JAVS Spring 2025

Final Thoughts From this experience, we can confidently say that the American Viola Society Festival in Los Angeles taught us how large and expansive the viola community is as a whole. It was enlightening to experience the confluence of so many different violists and groups; people were astonishingly hospitable and kind, and we even bonded with a group from Philadelphia, which was one of the highlights of the trip. We learned about community and musicality, which we will take with us on the rest of our musical journey. As an ensemble, we learned to adapt with each other, support each other musically, and grow together as friends and teammates.

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I was the fourth viola in the CCM Viola Quartet that qualified to perform at the 2024 American Viola Society conference in Los Angeles. At first, I was nervous when we were practicing the Aragonaise from Carmen. I didn’t know if I was good enough to do my fair share. However, as the year progressed, I grew more confident in our abilities to play together as a group. I feel like through playing together, I was able to make new connections and friends. Being chosen as one of the two high school groups to perform at the conference was truly an honor. When I arrived in Los Angeles, it was a fun and exciting experience to be able to play at The Colburn School’s performance halls, as well as see contemporary pieces made for violas to play together instead of an individual violist as part of a traditional quartet. I also enjoyed Melia Watras’ easter egg hidden between the titles of the movements of the AVS piece. It was also wonderful to see so many people who were passionate about the viola and pursuing it as their future, as well as seeing so many beautiful violas displayed. I really enjoyed being able to meet so many professional violists and see such amazing performances. Isabella

THE AMERICAN VIOLA SOCIETY: A HISTORY AND REFERENCE SECOND EDITION

By Dwight R. Pounds

$24 Spiral Bound $28 Hard Cover (recommended for library use)

(L-R): Maeve Henderson, Joyce Chan Grabell, Ayane Kozasa (Primrose, and CCM Professor), Grace Yu, Isabella Wang, and Ben Truong. Photo courtesy of Joyce Chan Grabell.

Dwight R. Pounds 651 Covington Grove Blvd. Bowling Green, KY 42104-6601 dwight.pounds@insightbb.com

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Journal of the American Viola Society / Vol. 41, No. 1, Spring 2025