The Strad’s editor Emma Baker introduces the June issue, in which German violinist Christian Tetzlaff dicusses turning 60, the values that have shaped his career and why he finds dignity in speaking out about what he believes in
One of the hallmarks of a musician who has nothing left to prove is a willingness to speak out – about music, authority and the world it inhabits. Our cover star this June, the great German violinist Christian Tetzlaff, is one such figure. As we went to press, he had just celebrated his 60th birthday, and he talks to Richard Bratby about where his trajectory has taken him so far: his fearless refusal to separate music from political reality, his scepticism about the cult of the conductor and, above all, his unwavering love of the music that has shaped his life and career.
This month also marks 120 years since the birth of French cellist Pierre Fournier. Oskar Falta looks beyond the patrician image to consider Fournier’s musicianship and his lasting influence on the generations of cellists that followed, as well as the moral complexities of his life during the Second World War, and how those continue to shape his legacy.
Rediscovery is also at the heart of our exploration of the violoncello da spalla, an instrument enjoying renewed interest from all kinds of string players. Luthier Daniela Gaidano traces its history and explains why this small five-string cello is proving so attractive to a growing number of modern musicians, not least for its flexibility across solo and chamber repertoire.
Finally, where do we choose to listen? Irina Rostomashvili considers what happens when the scale of chamber music performance is reduced dramatically: from the 500 or so seats of London’s Wigmore Hall, for example, to rooms seating fewer than 50. The results, for performers and listeners alike, suggest that the resulting intimacy of sound can in itself be a powerful interpretative force.
Emma Baker editor
Email me at thestrad@thestrad.com
Issue summary
We talk to Christian Tetzlaff as he marks his 60th birthday and explore the best venues for chamber music. There’s a look at the violoncello da spalla and an investigation into soundpost acoustics. Plus a Chausson Masterclass and interviews with Paul Huang and Laura van der Heijden.
Contents
CHRISTIAN TETZLAFF The superstar German violinist talks to Richard Bratby about his views on everything from music and instruments to his quartet, festivals and politics
CHAMBER MUSIC IN SMALL SPACES With quartets, trios and solo sonatas now performed in venues of increasing size, Irina Rostomashvili asks whether the intimacy of chamber music has been lost
VIOLONCELLO DA SPALLA The so-called ‘arm cello’, favoured by composers such as Bach, has seen a resurgence of interest in recent years. Daniela Gaidano presents a brief history
SESSION REPORT The members of the Catalyst Quartet talk to Thomas May about their recording of the complete quartets by Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges
SOUNDPOST ACOUSTICS Joseph Curtin presents the results of an investigation into the acoustic role of the soundpost, focusing on its position, its length, and the tightness of the fit
PIERRE FOURNIER Once known as the ‘aristocrat of the cello’, the French soloist was born 120 years ago. Oskar Falta looks back at his life, career and artistic legacy
IN FOCUS A 1718 violin by Francesco Gobetti
TRADE SECRETS Luthier Brian Lisus’s method for making cochineal lake pigments
MY SPACE S.K. Lim’s workshop in Singapore
MAKING MATTERS Philip Kass examines a unique bow by British maker James Dodd II
MASTERCLASS Violinist Maria Włoszczowska gives her thoughts on playing Chausson’s Poème
TECHNIQUE Usha Kapoor’s hints and tips on dealing with hypermobility in violinists
LIFE LESSONS The memories and opinions of Taiwanese–American violinist Paul Huang
OPINION Have our ideas of what constitutes a modern violin become too fixed?
POSTCARD FROM NEW YORK A close-up look at a week inside The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center
FROM THE ARCHIVE From June 1906
SENTIMENTAL WORK Laura van der Heijden on her love for Amy Beach’s Piano Quintet
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