Final Thoughts: the Masterclass Experience

Michelle performed Huw Watkins’s “Coruscation and Reflection” for Midori on Sunday, January 31, as part of the Day of Exploration at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, co-presented by San Francisco Performances. The day-long workshop leads up to Midori & Charles Abramovic’s New Music Recital at the Herbst Theatre on Feb. 6.

For my final blog entry, I would like to present a summary of what I learned during the masterclass and how I will continue to apply Midori’s advice in my future study of Coruscation and Reflection.  This blog has certainly helped in my exploration of the piece, but I realize that there is still much to discover.  In the masterclass, Midori mentioned how as violinists, and as musicians in general, we approach modern music differently than older repertoire.  I can say from experience that it is extremely tempting to just play what is written on the page.  At first, the piece didn’t make sense to me, but as I played through it more and more, I began to notice things I had overlooked before.  The contour of the music became clearer, and the notes, once strange and unfamiliar, started falling into patterns and melodies.  My ear began picking up the subtleties of the music, and thus, my musical exploration of this piece truly took off.

As for Coruscation, Midori made several key points, which I found incredibly helpful.  She began by focusing my attention on the very first notes of the movement.  The idea was for me to try and listen between the intervals.  This allowed me to shape the phrase, but also helped me fine-tune the nuances within.  I became aware of the importance of that starting interval, from D to B, on which the entire movement rests.

Moving on, Midori then asked me to differentiate between the varying rhythms and time signatures in the next portion.  With constant quarter note beats, it’s nearly impossible for the audience to tell when a measure is in 3/4 or 4/4, or even 5/4.  I realized it was my job to help the audience with this by articulating the varied beat structures.  The rhythm was also crucial in this movement, especially concerning my bringing out triplets and really feeling rhythms together with Solon.

Jumping forward to the latter half of Coruscation, Midori asked me to sectionalize a portion of the movement.  I had divided the movement previously, but into three rather broad sections.  This time, I had to break a section down into smaller parts which helped me distinguish the purpose of each.  This particular section began with steady, rhythmic triplets which transitioned into a part that pushed forward incessantly.  An emotional climax was followed by more forward movement which culminated in the highest note of the entire movement.  Midori pointed out that the emotional and technical climaxes were at different places, which was interesting to me because I had always thought they coincided.

Learning this piece has helped me understand the complexities of performing such contrasting movements.  When I first performed Reflection, I let part of my character from Coruscation carry over into the next movement.  When Midori asked me to play the solo line in the beginning, I had to change my mood and take on a more distant personality.  This opening statement had to sound different from the in-your-face Coruscation, which a slower vibrato helped accomplish.  Too often, we make the mistake of losing momentum because we want to project a sense of stillness.  Midori reminded me that there is still continuous forward motion to an ultimate ending point, and so I cannot let my sound die.

When I was learning the work, I had difficulty interpreting the end portion of Reflection.  Midori worked with me to make sense of what she called fragmented and non-fragmented sections.  The end is comprised of fragments of the main material as well as non-fragments which can stand alone as distinct ideas.  I found this interpretation of the end innovative and beneficial for my presentation of this movement.

In conclusion, this entire experience has been incredible for me.  Everything from choosing the piece last year, to writing this blog about my study of the work, to delving into the material and figuring out what it all means have all made this a truly enlightening endeavor.  Playing for and working with Midori on this piece was the highlight of it all and I came away with much more than what I expected.  I would like to say thank you to Midori, Solon, my teachers, San Francisco Performances, the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra, and everyone who made this amazing experience possible!

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