By Laurie Niles: If you ask a group of string players, "What is your favorite violin concerto by Mozart?" a good percentage of them will completely ignore the composer's five official violin concertos and respond, "the Sinfonia Concertante!" Of course this piece is not even called a "concerto," and it's not just for violin. The Sinfonia Concertante in E-flat major pairs violin and viola together, as equal partners in the spotlight. Or maybe more like conjoined twins... "It�s like each person taking one side of the ski, yet skiing together," said Yura Lee, principal violist of the Los Angeles C ..read more

By Laurie Niles: In an effort to promote the coverage of live violin performance, Violinist.com each week presents links to reviews of notable concerts and recitals around the world. Violinist Nathan Olson. Photo courtesy Dallas Symphony Orchestra. Nathan Olson performed Benjamin Britten's Violin Concerto with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. Texas Classical Review: "As the violin soloist, DSO co-concertmaster Nathan Olson proved an effective solo protagonist, alternating between a fervent singing tone that reflects the somber mood and brisk dance gestures that try but fail to escape the angst ..read more

By Laurie Niles: Walt Disney Concert Hall's magnificent, one-of-a-kind, 6,134-pipe organ looms large at any performance in that venue, but last weekend it was truly the hero of the show. The instrument - which locals affectionately call the "French fry organ" - even received its own special round of applause. Laurie and Robert Niles at Walt Disney Concerto Hall - with its unique organ. That applause was for the "Organ Symphony" - Camille Saint-Sa�ns Symphony No. 3 in C minor - performed Friday night by the Los Angeles Philharmonic, led by conductor Louis Langr�e. It was one of three performan ..read more

By Laurie Niles: Do you have dreams about your violin, viola or other instrument that you play? And I mean literal dreams - do you go to sleep and night and occasionally dream that you are playing, or trying to play, or are in some music-related situation? Here is an example for you, of a cello-related dream: @classicalmusicdaily Musicians Nightmares are Unique via ???? @nick.canellakis_cellist ? original sound - Classical Music Daily I think my favorite part of this is where the pianist randomly says, "It's for Rostropovich!" I've certainly had a number of violin-related dreams over many dec ..read more

By Stephen Brivati: It is a truism to note that the Sonatas and Partitas of Bach are at the core of what being a violinist means. They in turn frustrate, inform, inspire and profoundly touch us as human beings. I can easily imagine Bach, now on the astral plane, turning to Anna and saying with a chuckle "Seht, wie ich ihre K�pfe durcheinandergebracht habe!" (My skanky version of "Hah! I messed up their heads good and proper!") This being the case, the S+Ps are used to judge violinists in all manner of situations. The first for me was back in the dark ages when I had to graduate from RCM (the ..read more

By Laurie Niles: Welcome to "For the Record," Violinist.com's weekly roundup of new releases of recordings by violinists, violists, cellists and other classical musicians. We hope it helps you keep track of your favorite artists, as well as find some new ones to add to your listening! Violinist Isabelle Faust. Photo by Marco Borggreve. Benjamin Britten Violin Concerto and Chamber Works Isabelle Faust, violin Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Jakub Hru�a conducting Alexander Melnikov, piano Boris Faust, viola German violinist Isabelle Faust performs Benjamin Britten's 1939 Violin Concerto, in ..read more

By Laurie Niles: For violin soloist Sirena Huang, last month's big Suzuki Association of the Americas conference in Louisville brought her back to her roots - that is, her Suzuki roots. "It was because of my first teacher, Linda Fiore and the entire Suzuki community that I fell in love with music," Sirena told a large classroom of teachers and students gathered to hear her play, speak and give a master class at the conference. It was also because of her father, who - following the Suzuki ideal of parental involvement - learned to play violin alongside Sirena, as a way to support her learning ..read more

By Laurie Niles: In an effort to promote the coverage of live violin performance, Violinist.com each week presents links to reviews of notable concerts and recitals around the world. The Orion String Quartet: Steven Tenenbom, Todd Phillips, Daniel Phillips and Timothy Eddy. Photo by Lois Greenfield. Orion Quartet performed its farewell concert at Alice Tully Hall, presented by the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. New York Classical Review: "From the opening bars of (Schubert�s G major, Op. 161, D. 887), bold and mysterious by turns, the group found that sweet spot of quartet performa ..read more

By Laurie Niles: I've checked: the official rules barring cell phone pictures and video remain in place at most classical venues that I visit. But the reality all around me tells a completely different story. During concerts, people take plentiful cell phone pictures and video. For example, watching Ray Chen and Julio Elizalde's recital at Disney Hall last week, I witnessed someone directly in front of me capture their performance of three encore pieces, in their entirety, on their cell phone. Likewise, the picture snapping and video capture was everywhere, throughout. Every day on my social ..read more

By Laurie Niles: Welcome to "For the Record," Violinist.com's weekly roundup of new releases of recordings by violinists, violists, cellists and other classical musicians. We hope it helps you keep track of your favorite artists, as well as find some new ones to add to your listening! Violinist Randall Goosby. Roots (Deluxe Edition) Randall Goosby, violin Zhu Wang, piano Carlos Simon, piano Roots is an exploration of the music written by Black composers and inspired by Black American culture. The album is a homage to the pioneering musicians who paved the way for Goosby and his generation of ..read more