by a recent work of Richard Lavenda’s, Rhapsody . The gem in the program was a set of six songs by Enrique Granados, Tonadillas , transcribed by Monisa Angell and Melissa Rose. The songs “detail the romantic relationships of the majos and majas, the flamboyant working class people featured in the paintings of

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