From left, Tim Kantor, Madalyn, Professor Ik-Hwan Bae (our stellar quartet coach), me, and Gerry Varona.

Good day, all!

After a whirlwind of a winter break, I am back at Indiana University, enjoying the busiest semester of my life!

Madalyn and I began the New Year with an energetic duo concert in New York City at the New York Musician’s Club (also known as “The Bohemians”), which is held in the gorgeous Kosciuszko Foundation House. In addition to the many enthusiastic and interesting music lovers who comprised the audience, Madalyn and I had the great pleasure of meeting composer Seymour Barab, whose boisterous (and groovy!) Partita for Violin and Cello was on our program. We had contacted Mr. Barab in December in hopes of playing his piece for him before performing it publicly, but we were surprised to find that he was perfectly content to wait to hear our interpretation at the concert itself! In the end he was delighted with the performance, and is eagerly awaiting our recording of it!

Yes, I did say “recording!” Madalyn and I are currently working on our third album of duos, tentatively entitled “Living Music 2010.” We are particularly enthused about the repertoire on this album, as it will consist entirely of music by living composers. Our first recording session took place in early January at IU, and we began our project with Mr. Barab’s piece, as well as William Bolcom’s stunning Suite for Violin and Violoncello. We are incredibly grateful to our producer David Dzubay, the conductor of IU’s New Music Ensemble, of which both Madalyn and I are members, and Grammy Award-winning recording engineer, Konrad Strauss, for agreeing to be a part of this project. Our next recording session will be in March, but in the meantime we are taking advantage of the precious opportunities available at JSoM.

Such opportunities included string quartet masterclasses with the Pacifica Quartet and the Johannes Quartet. Madalyn and I are enjoying immensely working with Tim Kantor and Gerry Varona, violinist and violist respectively, on Schubert’s incomparable Quartet in d minor, “Death and the Maiden,” and Bartok’s enthralling Quartet No.5. The experience of playing such powerful music for such superior musicians is simply inexpressible.

Next on the agenda is a concert at the Kennedy Center on February 27^th (yet another priceless opportunity provided by IU), which will be streaming live on the Internet! I will post a link to the website, along with the particulars, as the event draws nigh, so please tune in if you can!

Best wishes for a wonderful start to the New Year!

Cicely