Thursday, June 9, 2016

Day 2 of the American Viola Society Festival

I write to you tonight from a comfy couch in Cleveland, calmly collecting my thoughts.

Today has been an extraordinary day by all accounts. It has been the sort of day I have been looking forward to for probably my entire life, where I have had the chance to present my research to a room full of my peers. Not only my peers, but musicians and scholars who I hold in great esteem.

Other than the battery petering out on the overhead remote mid-presentation, the Raphael Lecture-Recital was rather successful. I think I was able to pitch Günter Raphael's music to an audience of appreciative colleagues, which was my intent. If you were in the audience today, thank you! If you were in the audience for one of my test runs over the last couple of weeks, thank you! This project has been a way for me to envision the work that still lies ahead on my Dissertation, and get me to understand Raphael's music more thoroughly.

So far this has been a great American Viola Society Festival. I have been impressed with the turnout, the performances I have seen so far, and the level of the presentations that I have seen so far. This is my third American Viola Society event and probably the one that I have learned the most from. Perhaps I am at a place in life where I am able to be more receptive, and also a little calmer. This is not to dismiss the Viola Congress at Eastman in 2012, or the Viola Festival at Colburn in LA in 2014, but this has been such a great experience so far.

For those of you violists who have yet to attend one of these Festivals, I strongly encourage you to keep your eyes and ears open for news of subsequent events. It is definitely worth going, whether you are a student, performer, teacher (at any level). I have attended presentations about practicing with drones, the legacy and teaching style of Karen Tuttle, a Lecture-Recital about pre-1900 German composers for solo viola works (which is relevant to my own work), a panel discussion about DMA research and how it can be transformed, and ended my night with a performance by Robert Vernon, violinist Elmar Oliveira and others.

Tomorrow (Friday) will bring another riveting day. Until then!

 A picture of me demonstrating a passage in today's Lecture-Recital, at the American Viola Society Festival, at the Oberlin Conservatory, Oberlin, OH. (Photo Credit: Edward Klorman)

Tuesday, June 7, 2016

Violist on the Run, Leaving for the American Viola Society Festival Today

My poor car is going to be pretty fed up with me by the end of this week. Moonlight, my '09 Sonata, just returned from the wedding of dear friends in Ithaca, New York yesterday. I will be leaving in about an hour and a half (or as soon as I am packed and ready to go) for a roughly 8 hour drive (that's not including breaks) to Cleveland, OH. I'll be staying with a fine pianist in Cleveland for a few days, while traveling onward to Oberlin for the American Viola Society Festival.

I'll be leaving updates and pictures over the next few days, as I try to keep friends and family informed about my experiences. I am interested to see who is there, what is being performed and presented, and making new friends along the way! I am also extra excited because I will be giving a Lecture-Recital on Thursday afternoon, at 3:30 pm, presenting excerpts from the unaccompanied viola sonatas of Günter Raphael.


Stay tuned for more!

Wednesday, June 1, 2016

June 2016 Newsletter, Gregory K. Williams, Violist

June 2016 Newsletter
Gregory K. Williams, Violist
Dear Music Lovers, Violaphiles, Family, Friends, and Colleagues,
I thought May was going to be the month to end all months, but it appears that June 2016 is going to be quite extraordinary. Please read on as I clue you in on my exciting plans!

The Red Door Chamber Players had a fantastic first performance last Saturday in Oyster Bay. We will be giving our second performance on Friday, June 3, 2016, 7:30 pm at the Westhampton Presbyterian Church, Westhampton Beach, NY. I will be performing Joaquin Turina's Scene Andalouse, Op. 7 for viola and piano quintet. For more information, please visit http://www.reddoorchamberplayers.com.

I will be taking my research about Günter Raphael's viola music on the road, in the form of a Lecture-Recital. I will be giving two performances, the first is Tonight, June 1, 2016, 8:00 pm at the Aaron Copland School of Music, Queens, NY. (Rm. 226). The second performance will on Thursday, June 9, 2016, 3:30 pm at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music in Oberlin, Ohio. I will be playing excerpts from three of Raphael's unaccompanied viola sonatas. This Lecture-Recital will be part of the American Viola Society's Festival. I am honored to be a part of such an incredible week, where many superb violists from across the globe will be gathering. For more information about the festival please visit, http://www.americanviolasociety.org/Events/AVS-Festival.php.

On Sunday, June 13, 2016, 2:00 pm, I will be returning to Carnegie Hall, performing with the Distinguished Concerts International Orchestra. We will be performing a world premiere by composer Cristian Grases, and a work by Morton Lauridsen.

Saturday, June 18, 2016, 7:30 pm, offers a special treat. I am honored to announce that I will be featured as a guest soloist with the Litha Symphony Orchestra, performing Paul Hindemith's Trauermusik. The performance will be led by conductor Alex Wen. This gala concert will be taking place at the Church of the Holy Apostles, 296 9th Avenue, New York, NY. Details for this concert can be found at http://www.lithasymphony.org/upcoming-events.html.

I will be returning to the Hamptons this summer, performing with the Choral Society of the Hamptons, on Saturday, June 25th, 2016, at the Old Whaler's Church in Sag Harbor, at 7 PM. We will be performing Beethoven's Mass in C, and a new work by composer Victoria Bond. For details, please visit http://choralsocietyofthehamptons.org

While I will not be traveling to Los Angeles this summer, a film that I recorded on last summer, My First Kiss and the People Involved, will be released at the LA Film Festival on Saturday, June 5, 2016. The score was composed by the talented composer and flutist, Bonnie McAlvin. For more details, please visit, http://www.myfirstkissmovie.com/.

In between, I will be traveling to Ithaca, NY and San Francisco, CA, for weddings of a few dear friends, and amidst the flurry of activity, I am also looking forward to a few scattered days of downtime in New York City, on Long Island, and possibly up around Cape Cod. I hope to see YOU at some point in between.

Musically yours,

Gregory K. Williams