Enjoy some pictures from The Moxie Strings Concert at Meijer Gardens. What a beautiful summer evening! Great music from both The Moxie Strings and The Dave Sharp World's Quintet.

In a recent Q&A session via instagram, I asked my followers if they had any questions or thoughts for any new blog posts. I needed inspiration. A friend and co-worker thought it would be a great idea to add a 'Top 10 List' of violin pieces. I thought this was such a great idea!! So here goes....My Top 10 List of Violin Solos.

Theses pieces span from Baroque, to Classical, to Romantic, to Neo-Classical. They all feature the violin as a solo instrument. I recommend you listen to all of these, let me know of your thoughts. Students, what techniques do you hear these violinists and composers using in these pieces?

What I did with this top 10 list was choose pieces that resonate with my soul. Basically, when I listen to these pieces of music I feel something, I have an emotional connection.

I also picked different soloists for each of these 10 pieces. (Some of the soloists play multiple of these). Take a listen and maybe even try to search for one of the pieces played by a different violinist. For example, Joshua Bell plays 'Aprés un Reve', the Vivaldi 'Winter' piece, and Fauré Violin Sonata Mov. 1. Listen to the versions I chose, then go back and listen to his interpretations of the same pieces. This goes back to my previous blog, each soloist has their own take on a composition, completely unique. If you wanted, you could spend an entire lifetime perfecting or changing just this list of pieces.

1) 'Aprés un Reve' by Gabriel Fauré, Violinist: Janine Jansen
2) 'Suite Populaire Espagnole II - Nana' by Manuel de Falla, Violinist: James Ehnes
3) 'Musica Universalis' by Alex Baranowski, Violinist: Daniel Hope
4) 'Chaconne' by  J.S. Bach, Violinist: Christian Kim
5) 'The Four Seasons - III. L'inverno: Winter' by Antonio Vivaldi, Violinist: Itzhak Perlman
6) 'Violin Sonata No. 1 in A Major - I. Allegro Molto' by Gabriel Fauré, Violinist: Giora Schmidt
7) 'Violin Concerto in E minor Op. 64 Mov. III' by Felix Mendelssohn, Violinist: Hilary Hahn
*Starting at 21 minutes and 30 seconds
8) 'Chaconne' by Tomaso Antonio Vitali, Violinist: Sarah Chang
9) 'Ladies in Lavender' by Nigel Hess, Violinist: Joshua Bell
10) 'Caprice No. 24' by Nicolo Paganini, Violinist: Zia Hyunsu Shin

Hope you all enjoyed this!
Larissa

P.S. Thanks for the great photo Ariel Vincent!!

Have you ever thought about the unique sounds found in nature? The leaves on the trees in the wind, crickets signaling the night, the waves crashing on the shore... There are over 10,000 different species of birds alone known today. More than 10,000! Can you imagine how many different bird songs and calls there are that you have never heard?

Have you also ever thought about the unique voices of every single person you have ever known? There are about 7.4 billion people on the planet today. Physiologically, most everyone has the same general makeup of vocal chords, throat, nose, mouth...but why do we all sound different? We have the same tools, but each and every single one of us is crafted just a bit differently. We are all unique.

When it comes to musicians and listening to different soloists, I think this comes out if you really pay close attention. Sure, there are thousands of violinists in the world. But, everyone has a different violin made of different wood, played with different emotions. Remember this. Remember how unique you are! Never think you are just another person, or that you are normal. No one is normal. Everyone is unique. Everyone plays a part in this world. Everyone has a different story to tell, different life experiences, different gifts and talents they can bring to create beauty and joy.

To my students, I challenge you to look up a piece of music you like, this can be any genre. But look it up and listen to maybe 5 different versions of it...a cover with different instruments, a different vocalist, the same musician playing it live for an audience vs. in a recording session, one with a vocalist, one without. Did you experience different emotions each time you listened to that same piece of music? What do you think after this experiment?

Larissa