Ep. 2 Violinist - Hilary Hahn
“Three-time Grammy Award-winning violinist Hilary Hahn matches expressive musicality and technical expertise with a diverse repertoire guided by artistic curiosity. Her barrier-breaking attitude towards classical music and her commitment to sharing her experiences with a global community have made her a fan favourite.”
Hilary Hahn is an American violinist. She began learning violin one month before her fourth birthday. Hahn was a child prodigy, and began playing the violin in the Suzuki Program of Baltimore’s Peabody Institute. She has performed throughout the world both as a soloist with leading orchestras and conductors and as a recitalist.
Hahn is a noted champion of new works, and has commissioned many new compositions, including a series called “In 27 Pieces: the Hilary Hahn Encores.”
Hilary Hahn is also well known for her recordings and performances of Bach. She says: “Bach is, for me, the touchstone that keeps my playing honest. Keeping the intonation pure in double stops, bringing out the various voices where the phrasing requires it, crossing the strings so that there are not inadvertent accents, presenting the structure in such a way that it's clear to the listener without being pedantic – one can't fake things in Bach, and if one gets all of them to work, the music sings in the most wonderful way.”
I love the above quote about Hilary Hahn’s playing. It articulates so clearly everything that I love about Hilary Hahn. She plays with an incredible fusion of meticulous technique combined with a musicality that has such a sincere and genuine connection to the music. When I watch her play I am always inspired by the fact that every detail in her playing is incredibly well thought through. Hilary Hahn is an artist of incredible diversity - she is well known for both her performances of new compositions and also incredible interpretation of Bach works.
Hilary Hahn has long been one of my favourite violinists. I urge you to follow her on instagram - her account is @violincase and she initially wrote her posts from the perspective of her violin case. She's humble, personable, funny, and shares fascinating clips of her violin practice that are so inspiring!!
One of her initiatives on social media is an 100 Days of Practice project. It has inspired me, and countless others, to practice for 100 days in a row. Have you ever attempted this challenge with her? Also, how rad is it that she started out as a Suzuki Violin student? I LOVE listening to her recordings for the first three Suzuki Violin books!!
I have chosen the following performances for our listening club:
- J.S. Bach - Sonata for Violin Solo No. 1 in G Minor, BWV 1001, 4th mvt (Presto)
- J. S. Bach - Partita for Violin Solo, No. 1 in B Minor, BWV 1002, 4th mvt (Presto)
- H. W. Ernst - Der Erlkonig
- E. Ysaye - Sonata No. 2 for Solo Violin, Op. 27 “Obsession”
- E. Chausson - Poeme
- J. S. Bach - Concerto for Two Violins in D Minor, Allegro (featuring Chris Thile and Paul Kowert)
I would love to hear from you which are your favourite performances are by Hilary Hahn. Enjoy!