composers Archives

A Much Maligned Cellist: The True Story of Felix Salmond and the Elgar Cello Concerto (Part 4) — by Tully Potter

Blog photos courtesy of the Tully Potter Collection. This blog is a continuation of a multi-part series. Revisit it from the beginning in Part 1, Part 2 & Part 3. The original article first appeared in the Elgar Society Journal. THE EMIGRATION Early in 1922 the Salmonds left England for New York with their two children: Lillian had borrowed money to help pay for their passage and their living expenses while Felix established himself. On 29 March he made a successful recital début at the Aeolian Hall with Frank Bibb at the piano; but it soon became apparent that he would not earn much more as a soloist than he had in England, and that he would have to take a teaching post in order to make ends meet. He [...]

By Tully Potter|2024-04-10T18:34:29-04:00February 15th, 2018|Categories: Interpersonal Relationships, Performance, Repertoire|Tags: london symphony orchestra, criticism, composers, recording, Elgar, premiere, Felix Salmond, juilliard, cello concerto|

A Much Maligned Cellist: The True Story of Felix Salmond and the Elgar Cello Concerto (Part 3) — by Tully Potter

Original image provided by the Salmond Family. This blog is a continuation of a multi-part series. Revisit Part 1 here, and Part 2 here. The original article first appeared in the Elgar Society Journal. The next development in the saga was that Fred Gaisberg of HMV wanted to record the Concerto—he had obviously not been put off by the première. As had happened with the Violin Concerto, just four 12-inch 78rpm sides would be available, but the more compact Cello Concerto would not need to be cut quite so drastically—the Scherzo would require only a small excision and the Adagio would be accommodated complete on one side. Sadly Salmond was under contract to Vocalion, so could not be considered. Guilhermina Suggia was approached but wanted too high a fee. The [...]

By Tully Potter|2024-03-28T00:05:27-04:00February 13th, 2018|Categories: Interpersonal Relationships, Performance, Repertoire|Tags: criticism, composers, recording, Elgar, premiere, Felix Salmond, cello concerto, london symphony orchestra|

A Much Maligned Cellist: The True Story of Felix Salmond and the Elgar Cello Concerto (Part 2) — by Tully Potter

Blog photo courtesy of the Tully Potter Collection. This blog is a continuation of a multi-part series. Revisit Part 1 here. The original article first appeared in the Elgar Society Journal. The fiasco that never was Just how much of a disaster was the premiere? Let us review some of the salient points, starting with the soloist. All those who knew him were agreed that Felix Salmond had a phenomenal memory, so there is every probability that he knew the cello part intimately by the time he arrived at Queen’s Hall. As the son of a singer, he had early imbibed the virtues of a singing line and good breath control. As a virtuoso he was no Feuermann or Piatigorsky but the few discs which document him in fast-moving music [...]

By Tully Potter|2024-03-18T13:24:57-04:00February 5th, 2018|Categories: Interpersonal Relationships, Performance, Repertoire|Tags: composers, Elgar, premiere, Felix Salmond, cello concerto, criticism|

A Much Maligned Cellist: The True Story of Felix Salmond and the Elgar Cello Concerto (Part 1) — by Tully Potter

Blog photos courtesy of the Tully Potter Collection. This article first appeared in the Elgar Society Journal. Tully Potter tries to lay a myth to rest. Sometimes a myth becomes so firmly entrenched in the public consciousness that the true facts are completely obscured. So it has been with that archetypal English cellist Felix Salmond, whose career is always woefully misrepresented. In his adopted country, the United States, he is remembered for teaching at Juilliard and Curtis and nurturing most of the prominent 1930s and post-war American cellists. In Britain he is indelibly linked with the premiere of Elgar’s E minor Concerto, an event now encrusted with fables. Felix Adrian Norman Salmond was born in London on 19 November 1888, to musical parents: his father Norman was a [...]

By Tully Potter|2024-03-11T13:14:52-04:00February 5th, 2018|Categories: Interpersonal Relationships, Performance, Repertoire|Tags: Felix Salmond, cello concerto, composers, Elgar, premiere|

New and Old — by Yeesun Kim

This summer I had two very different experiences performing contemporary pieces. The first piece, as it turned out, had several performances spread over two months. Two concerts included working with the composer prior to the concert. The second piece was set up to be only performed once, without the composer's presence and with only two days of rehearsing. Both pieces were quite difficult in their own ways. The first piece called for virtuosity, stamina and the ability to clearly outline the structure and narrative in order to hold the piece together. The second piece was almost the exact opposite. Short and obsessively detailed in its use of sound effects, it abounded in the use of extended techniques. It employed extremely soft dynamics and seemed to purposefully obscure perceptible structure in [...]

By Yeesun Kim|2022-04-04T13:55:15-04:00October 7th, 2011|Categories: Chamber Music, Performance, Repertoire|Tags: structure, Kim, ability, rehearsals, articulations, Yeesun, familiar, creativity, character, soundscapes, Rhythm, cello, composers, cellobello, music, unique, dynamics, challenges, virtuosity, confidence|

Composing and Playing Music: How Composing Helps Your Playing — by Lev Mamuya

Composing one’s own music can prove to be a very valuable resource when it comes to interpreting the music of others, and vice versa. As a composing musician myself, I find that as I get more advanced in each field, each one’s development seems to promote the other’s. Through composing my own music I have not necessarily gained a greater technical facility, but a more complete understanding of the markings in the music that I play and a deeper appreciation of the composer’s intentions. The practice of putting in more detailed markings has developed over time. The music of 20th century composers is generally more specific marking-wise than the music of the Baroque era in terms of what composers actually wrote into the music. For instance, the Debussy Cello Sonata [...]

By Lev Mamuya|2017-06-17T22:34:10-04:00September 6th, 2011|Categories: High School Blogs, In the Practice Room, Repertoire|Tags: structure, cellobello, understanding, textures, music, dynamics, value, individuality, influences, Lev, details, Mamuya, harmony, Technique, resources, intentions, vision, Interpretation, composers, complexities, artistry, composition, markings, cello|

Cycles, Shostakovich, and the Final Four — Brandon Vamos

I often get asked about performing cycles. I am a member of a Quartet that is passionate about performing cycles of music, including the complete string quartets of Beethoven, Carter, Mendelssohn, and Shostakovich (among others). But why bother with cycles? What do they have to offer us a musicians or audience members? I like to think of it like I think of my Vikings (in case you didn’t know, I’m a huge fan). Why bother following a team game to game or season to season? Well for one, you start to learn the language of the game. Not just the game of football itself, but how that TEAM plays the game. The aggressive way they run plays or their team personality, what feeling they leave with you at the end [...]

By Brandon Vamos|2020-12-14T04:46:52-05:00March 28th, 2011|Categories: Artistic Vision, Chamber Music, Performance, Repertoire|Tags: musicians, melodies, performances, perspective, string quartet, Beethoven, audiences, Shostakovich, cello, themes, cellobello, cellist, Touring, humor, challenge, understanding, composers, unique, Quartet, composition, Brandon, concert halls, context, experiences|