Cecilia and Andrew have unique perspectives on Book Recitals.
They were also paired for their Book 4/5 recital, originally scheduled during Spring Term, 2020. Because of the Pandemic, their plans changed numerous times. The vast majority of their preparation was held online. Their Spring Term, 2020 recital was eventually held in Fall Term, 2020…online from home with the joint pieces “performed” as Acapella videos. Book 4/5 is the first time a violin student performs a full concerto; for Cecilia and Andrew, this meant performing with an app doing the accompaniment!
One year later, they have had a very different preparation and performance experience for the in person Book 6 recital. Here are their reflections on the experience.
from Andrew
To finally be able to perform with one another in person with a live audience after collaborating with each other through videos, apps and zoom is a great experience and refresher. Practicing with each other in person allows us to communicate easier both in discussion and playing the violin together. Being able to perform the finished recital in person also creates a greater sense of accomplishment and allows us to share the achievements of our violin journey with others. As we rehearsed for our recital, it was quite difficult to get used to the formalities of an in person performance such as the paths to walk, when to bow and giving a que. I am very pleased with the final result although I still hoped that we could polish up the pieces a bit more. In conclusion, I enjoyed doing my Violin Book 6 Recital in person, collaborating with others and being able to share the results of our journey with others.
from Cecilia
This recital was definitely more memorable than the book 4-5 recital because it was in person, and I was able to play with Andrew together. We had a hard time practising together since it was so different, we had trouble communicating with one another, and we sometimes just start playing on our own, forgetting that we’re actually playing together. I felt a lot more anxious and scared since there were actual people in real life watching my performance, and I wasn’t really prepared for that due to the many recitals and performances I’ve had online. This recital was better than the last one because I got to really talk to my partner about things that we needed to work on. Although I made mistakes while playing, I really enjoyed this recital and I look forward to the next one.
